# Great female singers of the past



## schigolch

I love the operatic female voice.

Sopranos comes first, but mezzo and alto are a close second.

In this thread we can remember all of them with a simple format: just a picture, and a couple of auditions. Any female singer that is not longer active, can be included here.


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## schigolch

*Mafalda Favero*

*Mafalda Favero (1903 - 1981) *


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## schigolch

*Anita Cerquetti (1931 - ) *


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## TxllxT

Ema Destinnová 26 February 1878 - 28 January 1930


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## sospiro

One of my favourites is Agnes Baltsa. This Carmen was one of the first opera DVDs that I ever bought & I still like it the best.






and a fabulous Preziosilla in this


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## schigolch

Also known as Emmy Destinn.


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## sabrina

This post is designed for me.
Of course I start with Maria Callas, La Divina:






Close to Maria quality was Virginia Zeani:
















Great Anna Moffo:


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## schigolch

sospiro said:


> One of my favourites is Agnes Baltsa. T


I don't think Agnes Baltsa has already retired...


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## sospiro

schigolch said:


> I don't think Agnes Baltsa has already retired...


Well she's getting a bit past it - may I stretch the rules?


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## schigolch

Yes, of course.


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## sabrina

Amelita Galli Turci:


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## schigolch

A big star in the early 20th century, she sold records by the hundreds of thousands....


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## sabrina

Lily Pons (1898-1976):






Nellie Melba (1861-1931)






Some very old recordings (1895? and 1906):

Adelina Patti:


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## amfortas

Régine Crespin (1927 - 2007)


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## Ukko

Just goes to show that you opera nuts lack discernment. Ferrier had The Voice.


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## TxllxT

Hilltroll72 said:


> Just goes to show that you opera nuts lack discernment. Ferrier had The Voice.







Did you ever hear the voice of Aafje Heynis? Same teacher as Ferrier had...


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## Ukko

TxllxT said:


> Did you ever hear the voice of Aafje Heynis? Same teacher as Ferrier had...


No; can you recommend a recording?


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## Almaviva




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## schigolch

*Rosa Raisa (1893 - 1963) *


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## TxllxT

Hilltroll72 said:


> No; can you recommend a recording?












Brahms' Alto Rhapsody made her famous










Mahler: Symphony no 2 'Resurrection' with RCO, Haitink, Elly Ameling & Aafje Heynis










A compilation CD

Aafje Heynis is often compared to Kathleen Ferrier, both have a comparable background (church, choir, faith).


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## Liss

Victoria de los Ángeles: (1923 - 2005)


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## BalloinMaschera

gosh there are so many- where do I start?


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## MAuer

The wonderful Sena Jurinac:










This soprano sang a wide range of roles, from Mozart's leading ladies to Beethoven's Leonore, and including Verdi's Desdemona and Puccini's Madama Butterfly. She was also a noted Octavian in "_Der Rosenkavalier_."


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## GoneBaroque

Hilltroll72 said:


> Just goes to show that you opera nuts lack discernment. Ferrier had The Voice.


You are so correct






Rob


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## HarpsichordConcerto

Francesca Cuzzoni (1696-1778) and Margherita Durastanti (active 1700–1734), judging by what music were actually tailored-composed for them.


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## DarkAngel

sabrina said:


> Amelita Galli Turci:


*Amelita Galli Curci* is also one of my very favorite historical singers, great for light sparkling colortura......a self taught soprano that gave her freedom to stretch the acceptable boundries a bit, I have both of her Prima Voce Cds, peak vocal years @ 1920 so sound is not great


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## schigolch

*Rosa Ponselle (1897 - 1981) *


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## Bix

Lucia Popp
12 November 1939 - 16 November 1993



















as Susana


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## mamascarlatti

*Lorraine Hunt Lieberson 1954-2006*


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## StlukesguildOhio

Accck!!! Alma! I've been meaning to pick up this disc for years now:










So at $5 there's no excuse.


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## StlukesguildOhio

mamascarlatti said:


> *Lorraine Hunt Lieberson 1954-2006*


Indeed... such a loss.






And surely her farewell...






from her husband, Peter Lieberson's _Neruda Songs_... a meditation upon one's death before one's beloved... is as heart-wrenching as Kathleen Ferrier's performance of _Mahler's Song of the Earth_ as she face her own certain death.

Sadly, her husband recently passed away as well.


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## schigolch

*Claudia Muzio (1889 - 1936) *


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## Almaviva

StlukesguildOhio said:


> Accck!!! Alma! I've been meaning to pick up this disc for years now:
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> So at $5 there's no excuse.


 I have it. It's good.


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## StlukesguildOhio

Kirsten Flagstad... and Lauritz Melchior :











Kirsten Flagstad:






Birgit Nilsson:






This historic video with Hans Knappertsbusch conducting is also fascinating:


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## joen_cph

(deleted, sorry)


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## schigolch

*Magda Olivero (1910 - ) *


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## schigolch

*Anna de Cavalieri (1924 - ) *

aka Anne McKnight


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## schigolch

*Lisa della Casa (1919 - ) *


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## schigolch

*Maria Jeritza (1887 - 1982) *


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## wonderful

thanks a lot.


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## Sid James

Australian soprano *June Bronhill* (1929-2005) sang many roles, from grand opera to operetta & musicals, but she's most remembered for her superb _Merry Widow_ & the famous _Vilja-Lied_ from that in particular -






Another great female Australian opera singer (who also loved doing art-song) who is still very much with us is the contralto *Lauris Elms* (born 1931) (saw a tribute concert/interview with her last year - she didn't sing as she's retired, but current "young guns" from the Australian Opera sang a fine selection of her favourite art-songs from Schubert to Mahler & Britten). Like many Aussie singers of the post-WW2 era, she made her way to London's Covent Garden, and sang with Joan Sutherland and many others. I can't find a youtube link of her, but there's a great album of her singing Schubert lieder with one of our finest accompanists of bygone days, John Winther, on the ABC classics Eloquence budget label (I've been meaning to get this for ages!).


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## schigolch

*Lotte Lehmann (1888 - 1976) *


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## amfortas

I was wondering when we'd get to Lotte Lehmann! There's been another pretty major omission as well.

*Elisabeth Schwarzkopf (1915 - 2006) *​


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## schigolch

There's has been many.

But we have all the time in the world to add more singers.


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## schigolch

*Conchita Supervía (1895 - 1936) *


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## schigolch

*Giulietta Simionato (1910 - 2010) *


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## Sid James

American soprano of yesteryear *Marni Nixon* (born 1930) will be well known to many people, but more for her voice than her face! She was the voice behind Deborah Kerr's Anna in "The King and I," Natalie Wood's Maria in "West Side Story" and Audrey Hepburn's Eliza in "My Fair Lady," yet she never received a screen credit. I recently acquired a reissue on CD of a number of her classic recordings (made during the 1960's) of the songs of Charles Ives (it is on the EMI "American Classics" series, coupled with a number of Ives' sets for chamber orchestra). I instantly fell in love with her voice (no-one can sound so sexy, methinks, uttering those tough dissonances!) & maybe a part of this instant connection with this sometimes difficult music (to first time listeners like myself) was the fact that I'd heard her before in those musicals on screen. In any case, a common thing between her interpretations of both "serious" musics and musicals is (I think) that she has a very "direct" and "no frills" style. Her "takes" sound quite modern and contemporary, even after many decades.

Here she is singing ("as" Natalie Wood) "Tonight" from _West Side Story_ (Bernstein/Sondheim) & also a song from Canteloube's arrangement of the _Songs of the Auvergne_ -

[video=youtube;xd_foOvGvho&feature=related]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xd_foOvGvho&feature=related[/video]

[video=youtube;SmWlOhjgIU4&feature=related]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SmWlOhjgIU4&feature=related[/video]


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## Aksel

schigolch said:


> *Giulietta Simionato (1910 - 2010) *


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## schigolch

*Pilar Lorengar (1929 - 1996) *


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## schigolch

*Elisabeth Grümmer (1911 - 1986) *


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## schigolch

*Ebe Stignani (1903 - 1974) *


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## schigolch

*Renata Tebaldi (1922 - 2004) *


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## Sid James

*@ schigolch* - Absolutely love *Pilar Lorengar* - got her as part of the line-up in Gounod's _Solemn Mass for St. Cecilia_ & she was superb. A deep, husky and very expressive voice. I was under the mistaken impression that she was still alive, I am kind of saddened to learn here that she died in her sixties, which isn't that "old" at all. As for *Renata Tebaldi*, she was great as well, I have her recording of Puccin's _Madama Butterfly_ which I'll have to dig out soon - haven't heard it in ages, but I remember her recording as being very good. I think she was kind of overshadowed by other female singers of her generation like Callas, Schwarzkopf & Sutherland - it was a very crowded field in those days, as always...


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## BalloinMaschera

*Hina Spani* I love her voice- Preiser & Testament have re-issued a good measure of her HMV recordings. Her _La Wally_ aria, for example is incredible. She is so expressive; her voice carries gravitas without compromising femininity. She is perhaps not that well known, because she never sang at the MET, England , or Germany. The Italians, however, loved her- especially the most important operatic Italian of the time: Toscanini. Please check her out!!! Sublime.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hina_Spani

http://www.cantabile-subito.de/Sopranos/Spani__Hina/spani__hina.html


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## schigolch

Toscanini loved her very much, indeed.











Lorengar retired four or five years before her death, with some recitals in Spain and Germany. She was a great singer, with a lot of style.


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## schigolch

*Elisabeth Rethberg (1894 - 1976) *


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## schigolch

*Astrid Varnay (1918 - 2006) *


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## Bix

schigolch said:


> *Renata Tebaldi (1922 - 2004) *
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Love this woman​


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## schigolch

*Zinka Milanov (1906 - 1989) *


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## schigolch

*Montserrat Caballé (1933 - ) *


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## jflatter

schigolch said:


> *Astrid Varnay (1918 - 2006) *


I am reading Astrid Varnay's autobiography at the moment. If you are interested in her, I would highly recommend it as it is a very good read.


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## schigolch

Thanks, I also read it some time ago, and it's indeed quite interesting.


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## schigolch

*Gina Cigna (1900 - 2001) *


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## schigolch

*Leyla Gencer (1928 - 2008) *


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## schigolch

*Geraldine Farrar (1882 - 1967) *


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## schigolch

*Giannina Arangi-Lombardi (1891 - 1951) *


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## schigolch

*Cloe Elmo (1909 - 1962) *


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## Badinerie

*Ljuba Welitch (10th July 1913-1st Sept 1996)
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And a Special mention for *Eleanor Steber (July 17, 1914 - October 3, 1990)* who's Nuits d'ete got me through a difficult time in the Eighties


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## schigolch

*Lilli Lehmann (1848 - 1929) *


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## schigolch

*Maria Caniglia (1905 - 1979) *


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## GoneBaroque

Ernestine Schumann-Heink 1861 - 1936​


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## schigolch

*Galina Vishnevskaya (1926 - ) *


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## schigolch

*Gilda Cruz-Romo (1940 - ) *


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## schigolch

*Mirella Freni (1935 - ) *


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## schigolch

*Rita Gorr (1926 - ) *


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## schigolch

*Rosanna Carteri (1930 - ) *


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## schigolch

*Germaine Cernay (1900 - 1943) *


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## GoneBaroque

There are so many great singers I missed. Thank you for this one.


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## schigolch

Looks always help to build an operatic career:

*Lina Cavalieri (1874 - 1974) *


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## schigolch

*Tiana Lemnitz (1897 - 1994) *


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## schigolch

*Lina Pagliughi (1907 - 1980) *


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## Sid James

We can include "borderline" classical, right? Don't worry, I'm not going to put in someone totally outlandish!

*Edith Piaf* was one of my parent's favourite singers of yesteryear, & the "bug" caught on to me easily. She was "the little sparrow" who was literally born on the streets of Paris & grew up in the seedier districts there. Discovered in the 1930's while busking by a record company executive, she made her first record and the rest was history. She is one of (if not the) biggest name of the French chanson realm of the c20th. She also wrote a number of the songs she sung, or collaborated with various fellow musicians on the songs & arrangements (which are pretty unique, imo). Here are some of my favourites from her -

Exodus -





La goualante du pauvre Jean -





Non, Je ne regrette rien -


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## schigolch

I understand your fascination with Ms. Piaf, but in this thread I think by "borderline" we can include someone specialist in lieder, for instance, rather than "popular" song. If we include Edith Piaf why not (either in the female or male thread) Yves Montand, Alain Barriere, Gilbert Becaud, Jacques Brel, Françoise Hardy, Leo Ferre, Michel Sardou, Charles Aznavour, Marie Laforet, Serge Reggiani, Juliette Greco, Barbara,...

Don't get me wrong, my mother also loved those singers and I'm his son, after all. I will even gladly cooperate if you or some other member open a thread to remember them, but in this thread I think is better we stick to operatic or "classical" singers.

Of course, in any case, Ms. Piaf is now welcome here.


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## HarpsichordConcerto

I have a DVD box-set of 3 DVDs, _A tribute to Mirella Freni_, which consists of a documentary DVD about her. But the main reason why I bought it was it came with Giordano's _Fedora_ (with Domingo) and Puccini's _La Bohème_ (with Pavarotti), both excellent versions of those operas.


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## Almaviva

schigolch said:


> I understand your fascination with Ms. Piaf, but in this thread I think by "borderline" we can include someone specialist in lieder, for instance, rather than "popular" song. If we include Edith Piaf why not (either in the female or male thread) Yves Montand, Alain Barriere, Gilbert Becaud, Jacques Brel, Françoise Hardy, Leo Ferre, Michel Sardou, Charles Aznavour, Marie Laforet, Serge Reggiani, Juliette Greco, Barbara,...
> 
> Don't get me wrong, my mother also loved those singers and I'm his son, after all. I will even gladly cooperate if you or some other member open a thread to remember them, but in this thread I think is better we stick to operatic or "classical" singers.
> 
> Of course, in any case, Ms. Piaf is now welcome here.


You're his son? Strange women, these Spaniards... LOL... kidding, don't kill me.
As one of the keepers of the purity of this sacred place, I'd say that Edith Piaff, as much as I love her, belongs in the Non-Classical music forum (we do have one). She was great. GREAT! And so were many of the others schigolch has quoted (I'd add Amalia Rodrigues). But she ain't a classical music singer.


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## schigolch

*Giannina Arangi-Lombardi (1891 - 1951) *



















[/QUOTE]


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## schigolch

*Maria Cebotari (1910 - 1949) *


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## schigolch

*Christa Ludwig (1928 - ) *


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## schigolch

*Marilyn Horne (1934 - ) *


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## schigolch

*Mercedes Capsir (1895 - 1969) *


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## schigolch

*Margherita Grandi (1894 - 1972) *


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## schigolch

*Pia Tassinari (1903 - 1995) *


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## schigolch

* Elisabeth Söderström (1927 - 2009) *


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## schigolch

* Teresa Berganza (1933 - ) *


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## schigolch

*Raina Kabaivanska (1934 - ) *


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## schigolch

*Frida Leider (1888 - 1975) *


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## schigolch

*Irmgard Seefried (1919 - 1988) *


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## schigolch

*Tatiana Troyanos (1938 - 1993) *


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## mamascarlatti

schigolch said:


> Tatiana Troyanos (1938 - 1993)


There is one I DO miss. I love her Eboli.


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## schigolch

*Leontyne Price (1927 - ) *


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## schigolch

*Ileana Cotrubas (1939 - ) *


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## schigolch

*Eva Turner (1892 - 1990) *


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## schigolch

*Leonie Rysanek (1926 - 1998) *


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## schigolch

*Lucia Valentini-Terrani (1946 - 1998) *


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## schigolch

*María Barrientos (1883 - 1946) *


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## schigolch

*Celestina Boninsegna (1877 - 1947) *


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## complainer

mamascarlatti said:


> *Lorraine Hunt Lieberson 1954-2006*


She was my favorite.


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## schigolch

*Margarete Teschemacher (1903 - 1959) *


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## schigolch

*Risë Stevens (1913 - ) *


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## schigolch

*Margaret Price (1941 - 2011) *


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## schigolch

*Ghena Dimitrova (1941 - 2005) *


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## schigolch

*Beverly Sills (1929 - 2007) *


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## schigolch

*Marian Anderson (1897 - 1993) *


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## schigolch

*Ninon Vallin (1886 - 1961) *


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## schigolch

*Clara Petrella (1914 - 1987) *


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## schigolch

*Gundula Janowitz (1937 -) *


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## schigolch

*Renata Scotto (1934 -) *


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## schigolch

*Géori Boué (1918 -) *


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## schigolch

*Martha Mödl (1912 - 2001) *


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## schigolch

*Anja Silja (1940 -) *


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## schigolch

*Elisabeth Schumann (1888 - 1952) *


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## GoneBaroque

Bernadette Greevy
(1940 - 2008)








Contraltos have become a diminishing breed with more attention being paid to the mezzo soprano voice. Although there are many fine Mezzos I mourn the loss of the richness of the contralto range. One of my favorite contraltos is the Irish born Bernadette Greevy who had an affinity for the music of Elgar and Mahler.
While she made a number of appearances in opera the bulk of her career was devoted to recitals and oratorio. Hear she sings an aria from Handel's opera Rinaldo.


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## schigolch

*Rosetta Pampanini (1896 - 1973) *


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## schigolch

*Marcella Pobbe (1921 - 2003) *


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## schigolch

*Gemma Bellincioni (1864 - 1950) *


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## schigolch

*Elvira de Hidalgo (1891 - 1980) *


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## schigolch

*Fedora Barbieri (1920 - 2003) *


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## schigolch

*Margherita Carosio (1908 - 2005)*


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## schigolch

*Clara Butt (1872 - 1936) *


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## schigolch

*Inge Borkh (1921 -) *


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## schigolch

*Maria Ivogün (1891 - 1987) *


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## schigolch

*Dusolina Giannini (1902 - 1986) *


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## schigolch

*Anna Tomowa-Sintow (1941 -) *


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## schigolch

*Florence Austral (1894 - 1968) *


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## schigolch

*Solange Michel (1912 - 2010) *


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## schigolch

*Luisa Tetrazzini (1871 - 1940) *


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## schigolch

*Margarete Klose (1899 - 1968) *


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## BalloinMaschera

*Joyce Barker 1931- 1992*

South Africa has produced some wonderful singers, among them Mimi Coertse, Marita Napier, Johan Botha, Elizabeth Connel, Deon van der Walt, Michelle Breedt, Kobie van Rensburg, and Wicus Slabbert.

Please "youtube" Joyce Barker!

Madam Barker had a big voice that was delivered with aplomb and grandeur laced with grace. She was the first Kathleen Ferrier Award recipient. In South Africa, she is near-legendary. She was all about the voice. She later retired to teaching...I was one of her students (too many moons ago, to admit when)- she was so specific about the joining of style and the mechanics of singing. The voice placement was so important to her.

Her recordings include a Verdi Requiem and the legendary Mahler's 8th under the supreme Mahler maestro, Horenstein.

Her daughter was a successful ballet dancer in her own right.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joyce_Barker

http://saoperasingers.homestead.com/Joyce_Barker.html

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Verdi-Requi...=sr_1_1?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1317112979&sr=1-1

http://www.amazon.com/Mahler-Sympho...I9WX/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1317113300&sr=8-1


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## schigolch

*Vera Schwarz (1888 - 1964) *


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## schigolch

*Katia Ricciarelli (1946 -) *


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## schigolch

*Regina Resnik (1922 -) *


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## GoneBaroque

Evelyn Lear (1926 -)


















She was also renowned as a recitalist particularly in Richard Strauss and Hugo Wolf


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## schigolch

*Germaine Lubin (1890 - 1979) *


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## schigolch

*Andrée Espósito (1934 -) *



















[/QUOTE]


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## schigolch

*Renée Doria (1921 -) *


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## BalloinMaschera

Mentioning Vera Schwartz reminds me of her first-namesake , *Vera Little* (* Dec 10, 1928)- does anyone know much about her? I only know that she was from Memphis where she studied with the historically important Florence Cole Talbert, later also in Paris; she became very popular in Germany (her Carmen debut was at the State Opera in Berlin, 1957 or 58 (?)- where she was celebrated, but the production was boo'd) - she had an illustrious career, and was a pioneer for the future of black opera singers... she also participated in Solti's Ring Cycle recordings... any info or youtube clips would be appreciated!


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## schigolch

*Eva Marton (1943 -) *


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## schigolch

*Lotte Schöne (1891 - 1977) *


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## GoneBaroque

Anneliese Rothenberger (1924 - 2010)


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## schigolch

*Gabriella Tucci (1929 - ) *


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## BalloinMaschera

Re Gabriella Tucci- this is a wonderful collection:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Verdi-Mio-G...TG/ref=sr_1_46?ie=UTF8&qid=1317901580&sr=8-46


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## BalloinMaschera

Rothenberger is close to my heart, as she sings Susanna in the opera recording that first got me stuck on opera...

Nozze di Figaro, but in German (Suitner conducts) - alongside Berry, Prey, Gueden, Mathis, Schreier, Vogel and Burmeister...

the recording is of course quite teutonic at times, but still a gem...


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## GoneBaroque

BalloinMaschera said:


> Rothenberger is close to my heart, as she sings Susanna in the opera recording that first got me stuck on opera...
> 
> Nozze di Figaro, but in German (Suitner conducts) - alongside Berry, Prey, Gueden, Mathis, Schreier, Vogel and Burmeister...
> 
> the recording is of course quite teutonic at times, but still a gem...


I know the recording well.


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## schigolch

*Oralia Domínguez (1925 - ) *


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## BalloinMaschera

OD: To my ears she, is the best Forza del destino Preziosilla to date. She was also an Amneris of note.


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## BalloinMaschera

schigolch said:


> *Maria Caniglia (1905 - 1979) *
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She was always terrific together with Gigli. Granted , sometimes a bit undisciplined (or over enthusiastic) - but wow!...........​


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## schigolch

*Grace Bumbry (1937 - ) *


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## schigolch

*Helen Traubel (1899 - 1972) *


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## schigolch

*Toti Dal Monte (1893 - 1975) *


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## schigolch

*Janet Baker (1933 - ) *


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## BalloinMaschera

*Toti dal Monte's * Butterfly recording (1939- de Fabrittiis & Gigli) is to my ears (closely followed by the Scotto / Bergonzi under Barbirolli) the *best * Geisha on record. Perhaps it helps that both Dal Monte and Gigli knew the composer pretty well.

http://www.arkivmusic.com/classical/album.jsp?site_id=CTRV&album_id=53264


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## schigolch

*Shirley Verrett (1931 - 2010) *


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## BalloinMaschera

*Verrett*- while I have never been 100% convinced by her soprano assumptions, I think her Eboli is the best post Wars Spanish Princess, to date- yes, that includes the likes of Bumbry and Baltsa.


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## schigolch

*Mária Németh (1897 - 1967) *


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## schigolch

*Suzanne Danco (1911 - 2000) *


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## schigolch

*Eugenia Mantelli (1860 - 1926) *


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## schigolch

*Gitta Alpar (1903 - 1991) *


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## schigolch

*Antonietta Stella (1929 -) *


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## BalloinMaschera

*Antonietta Stella*- is one of my all-time favorite sopranos for the italian rep. While perhaps not having the apparent gifts of Callas or Tebaldi- she had her own special qualities. She was a highly communicative singer. She sang along side all major tenors of 50's & 60's. Most of her studio recordings, unfortunately, do not capture her at her best (or in roles that are not really suited to her gifts- like Linda di Chamounix).

http://www.marjaleenapelho.com/stella.html

http://www.arkivmusic.com/classical/album.jsp?album_id=192602 is a wonderful live Verdi Requiem recording of her very young under v Karajan w/ Oralia Dominguez, Giusseppe Modesti and Nicolai Gedda. Fantastic.

My avatar is an image of AS. Today, she would undoubtedly be a super-star; I can't think of anyone around today who has squillo of the caliber close to hers.


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## schigolch

*Irina Arkhipova (1925 - 2010) *


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## BalloinMaschera

IA => she must rank among the best Pique Dame countesses ever heard, me thinks...


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## Vesteralen

schigolch said:


> *Claudia Muzio (1889 - 1936) *


Just wanted to resurrect this post since I just read the article on her in Opera News this morning.

Now, back to your regularly scheduled thread.....


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## Vesteralen

Just wanted to say I got to listen to part of these vidcaps during lunch today and I was impressed. I loved her tone - her high register seemed uncommonly natural. It was dramatic but without noticeable strain, so I can sort of see what the article was saying, I think. 

I've started to purchase some legendary recordings of violinists because I was assured that the remastered sound quality was quite good. Might I perhaps add some legendary singers to my collection? Maybe. THe article said that some of her late recordings are still listenable.


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## schigolch

*Kiri Te Kanawa (1944 -) *


----------



## schigolch

*Maria Chiara (1939 -) *


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## terpsichandre

Maria (von) Basildes (1886 - 1946), contralto, brilliant Bartók partner on stage & in recording sessions. here you can hear her singing Bach's 'Komm, süßer Tod'. and this is her rendition of Handel's 'Ombra mai fu' from _Serse_.
these are the two sides of the same Parlophone 78 rpm record of 1928.


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## schigolch

*Maria Pedrini (1910 - 1981) *


----------



## schigolch

*Josephine Veasey (1930 -) *


----------



## schigolch

*Gwyneth Jones (1936 -) *


----------



## schigolch

*Hildegard Behrens (1937 - 2009) *


----------



## schigolch

*Carol Neblett (1946 -) *


----------



## schigolch

*Jarmila Novotná (1907 - 1994) *


----------



## schigolch

*Jean Madeira (1918 - 1972) *


----------



## BalloinMaschera

*JM*: I don't know of a singer around today, whose Clytemnestra comes close to hers.


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## schigolch

*Elena Nicolai (1905 - 1993) *


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## BalloinMaschera

How strange; I was just thinking about Elena Nicolai yesterday and how I would list her on this thread, when I got a chance! I think JM made me think of other great mezzos.


----------



## schigolch

*Irene Minghini-Cattaneo (1892 - 1944) *


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## Vesteralen

Just finishing listening to this disc I got from my library. I'm amazed, to say the least. I never would have expected such clarity and such power to come through on such old recordings. Most of the recordings on this disc are from her 1934/35 sessions. But, there is one from 1911, when her career was just starting. A lighter tone, to be sure, but still very clear and powerful.

Ms Muzio may not have had the looks of some modern opera stars, but hers would have been a voice to hear live, for sure.


----------



## schigolch

*Teresa Stratas (1938 -) *


----------



## schigolch

*Sigrid Onégin (1889 - 1943) *


----------



## schigolch

*Eileen Farrell (1920 - 2002) *


----------



## schigolch

*Elena Obraztsova (1939 -) *


----------



## schigolch

*Gilda dalla Rizza (1892 - 1975) *


----------



## schigolch

*Mary Garden (1874 - 1967) *


----------



## schigolch

*Lina Bruna Rasa (1907 - 1984) *


----------



## schigolch

*Salomea Kruszelnicka (1873 - 1952) *


----------



## schigolch

*Kerstin Thorborg (1896 - 1970)*


----------



## schigolch

*Cristina Deutekom (1931 - )*


----------



## schigolch

*Bianca Berini (1928 - 2004)*


----------



## schigolch

*Emmy Bettendorf (1895 - 1963)*


----------



## schigolch

*Gianna D'Angelo (1929 -)*


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## Dster

schigolch said:


> *Lina Bruna Rasa (1907 - 1984) *


This is one of the most moving vissi d'arte I have heard, and from someone with a tragic life ....


----------



## schigolch

*Marcella Sembrich (1858 - 1935)*


----------



## schigolch

*Johanna Gadski (1872 - 1932)*


----------



## schigolch

*Teresa Stich-Randall (1927 - 2007)*


----------



## Dster

Isn't this beautiful? The diminuendo is the jewel of the crown


----------



## schigolch

*Lucrezia Bori (1887 - 1960)*


----------



## schigolch

*Jessye Norman (1945 -)*


----------



## schigolch

*Frederica von Stade (1945 -)*


----------



## schigolch

*Cesira Ferrani (1863 - 1943)*


----------



## schigolch

*Lella Cuberli (1945 - )*


----------



## schigolch

*Viorica Cortez (1935 -)*


----------



## gpolyz

*ELISABETH RETHBERG( 1894-1976)*

One of the greatest lyric sopranos of all time.

A rare phenomenon of an artist who excelled in both German and Italian repertory.

Two little known segments from Rethberg`s US Radio broadcasts:

La Wally: Ebben? ne andro lontana
Aug 22, 1941 Broadcast WOR , New York

_The only available and moving rendition of this beautiful aria by Rethberg who was then just past her vocal prime.
_
www.fasolt.gr/sound/08/s000161.mp3

Schubert: Erlkoening
Feb 19, 1936 Unknown Broadcast Source

_The recording of Erkloening which convinced many listeners that the Schubert song was part of the second act of Wagner`s die Walkuere.
_
www.fasolt.gr/sound/09/s000162.mp3


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## schigolch

Thanks, Rethberg was absolutely great. We had already included her in this thread, but it's always good to bring her again on board.


----------



## GoneBaroque

*Lotte Schone*

Lotte Schoene Austrian-French soprano 1891 - 1977​


----------



## Dorabella

*Alma Fohström*

*Alma Fohström (1856-1936)*






Alma Foström was a Finnish coloratura soprano who created an international career. She performed as an opera and concert singer in four continents. She visited several opera houses including La Scala, Covent Garden and Teatro Colon. She was also the first Finnish singer who debuted at Metropolitan Opera.


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## Revenant

Florence Quartararo


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## schigolch

Let's review together some of the great Czech female singers of the past.










*Marie Podvalová *(1909 - 1992) was born in Prague. A gifted dramatic soprano, his operatic debut was in the city of Brno, in 1935, as Marina in _Boris Godunov_. Later, she would sing during almost forty years for the National Czech Theater, in Prague. She is best remembered as Smetana's Libuše, but she also sang other roles from the Czech repertory (Milada, Emilia Marty, Martinu's Julieta, Kostelnicka,...) as well as Tosca, Aida, Santuzza, Senta, Venus, Beethoven's Leonora,...


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## schigolch

*Maria Tauberová* (1911 - 2003). She was trained in Vienna, where she debuted singing operetta, but later she was hired by Prague's National Theater, and soon established herself as the light-lyrical soprano of choice. She sang roles like Gilda, Olympia, Norina, Violetta, Rosina, Marzelline, Susanna, Sophie, ... She was also active in Berlin, Vienna, London... Let's hear Maria Tauberová as Butterfly and Mimi:


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## schigolch

*Milada Šubrtová* (1924 - 2011), was born in Kralovice, and her first professional role was Giulietta in _Les contes d'Hoffmann_. In 1948 she started to sing for the Prague National Theater, where she would stay showing her limpid lyrical soprano voice until her retirement, in 1991. During her long career she sang more than eighty roles, including Mozart (Pamina, Fiordiligi, Konstanze, Donna Anna, Donna Elvira), Wagner (Elsa, Sieglinde), Puccini (Mimí, Musetta, Turandot, Cio-Cio-San), Verdi (Elisabetta, Abigaille, Lady Macbeth, Trovatore's Leonora del Trovatore and Violetta), French roles (Louise, Iphigenie, Micaëla, Marguerite), Russian's (Lisa, Tatyana, Xenia, Ludmila) and, of course, Czech's (Rusalka, Marenka, Emilia Marty, Jenufa, Libuse, Armida, Ludise...).

Rusalka: 




Leonora: 




Violetta (her favourite role):


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## schigolch

*Marta Krásová* (1901 - 1970) was born in Protivin, and was trained as a singer since she was just a small child, by her mother. After going to singing classes in Prague, the young mezzo was hired in Bratislava and debuted in the role of Jezibaba, in _Rusalka_. Once hired by the National Theater in 1928, she sang more than one hundred different roles. The more celebrated were Amneris, Kostelnicka, Carmen, Eboli, Marfa, Ortrud, Klytemnestra, Azucena, Jezibaba, Dalila, Kabincha and her cherished Donna Isabella, from Fibich's _The Bride of Messina_.

Singing with Beno Blachut the duet from Dvorak's _Dimitrij: _




An aria from _Prince Igor_ (sung in Czech):


----------



## schigolch

*Ludmila Červinková* (1908 - 1980) was born in Prague, and her career as a spinto soprano was centered there, at the National Theater. She was a much admired Tosca, Aida, Venus, Donna Anna... though arguably her greatest success was singing Káťa Kabanová. Let's hear her Rusalka:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BginRDw2OqQ


----------



## schigolch

*Jarmila Novotná* (1907 - 1994) was born in Prague, and she debuted there at National Teather, recommended by Emmy Destinn, singing the roles of Violetta, Tatyana, Marenka, Rusalka, Cio-Cio-San, Rosina, Gilda, Mimi,.... In 1934 she went to Vienna, and was a star at the Staatsoper. At this time, Berg said that she would be the ideal soprano for her Lulu. In 1940 she debuted at the MET, singing Mimi with Jussi Björling. She would spend the rest of her career in New York, incorporating even some mezzo roles in her later years. She was also appearing in around twenty movies.

Singing Violetta in Czech: 




Vissi d'arte:


----------



## schigolch

A few posts on Anita Cerquetti.










Blessed with a very beautiful voice, Cerquetti had also a great vocal technique, incisive phrasing, good balance between her low and high notes,... and after fighting for more than ten years to be a top opera singer, she just retired the very moment she achieved stardom.

True, she sang for the first time at La Scala in 1960, an Abigaille and very good reviews. Then, a couple of performances, a couple of recitals, and it will be the end for a Cerquetti that was only 32 years old.

Later, Cerquetti put the blame on some health issues, and the stress of the singing profession. A great pity. But thanks to her radio broadcasts, we have recordings of many of her roles, that are among the more accomplished we can hear from those wonderful 1950s.

Here is a youtube with an interview:


----------



## schigolch

Though she have been singing in some recitals and amateur opera productions, the true debut of Anita Cerquetti was in 1953, singing Aida, at the Verona Arena, followed a few days later by Trovatore's Leonora.

Aida is certainly not Cerquetti's best role. Though she is singing quite competently, the voice is a little bit too rough, we can almost see the singer sweating with the effort. At the end, we applaud because all the difficult passages have been well resolved, but in the process we are missing some of the pure pleasure of just enjoying the Nubian slave's singing... Cerquetti was just a good Aida, not a great Aida.

There are two complete recordings. In 1954:










and 1958:










the best one is the first, but Cerquetti's singing is pretty much the same in both. This is a nice duet, with a titanic, if a little bit too enthusiastic, Guelfi, from 1954:


----------



## Revenant

*Angelica Tuccari*

Couldn't find any bio of her online; perhaps someone else can provide any information on her. A site named Vinyl Divas indelicately describes her as a "B-list soprano". She seems to have been active from the late 40s to late 60s and to have made few recordings.










She has a rendition of _Bois Épais _from Lully's Amadis which I like but could not find on You Tube. Instead, I found this one.


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## schigolch

Anita Cerquetti sang Gioconda for the first time in the year 1956, in a cast with Stignani, Poggi and Bastianini. It was a big success, with both critics and audience.










the recording you mention, that was distributed by Decca. In 1957, Decca recorded another version again with Bastianini but replacing Stignani and Poggi, for Simionato and Del Monaco. It was the first and only official studio recording for Cerquetti.










The voice was just about ideal for the role, and she is even singing with passion, something that was not always there for Cerquetti. The 1957 recording is more interesting, than the older one.


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## schigolch

_Singers should be static while they are singing to keep control. A singer needs to act thru her gestures, her face, her arms and hands. But, most importantly, a singer needs to act with her voice._

*Anita Cerquetti

*​









One of the first roles Cerquetti sang in the theater was Leonora, from _Trovatore_. We don't have a complete recording, only some highlights from Mexico, in 1957, that I do recommend, in spite of the poor sound.










Cerquetti was a great Leonora. In "Tacea la notte placida", she display her wonderful and warm center, giving to each word the right accent. Perhaps "D'amor sull'ali rosee" is a bit less spectacular, but equally fascinating for the lovers of Verdian soprano singing:


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## schigolch

One of the most celebrated roles of Cerquetti was Abigaille, from _Nabucco_. She premiered the role in 1954, and there is a recording from 1960:










Few sopranos can indeed sing a good Abigaille. In my view, this was not really one of the best performances by Cerquetti. The top notes are forced, and she seems often to be a little bit distracted, like looking at Abigaille from outside, instead of playing her from inside.


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## schigolch

_ la prima opera che vidi fu l' Aida dove debuttavo io: non ne avevo mai viste..._

(the first opera I ever attended was the Aida of my debut. I've never watched one before...)

Anita Cerquetti​









In 1955 Cerquetti sang for the first time another Verdian heroine, Elena from _I Vespri Siciliani_.

Though this opera is not perhaps one of Verdi's greatest, the role of Elena is very difficult to sing. Cerquetti's voice was perfectly suited to it. Imperious, she is presenting us the character giving to each phrase the exact accent, the righ tone, in a vocal display of captivating beauty.

She also sang the role often in recitals.


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## schigolch

Anita Cerquetti was not a conventionally beautiful woman. A "difficult" face, a big, rotund body...

This was not such a big obstacle in the 1950s, and she was able to get a good career, that was stopped only by Cerquetti herself. In the operatic wold of today, in spite of her truly magnificent voice, she could get some more trouble to get hired at the beginning of her career, but after that she would be undoubtedly a major star.











In November 1955, Cerquetti sang _Un Ballo in Maschera_ in Chicago, with Jussi Bjorling, Tito Gobbi, Claramae Turner and Andrea Foldi. It was a big success, and the first time she approached the role of Amelia. Regrettably, there are no recordings of this performance, though we have one from Florence, at a later date.

Amelia was a great role for Cerquetti, again singing almost in her dream vocality. One critic said that her voice reminded him of the glow given off by molten lava... Perhaps "Morró, ma prima in grazia", is sung with a little bit too much distance from the character.


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## schigolch

_Puccini was not for me. I rejected many proposals to sing Turandot, Tosca, Minnie, Manon Lescaut... My maestro always advised me not to sing verismo roles. In fact, I didn't even sing Santuzza, that is just about half an hour singing. The only role I ever did was Loreley, and it was one role too many. _

Anita Cerquetti
​This was the opinion of Cerquetti about her ability to sing Puccini or verismo roles. However, she did indeed recorded some arias:

"Ebben, ne andrò lontana" - 




"Vissi d'arte" - 




"La mamma morta" - 




In my view hers was a very Italian "Vissi d'arte", with an immaculate phrasing. There is some lack of temperament, true, but she reminds us of a Maria Caniglia, more than her contemporaries Callas or Tebaldi, that were so different as night and day.

Catalani's and Giordano's arias are very well sung. In "La mamma morta" we even find a pinch of this missing temperament. While it's true that sometimes the top notes of Cerquetti were a little bit strained, on those tapes they are magnificent.

Personally, I don't think that Cerquetti was really right turning down those roles.


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## Moombah

Not sure if you would enjoy this one but I did!


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## mamascarlatti

Moombah said:


> Not sure if you would enjoy this one but I did!


Not sure if La Gheorghiu would be happy to think she was a singer of the past:lol:.


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## schigolch

In 1956, Cerquetti sung for the first time the role of Elisabetta, from Verdi's _Don Carlo_, in Lisbon, with a great cast including Simionato, Bergonzi, Taddei and Christoff. The performances were a great success, and a few months later she was singing the role again, this time at the Comunale, with Barbieri, Siepi, Lo Forese and Bastianini.

There is a recording available:









This is, perhaps, my preferred Elisabetta on record. A wonderful phrasing, perfectly balanced, a noble expression, a good portrait of the Queen, and the woman in love.


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## schigolch

A curiosity in Cerquetti's career was Luigi Cherubini's _Gli Abencerragi, _sung in Florence's Maggio Musicale.










Cherubini premiered in 1813, at Paris Opera, _Les Abencérages_. It was a modest success, though the famous aria from Almanzor, "Suspendez de ses murs", has always been part of the French tenor repertoire. In his Italian version, _Gli Abecenrragi_, we have a recording of this Florentine evening, with Anita Cerquetti in the role of Noraïme. The intention was to use the opera at a second _Medea_, and a vehicle for Cerquetti. While the Italian diva sings indeed wonderfully, regrettably _Gli Abecenrragi_ is not _Medea_.


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## schigolch

_If I have to choose, I'm always for singing a note less forte, but more beautiful_

Anita Cerquetti​
In April, 1956, Cerquetti sang in a radio broadcast a _William Tell_, with Dietrich Fischer Dieskau, Gianni Jaia and Giuseppe Modesti:










The same year, she participated in another broadcast, singing Rossinian _Mosè_, with Rosanna Carteri, Giuseppe Taddei and Nicola Rossi-Lemeni:










Both recordings are nice, but neither will make it into Opera's Hall of Fame. Anaide and Matilde are not the best roles for Cerquetti.


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## schigolch

In 1957, RAI recorded Weber's _Oberon_, in an Italian version with Cerquetti, Pirazzini, Picchi, Munteanu... under the baton of Vittorio Gui.










This is a rarity, because _Oberon_, premiered in London with an English libretto, does not have an extensive discography, and what's existing is mostly in German, with some recording in the original English.

A quite interesting opportunity for Weber's fans, with a nice treatment by Gui: calm, deliberate, almost majestic. The singers are quite good, and Cerquett's performance is wonderful, with some unbelievably beautiful notes, but also incorporating the character of Reiza with great feeling.


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## schigolch

In 1957, Cerquetti sang_ Ernani_, with Del Monaco, Bastianini and Christoff, under the baton of Mitropoulos. Her Elvira, perhaps a little bit strained in the top notes, is one of the best on record. A lovely performance.

This is a studio recording of the "Involami" aria:


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## schigolch

_La Forza del Destino_ was an opera often sung by Cerquetti, and her Leonora a big favourite with audience and critics alike.

There are two complete recordings, one made in 1957, from Rome, and the one below, from Mexico, in 1958:










Personally, I found her a very good Leonora, but it's not one of my favourite Cerquetti's roles. Her opulent voice is able to handle all the requirements of the score, but perhaps a little bit of emotion is missing is several passages.


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## schigolch

In June, 1955, Anita Cerquetti sang for the first time _Norma_, in Florence, with Barbieri and Corelli. It was a great success, repeated later at Teatro Bellini, in Catania.

However, her breaktrough in the role was at Barcelona's Liceu, in December of the same year. She got a resounding ovation, the longest of her life, lasting some 45 minutes of applause. Two years later, she returned to Barcelona and to Norma, again with great success.

January, 2nd, 1958. Maria Callas is singing Norma in Rome. There is a full house, with very expensive tickets, and with the President of Italy being part of the audience.

Callas was having some throat problems, and she intended to cancel. However, under a lot of pressure from the Management of the theater, she accepted to sing the performance. But after the first act, she was unable to continue and decided to quit. A tremendous scandal followed, as there was no ready replacement.

Then, for the performance of January, 4th, Cerquetti, that was singing in Naples, is hired and she goes to Rome without any rest. The house is full again, and there is a resounding success. "Grazie!, Viva Italia!, Vivan le voce italiane!". Though Callas is ready to sing the next performances scheduled for the 8th and the 11th, her contract is cancelled and Cerquetti sings also those days. She is a the top of the operatic world.

Later, and brandishing a medical certificate about her indisposition, Callas won a lawsuit and get her money back... but this is another story.










In my view, Cerquetti's is a very fine Norma. Her velvety, firm voice, of a captivating lyricism, only missed the imperious disdain of Callas, while she spits to Pollione, "trema per te, felon" and, of course, the richness in the coloratura.


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## schigolch

Claudia Muzio was the daughter of a choir singer, Giovanna Gavirati, and a stage director, Carlo Muzio.

She was born in 1889, in the beautiful town of Pavia. From the beginning, she travelled with her fathers, and her first years were lived in an operatic environment. Hers was a precocious talent, and were she was barely ten years old, her father was convinced Claudia would be a great Opera singer.

At sixteen she went to Turin, and took singing classes from the mezzo Annetta Casaloni. Later, she got also some training in Milan, with the soprano Callery-Viviani, a teacher hold in high-regard by her colleagues.

At twenty-first, she made her singing debut as Manon, in Massenet's opera. Then she sung Violetta, Manon Lescaut, Gilda, Leonora,... Her first role at La Scala, in 1913, was Verdi's Desdemona. One year later, she conquered Paris and London, and sung in the MET for the first time in 1916, a _Tosca_ with Enrico Caruso. While in New York, she was one of the top sopranos singing in the house, and took part in the world premiere of _Il Trittico_.

During her best years, she also sang in Buenos Aires, Chicago, San Francisco, Roma... In the Eternal City she premiered, in 1934, _Cecilia_, an opera written by her great friend, the composer Licinio Refice.

It was her swan song. Health issues and an unhappy marriage ruined her last years. Her heart problems prevented her for singing a complete opera, and she was barely able to record her last work with Columbia. Alone, and in serious financial troubles, she died in Rome, in 1936.

This is "Ombra di nube", a song written for her, by Licinio Refice:


----------



## Revenant

I read somewhere (a long time ago) that Callas considered Muzio her early role model as a singer.


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## schigolch

That was because of her approach to operatic singing. Muzio (like Callas, like Olivero,...) always wanted to be a vocal actress, first.


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## schigolch

Muzio's voice, melancholic, of a great beauty, was also of average size, with some problems in the top notes. Those inconvenients were overcome due to an exquisite singing technique, rooted in bel canto, but applied to a Verdi and verismo repertoire.

She was a master of singing _piano_, and used her vibrato to produce some incredible and dramatic moments.

Widely saluted as the best actress-singing of her times, she was called "the Duse of the Opera House". She painstakingly worked in her "physique du role", to get it as close as possible to the role she was going to sing. But her best quality was how she was able to use her voice to recreate any emotion, any feeling.

There is only a live recording of Claudia Muzio, during the first act of _Tosca_, in a San Francisco's performance, in 1932, with a very poor sound.

There are, however, many arias and songs recorded in three different periods:

Pathé recordings: 1917-1918

Edison recordings: 1920-1925

Columbia recordings: 1934-1935​
There is an hiatus of almost ten years, without any recordings at all.

Let's hear a song by Francesco Paolo Tosti, "Mal d'amore", recorded in 1923:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?&v=g_dITTSGuaE


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## schigolch

Muzio's Violetta was reportedly unforgettable on stage. There are three small examples recorded: an "Amami, Alfredo", from 1911 with tenor Gaetano Tommasini, in Milan, an "Addio del Passato", from 1918, in New York, and more especially this incredible "Addio del Passato", recorded in Milan, the 6th of June of 1935:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?&v=XrNlFXLhIkQ

This is a very moving document, listening to such a desolate, sincere Violetta. With a so deep and sober pathos. The illness of Muzio (she would die from a heart failure less than one year after this recording), that was affecting her fiato, and also produced a vibrato difficult to control, is used in an almost supernatural manner by the artist, to melt those problems with the decadence of Violetta herself, while both singer and character sink in the abyss of helplessness.

Claudia Muzio was perfectly aware that she, like Violetta, was going to die soon. Both women, the character and the singer, facing the same predicament, are only one, during some magic minutes.


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## SixFootScowl

This is a very beautiful album that I have:








There is little to nothing about her on the web, and her CD is only available at exorbitant prices at obscure (to me) websites. I am blessed to have picked up my copy at my local record store, used, for about $4!

Here is a shot of the back and the bio from inside the liner notes taken from my own copy:








I really like the music on this CD and Louise's singing is fantastic!


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## schigolch

1911 on February, the 27th. Claudia Muzio sings Tosca for the first time, with Pagani and Pastorelli, at Teatro Comunale, in Catanzaro. Floria Tosca will be one of her best creations.

Three years later, in 1914, Muzio is singing Tosca at the Covent Garden, with Caruso and Scotti. She received great reviews.

Then, in 1916 she is singing, again with Caruso and Scotti, Tosca at the MET. It was the first time an Italian singer was presenting the role in New York. Until then, sopranos like Eames, Farrar or Destinn were the Toscas of choice. The reviewers praised also Muzio, though they were not as raptorous as in London.

On the other hand, Claudia Muzio was adored in Buenos Aires. Her fist role there was no other than Floria Tosca. The cast included Gigli and the baritone Viglione-Borghese. After those performances, she was known in Argentina as "la Divina Claudia". She received, of course, glowing reviews.

With a similar reception in Chicago, Montevideo, México, Milan, Rome... she was indeed on top of the operatic world. In 1932 she inaugurated a new buidling for the San Francisco Opera, singing Tosca with Borgioli and Gandolfi. The first act of the performance was broadcasted and we can hear below Muzio's intervention:


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## schigolch

Spanish soprano *Pilar Lorengar* (1928 - 1996) enjoyed a long and distinguished career, without having the fame and recognition other singers of her generation were able to attain. Part of her training was in Germany, where she was very well considered, especially in Berlin.

Let's enjoy some of the finest performances of Lorengar, in youtube:

*1.- Pamina*

A beautiful voice, well controlled, very expressive :






*2.- Elvira (Don Giovanni)*

An impressive rendition, pay special attention to the recitative:






*3.- Elsa*

A wonderful Elsa:






*9.- Rusalka*

Another dream:






*10.- Katiuska*

One great performer of zarzuela:


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## schigolch

In February, 1934, Claudia Muzio premiered in Rome the opera _Cecilia_, by the Italian composer Licinio Refice. Some months later, she started working in Milan for the wonderful Columbia recordings, and the first piece in the sessions was precisely an aria from _Cecilia_.

The ninth performance of the opera in Buenos Aires, the 21st of October of 1934, would be the last time Muzio sang in her favourite theater. ( Not in the city of Buenos Aires, where she later offered an art song recital at Teatro San Martín).

The role of Cecilia was not written for Muzio (Refice had in mind the soprano Maria Viscardi while composing the opera), but she just took possesion of it, and offered a memorable interpretation. She also made a very good friend of the priest Refice.

_Cecilia_ is a nice opera, that was never lucky enough to be part of the repertoire. The plot is quite simple, the life of Saint Cecilia from her marriage to her martyrdom.

Claudia Muzio as Cecilia:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?&v=RgJXYiGlpXs


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## SixFootScowl

Write-up from Arkiv Music site:


> Born Elisabeth Sara Ameling on 8 February 1933 in Rotterdam, the Dutch soprano known as Elly Ameling won first prize at the Vocal Concours in 's- Hertogenbosch in Holland in 1956, and the Concours International de Musique in Geneva in 1958. She gave her first formal recital in Amsterdam in 1961 and went on to perform for more than thirty years in virtually every major cultural centre in the world as one of the greatest singers of our age, renowned for her warm, unaffected personality, purity of tone and effortless technique. She made her career mainly as a concert and lieder singer, with some appearances in opera (Mozart and Haydn), and became renowned for her recitals of French and German songs and for her superlative interpretative gifts.


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## schigolch

Desdemona was one of the first roles sung by Clauda Muzio. She sang it for the first time at Teatro Massimo, in Palermo, in March of 1912. Later, she also presented the role in Naples and Milan, at the Dal Verme.

She was so succesful in Milan, that La Scala offered also to the young soprano an opportunity, and she sang in December 1913 an _Otello_ there, with thenor Icilio Calleja and baritone Enrico Nani, under the baton of Tullio Serafin.

It was well received, with 'Il Corriere della Sera" calling Muzio "a gift for the Italian operatic world".

But, strangely, after those first succeses, Muzio only sang Desdemona a handful of times. The most important, in Chicago, where she was saluted as the best singing-actress in the business.

In 1917, Muzio recorded for Pathé the "Ave Maria". It's a good version, though penalized by a poor sound. This is not the 'Divina Claudia' at her top performance level:






However, in her legendary Columbia series, she recorded the two Desdemona's duets of the opera, with tenor Francesco Merli singing Otello. Here we can find the true Muzio, with some wonderful pianissimi, showing us the ineffable sweetness of Desdemona, unforgettably singing "Te ne rammenti?" or "Amen, risponda!". Those duets are among her very best recordings:


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## schigolch

_Eravate sublime_
_per cuore e accento,_
_il fuoco e il ghiaccio fusi_
_quando Qualcuno disse basta_
_e fu obbedito._
_Ovviamente_
_non fu affar vostro la disubbidienza_
_ma questo non conforta, anzi infittisce_
_il mistero: che sia pronto a dissolversi,_
_cio' che importa, ma tardo e incancellabile_
_l'essere per cui nascere fu un refuso._

A Claudia Muzio, by Eugenio Montale (1978)​









Claudia Muzio was a very discreet woman offstage ("I live for my art, I don't exist for the world. I've never accepted a party invitation. I decline, very nicely, but I stay home). After the death of her father, in 1917, Muzio's relationship with her mother, a rather gloomy and possessive woman, was very intense, and this also contributed to estrange her from a wider circle of acquaintances.

However, she did get some friends. People like her secretary May Higgins (that published her interesting travels with the singer across Italy), or some lovers, like the young Aristotle Onassis, in Buenos Aires.

But Muzio's great love was always Opera and operagoers ("The audience is my love. I live to please my audience, they mean everything to me"). Her marriage to an Italian young man, Renato Liberati, her junior by seventeen years, was a very unhappy affair. Financially, she was ruined after the crack of 1929, and was living in a sea of debts afterwards.

Muzio's health was also fragile. Kidney issues and a heart sickness were affecting her, but she was still able to perform and even record the hair-raising Columbia series that are today the core of her legacy.

About her death, the 24th of May, 1936, at Hotel Majestic in Rome, it was a messy affair. It was rumored that she had committed suicide, but the coroner declared death by heart failure. To her memory, a statue was erected in her tomb, with the following inscription: _La sua voce divina le genti d'ogni remoto paese amalió. Messagera di grazia, di forza, di luce, d'arte. Gli amici memori_.

Let's hear a couple of songs in the unforgettable voice of Claudia Muzio:


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## schigolch

*Rose Pauly* (1894 - 1975) was a Hungarian soprano, of Jewish origins, that spend more of his career in Vienna and Berlin. He sang on stage 67 different roles. Lady Macbeth, Turandot, Jenufa, Senta, Kundry, Fidelio, Carmen, Donna Anna, Venus... But her more outstanding roles were Straussian sopranos, including Salome, Elektra, Die Färberin, Helena,.. She was in fact working very close to Strauss himself, that advised her before tackling Salome or Elektra.

An exciting, colourful voice, with great top notes, full of metal. An ideal Elektra, indeed:


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## talx

Joan Sutherland


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## schigolch

Claudia Muzio sang in the MET from 1917 to 1922 (she came back briefly in 1934). She was hired to replace Lucrezia Bori and Emmy Destinn. She was succesful, but neither the management of the theater, nor the critics, ever considered her a true star. They were more appreciative of Geraldine Farrar's Violetta, Maria Jeritza's Tosca or Rosa Ponselle's Leonora.

Arguably her best performance ever at the MET was the New York premiere of _Andrea Chénier_, in 1921, with Beniamino Gigli as Chénier. The role of Maddalena fitted Muzio like a glove, and it was very dear to the Italian soprano, that got some incendiary praise singing it in Chicago or Buenos Aires. According to the critic John B. Richards, "with just a subtle inflection she was able to irradiate ardent passion. With those muffled autumnal sounds she exuded a melancholic nostalgia. Hers was the most poetic voice I've ever heard".

While Rosa Ponselle declared in 1977: "Muzio had it all, to me she was the greatest of all Maddalenas".

Muzio recorded 'La mamma morta' in a lovely acoustic version for Edison, in 1920:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?&v=pud5zKsY5VQ

But, as usual, her best rendition was included in the Columbia record¡ngs of 1935, with an awesomely beautiful singing, lyrical, full of pathos, with that very moving pianissimo in 'Porto sventura!', and the warm and splendid phrase 'Fu in quel dolore che a me venne l'amore', a passionate declaration of love:


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## schigolch

Let's discuss one of the most beautiful Rossini's arias. This is "Di mia vita infelice", the jail aria from _Tancredi_, sung by Amenaide. As she sits imprisoned and condemned to die for refusing to marry Orbazzano in order to unite the city against the Saracens, she hopes that Tancredi will realize after she is dead that she was innocent of betraying his trust.

_Di mia vita infelice eccomi dunque alfin!_
_moro, Tancredi, io per te moro,_
_e tu infedel mi credi!_
_Di mie sventure, di mie pene_
_è questa la più amara, e funesta;_
_e il padre, oh Dio!_
_povero padre!_
_Perfida figlia! mi chiamavi, piangendo :_
_ah! rea non sono, no._
_Ma pur de' rei questo è il feral soggiorno;_
_e della colpa, e dell'infamia intorno tutto spira l'orror._
_Di ceppi avvinta, circondata da mostri..._
_orribil morte...e agl'innocenti serbi,_
_oh ciel, tal sorte!_

_No, che il morir non è sì barbaro per me,_
_se moro per amor, se moro pel mio ben._
_Un dì conoscerà la fà di questo cor._
_forse pentito allor, col pianto verserà_
_qualche sospir dal sen._​
Mariola Cantarero is a nice singer, but Amenaide is a little bit too much for her






A fantastic rendition by Enedina Lloris






Katia Ricciarelli... not even in 1982






Mariella Devia.... always the perfect Bel Canto singer






Annick Massis is a little bit underestimated singer... but not in this role






Lella Cuberli is nice... but just nice


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## schigolch

In 1916, Claudia Muzio was singing for the first time in Genoa, at Teatro Carlo Felice, one of her preferred roles: Loreley, from the opera with the same title by Alfredo Catalani.

_Loreley_ was a succes, since its premiere in 1890, until well into the 1930s. Claudia Muzio just loved both the opera and her role, that was also a good one for her to showcase her considerable acting talents. It was she who sang in the MET premiere back in 1922 (with Gigli, Danise and Mardones), as well as the premiere in Buenos Aires, in 1919.

It was in 1934, also in Buenos Aires, when Muzio sang Loreley for the last time. The Italian soprano recorded in 1922, for Edison, the aria "Dove son?". Here the protagonist realizes she has been tricked by a womanizer. It requires quite a lot from the singer at the high end of her tessitura, but a young Muzio was able to meet the score's demands with some ease, and delivering as usual a wonderful phrasing. (she even sings a little coloratura in 'Che bramo'):


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## schigolch

When Verdi was still very young, the last great alto-coloratura singers were retiring: Adelaide Malanotte in 1821, Geltrude Righetti in 1822, Rosmunda Pisaroni in 1833,... They were the singers that premiered many Rossinian roles, like Tancredi, Rosina, Malcolm, ... as well as some similar roles of other composers from the first decades of the 19th century. All of them reportedly had an incredibly wide range (from the low F to over the high C), with the low and middle register of an almost masculine colour, but combined with floating top notes.

He also was witness to the heyday of _sfogato_ sopranos, such as Giuditta Pasta (retired in 1837) or Maria Malibran (dead in 1836).

Little wonder that her first Verdian soprano roles were designed bearing in mind those wonderful singers, what will become known in later times as _soprano drammatico d'agilità_.

The first great example of this type of soprano voice in Verdi's operas is of course the fiery Abigaille of _Nabucco_ (1842). In the score, she is required to sing _di sbalzo_, with jumps between adjacent notes up to two octaves!, as well as frequent top notes (C5) and low notes (B2) . Verdi's future wife, Giuseppina Strepponi, was the first Abigaille.

In the recitative and aria "Ben'io t'invenni...Anchio dischiuso il giorno...Salgo già del trono aurato" we can easily understand the terrible vocal display that the singer must face when performing the role of Abigaille. One of the best renditions of this piece is from Maria Callas, but even she needed to change the text from 'fatal sdegno' to 'sdegno fatale' and then use the 'o' as a support to anchor the voice:






Other Odabellas on record are Julia Varady and Christina Deutekom. Lucrezia García is now incorporating this role into her repertory.


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## Revenant

Not of The Past, but of the recent past at least. Agnes Baltsa singing Mozart.

For those of you who like to listen and who like to watch. :devil:


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## schigolch

Lady Macbeth is an impressive role for soprano. Written in 1847, and revised later in 1854, Macbeth required a fully dramatic singer, but also requested to handle low notes quite uncomfortable for a soprano, and perform convincing _coloratura di forza_. That means, a voice made of iron, but a ductile iron. An agile voice.

Not to forget that is requires also some important vocal acting abilities.

Eugenia Tadolini, one of the leading sopranos since the 1830s, the creator of roles like Maria di Rohan or Linda di Chamounix (or Verdi's own Alzira), was hired to sing the Lady at Naples, but was considered by Verdi himself as too good (meaning, too refined) a singer for the role, and he advised to hire Marianna Barbieri-Nini, instead.

Clearly, Barbiere-Nini's voice was better suited to the Lady, and her physical appearance was also more congenial in Verdi's mind to the role. (Tadolini was a very beautiful woman).

















_Eugenia Tadolini (left) and Marianna Barbieri-Nini (right)

_There are three terrible fragments for the soprano in the score: "Vieni t'afretta", "La luce langue" and the sleepwalking scene, with a D-flat5 in pianissimo. Such a dramatic female role for soprano was never again written by Verdi. Lady Macbeth can also be sung from a voice in between the mezzo and soprano ranges, like Verrett, Bumbry,... or a mezzo with easy top notes, like Cossotto. And they can do a very good job of it. But it's not the philological approach, that personally I prefer.

Some great historical performers include Maria Callas, Leyla Gencer or Margherita Grandi.


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## schigolch

Luisa Miller is perhaps, from a dramatic point of view, one of the most colourless Verdi's female roles. However, her lyrical, limpid soprano (though there are some moments when a spinto will find herself also at ease) is very attractive, if the singer can offer the right reading of a complicated score, especially in the last act. Verdi wanted Luisa to evolve from an ingénue, with a very lyrical voice in the first act, to a tragic heroine in the third, but this last aspect was not as fully reflected in the vocal score, as it will be with Violetta, a few years later.

Marietta Gazzaniga was the creator of the role:










Not that Verdi was very happy with her performance at the time... In her later years, she would try the mezzosoprano repertoire.

From the second act is this wonderful cabaletta, "A brani, a brani o perfido", coming after a beautiful cantabile, "Tu puniscimi o signore". We can hear one of the more accomplished Luisas of today, the Bulgarian soprano Krassimira Stoyanova:






Some great historical Luisas are Caballé herself, Renata Scotto, Gilda Cruz-Romo, Anna Moffo,...


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## Revenant

Lina Bruna-Rasa as Mascagni's favorite Santuzza. Her career was cut short by tragic and fulminating mental illness, although she returned to play her signature role in the 1940 recording of Cavalleria conducted by Mascagni himself.









I just finished listening to her Maddalena de Coigny in a 1929 recording of Andrea Chenier (recorded in full). I can see why the veristas loved her. Powerful voice, but at least in this recording she sounds screechy and bellowing. Could be a bad Naxos remastering, but still. She sounds much better in the extras cuts from other operas and in a different recording of La mamma morta.


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## schigolch

This Chenier was part of the recordings performed in the late 1920s and early 1930s by Lorenzo Molajoli and orchestra and singers from La Scala. We can find also Otello, Rigoletto, Pagliacci, Trovatore, Gioconda, Fedora, Traviata, even some selections from Falstaff.

Bruna-Rasa was a great spinto/dramatic soprano. A real trumpet singing, with a dark timbre and a powerful voice. About that recording by Mascagni, some people complain about the tempi selected... by the composer himself!. Well, you can't never please everyone. 

A rather surprising fact is that the first Cavalleria ever recorded, in 1909, was... in German. With Frances Rose, Frieda Hempel (what a Lola!) and Franz Naval. It's available in youtube:


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## Revenant

schigolch said:


> [...] Bruna-Rasa was a great spinto/dramatic soprano. A real trumpet singing, with a dark timbre and a powerful voice. About that recording by Mascagni, some people complain about the tempi selected... by the composer himself!. Well, you can't never please everyone.
> 
> 
> 
> Could have been the dated recording technique, as Galeffi doesn't sound like a baritone in the Chenier and Bruna-Rasa frequently sounds to my ears like fingernails on a blackboard (or whatever they're calling a blackboard now). I have the Mascagni Cavalleria and it is glacially slow, a surprising choice by the composer/conductor for an opera which every other conductor decided to set to much faster tempi, at least afaik. Maybe Pietro was trying to stretch out the performance of his main claim to fame.
Click to expand...


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## schigolch

Well, the tempi are too slow... or other tempi are too fast?. Taking into account that the composer himself conducted and he was claiming that this was his definitive vision of this, his own brainchild... Well, at least some credit is due to Mascagni at this regard, I guess. . There is also a Mascagni's conducted recording, somewhat different, from 1938, that can be checked and compared with the more famous one from 1940:






I find very attractive the 1931 Chenier, and the performance of Lina Bruna Rasa. Her stylistic approach, the color of her voice (a true Queen of the chest-voice), her expresiveness... are close to the ideal for the role of Maddalena. She was still very young, and some nuances were rather escaping her, so not my preferred Maddalena, but let's say top ten in my personal ranking.

The quality is good enough, at this date the recording techniques were already pretty sophisticated, at least for recording the human voice. The harmonics for a soprano top notes can suffer a little bit sometimes, true, but that's about it.


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## schigolch

The Amelia of Ballo is a role for a spinto or dramatic soprano. There is no real coloratura, and arguably her biggest moment comes in the difficult, demanding aria "Ecco l'orrido campo". Long, with a special atmosphere the singer needs to build controlling her voice and using smorzature, plus a high C and also an A2 that must be sung con _voce soffocata_.

But she also needs to recreate a melancholy mood, in the terzetto with Ulrica and Riccardo, singing "Consentimi, o Signore, Virtù ch'io lavi 'l core. E l'infiammato palpito Nel petto mio sospir", with immaculate legato and several ppp in dolcissimo marked in the score.

And then of course "Morrò, ma prima in grazia", an aria that must be born of desperation, but sung with finesse, with expresiveness, with dramatic low notes, and a beautiful diminuendo.

We can find some great historical Amelias, like Zinka Milanov, Anita Cerquetti, Leontyne Price or Maria Callas. More recently Aprile Millo, and now Sondra Radvanovsky or Violeta Urmana.


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## hpowders

Janet Baker; Zinka Milanov; Rosa Ponselle.

"Of the past" to me means retired or dead.


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## schigolch

_Caroline Barbot, the first Leonora_.​
The Leonora of Verdi's "La forza del destino" doesn't need to perform a lot of ornamentation, but rather exhibit a lyrical (and powerful) singing, with a streak of true dramatic soprano. A more robust voice is ideally required than for _Trovatore_'s Leonora (the third Verdi's Leonora, from Oberto, is not really such a big deal), especially to give a full account of the very beautiful aria, 'Pace!, Pace!'.

Perhaps the first act is not the best one for Leonora ("Me pellegrina ed orfana" is not one of the greatest arias for soprano ever written by Verdi), but we are treated later to "Madre pietosa vergine" and the great duet with Don Guardiano, plus the splendid concentante "La vergine degli angeli". Then, the masterful 'Pace' aria.

This is one wonderful performance:






Other great historical sopranos singing Leonora, apart from Ms. Ponselle, are Maria Caniglia, Leyla Gencer, Renata Tebaldi,..


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## schigolch

The role of _Trovatore_'s Leonora, all things count, needs a true "drammatico d'agilità" to really give the correct answer to all the different requests incorporated by Verdi to the score.

We want her to be a 'tragedienne' singing the Miserere, but we want her voice to float in the air during the Convent scene, "Sei tu dal ciel disceso". She needs to manage a very high-pitched aria like "D'amor sull'ali rosee", but also her fiendishly difficult cavatina, "Tacea la Notte Placida"…. It's not a surprise the usual cut of the fourth act cabaletta: "Tu vedrai che amore in terra", because so few sopranos are really able to sing it well after such a tour de force.

"Un' altra notte ancora senza vederlo…", this phrase introduces a young Romantic heroine, a girl full of love, that lives for this love, and finally dies for this love. We need to get from the singer this side of Leonora also, what introduces an added layer of complexity to the role.

The superb voice of Zinka Milanov was heard as Leonora for many years. This is a velvety Leonora, with so rich overtones that really can take the listener away… and possibly makes him forget that the style is not fully there.

Between 1950 and 1955, Maria Callas sang around twenty Leonoras, showing us the soul of the young maid in love, but with a wonderful attention to meet all the nuances in the score. A superb Leonora.

A truly sumptuous voice, with velvety overtones, is Leontyne Price's admired Leonora

Montserrat Caballé was able to bring to the role her reputed Belcanto singing technique, but also provides the Verdian drama.

Let's hear Raina Kabaivanska in the legendary _Trovatore_ conducted by Karajan in Vienna, back in 1978, also starring Domingo, Cappuccilli and Cossotto;


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## schigolch

You all know the saying: "there are two types of voices, the beautiful and the good". Meaning, of course, that sometimes the singers with an outstanding natural voice tend to just take pleasure on hearing themselves, while some with a less attractive voice to start with, invest a lot of effort on educating it, and the final results could be even better.

The classical example, in sopranos, is the very well-known Callas vs. Tebaldi. In more recent times we could find a similar comparison with Gruberova vs. Devia, both of them very close to retirement. Clearly, this is unfair to both Ms. Tebaldi and Ms. Gruberova, owners of a superb vocal technique, but it's pertinent if we just take into account how much they were blessed by Nature on top of their effort and years of training.


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## Vaneyes

'How To Act in the Presence of a Diva: Jessye Norman'

http://operachic.typepad.com/opera_...-in-the-presence-of-a-diva-jessye-norman.html


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## schigolch

*Ottilie Metzger* (1878 - 1943) was a famous Wagnerian singer, and one of the relatively rare alto voices. She sang for the first time in Halle, and enjoyed a long career, including singing in Bayreuth between 1901 and 1912. She was later murdered in Auschwitz.


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## schigolch

*Jane Berbié* (1931) is a French mezzo, that was a looked after performer of Mozart's and Rossini's roles.


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## schigolch

The German singer *Meta Seinemeyer* (1895 - 1929) died while still very young, of leukaemia. Her beautiful voice of spinto was instrumental to the great Verdi revival in Germany during the 1920s, as well as singing the standard Wagnerian soprano repertoire.


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## schigolch

*Irene Dalis* (1925 - ) is an American mezzo who succesfully performed in a wide-reaching repertoire, from Verdi to Strauss and Wagner, singing at the MET for 20 seasons. Once retired, she created the Opera San Jose in 1984.


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## schigolch

*Gigliola Frazzoni *(1927 -) is an Italian soprano, of fiery temperament, that excelled at dramatic roles, especially in traditional Italian repertoire (Verdi, Puccini, verismo,..) though she was part of the original cast singing Poulenc's _I dialoghi delle Carmelitane _at La Scala's world premiere.


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## schigolch

*Gianna Pederzini* (1900 - 1988) was an Italian mezzo, a true specialist in verismo roles, but also able to tackle with sucess Rossini, Verdi or the French repertoire. Not the more naturally gifted of singers, her acting ability was widely celebrated. She trusted much her artistic intelligence and personal charm.


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## Marschallin Blair

amfortas: I was wondering when we'd get to Lotte Lehmann! There's been another pretty major omission as well.








- Aurally as well as visually.


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## schigolch

*Tamara Milashkina* (1934 - ) is a Russian soprano, a regular member of the Bolshoi during the 1960s and 1970s. A gifted performer of the Russian repertoire, as well as singing some of the Italian operatic melodramas.


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## SixFootScowl

Gundula Janowitz








Love her in 1978 Bernstein Fidelio:
You Tube: Mir ist so wunderbar


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## schigolch

*Maria Zamboni* (1895 - 1976) was an Italian lyric soprano, a regular at La Scala, where she sang many Verdi, Puccini, verismo and French opera roles. She is best remembered as the first Liu, in the original 1926 production of "Turandot".


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## schigolch

*Giuseppina Cobelli* (1898 - 1948), a celebrated beauty, was also a very well considered dramatic Wagnerian soprano... in Italy, during the 1920s and 1930s. However, apart from her Isoldes and Sieglindes, she also sang Gioconda, Fedora, Santuzza, Minnie, Adriana... and premiered Respighi's _La Fiamma_:


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## BaronScarpia

She has probably been mentioned multitudinous times but...

TERESA BERGANZA!


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## Revenant

*Maria Cebotari *(10 February 1910 - 9 June 1949)









The Greta Garbo of opera. Made many films, including at least one with Gigli, but most of her recordings are from live performances. Died tragically young, from cancer - not too long after her husband died from the same affliction. There are some gorgeous photo bios of her available online.


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## Woodduck

Revenant said:


> *Maria Cebotari *(10 February 1910 - 9 June 1949)
> 
> View attachment 38647
> 
> 
> The Greta Garbo of opera. Made many films, including at least one with Gigli, but most of her recordings are from live performances. Died tragically young, from cancer - not too long after her husband died from the same affliction. There are some gorgeous photo bios of her available online.


You made me run to YouTube, where I had a devastating collision with Cebotari's final scene from Salome.
With your permission I would like to make an announcement.

EVERYONE ON TC, LISTEN UP! YOU MUST HEAR THIS WOMAN'S SALOME!






Sorry I was so loud.


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## Marschallin Blair

Woodduck said:


> You made me run to YouTube, where I had a devastating collision with Cebotari's final scene from Salome.
> With your permission I would like to make an announcement.
> 
> EVERYONE ON TC, LISTEN UP! YOU MUST HEAR THIS WOMAN'S SALOME!
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Sorry I was so loud.


---









Thank you _Woodduck_ and thank you_ Revenant_.

Cebotari is _gal-van-i-zing_. Absolutely fantastic. I just ordered it. Thanks. Total thumbs-up.


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## Revenant

She was very good friend with Strauss for whom she was a favorite interpreter. Her death saddened him deeply in his last year of life. The movie with Gigli is in video.


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## SixFootScowl

Maybe this was posted before, but


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## schigolch

Both Cebotari and Lehmann were posted already, but this is no problem. In this thread we can mention, or discuss, the great female singers of the past as often as we want. 










*Graziella Sciutti *(1927 - 2001) was an Italian soprano that was very well considered as a Mozartian singer, and a great performer of Italian comic operas. She was also a superb Elle in Poulenc's _La voix humaine_. Her voice was not particularly strong or beautiful, but she was an exciting artist that enjoyed a very good career in the 1950s and 1960s.


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## schigolch

*Yvonne Gall *(1885 - 1972) was a French soprano. Her first roles were those of a French lyric voice such as Marguerite, Manon or Thaïs, but she developed a powerful voice, and was capable of tackling heavier parts, such as Elsa and even Isolde. She was also a celebrated Tosca.


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## DavidA

schigolch said:


> Both Cebotari and Lehmann were posted already, but this is no problem. In this thread we can mention, or discuss, the great female singers of the past as often as we want.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> *Graziella Sciutti *(1927 - 2001) was an Italian soprano that was very well considered as a Mozartian singer, and a great performer of Italian comic operas. She was also a superb Elle in Poulenc's _La voix humaine_. Her voice was not particularly strong or beautiful, but she was an exciting artist that enjoyed a very good career in the 1950s and 1960s.


She sang with a smile in her voice. Full of mischief! Just hear her Susanna in the GUI Figaro or Zerlina in the Guilini Don.


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## schigolch

The French soprano *Emma Calvé *(1858 - 1942) was one of the more famous opera singers of her time. After her debut in 1881, she rapidly rose to fame, and was celebrated in her native France, Italy, England, the USA... Perhaps her signature role was Carmen, but she was also succesful singing French and Italian repertoire. She was also the first Suzel in Mascagni's _L'amico Fritz_.


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## schigolch

*Caterina Mancini* (1924 - 2011) was an Italian dramatic soprano, that had a brief but dazzling career starting in the 1950s. She was the owner of a powerful and beautiful voice, and a specialist in Verdi. During her first years, she was also able to manage some agility and tackle early Verdi roles. In the 1960s, and following some problems with her health, she tried to change her fach to mezzo, but with scarce succes.


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## schigolch

*Maria Farneti *(1877 - 1955) was one of the most acclaimed performers of verismo. She was praised singing Mascagni's roles like Iris or Isabeau, but also Butterfly. She debuted very young, still in the 19th century, and was active until the 1930s. She was a regular of the Italian theaters, especially dear to Rome's audiences, but she also used to sing in America.


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## schigolch

*They were Lulu (I)*

Lulu is a very difficult role for any singer.

On top of the vocal requirements: wide range, easy top notes (but not coloratura), while maintaning a solid center and the ocassional low notes, some acting talent is needed, not to speak of the 'physique du rôle'.

Alban Berg had in mind one soprano while writing _Lulu_, the Czech singer *Jarmila Novotná*:










Novotná was never to sing Lulu on stage, however.

Perhaps the first singer to get some recognition in the role was the German soprano *Helga Pilarczyk*:










She debuted the role in Hamburg, back in 1957. with a staging by Günther Rennert and Leopold Ludwig conducting. The final number, with the death of Lulu wearing a striking red wig was a sensation, and this staging was then paraded all across Germany, always with Pilarczyk as Lulu. However, some reviewers lamented the portrait of Lulu as a simple, lightweight coquette, replacing the more complex being created by Berg. They were missing the "serpent" component in Pilarczyk's performances.

In 1962, the American soprano *Evelyn Lear *sang Lulu for the first time, a role she would keep in her repertory until 1980:










It was an interesting production in Vienna, with Karl Böhm conducting and a staging by Otto Schenck. It's was also a big success, with twenty minutes of standing ovation at the end, in the evening of the premiere. Böhm's work, reasoned and very precise, merged well with Schenck's staging, that emphasized the turn-of-the-century atmosphere associated in the German speaking countries to Wedekind's plays, even if this was not Berg's original intention. Lear received incendiary praise as an actress, and she was a beautiful woman, though maybe her voice was not exactly Lulu's.


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## Pugg

Together with the great dame Joan Sutherland, the very versatile Freni , Pons and a lot more this one I like very much:​
Here Berlioz ( Nuit's d' ete ) and this Verdi recording are so precious to me.


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## schigolch

*They were Lulu (II)*

*Anja Silja* was the Lulu of choice since her debut in 1966, until she retired the role, in 1978:










Her debut was with Ferdinand Leitner conducting, and a staging by Wieland Wagner. There were other singers available for Lulu at the same time, but none of them (Joan Carroll, Carole Farley, Catherine Gayer,...) owned the role like Silja. Her Lulu was a very feminine character, but also revealing an androgynous, masculine side, and a sort of innocence that are perfect for the role (at least, for part of the role), and she just became a reference for Lulu.






*Teresa Stratas* was selected for singing the first complete_ Lulu_, with the original three acts envisaged by Berg, and completed by Friedrich Cerha:










That was in Paris, back in 1979, with Pierre Boulez conducting and Patrice Chéreau as stage director. Stratas was a nice Lulu, even when her voice was not really the best one for the role. She used her appearance, her fragility, to pervade the role with a feeling of vulnerability that really suited Lulu, but also keeping very much in sight the erotic component. She was particularly interesting singing Lulu's death. She sang her last performance of Berg's masterpiece at Brussels Opera, in 1988.






During some years, there was not an outstanding performer of Lulu: Julia Migenes, Karan Amstrong, Catherine Malfitano, Patricia Wise....

But then, in 1995, a truly sensational *Christine Schäfer *debuted the role:










At Szalburg with Peter Müsbach's staging and Michael Gielen conducting. Later, she recorded a wonderful DVD at Glynderbourne. Hers is a feminine, but strong Lulu. With a concentrated energy that she transmits to the audience, and also being able to fulfill all the vocal requirements in Berg's score. Extraordinary.


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## schigolch

*
Adriana Guerrini *(1907 - 1970) was an Italian spinto soprano, that mostly sang the Italian repertory, and in Italian opera houses, though she was also hired in Austria, France or Spain. She debuted at La Scala, however, singing the part of 'Marescialla' in Strauss's "Der Rosenkavalier", performed in Italian. Her more outstanding roles were Butterfly, Maddalena, Tosca,...


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## nina foresti

Eleanor Steber - an icon
Muzio
Stratas
Soviero


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## DarkAngel

schigolch said:


> *Rosa Ponselle (1897 - 1981) *




I am very interested in Rosa because Callas often cites her as her inspirational figure when deciding to become an opera singer and called her "the greatest singer of us all", if you listen to her existing works you can hear stylistic details that many Callas fans will recognize. Imagine if Callas had a voice with pure even tone from top to bottom, yet kept all the power and dramatic force we love you would come close to what I hear with Rosa Ponselle

Spotify premium fortunately has good collection of historical Ponselle, including her only two complete existing opera recordings Traviata and Carmen. I have smile on my face when listening to MET Traviata because I hear a prototype of the many great Callas performances we treasure today 

Like Callas Rosa was born in USA daughter of immigrant family and had to work her way up through Vaudville acts to become star of the MET in the 1930s, she retired after 20 year career and lived in retirement in Baltimore sometimes giving private performances to friends, RCA 1954 recorded a collection of songs from her home Villa Pace (one of her famous roles was La Forza Del Destino) that you can hear on Spotify

MET has included the Ponselle Traviata in its recent boxset collection of Verdi Legendary Performances


​


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## Marschallin Blair

> Dark Angel: I am very interested in Rosa because Callas often cites her as her inspirational figure when deciding to become an opera singer and called her "the greatest singer of us all", if you listen to her existing works you can hear stylistic details that many Callas fans will recognize. Imagine if Callas had a voice with pure even tone from top to bottom, yet had all the power and dramatic force and you come close to what I hear with Rosa Ponselle











But Callas at her best _did_ have the power if not a consistent evenness of tone (q.v. the '52 _Armida_, the '53 _Medea_, the December, '55 La Scala _Norma_, the April, 14, '57 _Anna Bolena_, the July, 4, '57 Koln _Sonnambula_, and, say, the Karajan _Lucia_ for starters).

Power in _reserves_.

Power and technique which were second to none.

Callas was also feted and gloried at the ultimate operatic public-relations litmus test of La Scala; she was then read under the cement by the crowd at La Scala for her famous cancellation; and then _came back_ with her '57 _Anna Bolena _AND WON OVER A HOSTILE AUDIENCE AND BLEW THEM AWAY.

Who else in the history of Western Civilization self-resurrected after such treatment?

Ponselle, who's an operatic goddess I _love_ incidentally, by way of widest contrast, got cold feet and _declined _when she was offered to sing at La Scala.

Callas is a hard act to follow.


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## Tsaraslondon

Marschallin Blair said:


> View attachment 49001
> 
> 
> Callas is a hard act to follow.


Though she did indeed revere Ponselle above all other singers.

When doing the Masterclasses at Juiliard, Callas recommended to a student singing _Ernani, involami_ that she listen to Ponselle's recording of the aria. However, the student would learn a lot more from listening to Callas's version. Sure Ponselle's actual voice falls more easily on the ear than Callas's in 1959, but she doesn't have Callas's rhythmic elasticity, her elegance, her style, and Callas actually gets round the notes a lot easier than Ponselle.


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## Tsaraslondon

Another adjunct to the discussion of Callas and Ponselle.

It is interesting that when Callas first started having vocal problems, Walter Legge suggested she go to Ponselle. "No way," she said, "She started out with better material than me."

Now there is some truth in this. Ponselle's voice was a gift from god, though I sometimes wonder if she was really a mezzo. She had a short top, and would transpose down Sempre libera (Tebaldi's trick), whereas the lower third of her voice had an incomparable richnes, When she attempts Dalila's arias, she sounds perfectly comfortable down there, whereas they do sound low for Callas. That said, Callas is the more convincing seductress. Where Ponselle, and so many other mezzos, tend to sound matronly in the music, Callas sounds like a real siren, or as one critic put it, "like a young tigress flexing her claws in the sun."


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## DarkAngel

GregMitchell said:


> Though she did indeed revere Ponselle above all other singers.
> 
> When doing the Masterclasses at Juiliard, Callas recommended to a student singing _Ernani, involami_ that she listen to Ponselle's recording of the aria. However, the student would learn a lot more from listening to Callas's version. Sure Ponselle's actual voice falls more easily on the ear than Callas's in 1959, but she doesn't have Callas's rhythmic elasticity, her elegance, her style, and Callas actually gets round the notes a lot easier than Ponselle.


The "vocal weakness" of uneven tone in actuality when skillfully used by Maria turned into a great asset allowing an even greater toolbox of vocal effects to paint an image in our mind and render emotional feeling.......yes she is our goddess


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## Marschallin Blair

GregMitchell said:


> Though she did indeed revere Ponselle above all other singers.
> 
> When doing the Masterclasses at Juiliard, Callas recommended to a student singing _Ernani, involami_ that she listen to Ponselle's recording of the aria. However, the student would learn a lot more from listening to Callas's version. Sure Ponselle's actual voice falls more easily on the ear than Callas's in 1959, but she doesn't have Callas's rhythmic elasticity, her elegance, her style, and Callas actually gets round the notes a lot easier than Ponselle.


Ping! . . . . . . . Ping! . . Ping! Ping! Pi-Pi-ing-ing-ing!!!!

_;D_


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## Marschallin Blair

GregMitchell said:


> Another adjunct to the discussion of Callas and Ponselle.
> 
> It is interesting that when Callas first started having vocal problems, Walter Legge suggested she go to Ponselle. "No way," she said, "She started out with better material than me."
> 
> Now there is some truth in this. Ponselle's voice was a gift from god, though I sometimes wonder if she was really a mezzo. She had a short top, and would transpose down Sempre libera (Tebaldi's trick), whereas the lower third of her voice had an incomparable richnes, When she attempts Dalila's arias, she sounds perfectly comfortable down there, whereas they do sound low for Callas. That said, Callas is the more convincing seductress. Where Ponselle, and so many other mezzos, tend to sound matronly in the music, Callas sounds like a real siren, or as one critic put it, "like a young tigress flexing her claws in the sun."


Transposition can be a kind of cheating in my view. By way of trope and analogue: It's like a boxer ducking, diving, and dancing-- but not _engaging_ in the fight; by not engaging the drama on its own terms.

Who are they fooling?


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## DarkAngel

Marschallin Blair said:


> View attachment 49001
> 
> 
> But Callas at her best _did_ have the power if not a consistent evenness of tone (q.v. the '52 _Armida_, the '53 _Medea_, the December, '55 La Scala _Norma_, the April, 14, '57 _Anna Bolena_, the July, 4, '57 Koln _Sonnambula_, and, say, the Karajan _Lucia_ for starters).
> 
> Power in _reserves_.
> 
> Power and technique which were second to none.


Agreed, I just wasn't clear in my original post.....can't get anything past you guys :lol:


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## Marschallin Blair

> Dark Angel: Agreed, I just wasn't clear in my original post.....can't get anything past you guys


Oh, I'm terminally-blonde. More gets by me than you think.

- You have terrific taste in Divas by the way; myself disincluded.

_;D_


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## schigolch

*Gabriella Besanzoni* (1888 - 1962) was an Italian mezzo, that started her career as soprano, but after just a few years changed her fach, due to her opulent middle register and her rich low notes. She was very succesful in Italy and South America, and her biggest roles were Carmen, Dalila, Adalgisa and the Verdian mezzo repertoire.


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## Pugg

​
I do love Fiorenza Cossoto , thank heavens she made a lot of records, way to few recital discs though.
The ones she made are almost unfindable or highly overpriced.


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## Tsaraslondon

Pugg said:


> ​
> I do love Fiorenza Cossoto , thank heavens she made a lot of records, way to few recital discs though.
> The ones she made are almost unfindable or highly overpriced.


I have a bit of a grudge against her. Zeffirelli relates that when she took over from Simionato in Callas's last Normas in Paris, she did not behave as a good colleague. Realising that Maria was vocally more fallible than she once was (who could fail to?) she would loudly try to outsing her and, when they sang closely in duet, would hold on to notes long after Callas had indicated to bring the phrase to an end, in an effort to make it sound as if Callas had run out of breath. Simionato and Callas had always worked very well together and Callas was hurt. Zeffirelli was furious and said he would never work with her again and he was true to his word.

Conversely, Berganza states that when she sang Neris to Callas's Medea, Callas was the perfect colleague. Berganza was young then and Callas advised her on how to play the old nurse, through gesture and body language. When she sang her aria to the supine Callas, Rescigno, the conductor recalls that she received a massive ovation, but Callas never moved a muscle until the applause had died down. Yet it is Callas who ended up with the reputation of being a bitch.

I know, I know, I'm going on again. Put it down to my advancing years, if you like, but Callas, once _got_ is a kind of sickness, and it's a sickness I've had for well nigh 50 years now. I doubt I'll ever get over it, but why would I want to?


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## Marschallin Blair

GregMitchell said:


> I have a bit of a grudge against her. Zeffirelli relates that when she took over from Simionato in Callas's last Normas in Paris, she did not behave as a good colleague. Realising that Maria was vocally more fallible than she once was (who could fail to?) she would loudly try to outsing her and, when they sang closely in duet, would hold on to notes long after Callas had indicated to bring the phrase to an end, in an effort to make it sound as if Callas had run out of breath. Simionato and Callas had always worked very well together and Callas was hurt. Zeffirelli was furious and said he would never work with her again and he was true to his word.
> 
> Conversely, Berganza states that when she sang Neris to Callas's Medea, Callas was the perfect colleague. Berganza was young then and Callas advised her on how to play the old nurse, through gesture and body language. When she sang her aria to the supine Callas, Rescigno, the conductor recalls that she received a massive ovation, but Callas never moved a muscle until the applause had died down. Yet it is Callas who ended up with the reputation of being a bitch.
> 
> I know, I know, I'm going on again. Put it down to my advancing years, if you like, but Callas, once _got_ is a kind of sickness, and it's a sickness I've had for well nigh 50 years now. I doubt I'll ever get over it, but why would I want to?


You're unduly austere on yourself.

Callas is so 'sickening fierce' (or, to put it more prosaically: "so perfect at what she does that one instantly feels inferior") that 'to get better' would merely mean to become. . . . . . . mediocre.

Intelligence, taste, and judgement is a hard affliction to beat.


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## Woodduck

GregMitchell said:


> I know, I know, I'm going on again. Put it down to my advancing years, if you like, but Callas, once _got_ is a kind of sickness, and it's a sickness I've had for well nigh 50 years now. I doubt I'll ever get over it, but why would I want to?


Don't apologize, old man! We're grateful that you do not permit senescence and sickness to deprive us of your astute and enthusiastic commentary.

(BTW, if you look around, you'll discover that I'm in the same hospital ward. To your left, third bed down, listening to Callas through headphones).


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## Marschallin Blair

> Woodduck: Don't apologize, old man! We're grateful that you do not permit senescence and sickness to deprive us of your astute and enthusiastic commentary.
> 
> (BTW, if you look around, you'll discover that I'm in the same hospital ward. To your left, third bed down, listening to Callas through headphones).


Nurse Blair reporting for duty. _;D_

<_sotto voce_> What are these paddle things used for again?


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## Woodduck

Marschallin Blair said:


> Nurse Blair reporting for duty. _;D_
> 
> <_sotto voce_> What are these paddle things used for again?


Come over here, dearie...


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## Marschallin Blair

> Woodduck: Come over here, dearie. . .


I know. . . I have a big mouth.


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## Pugg

GregMitchell said:


> I have a bit of a grudge against her. Zeffirelli relates that when she took over from Simionato in Callas's last Normas in Paris, she did not behave as a good colleague. Realising that Maria was vocally more fallible than she once was (who could fail to?) she would loudly try to outsing her and, when they sang closely in duet, would hold on to notes long after Callas had indicated to bring the phrase to an end, in an effort to make it sound as if Callas had run out of breath. Simionato and Callas had always worked very well together and Callas was hurt. Zeffirelli was furious and said he would never work with her again and he was true to his word.
> 
> I know, I know, I'm going on again. Put it down to my advancing years, if you like, but Callas, once _got_ is a kind of sickness, and it's a sickness I've had for well nigh 50 years now. I doubt I'll ever get over it, but why would I want to?


I _can't _understand what this has to do with the voice tough.
I am sure Callas was not everybody's favourite colleague to, I don't judge her for that


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## Tsaraslondon

Pugg said:


> I _can't _understand what this has to do with the voice tough.
> I am sure Callas was not everybody's favourite colleague to, I don't judge her for that


Absolutely nothing to do with her voice, but, like Zeffirelli, I have very little time for her because of it, and that is my prerogative.

Callas, on the other hand, was for the most part a very good colleague, but she didn't suffer fools gladly. Plagued with bone-headed tenors in her earlier days, she had a few spats with them, but, interestingly, Vickers, an artist rather than a tenor, had nothing but praise for her, saying that working with Callas was one of the high spots of his career. Corelli adored her too.


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## Woodduck

GregMitchell said:


> Vickers, an artist rather than a tenor


Just love it! :lol:


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## schigolch

*Helena Braun* (1903 - 1990) was a German dramatic soprano, married to the famous singer Ferdinand Frantz, and she started her career as a mezzo. Her repertory was basically German, though she also sang Ulrica, Aida, Amneris, Carmen and Santuzza. She was recruited by the mos important theaters: Berlin, La Scala, Covent Garden, Paris, Rome, the Met...


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## schigolch

*Fritzi Jokl* (1895 - 1974) was born in Vienna. A light soprano, she started to sing opera professionally in Frankfurt, when she was still very young, and then in Cologne, Berlin and Munich. Perhaps her biggest success was singing Zerbinetta, with Strauss himself conducting. She was also a celebrated Susanna, Gilda, Nedda, Olympia, Marzelline... Because of her Jewish origins, she was forced to leave Germany in the 1930s, she established in the US and tried to start an operatic career there, but she failed to get hired and retired, while still in her forties.


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## schigolch

*Luisa Maragliano* (1931) is an Italian lyric-spinto soprano, active from the late 1950s to the early 1980s. She had a high-reaching, confident voice, especially suited to Verdi and Puccini repertoires, though she sang many other roles, from Baroque to Verismo. She was singing in major theaters like La Scala, San Carlo, Roma, Vienna, MET, Chicago.... There are recordings of _Aida, Trovatore, Luisa Miller, Manon Lescaut, La Bohème_...


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## SixFootScowl

Anneliese Rothenberger (19 June 1924 - 24 May 2010), German operatic soprano.


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## BalalaikaBoy

Polish-Jewish soprano Rosa Raisa who created the role of Turandot. after listening to this clip, I believe she was actually a dramatic coloratura soprano in disguise :devil:


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## schigolch

*Florica Cristoforeanu* (1887 - 1960) was a Romanian soprano, that also tackled mezzosoprano roles. She was trained in Milan, and most of her career was spent beetwen Italy, Spain, South America and her native Romania. The most exciting feature of her singing was the beauty of the timbre, and she was also praised by her passionate commitment as an actress.


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## schigolch

*Charlotte Tirard* (1877 - 1971) was a French lyric soprano, that was active mainly in her native France. Her limpid, attractive voice was particularly suited to the French repertoire, and she was a much celebrated Marguerite and Thaïs, but she also tackled Italian opera, as well as singing some roles of Wagner and Strauss.


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## schigolch

Beatrice's cavatina: "Ma la sola, ohimè! son io", is one of the highlights of _Beatrice di Tenda_.

The complete scena, including the recitative and the cabaletta goes as follows:

_Scena Terza

(Boschetto nel Giardino Ducale. Beatrice esce 
correndo; le sue Damigelle la seguono)

BEATRICE 
Respiro io qui... 
Fra queste piante ombrose, 
All'olezzar de' fiori, a me più dolce 
Sembra il raggio del dì.

(Siede)

DAMIGELLE 
Come ogni cosa 
Il suo sorriso allegra, 
A voi dolente ed egra 
Rechi conforto ancor!

BEATRICE 
Oh! mie fedeli! 
Quando offeso il suo stelo il fior vien meno, 
Più ravvivar nol puote il Sol sereno, 
Quel fior son io: così languir m'è forza, 
Lentamente perir. - Ah! non è questa 
La mercé ch'io sperai d'averti accolto 
E difeso, o Filippo, 
e al soglio alzato!

DAMIGELLE 
Misera! è ver.

BEATRICE 
Che non mi dee l'ingrato?

(fra sé)

Ma la sola, ohimè! son io, 
Che penar per lui si veda? 
O mie genti! o suol natio! 
Di chi mai vi diedi in preda? 
Ed io stessa, ed io potei 
Soggettarvi a tal signor?

DAMIGELLE 
(fra sé) 
Ella piange.

BEATRICE 
(fra sé) 
Oh! regni miei!

DAMIGELLE 
(fra sé) 
Smania, freme...

BEATRICE 
(fra sé) 
Oh! mio rossor!

(in alta voce)

Ah! la pena in lor piombò 
Dell'amor che mi perdé; 
I martir dovuti a me 
Il destino a lor serbò. 
Ma se in ciel sperar si può 
Un sol raggio di pietà, 
La costanza a noi darà, 
Se la pace ne involò.

DAMIGELLE 
(fra sé) 
Ah! per sempre non sarà 
Vilipesa la virtù: 
Più contenta e bella più 
Dalle pene sorgerà. 
_
In 4/4, E major, allegro, we hear a melody already presented in the Prelude, and then there is a recitative, "Respiro io qui" with Beatrice sharing her disappointment about Filippo's behaviour with her maids, a soprano chorus. After a moving passage in C major, Beatrice starts in E major, largo sostenuto, the very beautiful cantabile "Ma la sola, ohime! son io". In the tempo di mezzo she again dialogues with the chorus, and then attacks the cabaletta "Ah!, la pena in lor piombo".

Some great performers of the role:

Joan Sutherland - 




Leyla Gencer - 




June Anderson - 




Edita Gruberova - 




Mariella Devia -


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## schigolch

*Pauline Tinsley* (1928 -) is a retired English dramatic soprano. She performed basically in the Welsh Opera, the English National Opera and the Covent Garden, though she also sang several roles abroad. Her preferred repertoire was Strauss and Italian opera, though often delivered in English. But she was also part of the world premiere of Stephen Paulus's _The Village Singer _in 1979, and in her later years she sang Kostelnicka, Mother Marie, Kabanicha,..


----------



## BalalaikaBoy

schigolch said:


> *Pauline Tinsley* (1928 -) is a retired English dramatic soprano. She performed basically in the Welsh Opera, the English National Opera and the Covent Garden, though she also sang several roles abroad. Her preferred repertoire was Strauss and Italian opera, though often delivered in English. But she was also part of the world premiere of Stephen Paulus's _The Village Singer _in 1979, and in her later years she sang Kostelnicka, Mother Marie, Kabanicha,..


she's wonderful! thank you for sharing! =)


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## Pugg

schigolch said:


> *Pauline Tinsley* (1928 -) is a retired English dramatic soprano. She performed basically in the Welsh Opera, the English National Opera and the Covent Garden, though she also sang several roles abroad. Her preferred repertoire was Strauss and Italian opera, though often delivered in English. But she was also part of the world premiere of Stephen Paulus's _The Village Singer _in 1979, and in her later years she sang Kostelnicka, Mother Marie, Kabanicha,..


I love this voice, got two of 4 double Cd's of Jan Derksen, Dutch baritone, she sings in different roles .:tiphat:


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## schigolch

*Karin Branzell* (1891 - 1974) was a Swedish mezzo/contralto that during her career was particularly active at the MET. She was a renowned Wagnerian, but also tackled Strauss, Italian and French roles. An impressive voice.


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## schigolch

*Helen Watts* (1927 - 2009) was a Welsh contralto that started her career singing in the Glyndebourne Festival Chorus, and as a concert performer. Later, she also pursued an operatic career. A polished and beautiful voice.


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## schigolch

*Maria Basilides* (1886 - 1946) was a Hungarian contralto, that was very popular in the National Opera of Budapest, but also an established singer in Czech, German and Austrian opera houses. Also, she was an acclaimed concert and Lieder singer.


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## schigolch

*Suzanne Balguerie* (1888 - 1973) was a French dramatic soprano. She was a regular at the Opéra-Comique, and a stalwart of French contemporary repertoire. A renowned performer of Isolde, Donna Anna, Brünnhilde,... She was also the soprano singing at the premiere of Messiaen's "Poèmes pour Mi". An impressive singer.


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## schigolch

*Rose Caron* (1857 - 1930) was a French soprano, that was pretty succesful in a career spanning almost 25 years, mainly centered in Paris. She sang roles like Marguerite, Valentine, Rachel, Alice, Leonore, Iphigenie,.. as well as several Wagnerian roles. She was also the creator of the roles of Brünnehilde and Salammbô for Ernest Reyer. On her personal life, after her divorce she was a close friend of the French politicians Théophile Delcassé and Georges Clemenceau.


----------



## BalalaikaBoy

Romanian dramatic coloratura soprano Virginia Zeani


----------



## nina foresti

Claudia Muzio 
Magda Olivero


----------



## Figleaf

schigolch said:


> *Rose Caron* (1857 - 1930) was a French soprano, that was pretty succesful in a career spanning almost 25 years, mainly centered in Paris. She sang roles like Marguerite, Valentine, Rachel, Alice, Leonore, Iphigenie,.. as well as several Wagnerian roles. She was also the creator of the roles of Brünnehilde and Salammbô for Ernest Reyer. On her personal life, after her divorce she was a close friend of the French politicians Théophile Delcassé and Georges Clemenceau.


It's always a pleasure to hear the great French singers of that period, and also to hear creator recordings of late 19th century opera, and the Sigurd record combines both! Mme Caron still had a pretty voice left when she made records in her mid 40s, in spite of all that Wagner. It's also nice to hear Gounod songs sung in the 'right' style.


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## schigolch

*Jennie Tourel *(1900 - 1973) was born in Russia, but she and her family left after the Revolution, and Tourel started in Paris a career as mezzosoprano that took her to the best theaters in Europe and America. Her most celebrated roles were Carmen, Charlotte, Rosina, Cenerentola, Adalgisa, Mignon,.. She was also the first Baba the Turk in Stravinsky's _The Rake's Progress. _Great conductors like Toscanini and Bernstein liked Tourel for her musicality and style, even though her instrument was not of an extraordinay quality.


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## schigolch

*Rosette Anday* (1903 - 1977) was an Austrian mezzosprano, born in Budapest, that debuted very young at the Vienna State Opera, in the role of Carmen. After that, she sang Dorabella, and then quite a few other roles like Azucena, Amneris, Dalila, Wagner's operas,.. Later in her career she was a much celebrated Klytemnestra in Richard Strauss' _Elektra_. She was banned from the stage during the Nazi years, and she retook her career after WWII. She was one of the youngest 'Kammersängerin' ever. Although she also sang in America, Paris or London, she never made the same impact than in Vienna.


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## schigolch

*Margarethe Siems* (1879 - 1952) was a German soprano, the owner of a powerful and flexible voice that was able to sing a big number of roles, from the coloratura territory to dramatic heroines. She performed in theaters all across Europe, but was particularly appreciated in her native Germany, and especially in Dresden, where she premiered the Straussian roles of Chrysothemis and the Marschallin, as well as Zerbinetta, this time at Stuttgart.


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## schigolch

*Gertrud Bindernagel* (1894 - 1932) was a German soprano, that started her career at the Berlin State Opera in 1921. Her basic repertory was German opera, and Verdi spinto soprano roles, where her powerful and beautiful voice won her the affection of the audience and the respect of her colleagues. She died a tragical death, being shot by her husband after a performance of _Siegfried_.


----------



## schigolch

*Sári Barabás* (1914 - 2012) was a Hungarian coloratura soprano, that started her career precisely in 1939. After the end of the war, she was a regular in Vienna and Berlin, and had also a modest career abroad. She was also a famed operetta singer, and even starred in a couple of movies before her retirement, in 1978.


----------



## Woodduck

schigolch said:


> *Sári Barabás* (1914 - 2012) was a Hungarian coloratura soprano, that started her career precisely in 1939. After the end of the war, she was a regular in Vienna and Berlin, and had also a modest career abroad. She was also a famed operetta singer, and even starred in a couple of movies before her retirement, in 1978.


Barabas was wonderful in operetta. She's featured in this great (but not great sounding) old recording of Kalman's _Grafin Mariza:_ http://www.classicsonline.com/catalogue/product.aspx?pid=1763436

which is also included in this amazing set:
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_s...r der operette&sprefix=zauber+der,popular,563

And here she is being totally Hungarian:


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## schigolch

*Fanny Anitúa* (1887 - 1968) was a Mexican mezzo that studied in her homeland, but later completed his training in Rome, where she made her debut in 1910. She was the owner of an impressive voice, in both high and low notes, and a commanding physique. She sang mostly in Italy, the US and Latin America. Her basic repertoire was Verdi and French opera, though she also tackled Wagner roles (in Italian).


----------



## SixFootScowl

Here we can compare 19 great historic sopranos:


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## schigolch

*Emma Carelli *(1877 - 1928) was an Italian soprano. Her big, dramatic voice was mainly used in verismo and Wagner, in a career spanning two decades. She sang mainly in Italy, but also travelled a few times to South America's theaters. After her retirement, she managed during several years the Teatro Costanzi in Rome.


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## schigolch

*Bianca Scacciati* (1894 - 1948) was an Italian soprano, that started her career at 24 years old, in her native Florence. From 1926 to 1933 she was a stalwart at La Scala, singing under the baton of Toscanini several roles. From the mid 1930s to her retirement in 1942, she sang mostly in South America. A powerful, vigorous voice, though maybe not the owner of an exciting timbre, and not the most stylist of singers, either.


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## schigolch

*Marie Delna* (1875 - 1932) was a French contralto. She was pretty succesful in theaters across Europe, especially in her native France, but was not so well received in America. Her repertoire was basically Franch and Italian, and she was a celebrated performer of Carmen, Orphée, Dalila, Cassandre, Charlotte... The recordings available suggest a smooth, refined singer, with a great French diction, though a little bit monotonous.


----------



## Headphone Hermit

schigolch said:


> *Suzanne Balguerie* (1888 - 1973) was a French dramatic soprano. She was a regular at the Opéra-Comique, and a stalwart of French contemporary repertoire. A renowned performer of Isolde, Donna Anna, Brünnhilde,... She was also the soprano singing at the premiere of Messiaen's "Poèmes pour Mi". An impressive singer.


"Power, elegance and style ... but mostly elegance" http://greatoperasingers.blogspot.co.uk/2014/06/the-great-suzanne-balguerie.html

A fantastic voice from the past - well worth a listen to if you have a few moments :tiphat:


----------



## Cesare Impalatore

*Antonina Nezhdanova* (1873 - 1950) was a Russian lyric coloratura soprano. Leading soprano of the Bolshoi, one of the very best Russian singers in history, Rachmaninoff dedicated _Vocalise_ to her (she was the first to sing it).

Nezhdanova represents the finest art of lost bel canto singing technique, here in Traviata - 



.

Her and the great tenor Leonid Sobinov were a magnificent duo - 



.


----------



## schigolch

*Ilva Ligabue* (1928 - 1998) was an Italian lyric soprano, that had a good career from the 1950s to the 1970s. She was welcome in the main Italian theaters, as well as in Europe and America. Her repertoire was basically Italian, too, and some Mozart. She was a very well considered Desdemona, Alice, Amelia,.. A luminous, beautiful voice.


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## BalalaikaBoy

Hungarian dramatic coloratura soprano Maria Nemeth. she sang everything from Queen of the Night, to Aida, Turandot, even Brunhilde!


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## schigolch

*Maria Reining* (1903 - 1991) was an Austrian lyric soprano that spend her career mostly between Vienna, Szalburg and Munich, a renowned specialist in Mozart and Strauss, though she also sang several Wagnerian roles, and a few Verdian ones. A very refined, elegant singer, with a fluid legato.


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## schigolch

*Aurora Buades* (1897 - 1965) was a Spanish mezzo that had an important career as an opera and concert singer in Italy, Spain and South America. Her more celebrated roles were Ulrica, Azucena, Amneris and above all, Carmen, a role she recorded with Pertile. She retired in 1940, after her marriage with the Italian tenor Roberto D´Alessio. A rotund voice, and an expressive singer.


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## Scififan

I recently bought the live recording of _Cavalleria Rusticana_ conducted by Mascagni with Lina Bruna Rasa as Santuzza. This recording took place in 1938 at the Haag.

Bruna Rasa is wonderful and sings the part with a passion that I have never heard equalled. The great duet with Melandri is electrifying and far more emotionally powerful than in the 1940 studio recording which I also have. _Opera Fanatic_ has a good review of this performance:

http://www.operafanatic.com/cd/cavalleria-rusticana-melandri-bruna-rasa

The performance is available as a download from iTunes.


----------



## Scififan

post deleted 
Sorry! I duplicated the above post.


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## schigolch

*Ester Mazzoleni* (1883 - 1982) was an Italian soprano, that enjoyed a meteoric career. She debuted at 23 years old in the role of Leonora (Trovatore), at Rome, and a couple of years later she was already singing at La Scala. Her more celebrated roles were Aida, Norma, Isolde, Medea,.. and also roles from the Giovane Scuola composers. She married a rich man from Palermo in 1925, and retired from the opera house. A strong, dramatic voice, was also willing to invest on her acting, though always starting from a verismo approach.


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## schigolch

*Júlia Várady* (1941 -) is a Hungarian (latter she became a German citizen) soprano. She started her career as a mezzo, but soon she was singing as a soprano, and having a distinguished career in the major European and American theaters. A fine voice, and a fine artist, though perhaps more exciting in live performance, than in recordings. She was married many years to the German baritone Dietrich Fisher-Dieskau:


----------



## Don Fatale

*Blanche Thebom* (1915 - 2010) was an American operatic mezzo-soprano, voice teacher, and opera director. She was part of the first wave of American opera singers that had highly successful international careers. In her own country she had a long association with the Metropolitan Opera in New York City which lasted 22 years. Opera News stated, "An ambitious beauty with a velvety, even-grained dramatic mezzo, Thebom was a natural for opera: she commanded the stage with the elegantly disciplined hauteur of an old-school diva, relishing the opportunity to play femmes du monde such as Marina in Boris Godunov, Herodias and Dalila."


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## Don Fatale

I was lucky enough to acquire the full set of The Record of Singing on LP. Actually it's 46 LPs in 4 box sets. It features literally 100's of singers from 1899 to the 'end of the 78 era'. Some of the tracks are lovingly revived from scratchy 78's while others come from other masters and have great fidelity, particular for the voice from the commencement of the electrical recording era in the late 20's. Each box comes with notes and pictures of each singer as well as full track details. If you have a record player, I recommend getting any of the boxes if you see it on Ebay. Unlikely to cost much. Alas the CD versions seem to cherry pick only the best known singers.

Putting on a disc is like a very pleasant journey back in time. What fantastic singers they were!


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## schigolch

*Edith Mason* (1892 - 1973) was an American soprano that debuted very young, at just 20 years old, as Nedda, and soon she was singing in Paris and, when the Great War started, in New York, at the MET. She later was a regular of the Chicago Opera. A light-lyrical voice, that had a crystalline quality in her best years, but not really an outstanding vocal actress.


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## schigolch

*Gertrude Kappel* (1884 - 1971) was a German dramatic soprano, that was a celebrated Wagner specialist, but that debuted with Beethoven's Leonora and also sang some roles from Mozart, Strauss or Italian opera. She was a regular at the Vienna Staatsoper, and the Covent Garden, but was required also in other European or American venues. Her voice was not particularly big, but she was able to produce piercing high notes, along with a robuts center and lower registers. She also had a commanding presence on stage.


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## BalalaikaBoy

The Australian dramatic coloratura soprano Mina Foley (1930-2007). Before suffering from a mental breakdown in 1961, she was on the rise as one of Australia's up and coming singers and remains a favorite of Kiri te Kanawa. She was something of a vocal Yma Sumac, starting as a contralto before climbing into the stratosphere of coloratura soprano. Below is a lovely if not rather bizarre interpretation of Casta Diva preceding the caballetta


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## schigolch

*Margarethe Arndt-Ober* (1885 - 1971) was a German singer, that enjoyed a great career all across Germany's opera houses, especially at Berlin, though she also sang four seasons at New York's MET, where she was surprised by the US declaration of war to Germany, in 1917. Her mezzo/contralto repertoire was wide, singing from Wagner and Strauss, to Verdi (usually in German) and other Italian opera as well as French opera. The owner of a beautiful voice, she was also blessed with a remarkably smooth projection. Her style of singing can be somehow out of tune with some listeners in the 21st century.


----------



## Woodduck

schigolch said:


> *Margarethe Arndt-Ober* (1885 - 1971) was a German singer, that enjoyed a great career all across Germany's opera houses, especially at Berlin, though she also sang four seasons at New York's MET, where she was surprised by the US declaration of war to Germany, in 1917. Her mezzo/contralto repertoire was wide, singing from Wagner and Strauss, to Verdi (usually in German) and other Italian opera as well as French opera. The owner of a beautiful voice, she was also blessed with a remarkably smooth projection. Her style of singing can be somehow out of tune with some listeners in the 21st century.


God, this woman is wonderful! The very soul of legato. Thank you.

Here's more of her:


----------



## silentio

I believe schigolch has mentioned *Salomea Krushelnytska (1872-1952)* before.






​
What an immense and versatile singer she was. Her repertoire included about 60 roles, ranging from Meyerbeer and late Verdi to Isolde, Brünnhilde, Elektra, and Salome! She was also credited as the one who "rescued" Puccini's Madame Butterfly: her performance transformed a disastrous premiere into a major success just a few months later.

John Steane, in his "The Great Tradition" wrote :

_"Her voice comes to me as an altogether welcome relief from the the penetrative sound of the Italians; and the prime impression made by the records themselves is of a dramatic, imaginative singer, a vocal actress with Muzio and Callas as her most eminent successors. She also strikes one as being a 'modern' singer: that is , credible as a good modern singer who happened to have recorded pre-electrically; part of a continuing tradition"._

I can't agree with him more! Here is her _Un bel di_. This kind of vocal acting and expressive individuality was not something usually found in the _Un bel di _ of other big names (e.g. Farrar , Bori or even Ponselle).






A dramatic and deeply felt _"Ritorna vincitor!"_:






Hojotoho with trills:






And a very sensuous _War es so schmählich_ (Die Walkure):






*P/S: The woman also looks ultra glamorous!*


----------



## schigolch

*Else Brems* (1908 - 1995) was a Danish mezzo, that after getting trained in Italy and France, got hired to sing Carmen at Copenhagen. This was to be the main role of her career, that was mostly centered in the Nordic countries, and England. A very distinctive voice, though not a really gifted one, Brems was able to become a true vocal actress.


----------



## graziesignore

Daniela Dessi has passed away...

http://slippedisc.com/2016/08/a-glorious-italian-soprano-has-died-aged-59/

She died only a month after a cancer diagnosis. Sad.


----------



## schigolch

Very sad, indeed.

Sit tibi terra levis.


----------



## mstar

Has *Hilde Güden* been mentioned? She's the only female singer I've heard so far whose voice I just can't hear enough of.


----------



## schigolch




----------



## Pugg

graziesignore said:


> Daniela Dessi has passed away...
> 
> http://slippedisc.com/2016/08/a-glorious-italian-soprano-has-died-aged-59/
> 
> She died only a month after a cancer diagnosis. Sad.


Only 59, much to young to die


----------



## schigolch

*Rosina Torri* (1898 - 1975) was an Italian soprano, that sang mainly in Italy, and Italian opera, in the 1920s and the early 1930s, when she was relatively popular. She was part of the cast of one of the first recordings of "La Bohème". An italianate voice, a fresh singing, though not the most refined performer:


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## Pugg

Joyce* Arleen Auger *(September 13, 1939 - June 10, 1993)
Deserves to be in this thread .


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## schigolch

*Elena Cernei* (1924 - 2000) was a Romanian mezzo that enjoyed a long and successful career in Europe and America, from the 1950s to the 1970s. She sang many of the staples of her fach repertoire: Azucena, Amneris, Ulrica, Eboli, Carmen, Dalila... A very powerful voice, marred by not the most refined of techniques.


----------



## Pugg

schigolch said:


> *Elena Cernei* (1924 - 2000) was a Romanian mezzo that enjoyed a long and successful career in Europe and America, from the 1950s to the 1970s. She sang many of the staples of her fach repertoire: Azucena, Amneris, Ulrica, Eboli, Carmen, Dalila... A very powerful voice, marred by not the most refined of techniques.
> 
> ]


I do have one CD from this lady: Romanțe , all in Romanian I believe, bought in on a care sale € 2.00


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## schigolch

*Maria Carbone* (1908 - 2002) was an Italian soprano, that during a career spanning twenty-five years sang mainly in Italy. On top of singing Verdi and Puccini roles, she was also performing many Mascagni's operas, and also participated in several world premieres. After retirement, she was a voice teacher, and trained Maria Chiara. A nice, elegant voice. A singer's singer.


----------



## Scopitone

I just wanted to say how much I appreciate all the work that has gone into creating this thread and keeping it active. I'm finding all kinds of names to explore.

Also something interesting is that while most of these photos are quite conservative, I'm amused by the fact that once in awhile you come across one that's rather racy. I guess there were Netrebkos back in the day as well. LOL


----------



## Pugg

Scopitone said:


> I just wanted to say how much I appreciate all the work that has gone into creating this thread and keeping it active. I'm finding all kinds of names to explore.
> 
> Also something interesting is that while most of these photos are quite conservative, I'm amused by the fact that once in awhile you come across one that's rather racy. I guess there were Netrebkos back in the day as well. LOL


Only with a better voice


----------



## Woodduck

Scopitone said:


> I just wanted to say how much I appreciate all the work that has gone into creating this thread and keeping it active. I'm finding all kinds of names to explore.
> 
> Also something interesting is that while most of these photos are quite conservative, I'm amused by the fact that once in awhile you come across one that's rather racy. I guess there were Netrebkos back in the day as well. LOL


Child, you can't _imagine_ what went on back in the day!


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## Scopitone

I'm 42. 

it's nice to be thought young for a moment...


----------



## Scopitone

Pugg said:


> Only with a better voice


haha probably true


----------



## Woodduck

Scopitone said:


> I'm 42.
> 
> it's nice to be thought young for a moment...


42! Oh my God! Have you made funeral arrangements?


----------



## schigolch

*Alice Cucini* (1870 - 1949) was an Italian mezzo, that enjoyed a long and successful career in Europe and South America. On top of tje usual Italian roles for her voice, she was also much celebrated as Dalila, in Saint-Saëns's opera. She was recorded very early, during the first years of the 20th century. A pleasant voice, though she was considered as rather cold on stage.


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## DarkAngel

Miss Carteri has been mention already I am sure by Schigolch, I just want another shout out because I recently got her remastered 56 Traviata and she sounds great here, unknown to me previously very small catalog of recordings but opera talent was so deep back then she couldn't really stand out...........but today she would be a megastar with such talents!


----------



## Woodduck

DarkAngel said:


> Miss Carteri has been mention already I am sure by Schigolch, I just want another shout out because I recently got her remastered 56 Traviata and she sounds great here, unknown to me previously very small catalog of recordings but opera talent was so deep back then she couldn't really stand out...........but today she would be a megastar with such talents!


That recording with Carteri, Valletti and Warren under Monteux was my first _Traviata_. I remember it as excellent and would love to hear it again. Some feel that Monteux is too leisurely, but I suspect this opera would respond well to his sensitivity.

Carteri would indeed be a megastar today. Just listen to her Adriana Lecouvreur:


----------



## schigolch

DarkAngel said:


> Miss Carteri has been mention already I am sure by Schigolch, I just want another shout out because I recently got her remastered 56 Traviata and she sounds great here, unknown to me previously very small catalog of recordings but opera talent was so deep back then she couldn't really stand out...........but today she would be a megastar with such talents!


Indeed she would.


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## Pugg

I am so bold to add a very fine collection.


----------



## DarkAngel

Woodduck said:


> Carteri would indeed be a megastar today. Just listen to her Adriana Lecouvreur:


Brava Rosanna.........beautiful soaring vocal line, and the soft voice delicate as a snowflake, such heartfelt emotional characterization moved me greatly.......where are these singers today?


----------



## schigolch

*
Alma Gluck* (1884 - 1938) was an American soprano, born in today's Romania, that was part of the MET cast, but her real breakout came as a recording artist, being the first classical musician to sell one million copies. She concentrated then, understandably, in concert performances and recordings. A very pure voice, capable of really moving people thru singing:


----------



## schigolch

Miriam Pirazzini died last Christmas, she was 98 years old.

Sit tibi terra levis.


----------



## Pugg

I have a Noma where she doing Adalgisa besides Anita Cerquetti, wonderful voice!


----------



## schigolch

Here it is:


----------



## Pugg

schigolch said:


> Here it is:


That's the one , even the right date!!:tiphat:


----------



## damianjb1

Dame Margaret Price - 1941 - 2011


----------



## DarkAngel

schigolch said:


> Here it is:












Cerquetti replaced Callas who had the famous act 1 "walk-out" of previous Norma Rome performance, caused a near riot with Italian King and entourage attending, Callas had police at her hotel room to protect from angry opera crazies.....

Part of the problem was just before the Rome Norma performance she was attending late night parties and this angered the rabid opera fanatics who felt they were cheated by the great diva........

Any way Cerquetti was a great replacement and had a brilliant but rather short career when suddenly at the peak of her fame she decided to retire, that is another interesting story


----------



## schigolch

A wonderful replacement, indeed.

In fact, Anita Cerquetti sang for the first time Norma back in 1955, in Florence, with Barbieri and Corelli. It was a great success, repeated later at Teatro Bellini, in Catania.


However, her breaktrough in the role was at Barcelona's Liceu, in December of the same year. She got a resounding ovation, the longest of her life, lasting some 45 minutes of applause. A late friend of mine was attending the performance, and he, to the end of his days, was still saying this was the greatest live opera experience in his life. Two years later, she returned to Barcelona and to Norma, again with great success.

Blessed with a very beautiful voice, Cerquetti had also a great vocal technique, incisive phrasing, good balance between her low and high notes,... and after fighting for more than ten years to be a top opera singer, she just retired the very moment she achieved stardom!.


In fact, she sang for the first time at La Scala in 1960, an Abigaille with very good reviews. Then, a couple of performances, a couple of recitals, and it will be the end for a Cerquetti that was only 32 years old.




Later, Cerquetti put the blame on some health issues, and the stress of the singing profession. A great pity. But thanks to her radio broadcasts, we have recordings of many of her roles.


----------



## schigolch

*Maria Müller* (1898 - 1958) was a Bohemian soprano, trained in Vienna, where she successfully debuted as a young woman. Later in her career, she also was a regular at several opera houses in Europe, including Bayreuth, as well as the MET. She retired just after WWII.

Very well regarded as a Wagnerian soprano, she was also tackling Strauss, Mozart, Janacek,... A lovely voice, with a remarkable purity of tone, that was not lacking in dramatic power, however.


----------



## DarkAngel

^^^^ Maria Mueller hat removed 1932 signed portrait..........


----------



## schigolch

The great French soprano Géori Boué died a few days ago, on January 5th, 2017. She was a regular of French repertoire, and mostly French theaters, too. Her signature role was Massenet's Thaïs:






Sit tibi terra levis.


----------



## schigolch

*Louise Homer* (1871 - 1947) was an American singer, that enjoyed a long and successful career singing mezzo and contralto roles. She debuted in Europe, but in 1900 sang her first role at the MET (Amneris), and then she spent the next thirty years mostly in American theaters. She was capable of dealing with Italian and French opera, as well as Wagnerian roles. Incidentally, the composer Samuel Barber was her nephew.

A beautiful and powerful voice, and able also of handling many of the nuances of singing. She was also praised for her acting abilities.


----------



## schigolch

*Mady Mesplé* (1931) is a French light soprano, that debuted while still very young in _Lakmé_, an opera that she sang more than one hundred times in her career. She was very successful in French opera roles such as Olympia, Leïla, Juliette, Constance, Ophélie, Sophie,... She extended her repertory to Italian (Amina, Rosina, Lucia, Gilda,...) and German (Sophie, Zerbinetta,...) roles, though arguably she was less celebrated here. She retired after more than 30 years of professional singing, and proceed to teaching, as so many other singers.

A very light voice, with difficult center and low notes, but an accomplished and stylish singer.


----------



## Pugg

schigolch said:


> *Mady Mesplé* (1931) is a French light soprano, that debuted while still very young in _Lakmé_, an opera that she sang more than one hundred times in her career. She was very successful in French opera roles such as Olympia, Leïla, Juliette, Constance, Ophélie, Sophie,... She extended her repertory to Italian (Amina, Rosina, Lucia, Gilda,...) and German (Sophie, Zerbinetta,...) roles, though arguably she was less celebrated here. She retired after more than 30 years of professional singing, and proceed to teaching, as so many other singers.
> 
> A very light voice, with difficult center and low notes, but an accomplished and stylish singer.


When I hear her voice: Pons and Sills always comes to mind.


----------



## DarkAngel

schigolch said:


> *Louise Homer* (1871 - 1947) was an American singer, that enjoyed a long and successful career singing mezzo and contralto roles. She debuted in Europe, but in 1900 sang her first role at the MET (Amneris), and then she spent the next thirty years mostly in American theaters. She was capable of dealing with Italian and French opera, as well as Wagnerian roles. Incidentally, the composer Samuel Barber was her nephew.
> 
> A beautiful and powerful voice, and able also of handling many of the nuances of singing. She was also praised for her acting abilities.


I have been buying these archival opera histories 2 CD set of important operas at the MET, the large booklet is almost worth the price alone with historical photos of singers and stage sets......

Just got the Aida set and first photo is of Caruso and Homer in MET Aida.......Homer has same Amneris costume as photo above, Emmy Destinn was Aidia

*You must see these stage set designs for the MET Caruso Aida 1908-09........ Art Deco program booklet*

http://archives.metoperafamily.org/Imgs/Aida190809.htm










1908 MET opera house........


----------



## Pugg

DarkAngel said:


> I
> 
> *You must see these stage set designs for the MET Caruso Aida 1908-09........ Art Deco program booklet*
> 
> 1908 MET opera house........


Think of all those voice who sung inside......all the dram and intrigues .


----------



## Sloe

Pugg said:


> Think of all those voice who sung inside......all the dram and intrigues .


Demolished in 1967 and replaced with this:


----------



## DarkAngel

*Maria Cebotari 1910-1949*

This singer just came up in the Salome discussion thread (thanks wooduck), a Romanian soprano active in 1930s and 40s also with some movies to her credit, some comment from Wiki music:



> Cebotari had an extremely versatile voice, and her repertoire covered coloratura, soubrette, lyric and dramatic roles; for example, she sang both Carmen and Susanna in _Le nozze di Figaro_, Violetta in _La traviata_ and Salome in the same season. She concentrated on four composers - Mozart, Richard Strauss, Verdi, Puccini. Richard Strauss described her as "the best all-rounder on the European stage, and she is never late and she never cancels". Herbert von Karajan, during a BBC interview decades after her death, said she was the greatest "Madame Butterfly" he had ever conducted.


 Listen to Maria Cebotari as Salome:


----------



## schigolch

*Sabine Kalter* (1889 - 1957) was an Austro-Hungarian mezzo, born in the today Polish city of Jaroslaw. From her debut in 1911 to her exile to England in 1934 to escape the Nazi regime, she sang mostly in Germany and Austria. After that, she continued her career in London, for a few more years. She sang all the Wagnerian roles for her fach, but also Verdi, French opera, new operas by Korngold, Hindemith, Wolf-Ferrari... Kalter is best remembered by her recording of "Tristan und Isolde" alongside Flagstad and Melchior.

A powerful, well trained voice, that was able to master at the same time the secrets of the best Wagnerian singing, and be a reliable performer of other roles.


----------



## SoleilCouchant

schigolch said:


> *Elena Cernei* (1924 - 2000) was a Romanian mezzo that enjoyed a long and successful career in Europe and America, from the 1950s to the 1970s. She sang many of the staples of her fach repertoire: Azucena, Amneris, Ulrica, Eboli, Carmen, Dalila... A very powerful voice, marred by not the most refined of techniques.


YES lol. I did a search of the thread to see if she was on here; if not, I would have posted her. I love her. The second video you posted of mon coeur s'ouvre à ta voix, how can you not love it? If I were Samson I'd definitely have gone for that. She's just so otherwordly sublime in my opinion. I usually search for the angelic soprano voices, but Cernei's somethin' else... I can't think of another voice like her's. She makes it seem SO effortless, too.


----------



## Woodduck

SoleilCouchant said:


> YES lol. I did a search of the thread to see if she was on here; if not, I would have posted her. I love her. The second video you posted of mon coeur s'ouvre à ta voix, how can you not love it? If I were Samson I'd definitely have gone for that. She's just so otherwordly sublime in my opinion. I usually search for the angelic soprano voices, but Cernei's somethin' else... I can't think of another voice like her's. She makes it seem SO effortless, too.


Yes indeed. How did I miss her first time around? Seamless, perfectly equalized registers - wonderful voice.


----------



## DarkAngel

*Elena Suliotis 1943-2004 *(after 1970 Souliotis)

A greek born dramatic soprano who sang the heaviest most demanding bel canto roles at an early age, her famous debut recording the 65 Nabucco remains an opera classic. Her appearance as Callas was retired from stage made comparisons almost unavoidable along with her dramatic singing style and greek heritage, her very short career is thought to be a result of damaging her voice from so many heavy roles at vey young age, still we have a handful of recordings to show her in full flight.


----------



## DarkAngel

*
Bruna Castagna 1905-1983*

An Italian mezzo made her opera debut at Buenos Aires age 20 under Serafin and sang there 3 seasons, then offered a contact at La Scala where she was a favorite of Toscaninni. Her reputation grew as a true bel canto mezzo for works of Verdi and remained very busy. She later was contracted at the MET in 1936 where she had many performances and great success thru 1945 during which time she was a very famous Azucena, Amneris and Carmen......


----------



## schigolch

Castagna was Adalgisa to Cigna's Norma, in arguably the most verismo-like performance ever recorded of Bellini's masterpiece, back in 1937.


----------



## nina foresti

Magda Olivero (and before her Rosa Ponselle)


----------



## DarkAngel

schigolch said:


> Castagna was Adalgisa to Cigna's Norma, in arguably the most verismo-like performance ever recorded of Bellini's masterpiece, back in 1937.


Two MET Normas in 1937 according to MET archives, the first was a saturday radio broadcast and widely covered by opera press, Castanga and Martinelli actually were better reviewed than Cigna's Norma.......



> *Better singing was Miss Castagna's. This is naturally a rich and beautiful voice, particularly when Miss Castagna was not infected, as she was in some of the cadenzas or two, by her partner's pushing of fortissimi tones. In such places there was a fine mutual disregard of tonal beauty and a none too considerate concern for the pitch. Otherwise Miss Castagna's performance became that of the best Adalgisa that the Metropolitan has had in the last ten years, even if the atmosphere was somewhat marred when Mr. Martinelli inadvertently got tangled in Adalgisa's long wig, and Miss Castagna was forced to step into a wing to adjust matters.
> 
> The best singer on the stage, however, was Giovanni Martinelli. He proved a hundred times over what it means to have a thoroughly grounded technique and a real grasp of an opera's tradition. He was the one who gave in his performance the least evidence of effort, with whom all technical means were subordinated to an expressive end; who seemed to be uttering naturally what the music had to say and who interpreted with the authority of an artist in his own right. He exaggerated neither in expression nor in quantity of tone. He sang with genuine feeling, so that one entered again into the spirit of Bellini's school and period as he sang. This was something of a lesson. To the effect of Mr. Martinelli's performance can be added the magnificent voice and the fine dignity of Mr. Pinza as Oroveso, the competency of Miss Votipka and Mr. Paltrinieri in minor parts, the very able and exciting performance of the chorus and Mr. Panizza's dramatic reading of the score.*


Metropolitan Opera House
February 20, 1937 Matinee Broadcast

*NORMA {36}
Bellini-F. Romani

Norma...................Gina Cigna
Pollione................Giovanni Martinelli
Adalgisa................Bruna Castagna
Oroveso.................Ezio Pinza
Flavio..................Giordano Paltrinieri
Clotilde................Thelma Votipka

Conductor...............Ettore Panizza*


----------



## Jermaine

Her voice is so perfect. Notes in the 6th octave seems to be as effortless for her as those in the 5th octave.
No shrill, shriek, nor metal, just silk mixed with velvet. I love her voice. ​


----------



## DarkAngel

*Gre Brouwenstijn 1915-1999

*A dutch soprano with a long stage career from mid 1940s thru 1971 spanning a great variety of roles including 1950s bayreuth wagner roles, her lack of name recognition today is simply that she was active when there was tremendous depth of talented singers all active at that time, voice as described by John Steane:



> Brouwenstijn's voice, in its prime, was like brushed silver, radiantly lyrical yet strong enough to be pushed into slightly heavier territory. She reportedly made a huge impression on stage in Beethoven's _Fidelio_. John Steane, in his book _The Grand Tradition: 70 Years of Singing on Record_, admires Brouwenstijn in Wagner, calling her his favorite lyric Wagner soprano of the '50s and '60s (and that's saying a lot), but notes that she's even more distinguished singing Verdi.


As Leonora in Trovatore.......


----------



## Pugg

DarkAngel said:


> *Gre Brouwenstijn 1915-1999
> 
> *A dutch soprano with a long stage career from mid 1940s thru 1971 spanning a great variety of roles including 1950s bayreuth wagner roles, her lack of name recognition today is simply that she was active when there was tremendous depth of talented singers all active at that time, voice as described by John Steane:
> 
> As Leonora in Trovatore.......


D.A ... you are a angel, spoiling me twice on the same page.:kiss:


----------



## schigolch

The "lack of name recognition" is not only affecting Brouwenstijn, but many other singers, as we can see in this same thread. 

My preferred role is Elisabetta:


----------



## Pugg

schigolch said:


> The "lack of name recognition" is not only affecting Brouwenstijn, but many other singers, as we can see in this same thread.
> 
> My preferred role is Elisabetta:
> 
> []


I have a live recording from her doing Tosca in Holland, 1969, she holding up very well.


----------



## schigolch

Ingeborg Hallstein is also now a singer for "connoisseurs", especially lovers of high coloratura and, of course, lied and operetta. Personally, I also remember her fondly for her work with Henze, Milhaud, Egk, ...


----------



## nina foresti

How could I forget Claudio Muzio?


----------



## DarkAngel

nina foresti said:


> How could I forget Claudio Muzio?


No one should forget Muzio, but now with 400+ posts most of the well known singers have been covered earlier, but there are some still unmentioned singers using "search thread" top of page I see Anna Moffo not yet posted which I will soon remedy


----------



## DarkAngel

*Anna Moffo 1932-2006

*American lyric colortura soprano who had a long prolific stage career at all the major world opera houses, TV and movie career also with attractive visual personna. Her professional opera career began in Italy mid 1950s with American debut at Lyric Chicago 57 (like Callas) and MET debut 59. A large catalog of highly rated recordings thru mid 1970s when vocal decline set in, married into Sarnoff family chairman of RCA corp who she later recorded for.

A personal favorite of mine this cheap 10 CD boxset has early segments of Anna's famous roles in freshest most compelling voice, essential......


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## Pugg

"Sempre Libera.":clap:


----------



## schigolch

Of course it's fine to post about singers that have not been mentioned in the thread, but it's also ok to discuss anyone already covered; as long as it's deceased or retired ("of the past"...).


----------



## DarkAngel

*Bidu Sayao 1902-1999

*Brazilian lyric soprano active at the MET during 1937-1952 period, La scala debut 1930 her famous roles include Violetta, Manon, Lucia di Lammermoor, Amina in Sonnambula_, _Zerbinetta in Araidne auf Naxos and more. After her last MET performance she retired to coastal Maine USA.....from NY times:



> The diminutive Miss Sayao, restricted by her small voice to the lyric and coloratura repertory, often expressed regret that she could not sing such heavier roles as Tosca and Butterfly. But her interpretations of Manon, Violetta in ''La Traviata,'' Mimi in ''La Boheme'' and Susanna in ''Le Nozze di Figaro,'' among other roles, received consistent praise, with critics stressing her expressiveness, sensibility, girlishness and excellence of phrasing.


Her pure youthful voice reminds me of Roberta Peters who followed her at the MET in similar roles, and Kathleen Battle in more recent times.....


----------



## Pugg

DarkAngel said:


> *Bidu Sayao 1902-1999
> 
> *Brazilian lyric soprano active at the MET during 1937-1952 period, La scala debut 1930 her famous roles include Violetta, Manon, Lucia di Lammermoor, Amina in Sonnambula_, _Zerbinetta in Araidne auf Naxos and more. After her last MET performance she retired to coastal Maine USA.....from NY times:
> 
> Her pure youthful voice reminds me of Roberta Peters who followed her at the MET in similar roles, and Kathleen Battle in more recent times.....


Each day I love you a little bit more. :angel:


----------



## DarkAngel

*Caterina Ligendza 1937-0000

*Another swedish soprano (like Nilsson) best known for various Wagner performances at Bayreuth festival during 1971-77 seasons especially Brunhilde and Isolde parts along with other R Strauss roles. Her early stage career began at various german houses before Bayreuth with a MET debut in 1971 and also appeared at ROH and La Scala before retiring in 1988.

A favorite singer of mercurial conductor Carlos Kleiber, to be the prima soprano of the greatest wagner stage in the world during a time when many great singers still filled the ranks is a great testament........


----------



## Pugg

I hold my head in shame, never heard the name before.....


----------



## Itullian

Pugg said:


> I hold my head in shame, never heard the name before.....


She's on the Jochum DG Meistersinger


----------



## Woodduck

Itullian said:


> She's on the Jochum DG Meistersinger


A disappointing Eva. The quintet alone is enough to keep me away from the Jochum _Meistersinger,_ but there are other things...






The real thing:


----------



## schigolch

The great Italian soprano Giannina Arangi-Lombardi (1891 - 1952) singing a few of her most celebrated roles:

Aida - 




La Gioconda - 




Lucrezia Borgia -


----------



## DarkAngel

schigolch said:


> The great Italian soprano *Giannina Arangi-Lombardi* (1891 - 1952) singing a few of her most celebrated roles:
> 
> Aida -
> 
> 
> 
> 
> La Gioconda -
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Lucrezia Borgia -


Before the days of computer and smart phone people had such nice script handwriting......


----------



## SenaJurinac

Zinka Milanov (1906-1989). For her recording of Il Trovator from 1952, with Jussi Björling, it is said she was the greatest Leonora ever


----------



## schigolch

*María Barrientos* (1883 - 1946) a Spanish light soprano born in Barcelona, enjoyed a successful, though not very long career, at the beggining of the 20th century, both in Europe and America:


----------



## Pugg

Licia Albanese - "Tatiana's Letter Scene" - Stokowski conducts

Licia Albanese (July 22, 1909 - August 15, 2014) was an Italian-born American operatic soprano. Noted especially for her portrayals of the lyric heroines of Verdi and Puccini.


----------



## Pugg

ignore this post


----------



## schigolch

Are we sure that Mr. Ralf qualifies as "female singer"?.


----------



## Pugg

schigolch said:


> Are we sure that Mr. Ralf qualifies as "female singer"?.


Going to fix it


----------



## Pugg

Amelita Galli-Curci - Linda di Chamounix : O luce di quest'anima (Donizetti)


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## schigolch

*Clara Petrella* (1914 - 1987) was respected by both her powerful and beautiful voice of spinto, and her acting talent (she was called "the Eleonora Duse of belcanto")... though she was rather an specialist on verismo.


----------



## Pugg

Soprano IVA PACETTI - Il trovatore - "D'amor sull'ali rosee"


----------



## Pugg

Maria Kuznetsova, "Sì, mi chiamano Mimì", Puccini: La Bohème (Pathé, 1917)

Maria Kuznetsova (1880-1966), a Russian soprano who was greatly admired in her day for her extraordinary beauty and stage presence, is featured here in "Sì, mi chiamano Mimì" from Act 1 of Puccini's La Bohème, recorded in 1917 for Pathé.


----------



## Pugg

Rosa Ponselle: Verdi - Il Trovatore, 'D'amor sull'ali rosee... Miserere'

Remembering : *Rosa Ponselle (January 22,* 1897 - May 25, 1981),


----------



## Pugg

Australian Soprano Nellie Melba ~ Voi che sapete (1910)

Dame Nellie Melba GBE (19 May 1861 - 23 February 1931), born Helen Porter Mitchell, was an Australian operatic soprano. She became one of the most famous singers of the late Victorian era and the early 20th century. She was the first Australian to achieve international recognition as a classical musician


----------



## Pugg

Rosa Ponselle - O nume tutelar - La Vestale - Spontini


----------



## Meyerbeer Smith




----------



## Pugg

Mezzosoprano ELVIRA CASAZZA - La Gioconda "Voce di donna"


----------



## Pugg

wrong thread


----------



## schigolch

Tagliavini, a female singer?.


----------



## Pugg

Bidu Sayão - Bachiana nº 5 - Cantilena


----------



## Pugg

Pilar Lorengar: Tu Che di Gel sei Cinta (Turandot)

1929 Birth of Spanish soprano Pilar LORENGAR. Died 1 JUN 1966


----------



## Pugg

Anita Cerquetti, "O rei dei cieli," Agnese de Hohenstaufen, Gaspare Spontini

Anita Cerquetti (13 April 1931 - 11 October 2014) was an Italian dramatic soprano who had a short but meteoric career in the 1950s. Her voice was very powerful and pleasing to audiences.


----------



## Pugg

Maria Müller: Wagner - Der fliegende Holländer, 'Senta's Ballade'

Maria Müller (29 January 1898 - 15 March 1958) was a Czech-Austrian operatic soprano. Müller was born in Terezín, Bohemia. She studied in Vienna with Erik Schmedes, and debuted in Linz in 1919 as Elsa in lLohengrin.


----------



## Pugg

Rina Gigli. Profile: Italian operatic soprano, born 31 January 1916 in Naples, Italy and died 22 August 2000 in Recanati, Italy. She was the daughter of Beniamino Gigli.


----------



## Pugg

Félia Litvinne, "Tacea la notte", Verdi: Il Trovatore (Odeon, c.1910-11)

The great Russian-French dramatic soprano Félia Litvinne (1860-1936) in Leonora's aria "Tacea la notte placida" from Act 1 of Verdi's Il Trovatore, recorded around 1910-11 for Odeon.


----------



## Pugg

Renata Tebaldi sings the arie antiche "Le Violette" by Alessandro Scarlatti. Giorgio Favaretto at the piano, recorded in 1956.

*Renata Tebaldi *(Italian pronunciation: [reˈnaːta teˈbaldi]; *1 February 1922* - 19 December 2004) was an Italian lirico-spinto soprano popular in the post-war period. Among the most beloved opera singers, she has been said to have possessed one of the most beautiful voices of the 20th century which was focused primarily on the verismo roles of the lyric and dramatic repertoires.[1][2][3]


----------



## schigolch

Not only on verismo, she was a top Verdian singer. In fact, she sang Violetta in the theater more than one hundred times, as well as Desdemona. She was also rightly celebrated as Aida, Amelia (Simon Boccanegra) or Leonora (Forza). 

This is more of a rarity, but a very nice one. She is singing below "Per amor di Gesù", from Refice's _Cecilia_:






I love Renata Tebaldi.


----------



## Pugg

Amelita Galli-Curci: Bellini - La Sonnambula, 'Ah! non credea mirarti... Ah! non giunge.
Another blast from the past, wonderful.


----------



## Pugg

Lisa della Casa sings Arabella "Aber der Richtige"

*Lisa Della Casa (2 February 1919* - 10 December 2012) was a Swiss soprano most admired for her interpretations of major heroines in operas by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Richard Strauss, and of German lieder


----------



## Lensky

*
Lisa della Casa* sings Arabella "_Aber der Richtige_"

:angel::angel::angel:


----------



## Pugg

Mercedes Capsir -

Follie! Follie! Sempre libera · Mercedes Capsir, Lionello Cecil


----------



## Pugg

Kirsten Flagstad: Wagner - Tannhäuser, 'Dich, teure Halle'

Kirsten Målfrid Flagstad (12 July 1895 - 7 December 1962) was a Norwegian opera singer and a highly regarded Wagnerian soprano. She ranks among the greatest singers of the 20th century, and many opera critics called hers "the voice of the century."


----------



## Pugg

Czech mezzo-soprano *Eva Randová* (b.1936) sings "Mild und leise" (Isolde's Liebestod) from Richard Wagner's opera "Tristan und Isolde"
Ondrej Lenárd, conductor
Brno State Philharmonic Orchestra
MEER WEERGEVEN


----------



## Pugg

Erna Berger; "Grossmächtige Prinzessin"; Ariadne auf Naxos; Richard Strauss

*Erna Berger (19 October 1900 - 14 June 1990)*, was a German coloratura lyric soprano. She was best known for her Queen of the Night and her Konstanze.


----------



## Pugg

Antonietta Stella. È strano. Sempre libera. La Traviata.

Antonietta Stella (March 15, 1929, Perugia, Italy as Maria Antonietta Stella) is an Italian operatic soprano, one of the finest Italian spinto sopranos of the 1950s and 1960s, possessing a beautiful and ample voice, and particularly associated with Verdi and Puccini roles.


----------



## Pugg

Renata Tebaldi sings Casta diva.
One of the rare times she did Bel Canto on record, great l.p conducted by Bonynge.


----------



## Pugg

Virginia Zeani - Thais "Ah, je suis seule"

*Virginia Zeani (born Virginia Zehan; 21 October 1925)*, Commendatore OMRI[1] is a Romanian-born opera singer who sang leading soprano roles in the opera houses of Europe and North America. As a singer, she was known for her dramatic intensity and the beauty, wide range, and suppleness of her voice which allowed her to sing a repertoire of 69 roles ranging from the heroines in belcanto operas by Rossini and Donizetti to those of Wagner, Puccini and Verdi. She also created roles in several 20th-century operas, including Blanche in Poulenc's Dialogues of the Carmelites. Zeani made her professional debut in 1948 as Violetta in La traviata which would become one of her signature roles. After her retirement from the stage in 1982, she became a well-known voice teacher. She was married to the Italian bass Nicola Rossi-Lemeni from 1957 until his death in 1991. A Distinguished Professor Emerita at Indiana University's Jacobs School of Music where she taught for many years, Zeani lives in Palm Beach County, Florida and has continued to teach singing privately


----------



## Pugg

Rosetta Noli: "Un bel dì vedremo" (con bis)

Rosetta Noli (Genova, 25 marzo 1922 - Genova, 24 gennaio 2018)


----------



## Pugg

*Jarmila Novotna* Born 23 Sep 1907 in Prague past away 1994


----------



## SixFootScowl




----------



## Pugg

Adelina Patti ~ Ah Non Credea Mirarti ~ ( La Sonnambula )

Adelina Patti, original name Adela Juana Maria Patti, (born Feb. 19, 1843, Madrid, Spain-died Sept. 27, 1919, Craig-y-Nos Castle, Brecknockshire, Wales), Italian soprano who was one of the great coloratura singers of the 19th century. Patti was the daughter of two singers-Salvatore Patti, a tenor, and Caterina Chiesa ...


----------



## Pugg

Mignon, Catherine Gayer: "Ja, für den Abend bin ich Königin der Feen"

*Catherine Gayer*.: American operatic soprano, born 11 February 1937 in Los Angeles, California


----------



## Pugg

Stella Roman - O Patria Mia - Met 1941.

*Stella Roman* (23 August 1904 - 12 February 1992) was a Romanian operatic soprano whose career brought her leading roles in Italy and the United States


----------



## Pugg

Soprano ROSETTA PAMPANINI - La Wally - "Ebben? Ne andrò lontana"

*Rosetta Pampanini* (2 September 1896 - 2 August 1973) was an Italian soprano, particularly associated with Puccini roles, especially Madama Butterfly.


----------



## Pugg

*Celestina Boninsegna* - Pace, mio Dio! [La forza del destino] - 1911

Celestina Boninsegna 1877- 1947) was an Italian operatic soprano, known for her interpretations of the heroines in Verdi's operas. Although particularly eminent in Verdi's works, she sang a wide repertoire during her 25-year career, including Rosaura in the world premiere of Mascagni's Le maschere.[1] Boninsegna made many recordings between 1904 and 1918, and her voice was one of the most successfully captured on disc during that period.[2]


----------



## ldiat

guess who"s birthday today


----------



## Pugg

Ach, bleibe doch, mein liebstes Leben.. (Norma Procter - contralto)

Birth of English Contralto of (Mary) *Norma Procter* at Cleethorpes - Studied with Roy Henderson and Alec Redshaw - chosen by Benjamin Britten to sing the title role of his The Rape of Lucretia at the 1958 Aldeburgh Festival - Covent Garden Debut in Orpheus (Gluck) - She had a rich, warm voice that was strong and reliable


----------



## Pugg

Marita Napier sings In Questa Reggia from Turandot.

1939 Birth in Johannesburg of *Marita Napie*r Soprano - Debut as Venus in Tannhauser (Wagner) 1969 - Sang in premiere of Sacred Bones (Temmingh)


----------



## Pugg

*MARJORIE LAWRENCE* SINGS -ALCESTE ARIA 1938

Marjorie Florence Lawrence CBE (17 February 1907 - 13 January 1979) was an Australian soprano, particularly noted as an interpreter of Richard Wagner's operas.[1][2] She was the first Metropolitan Opera soprano to perform the immolation scene in Götterdämmerung by riding her horse into the flames as Wagner had intended.[1] She was afflicted by polio from 1941. Lawrence later served on the faculty of the School of Music at Southern Illinois University Carbondale.
Her life story was told in the 1955 film Interrupted Melody, in which she was portrayed by Eleanor Parker, who was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance as Lawrence.


----------



## Pugg

Marian Anderson- Erbarme dich, mein Gott (Bach)

1897 Certificated birth date of American contralto *Marian ANDERSON* in Philadelphia PA Best known for her recitals, she became the first black singer to appear as a soloist at The MET, in NYC - She stated her birthday was in 1902 - Died 8 Apr 1993 - Debut as Ulrica in Ballo in Maschera (Verdi) 9 Apr 1939


----------



## Pugg

Rita Gorr - D'amour, l'ardente flamme (Berlioz)

Rita Gorr ( February 1926 - January 2012) was a Belgian operatic mezzo-soprano. She possessed a large, rich-toned voice and was an intense singing-actress, especially in dramatic roles such as Ortrud (Lohengrin) and Amneris (Aida), two of her greatest roles.


----------



## Pugg

Soprano MARY GARDEN - Louise "Depuis lo jour" (1926)

*Mary Garden* ( 1874 - 1967), was a Scottish operatic soprano with a substantial career in France and America in the first third of the 20th century. She spent the latter part of her childhood and youth in the United States and eventually became an American citizen


----------



## Pugg

*Eileen Farrell *sings Ponchielli's "Suicidio" - 1960

Eileen Farrell (February 1920 - March 2002) was an American soprano who had a nearly 60-year-long career performing both classical and popular music in concerts, theatres, on radio and television, and on disc.


----------



## Pugg

Irina Arkhipova sings Polina's Romance from THE QUEEN OF SPADES


----------



## Art Rock

Pugg said:


> Marian Anderson- Erbarme dich, mein Gott (Bach)
> 
> 1897 Certificated birth date of American contralto *Marian ANDERSON* in Philadelphia PA Best known for her recitals, she became the first black singer to appear as a soloist at The MET, in NYC - She stated her birthday was in 1902 - Died 8 Apr 1993 - Debut as Ulrica in Ballo in Maschera (Verdi) 9 Apr 1939


Listening to a CD of her work right now as part of a dirt cheap 6CD box dedicated to 7 female singers of the past. A tad too much vibrato to my taste, but a great voice, definitely.


----------



## Pugg

*Irma Kolassi* La Damnation de Faust Autrefois un roi de Thulé Concert RTF du 14 mars 1957 Orch

Írma Kolássi. Profile: Greek mezzo-soprano, born 28 May 1918 in Athens, Greece and died 27 March 2012 in Paris,

This is a tip from my nan, she a lurker around here.


----------



## Pugg

The great German dramatic soprano *Johanna Gadski* (1872-1932), one of the outstanding figures in the so-called "Golden Age of Opera", in Amelia's two solo scenes from Verdi's Un ballo in maschera, "Ma dall'arido stelo divulsa" (Act 2) and "Morrò, ma prima in grazia" (Act 3), both recorded on 6 May 1914 for the Victor Talking Machine & Co..


----------



## Pugg

Gigliola Frazzoni - Madama Butterfly: "Un bel di, vedremo"


----------



## Pugg

Félia Litvinne, "Tacea la notte", Verdi: Il Trovatore (Odeon, c.1910-11)

The great Russian-French dramatic soprano *Félia Litvinne* (1860-1936) in Leonora's aria "Tacea la notte placida" from Act 1 of Verdi's Il Trovatore, recorded around 1910-11 for Odeon.


----------



## Pugg

*Ilva Ligabue* - "Surta è la notte - Ernani, Ernani, involami - Tutto sprezzo che d'Ernani"

Ilva Ligabue (May 23, 1932, Reggio Emilia - August 17, 1998, Palermo) was an Italian operatic soprano, best known for the role of Alice Ford in Falstaff, which she recorded twice, under Georg Solti (RCA, 1963) and Leonard Bernstein (Sony, 1966).


----------



## Pugg

*Emmy Destinn *- Vissi D'arte - Tosca - Puccini

Emilie Pavlína Kittlová was born into an affluent Prague family (February 1878). Her mother Jindřiška was a fine singer who had appeared at the Opera Comique in Paris and her father Emanuel Kittl was a well known Czech philantropist who encouraged Emas musical studies. Ema played the violin from an early age and was considered a child prodigy, giving her first public concert at eight. By twelve her voice begun to show a great promise and she begun to study singing under the singing coach Marie Loewe-Destinn, whose name she later adopted. She also took acting lessons with the celebrated Czech actress Otýlie Sklenářová-Malá who considered her a very gifted pupil. Ema had the ability to learn a piece of music virtually on first hearing and acquired a solid vocal method so rapidly that her teacher considered her ready for a debut at twenty.


----------



## schigolch

As a curiosity, Destinn was Carmen in the first ever recording of Bizet's opera, that was performed back in 1908... and in German!.


----------



## Pugg

*Mirella Freni*, not as Susanna, but as the Countess. From Mozart's Nozze di Figaro. Given that she is a great Susanna, this is surprisingly good.

Mirella Freni (Modena, 27 februari 1935)
Happy Birthday Mrs. Freni.


----------



## Pugg

Ruth-Margret Putz; "Martern aller Arten"; Die Entführung aus dem Serail; Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Ruth-Margret Pütz (Soprano)

Born: February 1931 - Krefeld, Germany

The German soprano, *Ruth-Margret Pütz*, studied with Bertold Putts in Krefeld.

Ruth-Margret Pütz made her debut in Cologne 1950, as Nuri in Tiefland by Eugen d'Albert. She sang at Hannover Opera from 1951 to 1957; in Stuttgart from 1957, notably as Gilda and Zerbinetta; at the Bayreuth Festival in 1960, as Waldvogel; at the Salzburg Festival in 1961, as Konstanze in Die Entführung. She made a Russian Tour with the Cappella Coloniensis in 1961. She was on the roster of the Hamburg Staatsoper from 1963 to 1968. She also made guest appearances in Buenos Aires, Helsinki, Frankfurt, Munich, Nice, Rome, Venice, Naples and Barcelona


----------



## Pugg

Giannina Russ, O cieli azzuri, Verdi, Aida recorded in 1908

*Giannina Russ* Born 27 Mar 1873 Lodi - Debut as Mimi in Boheme (Puccini) 13 Jun 1903 - Created Hellera in Hellera (Montemezzi)


----------



## Pugg

Lucine Amara: "A Song Recital"

*Lucine Amara* (born , 1925) is an American soprano who was largely based at the Metropolitan Opera in New York. Biography[edit]. Amara was born Lucine Armaganian in Hartford, Connecticut, of Armenian heritage, before moving to San Francisco where she was raised.


----------



## wkasimer

Frida Leider (1888-1975):







My favorite Wagnerian soprano.


----------



## Pugg

American contralto *Janet Spencer */ O don fatale / Don Carlos (Verdi) / Recorded: March 8, 1911

Janet Spencer had a successful career in concert and oratorio. Born in Boston, Massachusetts, she made her debut at the age of 16, appearing with the Boston Festival Orchestra. She later toured throughout the United States and Europe. She was an intimate friend of Geraldine Farrar, encouraging the younger star in her Met career. In Spencer's later years she gave voice lessons in Hollywood, California, where she died in 1948 at the age of 74. She made nine recordings on Victor's prestigious Red Seal label.


----------



## Pugg

Margarete Teschemacher sings Agathe "Wie nahte mir der Schlummer...Leise, leise, fromme Weise"

*Margarete Teschemacher * Cologne. 1902- 1959 - Debut as Ruth in Die Toten Augen (D'Albert) - Created Daphne in Daphne (Strauss)


----------



## Pugg

Fedora Barbieri - Cruda Sorte

*Fedora Barbieri *(June 1920 - March 2003) was an Italian mezzo-soprano.

Barbieri was born in Trieste. She made her official debut in Florence in 1940, but retired in 1943 because of her marriage. She re-emerged in 1945. She was one of the first performers to investigate and perform in early operas by Monteverdi and Pergolesi. Her debut at the Teatro alla Scala, where she was to have her greatest successes, came in 1942, with a performance of Ludwig van Beethoven's 9th Symphony, conducted by Victor de Sabata.


----------



## Pugg

Gré Brouwenstijn; "D'amor sull'ali rosee"; Il trovatore; Giuseppe Verdi

*Gré Brouwenstijn*--Soprano our Dutch pride. 
Rudolf Moralt--Conductor
Wiener Symphoniker
1956


----------



## Pugg

Madame Pauline Donalda sings Faust "Air des bijoux" ("Je ris de me voir si belle") rare IRCC

*Soprano Pauline Donalda *in Montreal 1882 - 1970 - Debut as Manon in Manon (Massenet) 1904 - Teacher of Michelle Bonhomme, Joseph Rouleau - Created Ah-Joe in Oracolo (Leoni) - Sang in premiere of Chatterton (Leoncavallo)


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## Pugg

Gina Cigna-Aida 1937-O cieli azzurri Berlin1937 recording

Gina Cigna ( March 1900 - June 2001) was a French-Italian dramatic soprano


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## Pugg

Leonie Rysanek: In questa reggia, Turandot 1959

*Leonie Rysanek* Born 11 Dec 1926 in Vienna - Debut as Agathe in Freischutz (Weber) 1949


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## Pugg

Kaaren Herr Erickson sings "Dove Sono" - LIVE!

From Mozart's "Le Nozze di Figaro", here is Kaaren Erickson (as the Countess) singing the Act III recitative and aria "E Susanna non vien!... Dove sono i bei momenti" with the Budapest Philharmonic Orchestra. Rico Saccani, conductor.

Erickson died in 1997 at the age of 44 after losing a battle with cancer.


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## Pugg

Eva Turner - Turandot

*Dame Eva Turner* DBE (10 March 1892 - 16 June 1990) was an English dramatic soprano with an international reputation. Her strong, steady and well-trained voice was renowned for its clarion power in Italian and German operatic roles.


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## Pugg

Mozart - Die Zauberflöte - Ach ich fühl's, es ist verschwunden (aria)

*Evelyn Lear* 1926 - , 2012) was an American operatic soprano. Between 1959 and 1992, she appeared in more than forty operatic roles, appeared with every major opera company in the United States and won a Grammy Award in 1966. She was well known for her musical versatility


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## Pugg

Geraldine Farrar - Mi chiamano Mimi 私の名はミミ (Puccini : Boheme) -1912

*Geraldine Farrar* Born 28 Feb 1882 - died 1967 in Melrose, Massachusetts - Debut in Marguerite in Faust (Gounod) 15 Oct 1896 - Pupil of Lilli Lehmann - Created Rosaura in Donne Curiose (Wolf-Ferrari) - Goose Girl in Konigskinder (Humperdinck) - Angelica in Suor Angelica (Puccini) - Orlanda in Reine Fiammette (Leroux) - Catherine Huebscher in Madame Sans Gene (Giordano) - Amica in Amica (Mascagni) - Margareta in Ancetre (Saint Saens) - Sang in premiere of Le Clown (Camondo)


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## Pugg

Mezzosoprano GIANNA PEDERZINI - Le nozze di Figaro - "Voi che sapete"

Italian mezzo-soprano *Gianna Pederzini* ( 1900-1988) in Vo di Avio - Debut as Preziosilla in Forza del Destino (Verdi) 1923 - Teacher, Fernando De Lucia - Created Old Prioress in Dialogues des Carmelites (Poulenc) - Sang in premiere of Re Lear (Ghislanzoni)


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## Pugg

[LIVE 1943] Bidu Sayão in her marvelous La Traviata: "Ah, fors'è lui... Sempre libera"

Brazilian soprano *Bidu Sayao -* ( 1902 -1999) Rio de Janeiro - Debut as Rosina in Barbiere di Siviglia (Rossini) 1926 - Pupil of Jean de Rezske.


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## schigolch

And also the wife of Giuseppe Danise:


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## Pugg

Bellini - La Sonnambula - Ah, non giunge - Luisa Tetrazzini (1904)

:angel:


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## Pugg

Jennifer Vyvyan sings "Ch'io mi scordi di te?"

*Jennifer Vyvyan* (13 March 1925 - 5 April 1974) was a British classical soprano who had an active international career in operas, concerts, and recitals from 1948 up until her death in 1974. She possessed a beautifully clear, steady voice with considerable flexibility in florid music. She was praised for her subtle phrasing


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## Pugg

Helene Bouvier sings an excerpt from Roussel's Padmavati

*Hélène Bouvier* was a French operatic mezzo-soprano, particularly associated with the French repertoire. She studied at the Paris Conservatory and made her debut in Nantes in the title role of Gluck's Orfeo ed Euridice, in 1930. She then left for Argentina where she sang at the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires


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## schigolch

Bouvier was a fantastic Dalila in this recording with José Luccioni:


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## Pugg

Fiorenza Cossotto - Nel Giardin del Bello 'Don Carlo'

*Fiorenza Cossotto* as Principessa Eboli sings the first aria of the role, "Nel Giardin del Bello", also known as Canzone del Velo from Verdi's Don Carlo. Conductor Thomas Schippers, Rome, 1969


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## Pugg

Christa Ludwig's Rosina (with an ending C6)

Happy Birthday Mrs, Ludwig, turning 90 today.:cheers:


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## Pugg

Grace Bumbry - In questa reggia -Turandot - Sydney 1991

*Grace Melzia Bumbry* (born January 4, 1937), an American opera singer, is considered one of the leading mezzo-sopranos of her generation, as well as a major soprano for many years.


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## Pugg

Lucia Popp - "Vier letzte Lieder", Richard Strauss (1982)

*Lucia Popp* (born Lucia Poppová; 12 November 1939 - 16 November 1993) was a Slovak operatic soprano. She began her career as a soubrette soprano, and later moved into the light-lyric and lyric coloratura soprano repertoire and then the lighter Richard Strauss and Wagner operas. Her career included performances at Vienna State Opera, the Metropolitan Opera, Covent Garden, and La Scala. Popp was also a highly regarded recitalist and lieder singer.


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## Pugg

Magda Olivero Vissi d'arte met 1975

*Magda Olivero* (25 March 1910 - 8 September 2014) was an Italian operatic soprano. Her career started in 1932 when she was 22, and later took her to opera houses around the world.


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## Pugg

Victoria de los Angeles.Exultate Jubilate.Mozart.--1959-Abbey Rd Studio No.1

*Victoria de los Ángeles* (1 November 1923 - 15 January 2005) was a Spanish operatic lyric soprano and recitalist whose career began after the Second World War and reached its height in the years from the mid-1950s to the mid-1960s


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## Pugg

Mozart - Don Giovanni - Crudele! ... Non mi dir - Sena Jurinac - Fricsay (1958)

Srebrenka "*Sena" Jurina*c (Serbo-Croatian pronunciation: [srêbreːŋka sěːna jurǐːnat͜s]) (24 October 1921 - 22 November 2011) was a Bosnia-born Croatian-Austrian operatic soprano.


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## Pugg

Rosana Carteri - Le nozze di Figaro: "Deh, vieni, non tardar"

*Rosanna Carteri* (born 14 December 1930) is an Italian soprano, who was primarily active from the 1950s through the mid-1960s.

Rosanna Carteri was born in Verona and raised in Padua. She studied with Cusinati and started singing in concert at the age of twelve. She won a RAI singing contest in 1948 which led to her operatic debut at the Baths of Caracalla in Rome as Elsa in Lohengrin in 1949, aged only 19. She made her La Scala debut in 1951. Other debuts were at the Salzburg Festival as Desdemona in Otello in 1952 under the direction of Wilhelm Furtwängler, San Francisco as Mimi in La bohème in 1954, the Lyric Opera of Chicago as Marguerite in Faust in 1955, the Verona Arena as Mimi in 1958, Covent Garden as Tosca in 1960, Paris Opera in 1961 as Violetta in La traviata.


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## Pugg

*Ilva Ligabue* - Tacea la notte placida - Trovatore - 1961

Ilva Ligabue (May 23, 1932, Reggio Emilia - August 17, 1998, Palermo) was an Italian operatic soprano, best known for the role of Alice Ford in Falstaff, which she recorded twice, under Georg Solti (RCA, 1963) and Leonard Bernstein (Sony, 1966).

Ilva Ligabue studied at the Milan Conservatory in the class of Campogalliani and at La Scuola di Canto alla Scala where she made her debut as Marina in 1953.[1] After singing with success at most of the Italian opera houses, she won considerable acclaim in the title role of Beatrice di Tenda at La Scala in 1961, followed by Margherita in Boito's Mefistofele in Chicago.[1]


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## ldiat

this question was asked on face book 'Who is your favorite coloratura soprano and what is there best aria?" i found this


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## Pugg

Australian Coloratura Soprano Evelyn SCOTNEY: Ophelia's Mad Scene (c.1921?)

*Evelyn Scotney* (11 July 1896 - 5 August 1967) was an Australian coloratura soprano of great renown in the period from 1913 to the late 1920s. Her range extended to E in altissimo. In her time she was considered by some to be the world's greatest soprano. She was compared very favourably with Amelita Galli-Curci


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## Pugg

Vera Little-"Voce di donna o d'angelo"; La Gioconda, Amilcare Ponchielli

Vera Little was born on December 10, 1928 in Memphis, Tennessee, USA. She died on October 26, 2012 in Berlin, Germany.


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## Pugg

Soprano MARGHERITA GRANDI - Don Carlo "Tu che le vanità" (1948)
1892_1972

Margherita Grandi was born Margaret Gard in Harwood Island, Clarence River, near Maclean, in the Northern Rivers area of New South Wales, Australia.[1] When she was ten, her family moved to Tasmania and she went to school in Hobart. She left Australia in 1911 to study at the Royal Conservatory of Music in London. She also studied with Mathilde Marchesi and Jean de Reszke; and later in Paris with Emma Calvé.[1] She made her professional debut in Paris, as a mezzo-soprano under the stage name of Djéma Vécla (Vecla being an anagram of Calvé)[n 2] singing Charlotte in Massenet's Werther.[1] In 1922, she created Massenet's Amadis in Monte Carlo.[1][2]


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## Pugg

Mozart - La Clemenza di Tito - Parto, parto - Rosette Anday (1929)

Piroska Anday (Budapest, 12 December 1903 - Vienna, 22 December 1977 ) known as *Rosette Anday*, was a leading Hungarian mezzo-soprano.


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## Pugg

*Joan Hammond*, O Silver Moon Rusalka

Dame Joan Hilda Hood Hammond, DBE, CMG (24 May 1912 - 26 November 1996) was an Australian operatic soprano, singing coach and champion golfer


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## Pugg

Anna Moffo Sings "Addio del Passato,' from La Traviata. 1960

Anna Moffo (1932-2006) made her Met debut in 1959, as Violetta in La Traviata, and was to perform that role there on 79 occasions. It was one of 21 roles she would go on to perform at the Met. Moffo was extraordinarily beautiful, and had an entertainment career in movies, recordings, and concert appeara
nces. This aria was recorded just one year after her debut as Violetta. Her pianissimi were extraordinary, and this recording affords us a good example at the very end.


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## Pugg

*Elsie Morison* - Marenka's aria "The Bartered Bride"
Elsie Morrison (Soprano). Born: August 15, 1924 - Ballarat, Victoria, Australia Died: April 5, 2016 - Prague, Czech Republic. The Australian soprano, Elsie Morrison, studied with Clive Carey both at the Melbourne Conservatory and at the Royal Conservatory of Music (RCM)


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## Pugg

Eleanor Steber: Wagner - Lohengrin, 'Elsa's Dream'

*Eleanor Steber* (July 17, 1914 - October 3, 1990) was an American operatic soprano. Steber is noted as one of the first major opera stars to have achieved the highest success with training and a career based in the United States. Eleanor Steber was born in Wheeling, West Virginia on July 17, 1914. She was the daughter of William Charles Steber, Sr. (1888-1966) and Ida Amelia (née Nolte) Steber (1885-1985). She had two younger siblings - William Charles Steber, Jr. (1917-2002) and Lucile Steber Leslie (1918-1999). She made her debut at the Metropolitan Opera in 1940 and was one of its leading artists through 1961. She was known for her large, flexible silvery voice, particularly in the high-lying soprano roles of Richard Strauss. She was equally well known for her lyrical portrayals of Mozart's heroines, many in collaboration with conductor Bruno Walter. Beyond Mozart and Strauss her repertoire was quite varied. She was noted for success in the music of Wagner, Alban Berg, Giacomo Puccini and also in French opera. Steber sang the lead in the world premiere of the American opera Vanessa by Samuel Barber


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## Pugg

*Kathleen Ferrier*, Che farò senza Euridice, Gluck
Chorus and orchestra of the former Netherlands Opera.
Conductor Charles Bruck.
From the radio broadcast, January 1951.

Kathleen Mary Ferrier, CBE (22 April 1912 - 8 October 1953) was an English contralto singer who achieved an international reputation as a stage, concert and recording artist, with a repertoire extending from folksong and popular ballads to the classical works of Bach, Brahms, Mahler and Elgar.


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## schigolch

I just love Ferrier's voice. I still remember the first time, many years ago, that I heard one of her recordings, precisely "Che farò senza Euridice" as linked above, and I was thunderstruck.


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## Pugg

Frida Leider; "Ah! si la liberté"; Armide; Christoph Willibald Gluck

*Frida Leider *(April 18, 1888 - June 4, 1975) was a German opera singer. Leider was one of the most important dramatic sopranos of the 20th century. Her most famous roles were Wagner's Isolde and Brünnhilde, Beethoven's Fidelio, Mozart's Donna Anna, and Verdi's Aida and Leonora. She made over 80 recordings


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## Pugg

Elisabeth Grümmer: Mozart - Don Giovanni, 'Or sai chi l'onore'

*Elisabeth Schilz Grümmer* (31 March 1911 - 6 November 1986) was a German soprano. She has been described as "a singer blessed with elegant musicality, warm-hearted sincerity, and a voice of exceptional beauty


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## Pugg

Ebe Stignani Sings Casta Diva
*Ebe Stignani* (10 July 1903 - 5 October 1974) was an Italian opera singer, who was pre-eminent in the dramatic mezzo-soprano roles of the Italian repertoire during a stage career of more than thirty years.


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## Pugg

Milada Šubrtová - Leonora / Trovatore ( in German)

(24 May 1924 - 1 August 2011) was a Czech operatic soprano who had a lengthy career at the National Theatre in Prague from 1948 through 1991. She was part of an instrumental group of the post-World War II Czech opera singers that was responsible for popularizing Czech opera internationally.


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## Pugg

ELLY AMELING ~ "Voi Che Sapete" from "Le Nozze di Figaro" ~ Edo de Waart/ECO
Mrs. Ameling was on Dutch T.V last Sunday, 85 and still doing small things, masterclass and vocal sing contest jury member.


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## Pugg

*Erna Spoorenberg (11 April 1925* - 18 March 2004) was a Dutch soprano. She was born in Yogyakarta, Java, Indonesia). As a child, she studied the violin and singing and, at the age of 14, she studied under Isa Neuhaus, a singer with the Düsseldorf Opera


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## Pugg

Hildegard Hillebrecht sings an excerpt from Strauss' Friedenstag.

*Hildegard Hillebrech*t, born on November 26, 1927, is a German soprano singer. She studied singing after studying medicine and began as Leonore in Verdi's Trouvère. She performed at the Zurich Opera House


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## Pugg

Leonie Rysanek sings the dream scene ("Wehe, mein Mann!") of the Empress in "Die Frau ohne Schatten" at the Met in 1966, when she unleashes a fabulous high D instead of a high D-flat

Leopoldine "Leonie" Rysanek (14 November 1926 - 7 March 1998) was an Austrian dramatic soprano whose illustrious international career spanned nearly 40 years, From Vienna, the city of her birth, where she lived / and died .


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## Pugg

Netania Davrath; "Yaroslavna's Lament"; Prince Igor; Alexander Borodin


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## Pugg

Solvieg's Song Kirsten Flagstad Grieg 1929

Kirsten Malfrid Flagstad (12 July 1895 - 7 December 1962) was a Norwegian opera singer and a highly regarded Wagnerian soprano. She ranks among the greatest singers of the 20th century, and many opera critics called hers "the voice of the century."


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## Scopitone

Birgit Nilsson: Mild und leise (Liebestod), Tristan und Isolde


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## Pugg

Soprano ANNA DE CAVALIERI - Il Pirata "Col sorriso d'innocenza"

*Anna de Cavalieri* (Soprano). Born: July 27, 1924 - Aurora, Illinois, USA Died: August 29, 2012 - Lugano, Switzerland. The real name of the American soprano, Anna de Cavalieri, was Anne McKnight. She studied with the mezzo-soprano Gladys Gilderoy Scott and the baritone Evan Evans ...


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## EddieRUKiddingVarese




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## Pugg

Schubert / Lisa Otto, 1962: Ave Maria - Gunther Arndt, Conductor

*Lisa Otto* (14 November 1919 - 18 September 2013) was a German operatic soprano, particularly associated with soubrette and light coloratura roles. Born in Dresden, she studied there at the Musikhochschule with Susanne Steinmetz-Prée. She made her debut in Beuthen, as Sophie in Der Rosenkavalier, in 1941


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## Pugg

*Lotte Lehmann*; "Psyche wandelt durch Säulenhallen"; Die Toten Augen; Eugen d'Albert

Charlotte "Lotte" Lehmann (February 27, 1888 - August 26, 1976) was a German soprano who was especially associated with German repertory. She gave memorable performances in the operas of Richard Strauss, Richard Wagner, Ludwig van Beethoven, Puccini, Mozart, and Massene


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## Pugg

Teresa Berganza - De Espana Vengo

*Teresa Berganza* Vargas OAXS (born on 16 March 1935) is a Spanish mezzo-soprano. She is most closely associated with the roles of Rossini, Mozart, and Bizet. She is admired for her technical virtuosity, musical intelligence, and beguiling stage presence.


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## Pugg

Polish Soprano Marcella Sembrich ~ Ah, non giunge (1904)

*Marcella Sembrich* (February 15, 1858 - January 11, 1935) was the stage name of the Polish coloratura soprano, Prakseda Marcelina Kochańska. She had an important international singing career, chiefly at the New York Metropolitan Opera and the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, London.


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## Pugg

Rosa Ponselle's Norma in great sound: Casta diva & Mira o Norma (with Marion Telva


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## Pugg

Montserrat Caballé - Depuis le jour

*Montserrat Caballé (Catalan*: [munsəˈrat kəβəˈʎe];* born 12 April 1933*) is a Spanish operatic soprano. She has sung a wide variety of roles, but Caballé is best known as an exponent of the works of Verdi and of the bel canto repertoire, notably the works of Rossini, Bellini, and Donizetti.[1] She came to the attention of a much wider audience when she recorded at the request of the IOC in 1987 "Barcelona", a duet with Freddie Mercury, the lead singer of the British rock band Queen. The song was inspired by Caballé´s home city and later used as one of the two official theme songs for the 1992 Olympic Games.


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## Pugg

Germaine Lubin, "Dich, teure Halle", Wagner: Tannhäuser (Odéon ,1929)

French dramatic soprano Germaine Lubin (1890-1979) in . 
Elisabeth's greeting to the Hall of Song, "Dich, teure Halle" (sung in French), from Act 2 of Wagner's Tannhäuser, recorded for Odéon in 1929.


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## Pugg

Madeleine Marie Robin (French pronunciation: [madlɛn maʁi mado ʁobɛ̃]; 29 December 1918 - 10 December 1960), generally known as Mado Robin, was a French coloratura soprano and soprano acuto sfogato (a voice that has an extension into the altissimo area).[1] She was noted for her extreme range.


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## Pugg

Rohangiz Yachmi sings Rosamunde from Schubert.

Rohangiz Yachmi

Operatic mezzo-soprano, born 13 September 1940 in Teheran, Iran.
Not so much out there, alas.


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## Pugg

Contralto Contralto Eula Beal sings Bach's "Erbarme Dich" as "Lord Have Mercy on Me" from the St. Matthew Passion, conducted by Antal Dorati and with Yehudi Menuhin playing the violin solos

*Eula Bea*l (January 25, 1919 - July 29, 2008) was an American contralto. During her relatively short touring career, she performed with distinguished collaborators not only in concert on the US West Coast but also in Concert Magic


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## Pugg

Rose Bampton - "Vissi d'arte" from Puccini's "Tosca"
*Rose Bampton*1907 -2007 was a celebrated American opera singer who had an active international career during the 1930s and 1940s. She began her professional career performing mostly minor roles from the mezzo-soprano repertoire in 1929 but later switched to singing primarily leading soprano roles in 1937 until her retirement


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## Pugg

Maria Cebotari - Mozart, Concert Aria KV 416


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## Pugg

Wagner - Tristan und Isolde - Isolde's narrative and curse - Frida Leider (1928)

Frida Leider (April 18, 1888 - June 4, 1975) was a German opera singer. Leider was one of the most important dramatic sopranos of the 20th century. Her most famous roles were Wagner's Isolde and Brünnhilde, Beethoven's Fidelio, Mozart's Donna Anna, and Verdi's Aida and Leonora.


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## Pugg

Lily Pons: Mad Scene From Lucia:angel:


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## Pugg

*Teresa Stich-Randall *- Turandot: "Signore, ascolta"

Teresa Stich-Randall (December 24, 1927 - July 17, 2007) was a European-based American soprano opera singer.[1]


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## Pugg

Giuseppe Verdi - Attilla - "Santo di patria" (Joan Sutherland)


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## Pugg

V. Bellini:Capuletti Oh quante volte - Antonietta Pastori

*Antonietta Pastori* (born in 1929) is an Italian operatic soprano, particularly associated with lighter lyric and coloratura roles


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## Pugg

BLANCHE THEBOM SINGS - Mon cœur s'ouvre à ta voix

*Blanche Thebom *(September 19, 1915 - March 23, 2010[1]) was an American operatic mezzo-soprano, voice teacher, and opera director. She was part of the first wave of American opera singers that had highly successful international careers. In her own country she had a long association with the Metropolitan Opera in New York City which lasted 22 years.


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## Pugg

*Oralia Dominguez*: Weiche, Wotan, weiche! (Das Rheingold) by Wagner
All credits to BalalaikaBoy


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## Pugg

Viorica Ursuleac sings Arabella "Das war sehr gut, Mandryka"

*Viorica Ursuleac* (26 March 1894 - 22 October 1985) was a Romanian operatic soprano. Viorica Ursuleac was born the daughter of a Greek Orthodox archdeacon, in Chernivtsi, which is now in Ukraine. Following training in Vienna, she made her operatic debut in Zagreb (Agram), as Charlotte in Massenet's Werther


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## Pugg

Astrid Varnay: Verdi - MacBeth, 'Vieni! t'affretta! Or tutti sorgete, ministri infernali'

Ibolyka *Astrid Maria Varnay* (25 April 1918 -- 4 September 2006) was an American dramatic soprano of Hungarian heritage and Swedish birth, who did most of her work in the United States and Germany. She was one of the best-known Wagnerian heroic sopranos of her generation.


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## aussiebushman

Yes - Astrid Maria Varnay was superb. And let's not forget her performance of Clytemnestra in the Bohm (film) performance of Electra. Certainly not pretty, but what a fine actress and singer.

You also referred to Luba Wellisch - I presume you have heard her spine-tingling Salome?


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## mhenderson

At our local recorded music society, I recently played Astrid Varnay singing Elektra's monologue, Allein !, from the 1953 recording. A tremendous performance.


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## aussiebushman

Have just acquired another batch of opera recordings. I mentioned Ljuba Welitsch's magnificent Salome in an earlier post but this record also has the 1948 recording of Tatiana's Letter Scene with the Philharmonia under Susskind.

The sleeve notes refer to Welitsch as a phenomenon - a unique blend of dramatic and lyric elements - vibrant and brilliant. I could not agree more.

It is staggering to consider the contribution of Bulgarian singers throughout recent history:


__ https://www.pinterest.com/pin/437201076301478845/


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## aussiebushman

Here is another one deserving considerable attention - Selma Kurz. In 1898. Mahler (with whom she later had an affair) heard her sing and immediately offered her a contract. Her career continued for 30 years. Kurz was another wonderful Tatiana, arguably not as thrilling as Welitsch but no slouch either.

Kurz was regarded as one of the loveliest soprano voices of the last century. Here is an early recording of Caro Nome: https://www.deezer.com/en/track/10457868.


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## aussiebushman

Elisabeth Rethberg may have been mentioned in this thread but if so, I missed it. The voice was marvelous but she was no actress, nor a great beauty. Anyone familiar with Mel Brooks "Young Frankenstein" might be forgiven for thinking Frau Bucher was modeled on Rethberh, as far as appearance is concerned.

After singing over 100 roles with the Dresden Opera, she moved to the USA where she performed at the Metropolitan Opera for 20 years. A favorite of Toscanini, Aida was her most famous role. She was greatly praised for he Italian opera roles but her voice declined from about 1934 and her only attempt to sing Brünnhilde in 1942 was a disaster.


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