Massenet - Thaïs / Fleming, Hampson, Sabbatini, Shkosa, Vidal, Devellereau, Cals, Yves Abel

Many will seek out this account chiefly for the presence of Renée Fleming in the title role, and she indeed crafts a memorable portrayal of Thaïs's path from worldly irony to trusting soul. Fleming deploys her familiar, unique vocal style with subtlety for the earlier scenes of Thaïs as courtesan, delivering her great aria of doubt with a Marschallin-like vulnerability. Indeed, it's the breathy sumptuousness typical of her voice that makes the converted Thaïs almost more of a challenge--although Fleming does achieve a noticeable softening effect, above all in her death scene. As the monk who tries to repress his very worldly feelings for Thaïs, Thomas Hampson clearly carries the seeds of doubt from his first scene; if anything, the contrast between his two selves isn't stark enough, and he brings too much vocal polish to the scenes where we should hear a John the Baptist in hair shirt. Still, Hampson's sensitivity, however reserved, elicits the crucial sense of compassion for Athanaël's predicament. As Nicias, the cultured lover of Thaïs, Giuseppe Sabbatini is excellent--their bittersweet farewell duet actually contains some of the best chemistry on the whole set. True, Massenet's score succumbs to passages of filler (for example, much of the ballet music) that aren't at the level of its more inspired lyrical stretches, but young conductor Yves Abel (making his Decca debut) captures its integral, supple beauty despite some roughness in transitions and an occasionally raw surface from the orchestra. Sound balances are less than ideal. An excellent booklet with full libretto is included. --Thomas May