# Lucia di Lammermoor Questionnaire



## Liss (May 13, 2011)

If not many people on here are big Lucia fans like me then this might not go down well, but It's worth a try!




What is the best recording of the Opera you have heard?

What is the best on stage production of the Opera you have seen, and why? (Live/DVD etc...)

Who is your favourite Lucia musically?

Who, playing Lucia do you think had the greatest acting ability?

In your opinion, is Lucia mad from the beginning, driven insane, or is her already existing madness unleashed by the events which take place? (In the Opera - not the book)

Is the mad scene the greatest mad scene in Opera, if so what makes it the greatest?


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## Almaviva (Aug 13, 2010)

1. I don't own a CD recording of Lucia. All my contact with the entire Lucia (the complete opera) has been live at the opera house and on DVD/streaming sites
2. I saw it twice by regional small companies and it wasn't great. I like the Anna Netrebko version on MetPlayer and DVD mainly because I like Anna so much, and also like another one that I own from La Scala with Mariella Devia.
3. Dame Sutherland was very impressive in the clips that I've seen but I've never seen a full DVD with her or listened to the full opera with her
4. Natalie Dessay
5. Existing madness is unleashed.
6. Probably so. Intensity, lenght, beautiful music, sad and pungent, impressive.


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## sospiro (Apr 3, 2010)

(I hear a collective groan from my fellow members who know about my Lucia obsession)

*1.What is the best recording of the Opera you have heard?*

I've got four CDs: Two Sutherlands, one Callas & one Caballé and it's a toss up between the 1961 Sutherland with Renato Cioni and the Caballé with José Carreras. Both include the two scenes which are often cut: the wonderful duet with Lucia & Raimondo & the Wolf's Crag Scene. I think both recordings are superb.

I've got three DVDs: 2004 La Scala with Mariella Devia (Lucia) & Vincenzo La Scola (Edgardo), 2009 Met with Anna Netrebko (Lucia) & Piotr Beczala (Edgardo) and 1982 Bregenz with Katia Ricciarelli (Lucia) & José Carreras (Edgardo). Technically the Met is the best & includes all the 'cut' scenes (as above). Beczala & Netrebko are superb but I don't like the staging. My favourite by a country mile is the Ricciarelli/Carreras even though the above scenes are cut. Katia & José were involved with each other at the time & it's fabulous to see them trying not to show their passion for each other. José's Tu che a Dio spiegasti l'ali remains the best I've seen or heard & the sextet ditto.

*2.What is the best on stage production of the Opera you have seen, and why? (Live/DVD etc...)*

Ho hum. Went to Berlin in April to see my lovely Joseph Calleja as Edgardo, so I'd have to say this is my favourite live. His voice reminds me a bit of Carreras' & I think that's why I like him & he's perfectly suited for the role. I also like Joseph because he's friendly, has a wicked sense of humour & hugs me like I'm his long lost buddy.

 

 

 

*3.Who is your favourite Lucia musically?
*
Callas

*4.Who, playing Lucia do you think had the greatest acting ability?*

Netrebko

*5.In your opinion, is Lucia mad from the beginning, driven insane, or is her already existing madness unleashed by the events which take place? (In the Opera - not the book)*

I think madness runs in the family so it exists already for her.

*6.Is the mad scene the greatest mad scene in Opera, if so what makes it the greatest?*

No, I prefer the Lady Macbeth mad scene. "Out, damned spot!"


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## MAuer (Feb 6, 2011)

1. I have both an audio and video version of the opera: audio version with Caballe, Carreras, and Sardinero, DVD version with Ricciarelli, Carreras, and Nucci. I love Sam Ramey's Raimondo on the audio recording, but otherwise, prefer the video. Caballe, to my ears, just sounds too matronly.

2. I saw a live performance once back in the '80s or early '90s when the Cincinnati Opera staged it. The soprano singing Lucia was a dramatic coloratura -- i.e., more in the Sutherland/Caballe mode than, for example, Beverly Sills or Natalie Dessay. Unfortunately, I can't recall either her name or that of the tenor who sang Edgardo. That suggests to me that this performance was neither so outstanding nor so disasterous that it made any sort of lasting impression.

3. My favorite Lucia would have to be either Ricciarelli or Patrizia Ciofi. I've seen video clips of Ciofi in the opera's French version, and she's marvelous. Both have voices that are quite beautiful.

4. This is hard to say, since the number of different sopranos I've seen in the role has been very limited. However, I suspect Almaviva is right about Dessay -- this lady is a consummate actress, whatever role she's singing.

5. I think Lucia is always emotionally fragile, but the forced marriage and Edgardo's denunciation push her over the edge.

6. Again, hard to say. I'm trying to think of operas with which I'm familiar that have mad scenes, and can't recall too many. Elettra's parting shot in "_Idomeneo_" is about all that comes to mind. Nina, in Paisiello's opera of the same name, is bonkers from the beginning and doesn't have an actual "scene." I suppose Marguerite has pretty much suffered mental and emotional collapse by the end of "_Faust_", but again, there's no great "scene" . . . So, from my very limited perspective, "_Lucia_" would be the greatest mad scene, given the technical and dramatic demands it places on the soprano singing the role.


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## MAuer (Feb 6, 2011)

sospiro said:


> *6.Is the mad scene the greatest mad scene in Opera, if so what makes it the greatest?*
> 
> No, I prefer the Lady Macbeth mad scene. "Out, damned spot!"


Oh, how could I forget Lady Macbeth?? Duh . . .


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## DarkAngel (Aug 11, 2010)

*What is the best recording of the Opera you have heard?*

*  *

Top 3

1)Callas & Stefano 1953 studio mono, I think this is Callas 2nd studio recording for EMI (1st was Puritani)

2)Sutherland 1961, some like the later 2nd version with Pavarotti (a great one for sure) but her vocals here are still sharp and clear and her colortura supremely agile, amazing despite a less accomplished male cast

3)Beverly Sills 1970 on Westminster label


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## rgz (Mar 6, 2010)

1. I have the Devia and Sutherland versions on disc, both are good.
2. Natalie Dessay, 16 March at the Met 
3. Tie between Dessay and Callas
4. Natalie Dessay!
5. All depends on the interpretation of the director and actress; I think limiting it to one "correct" answer diminishes the question and interpretations of the answer.
6. Well it's my favorite, to be sure. Although, as I mentioned in a thread a month or so back, I'm disgrunted by the number of versions that skip the "S'avanza Enrico" portion.


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## Liss (May 13, 2011)

rgz said:


> 5. All depends on the interpretation of the director and actress; I think limiting it to one "correct" answer diminishes the question and interpretations of the answer.


I totally agree, thats why I asked  I wasn't really looking for the correct answer, more of a discussion of people's own personal opinion of the character. Because I have seen and heard so many different interpretations I just wondered how many ways the madness could be played, and I find that the different interpretations of the Mad scene are the reason it is always fresh and different, even if just limited movements or notes are changed the singer always has there own interpretation. When I watched the Netrebko (Met 2009) version I noticed that there was a split second where her face just changed completely and from that moment on she was mad, to me she had lost all sense of sanity - that moment was so profound and it was something I hadn't seen before. She also didn't seem as emotionally fragile in the first Act as other sopranos have so it seemed like she played it a lot differently - and acted it brilliantly might I add. But I am sure others here have watched Netrebko's version and taken a completely different interpretation away from it, and nobody's interpretation is wrong because it's a personal opinion, there are hundreds of ways Lucia can be played.

I might as well do the questions now since I'm here!

1. I adore Beverly Sills 1970 recording. it is the only recording I have heard so far (apart from the sections on Dessay's 'Mad Scenes' and 'Italian Opera Arias' CD) which uses the glass harmonica. But my favorite has to be Sutherland's second version. Musically it is perfect and it boasts Luciano Pavarotti as Edgardo, it makes all the difference having an amazing male lead as well as a stunning female lead. I somewhat prefer the dramatic coloratura interpretation, with a lyric coloratura the voice is light and more youthful which reflects Lucia's innocence, but the dramatic quality Sutherland has just brings drama and inner turmoil into every phrase she sings - it is gorgeous.

2. My favorite has to be the Zimmerman 2009 Met production with Netrebko. I wish they would bring out a DVD of Natalie Dessay's performance though, here's hoping! I would have loved to have seen that live, but I live in England, I hate living in England when the Met is so far awaay! I really liked Zimmerman's staging. I loved the moody landscapes, and especially loved the use of the ghost of Lucia at the end.

3. Joan Sutherland

4. Maria Callas, but with Natalie Dessay as a close second!

5. As I stated above, everybody has different interpretations, but from what I have seen I think it is most effective when Lucia is played as having an underlying madness from the very beginning, a disturbance within herself which we can clearly see, and hear in her voice.

6. This is my favorite mad scene because it is so profound. The genius of the juxtaposition between the music and the lyrics moves me every time, especially in 'Spargi d'amore Pianto'. Donizetti himself was also a Manic Depressive which brings his personal life into his writing, and makes it so much more beautiful. But that is just my opinion, I also ADORE Lady Macbeth's mad scene


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## Almaviva (Aug 13, 2010)

Liss said:


> I totally agree, thats why I asked  I wasn't really looking for the correct answer, more of a discussion of people's own personal opinion of the character. Because I have seen and heard so many different interpretations I just wondered how many ways the madness could be played, and I find that the different interpretations of the Mad scene are the reason it is always fresh and different, even if just limited movements or notes are changed the singer always has there own interpretation. When I watched the Netrebko (Met 2009) version I noticed that there was a split second where her face just changed completely and from that moment on she was mad, to me she had lost all sense of sanity - that moment was so profound and it was something I hadn't seen before. She also didn't seem as emotionally fragile in the first Act as other sopranos have so it seemed like she played it a lot differently - and acted it brilliantly might I add. But I am sure others here have watched Netrebko's version and taken a completely different interpretation away from it, and nobody's interpretation is wrong because it's a personal opinion, there are hundreds of ways Lucia can be played.
> 
> I might as well do the questions now since I'm here!
> 
> ...


Pretty nice post, and our preferences overlap a lot. I see that you can help me when I struggle to promote Anna Netrebko's DVDs in our list of top recommended DVDs, sometimes her version doesn't win - amazing, isn't it? LOL - I need you to participate! Have you noticed it? We have voted for 81 operas already, 19 more to go, it's ongoing in the Opera on DVD and Blu-Ray subforum.


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## Liss (May 13, 2011)

Almaviva said:


> Pretty nice post, and our preferences overlap a lot. I see that you can help me when I struggle to promote Anna Netrebko's DVDs in our list of top recommended DVDs, sometimes her version doesn't win - amazing, isn't it? LOL - I need you to participate! Have you noticed it? We have voted for 81 operas already, 19 more to go, it's ongoing in the Opera on DVD and Blu-Ray subforum.


Thanks  I will definitely have to check that out!


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## MAuer (Feb 6, 2011)

Liss said:


> Thanks  I will definitely have to check that out!


And be sure to vote for any DVDs that feature Jonas Kaufmann (a.k.a. El Guapo)!


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## sospiro (Apr 3, 2010)

MAuer said:


> And be sure to vote for any DVDs that feature Jonas Kaufmann (a.k.a. El Guapo)!


and John Relyea (Il Cioccolatissimo)


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