Debut
What Galante lacks in style and drama, she makes up for with a voice that surrounds and passionately massages your heart. Her full- bodied cabernet of a soprano is husky and loose throughout the middle and soars to tantalizing heights. Boito's "L'altra notte" and Caccini's "Ave Maria" will leave you stunned. The voice is too big to perform the delicate music of Mimi or Lauretta, and Mozart's "Ach ich fuhl's" is shameful--too fast, too loud, too metronomic. You can't squeeze a D into a C cup. Villa-Lobos's "Bachianas Brasileiras No. 5" is the real coup here, flattering her earthy, fiery voice and complementing her folksy style.--Barbara Eisner Bayer