# Your 5 Favorite Mezzos of All Time



## MAuer (Feb 6, 2011)

Since some have listed mezzos among their favorite sopranos on the other thread, I thought it might be nice to give these ladies a thread of their own.

My favorites:
Agnes Baltsa
Shirley Verrett
Elina Garanca
Waltraud Meier
Teresa Berganza

Yours . . . ?


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## TrevBus (Jun 6, 2013)

Sorry, w/the mezzos just can't leave it at 5. Here are 12(and leaving it at 12 was also very hard)that I enjoy the most.

Joyce DiDonato
Marilyn Horne
Teresa Berganza
Janet Baker
Anne Sofie Von Otter
Grace Bumbry
Regina Resnik
Olga Borodina
Cecilia Bartoli
Elina Garanca(esp. her)
Ewa Podles
Titiana Troyanos

That is just for starts.


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## Bellinilover (Jul 24, 2013)

I was glad to see this thread, as I have a real love for the mezzo-soprano voice, and a special affection for the "Rossini mezzo"! Please understand that I haven't yet heard all mezzos; I'm especially "behind" on Joyce di Donato and have only heard Elina Garanca once (in _La Cenerentola_ in 2009), but here's my current top five:

1. Jennifer Larmore
2. Cecilia Bartoli
3. Ruxandra Dunose
4. Agnes Baltsa
5. Dolora Zajick (I had the privilege of hearing her in the opera house as Adalgisa in _Norma_ -- a truly remarkable lyric-dramatic mezzo)


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## deggial (Jan 20, 2013)

since this is my favourite category, I'll add the roles in which I particularly enjoyed these ladies:

Vesselina Kasarova (Sesto and Romeo)
Ann Hallenberg (Ariodante and Arsamene)
Brigitte Fassbaender (Octavian and Orlofsky)
Anna Bonitatibus (Irene and Piacere/Il trionfo)
Tatyana Troyanos (Composer)
Marilyn Horne (Isabella)
Kathleen Kuhlmann (Bradamante)
Sarah Connolly (Giulio Cesare)
Alice Coote (Nerone)
Sonia Prina (Clarice/La pietra del paragone)
Joyce Didonato (Rosina)
Liliana Nikiteanu (Dorabella)


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## Couchie (Dec 9, 2010)

We know when a bass is not a tenor but the mezzo/soprano distinction is rather blurry. Is Meier really a mezzo when she's particularly famed for her soprano roles like Sieglinde and Isolde? Do not most sopranos take on an increasing number of mezzo roles as their careers advance? The fach system exists for the sake of convenience and is not a real qualifier of any singer.


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## moody (Nov 5, 2011)

Conchita Supervia, the most dramatic Carmen ever and a marvellous Rossini singer.
Marilyn Horne.
Ann Sofie von Otter.
Maria Ewing.
Rise Stevens.
Christa Ludwig. 
Teresa Berganza.


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## Volve (Apr 14, 2013)

Christa Ludwig
Elina Garanca
Cecilia Bartoli
Agnes Baltsa
Joyce DiDonato
And Christa Ludwig again, because please, it's Christa Ludwig.


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## AndyS (Dec 2, 2011)

I can't believe that it took until post 6 for the great Christa Ludwig to be mentioned!


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## Itullian (Aug 27, 2011)

I'm not really sure who the mezzos are.


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## TrevBus (Jun 6, 2013)

AndyS said:


> I can't believe that it took until post 6 for the great Christa Ludwig to be mentioned!


I know!! Shame on me because forgot all about her and I can't believe the Brain F#&% here. Make that 13 now.


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## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

Present day singers
Stephanie Blythe
Ewa Powdles
Jennifer Larmore
Maureen Forrester

Historic Singers
Kathleen Ferrier
Rise Stevens
Marilyn Horne
Christa Ludwig


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## moody (Nov 5, 2011)

AndyS said:


> I can't believe that it took until post 6 for the great Christa Ludwig to be mentioned!


I'm glad you said that because I was thinking it.


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## moody (Nov 5, 2011)

Seattleoperafan said:


> Present day singers
> Stephanie Blythe
> Ewa Powdles
> Jennifer Larmore
> ...


I don't know how you classify Kathleen Ferrier as a mezzo!


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## moody (Nov 5, 2011)

Itullian said:


> I'm not really sure who the mezzos are.


the birthday cake must have got to you because you are gradually being surrounded by them !


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## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

moody said:


> I don't know how you classify Kathleen Ferrier as a mezzo!


Well, there is that;-) Definitely Ferrier is more of a contralto ( as was Maureen Forrester) but she normally sang more ambiguous oratorio parts classified as alto. Still, probably her most famous opera role was as Orfeo, which is classified as a mezzo role and sung by such famous mezzos as Grace Bumbry, Janet Baker ( also frequently classified as an alto) and Stephanie Blythe. For that matter Ewa Podles is a contralto, but she sings mezzo roles such as Adalgisa, Delila and either Azucena or Ulrica ( I can't remember which). For me, when it comes to mezzos, the darker and more contralto-like the better, which is why I am not fond of Joyce Didonato and Susan Graham who sound like sopranos to me.


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## moody (Nov 5, 2011)

Seattleoperafan said:


> Well, there is that;-) Definitely Ferrier is more of a contralto ( as was Maureen Forrester) but she normally sang more ambiguous oratorio parts classified as alto. Still, probably her most famous opera role was as Orfeo, which is classified as a mezzo role and sung by such famous mezzos as Grace Bumbry, Janet Baker ( also frequently classified as an alto) and Stephanie Blythe. For that matter Ewa Podles is a contralto, but she sings mezzo roles such as Adalgisa, Delila and either Azucena or Ulrica ( I can't remember which). For me, when it comes to mezzos, the darker and more contralto-like the better, which is why I am not fond of Joyce Didonato and Susan Graham who sound like sopranos to me.


I understand ,but we can't make it up as we go along really.


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## MAuer (Feb 6, 2011)

Couchie said:


> We know when a bass is not a tenor but the mezzo/soprano distinction is rather blurry. Is Meier really a mezzo when she's particularly famed for her soprano roles like Sieglinde and Isolde? Do not most sopranos take on an increasing number of mezzo roles as their careers advance? The fach system exists for the sake of convenience and is not a real qualifier of any singer.


While there are some roles that can be sung by either a soprano or mezzo, there are just as many others that are clearly in one category or the other. A mezzo would have a pretty hard time of it singing the Queen of the Night or Turandot. And I'm not at all certain that "most" sopranos begin taking on mezzo roles as their careers progress. Like some tenors who will transition to "character" roles such as Herodes or Aegisthus at the very end of their careers, there are some sopranos who will take on the witch in _Hänsel und Gretel _or the Countess in _Pique Dame _at the end. And there are also those sopranos who started out as mezzos, transitioned to the soprano Fach, and then reverted to mezzo roles near the close of their careers.


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## quack (Oct 13, 2011)

Janet Baker
Lorraine Hunt Lieberson
Bernarda Fink
Christa Ludwig
Monica Groop

Are the ones that really stand out for me.


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## AClockworkOrange (May 24, 2012)

In preference order:
Brigitte Fassbaender 
Anne Sofie Von Otter
Christa Ludwig
Joyce Didonato

I don't have enough experience to comfortably name fifth choice yet.

However, Brigitte Fassbaender is may favourite Mezzo by a wide margin. I especially adore her Winterreise and Schwanengesang Cycles above most other performances. Likewise, her performance on Mahler's Das Liede Von Der Erde is superb.

Janet Baker would likely be my fifth choice but I still need to hear more before I can say for certain.


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## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

AClockworkOrange said:


> In preference order:
> 
> I don't have enough experience to comfortably name fifth choice yet.
> 
> Janet Baker would likely be my fifth choice but I still need to hear more before I can say for certain.


Try watching Janet Baker in the title role of Julius Caesar by Handel on Youtube. Not only does she have one of the most beautiful voices of all time, but her acting is superb. You'll put her down as the fifth.
Fassbaender is not a favorite of my sister as she sang Octavian to my sister's Sophie eons ago and made a pass at my sis the prude, which did not go over well! She, like Baker, was also a marvelous actor and maybe she was getting into the role too much;-)


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## deggial (Jan 20, 2013)

Bellinilover said:


> 3. Ruxandra Dunose


she's going to sing the Composer next season here. I've heard her in the Turin Der Rosenkavalier from a couple of years ago where she was pretty good. What would you suggest I should check in her case?


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## deggial (Jan 20, 2013)

moody said:


> Conchita Supervia, the most dramatic Carmen ever and a marvellous Rossini singer.


I listened to her on your suggestion a while ago and she was indeed one badass Carmen!


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## Bellinilover (Jul 24, 2013)

deggial said:


> she's going to sing the Composer next season here. I've heard her in the Turin Der Rosenkavalier from a couple of years ago where she was pretty good. What would you suggest I should check in her case?


I would suggest either the Glyndebourne DVD of _La Cenerentola_ from 2005, or the CD of the same production from 2007.
The way I hear it, her voice is unusually golden and clear for a mezzo. At first, I actually thought she was a soprano with a good low register -- but she's listed everywhere as a mezzo.


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## schigolch (Jun 26, 2011)

Giulietta Simionato, Marilyn Horne, Ebe Stignani, Shirley Verrett, Lucia Valentini Terrani


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## deggial (Jan 20, 2013)

schigolch said:


> Lucia Valentini Terrani


now part of my list as well! great Tancredi and Arsace


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## Tsaraslondon (Nov 7, 2013)

Setting aside Ferrier because she was a contralto, my five are 

Janet Baker
Lorraine Hunt Lieberson
Agnes Baltsa
Joyce DiDonato
Frederica Von Stade

Just below them

Christa Ludwig
Shirley Verrett (better as a mezzo than a soprano, I thought)
Tatiana Troyanos
Giulietta Simionato
Conchita Supervia
Fedora Barbieri
Marilyn Horne
Brigitte Fassbaender


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## Aramis (Mar 1, 2009)

deggial said:


> now part of my list as well! great Tancredi and Arsace


Dude, like, she totally did _Cenerentola_ and _L'Italiana_ too, I mean, check it out.


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## Jobis (Jun 13, 2013)

I must admit I don't know of that many mezzos.

Joyce DiDonato
Sarah Connolly
Alice Coote
Waltraud Meier
Grace Bumbry


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## sabrina (Apr 26, 2011)

I love mezzos but I don't know many names, as sometimes I might mix some mezzos with sopranos. 
I love *Ruxandra Donose* and *Cecilia Bartolli*. *Joyce DiDonato* is also amazing.


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## Bellinilover (Jul 24, 2013)

I've changed my list slightly:

1. Jennifer Larmore
2. Anne Sofie von Otter
3. Cecilia Bartoli
4. Agnes Baltsa
5. Ruxandra Dunose


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## Rackon (Apr 9, 2013)

I love mezzos, and I wanted badly to be one. (Nature made me a lyric soprano instead.)

Here are some current faves, in no special order :

Ann Sophie von Otter
Cecilia Bartoli
Elina Garanca
Joyce DiDonato
Sarah Conolly
Susan Graham 
Patricia Bardon
Alice Coote (sometimes )

Past:

Christa Ludwig
Janet Baker 
Lorraine Hunt Lieberson
Frederica von Stade
Brigitte Fassbaender


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## Revenant (Aug 27, 2013)

My five, in no particular order:

Giulietta Simionato
Fedora Barbieri
Frederica von Stade
Sarah Connolly
Christa Ludwig


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## Aramis (Mar 1, 2009)

Revenant said:


> Fedora Barbieri


Who are they? Do they shave electrified hair off the hats?


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## StlukesguildOhio (Dec 25, 2006)

Teresa Berganza
Elina Garanca
Janet Baker
Christa Ludwig
Lorraine Hunt Lieberson
Cecilia Bartoli
Anne Sofie von Otter
Joyce Didonato
Bernarda Fink
Monica Groop
Frederica Von Stade
Susan Graham
Magdalena Kožená

In no particular order... these are the mezzos most familiar to me... a largely because of that fact they are the mezzos I most admire.


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## Headphone Hermit (Jan 8, 2014)

Zara Dolukhanova

Three pages of thread and no-one has mentioned her velvety voice!

if you've not heard her, have a listen to her sing Shostakovich's Songs from Jewish Folk Poetry .... even without a knowledge of Russian, this is powerful stuff


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## deggial (Jan 20, 2013)

Headphone Hermit said:


> Zara Dolukhanova
> 
> Three pages of thread and no-one has mentioned her velvety voice!


I've heard a bit of Rossini from her and thought she was too velvety but maybe that wasn't the right repertoire. Will check out her Shosty


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## Revenant (Aug 27, 2013)

Aramis said:


> Who are they? Do they shave electrified hair off the hats?


Yes. And from that you get the expression "mad as a hater".


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## BaronScarpia (Apr 2, 2014)

This is difficult...

MODERN:
Joyce DiDonato - as Angelina/Rosina and in the baroque repertoire
Elina Garanca - particularly as Carmen

FROM THE PAST:
Christa Ludwig - 



Teresa Berganza
Janet Baker

Those who almost make the list include Cecilia Bartoli, Ebe Stignani, Marilyn Horne, Frederica von Stade, Sarah Connolly, Viviva Genaux and Agnes Baltsa.


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## Don Fatale (Aug 31, 2009)

I'm glad to see Agnes Baltsa making so many lists. In my earliest days exploring opera (my late 20's) I recorded a live radio broadcast of Don Carlos. Agnes Baltsa was Eboli of course. Her O Don Fatale pretty much reset my musical taste. For all the many hundreds of rock records I'd bought in the previous 15 years, and countless gigs, nothing had grabbed me quite like the drama and bravura of her great scene. I replayed it many times and even played it to my nonplussed friends as if I'd discovered the elixir of life.


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## Tsaraslondon (Nov 7, 2013)

Alexander said:


> I'm glad to see Agnes Baltsa making so many lists. In my earliest days exploring opera (my late 20's) I recorded a live radio broadcast of Don Carlos. Agnes Baltsa was Eboli of course. Her O Don Fatale pretty much reset my musical taste. For all the many hundreds of rock records I'd bought in the previous 15 years, and countless gigs, nothing had grabbed me quite like the drama and bravura of her great scene. I replayed it many times and even played it to my nonplussed friends as if I'd discovered the elixir of life.


I saw Baltsa quite a few times at Covent Garden, as Adlagisa, as Dorabella, as Carmen, as Isabella and as Eboli. She had an exciting stage persona, and was as good at comedy as she was at the serious stuff. It was really quite a big voice, and she certainly had no trouble filling the house. My word, she took risks, but it made her singing of _O don fatale_ thrilling in a way we rarely hear these days.


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## messadivoce (Apr 18, 2014)

Marilyn Horne
Fiorenza Cossotto
Guilietta Simonato
Jennie Tourel
Margarete Matzenauer


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## mamascarlatti (Sep 23, 2009)

GregMitchell said:


> I saw Baltsa quite a few times at Covent Garden, as Adlagisa, as Dorabella, as Carmen, as Isabella and as Eboli. She had an exciting stage persona, and was as good at comedy as she was at the serious stuff. It was really quite a big voice, and she certainly had no trouble filling the house. My word, she took risks, but it made her singing of _O don fatale_ thrilling in a way we rarely hear these days.


One of the great live ROH performances I saw in the 80s was Baltsa as Dalila and Domingo as Samson. My, that was a humdinger. And like you, I was blown away by her Eboli.


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## Revenant (Aug 27, 2013)

mamascarlatti said:


> One of the great live ROH performances I saw in the 80s was Baltsa as Dalila and Domingo as Samson. My, that was a humdinger. And like you, I was blown away by her Eboli.


Was that the production directed by Regina Resnik?


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## mamascarlatti (Sep 23, 2009)

Revenant said:


> Was that the production directed by Regina Resnik?


Aaargh, I can't remember! I was too mesmerised at the time by Domingo in a short tunic carrying Baltsa around in his arms and still singing like a god.


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## Revenant (Aug 27, 2013)

mamascarlatti said:


> Aaargh, I can't remember! I was too mesmerised at the time by Domingo in a short tunic carrying Baltsa around in his arms and still singing like a god.


Yes that was probably Resnik.


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## marcbusquet (Aug 28, 2014)

Dolora Zajick
Marilyn Horne
Fiorenza Cossotto
Guilietta Simonato
Joice di Donato


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## maometto (Sep 2, 2014)

I am lucky I could see live all this singers:

Teresa Berganza
Marilyn Horne
Cecilia Bartoli
Ewa Podles
Ann Murray


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## BalalaikaBoy (Sep 25, 2014)

Shirley Verrett
Joyce DiDonato
Viorica Cortez
Milla Edelman
Malena Ernman


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## nina foresti (Mar 11, 2014)

Simionato
Horne
Blythe
DiDonato
Verrett


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## Bellinilover (Jul 24, 2013)

I've been listening to the Rene Jacobs GIULIO CESARE, and I absolutely love Bernarda Fink (who sings Cornelia). Her "Priva d'ogni conforto" has everything: beauty of tone, style, and emotion. Great mezzo for the Baroque repertoire.


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## Camillorf (Jul 18, 2014)

Joyce DiDonato
Marilyn Horne
Jennifer Larmore
Teresa Berganza
Frederica Von Stade


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## SixFootScowl (Oct 17, 2011)

I thought Ewa Podles is a contra-alto?

My favorite mezzos are


Frederica von Stade
Joyce DiDonato
Teresa Berganza

I don't have the listening experience to add any more at this time.


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

In no particular order:

Janet Baker
Christa Ludwig
Irina Arkhipova
Conchita Supervia
Shirley Verrett

And, sixth but _not_ least: Irene Minghini-Cattaneo

Listen to her with Pertile in 1930:






Don't expect to hear anything remotely like that at your next _Trovatore._


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## Pugg (Aug 8, 2014)

Fiorenza Cossoto

Agnes Baltsa

Ebe Stignanin

Marylin Horne

Christa Ludwig


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