Jose Carreras, Placido Domingo, Luciano Pavarotti In...

Jose Carreras, Placido Domingo, Luciano Pavarotti In Concert: Arias and songs. Orchestras of the Florence May Festival and Rome Opera, Zubin Mehta, conducting. London 430 433-2 (compact disc). In July, three of the most famous tenors in the world, along with a well-known conductor, participated in one of the most extravagant vocal three-ring circuses in memory. This recording is taken from that evening and has not one shred of interest for a serious collector. Chief curiosity is the state of Carreras’ voice after his long battle with leukemia. The sound is fresh and youthful, if there are hints of a wobble in high, fortissimo passages. Domingo’s singing is about as usual, which means generally beautiful, if unvarying in color or expressivity. It is left to Pavarotti to provide the one instance of distinguished singing in a Crescenzo song, “Rondine al Nido.” As always, he projects the Italian language with a mastery few singers can match. The final medley of war horses reaches its height of vulgarity with a unison “Vincero” at the close of “Nessun dorma.” Why a serious musician like Mehta would lend his name to this travesty is an open question.