"This album shows every sign of being a deep-commitment project for Angela Gheorghiu ... delivering every song with an interpretative conviction that goes beyond matters of voice. Pitch is iffy and climactic notes go haywire but the Gheorghiu charisma, at the age of 58, is palpable in her tone and long-cultivated Puccinian style, especially in her beautifully moulded quiet endings"

"This year marks the centenary of Puccini's death ... The operas, of course, hardly need a helping hand, but his song output is surprisingly little known. This album presents a range of highly varied numbers ... Gheorghiu's dramatic conviction and the rich, blooming tone for which her voice is well known are still there in abundance, allowing her to give a meaningful and deeply expressive performance of this enjoyable body of music"

"Surprisingly, the songs of Giacomo Puccini have never been particularly popular ... Angela Gheorghiu has always been a reliable soprano. She's never had an idiomatic voice, with a somewhat veiled quality rather than a more traditionally Italianate timbre ... These songs for piano and voice should have been ideal repertoire for her. Unfortunately, now, at 58 years old, real wear is starting to show ... Vincenzo Scalera accompanies Gheorghiu sensitively throughout the album ... The recording does sound excellent, but this is not much consolation. I'm sure there are fans of the singer who will want to hear this, and her signature sound is still there, but the wear and tear is plainly evident and the resulting difficulty in maintaining her phrasing means this is a rather mixed bag at best"

"As has been her hallmark throughout her career, which has lasted for thirty years, she is very careful with nuances, and she can still spin a thin thread of legato that is magical. Unfortunately, there is now a fly in the ointment, that has hitherto been absent from her vocal armoury: a disturbing vibrato on high notes - and even not-so-high notes - particularly at forte ... Diehard admirers of Angela Gheorghiu will of course want the Signum disc, and I am sure I will return to some of the songs for the subtlety of her readings. But a general recommendation is: go for Charles Castronovo's eminent disc with orchestral accompaniment, which also contains three quite substantial orchestral pieces for good measure"