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I can distinctly remember gripping the armrest with feverish
desire as I had my first Bartoli experience: I caught half of
her on a televised concert gala (at Carnegie Hall, I think),
singing the last bit of "Sovra il sen...." Naturally, I would
have joined in, seeing as I am an avid armchair baritone (with
a coloratura fetish); however, I simply stared in awe at this
angelic voice and expressive personality spilling its warmth
over into my waiting ears. I am conviced that time stopped
right then and there. Thus begins the Bartoli spell. I was
amazed at her ability to come across with real emotion while
singing, something the opera world has had to do without since
the likes of Callas. I borrowed "Arie antiche" from a friend
and was tearfully reluctant to return it; from then came her
"Mozart Portraits" and "Rossini Heroines," and penultimately
"La Cenerentola." Her more recent "Cecilia Bartoli:
A Portrait" also contains some favorites, including an earth-
shaking "Bel Raggio Lusinghier." As per the title, I am a
nineteen-year old male college freshman and opera fanatic; I
would love to hear from others who share the same addiction.
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Caught in the spell... 
looking for young bartoli lovers
