Amazon.co.uk Review
Anyone who has already bought one of the numerous Callas compilations on the market won't find anything new on Romantic Callas, but novices could do a lot worse than start with this handsomely packaged two-CD collection (which would, incidentally, make an ideal present for anyone you think might be a budding Mariaphile). The tracks are mostly studio recordings from the height of La divina's career in the mid 1950s, but "Parigi O cara" (with Alfredo Kraus) is included from the famous live recording of La traviata from Lisbon to give a hint of what she was like on stage--and even with a hilariously ropy orchestra and an oboe that sounds like a constipated duck, one can only marvel at her extraordinary range and incredible intensity. (Rest assured, the other orchestras are on top form!) Fabulous as a coloratura, powerpacking and full as a dramatic soprano, always dramatically truthful, these 28 wonderful tracks show off every aspect of her remarkable voice. --Warwick Thompson