# Two rare films featuring Cheryl Studer



## ALT (Mar 1, 2021)

New on YouTube, a couple of videos filmed during dress rehearsals at the Salzburg Festival.

1. As the _Marschallin_ in *Der Rosenkavalier*
(Note that the audiovisual was too distantly recorded so please raise the volume to the max)





2. As _Elettra_ in *Idomeneo*





This artist's versatility and range never cease to impress.


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## ALT (Mar 1, 2021)

Make it three. Here is a second Idomeneo vid, this time featuring Elettra's Act I recitative/aria and the Act I Elettra/Idamante/Idomeneo Trio.






Enjoy and feel free to add your 2¢.


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## ScottK (Dec 23, 2021)

She is just bleepin awesome!!! (Please tell me if I'm not supposed to say that and I'll come edit it) She's fantastic!! Before this Forum I caught a cut of her somewhere a long time ago and I think I was put off by the vibrato, which I remember being much more pronounced than anything I've heard on here. But here, the Lehar, the Frau Ohne Schatten, Rosenkavalier and this Idomeneo tops it all! She's like a Stratas or a Behrens who kept her voice beautiful! I've been waiting to watch these till I could sit back and enjoy and it was worth the wait. Many Thanks!!!


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## The Conte (May 31, 2015)

It's so nice to finally have some fellow Studer fans! ScottK, whilst she is supreme in Mozart and Strauss, do try her Verdi, Attila, Vespri and Aida. There is very little that she didn't do well in (her Gilda and Madame Cortese in Viaggio a Reims are the only roles I'm not impressed by).

N.


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## ScottK (Dec 23, 2021)

The Conte said:


> It's so nice to finally have some fellow Studer fans! ScottK, whilst she is supreme in Mozart and Strauss, do try her Verdi, Attila, Vespri and Aida. There is very little that she didn't do well in (her Gilda and Madame Cortese in Viaggio a Reims are the only roles I'm not impressed by).
> 
> N.


I can't really think of any singers who invest in their roles with great attention to each phrase, while maintaining the song- like thru line, who I don't respond to. And on these cuts she has been one of those to the max with a beautiful sound and terrific acting. If any of the Aida music is online that will be a great next step!


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## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

The Conte said:


> It's so nice to finally have some fellow Studer fans! ScottK, whilst she is supreme in Mozart and Strauss, do try her Verdi, Attila, Vespri and Aida. There is very little that she didn't do well in (her Gilda and Madame Cortese in Viaggio a Reims are the only roles I'm not impressed by).
> 
> N.


I very much like her *Semiramide* recording.


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## ScottK (Dec 23, 2021)

While running errands I listened to a number of O Patria Mia's and Studer concedes to no one! Some brought some of the cocky princess to the recit which she did not, but I'm guessing Radames got more than he could handle of cocky princess once he showed up! It was a phenomenal rendition, nuanced and beautiful! 
Don't know Semiramide so I'm going to find her big aria (s?) and give a listen. I'm assuming that's going to show another side?


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## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

ScottK said:


> While running errands I listened to a number of O Patria Mia's and Studer concedes to no one! Some brought some of the cocky princess to the recit which she did not, but I'm guessing Radames got more than he could handle of cocky princess once he showed up! It was a phenomenal rendition, nuanced and beautiful!
> Don't know Semiramide so I'm going to find her big aria (s?) and give a listen. I'm assuming that's going to show another side?


The duets are also well worth the time!


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## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

MAS said:


> The duets are also well worth the time!


However, you must try Sutherland and Horne in this opera!


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## ScottK (Dec 23, 2021)

I'm not a natural Rossini fan - actually I thought Semiramide was Bellini - and I'll admit. I found this duet a little frantic. But I went and listened to a different one with Sutherland and Horne and that was a lot of fun and of course they were magnificent. I'll look for some more!


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## ALT (Mar 1, 2021)

I, for one, will never understand the fascination some have for Semiramide. I think Rossini did much better. For example, Guglielmo Tell. Or the pastiche and romp that is Il Viaggio a Reims. I promised to myself here once to begin discovering other Rossini as recommended by others but just haven’t had the time.


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## ALT (Mar 1, 2021)

For those of you interested, two more rare opera scenes *on film*, this time as *Fidelio/Leonore*.






With Ben Heppner, René Pape and Tom Fox.


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## ALT (Mar 1, 2021)

And this new one


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## The Conte (May 31, 2015)

There was a rumour in the 90s/early 00s that Fidelio had been recorded with Heppner and Studer, but it wasn't released due to Heppner already being in a studio recording under Davis. I had always assumed that the Studer Fidelio was a studio recording, but that doesn't make much sense (why would a label record something that they couldn't release contractually?) Maybe, it was hoped that the Solti live Fidelio could be released (by Decca? DG?), but Heppner's contract with RCA for the Davis didn't allow it. That sounds more likely.

N.


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## ScottK (Dec 23, 2021)

ALT said:


> For those of you interested, two more rare opera scenes *on film*, this time as *Fidelio/Leonore*.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


She rocks!!! I'm used to heavier voices here but she made Abscheulicher work better than anyone I heard live. And oh our beloved stage directors...there was some reason I assume for the two of them being glued to the wall to sing of their nameless joy??? And to be honest - and I blame said stage director - this is the first scene where I've seen her hitting melodramatic poses. Doesn't matter. You're putting up hit after hit. I'm a full fledged fan!


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## The Conte (May 31, 2015)

ALT said:


> I, for one, will never understand the fascination some have for Semiramide. I think Rossini did much better. For example, Guglielmo Tell. Or the pastiche and romp that is Il Viaggio a Reims. I promised to myself here once to begin discovering other Rossini as recommended by others but just haven't had the time.


I too agree that Viaggio and Tell are better. However, Semiramide has its charms and I think it is a far better work than a lot of the other serious Rossini operas. Ermione and the French rewrites could be considered superior, but it's best than a lot of his other works.

N.


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## ALT (Mar 1, 2021)

New one (audio only), recorded November of 2021. If you are expecting 'O mio babbino caro', better keep away. :lol:
This is heady, mid-twentieth-century German _Sprechgesang_ stuff. More details available in the description section of the video.


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## ScottK (Dec 23, 2021)

ALT said:


> New one (audio only), recorded November of 2021. If you are expecting 'O mio babbino caro', better keep away. :lol:
> This is heady, mid-twentieth-century German _Sprechgesang_ stuff. More details available in the description section of the video.


Alright I did not forget and just gave it a listen. Well!!!.....intriguing, maybe, if I got a little more background and text - could not find it online - and of course, not surprising to think of her being interested in something this far afield. Odds are my path wont cross this again but under the right circumstances I wouldn't be unhappy. Nice post!


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## ALT (Mar 1, 2021)

ScottK said:


> Alright I did not forget and just gave it a listen. Well!!!.....intriguing, maybe, if I got a little more background and text - could not find it online - and of course, not surprising to think of her being interested in something this far afield. Odds are my path wont cross this again but under the right circumstances I wouldn't be unhappy. Nice post!


Thank you and intriguing indeed. SWR2 will be broadcasting the whole performance later this month on 20 March @ 20:03 Central European Time. https://www.swr.de/swr2/programm/index.html

Adding a couple of new vids, one on film, the other audio-only. Enjoy!


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## ALT (Mar 1, 2021)

Yet more of the renowned versatility from the great soprano.


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## ALT (Mar 1, 2021)

See details in description section of video.


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## ScottK (Dec 23, 2021)

ALT said:


> Yet more of the renowned versatility from the great soprano.


Letter duet....love that approach, lets just get on with it and sing some of the most beautiful sounds ever sung! And It looks like she had a pretty bold take on her Countess....a little goofy? Taken out of context it looks a little over the top or close, but since its her I'm completely believing that no judgement can be leveled without witnessing the whole creation.


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## ScottK (Dec 23, 2021)

ALT said:


> Yet more of the renowned versatility from the great soprano.


Only had time to sample the Circe, but she sounds so alive and beautiful! You've made me a big fan, I'll be back to finish.

What is the piece?


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## The Conte (May 31, 2015)

ScottK said:


> Letter duet....love that approach, lets just get on with it and sing some of the most beautiful sounds ever sung! And It looks like she had a pretty bold take on her Countess....a little goofy? Taken out of context it looks a little over the top or close, but since its her I'm completely believing that no judgement can be leveled without witnessing the whole creation.


I was fortunate enough to see her Countess in Figaro at the ROH and it was indeed goofy, but I felt it was totally in keeping with the spirit of Beaumarchais and Da Ponte (and yes, even Mozart!) It was great fun, although I can understand how some of the old timers may have been offended by that approach.

N.


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## ScottK (Dec 23, 2021)

The Conte said:


> I was fortunate enough to see her Countess in Figaro at the ROH and it was indeed goofy, but I felt it was totally in keeping with the spirit of Beaumarchais and Da Ponte (and yes, even Mozart!) It was great fun, although I can understand how some of the old timers may have been offended by that approach.
> 
> N.


I would have loved to have seen it! I'm sure her singing knocked your socks off and I cant imagine that she did something that out there without a vision for the whole thing! She didn't exactly find some opera house in the hinterlands to try it at. Brave!


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## The Conte (May 31, 2015)

ScottK said:


> I would have loved to have seen it! I'm sure her singing knocked your socks off and I cant imagine that she did something that out there without a vision for the whole thing! She didn't exactly find some opera house in the hinterlands to try it at. Brave!


It was partly due to the production. Johannes Schaaf did all three Da Ponte operas for the ROH (although I only saw the Figaro). I don't believe they were popular, but I found his Figaro production brought out much of the humour that can be glossed over.

N.


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## ALT (Mar 1, 2021)

ScottK said:


> Letter duet....love that approach, lets just get on with it and sing some of the most beautiful sounds ever sung! And It looks like she had a pretty bold take on her Countess....a little goofy? Taken out of context it looks a little over the top or close, but since its her I'm completely believing that no judgement can be leveled without witnessing the whole creation.


Greetings. I wouldn't use "goofy". A better description would be "giddy". Read the following comment that someone made in the video on YouTube. I think it spells out her approach (or rather, more likely the director's) quite accurately.
_Interesting interpretive choices from both. Studer's Contessa is almost giddy at the possibility of entrapping the count, not like so many other Contessas (like the one in the Met/Miller transfer LOL) who insist on being mopey and/or stately and therefore boring. On the other hand, McLaughlin's Susanna, always the shrewd one, almost looks like she's trying to temper the Contessa's excitement. (She's holding the quill, after all!) So much more meaningful than the Met/Miller Susanna's pitiful collection stock reactions-a sigh here, a shrug there LOLOL. Lovely clip. Thanks._


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## ALT (Mar 1, 2021)

The Conte said:


> I was fortunate enough to see her Countess in Figaro at the ROH and it was indeed goofy, but I felt it was totally in keeping with the spirit of Beaumarchais and Da Ponte (and yes, even Mozart!) It was great fun, although I can understand how some of the old timers may have been offended by that approach.
> 
> N.


See my reply to ScottK.


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## ALT (Mar 1, 2021)

ScottK said:


> Only had time to sample the Circe, but she sounds so alive and beautiful! You've made me a big fan, I'll be back to finish.
> What is the piece?


Greetings again. The work is Telemaco, by Gluck. From the video description section:

_"Telemaco, ossia L'isola di Circe" - Operatic dramma per musica in two acts by Christoph Willibald Gluck. The Italian libretto was written by Marco Coltellini after Carlo Sigismondo Capece's libretto for Scarlatti's 1718 opera Telemaco. The opera was written for the wedding of the Emperor (to be) Joseph II and Princess Maria Josepha of Bavaria. The first performance was at the Burgtheater in Vienna on 30 January 1765. These extracts are from a performance in Vienna in 1987 with the Vienna Chamber Orchestra and Chorus of the University of Vienna, under the direction of Ernst Märzendörfer._

_1. In mezzo a un mar crudele 
2. Ombre facite, e chete amico sonno de' mi seri conforto 
3. E lo vidde partire, e lo sofferse il ciel?_

Moreover, a related anecdote on how Studer came to sing the work, from the video comments section:

_So I found out some background info on this recording. Caballe was suppossed to sing and was ill. The afternoon before the general rehearsal, Studer got a call in München if she could come to Wien to sing the role. She never even heard of the opera and no where in München (Staatsoper or Hieber) could the sheet music be found. She figured if Caballe was going to sing it so could she from the vocal range. After arriving in Wien she got the music and sight read it for the general rehearsal and then for the performance._


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## ALT (Mar 1, 2021)

ALT said:


> See details in description section of video.


These are the details in the description section.

_Non-professionally filmed during the dress rehearsal of Götz Friedrich's unforgettable production for the Salzburg Festival. In other words, the scenes in this video were NOT extracted from the one produced and released commercially by DECCA, thus affording us a different visual and aural perspective on the already familiar. _

_1. Act I, Scene 1 : Fort mit euch! … Wie soll ich denn nicht weinen? … Amme, um alles, wo find' ich den Schatten? 
2. Act II, Scene 4 : Sieh, Amme, sieh ... Wehe, mein Mann! 
3. Act III, Scene 3 : Vater, bist du's? _


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## ALT (Mar 1, 2021)

For those interested, Donna Anna‘s two big moments, with Cheryl Studer. It’s an in-house recording and audio-only.

From Act I, _Don Ottavio, son morta! … Or sai chi l’onore_. 
From Act II, _Non mi dir, bell’idol mio_.


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## ALT (Mar 1, 2021)

Once again, Donna Anna‘s two big moments. Another in-house recording, audio-only.

Act I, Scene 3: _Don Ottavio, son morta! ... Or sai chi l'onore_
Act II, Scene 4: _Crudele! Ah no, mio bene! ... Non mi dir, bell'idol mio_


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## ALT (Mar 1, 2021)

Although not opera, rather close since the audio was taped during Achim Freyer’s staged performances of the oratorio, an unusual event. This rarity features Studer singing, in German, a few selections from Händel’s _Messiah_; or rather, _Der Messias_. Curiously, the late Christopher Hogwood conducted the non-HIP Orchestra of the Deutsche Oper Berlin. And this during the period instruments heyday. By the by, this was taped at the same house, around the same time that Studer was singing her Third Norn, Gutrune (both roles in the same performances of G’rung), Freia, Helmwige and probably others, in Wagner’s Ring.


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## ALT (Mar 1, 2021)

Three in-house recordings of her as Elisabeth in _Tannhäuser_. Not from Bayreuth.

An impassioned _Allmächt’ge Jungfrau_





An impetuous _Hallenarie_





In the 2nd act duet, _O Fürstin!_, with *René Kollo




*


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## Otis B. Driftwood (4 mo ago)

I rather liked her portrayal of Elsa in Herzog's Lohengrin;


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## ALT (Mar 1, 2021)

One more for the collection.


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## hammeredklavier (Feb 18, 2018)

Der Hölle Rache


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## hammeredklavier (Feb 18, 2018)

Prinsengrachtconcert 1993


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## ALT (Mar 1, 2021)

hammeredklavier said:


> Der Hölle Rache


Not at all a rare track of hers so not sure why you posted it. Still, it is mighty impressive and one of the finest QotNs on record.


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## ALT (Mar 1, 2021)

hammeredklavier said:


> Prinsengrachtconcert 1993


I had seen this concert many many years ago and good to see it surfacing on YT. Excellent singing from her, as usual.


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## hammeredklavier (Feb 18, 2018)

ALT said:


> Not at all a rare track of hers so not sure why you posted it.


I just thought it was kute


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## ALT (Mar 1, 2021)

On film, in a radiant *Im Abendrot*, from Strauss’ _Vier letzte Lieder_. Like a Stradivarius indeed.


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

I generally avoid commenting on Studer here, knowing that strong feelings hover about, but I was curious about this since it's a favorite work. I listened without watching most of the time, as I usually do. Studer's voice would seem to be of the right sort for the music, but she gives a very peculiar performance: quiet, subdued, the voice held in to the point where it barely registers at times. This might be partly the effect of the miking, though there's nothing to suggest that the singer was miked more distantly than the orchestra. I think it's an interpretive choice; the piece sounds as if sung to herself, maybe in a trance or a dream, something remembered rather than lived. I suppose that's a valid approach, though I find it too restrained to be moving.


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## Op.123 (Mar 25, 2013)

Woodduck said:


> I generally avoid commenting on Studer here, knowing that strong feelings hover about, but I was curious about this since it's a favorite work. I listened without watching most of the time, as I usually do. Studer's voice would seem to be of the right sort for the music, but she gives a very peculiar performance: quiet, subdued, the voice held in to the point where it barely registers at times. This might be partly the effect of the miking, though there's nothing to suggest that the singer was miked more distantly than the orchestra. I think it's an interpretive choice; the piece sounds as if sung to herself, maybe in a trance or a dream, something remembered rather than lived. I suppose that's a valid approach, though I find it too restrained to be moving.


I got exactly the same impression. Sounded like an approach more suited for a piano accompaniment.


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## The Conte (May 31, 2015)

Woodduck said:


> I generally avoid commenting on Studer here, knowing that strong feelings hover about, but I was curious about this since it's a favorite work. I listened without watching most of the time, as I usually do. Studer's voice would seem to be of the right sort for the music, but she gives a very peculiar performance: quiet, subdued, the voice held in to the point where it barely registers at times. This might be partly the effect of the miking, though there's nothing to suggest that the singer was miked more distantly than the orchestra. I think it's an interpretive choice; the piece sounds as if sung to herself, maybe in a trance or a dream, something remembered rather than lived. I suppose that's a valid approach, though I find it too restrained to be moving.


I haven't heard the recording posted here (but will go back and listen later on). I am very familiar with Studer's studio recordings of the Four Last Songs and heard her sing them live in recital. I consider her performances of these to be on a par with Schwarzkopf's under Szell. It will be interesting to compare when I have more time after the festive season, but I recommend Studer's studio recording of this.

N.


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

The Conte said:


> I haven't heard the recording posted here (but will go back and listen later on). I am very familiar with Studer's studio recordings of the Four Last Songs and heard her sing them live in recital. *I consider her performances of these to be on a par with Schwarzkopf's under Szell.* It will be interesting to compare when I have more time after the festive season, but* I recommend Studer's studio recording of this.*


That's high praise. Is it on YouTube? I don't buy CDs.


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## The Conte (May 31, 2015)

Woodduck said:


> That's high praise. Is it on YouTube? I don't buy CDs.


Here you go!






N.


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

The Conte said:


> Here you go!
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Thanks. Setting aside the slightly greater immediacy given to the voice by studio as opposed to concert conditions, I have very much the same reaction to this as to the concert performance. She sounds repressed, as if she's in a trance, or singing to herself. I guess it's a valid way to portray someone contemplating death, but vocally and verbally it doesn't reach out and touch me. I have to say, too, that the voice as such seems drab, though it's so held back I hardly know what to think of it. Is this a late recording for Studer? Right away I noted the lazy vibrato, which actually helps to create - or exacerbates, if you don't like it - a mood of somnolence. I wouldn't say this is Studer at anywhere near her best, much less in a league with Schwarzkopf who, for me, still leads the pack, with Jessye Norman's majestic performance not far behind.


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## ALT (Mar 1, 2021)

Christmas gift. Cheryl Studer in Salome’s Schlußgesang, *live*.


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## ALT (Mar 1, 2021)

ALT said:


> Christmas gift. Cheryl Studer in Salome’s Schlußgesang, *live*.


Of this performance, the following was published earlier this year:
_“In 1991 she [Studer] gave a concert performance of this very piece in Dresden [Salzburg] with Sinopoli that was just outrageous – Sinopoli pushed Studer with such power and force she ended up giving a vision of Salome that was more chilling and more decadent and terrifying than any I have heard; by the end of it her voice was all but shattered. Perhaps this is exactly the kind of cruelty that Strauss expected of his Salome – but which no soprano dares to give. It is certainly not the one that Jessye Norman dares to give here. As impressive as the voice is, her vocal cords do not sound that stretched – the performance could be considered just a little safe.
Norman doesn’t fall into the Studer category in any sense, and nor give us what Strauss really intended. But what we do get is a performance of such power and virtuosity it delivers a real punch. In a sense this is not uncomplicated music; it is a straightforward narrative and Norman doesn’t make life difficult for herself. You’ll be swept away by it, but it isn’t blood-curdling, it isn’t decadent and nor is it chilling. One could imagine Studer entirely embracing the head of John the Baptist to kiss his lips; I think Norman probably recoiled at the prospect of doing so. Where Studer might almost spit her words out towards the latter half of this long monologue, Norman is more modest. Only one of these two great sopranos drips in the blood of her venom and poison.”_
Richard STRAUSS Jessye Norman sings Strauss, Five Songs & Salome - LPO LPO0122 [MB] Classical Music Reviews: April 2022 - MusicWeb-International


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