Giacomo Puccini (1858-1924)
Heroines
Sondra Radvanovsky (soprano), Lyric Opera of Chicago Orchestra / Enrique Mazzola
rec. live concerts, February 2025, Chicago, USA
Italian texts and English translations provided
Pentatone PTC5187491 [76]
Illinois-born Sondra Radvanovsky is often regarded as a Verdi soprano. She first came to my attention alongside baritone Dmitri Hvorostovsky on their live 2008 Delos album, Verdi Opera Scenes, recorded in the Great Hall of the Moscow Conservatory and in 2010 she won further admirers with her Delos recital collection Verdi Arias.
However, Puccini, too, has always featured high in her repertoire; in fact, her stage debut was as Mimì in La bohème. On this live recital album there are twelve chosen arias from all of Puccini’s operas except Il tabarro. Also included to showcase the orchestra are three Preludes and two Intermezzos from five of the operas. Not every Puccini role here is part of Radvanovsky’s repertoire but she has achieved success with her portrayal as Mimì from La bohème, Liù from Turandot and other leading Puccini title roles such as Manon Lescaut, Tosca and Suor Angelica.
This collection derives from three live concert performances titled The Puccini Heroines given in February 2025 at the Lyric Opera of Chicago, the opera house she considers her home. A lirico-spinto soprano, she adapts her voice to a challenging range of soprano subtypes from Musetta, a soubrette, to Princess Turandot, a dramatic soprano role, which she first sang as recently as 2022 in a concert performance for the Sala Santa Cecilia, Rome. Here, she sings the princess’ grand entrance aria In questa reggia (In this Palace), which explains her ice-cold exterior as self-protection from her traumatic ancestral past. Radvanovsky is in resolute and penetrating voice, displaying dramatic master and producing high decibel levels – although unsurprisingly there is also some unevenness in her vocal production.
It is not just the dramatic roles in which Radvanovsky excels; she sings Musetta’s aria Quando me’n vo’, often known as Musetta’s Waltz from La bohème, charmingly, with kittenish allure, in a bid to regain the attention of former lover Marcello.
The most famous aria in Tosca is the leading lady’s Vissi d’arte (I lived for art). Feeling utterly forsaken, Tosca she asks God why she has been placed in this dreadful predicament when she has always tried to live a good life. Radvanovsky is assured and convincing in this spinto role, delivering a strong yet achingly smooth performance that unveils the vulnerable side of Tosca’s personality.
Another Radvanovsky highlight here, although much lesser-known, is Anna’s romanza Se come voi piccina io fossi (If I were small like you) from Puccini’s first stage work Le Willis (The Fairies), an opera–ballet from 1884 that Puccini expanded from a single act to two with a name change to Le Villi. Set in the Black Forest, it is a romantic tale of unfaithful love. Anna is the tragic heroine engaged to Robert who before their wedding must leave to deal with a family matter. Deeply troubled by a dream she had that Robert will not return to her, holding a posy of flowers Anna reprises her final words Non ti scordar di me! (Forget me not); Radvanovsky here demonstrates her adeptness at expressing passionate feeling.
This collection was recorded at live concert performances in front of enthusiastic home audiences who applaud and cheer for all they are worth, so although the orchestra plays extremely well although on occasions their sound is masked by them. It cannot have been easy to record Radvanovsky’s substantial voice in the packed opera house, yet overall, I find the sound quality most acceptable.
Radvanovsky here demonstrates that she shares in Puccini’s genius gift for dramatic expression, although at times her imperative for emotional intensity understandably comes at the expense of vocal beauty. Nonetheless, her characterisations are admirably compelling and there are several spine-tingling episodes, making for thoroughly rewarding listening.
Michael Cookson
Previous review: David James
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Contents
Le Villi (1884)
1 Prelude
2 Act I · Se come voi piccina
La bohème (1896)
3 Act I · Sì. Mi chiamano Mimì
Madama Butterfly (1904)
4 Intermezzo
5 Act II · Un bel dì vedremo
Tosca (1900)
6 Act II · Vissi d’arte
Manon Lescaut (1893)
7 Intermezzo
8 Act IV · Sola, perduta, abbandonata
La fanciulla del West (1910)
9 Prelude
10 Act I · Laggiù nel Soledad
Suor Angelica (1918)
11 Senza mamma
Edgar (1889)
12 Prelude
13 Act III · Addio, mio dolce amor!
La rondine (1917)
14 Act I · Chi il bel sogno di Doretta
Turandot (1926)
15 Act II · In questa reggia
La bohème
16 Act II · Quando me’n vo’
Gianni Schicchi (1918)
17 Act I · O mio babbino caro
