Victoria de los Angeles - The Very Best of Victoria de los Angeles (2012)

The Very Best of Victoria de Los Angeles is a superior representation of the soprano's career. The two-disc set begins with a well-rounded selection of arias, from Mozart to Gounod to Wagner to Puccini, followed by examples of her concert and recital repertoire. The recording dates also cover her full career, from the Wagner and Mozart arias recorded in 1950 to her memorable Songs of the Auvergne recording from 1975. The fact that some of these are mono recordings really isn't as noticeable as you might expect, thanks to the magic of digital remastering. The arias are some of the most familiar, but the true highlight of the opera selections is her vocal skills. Listen to "Ebben? Ne andrò lontana" from La Wally or "Una voce poco fa" from The Barber of Seville to hear the way she moves from the top to the bottom of her range with little trouble at all and the way she performs fast scales or ornaments without blurring notes together. In addition to these skills, her interpretations are affecting, particularly in the songs, and her voice is warm and strong. The second disc contains the complete Cinco Canciones negras by Montsalvatge and songs from Falla's El Amor brujo, two works for which her interpretations are usually considered the standard. Other songs range from Handel to Grieg to Ravel, along with other Spanish works. An extra treat is Adios, Granada, in which de los Angeles accompanies herself on the guitar as she sings. ~ Patsy Morita