This album has depth and meaning missing in most popular media today.


Heavenly   July 13, 2004
DAVID PETRICK (CARLISLE, PA United States)
7 out of 7 found this review helpful

Kathleen Battle is one of the people whose lovely voice first turned me on to opera, a rather unaccessible art to the common American. It is true that you can hear her breathe, and that she tempers her notes so they are sometimes gentle, sometimes strong, but that is not a weakness. The racks are rife with stereotypical fat ladies with fat voices, bellowing with nothing but technique, but there records languish while Kathleen's sell.

The songs are all fairly main stream and include a dramatic range from happy to sad. Nothing outlandish here.

Ms. Battle has been called the most beautiful soprano voice and I would heartily agree. The clarity, the roundness, the beauty of her sound is pure femininity and grace. I studied opera and no one in school or anywhere else, has ever been on her level. Some are close, but she is magnificent. I recommend this to anyone, opera snob or first timer. You will be moved!


Refreshing   May 29, 2001
7 out of 7 found this review helpful

This is a wonderful collection of oratorio and sacred music. Kathleen Battle shines in this album. Normally, I have found her singing to be less than interpretive, but not this time. These pieced suit her voices ideally, containing significant amounts of coloratura lines without getting too heavy. A particularly stiking addition to this collection is the gospel piece sung a cappella. A brilliant album-I strongly recommend it!


The title says it all   January 5, 2001
Patrick D. McCoy (Petersburg, Virginia)
6 out of 6 found this review helpful

What an appropriate title for a wonderful album of sacred repertory. Miss Battle breaths exuberant joy all over these pieces as they convey the most divine sense of reverence and "grace." Yes a lot of people are so quick to take everyone else's word about Miss Battle's so-called unprofessionalisms. But no matter what, through this musical presentation her genuine love of a higher being and the art of being a consumate musician shines through. If you are looking for more than just pretty tones, but a beautiful disc of meaningfully sung sacred repertoire, this is the disc. Moving moments include the Faure' Pie Jesu and the Wolf-Schlafendes Jesuskind. Oh.....and Handel's Rejoice Greatly...girl you betta work it!


Indescribably Beautiful   February 20, 1999
6 out of 6 found this review helpful

This music is absolutely beautiful. The backing instrumentals alone are worth the price of the CD, and the clarity and expression Kathleen Battle's singing defy description. I'm not a student of opera, so I don't have the background or vocabulary to write a suitable review. I'll just say that, to my untrained ear, "she's got grace."