# Monteverdi - coronation of Poppea



## SupersonicCow (Feb 8, 2014)

Hi there,

I'm looking for some advice please.

My dad has told me that his favourite piece of music is Pur ti Miro from the Coronation of Poppea by Monteverdi, sung by a countertenor (I see there is a thread about these being creepy - I'm certainly not keen on them but it's my dad's choice!). Is there a definitive recording of this? One that is really a reference for all others to be judged (an opera singer told me many years ago that Dame Sutherland's Lakme is such a recording)?

Many thanks.


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## Revenant (Aug 27, 2013)

I suggest that you go on You Tube and enjoy some of the selections by searching _Pur ti miro_. You can begin with this accessible version, where Jaroussky keeps the countertenor creepiness factor to a minimum, as his voice and that of the soprano meld together considerably well.


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## SupersonicCow (Feb 8, 2014)

Thanks, will do that. Really looking for a cd to buy him but I might be able to get some ideas based on voting in YouTube. Thank you!


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## mamascarlatti (Sep 23, 2009)

A fabulous, if rather slow and jazzy, version from la Venexiana. I think it captures the sensuous character of this duet very well (No prizes for guessing what Nerone and Poppea are going to be doing after this)


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## Revenant (Aug 27, 2013)

mamascarlatti said:


> A fabulous, if rather slow and jazzy, version from la Venexiana. I think it captures the sensuous character of this duet very well (No prizes for guessing what Nerone and Poppea are going to be doing after this)


Why, they'll be taking bows before the applauding audience, as that is the end of the opera.


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## deggial (Jan 20, 2013)

Revenant said:


> Why, they'll be taking bows before the applauding audience, as that is the end of the opera.


I think they'll be going mattress shopping.

here's a funny one, check out the fabu outfits!


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## Revenant (Aug 27, 2013)

SupersonicCow said:


> Thanks, will do that. Really looking for a cd to buy him but I might be able to get some ideas based on voting in YouTube. Thank you!


If you want to get him the complete Opera, the Jacobs is a bit outdated according to some as it is not as HIP (using period or near-period instruments and continuo concepts that purists increasingly demand) as others, but it could be more accessible.









But since you mentioned that your father likes the aria itself and is not necessarily a fan of the entire opera, a cd or dvd of the entire Teatro d'Amore performance by Cristina Pluhar's consort, which includes the segment that I linked, would perhaps be preferable. It contains selections from several Monteverdi works by the same consort.

Edit: I almost forgot: you can go to Amazon and search all the mp3 downloads for Poppea and download only the pur ti miros that you think he'd like. Unfortunately, sometimes they restrict key selections for Album Only downloads. But give it a try.


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## deggial (Jan 20, 2013)

whatever purists say, I love that recording  and the dvd you mentioned.


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## Revenant (Aug 27, 2013)

deggial said:


> whatever purists say, I love that recording  and the dvd you mentioned.


The purists are only good for telling you what they think you should like, not why you should love the music.


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## SupersonicCow (Feb 8, 2014)

Thanks very much.
Whilst he likes the aria, he does like context so the entire piece would good (I didn't really like Handel's messiah until I saw the whole pice performed), so thanks for the cd recommendation. I will take a look at the cd and see that it's sung by a counter-tenor (should that be hyphenated, 1 word or 2?).

Thanks again


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## Revenant (Aug 27, 2013)

SupersonicCow said:


> Thanks very much.
> Whilst he likes the aria, he does like context so the entire piece would good (I didn't really like Handel's messiah until I saw the whole pice performed), so thanks for the cd recommendation. I will take a look at the cd and see that it's sung by a counter-tenor (should that be hyphenated, 1 word or 2?).
> 
> Thanks again


I've seen it written only as "countertenor" (without the quotation marks). Nero was written for a castrato (and/or the role was _created by _a castrato), iirc, so nowadays it's almost always sung by a countertenor or by a mezzosoprano. One exception is the 1984(?) Glyndebourne production with Maria Ewing as Poppea, where Nero is a tenor. Not so much lately, the use of a tenor for this role.

Don't worry too much about it; as long as the Seneca is not a soprano.


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## Revenant (Aug 27, 2013)

deggial said:


> I think they'll be going mattress shopping.
> 
> here's a funny one, check out the fabu outfits!


Jaroussky beats out Villazon as a Mr. Bean lookalike, imo. But the voice is all wrong for the Atkinson, imo.


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## deggial (Jan 20, 2013)

Revenant said:


> Not so much lately, the use of a tenor for this role.







not sure when this was (20 or so years ago?) but Croft is pretty neat as Nerone.


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## Revenant (Aug 27, 2013)

deggial said:


> not sure when this was (20 or so years ago?) but Croft is pretty neat as Nerone.


They should consider tenors more often for that role, as long as they have the type of tessitura that will allow the voice to meld and interweave with the soprano's in numbers like _pur ti miro_. After all there are mezzos and countertenors that do not necessarily weave that well with the soprano in this opera. Conversely, I liked a countertenor Orfeo, Ian Bostridge, in Haim's version. The devil is in the details, always.


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## mamascarlatti (Sep 23, 2009)

Revenant said:


> They should consider tenors more often for that role, as long as they have the type of tessitura that will allow the voice to meld and interweave with the soprano's in numbers like _pur ti miro_. After all there are mezzos and countertenors that do not necessarily weave that well with the soprano in this opera. Conversely, I liked a countertenor Orfeo, Ian Bostridge, in Haim's version. The devil is in the details, always.


Well, Bostridge is officially a tenor, but I agree his haut-contre voice seems to stray into countertenor territory.


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## Revenant (Aug 27, 2013)

mamascarlatti said:


> Well, Bostridge is officially a tenor, but I agree his haut-contre voice seems to stray into countertenor territory.


Noted. That voice is very good for Orfeo. I also like Zanassi (sp?) in another cd version, even though he is nowhere near counter, but wouldn't be the ideal choice for Nero, imo.


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