Maria Carbone Tradita

The always eclectic Maria Muldaur, whose previous albums have paid tribute to Shirley Temple and blues women of the '20s, takes another musical detour in this collection of songs associated with Peggy Lee. In addition to her cool, sexy, relaxed voice, Lee was arguably more talented than other vocalists from her era. As a songwriter she co-penned some of her own material, including the swinging "I'm Gonna Go Fishin'" with Duke Ellington, which features the witty double entendres that spice several other songs. Muldaur possesses a similar ability to purr ("Some Cats Know") or sizzle (an opening tour de force of "Fever" and "Black Coffee") without breaking a sweat. So this collection of 12 tracks, backed by a talented yet restrained eight-piece band, is a natural extension of her vocal strengths. The stylish, retro arrangements include vibes and big-band-styled horn charts that sound as authentic as if they were recorded in the '30s. Even though there are some finger-popping swing numbers (a zippy duet with Dan Hicks on Ted Shapiro's "Winter Weather" is especially peppy), a late-night, languid blues-jazz vibe dominates.

What a fantastic download. Firstly, the voice of Maria Callas, in this sample of her work there are so many contrasting emotions, love, joy, happiness, sadness, anger, regret etc. Secondly the range of operas that this selection opens up, there are 43 operas represented, from the familiar: Carmen, La Traviata, Tosca to the less familiar Medea, Un Ballo Maschero, Ernani to the unknown (to me) Il Pirata, La Vestale, Le Pardon de Peomel. So it alerts your ears to new possibilities. Thirdly the soundscape is good excellent orchestras the Philharmonia and La Scala being the most represented and excellent conductors Serafin and Pretre together with Resigno, Votto, Karajan etc. Lastly the generosity, over 4 hours of good music.

Renaissance of a voice: Maria Callas – Unforgettable arias sung by the most iconic diva of all time – remastered for the first time in high-definition sound from the original tapes, for an unprecedented sound quality that shines new light on the voice of Maria Callas. Allan Ramsay, remastering engineer at Abbey Road Studios: “With high definition, you’ll be able to experience sounds which have only been heard so far by people who were either present at Callas’s recording sessions, or who had access to the unique master tape… All we wanted to do is remove the specks of dust, as it were, and wipe the glass clean.”