# Round 2: Te Deum. Tibbet, Guelfi, Warren



## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

I replaced Tibbett with a different transfer.


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## nina foresti (Mar 11, 2014)

How interesting when one just listens without knowing who any of the singers were.
#1 immediately related to me not only with a fine baritone voice but with believable acting skills. (who was that, I thought)
I actually turned the second one off halfway through. He was too busyy eating the scenery with his hammy delivery and light sound.
#3 did an able job and delivered well but somehow his voice seemed much lighter than the first one.
Shock of shocks , it was Warren!- who completely surprised me as there was no normal huffy (in a good way) sound coming from him. Was this early Warren?
Monsieur Tibbett you ran away with the gold.


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## Tsaraslondon (Nov 7, 2013)

It was quite hard to hear just what was going on in the Tibbett clip, as the microphone seemed to have been placed next to the bells which did a fine job of drowning out anything else. I had to go back and listen again to get a better idea of what he was singing. From what I could tell he gives a fine performance though not quite with the range of tone colour I would want. I particularly look for a change of colour at _Ah di quegli occhi vittoriosi veder la fiamma. _I don't know what's in the printed score, but the music seems to ask for it and none of these singers really noted the change.

Guelfi was the worst culprit and just bellowed from beginning to end. I didn't much like his somewhat staccato delivery either.

I liked Warren a lot more, but went back to Tibbett and decided ultimately to vote for him on the assumption that he'd have sounded even better if the recording were clearer.


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

What a singer and artist Tibbett was! He sent a chill through me with the little portamento he put into "Va, Tosca!" I'd love to hear him do the rest of the role. He'd surely give Gobbi a run for his money, as he does with Iago.

Guelfi does too much declaiming and not enough singing. Scarpia is subtler and more insinuating than this cartoonish villain. Nina foresti puts it aptly: "eating the scenery."

Warren is quite good. Nothing to complain about, really. But Tibbett is special.


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## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

Tibbett seems to have been recorded within the bell tower. I’m no baritone fan and much less than that of Warren. Guelfi’s was a live performance which accounts, perhaps, for the over the top histrionics. I’m going with Tibbett.


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

MAS said:


> Tibbett seems to have been recorded within the bell tower, I’m no baritone fan and much less than that of Warren. Guelfi’s was a live performance which accounts, perhaps, for the over the top histrionics. I’m going with Tibbett.


I think the Tibbett is live too, probably a Met broadcast.


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## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

I get the feeling that the winner of round one doesn't really need to compete against the winner here as the enthusiasm was so much greater for Gobbi. I think Tibbett might have had a chance if the recording were more forgiving. If you want a final round we can have one. Guelfi was a student of Ruffo.


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## vivalagentenuova (Jun 11, 2019)

Tre sbirri, una carrozza (Tosca) - YouTube
Here's the same Tibbett recording with a better transfer. I will also vote Tibbett, who easily wins this. Personally, I prefer Tibbett to Gobbi vocally and musically. I particularly like singers who can use their legato expressively and avoid gimmicks, crooning, or inappropriate declamation, and Tibbett is one of them. Bechi (in the 1940s at least) was another baritone with a similar quality.


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## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

vivalagentenuova said:


> Tre sbirri, una carrozza (Tosca) - YouTube
> Here's the same Tibbett recording with a better transfer. I will also vote Tibbett, who easily wins this. Personally, I prefer Tibbett to Gobbi vocally and musically. I particularly like singers who can use their legato expressively and avoid gimmicks, crooning, or inappropriate declamation, and Tibbett is one of them. Bechi (in the 1940s at least) was another baritone with a similar quality.


I replaced the one I posted. If this significantly affects anyone's vote let me know and I will take that into account. It is often a gamble picking a video to use as sometimes better versions are hiding.


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## vivalagentenuova (Jun 11, 2019)

Seattleoperafan said:


> I replaced the one I posted. If this significantly affects anyone's vote let me know and I will take that into account. It is often a gamble picking a video to use as sometimes better versions are hiding.


With so many videos on YouTube, it takes some doing to find the best one. I suppose that's a better problem than the reverse.


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## BalalaikaBoy (Sep 25, 2014)

Just a reminder that Lawrence Tibbet was considered among the _lightest _of baritones during the golden age, but as you can hear, he's still deeper, darker and bigger than any modern "baritone" singing at any of the major opera houses today.

As for my vote, he gets the win by a large margin. Guelfi plays the all-to-common bellowing Scarpia, and Warren is respectable but lacks Tibbet's phrasing.


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