# NEW Round One: In Questa Reggia:Lindstrom, Dimitrova, Nilsson



## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

I really messed up the first video contest and we closed it. No one liked any candidate other than the disqualified Nilsson.. Here is a different pairing. Hopefully you will like this better. I hope you can forgive my blunder. I was so blown away with Nilsson as the glamor diva I overlooked issues in her performance.I'm the only person here who really likes Marc.


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## ALT (Mar 1, 2021)

Nilsson, obviously.


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## Agamenon (Apr 22, 2019)

My father listened Mrs Nilsson in several performances of this aria.

He told me that she was a mixture of ice, fire and thunderstorms!!!


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## nina foresti (Mar 11, 2014)

I think it is folly to even attempt Birgit in the same sandbox with two neophytes. Even with this particular film (is it a film and not a video?) one can see the true Birgit shine through.


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## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

I had not heard Lise Lindstrom before. Scandinavians certainly seem to inhabit the heights of the operatic firmament, though she's labeled as an American. At the time of the video, Lindstrom (Lindström?) seems at ease with the high notes. I'm not sure I like her sound overall as recorded. But I'm glad they found an actual Asian Calaf, though I don't know who he is.

I sometimes like Dimitrová's grainy tone and powerhouse vocalism, but I find it curiously unsympathetic here and the highs take some effort - the costume doesn't help, it lacks grandeur - is it a nightgown? Her hair is undressed, too. Nicola Martinucci made a career out of the _Principe ignoto_ but he is somewhat uninvolved here.

Nilsson is in her element and in regal voice, easily slaying all rivals.


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

Since this aria is tailored to what Nilsson does better than other people, it isn't surprising that she does it better than these other people. Dimitrova is actually pretty good except for that thing Nilsson does better. Lindstrom does nothing wrong but is simply outclassed in terms of basic vocal material.


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## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

I am happy I was able to present Nilsson performing well this time. We all have off days I guess and this was mine. She deserved to win and not be disqualified. That really bothered me. She has some very tough competition next round.


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## nina foresti (Mar 11, 2014)

Try this on for size:


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## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

nina foresti said:


> Try this on for size:


The great duo! Thanks.


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## ScottK (Dec 23, 2021)

I've been here just long enough to know that one Seattleoperafan can beat himself up about these contests. But whatever you felt about the first one, this one, for me, is a gem! I don't listen to these big voices very often and the only In Questa Reggia I've ever listened to aside from Nilsson came from that legendary Turandot, Leonie Rysanek So this felt like a wonderful demonstration of good, very good and forget about it!

I've never heard of Lindstrom and I immediately thought she sounded good (all of the glory of the Nilsson sound is probably not set in my memory the way it is with some of you). Before the end some passages sounded a little thin but all in all I was impressed....and totally unprepared for the beautiful sound that Dimitrova made! Just a frequently heard name to me, I thought she was just going to be loud and strong and then comes this big, beautiful sound. I can't say I've ever gotten alot of variety of expression from great big voiced sopranos (one of the reasons I've enjoyed Flagstad, whenever I heard her, so much!) but I also don't recall any of them phoning it in and thats how I felt about these three as well. They sounded involved in their character. But the combination of instrument and Puccini felt like the real source of the impact.

After liking Dimitrova so surprisingly much I was wondering if Birgit was going to have a challenger...until she sang the opening line! Forget about it!!! She truly is amazing! No need to elaborate my response I just felt that as good as the other two were, she was still in a league above. For what she does and the way she does it, I'm guessing pretty much a league of one!

But this threesome was terrific! Very well done!!!


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## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

ScottK said:


> I've been here just long enough to know that one Seattleoperafan can beat himself up about these contests. But whatever you felt about the first one, this one, for me, is a gem! I don't listen to these big voices very often and the only In Questa Reggia I've ever listened to aside from Nilson came from that legendary Turandot, Leonie Rysanek So this felt like a wonderful demonstration of good, very good and forget about it!
> 
> I've never heard of Lindstrom and I immediately thought she sounded good (all of the glory of the Nilson sound is probably not set in my memory the way it is with some of you). Before the end some passages sounded a little thin but all in all I was impressed....and totally unprepared for the beautiful sound that Dimitrova made! Just a frequently heard name to me, I thought she was just going to be loud and strong and then comes this big, beautiful sound. I can't say I've ever gotten alot of variety of expression from great big voiced sopranos (one of the reasons I've enjoyed Flagstad, whenever I heard her, so much!) but I also don't recall any of them phoning it in and thats how I felt about these three as well. They sounded involved in their character. But the combination of instrument and Puccini felt like the real source of the impact.
> 
> ...


I care more about these contests than I should LOL Thanks for enjoying this contest so much. I was very very surprised in Lindstrom, but who knows what she sounds like in a theater. To me Dimitrova is just a notch below Nilsson. She was both a mezzo and a dramatic soprano! In the Riddle Scene her chest voice was the best of any Turandot I've heard except for maybe Goerke. Wait till the next Turandot's. Nilsson may lose possibly !!!!!! You will be amazed.


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## ScottK (Dec 23, 2021)

This may be a story that all Nilsson fans know but ever since my friend shared it, I love thinking about it. For anyone who hasn't heard it, this is the way it was told to me...

Julliard had conducted the Callas Master classes in the early 70's. In the early 80's the Manhattan School of Music hired Nilsson to give a series of master classes also in front of an audience. Obviously the hall was filled with Diva-loving Birgit fans and the way they brought her out was this. They played one of her recordings of In Questa Reggia beginning near the end. A speaking voice came over the loud speaker, and over the music, saying something like..."The 1960's was a time filled with glowing opera stars. But none shone brighter than Birgit Nilsson".. at which point Nilsson walked onstage, singing with the music, the final line right up to the high C!
The place must have gone friggin' nuts!!!


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## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

ScottK said:


> This may be a story that all Nilsson fans know but ever since my friend shared it, I love thinking about it. For anyone who hasn't heard it, this is the way it was told to me...
> 
> Julliard had conducted the Callas Master classes in the early 70's. In the early 80's the Manhattan School of Music hired Nilsson to give a series of master classes also in front of an audience. Obviously the hall was filled with Diva-loving Birgit fans and the way they brought her out was this. They played one of her recordings of In Questa Reggia beginning near the end. A speaking voice came over the loud speaker, and over the music, saying something like..."The 1960's was a time filled with glowing opera stars. But none shone brighter than Birgit Nilsson".. at which point Nilsson walked onstage, singing with the music, the final line right up to the high C!
> The place must have gone friggin' nuts!!!


That is great!!!!!!! She never lost those high notes as a senior artist. Her Hojotohos in her late 70's were still wonders. She has the best stories and that is wonderful.


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

nina foresti said:


> Try this on for size:


The first time I heard one of the live recordings of _Turandot_ with Nilsson and Corelli, I was almost literally blown away by the tornado of sound they produced. It really is hard to believe that human throats can emit so much thrilling sound, especially for the duration of an opera. Nilsson, never fazed by anything, called Turandot her "vacation role." Callas, on the other hand, called it a "voice-killer." I guess you have to grow up on a Swedish farm.


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## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

Woodduck said:


> The first time I heard one of the live recordings of _Turandot_ with Nilsson and Corelli, I was almost literally blown away by the tornado of sound they produced. It really is hard to believe that human throats can emit so much thrilling sound, especially for the duration of an opera. Nilsson, never fazed by anything, called Turandot her "vacation role." Callas, on the other hand, called it a "voice-killer." I guess you have to grow up on a Swedish farm.


I take this recording on in one of my opera talks on on my Youtube Channel and it got a surprisng number of views for an opera topic. My Toastmaster Club loved it and I called it "The Princess and the Roller Coaster". Every time Nilsson and Corelli sang great high notes I had everyone raise their hands in the air like they were on a roller coaster getting ready for the big rush just before those killer B's and C's. The club had a lot of fun and they learned how to experience the thrill of this golden pair's glory notes. I ended up doing three Youtube/ Toastmaster talks involving Nilsson and people really enjoyed them. She is a very interesting artist. I like Flagstad better, but she just sang so incredibly without ever being an interesting person like Nilsson . I think the only prima donna more interesting than Nilsson was Callas.


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## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

Seattleoperafan said:


> I take this recording on in one of my opera talks on on my Youtube Channel and it got a surprisng number of views for an opera topic. My Toastmaster Club loved it and I called it "The Princess and the Roller Coaster". Every time Nilsson and Corelli sang great high notes I had everyone raise their hands in the air like they were on a roller coaster getting ready for the big rush just before those killer B's and C's. The club had a lot of fun and they learned how to experience the thrill of this golden pair's glory notes. I ended up doing three Youtube talks involving Nilsson and people really enjoyed them. She is a very interesting artist.


I suspect there are as many closeted opera _aficionados_ on YouTube as there are lurkers on this forum who benefit from the posts but don't contribute even a simple "like."

I have most of Corelli's *Turandot* pirate recordings, a lot of them with Nilsson - he makes such a difference to the overall effect of the opera with that trumpeting voice and the almost unbelievable _diminuendi_ neither of which other tenors can approach.

He is remarkably consistent in most of the performances. I should say they, if I include Nilsson!


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## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

MAS said:


> I suspect there are as many closeted opera _aficionados_ on YouTube as there are lurkers on this forum who benefit from the posts but don't contribute even a simple "like."
> 
> I have most of Corelli's *Turandot* pirate recordings, a lot of them with Nilsson - he makes such a difference to the overall effect of the opera with that trumpeting voice and the almost unbelievable _diminuendi_ that other tenors cannot approach.
> 
> He is remarkably consistent in most of the performances. I should say they, if I include Nilsson!


Plus he is such a gorgeous, tall prince!!!!!! No one has been more thrilling. I think Nilsson/ Corelli has got to be the most thrilling Turandot duo in history!!!!!!!!!!!!! The other great Turandot's lacked such a tenor.


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## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

Seattleoperafan said:


> Plus he is such a gorgeous, tall prince!!!!!! No one has been more thrilling. I think Nilsson/ Corelli has got to be the most thrilling Turandot duo in history!!!!!!!!!!!!! The other great Turandot's lacked such a tenor.


The other Turandots didn't have to compete with that great voice and probably thanked the gods!


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

Amid all the well-deserved adulation for Corelli's Calaf, a role his voice was made for, I have to put in a word of praise for Bjorling, whose voice was too small to sing the part in the theater but whose RCA recording with Nilsson (and Tebaldi and Tozzi, for a splendid quartet) is glorious. You don't get the feeling, as you do with many smaller-voiced singers who record roles a size too large, that he's "cheating" with the help of the recording engineers, although it has to be said that the recording doesn't capture the size of Nilsson's voice as later recordings did. The tenderness in Bjorling's voice sets him apart and makes Calaf seem more sympathetic than he actually is. If a live Nilsson-Corelli Turandot is a library essential, the Nilsson-Bjorling is for me an essential studio supplement.


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## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

Woodduck said:


> Amid all the well-deserved adulation for Corelli's Calaf, a role his voice was made for, I have to put in a word of praise for Bjorling, whose voice was too small to sing the part in the theater but whose RCA recording with Nilsson (and Tebaldi and Tozzi, for a splendid quartet) is glorious. You don't get the feeling, as you do with many smaller-voiced singers who record roles a size too large, that he's "cheating" with the help of the recording engineers, although it has to be said that the recording doesn't capture the size of Nilsson's voice as later recordings did. The tenderness in Bjorling's voice sets him apart and makes Calaf seem more sympathetic than he actually is. If a live Nilsson-Corelli Turandot is a library essential, the Nilsson-Bjorling is for me an essential studio supplement.


I suspect that the extreme resonance found in Bjorling's voice meant it carried well in the house despite it not being a powerhouse voice like Corelli. They both had lots of Squillo.


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## The Conte (May 31, 2015)

Woodduck said:


> The first time I heard one of the live recordings of _Turandot_ with Nilsson and Corelli, I was almost literally blown away by the tornado of sound they produced. It really is hard to believe that human throats can emit so much thrilling sound, especially for the duration of an opera. Nilsson, never fazed by anything, called Turandot her "vacation role." Callas, on the other hand, called it a "voice-killer." I guess you have to grow up on a Swedish farm.


Absolutely, whilst the studio recording with Corelli and Nilsson is possibly my favourite, their live recordings of the opera give you more of an impression of what the voices sounded like in the theatre. It's something very special.

N.


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## The Conte (May 31, 2015)

I really like Lindstrom's version. Her voice doesn't sound big enough to be a Turandot, but she has sung the role at the ROH (I didn't see it). I like the way that she naturally enunciates the text and she is the most italianate of these singers. Dimitrova has a more stereotypical Turandot voice and I like her here. However, she swallows her vowels like most slavic singers and that rules her out for me. Nilsson could sound like a buzz saw at times, but not here and you can understand every word. It's fitting that this comes from a RAI broadcast as I think Italians would have nothing to complain about as Nilsson is very italianate here.

I was open to voting for Lindstrom, but Nilsson, of course, wins.

N.


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## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

The Conte said:


> I really like Lindstrom's version. Her voice doesn't sound big enough to be a Turandot, but she has sung the role at the ROH (I didn't see it). I like the way that she naturally enunciates the text and she is the most italianate of these singers. Dimitrova has a more stereotypical Turandot voice and I like her here. However, she swallows her vowels like most slavic singers and that rules her out for me. Nilsson could sound like a buzz saw at times, but not here and you can understand every word. It's fitting that this comes from a RAI broadcast as I think Italians would have nothing to complain about as Nilsson is very italianate here.
> 
> I was open to voting for Lindstrom, but Nilsson, of course, wins.
> 
> N.


I think part of the fun of these contests in the past for me was not so much picking the winner as discovering new talent. Singers who can really sing Turandot are few and far between. You might be amazed next time.


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## Op.123 (Mar 25, 2013)

Nilsson takes this one with ease. Perfect voice for Turandot. I'd be very interested to see a two-way contest between Nilsson and Grob-Prandl in this aria though. Anne Roselle also recorded a wonderful version of this aria, albeit in German.


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## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

Op.123 said:


> Nilsson takes this one with ease. Perfect voice for Turandot. I'd be very interested to see a two-way contest between Nilsson and Grob-Prandl in this aria though. Anne Roselle also recorded a wonderful version of this aria, albeit in German.


I seriously thought of including Grob-Prandl in the next contest but this crowd doesn't like her much. I can't imagine hearing her live. Wait till you hear who I have lined up. Nice for you to comment!


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## ScottK (Dec 23, 2021)

Woodduck said:


> Amid all the well-deserved adulation for Corelli's Calaf, a role his voice was made for, I have to put in a word of praise for Bjorling, whose voice was too small to sing the part in the theater but whose RCA recording with Nilsson (and Tebaldi and Tozzi, for a splendid quartet) is glorious. You don't get the feeling, as you do with many smaller-voiced singers who record roles a size too large, that he's "cheating" with the help of the recording engineers, although it has to be said that the recording doesn't capture the size of Nilsson's voice as later recordings did. The tenderness in Bjorling's voice sets him apart and makes Calaf seem more sympathetic than he actually is. If a live Nilsson-Corelli Turandot is a library essential, the Nilsson-Bjorling is for me an essential studio supplement.


My friend who created a "Turandot" cassette for me with music and explanation, long ago, used the Nilsson/Bjoerling which he would refer to with a wink as "the original!"


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## Tsaraslondon (Nov 7, 2013)

This wasn't as clear cut for me as it evidently was for most people, due to the fact that I don't much like the sound of Nilsson's voice, except above the stave, when it comes over as a pure shaft of light.

I wasn't expecting to like Lindstrom, who is presumably the most recent contender. However she rather suprised me and I thought that in many ways she gave the most interesting interpretation, even if she perhaps was the least entitled vocally. Still she managed the highs well enough. Dmitrova managed them better, but I didn't find her interpretation very interesting and she made little of the words.

And so to Nilsson, whose singing, like her or not, seemed to cause her the least effort imaginable. The sound just literally poured out, and when she got to the final bars she was in a different world from the others. I still don't much like the sound she makes lower down and I think Lindstrom gave a much more detailed and complex reading of the scene, but there is no doubt that vocally Nilsson's total ease of emission wins the day. So Nilsson it is, even if I didn't think it was quite the easy win others did.


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## vivalagentenuova (Jun 11, 2019)

I've heard Lindstrom live in this role. Her voice carried better and with more enjoyment given than the other cast members in that performance. Her performance was about as good as you're going to find these days for this role, and the voice is refreshingly wobble free. Still, it has a slightly hard edge (particularly on top, where the tone is squally) and the middle is weak.

Neither Nilsson nor Dimitrova is a favorite of mine. Both have impressively powerful instruments, but I don't like they way they put notes together. Nilsson's tone is piercing, for better and worse. Also, I'm often not sure quite what pitch she's singing. It doesn't sound really off pitch, but it doesn't sound on pitch either. 

Nilsson is definitely the best here, but I don't actually enjoy her performance. No vote.


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## Azol (Jan 25, 2015)

I know all three performances and La Nilsson is matchless, although Ghena follows close.


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