Susan Graham ~ Berlioz - Les nuits d'été
On casual listen, Graham can seem like yet another pretty voice. And it  is extremely pretty. But there's an intelligence and learnedness that can only  make her more interesting as time goes on. As is, her performances are slightly  undercooked, though there are some moments duringLes Nuits d'étéas  passionate and committed as one could want. The arias added to fill out the disc  aren't heard in optimal performances, but show what riches lie in Berlioz's  neglected operatic output, namely Ascanio's lighthearted aria fromBenvenuto  Celliniand the long soliloquy fromBeatrice and Benedict.--David  Patrick Stearns