Franco Corelli: Voices of the Opera Series

Amazon fails to provide ANY description of this book, so one may purchase it (as I did) having absolutely no idea that it is, essentially, a collection of the sheet music to numerous arias rather than a text-type book. I'm writing so others will know what it is.Getting over my surprise at having received an aria collection, I will say that I was pleasantly surprised. This collection of 9 famous (and some not quite so famous) arias sung by Corelli not only is more expansive than the mere "textbook" beginning and ending of some of these arias provided in other collections, but also provides extensive suggested performance notes, (noting how Corelli performed several aspects of each aria). For the aspiring tenors out there, and certainly those who are Corelli fans, this is an excellent item to have in your collection.

Let me first say that anything Ricordi does is excellenct. If you are a Franco Corelli fan then this is a must. It starts with a short biography in the beginning. You get the original arias, and then it's followed with pages of notes that states of how Corelli interpreted that aria in certain measures with his significant changes and nuances. It does not leave any of his interpretation out, and it's true to his EMI recordings. This book is great for students and fans. It's a prized treasure.