# Surprising Role For Arroyo



## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

I came across this video of Martina Arroyo singing *Turandot* in 1983 and was surprised at how easily she sang it, like it was a walk in the park. There's no strain, no screaming, no sense of difficulty in encompassing the _tessitura_. There's a certain passivity, but that is her wont.

What do y'all think?


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## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

I always thought she would be fabulous in Turandot and this proved me right.The In Questa Reggia lacked passion but was beautifully sung. BUT, where she really took off was in the Riddle Scene. Thrilling and Terrifying! To be honest, I would have to hear her and Nilsson live to see who won the contest on the best Riddle Scene. She was perfect and very exciting. HUGE high notes and strong lower passages. She had a voice that was both really really big and very beautiful. Unlike Price, she had huge high C's. She was best in The Verdi Requiem. It was always funny to me that she had so much personality on talk shows and so little as a singer. My sister knew both Martina and Grace Bumbry in Europe ages ago. She wasn't so much obese as that she was built like a fire hydrant. She had one of the most beautiful speaking voices ever. Her mother saw her debut as a Valkyrie at the Met and when she saw her daughter in a blond wig they had to escort her out of the theater she was laughing so much.


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## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

Seattleoperafan said:


> I always thought she would be fabulous in Turandot and this proved me right.The In Questa Reggia lacked passion but was beautifully sung. BUT, where she really took off was in the Riddle Scene. Thrilling and Terrifying! To be honest, I would have to hear her and Nilsson live to see who won the contest on the best Riddle Scene. She was perfect and very exciting. HUGE high notes and strong lower passages. She had a voice that was both really really big and very beautiful. Unlike Price, she had huge high C's. She was best in The Verdi Requiem. It was always funny to me that she had so much personality on talk shows and so little as a singer. My sister knew both Martina and Grace Bumbry in Europe ages ago. She wasn't so much obese as that she was built like a fire hydrant. She had one of the most beautiful speaking voices ever. Her mother saw her debut as a Valkyrie at the Met and when she saw her daughter in a blond wig they had to escort her out of the theater she was laughing so much.


There are stories galore from people who've met Martina Arroyo in person outside of the dressing room. She has a wicked sense of humor and she is very friendly. As far as performances go, there were occasions when she was on fire. One such occasion was a Verdi *Requiem* in San Francisco with the SF Symphony and Chorus, Arroyo, Forrester, Domingo, Talvela. She sang the _Libera me_ "like a starved falcon," according to one critic, and I'd have to agree. She could do no wrong and she had full control of that beautiful voice; from _pianissimi _ to _forte_; then _fortissimo_ to ethereal high notes. I was so lucky to have been there! The others sang well, too.


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## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

MAS said:


> There are stories galore from people who've met Martina Arroyo in person outside of the dressing room. She has a wicked sense of humor and she is very friendly. As far as performances go, there were occasions when she was on fire. One such occasion was a Verdi *Requiem* in San Francisco with the SF Symphony and Chorus, Arroyo, Forrester, Domingo, Talvela. She sang the _Libera me_ "like a starved falcon," according to one critic, and I'd have to agree. She could do no wrong and she had full control of that beautiful voice; from _pianissimi _ to _forte_; then _fortissimo_ to ethereal high notes. I was do lucky to have been there! The others sang well, too.


I wonder if it was because she could just be herself in the Requiem and not to have to play a part
? I am so glad you got to hear her. It was supposed to be thrillingly big live.


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

The slow vibrato suggests a history of oversinging. Once this happens to a voice, the capacity for expression is limited, and I think this, rather than a lack of intention, accounts for what you call her passivity. She gets the sound out, and that's about it; there's not a hint of emotion, even at the end of the opera (I skipped around). She's better than Nina Stemme, though, who gets sounds out that you really, really don't want to hear.


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## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

Woodduck said:


> The slow vibrato suggests a history of oversinging. Once this happens to a voice, the capacity for expression is limited, and I think this, rather than a lack of intention, accounts for what you call her passivity. She gets the sound out, and that's about it; there's not a hint of emotion, even at the end of the opera (I skipped around). She's better than Nina Stemme, though, who gets sounds out that you really, really don't want to hear.






 This Youtube video of her singing the Verdi Requiem a decade earlier shows her with a much faster vibrato... and a glorious voice. You might be correct.


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## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

MAS said:


> There are stories galore from people who've met Martina Arroyo in person outside of the dressing room. She has a wicked sense of humor and she is very friendly. As far as performances go, there were occasions when she was on fire. One such occasion was a Verdi *Requiem* in San Francisco with the SF Symphony and Chorus, Arroyo, Forrester, Domingo, Talvela. She sang the _Libera me_ "like a starved falcon," according to one critic, and I'd have to agree. She could do no wrong and she had full control of that beautiful voice; from _pianissimi _ to _forte_; then _fortissimo_ to ethereal high notes. I was so lucky to have been there! The others sang well, too.


I've always thought Maureen Forrester had one of the most beautiful voices of all time. What was she like live. It sounded big and full on disc but it is hard to tell what it would be like live. She sang Brangane and I always wished it was on Youtube.


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## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

Seattleoperafan said:


> I've always thought Maureen Forrester had one of the most beautiful voices of all time. What was she like live. It sounded big and full on disc but it is hard to tell what it would be like live. She sang Brangane and I always wished it was on Youtube.


She sounded big in the house, too. The acoustics varied depending on where your seats were. I was ushering in those days, in the Dress Circle (one section up, in the back), and the sound was splendid. They broadcast one of the performances and I know at least one pirate was taping another performance.

In those years, all performances of opera, symphony, and ballet were presented at the Opera House, so, as a volunteer usher, I attended one or two of everything that was presented in the house. The San Francisco Symphony and the San Francisco Ballet, had to arrange their schedules around the SF Opera. It was a boon to us to be able to attend world class events, especially the opera.


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## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

MAS said:


> In those years, all performances of opera, symphony, and ballet were presented at the Opera House, so, as a volunteer usher, I attended one or two of everything that was presented in the house. The San Francisco Symphony and the San Francisco Ballet, had to arrange their schedules around the SF Opera. It was a boon to us to be able to attend world class events, especially the opera.


I should note that, for the privilege of attending all of the performances for free, the ushers had to attend at least four performances of the San Francisco Ballet's annual presentations of The Nutcracker, which were given twice per day during December and part of January. It was the SF Ballet's biggest money makers and was usually sold-out. So the crowds were new to the house, and we seated people throughout the performance (in an opera performance, we didn't seat people once the lights went down). Suffice it to say we were not fond of that ballet!


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