Giuseppe Verdi

Jeremy Siepmann presents a biography of Verdi with the added dimension of his operatic music, played in small doses to punctuate the narrative. Since the playing of the pieces takes place during the biographical period in which they were written, Siepmann creates a robust composer's portrait. The British author performs the third-person narration, while male and female voices take speaking parts reading letters to and from Verdi. Although the chatty missives lack luster, the actors shout and whisper them as though lines from the great Bard himself. This is perhaps overkill. If the listener is not an opera fan, the talented voices and singers in this performance could create one. J.A.H. (c) AudioFile 2004, Portland, Maine