# Love this aria but... it was not sung in Italian?



## schigolch (Jun 26, 2011)

With the advent of the surtitles technology, most of the Opera performances today are offered in the original language.

There are a few exceptions in some theaters of England, Germany, Eastern Europe... but the rule, and the preferred approach is to sing in the original language.

And this is, undoubtedly, the right thing to do.

However, in this thread we can talk about great performances of well known arias, in a different language. If the composer himself adapted the opera to more than one language, then it doesn't count. For instance, both _La fille du régiment_ and _La figlia del reggimento_ are considered original versions. But an aria from this opera sung in German or Russian will qualify.

To start with, I will center in Verdi, and how we can hear some very beautiful verdian singing in German, Russian or French (not very many examples in English, I'm afraid, while in Spain, Verdi had [almost] always been sung in Italian). Of course, other members could also use Verdi examples, or whichever other composers they could have in mind.

There was a great tradition of singing Verdi in the German theaters, and in German, during the first decades of the 20th century. We are fortunate that this generation of singers was recorded so we can enjoy those performances.

Just to open the thread, a couple of things.










First, the great Radames of the Danish tenor Helge Rosvaenge. This 'Celeste Aida' from 1938. Just look at the ending, with the last Bflat 3 in _pp_ and _morendo_, just like Verdi wrote it in the score.















Now, the Moldavian soprano Maria Cebotari singing another top verdian role, Violetta. This 'Sempre Libera' sung with the abandon and the frentic pace demanded by Verdi, but with a limpid coloratura and flawless execution.


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## Sieglinde (Oct 25, 2009)

Mihály Székely, a famous Hungarian bass (also performed in Met, Hunding and Fiesco among others)

Osmin's aria






Grand Inquisitor scene (with János Fodor)


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## Almaviva (Aug 13, 2010)

Well, a classic example is Mi Par d'udir Ancora, a.k.a. Je crois entendre encore (the original one).


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## ooopera (Jul 27, 2011)

Fritz Wunderlich

Und es blitzen sterne





Wie eiskalt ist dies Händchen


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## schigolch (Jun 26, 2011)

Let's listen to Maria Ceborati again, but this time in a Puccini's role. Mimi, but of course, sung in German.






His companion is the great tenor Marcel Wittrisch:










With a brilliant and beautiful voice, he was really more akin to Italian or French repertoire, than to German.

Here below the justly famous recording of the love duet of _Les Huguenots_, with Margarete Teschemacher:


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## schigolch (Jun 26, 2011)

Perhaps Aida is Verdi's opera with the best recordings in German. At the very least every bit as good as in Italian.

Here we can hear three tenors singing _Holde Aida_:

*Franz Völker*






*Jacques Urlus*






*Karl Jörn*


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## schigolch (Jun 26, 2011)

We can find also very good renditions of Verdi's roles sung in Russian.

With an almost insulting facility and a bit of arrogance, exactly what the Ducca from Rigoletto needs, the young Sergei Lemeshev sung in 1932:






And other great Russian tenor, but in this case as a more mature singer, Ivan Kozlovsky, is singing here "Un di felice" with Elizaveta Shumskaya's Violetta, in 1951:


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## Aksel (Dec 3, 2010)

The famous drinking song from Offenbach's Le Perichole, Ah, quel diner, here sung in Norwegian, and not only that, but it has been made a duet. It is sung by mezzo Hege Høisæther and soprano Toril Carlsen.






Also, a little clip from a Nozze di Figaro at the Norwegian National Opera, sometime in the eighties, this also sung in Norwegian. A young Solveig Kringleboth sings Susanna and Figaro is sung by Terje Stensvold





Here is another clip from Nozze, this one sung in Swedish. The clip is from 1988.


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## schigolch (Jun 26, 2011)

Yes, Norwegian is not one of the most common languages in Opera. 

By the way, Solveig Kringelborn looks stunning in that video.


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## Aksel (Dec 3, 2010)

schigolch said:


> Yes, Norwegian is not one of the most common languages in Opera.
> 
> By the way, Solveig Kringelborn looks stunning in that video.


No, although a fair number have been written. Though very few, if any are regularly performed. The closest we get to that is Geirr Tveitt's Jeppe på Bjerget.


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## ooopera (Jul 27, 2011)

Aksel's post reminded me of:





And confession - I've never seen that Bergman's opera movie.


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## schigolch (Jun 26, 2011)

Georges Thill was a frequent practitioner of Italian repertoire. A dozen of roles on stage and a few more in studio. His was perhaps the perfect vocality for the more lyrical verdian characters, but he was also able to sing Radames or Don Carlo. And in addition, he also sung Puccini (Calaf, Dick Johnson, Cavaradossi), and even verismo roles like Canio and Chénier.

His austere singing, the good phrasing and the pure beauty of his central notes, somehow compensate for the lack of brilliance in the top.

Those are his best French renditions of Italian repertoire:

*Le ciel luisait d'étoiles*






*Que cette main est froide*






*Ne pleure plus Liu*






*O céleste Aïda*






*Je suis aimé de toi*


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## mamascarlatti (Sep 23, 2009)

When I was first getting into opera in the 80s I would have seen this "Little Italy in the 50s" production of Rigoletto at the ENO about 4 times. John Rawnsley was heartbreaking as Rigoletto. Of course now I'm so familiar with the aria in Italian that it sounds funny to my ears, but I'll post it for old time's sake.


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## MAuer (Feb 6, 2011)

Here's a bit of a reversal: Many famous tenors have recorded Lionel's aria from Flotow's _Martha_ as "_M'appar_i":






In fact, the original is in German, and is titled "_Ach so fromm_":


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## schigolch (Jun 26, 2011)

_Martha_ is a very nice opera, somehow neglected in modern times. During all 2011 and 2012 there are only a handful of performances scheduled, in Munich and Schwerin.

Von Flotow was a German, with a French soul, but _Martha_ is best known in his Italian version. 

This is the French version of the aria, _A mes yeux enchantés_, sung by Georges Thill:


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## vasysm (Oct 27, 2011)




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## schigolch (Jun 26, 2011)

After the superb verdian singing of Lisitsian, in Russian, the bar is set high, indeed.

Maybe this fragment from _Il Trovatore_, with Hans Hermann Nissen, Helge Rosvaenge and Maria Reining singing in 1936, at Stuttgart, will be close to the mark:


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## schigolch (Jun 26, 2011)

Jussi Björling singing Alfredo Germont in Swedish:


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## schigolch (Jun 26, 2011)

_Claudia Muzio and Giuseppe de Luca performing __Onegin__ at the MET

_
​Let's hear one of the most endearing arias singing in other language ever. This is Claudia Muzio, performing in 1920 part of the Tatiana's letter aria, in Italian, from the First Act: "Sei forse l'angelo fedele".

A dreamy Tatiana, with her melancholy, her voice so "full of tears",..


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## schigolch (Jun 26, 2011)

Spanish tenor Miguel Fleta singing in 1922 the tenor aria from _Carmen_: "La fleur que tu m'avais jetée", in Italian:


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