# SOPRANO TOURNAMENT (Bonus Match): Radvanovsky vs Harteros



## Bonetan (Dec 22, 2016)

Sondra Radvanovsky, Canada, 1969-






Anja Harteros, Germany, 1972-






Who's singing did you prefer and why?


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## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

I didn't know Harteros, but she seems a fine singer with a euphonic voice. I would enjoy hearing her in a full Verdi role. I did find that though her tempo was more peppy, which I prefer, I found Radvanovsky held my attention better. I voted for Radvanovsky because she has a more distinctive voice and her emotions felt more real and not rehearsed. I would love to know how her volume compared to Milanov or Tebaldi, both who had better chest voices.


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## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

Radvanovski started with an almost perfect example of _messa di voce _. Oberlian almost drove the tempo to a standstill in the slow section and it became difficult to follow the soprano. Where's the tension in this performance? In the finale, the words _ma, qui giunge!_ that are supposed to indicate anxiety for an intrusion into the sacred place, went for nothing. But the rest went better, the final _maledizion!_ was thrilling.

Harteros's conductor was more propulsive and helped it along better. Her voice is lustrous and she is involved with the words. While her _messa di voce_ attempt was more modest in comparison, she acquitted herself well. Her pianissimo in _ invan la pace_ was lovely. I'll vote for Harteros and her conductor for the more appropriate tempo and performance.


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

Harteros is lightweight and rather anonymous, and Radvanovsky is - well, Radvanovsky. The latter's performance was not helped by her conductor; I wouldn't have thought Verdi's music easy to misunderstand, but this sodden bloke manages it. I confess to finding her voice difficult to enjoy; the tone is frowzy (or is it blowzy?) and opaque, making her vowels more obscure as she ascends in pitch, and her expressive monotony - a sort of relentless mournfulness - covers the whole thing with a thick fog. Harteros has more point and clarity, but the voice lacks individuality and leaves no distinct impression. I guess it'll have to be her by default.


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## Bulldog (Nov 21, 2013)

I was very much taken with Harteros and her lovely voice. Radvanovsky's voice is irritating and hectoring; I wouldn't want to meet her in a dark alley.


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## Tsaraslondon (Nov 7, 2013)

Woodduck said:


> Harteros is lightweight and rather anonymous, and Radvanovsky is - well, Radvanovsky. The latter's performance was not helped by her conductor; I wouldn't have thought Verdi's music easy to misunderstand, but this sodden bloke manages it. I confess to finding her voice difficult to enjoy; the tone is frowzy (or is it blowzy?) and opaque, making her vowels more obscure as she ascends in pitch, and her expressive monotony - a sort of relentless mournfulness - covers the whole thing with a thick fog. Harteros has more point and clarity, but the voice lacks individuality and leaves no distinct impression. I guess it'll have to be her by default.


What he said.

I'd add that at least both sopranos do attempt a _mesa di voce_ on the first note, though Radvanovsky's is firmer and more successful. Neither has much chest voice which I would have thought was a prerequisite for the role of Leonora. All that said, it helps that Harteros takes about a minute less on the aria and she sings with more colour and variety, though the voice itself is a little on the light side. However she is more expressive than the somewhat monochrome Radvanovsky, so she gets my vote.


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## Azol (Jan 25, 2015)

Radvanovsky sounds irritating. Must she slide up to almost every note in the slow first part? Ugh...
Harteros is much more enjoyable, flowing (thanks to the conductor), not my ideal Leonora but still sounds easier on my ears, so I vote for Harteros. Slightly underpowered vocally, but it works in concert so why not?

P.S. Is singing correct and tasteful portamenti now a lost art?


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## nina foresti (Mar 11, 2014)

How to say this kindly? Harteros looked like she was singing the telephone book. I know her soprano voice is a more appealing one to the masses so she's got that. But for me Radvanovsky blows it away with a mature, emotional rendition that could be a study in how an aria should be sung. She also has incredible power and knows how to use diminuendos to advantage. It's a first class performance and a clear win for Sondra.


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## Tsaraslondon (Nov 7, 2013)

nina foresti said:


> How to say this kindly? Harteros looked like she was singing the telephone book. I know her soprano voice is a more appealing one to the masses so she's got that. But for me Radvanovsky blows it away with a mature, emotional rendition that could be a study in how an aria should be sung. She also has incredible power and knows how to use diminuendos to advantage. It's a first class performance and a clear win for Sondra.


How to easily offend at least six contributors to this forum and more than half the people who have voted. Apparently we are the masses!

For _a mature, emotional rendition that could be a study in how an aria should be sung_ I wouldn't turn to either of these ladies, but, as a choice between the two, i'm sticking with Harteros for all the reasons stated in various posts above.


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## nina foresti (Mar 11, 2014)

Tsaraslondon:
Please accept my apologies to you and anyone else who felt that my post insulted your favorite singer. 
I think that this particular artistic endeavor has a tendency to be passionate in our emotions and responses many times, which certainly was proven by the hack job done to Radvanovsky above. 
However, I am aware that we all have a need to protect "our own", so I promise to frame my responses a bit more kindly and evoke the message of Thumper in the future on this opera forum.


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## Tsaraslondon (Nov 7, 2013)

nina foresti said:


> Tsaraslondon:
> Please accept my apologies to you and anyone else who felt that my post insulted your favorite singer.
> I think that this particular artistic endeavor has a tendency to be passionate in our emotions and responses many times, which certainly was proven by the hack job done to Radvanovsky above.
> However, I am aware that we all have a need to protect "our own", so I promise to frame my responses a bit more kindly and evoke the message of Thumper in the future on this opera forum.


But I don't think you insulted anyone's favourite singer. You just insulted the people who preferred Harteros's performance of this one aria.

As it happens, Harteros is not a particular favourite of mine. I just preferred her performance out of the two offered for comparison above.

However, apology accepted.


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## Dimace (Oct 19, 2018)

I don't know the guy who makes the conductor with Sondra, but he almost destroyed her effort. (also with his repetitive gestures, they have nothing to do with serious conducting) I must vote for the *Frau Harteros* for her overall better performance. (A capela maybe I had voted other way...) Very difficult aria this one. It reminds me at the beginning of the 2nd movement of Beethoven's Violin Concerto, where you must play sotto voce e tenuto molto with perfect phrasing. Thanks and keep going with these beautiful games.


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## nina foresti (Mar 11, 2014)

Tsaraslondon said:


> But I don't think you insulted anyone's favourite singer. _You just insulted the people who preferred Harteros's performance of this one aria. _
> 
> As it happens, Harteros is not a particular favourite of mine. I just preferred her performance out of the two offered for comparison above.
> 
> However, apology accepted.


What?? Where did I ever personally insult any posters in this thread? I would never attempt to personalize any poster in a derogatory way. In fact, if anything, I actually agreed with the posters in my recognition of Harteros' more appealing voice to the masses (far beyond this forum), because Sondra is not normally known for her pretty voice. 
It disturbs me that you took my words personally to the posters rather than to the singers. It just isn't true.


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## Tsaraslondon (Nov 7, 2013)

nina foresti said:


> What?? Where did I ever personally insult any posters in this thread? I would never attempt to personalize any poster in a derogatory way. In fact, if anything, I actually agreed with the posters in my recognition of Harteros' more appealing voice to the masses (far beyond this forum), because Sondra is not normally known for her pretty voice.
> It disturbs me that you took my words personally to the posters rather than to the singers. It just isn't true.





> How to say this kindly? Harteros looked like she was singing the telephone book. I know her soprano voice is a more appealing one to the masses so she's got that.


Maybe I misunderstood you, but the above underlined comment suggested that those of us who preferred Harteros's performance were being equated with "the masses" (like those who enjoy Katherine Jenkins, for instance). I apologise if I incorrectly inferred your meaning.

Incidentally, as someone who loves the voice of Maria Callas, I am hardly likely to enjoy a singer simply because they make a prettier sound.


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## Azol (Jan 25, 2015)

Dimace said:


> I don't know the guy who makes the conductor with Sondra, but he almost destroyed her effort. (also with his repetitive gestures, they have nothing to do with serious conducting)


The conductor in the first video is https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constantine_Orbelian
Video seems to be taken in Moscow, 2009.


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## Dimace (Oct 19, 2018)

Azol said:


> The conductor in the first video is https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constantine_Orbelian
> Video seems to be taken in Moscow, 2009.


We badly need hand workers in Germany. Maybe he can join us in our heavy industry. (OK. Maybe he was only a bad night. Respect for him, because he is unknown to me and who knows what good things he has done in his carrier.)


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## damianjb1 (Jan 1, 2016)

I'd vote for Harteros. I find her sound much more beautiful than Radvanovsky's. The fact that Harteros sings it at a much more sensible tempo certainly helps too.


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## hammeredklavier (Feb 18, 2018)

I mistakenly read the title as "(the) Razumovsky(s) vs (the) Harp"


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

hammeredklavier said:


> I mistakenly read the title as "(the) Razumovsky(s) vs (the) Harp"


Ah yes. The unfinished second opera of Beethoven, from which he culled the best material for some string quartets before his resourceful cook fished the manuscript out of the trash and used it to wrap some really gross fudge.


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## hammeredklavier (Feb 18, 2018)

Woodduck said:


> Ah yes. The unfinished second opera of Beethoven, from which he culled the best material for some string quartets before his resourceful cook fished the manuscript out of the trash and used it to wrap some really gross fudge.


*Beethoven's Grosse Fuge: An Opera Without Words*
Lorne Dechtenberg 
http://upbeatarts.com/downloads/fuge.pdf
"Some theorists have chosen to understand this structure in terms of its connections to traditional single-movement forms (such as sonata-allegro and rondo), while others prefer to view the piece as several movements combined into one. But few, if any, have pointed out the how closely the form of the piece resembles that of an opera."


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

hammeredklavier said:


> *Beethoven's Grosse Fuge: An Opera Without Words*
> Lorne Dechtenberg
> http://upbeatarts.com/downloads/fuge.pdf
> "Some theorists have chosen to understand this structure in terms of its connections to traditional single-movement forms (such as sonata-allegro and rondo), while others prefer to view the piece as several movements combined into one. But few, if any, have pointed out the how closely the form of the piece resembles that of an opera."


Which opera? _Giulio Cesare_ or _Pelleas et Melisande?_


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## hammeredklavier (Feb 18, 2018)

Woodduck said:


> Which opera? _Giulio Cesare_ or _Pelleas et Melisande?_


Licht Licht Licht


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

hammeredklavier said:


> Licht Licht Licht


 ...................................


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