azngurl599's Full Review: If You Love Me -18th century Italian songs / Cecil...
This album includes many great Italian songs. It is especially suitable for a student studying voice. My previous voice teacher had recommended Cecilia Bartoli to me. I bought this album mainly because some of the songs that I have to sing for my examination appeared on the CD and there were others that I had sung before. It really helps to listen to different performances of the songs or even sing along with the CD. Many of the songs in the common "24 Italian Arias and Songs" songbook (including Caro mio ben, Sebben crudele, and Se tu m'ami) can be found here so it helps a lot with the words.
Cecilia Bartoli is a wonderful mezzo-soprano. She has a beautiful and extremely flexible voice with a great range. She can also reach the high notes without making you cover your ears. Great techniques are used and her voice is masterfully controlled. The songs that appear in this CD are from the 18th century and generally follows a baroque style, but you will find songs of a variety of composers. Some of the songs are rather simple since the songs were usually sung by novice singers, but Bartoli's skillful performance made every song a pleasant experience. In "Nel cor piu non mi sento," she adds little beautiful twists and each verse is pleasantly different.
Practically every song in this album is a favorite. "Se tu m'mai", Vivaldi's "Sposa son disprezzata", and "Gia il sole dal Gange" were dazzling performances. Not to be forgotten are "Pur dicesti, o bocca bella" and "Sebben crudele."
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