"There are a lot of people who do not go to the opera because they think you need to have special knowledge for that. I believe that you need a heart and sensibility, and everybody has that." Rolando Villazón
Villazón has been one of the most in-demand singers on the international opera circuit for almost a decade now, and has firmly established himself in the A-list opera-houses of Paris, Berlin, Los Angeles, Vienna, New York and London.
On ‘Tenor', Villazón showcases some of the best-known tenor arias popularised by operatic legends including the 'Three Tenors' Pavarotti, Domingo and Carreras. The greatest tenor arias on this disc vary from sophisticated Handel and emotional operatic greats by Verdi and Puccini through to 20th Century classics from Bernstein’s ‘West Side Story’ and Lloyd Webber’s ‘Phantom of the Opera’.
“...the voice sounds as good as ever. 'O sole mio' suggests a complete return to vocal health, 'Maria' from West Side Story is sensitive and relaxed, with a beautiful use of head-voice at the end...the Rigoletto and L'elisir arias go well.” BBC Music Magazine, May 2010 ***
“The newly recorded arias by Donizetti, Verdi and Tosti show the extent to which Villazon has vocally and dramatically owned this repertoire in recent years...[The Handel arias] can and should be enjoyed for the way in which he injects these stylised Baroque masterpieces with Romantic warmth and fruitiness of tone, carried out with a thorough mastery of the repertoire’s technical demands.” Charlotte Gardner, bbc.co.uk, 23rd February 2010
