"Here’s a feast indeed! Angela Gheorghiu, who has made quite a name for herself in Puccini, offers a collection of heroines from the early Edgar to Turandot (with the exception of Tosca, which has only recently recorded). She is in superb voice and is beautifully accompanied by the Milan orchestra under Tampa Opera’s Anton Coppola (incidentally, the uncle of film director, Francis Ford Coppola)." - GRAMOPHONE

You may be surprised at the absence of Tosca’s prayer, but rest assured it is present in the form of a bonus CD lasting just under three and a half minutes, perhaps separate from the rest as it comes from the complete opera set released a few years back. This makes for an elaborate package in the form of a book, with the inside covers containing a digipack construction to house the CDs and a thick book containing complete texts and translations in several languages, color photographs, and a catalog of Angela Gheorghiu’s EMI releases. Fortunately, the contents of the package maintain the high standard set by the cover. Gheorghiu is at home throughout the CD, even though several operas are not (yet) in her repertoire. Puccini is evidently a congenial composer for her talents. It is impossible to single out particular moments, as all are stamped by the singer’s ability to color her voice to the composer’s demands. Roberto Alagna is heard in the second excerpt from Butterfly with his threefold exhortation after the heroine’s suicide as well as in the Riddle Scene from Turandot, but why not then Rodolfo’s one-syllable interjection in Mimi’s narration? Was the Covent Garden Chorus brought to Milan for their contribution to Turandot’s aria or are we dealing with electronic miracles? The Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano Giuseppe Verdi continues its good work on disc, though Anton Coppola’s sluggish tempos occasionally impede the flow of the music. Gheorghiu’s temperament is in evidence throughout, from the adolescent charm of “O mio babbino caro” to the desperation of Butterfly or Angelica. Even the terrors of “In questa reggia” are easily overcome, perhaps thanks to the microphones, but the soprano is always in control.
- Joel Kasow, FANFARE