An album will be launched internationally on 16^th February2015, signed by the greatly cherished Polish tenor Piotr Beczala. For that matter, those who are fond of lyrical theatre have recently had reasons to rejoice: two recital-albums, featuring a French repertoire par excellence, is indeed something special. Last week, the album of the French tenor Roberto Alagana, entitled My life is an opera was launched and this week came the album The French Collection, signed by Piotr Beczala and the Lyon National Opera Orchestra, conducted by Alain Altinoglu. The album features arias signed by Jules Massenet, Hector Berlioz, Charles Gounod, Francois Adrien Boieldieu, Georges Bizet, but also Giuseppe Verdi and Gaetano Donizetti, with the French language versions.

The French Collection

This is an album which is also included in the Vote the Best Classical Album of 2015 campaign, through which you can listen to and grade the albums which are part of the competition. There, you can also watch the video material which accompanies the launch of this album: I find it highly relevant, the way in which a French conductor praises a Polish tenor for his performance of French music. French music is indeed a special challenge for any singer: because there are so many pronunciations which are specific to this language, which season the speech. It is really easy to realize who is a native speaker of French and who is not; and Beczala genuinely seems to have been born in France, even though he came into the world 48 years ago in a small town in the south of Poland.

The French Collection is the first recital album with opera arias signed by the tenor Piotr Beczala. In 2013, Beczala was the protagonist of another recital album, but which had an operetta repertoire - Heart's delight, which has enjoyed a considerable success with sales.

Piotr Beczala

In fact, the reason for which Piotr Beczala enjoys such success is obvious: a truly beautiful and expressive voice, which allows him to approach a highly varied and extensive repertoire - if we are to analyse the list of known roles interpreted by a tenor. This comes along with histrionic talent and a general, special charisma - so that the great operetta theatres of the world have already had Piotr Beczala as a guest. He is truly successful with the New York Metropolitan Opera - where in February 2015 he actually hosts a whole series of performances; he did not enjoy the same amount of success in the Milan Teatro alla Scala, where he decided to never return. However, I have found the spectators' stance at the La Traviata by Verdi premiere, the show for which Beczala has been discredited at the Scala, to be debatable at the least.

Piotr Beczala: one of the most beautiful voices of our times, winner of the singer of the year 2014 title at the Echo prize Awards, in love with the French repertoire which plays an important role in between the roles he approaches. The French Collection is a success: beyond the strictly technical aspects, so to speak - namely, the repertoire and the interpretation - this album manages to bring out unique emotions and I believe that ultimately, this is the most important asset for the public.