# Your favorite assoluta voices



## BalalaikaBoy (Sep 25, 2014)

in the interests of not getting to pedantic with definitions, you can call "assoluta" any singer whose voice straddles the line between mezzo and soprano. some of my favorites include 
- Shirley Verrett
- Fiorenza Cossotto 
- Agnes Baltsa 
- Rosa Ponselle


----------



## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

Well, there's Yma Sumac...

But you said mezzo to soprano, not euphonium to theremin, didn't you.


----------



## The Conte (May 31, 2015)

I'm not sure I understand the question. I'm going to interpret it as who is your favourite singer who sang/sings both mezzo and soprano roles.

Maria Callas
Magda Olivero
Joyce DiDonato

N.


----------



## damianjb1 (Jan 1, 2016)

Jessye Norman
Astrid Varnay
Leonie Rysanek


----------



## Tsaraslondon (Nov 7, 2013)

Callas. I can think of no other singer who fulfilled the demands of so many disparate roles and composers. It's not just that she could sing Verdi and Puccini, Wagner and the _bel canto_, but the dramatic range of the roles she sang. Just think of the roles she sang and their various demands. In Verdi alone she sang with equal success Abigaille, Lady Macbeth, Gilda, Violetta, both the Trovatore and Forza Leonoras, Elena, Amelia and Aida, and she sang all these roles on stage, not just in the studio.



> There is hardy a bar in the whole range of nineteenth-century music for high soprano that seriously tested her powers.


 Walter Legge.

Admittedly she never sang a mezzo role on stage and I think Dalila's low tessitura would have probably tested her on stage, but I have no doubt she'd have been able to sing such roles as Carmen and Eboli with ease.


----------



## The Conte (May 31, 2015)

I also have to add Martha Modl.

N.


----------



## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

I don't like the term "assoluta" (Italian for "absolute," "total," "complete," etc.) as a name for a voice type. There's no such thing as a "complete" voice - i.e. a voice that has an effective range from contralto to high soprano and a flawless technique capable of singing anything. In my time Callas came closest, but only in her prime, and hardly anyone came close to her. There probably haven't been enough singers of such capabilities to constitute a type. Some of the singers mentioned have successfully bridged the soprano-mezzo divide, but don't exhibit extraordinary technical skill.

Ernestine Schumann-Heink was classified as a contralto, but except for the highest soprano notes she had everything else in her vocal arsenal. Her trill alone was worth the price of admission.Try these:


----------



## Tsaraslondon (Nov 7, 2013)

Victoria De Los Angeles is another singer who sang both soprano and mezzo roles, and though she sang Manon and Violetta with success, she isn't entirely happy in the upper reaches of those roles. I know of at least one singing teacher who is convinced she was actually a mezzo, though I'm not sure I'd agree. That said she sang Rosina in the mezzo keys and was an appreciable Charlotte and Carmen.


----------



## Revitalized Classics (Oct 31, 2018)

Pia Tassinari's lovely voice was tricky to define and spanned soprano and mezzo roles

- as Violetta





- as Suzel





-as Margherita





- as Carmen





-as Dalila


----------



## BalalaikaBoy (Sep 25, 2014)

The Conte said:


> I'm not sure I understand the question. I'm going to interpret it as who is your favourite singer who sang/sings both mezzo and soprano roles.
> 
> Maria Callas
> Magda Olivero
> ...


that's a valid interpretation. the question is a general one.


----------



## BalalaikaBoy (Sep 25, 2014)

Woodduck said:


> I don't like the term "assoluta" (Italian for "absolute," "total," "complete," etc.) as a name for a voice type. There's no such thing as a "complete" voice - i.e. a voice that has an effective range from contralto to high soprano and a flawless technique capable of singing anything. In my time Callas came closest, but only in her prime, and hardly anyone came close to her. There probably haven't been enough singers of such capabilities to constitute a type. Some of the singers mentioned have successfully bridged the soprano-mezzo divide, but don't exhibit extraordinary technical skill.


understandable. my dilemma was that my choice was otherwise between either a cumbersome phrase "singers who span between soprano and mezzo" or more hyper-specific categories like falcon, dugazon, etc and getting lost in obscure classifications that 90% of people don't even use.



> Ernestine Schumann-Heink was classified as a contralto, but except for the highest soprano notes she had everything else in her vocal arsenal. Her trill alone was worth the price of admission.Try these:


truly an underrated singer from a time before contraltos sang with fake, artificially swallowed placement akin to a counter-tenor (okay, maybe that's a lil extreme, but still).


----------



## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

In modern times, only Callas qualified in 1948/49 and part of the 1950s. Listen to her, and try to contrast DiDonato, Olivero, De Los Angeles and any other soprano you can name (Verrett, Bumbry, Gencer) that even approaches the divine Maria. 
Singing soprano and mezzos roles concurrently and/or alternately alone doesn't qualify. You need the absolute facility, ferocity, incisiveness, élan, agility, acuti, authority of style, and musicianship to be a soprano assoluto. Yes, Maria Callas, absolutely!









Also, see previous thread: 
Https://www.talkclassical.com/44122-soprano-assoluta-its-place.html


----------



## Tsaraslondon (Nov 7, 2013)

MAS said:


> In modern times, only Callas qualified in 1948/49 and part of the 1950s. Listen to her, and try to contrast DiDonato, Olivero, De Los Angeles and any other soprano you can name (Verrett, Bumbry, Gencer) that even approaches the divine Maria.
> Singing soprano and mezzos roles concurrently and/or alternately alone doesn't qualify. You need the absolute facility, ferocity, incisiveness, élan, agility, acuti, authority of style, and musicianship to be a soprano assoluto. Yes, Maria Callas, absolutely!
> 
> View attachment 127457
> ...


Actually I agree with you, but the OP had made the qualification of singers who were or had been successful in both soprano and mezzo roles, which is why I mentioned De Los Angeles. Grace Bumbry and Maria Ewing might also belong to that category, but in the usual sense of _assoluto_, a soprano who could virtually sing anything, then early Callas is the only singer who fits the bill. It is one of the reasons she caused such a sensation and became known as the soprano who could sing anything. Singing Elvira in *I Puritani* whilst still engaged as Brünnhilde in *Die Walküre* released her and gave her wings to fly, and those wings took her to a wide variety of different composers and roles - Haydn, Mozart, Cherubini and Gluck, Rossini, Bellini and Donizetti, to add to the Puccini, Wagner and Verdi she was already singing. The range of roles she sang was also staggering, as she sang Rossini's Fiorilla one day and Kundry the next. In the same season in Mexico, she sang Gilda and Tosca, as well as Violetta and Lucia. Can you think of one other soprano who ever did that? Furthermore she not only managed to sing the notes on the page with accuracy, but somehow assimilated the differing styles of each composer. She was a musical miracle. Not for nothing did Victor De Sabata say to Walter Legge,



> If the public could understand, as we do, how deeply and utterly musical Callas is, they would be stunned.


----------



## The Conte (May 31, 2015)

MAS said:


> In modern times, only Callas qualified in 1948/49 and part of the 1950s. Listen to her, and try to contrast DiDonato, Olivero, De Los Angeles and any other soprano you can name (Verrett, Bumbry, Gencer) that even approaches the divine Maria.


Yes, quite. However, as Tsaras has pointed out the OP set the definition quite wide and the title of the thread is Assoluta voice*s*. I also agree with Woodduck, if a voice type is so rare that only one singer in a generation fits the bill, can it said to be a voice type. Isn't it rather an exception?

Whilst Callas' Violetta remains unparalleled, you only have to listen to Olivero or De los Angeles in the role to understand how versatile they were and how able they were to adapt to rep outside of their normal sphere.

N.


----------



## Revitalized Classics (Oct 31, 2018)

I don't think Montserrat Caballe has been mentioned so far. Her versatility was pretty extraordinary.

Virginia Zeani sang just about everything.

Historically, Lilli Lehmann and Rosa Ponselle stand out too


----------



## BalalaikaBoy (Sep 25, 2014)

Revitalized Classics said:


> I don't think Montserrat Caballe has been mentioned so far. Her versatility was pretty extraordinary.
> Virginia Zeani sang just about everything.


wonderful singers both, but zero mezzo qualities to either



> Historically, Lilli Lehmann and Rosa Ponselle stand out too


yes. much more along the lines of what I'm talking about. also wonderful singers both


----------



## Open Book (Aug 14, 2018)

Tsaraslondon said:


> Callas. I can think of no other singer who fulfilled the demands of so many disparate roles and composers. It's not just that she could sing Verdi and Puccini, Wagner and the _bel canto_, but the dramatic range of the roles she sang. Just think of the roles she sang and their various demands. In Verdi alone she sang with equal success Abigaille, Lady Macbeth, Gilda, Violetta, both the Trovatore and Forza Leonoras, Elena, Amelia and Aida, and she sang all these roles on stage, not just in the studio.


I was curious as to whether Callas had ever sung Mozart. When I search I see a few discs that are collections or recitals, but that's it. I'll bet they have some of Mozart's concert arias rather than music from complete operas. I wonder why she never sang Mozart, anyone know? Not that I can picture it. Seems like it would be an odd fit for her.


----------



## The Conte (May 31, 2015)

Open Book said:


> I was curious as to whether Callas had ever sung Mozart. When I search I see a few discs that are collections or recitals, but that's it. I'll bet they have some of Mozart's concert arias rather than music from complete operas. I wonder why she never sang Mozart, anyone know? Not that I can picture it. Seems like it would be an odd fit for her.


I can understand it seeming an odd fit for her, especially if you are used to modern performance practices rather than Mozart as it was sung up to and including the 60s. There is one Mozart studio recital disc:









The Mozart arias on this disc are Porgi Amor from Nozze di Figaro, Donna Anna's two arias and Donna Elvira's 'Mi tradi'. she didn't sing any of these roles on stage, although Rudolf Bing at the Met wanted her to do Donna Anna. These were, unfortunately, recorded late in her career (1964) and don't show her at her vocal best. The Porgi Amor is odd and uninteresting, whereas the Donna Anna arias, despite lapses in technique, do at least show how her interpretative gifts could transfer to the classical rep. The best aria of the four is Mi tradi. Callas is on fire and is as good as any of the competition in this aria.

She also recorded 'Non mi dir' as a test for EMI in 1953 and the two takes can be found on this disc:









Callas in the recording studio is one thing, but what of Callas live? Her only Mozart stage role was Konstanze in Entfuhrung, which she sang in Italian at La Scala in 1952. No recording of those performances exist (unfortunately as the great buffo bass, Salvatore Baccaloni was singing Osmin). However, Callas sang 'Marten alle Arten' (in Italian translation as 'Tutte le torture') in a radio concert in 1954 and there _is_ a recording of that. It is absolutely stunning in its virtuosity. It can be heard in the best sound on the following double CD set:









Or on YouTube here:






N.


----------



## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

^^^ I've always wondered what Mozart was thinking in writing that long introduction to "Martern aller Arten." It sounds exactly like the introduction to a concerto. Wikipedia describes the action at this point: "The Pasha enters, demands her love, and threatens to use force, but she resolutely rejects him." Perhaps he's supposed to chase her around the room for a couple of minutes until she manages to kick him in the groin and leave him writhing in pain while she sings about torture. It's a comedy, after all.


----------



## Open Book (Aug 14, 2018)

Woodduck said:


> ^^^ I've always wondered what Mozart was thinking in writing that long introduction to "Martern aller Arten." It sounds exactly like the introduction to a concerto. Wikipedia describes the action at this point: "The Pasha enters, demands her love, and threatens to use force, but she resolutely rejects him." Perhaps he's supposed to chase her around the room for a couple of minutes until she manages to kick him in the groin and leave him writhing in pain while she sings about torture. It's a comedy, after all.


Over two minutes before the singing starts. It's there to give Constanze time to think in detail about each torture the Sultan has previously enumerated. And still reject him.

It's comedic like Figaro and Don Giovanni are. There are some great serious elements, like the duet when Belmonte and Constanze declare their love as they face death together.

I went to a concert performance (no scenery) and was annoyed that the audience lapped up the comedic elements (mostly with a hammy Osmin) but didn't seem to appreciate other things, including that duet. I don't think this opera is that well known to most people, to be fair.


----------



## Open Book (Aug 14, 2018)

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


----------



## The Conte (May 31, 2015)

Woodduck said:


> ^^^ I've always wondered what Mozart was thinking in writing that long introduction to "Martern aller Arten." It sounds exactly like the introduction to a concerto. Wikipedia describes the action at this point: "The Pasha enters, demands her love, and threatens to use force, but she resolutely rejects him." Perhaps he's supposed to chase her around the room for a couple of minutes until she manages to kick him in the groin and leave him writhing in pain while she sings about torture. It's a comedy, after all.


Well, that puts paid to all those theories about Mozart's music "embodying" the emotions of a moment like no other. If you want music fit for randy men chasing women round sofas, then this can't be beaten:






N.


----------



## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

Dimitrova tackled the biggest Italian dramatic soprano roles of all, including being an incredible Turandot and Norma, but at the same time her absolutely ginormous voice also allowed her to be one of the most successful Amneris's of her day. The same was true of the great Astrid Varnay, who sang both Amneris and Aida. Regarding Callas, I don't dispute her vocally being in this category, but correct me if I am wrong, but apart from recording arias from Samson and Delilah and Carmen, she never sang a mezzo role on stage. The exception was the female role in Macbeth, which is sung both by mezzos and sopranos successfully. Regarding Verrett and Bumbry, they were both good solid sopranos, but world class mezzos. A bit of trivia, did you know there is a video of mature Nilsson singing the big seduction aria from Carmen? One last inclusion in the discussion is Marjorie Lawrence who sang both soprano and mezzo roles, and Eileen Farrell did an outstanding job singing mezzo arias in the biopic of her life, Interrupted Melody. There is also the unusual case of Flagstad, who only sang Wagnerian soprano roles on stage, but recorded lots of low lying lieder normally sung by mezzos very very successfully. It was said that even early in her career, the low lying Schubert lied all lay very comfortably with her voice.


----------

