G. Rossini: Il Barbiere di Siviglia Una voce poco fà
Bellini: I Capuleti e i Montecchi Oh, quante volte 
Donizetti: Linda di Chamounix O luce di quest’anima
Bellini: I Puritani Qui la voce
Verdi: Attila Santo di patria
Verdi: I Lombardi Te Vergin Santa invoco
Donizetti: Anna Bolena Mad scene
Donizetti: Lucrezia Borgia Era desso il figlio mio
Verdi: Macbeth (1847 version) Trionfai!

about

The belcanto repertoire is not limited to endless coloratura passages and vocal jewellery, as it is often and mistakenly claimed. Although it does require impeccable and secure technique, its essence is the tradition of ornamentation, which poses inevitable question of style.

Belcanto gives an endless space for creativity, interpretation and expression, which makes it timeless: any singer can make it her own, which results in free and personal interpretation. The ornamentation, however, is not an empty virtuoso show: it should express even deeper the aria’s atmosphere and the dramatic situation, in which we find the character.

The album is one-of-a-kind journey through stages and shades of a woman’s life. From witty Rosina and sweet Linda, through heroic Odabella and ethereal, pious Giselda it reaches more ambivalent figures like Lucrezia Borgia or Anna Bolena and is crowned with fanfarous Trionfai of Lady Macbeth, incrusted with numerous high Fs. As stated in one of the reviews,

This piece itself is an overblown sense of triumph, an unfolding spell of becoming the queen and of course impeccably mastered cascade of vocal fireworks as well. Klára Kolonits is ascending the throne.


(The queen’s statement – Ferenc László, Muzsika, February 2015)

This repertoire for me is like a perfectly tailored dress, I can look my best wearing it – and I can sound my best singing bel canto. These roles contain sort of equilibrium between lyrical, dramatic and coloratura challenges. In this repertoire I found all the things set together, that I looked for separately, in vain – or I tried to express separately, in vain as well. The drama of insanity in Lady Macbeth or in Lucia, the fatal passion in Luisa Miller, ferocious chest tones in Lucrezia Borgia or in Odabella, and in the same time fervent lyricism is present as well, in Bellini’s cavatinas for instance. When it came to the ornaments, I listened through my three favourite sopranos’ whole repertoire and I came to the conclusion, that each of them is choosing variations that suit best her voice, so that she can unleash her imagination to show what she is able to do. With Trionfai! we got the score, sat down at the piano, I learnt it with Dani and we tried many variations, going up wherever possible. All the high F’s are the effect of one crazy afternoon, when we were just playing around and then we said: let’s leave it like this

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