# Joan Sutherland ruined the meaning of opera



## ldiat (Jan 27, 2016)

one should read the txt of this video. why make this video. why post this stuff. what does one think? and ps Rogerx plesse dont b mad with me. i think the video is in poor taste.


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## JoeSaunders (Jan 29, 2015)

Same as most garbage YouTube content: some idiot with an inflated ego thinks they know it all and starts broadcasting their message, and naive people who don't know better (in this case, young singers probably?) lap it up because they sound authoritative and are telling a 'truth' that the establishment (of whatever sort) don't want to acknowledge. People love to think they're being let in on some sort of secret truth. In this case it's the 'truth' about chest voice, but it could be 9/11 conspiracy theories or anything, and more often it is.

Fortunately, as the comments and like/dislike ratio are currently showing, this guy hasn't got all observers on board. But that controversy itself is generating views and, therefore, money for the author, so they have no incentive to let up. 

It sucks. Before YouTube these idiots would be filtered out by publishing institutions, and their influence neutered. Best thing to do today is ignore them. 

How do people end with such wacky views to begin with? No idea, but it just seems to happen. I once knew a dude who thought drinking urine was a healthy way to detox the body. Very strange. Thankfully he didn't start a YouTube channel (but I wouldn't be surprised if he got the idea from one).

Specifically with regard to opera, I can see how one might look at the comparative lack of world-class singers emerging in the last 50 years or so and concoct some elaborate theory as to why. But how this youtuber manages to ensnare actually good singers in their net is beyond me.


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## DavidA (Dec 14, 2012)

You get idiots like this who have never succeeded at anything themselves yet want to make a name for themselves by pulling down those who have succeeded. You get it in all walks of life and of course with the internet it has proliferated. Anyone who knows anything about singing knows that Sutherland had one of the greatest voices of all and a stupendous technique so we needn't let the opinion of foolish people concern us.


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## ldiat (Jan 27, 2016)

DavidA said:


> You get idiots like this who have never succeeded at anything themselves yet want to make a name for themselves by pulling down those who have succeeded. You get it in all walks of life and of course with the internet it has proliferated. Anyone who knows anything about singing knows that Sutherland had one of the greatest voices of all and a stupendous technique so we needn't let the opinion of foolish people concern us.


Yes a triple like!!


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## Rogerx (Apr 27, 2018)

DavidA said:


> You get idiots like this who have never succeeded at anything themselves yet want to make a name for themselves by pulling down those who have succeeded. You get it in all walks of life and of course with the internet it has proliferated. Anyone who knows anything about singing knows that Sutherland had one of the greatest voices of all and a stupendous technique so we needn't let the opinion of foolish people concern us.





ldiat said:


> Yes a triple like!!


And triple from me .


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## Rogerx (Apr 27, 2018)

ldiat said:


> one should read the txt of this video. why make this video. why post this stuff. what does one think? and ps Rogerx plesse dont b mad with me. i think the video is in poor taste.


I know who did it, for sure, someone with Asperger syndrome and member from this site.


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## BalalaikaBoy (Sep 25, 2014)

I actually like a lot of his channel...but he is a major dick and goes overboard at times. This opinion completely misses the mark.


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## The Conte (May 31, 2015)

BalalaikaBoy said:


> I actually like a lot of his channel...but he is a major dick and goes overboard at times. This opinion completely misses the mark.


Yes, I agree, he produces a lot of stuff on YouTube about singers who whilst presenting a coherent whole are missing something that a fuller technique would give them and his videos can be interesting and thought provoking. However, saying Sutherland sounds drunk is just stupid. He also rubishes Schwarzkopf, which is incredibly short sighted.

The thing I think he is missing is the understanding that good technique is based not on producing a particular sound (he seems to think all sopranos should sound like Birgit Nilsson and all tenors Franco Corelli - in which case we would never perform Mozart!) Instead each singer needs to find _their_ voice, which is why the greats tend to be instantly recognisible.

I can understand some of his criticism about Sutherland, about her lacking a core to her sound (and that explains the problems she had with diction), however she made her technique work for herself. Perhaps a Sutherland with more chest voice in the mix would have sounded more like a dramatic soprano, may have had better diction and may have sung slightly different rep at times, but would anybody really want to potentially lose some of the jaw dropping performances whether in the studio or live that she gave for a bit of _perfection_?

N.


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## IgorS (Jan 7, 2018)

The Conte:
"The thing I think he is missing is the understanding that good technique is based not on producing a particular sound (he seems to think all sopranos should sound like Birgit Nilsson and all tenors Franco Corelli - in which case we would never perform Mozart!) Instead each singer needs to find their voice, which is why the greats tend to be instantly recognisible. "

This is precise description of modern opera (and any modern art). There is no need to aim to the perfection, to learn from the bests, to work hard and fix problem in your technique. Just find your way, express yourself, be recognizable, draw black square, sing Vivaldi if your voice so small for Verdi or Wagner that one piano drowns it easily. 
You are right, not "all sopranos should sound like Birgit Nilsson and all tenors Franco Corelli". But if for 50 years not a single one came closer to the great singers of the past, I think "Houston, we have a problem". And we should blame our own low standards for that.


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## The Conte (May 31, 2015)

IgorS said:


> The Conte:
> "The thing I think he is missing is the understanding that good technique is based not on producing a particular sound (he seems to think all sopranos should sound like Birgit Nilsson and all tenors Franco Corelli - in which case we would never perform Mozart!) Instead each singer needs to find their voice, which is why the greats tend to be instantly recognisible. "
> 
> This is precise description of modern opera (and any modern art). There is no need to aim to the perfection, to learn from the bests, to work hard and fix problem in your technique. Just find your way, express yourself, be recognizable, draw black square, sing Vivaldi if your voice so small for Verdi or Wagner that one piano drowns it easily.
> You are right, not "all sopranos should sound like Birgit Nilsson and all tenors Franco Corelli". But if for 50 years not a single one came closer to the great singers of the past, I think "Houston, we have a problem". And we should blame our own low standards for that.


Very true. I think there are a number of reasons why there are a lack of big voices today, I think that mostly teachers don't know how to recognise a big voice in the making and just assume it is an ugly instrument with no potential. And that is where I agree with this YouTuber, he does understand vocal technique and the need for coordinating the registers.

N.


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