# Radvanovsky



## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

She is featured in a cover article in opera news. I really like her and think she has a marvelous voice BUT she sings lots of coloratura and I just don't think she is all that great in this fach. To my ears her coloratura sounds approximate. Perhaps I am spoiled by Callas and Sutherland who were very different but both sang with great technical precision in this genre. What do you think??


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## BalalaikaBoy (Sep 25, 2014)

Seattleoperafan said:


> She is featured in a cover article in opera news. I really like her and think she has a marvelous voice BUT she sings lots of coloratura and I just don't think she is all that great in this fach. To my ears her coloratura sounds approximate. Perhaps I am spoiled by Callas and Sutherland who were very different but both sang with great technical precision in this genre. What do you think??


yup, depends on the rep
dramatic rep: maybe
spinto rep: definitely
coloratura rep: HELL no lol


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## Tsaraslondon (Nov 7, 2013)

What I've heard of her Norma didn't convince me at all. The problem is that today we don't have large voices with the flexibility of Sutherland or Callas, or even Caballe for that matter. Netrebko is about to sing Norma at the Met, but she doesn't have the technique for it either. 

Why is it that we have come to accept less than accurate articulation of the notes as being ok? We wouldn't accept it from instrumentalists. Why do we accept it from singers?


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## nina foresti (Mar 11, 2014)

Personally, I think Sondra Radvanovsky is the sine qua non of sopranos today. I find it amusing to quibble about a voice that holds its own with the very best but then everyone hears things differently.

Unlike some of you, I found her _Norma_ to be a stunning portrayal like none we've had in years. But what puzzles me is that one mentioned the lack of a "large voice" today. If hers isn't large and powerful, I just do not know whose is!

The word is already out there that her _Maria Stuarda_ is nothing short of superb.
Lucky for me I shall be seeing and hearing for myself up front and close this coming Saturday.


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## Pugg (Aug 8, 2014)

nina foresti said:


> Personally, I think Sondra Radvanovsky is the sine qua non of sopranos today. I find it amusing to quibble about a voice that holds its own with the very best but then everyone hears things differently.
> 
> Unlike some of you, I found her _Norma_ to be a stunning portrayal like none we've had in years. But what puzzles me is that one mentioned the lack of a "large voice" today. If hers isn't large and powerful, I just do not know whose is!
> 
> ...


Lucky you, I do think she be sensational, I have to wait for the Roberto Devereux


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## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

nina foresti said:


> Personally, I think Sondra Radvanovsky is the sine qua non of sopranos today. I find it amusing to quibble about a voice that holds its own with the very best but then everyone hears things differently.
> 
> Unlike some of you, I found her _Norma_ to be a stunning portrayal like none we've had in years. But what puzzles me is that one mentioned the lack of a "large voice" today. If hers isn't large and powerful, I just do not know whose is!
> 
> ...


Nice to hear your dissenting vote. I have indeed heard her voice as being described as LARGE. I did hear much of her Norma on Sirius and was very impressed, but in a Youtube clip of Maria Stuarda found the coloratura sloppy. I'm not sure what to think... hence my question.


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## nina foresti (Mar 11, 2014)

I guess it becomes a subject in futility to attempt to criticize a voice by only listening over the airwaves or watching a you-tube of some sort, both of which could have the tendency to distort sound.
When one has seen the actual production the way it was meant to be seen, only then does a criticism seem to contain more validity.
I will give some credit to the HD productions for, even though they tend to delight in "tonsil viewing" instead of showing the entire proscenium as one would in the auditorium, it does tend to deliver a voice's power (of which Radvanovsky, like Sutherland, has enough to shatter chandeliers).


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

Well, this is pretty exciting:






This is pretty darned good too:






When I first heard Radvanovsky, I didn't care for her timbre. It seems dry and "papery," without much warmth or core: not as spectacular as Sutherland's, as rich as Caballe's, or as multicolored and characterful as Callas's. Its peculiar overtones sometimes make her diction less distinct than it might be (which I don't think is her fault). Her registers are well-integrated, and I'm impressed by her dynamic control up top, where she achieves some beautiful piano effects without giving me the feeling that she's showing off (the way Caballe could). Her coloratura isn't quite on a Sutherland or Callas level, but few voices of comparable size achieve that level; occasional imprecision would certainly be less noticeable in the house than on a recording. She appears from various clips to be an intense and persuasive singing actress, and her technique is obviously holding up well in the heat of performing the very dramatic parts she's taking on. I'm getting somewhat used to her timbre, and when I watch her she makes me less conscious of it. I wouldn't buy a recording of her for pure listening - I just don't like the voice that much - but I'd be happy to see her in performance.


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## nina foresti (Mar 11, 2014)

In the latest Opera News she is quoted as saying:
"Not everybody loves my voice. But it's my voice. It's how I sound ... I am not going to lie to you. When I was younger it really did hurt me ... until I read a biography about Maria Callas. People said the same about her. And she said, 'I would rather be unusual than boring.' I realized I was looking at it the wrong way. I can't change it. It 's the voice that I was born with, it's who I am, and I might as well embrace it. It's not everybody's cup of tea. But nor was Callas ... A lot of people expect singers to fit into a box -- lyric soprano, coloratura soprano. I don't fit into one box. A person that sings _Roberto Devereux_ probably doesn't sing_ Manon Lescaut,_ but I do."


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## DarkAngel (Aug 11, 2010)

Seattleoperafan said:


> Nice to hear your dissenting vote. I have indeed heard her voice as being described as LARGE. I did hear much of her Norma on Sirius and was very impressed, but in a Youtube clip of Maria Stuarda found the coloratura sloppy. I'm not sure what to think... hence my question.


Sondra is one of the very best dramatic sopranos we have today so I hope she records/performs all the great Italian Bel Canto operas of Donnizetti, Bellini, Verdi. Compare that Norma vid (from duck) to Bartoli's recent "attempt" to sing Norma and there is no question which is better. I love Netrebko but her voice is noticeably diminished from 10 years ago (MET Lucia and Puritani videos) and I feel she should not attempt Norma at this stage of her career.........

If you compare Sondra to the great bel canto singers of 1950-60s she is not at the level of Callas, Suliotis, Gencer, Sutherland, Cerquetti etc. Those singers had better vocal technique and more precise control of the vocal effects used in bel canto, and just as important the imagination and boldness to effectively use them.......it is not enough just to have the vocal technique you must be skilled and imaginative in their delivery to create the full emotional impact, this is where modern singers still are lacking in comparison.....


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

DarkAngel said:


> Sondra is one of the very best dramatic sopranos we have today so I hope she records/performs all the great Italian Bel Canto operas of Donnizetti, Bellini, Verdi. Compare that Norma vid (from duck) to Bartoli's recent "attempt" to sing Norma and there is no question which is better. I love Netrebko but her voice is noticeably diminished from 10 years ago (MET Lucia and Puritani videos) and I feel she should not attempt Norma at this stage of her career.........


Bartoli's salon-sized Norma was a hothouse product - a recording project which (one hopes) will not be exported to the opera house. I agree about Netrebko too, but I don't think that will stop her. Good luck to her. Radvanovsky is the real thing, however we rate her against her predecessors.


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## Pugg (Aug 8, 2014)

Woodduck said:


> Bartoli's salon-sized Norma was a hothouse product - a recording project which (one hopes) will not be exported to the opera house. I agree about Netrebko too, but I don't think that will stop her. Good luck to her. Radvanovsky is the real thing, however we rate her against her predecessors.


She ( Bartoloi ) is going to sing it in Europe this summer.
I come back when I find the dates and venue :tiphat:


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## DarkAngel (Aug 11, 2010)

> Bartoli's salon-sized Norma was a hothouse product - *a recording project which (one hopes) will not be exported to the opera house*. I agree about Netrebko too, but I don't think that will stop her. Good luck to her. Radvanovsky is the real thing, however we rate her against her predecessors.





Pugg said:


> She ( Cecilia Bartoli ) is going to sing it in Europe this summer.
> I come back when I find the dates and venue :tiphat:


Oh nooooooooooooooo..........stop the madness! :devil:










August 2016 Norma for Edinburgh International Festival

http://www.operascotland.org/news/532/Norma+for+Edinburgh+International+Festival

This festival has drawn some superstar soprano singers in the past, Callas - Sonambulla 57 and Sutherland - Puritani 60


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## Tietjens Stolz (Jun 2, 2015)

Radvanovsky is at least the genuine article. Given the dearth of spintos nowadays she is naturally in high and popular demand in opera houses. One can only hope that she has a conductor thoroughly well-versed in the Italian bel canto genre like Tullio Serafin as her mentor and guide her. Alas there just isn't any nowadays. 

As for Bartoli.......had Alessandro Scarlatti composed an opera named Norminetta, she would be able to fare way better.


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## BalalaikaBoy (Sep 25, 2014)

GregMitchell said:


> What I've heard of her Norma didn't convince me at all. The problem is that today we don't have large voices with the flexibility of Sutherland or Callas, or even Caballe for that matter.
> Why is it that we have come to accept less than accurate articulation of the notes as being ok? We wouldn't accept it from instrumentalists. Why do we accept it from singers?


we seldom agree on much, but YES! exactly 
frankly, most people (both singers and opera companies) know neither what to do with big voice, nor how to train them properly. hell, never mind coloratura, most big voices today can barely sing _legato_ properly (with some exceptions. Christine Goerke has wonderful legato. she's among my favorite contemporary singers)



> Netrebko is about to sing Norma at the Met, but she doesn't have the technique for it either.


....wait, _what_?! that's a bloody absurd choice for her. what the blazes is she thinking?! :lol:


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## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

With regards to Bartoli in Norma, may I say the doubtful success of this could greatly depend on the size of the opera house. IF the theater in Scotland is tiny ( some in Europe are very intimate) it would have a greater chance of succeeding. She is a fine coloratura singer but with a small voice. Is anyone familiar with this theater? She did not succeed well at the Met where the house is huge.


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## Tsaraslondon (Nov 7, 2013)

Seattleoperafan said:


> With regards to Bartoli in Norma, may I say the doubtful success of this could greatly depend on the size of the opera house. IF the theater in Scotland is tiny ( some in Europe are very intimate) it would have a greater chance of succeeding. She is a fine coloratura singer but with a small voice. Is anyone familiar with this theater? She did not succeed well at the Met where the house is huge.


The Festival Theatre isn't huge, admittedly, just short of 2000 seats, but it's more a size of scale rather than just size of voice. Bartoli's Norma on her recording is decidedly lacking in scale and grandeur. It turns a great tragedy into a domestic drama. To my mind, the whole performance is completely wrong-headed, and I don't give a for for questions of scholarship and _authenticity_.


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## Il Maestro (Oct 27, 2015)

I think Radvanovsky has an interesting voice, if not the most skilled in coloratura singing. I haven't had the opportunity to hear her live but I'd love to hear her doing some late Verdi. I think she would make a great _Aida_, for example. However, I think Bellini and Donizetti are just wrong for her voice. The fact that she has a large voice should not, in my opinion, excuse the fact that she is not up to the technical demands of the score. I only heard parts of her _Anna Bolena_, but from what I heard she glossed over a lot of the fast passages and did a poor job of performing the trills in "Coppia iniqua".


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## Tsaraslondon (Nov 7, 2013)

Woodduck said:


> Well, this is pretty exciting:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


She certainly has the dramatic measure of the two scenes detailed here, but (and am I being too picky?) I do miss the kind of precision in coloratura we hear from Sutherland and Callas, even Caballe, who wasn't exactly a paragon.

I was a bit put off, I'll admit, by listening to her Verdi recital on Spotify, in which I felt the singing lacked nuance, and was for the most part too forceful. After listening to it, I listened to Caballe in the same repertoire (the Caballe of the early 1970s before she overdid the long held _pianissimi_), and it was to hear a much greater range of both dynamics and expression. Radvanovsky uses much more light and shade here, and it could be that live, and in a complete role, she is more effective than in isolated arias in the studio.


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## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

Il Maestro said:


> I think Radvanovsky has an interesting voice, if not the most skilled in coloratura singing. I haven't had the opportunity to hear her live but I'd love to hear her doing some late Verdi. I think she would make a great _Aida_, for example. However, I think Bellini and Donizetti are just wrong for her voice. The fact that she has a large voice should not, in my opinion, excuse the fact that she is not up to the technical demands of the score. I only heard parts of her _Anna Bolena_, but from what I heard she glossed over a lot of the fast passages and did a poor job of performing the trills in "Coppia iniqua".


I agree with all you say. The coloratua in Coppia iniqua was just too approximate. The voices of my youth spoiled me.


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## waldvogel (Jul 10, 2011)

Pugg said:


> Lucky you, I do think she be sensational, I have to wait for the Roberto Devereux


She did Maria Stuarda and Roberto Devereux in Toronto in two consecutive seasons a couple years ago. I've also seen her as Aida, and she's doing Norma in Toronto next year.

I know I've seen her in more roles than this - she's a regular in Toronto (she lives there). Operabase only goes back to 2010, and I can't find any other references.


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## nina foresti (Mar 11, 2014)

For those of you who are still on the fence when it comes to greatness, here is a post from another opera forum on Sondra by one of their more erudite posters.

"Sondra Radvanovsky possesses one of the most complex voices I've ever
experienced. She manages that complexity with the art of a master
alchemist extracting precious metals and exotic colors from a rich and
seemingly infinite vein of prime raw material.

The voice easily embraces the vastness of the MET with power to spare and
her control of dynamics from blazing rage to the most soul searching piano
keeps her audience on edge - wondering where she will vocally take Maria
(Stuarda) next. "Vocally" is the key here because Radvanovsky is not only
a effective stage actress - first and foremost the character comes alive in
her interpretation of the music. Having experienced (live) most of the
great Bel Canto singers post Callas, dare I say that Sondra Radvanovsky
comes closest to the Callas ideal of finding the drama WITHIN the music in
this particular corner of the repertory.

So complete was her musical realization of the character of Maria Sturarda,
I would be hard pressed to choose a high point, but "Quondo la luce
Roseo" seems to sum up what she makes of the role - technically and emotionally - as a
totality. Everything that follows is built on what Radvanovsky did up to
that point and reinforces her deep connection with linking what Donizetti
did in 1834 to what I heard in 2016."


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## nina foresti (Mar 11, 2014)

waldvogel said:


> She did Maria Stuarda and Roberto Devereux in Toronto in two consecutive seasons a couple years ago. I've also seen her as Aida, and she's doing Norma in Toronto next year.
> 
> I know I've seen her in more roles than this - she's a regular in Toronto (she lives there). Operabase only goes back to 2010, and I can't find any other references.


I remember seeing her years ago in a _La Boheme_ as Musetta with a new tenor Marcello Giordani playing Rodolfo. I immediately recognized her special talent right then and there. Of course her _Tosca_ is wonderful. She has played in _Stiffelio _at the Met with Jose Cura. Her Leonora in _Il trovatore_ and her execution of "d'amor sull' ali rosee" is spectacular. Her diminuendos are phenomenal.
I drove all the way to Toronto just to see her in a less than stellar regie production of _Aida_.


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## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

After reading all of your fine critiques I listed to her on Youtube today: Sempre Libera and the big aria from the last act of Trovatore. Strengths: I think it is a very beautiful voice but I like fast vibrato voices. I've never heard Sutherland live but her notes above C sound similar to young Joan on disc and the volume is also startling. Her piano singing is among the best I've ever heard. She is very involved with the text. She manages to have a huge, well supported voice while being normal sized- not always a given today. Weakness: to my ear her coloratura is approximate- not in the dazzling league of Sutherland, SIlls or Caballe. Because of her fast vibrato I think her trills don't really stand out as being any different from her normal singing. I can overlook these last two objections because so much great stuff happens when she sings. I'd love to hear her live.


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## Pugg (Aug 8, 2014)

Seattleoperafan said:


> After reading all of your fine critiques I listed to her on Youtube today: Sempre Libera and the big aria from the last act of Trovatore. Strengths: I think it is a very beautiful voice but I like fast vibrato voices. I've never heard Sutherland live but her notes above C sound similar to young Joan on disc and the volume is also startling. Her piano singing is among the best I've ever heard. She is very involved with the text. She manages to have a huge, well supported voice while being normal sized- not always a given today. Weakness: to my ear her coloratura is approximate- not in the dazzling league of Sutherland, SIlls or Caballe. Because of her fast vibrato I think her trills don't really stand out as being any different from her normal singing. I can overlook these last two objections because so much great stuff happens when she sings. I'd love to hear her live.


Me too, and I am the first to (in this case) second to say so.
I am not that blasé


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## Cavaradossi (Aug 2, 2012)

I've seen her live in the two of the three queens, Norma, and a few Verdi roles. I can concur, she's wonderfully talented and expressive on stage. Her _Maria Stuarda_ was gripping in every way and I thought more memorable than Joyce DiDonato's. Given she seems to be the soprano the of the moment, at this particular moment of my adult opera-going life, I only wish I found the sound of her voice at little more inherently pleasing. That said, she always will be a draw for me.

I can't comment on her coloratura, but someone whose opinion I respect on such matters put it this way during intermission of _Anna Bolena_: 'With the size of her voice, she's like a bull in a china shop, but that's what makes her so much to watch!'

I should also add: she established herself as a trooper to Chicago audiences, arriving from San Francisco for her 2009 run of Ernanis with broken toe on one foot (courtesy of a stage mishap with her SFO Manrico) and a torn ligament on the other (courtesy of an SF mugger). But she didn't miss a show or a stage cue and even managed to hide the cast under her period gown.


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## Green pasture (Aug 11, 2015)

Radvanovsky is being featured as the cover story in the latest issue (March 2016) of Opera News:
http://www.operanews.com/Opera_News_Magazine/2016/3/Features/Operatic_Royalty.html

Here are a few tantalizing snippets from the article:

On how she would describe her own voice (within the context of the new Met production of Robert Devereux):

Radvanovsky says Sills's voice "was completely different from mine. I think my voice is more in the vein of Maria Callas, a more substantial dramatic voice, Beverly Sills being more of a coloratura. Callas, like myself, was more of a spinto, full lyric soprano."

On how Maria Callas inspires her:

She acknowledges that she always gravitated to Callas. "She was never afraid to make an ugly noise when it was needed. Yes, it is bel canto-beautiful singing-but Callas thought about every note, every word. The attention to detail! I always have really admired Callas, because she did everything 150 percent. And that's what I really truly aim for."

On her other idols, Joan Sutherland and Montserrat Caballé:

"Both of whom could take a larger voice and pare it down when the music demands, because in Donizetti and Bellini you have to be able to whittle down the voice, as well as have those full, blasting moments. There are certain moments in all three of these operas that everybody waits for-'Giudici? Ad Anna?' in Anna Bolena, 'Figlia impura di Bolena' in Maria Stuarda, the big confrontation scene. Sutherland could sing all that lavish coloratura so precisely! If singing were a sport, I think the closest sport would be figure skating. It's so technically accurate, but there is such a great degree of artistry that you have to have as a figure skater. She would definitely be a champion."

On being herself:

About the criticisms she has received during her career, she says, "I am not going to lie to you. When I was younger, it really did hurt me, and it definitely affected me-until I read a biography about Maria Callas. People said the same about her. And she said, 'I would rather be unusual than boring.' I realized that I was looking at it the wrong way. I can't change it. It's the voice that I was born with, it's who I am, and I might as well embrace it. Yeah, it's not everybody's cup of tea. But nor was Callas. There was this turning point when I was in my thirties, and I just said, 'I'm going to embrace it.' And that's when my career started to change, because I wasn't trying to change. I was true to myself. That's what I tell so many young singers-'Embrace your quirkiness.' A lot of people expect singers to fit into a box-lyric soprano, coloratura soprano. I don't fit into one box. A person that sings Roberto Devereux probably doesn't sing Manon Lescaut. But I do.


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## nina foresti (Mar 11, 2014)

Pugg said:


> Me too, and I am the first to (in this case) second to say so.
> I am not that blasé


Welcome to the club guys. You have sophisticated ears!!


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## nina foresti (Mar 11, 2014)

Today was a day of days at the Metropolitan Opera House.
Sondra Radvanovsky made history! 
Her performance of Maria Stuarda was stunning! Outstanding! I have never heard a performance where the singer was absolutely perfect in every way, shape and form and the audience went wild.
I am so grateful for her in my lifetime.
I pray that any person who is a true opera lover will find the time and finances to see her live and discover the magic for yourselves.


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## DarkAngel (Aug 11, 2010)

nina foresti said:


> Today was a day of days at the Metropolitan Opera House.
> Sondra Radvanovsky made history!
> Her performance of Maria Stuarda was stunning! Outstanding! I have never heard a performance where the singer was absolutely perfect in every way, shape and form and the audience went wild.
> I am so grateful for her in my lifetime.
> I pray that any person who is a true opera lover will find the time and finances to see her live and discover the magic for yourselves.


Nina we definitely need to have many more CD and video recordings of these performances, to date I have only the Verdi recital CD and the MET Trovatore video but would quickly buy more if available, I especially would love more HD videos with great picture and sound

Sondra does the tudor queens.......


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## nina foresti (Mar 11, 2014)

Dark Angel:
Pictures are always nice but don't do it.
To get a special talent like that, one must see the entire package live. Radvanovsky is special -- like Callas. 
Certainly it's fine to hear Callas but to have been lucky enough to see her live was the real deal!


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## BalalaikaBoy (Sep 25, 2014)

plumblossom said:


> On being herself:
> About the criticisms she has received during her career, she says, "I am not going to lie to you. When I was younger, it really did hurt me, and it definitely affected me-until I read a biography about Maria Callas. People said the same about her. And she said, 'I would rather be unusual than boring.' I realized that I was looking at it the wrong way. I can't change it. It's the voice that I was born with, it's who I am, and I might as well embrace it. Yeah, it's not everybody's cup of tea. But nor was Callas. There was this turning point when I was in my thirties, and I just said, 'I'm going to embrace it.' And that's when my career started to change, because I wasn't trying to change. I was true to myself. That's what I tell so many young singers-'Embrace your quirkiness.' A lot of people expect singers to fit into a box-lyric soprano, coloratura soprano. I don't fit into one box. A person that sings Roberto Devereux probably doesn't sing Manon Lescaut. But I do.


for the most part, I can respect her viewpoint here, but it's not an excuse for the totally butchered coloratura she has tried to pass off in a few roles. it's not an excuse to slack on technical areas (in her case, coloratura) which come less naturally.


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## nina foresti (Mar 11, 2014)

BalalaikaBoy said:


> for the most part, I can respect her viewpoint here, but it's not an excuse for the totally butchered coloratura she has tried to pass off in a few roles. it's not an excuse to slack on technical areas (in her case, coloratura) which come less naturally.


Am I to assume that you saw (or even heard)the Maria Stuarda the other day and still hold this opinion of yours?


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## Bellinilover (Jul 24, 2013)

BalalaikaBoy said:


> for the most part, I can respect her viewpoint here, but it's not an excuse for the totally butchered coloratura she has tried to pass off in a few roles. it's not an excuse to slack on technical areas (in her case, coloratura) which come less naturally.


You have to remember, though, that Montserrat Caballe could not -- as far as I know -- trill, nor was she as "easy" in the very highest notes as Joan Sutherland was. And yet she is a legend for Norma, Stuarda, etc. Did her critics say that she, too, "butchered" coloratura roles? (I'm not being sarcastic here -- I'd really like to know.)


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

"Butchered" is way too harsh. Radvanovsky's coloratura is not equal to the best, but it's better than that of some who've attempted her repertoire. Recordings and broadcasts put a singer's technique under a microscope. My guess is that in the theater her shortcomings wouldn't matter much in light of her generally solid vocalism (including striking control of dynamics at the top) and dramatic conviction. I'd enjoy seeing her to test that (and she looks good on YouTube).


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## Tsaraslondon (Nov 7, 2013)

Bellinilover said:


> You have to remember, though, that Montserrat Caballe could not -- as far as I know -- trill, nor was she as "easy" in the very highest notes as Joan Sutherland was. And yet she is a legend for Norma, Stuarda, etc. Did her critics say that she, too, "butchered" coloratura roles? (I'm not being sarcastic here -- I'd really like to know.)


Well no, obviously not, and her coloratura was never in the Sutherland/Callas class. But she did move round the notes with a fair amount of dexterity.

However, and I realise recital discs aren't always a good point of reference, it was a relief to turn to Caballe's Verdi recital on Spotify after Radvanovsky's. At first Radvanovsky pleased me quite a lot, but after a couple of arias, I began to find the recital a bit relentless. There was very little light and shade.










Caballe's singing, on the other hand, was full of nuance, and she caressed the phrases much more musically. This Verdi compilation on RCA, is in the main, a compendium of her Verdi from various recital records, recorded in the 1970s when Caballe's voice was at its finest, and before she started overdoing the pianissimo.










I wouldn't want to draw any firm conclusions, recital discs, after all, are not usually the best way of sampling a singer, but I would like to hear Radvanovsky in a complete role.


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## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

GregMitchell said:


> Well no, obviously not, and her coloratura was never in the Sutherland/Callas class. But she did move round the notes with a fair amount of dexterity.
> 
> However, and I realise recital discs aren't always a good point of reference, it was a relief to turn to Caballe's Verdi recital on Spotify after Radvanovsky's. At first Radvanovsky pleased me quite a lot, but after a couple of arias, I began to find the recital a bit relentless. There was very little light and shade.
> 
> ...


The BEST of Caballe are her early Sixties Donizetti, Bellini, and Verdi Rarities discs. OMG!!!!!!! She was very different from Sutherland and Callas, but absolutely fabulous in her own way. The voice was so beautiful then!!!!!!!!!! I would travel to go see Radvanovsky, but I would travel further to have heard Callas, Sutherland or Caballe in their primes.


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## Tsaraslondon (Nov 7, 2013)

Seattleoperafan said:


> The BEST of Caballe are her early Sixties Donizetti, Bellini, and Verdi Rarities discs. OMG!!!!!!! She was very different from Sutherland and Callas, but absolutely fabulous in her own way. The voice was so beautiful then!!!!!!!!!! I would travel to go see Radvanovsky, but I would travel further to have heard Callas, Sutherland or Caballe in their primes.


I was wrong about the recordings being 70s, but they were late, rather than early 60s. Rossini and Verdi Rarities in 1967, Donizetti in 1969. Her first, absolutely stunning, recital record for RCA (Bellini and Donizetti), made shortly after her spectacular New York debut at Carnegie Hall, was recorded in 1965.


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## schigolch (Jun 26, 2011)

Woodduck said:


> "Butchered" is way too harsh. Radvanovsky's coloratura is not equal to the best, but it's better than that of some who've attempted her repertoire. Recordings and broadcasts put a singer's technique under a microscope. My guess is that in the theater her shortcomings wouldn't matter much in light of her generally solid vocalism (including striking control of dynamics at the top) and dramatic conviction. I'd enjoy seeing her to test that (and she looks good on YouTube).


Indeed.

I have watched Ms. Radvanovsky singing live at the theater quite a few times. The last one, around 1 year ago, at Barcelona's Liceu, singing _Norma _with Gubanova and Kunde. She did a good job, though fighting sometimes with Mr. Palumbo's lethargic tempi, and she received a deserved ovation from the audience, myself included.

Ms. Radvanovsky is a true dramatic soprano, with a very big voice, but also able to sing pianissimi and filati (not always perfect, true), though her vibrato can bother some fans, and her timbre is also not conventionally beautiful. Her legato, her phrasing, are mostly correct, but with a limited fantasy, and sometimes a little bit underwhelming on the dramatic side.

I recently have also the opportunity to watch (in a broadcast, this time) her performance in Donizetti's _Maria Stuarda_, and I was impressed, especially by "Deh! Tu di un´umile preghiere il suono", and the way she handled the beginning of the aria (true, she reserved herself a bit for the ascending passage, and she kind of drowned the chorus with her huge voice in the last section. Maybe not a great performance, but a nice one for her, she really adapted well the role to her vocal possibilities).


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## nina foresti (Mar 11, 2014)

"...though her vibrato can bother some fans, and her timbre is also not conventionally beautiful. Her legato, her phrasing, are mostly correct..."

Hmmmm. Looks like she's in some pretty good company.
Can you say Callas? Olivero?


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## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

schigolch said:


> Indeed.
> 
> I have watched Ms. Radvanovsky singing live at the theater quite a few times. The last one, around 1 year ago, at Barcelona's Liceu, singing _Norma _with Gubanova and Kunde. She did a good job, though fighting sometimes with Mr. Palumbo's lethargic tempi, and she received a deserved ovation from the audience, myself included.
> 
> ...


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## The Conte (May 31, 2015)

'Filati' refers to singing with just a thread (fila) of sound, so it is a type of pianissimo where the body of the sound is reduced to a single thread.

At least that is what I understand the term to mean.

N.


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## schigolch (Jun 26, 2011)

The Conte said:


> 'Filati' refers to singing with just a thread (fila) of sound, so it is a type of pianissimo where the body of the sound is reduced to a single thread.
> 
> At least that is what I understand the term to mean.
> 
> N.


Exactly, produce just a thread of sound is a good English translation. For a singer with such a huge voice as Ms. Radvanovsky this is certainly a nice achievement.


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