ROSALIA CHALIA, selected recordings of a forgotten soprano
CD Marston 51007-2

The title of this CD hits the mark. Not only did Marston have great difficulty in tracing down photographs of the once famous and beloved singer but googling her up doesn’t give you any real results either. Of course serious collectors probably have her OASI LP release but that was issued years ago and is now hard to find. Moreover they shouldn’t do away with their vinyl treasure as several of the recordings do not overlap. Chalia (Havana 1863-1948) was a Cuban born soprano whose life story ( extremely well told by Gregor Benko and Lawrence Holdridge) reads like a novel. In spite of a not so impressive stage career (one appearance as Santuzza at the Met only) she was a prolific recording artist though and her records must have sold well. She recorded 116 Bettini cylinders yet only a handful of those seem to have survived. Marston includes her Dunque io son from Rossini’s Barbiere. Later she recorded more for Zonophone and Victor. This issue includes 29 recordings ranging from Semiramide displaying her amazing coloratura technique –including trills - to Latino folk songs. The vibrant voice –all but canary like- has a  dark quality and the use of the lower voice part –and ample chest voice- often suggests mezzo-like qualities to the voice. If you like what you hear I  urge you to get the Rosalia Chalia Cd issued by Truesound (TT-2025, see links section) as well which will add another 18 recordings of this remarkable artist to your collection.
Rudi van den Bulck