Puccini: E lucevan le stelle (from Tosca)

“Bergonzi sings with sincerity and style” Opera

“Bergonzi emerges as a model among tenors, with a rare feeling for the shaping of phrases and attention to detail” Penguin Guide

“Calleja can still get down to a pianissimo in a way that few can, such as in the Luisa Miller scene, which is one of the best items thanks to the way he gives the vocal line a flattering lilt. After his Covent Garden success in Simon Boccanegra, the inclusion of the Act 2 scena "O inferno" - another high-point - will be a welcome souvenir.” Gramophone Magazine, August 2011

“his is a bright, warm, unmistakably Mediterranean timbre, with a distinctive quick vibrato that recalls great tenors of the wind-up-gramophone era. Yet he is a thoroughly modern musician...His Che gelida manina is surely the most glamorous and thrilling on disc since Pavarotti’s famous complete recording, but it is no carbon copy...In short, a golden-age voice in its prime.” Sunday Times, 17th July 2011 ****

“He's an artist who has developed in leaps and bounds over the last few years, and who sings with freedom, passion and elegance. His narrow, fast vibrato has a pleasantly old-fashioned sepia-tinted feel about it, and links him to an earlier generation of tenors...It's a recital which shows off Calleja's rich, rounded and ringing sound at its best.” Classic FM Magazine, August 2011 ****

“The two Mefistofele arias receive near-ideal performances, the Pearl Fishers romance (one of two items in which soprano duties are nicely undertaken by Aleksandra Kurzak) is enchanting, and the cavatina from Gounod's Faust is appealingly shaped and crowned with a refined top C...Calleja continues to persuade with a good sense of style.” BBC Music Magazine, August 2011 ****

“[in the French roles] he shows no cramping of his natural bel canto style by the French line, finding plenty of room to manoeuvre. And when he and the soprano Aleksandra Kurzak begin their dalliance, the chemistry is sublime. Elsewhere, the various Puccini arias from Tosca and Manon Lescaut present Calleja at his best: robust and resonant.” The Independent, 28th July 2011 ****

“Calleja despatches [the programme] with bags of elegance, passion and charm...it's the French arias here that leave you wanting more: his is a beautifully characterised Légende de Kleinzach from Offenbach's The Tales of Hoffmann, and a sexy Ah! Fuyez, Douce Image” The Guardian, 11th August 2011 ****

“Calleja commands resinous, vibrant tone with a rich top register and generous, open-hearted style. This is technically sturdy singing with guts and heart.” The Telegraph, 18th August 2011

“The solidity of his technique is evident in this calorific recital: it takes muscle to support such delicate messa di voce. There's a rare, old-fashioned sweetness of timbre” The Independent on Sunday, 21st August 2011

“Calleja's timbre, brilliant, caressing, keenly focused, is entirely individual...All in all, this is a fine calling-card for a tenor, still only in his early thirties, on the threshold of greatness, during a transition phase of his career. The portents are exciting indeed.” International Record Review, October 2011

“Mozart to zarzuela, Handel to Wagner - this generous collection confirms that our greatest tenor is also our most versatile and musically rewarding whatever style.” BBC Music Magazine, November 2011 *****

“Now and then there are hints of another great Italian-style tenor, the stylish Alfredo Kraus. It's there in the hushed tone Grigolo adopts for the 'Favorita del re!...Spirto gentil' from La Favorita and Manrico's elegant swagger in the cabaletta 'Di quella pira'.” BBC Music Magazine, November 2010 ***

“Handsome, prolific and blessed with uncommon interpretive skills, Vittorio Grigolo is the most exciting young male talent in opera today...It's a marvellous collection, with Grigolo's dramatic abilities abundantly evident in the fruity relish with which he rolls each syllable round his mouth” The Independent on Sunday, 30th September 2010 *****

“His bright, incisive tones modulate, soften and sweeten, yet the voice has a non-departmentalised consistency, a supple and expressive instrument in grief and gaiety, tenderness and anger...for a comparison, the young Bergonzi might come to mind, but Grigolo's expressiveness and imagination are quite his own” Gramophone Magazine, Awards Issue 2010

“Grigolo’s voice is agile, unstrained, with colours stretching from dulcet cream to piercing red; and strikingly subtle volume control...when the voice needs to “ping”, it does so securely, with lively expression. It’s a good, steady album, and a worthy calling card” The Times, 8th October 2010

“He's notably good at scamps, such as Rinuccio in Gianni Schicchi, or tragic wits such as Riccardo in Un Ballo in Maschera, where you get a real sense of the laughter behind the passion. There are moments of wonderfully rapt introspection, too, in arias from Donizetti's La Favorita and Puccini's Le Villi.” The Guardian, 7th October 2010 ****

“He can get overexcited, but shows musical sensibility in arias from La favorita, Rigoletto and Manon Lescaut, and his clear diction and firmly produced tone suggest solid technical foundations.” The Telegraph, 15th October 2010 ***

“He lends suitable swagger to "Possente amor mi chiama" from Rigoletto and brings real tenderness to "Spirto gentil"...Grigolo is the real thing: a shining, stylish romantic hero in the great tradition of the Italian tenor, but with a warmer, more appealing persona for 21st-century audiences.” The Observer, 31st October 2010

“he's clearly in love with his native language and his little rolled 'r's will make those who care about such things purr with pleasure” International Record Review, November 2010

“This is quite a test for the tenor who's had an outstanding year on stage, but one he passes with ease...Grigolo has developed from light to lyric tenor, and you feel there's more to come from this young voice already rich with plenty of colour and drama.” Classic FM Magazine, January 2011 ****