Violetta's aria at the end of Act I of La traviata demands the impossible. A lyric voice for 'Ah forse è lui' and then weight and depth and cascading coloratura in 'Sempre libera'. Natalie Dessay has it all… The Mad Scenes from I puritani and Lucia di Lammermoor are just as impressive.

This selection of scenes and arias, all very familiar items, is distinguished by the imaginative accompaniments under Evelino Pidò. …here we have one of the great opera personalities of our time - it's a lovely voice, used with a formidable technique.

Ms. Dessay treats opera like a form of theatre in which acting and singing are one