Filippa Giordano - Il Rosso Amore (2002)

Mixing contemporary compositions with reworked opera arias, Filippa Giordano's Il rosso amore continues the direction established by her eponymous debut disc. Giordano hails from Palermo, Italy and grew up amid a highly musical family--her brother is a conductor, her parents both classical singers but she was drawn to the spontaneity of the performances of pop idols as Madonna, George Michael and Whitney Houston. Her solution has been to develop a fusion of classical and commercial styles, mixing orchestral arrangements with pop production techniques on this new release offering four opera-based pieces and 12 new songs.

Pitched between Broadway and Hollywood, with a dash of the pop diva histrionics of Ms Houston, this is pure melodrama. Mentor and celebrated Italian film composer, Ennio Morricone contributes two tracks from the film Aida degli Alberi (2001), I'abla verrà and the brief, Disneyesque c! losing number Il canto della terra. "Up to the Light" is a bombastic showstopper featuring stratospheric vocals and blockbuster production values, so that against these Puccini's Un bel dì and Coro a bocca chiusa from Madama Butterfly sound decidedly out of place, despite being garbed in luxurious 21st-century studio clothes. Even more lavish than its predecessor, the disc will undoubtedly delight Giordano's many admirers. 1. Che Luce Sei Isrc 2. Heaven Knows (Amarti Si) 3. Il Rosso Amore 4. Lonely Heart 5. Io Aspetto Te 6. Dove Andiamo Noi 7. L'alba Verra 8. Plaisir D'amour 9. Un Bel Di Vedremo 10. Coro A Bocca Chiusa 11. Va' Pensiero 12. La Bacarolle 13. Ballata Per Giuletta 14. Amarti Si'