# Round One: Un' Aura Amorosa from Cosi F. T. Kaufmann, Patzak and Simoneau



## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

I 've had foot problems and while resting it I decided to go through a copy of Cosi Fan Tutti a friend gave me in pristine vinyl glory. I had never heard Un' aura amorosa before and decided we needed a contest of that. I begin it with a young and exceptionally hunky Jonas Kaufmann, who sounds different.




*Jonas Kaufmann - Cosi fan tutte - Un aura amorosa




Julius Patzak - Un aura amorosa - Cosi Fan Tutte in German*




Mozart: Così fan tutte, K.588 / Act 1 - "Un'aura amorosa" · Léopold Simoneau · Wiener Symphoniker · Bernhard Paumgartner


----------



## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

Would anyone recognize Kaufmann, coming upon this cold? This is pre-vocal crisis, and I think we can hear the difficulty he felt with his technique, the top being increasingly tense and ready to tire. Many will regret the change he wrought in his timbre - the "artificial darkening" thing - but he did, as he claims, find an approach that worked for him. Ya do watcha gotta do.

I wasn't sure about Patzak as he started to sing, but he won me over quickly. He's warm and sympathetic, draws a beautiful legato line, and sings with a fine naturalness, as if speaking to us. I don't mind the German when the singing is this good.

I enjoy Simoneau's sweet, easy voice in just about anything. I wondered about the key, though; he's a half-step higher than the others, and spot checking around YouTube suggests either that Simoneau's recording is playing at the wrong speed or that hardly anyone sings this in the original key. I think the explanation is here:






Now that I hear this, I realize I'm listening to the Real Simoneau. Please replace the other clip with this one.

Simoneau - the Real Simoneau! - gets my vote for an immaculate performance, though Patzak comes close for his unique reading.


----------



## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

What Woodduck said.


----------



## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

Woodduck said:


> Would anyone recognize Kaufmann, coming upon this cold? This is pre-vocal crisis, and I think we can hear the difficulty he felt with his technique, the top being increasingly tense and ready to tire. Many will regret the change he wrought in his timbre - the "artificial darkening" thing - but he did, as he claims, find an approach that worked for him. Ya do watcha gotta do.
> 
> I wasn't sure about Patzak as he started to sing, but he won me over quickly. He's warm and sympathetic, draws a beautiful legato line, and sings with a fine naturalness, as if speaking to us. I don't mind the German when the singing is this good.
> 
> ...


Bless you . I had read how good he was but this did not turn up for me. Are you my new Shaughnessy???? LOL. Thanks a lot! I thought this could be a great round and now it is!


----------



## ScottK (Dec 23, 2021)

I thought all phrased it beautifully. Simoneau at times felt detached,at times involved but always musical. I'm sure most on here would have preferred that Kaufman sing with this sound throughout his career and I would agree. His singing was very involved as long as I didn't watch. Funny to see him so deer in headlights when he's become so dynamic.

Three beautifully sung renditions. Simoneau probably gets the most points musically but the tone is, to me, somewhat nasal at times. Patzak is beautiful but lightens more noticeably into the top. I think I enjoyed Kaufman the most.

Surprised to hear him get the hunky nod from you for this look SOF!!! Would have thought that the later, leaner look would have gotten more response  !!!


----------



## ScottK (Dec 23, 2021)

Woodduck said:


> This is pre-vocal crisis, and I think we can hear the difficulty he felt with his technique, the top being increasingly tense and ready to tire.


I don't hear this. The top sounds good and pretty easy to me.


----------



## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

ScottK said:


> I don't hear this. The top sounds good and pretty easy to me.


Traces of effort begin to appear about halfway through. I was a singer, and I have very strong sympathetic reactions when I hear vocal strain or insecurity. This aria keeps a tenor up around the passaggio. Not easy to sustain.


----------



## ScottK (Dec 23, 2021)

Woodduck said:


> Traces of effort begin to appear about halfway through. I was a singer, and I have very strong sympathetic reactions when I hear vocal strain or insecurity. This aria keeps a tenor up around the passaggio. Not easy to sustain.


I agree it’s hard! In my Berra tenor… Tenor want to be years are used to play around with it. If I am remembering accurately, it’s got about 11 A’s in it and of course the passages you were referring to the hover around the passagio . Very difficult, I find it an interesting thing that by darkening the tone and making it less Tenery, he added notes on top.… I’m dictating, and I’m not going back to respell Tennery, you know what I mean smile… I guess it does give credence to the argument, often stated on here that a modern veering away from 
chest voice is not helpful for the upper register.


----------



## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

ScottK said:


> I thought all phrased it beautifully. Simoneau at times felt detached,at times involved but always musical. I'm sure most on here would have preferred that Kaufman sing with this sound throughout his career and I would agree. His singing was very involved as long as I didn't watch. Funny to see him so deer in headlights when he's become so dynamic.
> 
> Three beautifully sung renditions. Simoneau probably gets the most points musically but the tone is, to me, somewhat nasal at times. Patzak is beautiful but lightens more noticeably into the top. I think I enjoyed Kaufman the most.
> 
> Surprised to hear him get the hunky nod from you for this look SOF!!! Would have thought that the later, leaner look would have gotten more response  !!!


I haven't had a date in a while 😢  Besides, I like long hair. I thought it would be interesting for you guys to hear him before he found his voice placement. Perhaps he found it to help him go up high better or something like that.
I heard Astrid Varnay say that the French should not have a nasal placement when they sing -but they do when they talk so it might be default.


----------



## ColdGenius (9 mo ago)

Simoneau's video for those who can't open the link.


----------



## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

ColdGenius said:


> Simoneau's video for those who can't open the link.


This video plays at the wrong speed, a half-step sharp, and so doesn't represent correctly Simoneau's voice or interpretation. Is the video in the OP unavailable in some areas? Maybe there's another one that plays at the correct pitch.

YouTube can be frustrating.


----------



## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

Woodduck said:


> This video plays at the wrong speed, a half-step sharp, and so doesn't represent correctly Simoneau's voice or interpretation. Is the video in the OP unavailable in some areas? Maybe there's another one that plays at the correct pitch.
> 
> YouTube can be frustrating.


So it really was HIM but played at the wrong speed??? I don't feel so completely scammed by Youtube now. Thank you for catching that.


----------



## Tsaraslondon (Nov 7, 2013)

This is, I think, my favourite Mozart tenor aria. It lies quite high and Simoneau is the only singer here that doesn't make me notice that. It might just be my ears, but both Patzak and Kaufmann showed slight traces of strain occasionally, or maybe I just prefer the sound of Simoneau's voice. 

Simoneau.


----------



## Edgardo12 (2 d ago)

Hello all, long time reader but first time poster here,

This is a very interesting selection, with three fine tenors, albeit ones with very different qualities.

Patzak has a lovely lyric voice with an immediateness to his tone that quickly wins one over. He was certainly a versatile tenor and Mozart was well within his oeuvre. This is a lovely version.

Simoneau is essentially what I think of when I envisage a Mozart tenor; light, flexible but delicate. All he lacks is Patzak's warmth of timbre, but this is certainly a high quality reading of a difficult aria.

Kaufmann is hard to assess. We all know the recent Kaufmann, the one who darkened his voice immensely and has thus been able to sing roles such as Andrea Chenier, Radames and Otello. Indeed, there is a hint of things to come here; the weight of tone well and truly shows that there is more than merely a lyric tenor in Kaufmann's future. However, forgetting future endeavors, Kaufmann commits himself quite admirably here, even if with a suggestion that heavier roles most assuredly will be a part of his future repertoire, mostly through a slight squeezing of the upper passagio.

All in all, I'd go with Simoneau, but I certainly enjoyed all three.


----------



## Op.123 (Mar 25, 2013)

Kaufmann sounds better than he does now but still a little amateurish. The notes are there but it sounds like someone doing a good job of singing opera without any proper training if you know what I mean?

Patzak and Simoneau are both much better but I preferred Patzak's more natural sound.


----------



## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

Edgardo12 said:


> Hello all, long time reader but first time poster here,
> 
> This is a very interesting selection, with three fine tenors, albeit ones with very different qualities.
> 
> ...


I hope you post more insightful posts like this in future contests!!!!!!! Have you ever voted before? We all learn from each other. I feel kind of proud that I picked the first two guys out on my own without research


----------

