Dud of the month*

Much of the singing on this record is undistinguished, and the coloratura in the bolero from I Vespri Siciliani borders on the embarrassing: I can't understand how that track was deemed worthy of release. The Macbeth excerpts suggest that Netrebko might deliver an arresting live rendition of the role of Lady Macbeth, but on the whole the project has the feeling of a miscalculation, at least in the artistic sense. Commercial considerations are, of course, another matter.

*In homage to the great Robert Christgau.