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Marilyn Horne - The Complete Decca Recitals
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List Price: $49.98
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Manufacturer: Decca Records
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Average Customer Rating: 
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Binding: Audio CD
EAN: 0028947801658
Label: Decca Records
Manufacturer: Decca Records
Number Of Discs: 11
Publisher: Decca Records
Release Date: 2008-04-15
Studio: Decca Records
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Editorial Reviews:
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The great American mezzo-soprano Marilyn Horne celebrated her 70th birthday in January 2004, the same year that also marked 50 years since her professional debut. Horne's debut in 1954 took place in Los Angeles. Her name and voice was brought to many more people than could ever hear her in the opera house through the 1954 film Carmen Jones in which she sang the dubbed voice of Dorothy Dandridge. But it was with Joan Sutherland that Marilyn Horne found the perfect vocal partner. Their performances in the great bel canto operas by Rossini, Bellini and Donizetti took the opera world by storm in the 1960s and early 1970s. By the time she retired in 1998, Marilyn Horne's long and distinguished career embraced an enormous variety of operatic roles, as well as a wide variety of solo repertoire ranging from Schubert, Schumann and Mahler through to modern American songs. Such a wide repertory was due to the sheer range of her voice and its remarkable flexibility, a voice that could sustain long lines of melody as well as negotiate the most florid vocal pyrotechnics. Marilyn Horne participated in a number of complete opera recordings (among them classic recordings of Norma and Semiramide with Joan Sutherland), as well as ten recital programs for Decca. The complete recitals are now reissued in their entirety as a Collector Edition on this 11-CD set. The original LP cover art is reproduced for the CD sleeves.
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Spotlight customer reviews:
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Customer Rating:
Summary: General Horne
Comment: Marilyn Horne - The Complete Decca RecitalsThese recitals give a complete view of Hornes range,from Bel Canto opera to American song,via Mahler and Wagner.What a fantastic Artist she is,ease of singing in all ranges from top "C" down to the depths of a true contralto,and she manages to vary her timbre as to what she is singing.
recommended o all lovers of great singing
Customer Rating:
Summary: a TREASURE TROVE....thank you, Decca/Universal
Comment: what to say??? First, "THANK YOU" to Decca records for assembling and presenting this WONDERFUL collection to us, honoring this Great Lady...the complete recital recordings of the Fabulous Ms Horne...certainly one of the GREATEST SINGERS of the Century. I do not recall a more distinctive mezzo voice in my many years of listening to opera and classical voice recordings. She had a seamless, absolutely stellar voice, and used it well, carving her niche in the history of Great Operatic Singing. These 11 discs are all stunning on their own as individuals, but packaged up together, in this Beautiful Box Set, and with the Original Album Cover Art reproduced on the individual sleeves, as well as the documentation presented with them, make this set a true Treasure-Trove, and Meaningful Remembrance of Ms Horne's long and memorable career. In today's "money, money, money" world, where we think that things are produced simply to "sell", it is refreshing, and heartening, to know that the people at Decca have produced this set Not for Quick Bucks, but as a Homogeneous Testament to the Talent and Memory of Marilyn Horne, truly one of America's Greatest Treasures...here, "ART" takes first place over "dollars". Thank You, Decca records for giving us this great collection of Ms Horne's solo recordings.
Customer Rating: 
Summary: Superb singing deserves a better presentation.
Comment: I agree with the previous reviewers about Ms. Horne's voice and performances. There are many riches here: the singing is superb throughout, one or two optional unmusical high notes aside. The range of music is enormous and Horne sings it all with style and grace, including the odd collection that is the American Songbook (Copeland, Foster, Berlin and... Malotte!?) Most of these recitals were conducted by Henry Lewis. He is fine, but I really sat up and took notice when Zubin Mehta took over for the Mahler song cycles directly after listening to Lewis conduct the Mahler/Wagner songs. Horne seemed more engaged on the Mehta led disc, too.
The unfortunate news is that some of this music is unfamiliar (Nin and Bizet songs, some of the bel canto and French arias) and there is not a text or synopsis in sight. I would have gladly paid a little more for even bare-bones texts.
The opera arias and excellent Rossini scenes discs are available separately. The first two discs (the stunning Souvenir of a Golden Era) have recently also been reissued as a set. It looks like those two CDs - at about two-thirds the cost of these eleven CDs - have been issued with texts and notes. (The timings on each disc in the eleven CD set range from about 37 minutes to 57 minutes.)
Customer Rating:
Summary: HEAVEN IN A BOX
Comment: If you are reading this review, you are already too late in making the necessary clicks to purchase and add this stunning collection of vocal artistry to your collection. A MUST OWN! BUY, BUY, BUY IT!
Customer Rating:
Summary: Beyond the realm of five stars . . .
Comment: Marilyn Horne's career is beyond the reach of the five star standard. I have had the pleasure of hearing her sing in person many times at the Lyric in Chicago as well as in recital. These discs bring a flood of memories of the size, beauty, range, and absolute glory of her voice.
"Souvenir of a Golden Era" was always my favorite of her recordings; as a consequence I was so pleased to hear that it would be re-released. When I learned that it would be available in this set as well, how could I resist. I actually still have all these discs in vinyl, but could not resist the opportunity to purchase this wonderful compilation and overview of her career.
The most glorious evening I have ever spent in the opera house was the night I heard "Semiramide" at the Lyric. Chicago was in the grip of a fierce blizzard. However, I waited outside the stage door for both Marilyn and Joan to emerge to collect their autographs on my program. Miss Horne and Dame Joan were astounded to see this snow covered person standing and waiting and were graciously signed my program. Marilyn left the "e" off of her signature, remarking, "I've forgotten the final 'e.'" She tacked it on with a giggle and a smile. I shall never forget the experience and, of course, cherish that program to this day.
As I listen to these discs, my memories of her last recital here in Chicago come flooding back as she remarked that she would be enlisting in Medicare soon and noted "the voice isn't what it used to be." How we all wished it would never diminish. Thank you Decca/London for this rare gift.
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