# The best singing ever recorded



## Tuoksu (Sep 3, 2015)

What is, according to you, the single best vocal live performance ever recorded? (In Opera of course and *LIVE*.)

To me, this is the epitome of vocal perfection. The "brava!" at the end says it all. Don't forget it's La Scala and you don't those that easily.


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## howlingfantods (Jul 27, 2015)

I don't know about superlatives like "best ever recorded" but I think one of the times I've been most impressed listening to a performance was Tebaldi in Act 2 Scene 2 of Forza with Molinari-Pradelli.

"Sono giunta… Madre pietosa Vergine" from the start of the clip below through around the 7 minute mark, then "La vergine degli angli" from around the 31:30 mark to about the 35 minute mark.






But I know I'm inviting the wrath of the Callas fans for daring to suggest anyone other than Callas in repertoire she also recorded :lol:


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## The Conte (May 31, 2015)

I certainly won't complain about somebody posting a clip of Tebaldi from that wonderful _Forza_ and it is one of the few Tebaldi recordings where I think her singing is all round excellent.

As for Lady Macbeth and Callas, were ever a role and a singer more destined to come together? This is truly one of the greatest examples of singing live.

I can't just choose one example. There are some wonderful recordings which feature stunning coloratura delivery and then there are those moments of great drama (often with the likes of Callas, Olivero, Simionato or Corelli), is it possible to choose just one?

Rather than a volley of florid notes that makes your jaw drop in amazement or a superbly sung aria that brings the house down. I give you one phrase from a recitative made up of solely three notes on the page and yet, in this interpretation, the way it is sung and the intensity with which it is delivered is so artful that it almost gets an ovation and holds up the performance mid recitative. I give you "Son Io" (at 01:44) from La Scala in 1955 sung by Mario del Monaco and Maria Callas (who else?).






N.


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## brunumb (Dec 8, 2017)

Tuoksu said:


> What is, according to you, the single best vocal live performance ever recorded? (In Opera of course and *LIVE*.)
> 
> To me, this is the epitome of vocal perfection. The "brava!" at the end says it all. Don't forget it's La Scala and you don't those that easily.


I'll see your Maria Callas and raise one Shirley Verrett


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

brunumb said:


> I'll see your Maria Callas and raise one Shirley Verrett


The only singer who could rival Callas in that role.


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## nina foresti (Mar 11, 2014)

I don't know if you meant "in sound" or "in singing" and performance.
If you meant the latter,no question in my mind that the award goes directly to Cilea's_ Adriana Lecouvreur_ with Olivero/Corelli/Simionato/Bastianini. Stupendous in every way.


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## Rogerx (Apr 27, 2018)

Joan Sutherland; "Mad Scene"; Lucia di Lammermoor; LONDON DEBUT ; Gaetano Donizetti

Joan Sutherland--SOprano
Tulio Serafin--COnductor
Covent Garden Orchestra.

:angel:


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## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

I would say The Art of the Prima Donna by Joan Sutherland qualifies. It set the gold standard of coloratura singing where she sang arias famous by all the great coloraturas in history.. No one else could have sung Bel Raggio like she did with one of the two or three greatest high E's in history. Astonishing.It BLEW the critics away in it's day!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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## BalalaikaBoy (Sep 25, 2014)

Woodduck said:


> The only singer who could rival Callas in that role.


also Dimitrova, but every other singer is in a league far below these three singers.


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

BalalaikaBoy said:


> also Dimitrova, but every other singer is in a league far below these three singers.


Why not compare her in the same aria?






A human blowtorch. Impressive, but not a voice I can warm to. Third place here, I think.


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## The Conte (May 31, 2015)

Seattleoperafan said:


> I would say The Art of the Prima Donna by Joan Sutherland qualifies. It set the gold standard of coloratura singing where she sang arias famous by all the great coloraturas in history.. No one else could have sung Bel Raggio like she did with one of the two or three greatest high E's in history. Astonishing.It BLEW the critics away in it's day!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Whilst I agree that this album could well qualify for some of the best singing on record, it doesn't qualify for this thread as the OP states that it is the best live singing captured in recorded sound. However, there is a live recording of Semiramide with Sutherland and Simionato and the bravura from the two is something awe inspiring.

N.


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## Tsaraslondon (Nov 7, 2013)

Woodduck said:


> Why not compare her in the same aria?
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I think so too. Both Callas and Verrett are much more acurate, and where are the written trills? I also think they are both much more imaginative. Impressively powerful singing, nonetheless.


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## nina foresti (Mar 11, 2014)

Although I would certainly agree strongly with you about _The Art of the Prima Donna_, the OP clearly stated in* bold *that choices be *Live*.
I'd also add to that Leontyne Price's "_Blue Album._"


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## The Conte (May 31, 2015)

Another bel canto moment from Callas in 1955 (her magic year). There's no mistaking how this young girl feels and you can probably guess more or less what is happening without understanding a word of Italian:






N.


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## BalalaikaBoy (Sep 25, 2014)

nina foresti said:


> I don't know if you meant "in sound" or "in singing" and performance.
> If you meant the latter,no question in my mind that the award goes directly to Cilea's_ Adriana Lecouvreur_ with *Olivero/Corelli/Simionato/Bastianini*. Stupendous in every way.


now THAT, ladies and gentlemen...is an all star cast.


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## BalalaikaBoy (Sep 25, 2014)

some which come to mind immediately
1) Elena Souliotis's Salgo Gia from Nabucco 
2) Maria Callas's D'amore Al Dolce Impero from Armida
3) Joan Sutherland's Nella Pace del Mesto Risposo (specifically the debut in 1971) from Maria Stuarda
4) Elena Obraztsova's Condotta ell'era in ceppi from Il Trovatore 
5) Shirley Verrett's Non Temer d'un Basso Affetto from Moise et Pharaon 
6) Samuel Samuel's Son lo Spirito from Faust 
7) Franco Corelli's Meco all'altar di Venere from Norma
8) Cornel MacNeil's Cortigiani vil razza from Rigoletto
9) Helen Traubel's Suicidio from La Gioconda
10) Leontyne Price's My Man's Gone Now from Porgy and Bess


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## DarkAngel (Aug 11, 2010)

Woodduck said:


> The only singer who could rival Callas in that role.


What about Leyla Gencer as Lady M, she has all the vocal tools and sings with dramatic intensity and tonal color.......

Gencer did not have a major record contract so despite her long and prolific career we have only live recordings and that often keeps her under the radar screen


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

Gencer must have been a formidable Lady M.


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## IgorS (Jan 7, 2018)

BalalaikaBoy said:


> some which come to mind immediately
> 1) Elena Souliotis's Salgo Gia from Nabucco
> 2) Maria Callas's D'amore Al Dolce Impero from Armida
> 3) Joan Sutherland's Nella Pace del Mesto Risposo (specifically the debut in 1971) from Maria Stuarda
> ...


6) ???
Do you mean Mefistofele? And who is Samuel Samuel?


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## nina foresti (Mar 11, 2014)

Franco Corelli's live Parma recording of "E lucevan le stelle" from _Tosca_


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## The Conte (May 31, 2015)

Woodduck said:


> The only singer who could rival Callas in that role.


Excuse me. NOBODY _rivals_ Callas in that role. The only fault that one could find in Callas' live recording from 1952 (in particular the Lady's entrance aria) is that the voice is uneven and lacks beauty, but that would actually be a compliment considering the role and Verdi's desire for 'the voice of a devil'.

Of the alternative singers put forward here, only Gencer gets anywhere close to Callas. However, I prefer Christa Ludwig (assuming we are sticking to live performances) and if studio recordings can be included then Cossotto and Suliotis would be my choices before Verrett or Dimitrova. I agree with the comments above about Dimitrova, too much force with little meaning. Once you've got used to the impressive sound it gets boring. Verrett's is possibly the best from a technical point of view, perfectly seamless with every note sung and yet the voice is even from top to bottom. How does she do it?

The reason why Callas' version is hors concours is because she has everything it needs. The technique to sing the music as written, musicianship, a voice that has something dark and menacing in it by its very nature and most importantly of all a gift for shading and colouring words and phrases to give them meaning.

N.


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## DarkAngel (Aug 11, 2010)

> The reason why Callas' version is hors concours is because she has everything it needs. The technique to sing the music as written, musicianship, a voice that has something dark and menacing in it by its very nature and most importantly of all a gift for shading and colouring words and phrases to give them meaning.


^^^^ Yes Conte Maria rules all as Lady M, it is the vivid vocal characterization, colortura technique and the dark menacing tonal shading with "acid" in the voice as needed to develop the scence for us in our minds, the dramatic power to mold the weak character of Macbeth and use him as her puppet, before finally descending into the dark mental abyss of her own creation.....in other words a true artist at work


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## Reichstag aus LICHT (Oct 25, 2010)

Love Callas, but Nilsson takes some beating.






To sing this well - and to hit that pianissimo - after you've already sung intensely for hours, and against that wall of orchestral sound, is simply phenomenal.


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## DarkAngel (Aug 11, 2010)

nina foresti said:


> Franco Corelli's live Parma recording of "E lucevan le stelle" from _Tosca_


Good mention NF (young miss callas) when Corelli gets the green light to go full Franco amazing things happen, I learned very quickly when you see "bel canto society" CDs you buy first and ask questions later.......


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## BalalaikaBoy (Sep 25, 2014)

IgorS said:


> 6) ???
> Do you mean Mefistofele? And who is Samuel Samuel?


mea culpa. that's the American bass Samuel Ramey, and yes, that is Mefistofele (so many operas about Faust it's hard to keep track)


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## howlingfantods (Jul 27, 2015)

the most exceptionally sung "E Lucevan le stelle" I've ever heard is Kaufmann at the Wiener Staatsoper in 2016--this is the one where he famously took the encore but then Gheorghiu missed her cue after the repeat because she expected another long ovation after the encore.


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

^^^Glorious and hilarious.


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## DarkAngel (Aug 11, 2010)

> the most exceptionally sung "E Lucevan le stelle" I've ever heard is Kaufmann at the Wiener Staatsoper in 2016--this is the one where he famously took the encore but then *Gheorghiu missed her cue* after the repeat because she expected another long ovation after the encore.


Good thing Jonas had sense of humor, talk about "raining on your parade" and breaking the sense of the moment

Here we have youtube of *15 tenors comparing "e lucevan le stelle" with diminuendo* includes Kaufman and Corelli, a couple beautiful versions for me were by Lauri Volpi (Franco's mentor/teacher) and Giuseppi Giacomini......click "show more" to see list of tenors, you must mentally try to adjust for variations in sound quality 






Anyone want to pick a favorite.........HFT do you think Jonas is the best of this group?


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## Couchie (Dec 9, 2010)

I never fail to not be mesmerized and ensnared by this performance, W. Meier's testament to perfectionism. If I start watching, I can't stop.


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## Diminuendo (May 5, 2015)

DarkAngel said:


> Good thing Jonas had sense of humor, talk about "raining on your parade" and breaking the sense of the moment
> 
> Here we have youtube of *15 tenors comparing "e lucevan le stelle" with diminuendo* includes Kaufman and Corelli, a couple beautiful versions for me were by Lauri Volpi (Franco's mentor/teacher) and Giuseppi Giacomini......click "show more" to see list of tenors, you must mentally try to adjust for variations in sound quality
> 
> ...


Corelli for me is vocally magnificent, but he tends to show off. Well when you can pull it off... Especially in this Parma performance. Magnificent singing, but the aria as a whole suffers. Many singers on the video sing beautifully, like Lauri Volpi for instance, but for me something just isn't there. For me E lucevan le stelle has to have lot of passion, but restrained also. Whether you sing softly or loudly one shouldn't go ever the top. If one want's to get most out of the piece. Everything you do must convey emotion. The diminuendo is there to convey somrthing, not just to show off. The best Cavaradossi for me is Di Stefano. He really seemed to get the character. In E lucevan le stelle he sings with delicate phrasing giving meaning to every word. And when it comes to the soft part he does it tastefully and always in the service of the text. The diminuendo is just long enough to convey what it's there for and it doesn't seem out of place, like with Corelli in that performance that I still love though. And the end when Cavaradossi realizes that he will never see Tosca again Di Stefano brings a lot of passion, but he doesn't go over the top. Di Stefano is great in the role live, but for me he is at his best in the famous 1953 recording with Callas. Listen the aria from that and if you are not convinced, then I don't what to do.

I have to say I really like Kaufmann in the role. He sings the role very well and his E lucevan le stelle is really great. For me he also gets what this aria is about. Well we all have our favorites.


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## BalalaikaBoy (Sep 25, 2014)

posted arias above, next it's time for a few duets
1) Cornel MacNeil and Joan Sutherland, Tutte le Feste/Si Vendetta (Rigoletto)
2) Maria Callas and Franco Corelli, In Mia Man (Norma) 
3) Anna Moffo and Robert Merrill, Ditte Alla Giovine (Traviata)


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## Tsaraslondon (Nov 7, 2013)

BalalaikaBoy said:


> posted arias above, next it's time for a few duets
> 1) Cornel MacNeil and Joan Sutherland, Tutte le Feste/Si Vendetta (Rigoletto)
> 2) Maria Callas and Franco Corelli, In Mia Man (Norma)
> 3) Anna Moffo and Robert Merrill, Ditte Alla Giovine (Traviata)


Didn't the OP ask for *LIVE* performances?

I can't give an alternative for the *Rigoletto* as the only live performance I know is the Callas Mexico performance, which, it has to be said, is a bit of a mess. Considering her surroundings Callas does an amazing job.

For the *Norma* duet, let me offer Callas and Del Monaco at La Scala in 1955, and for *Traviata* Callas and Zanasi at Covent Garden in 1958.


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## BalalaikaBoy (Sep 25, 2014)

Tsaraslondon said:


> Didn't the OP ask for *LIVE* performances?
> 
> I can't give an alternative for the *Rigoletto* as the only live performance I know is the Callas Mexico performance, which, it has to be said, is a bit of a mess. Considering her surroundings Callas does an amazing job.


ooo, apparently that one isn't live. in that case, this one is








> For the *Norma* duet, let me offer Callas and Del Monaco at La Scala in 1955, and for *Traviata* Callas and Zanasi at Covent Garden in 1958.


nope, this one was live.


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## Tsaraslondon (Nov 7, 2013)

BalalaikaBoy said:


> ooo, apparently that one isn't live. in that case, this one is
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Indeed. I still prefer Callas at La Scala, mostly because of the cumulative effect of the whole performance, though I do prefer Corelli to Del Monaco.


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## BalalaikaBoy (Sep 25, 2014)

Tsaraslondon said:


> Indeed. I still prefer Callas at La Scala, mostly because of the cumulative effect of the whole performance, though I do prefer Corelli to Del Monaco.


but that one doesn't have Elena Nicolai <3


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

For a different perspective on the idea of "best singing," let's go back in time to 1937 to savor the vocal purity and poise, the flawless breath support, the soaring cantilena, the exquisite diction, of Norwegian soprano Eide Norena, here at age 53:


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## Tsaraslondon (Nov 7, 2013)

BalalaikaBoy said:


> but that one doesn't have Elena Nicolai <3


No. It has Giulietta Simionato, my favourite of all the Adalgisas Callas sang with.


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## Revitalized Classics (Oct 31, 2018)




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## Meyerbeer Smith (Mar 25, 2016)

[Quibbles about "best ever". Superlatives!]

But this is phenomenal:


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## nina foresti (Mar 11, 2014)

Most exciting live _Tosca_ ever:
Tebaldi/Tucker/Warren/Mitropoulos 1956
Tebaldi ran away with the goods. Her final scream was spine tingling. Never was she ever better than in this performance. She snarled, growled, sobbed and still sang like an angel.
The entire foursome was on their best behavior in this one.


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## Tsaraslondon (Nov 7, 2013)

nina foresti said:


> Most exciting live _Tosca_ ever:
> 
> Tebaldi ran away with the goods. Her final scream was spine tingling. Never was she ever better than in this performance. She snarled, growled, sobbed and still sang like an angel.


I suppose that rather depends on whether you think Tosca needs to snarl, growl and sob or not. :devil:


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## nina foresti (Mar 11, 2014)

Tsaraslondon said:


> I suppose that rather depends on whether you think Tosca needs to snarl, growl and sob or not. :devil:


You're right. And I certainly do!:angel:


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## floozy (Jun 23, 2019)

Giuseppe Sabbatini. Total commitment. Complete perfection.


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## floozy (Jun 23, 2019)

Giuseppe Sabbatini. Total commitment. Complete perfection.


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## floozy (Jun 23, 2019)

Robert Lloyd, La calunnia è un venticello, Rossini, Il barbiere


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## DarkAngel (Aug 11, 2010)

1968 Maria Stuarda, Gencer vs Verret confrontation scence - two falcons in full flight















In case you are wondering all three live "tudor queens" have very good live sound, you really should buy this.........


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## Mandryka (Feb 22, 2013)




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## Open Book (Aug 14, 2018)

floozy said:


> Robert Lloyd, La calunnia è un venticello, Rossini, Il barbiere


Pretty great, but I prefer:





Actually this is probably not live, there is a live one out there with the aria encored, but I can't find it.


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## betterthanfine (Oct 17, 2017)

DarkAngel said:


> 1968 Maria Stuarda, Gencer vs Verret confrontation scence - two falcons in full flight


Terribly exciting, thanks for posting this!


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## DavidA (Dec 14, 2012)

Must confess that with all the recordings available this is a pretty impossible question to answer. I mean repertoire comes into it as well. Just heard some breathtaking Handel from Natalie Dessay on this:









My wife who is a singer heard it downstairs and immediately demanded to hear it it is so breathtaking.

I mean though, where do you go for the greatest?


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## Rogerx (Apr 27, 2018)

DavidA said:


> Must confess that with all the recordings available this is a pretty impossible question to answer. I mean repertoire comes into it as well. Just heard some breathtaking Handel from Natalie Dessay on this:
> 
> View attachment 121276
> 
> ...


The whole cast makes a very good effort.


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## Rogerx (Apr 27, 2018)

Turandot 15: Act 2 In questa reggia
Joan Sutherland


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## The Conte (May 31, 2015)

But are these recordings live?

(That was one of the criteria in the OP.)

N.


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## Rogerx (Apr 27, 2018)

The Conte said:


> But are these recordings live?
> 
> (That was one of the criteria in the OP.)
> 
> N.


Oops, mine is not. 
DavidA's one however is live.


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## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

The Conte said:


> Whilst I agree that this album could well qualify for some of the best singing on record, it doesn't qualify for this thread as the OP states that it is the best live singing captured in recorded sound. However, there is a live recording of Semiramide with Sutherland and Simionato and the bravura from the two is something awe inspiring.
> 
> N.


So sorry. Didn't notice that part.


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## Kollwitz (Jun 10, 2018)

My field of reference is too limited to have any authority in claiming this as the best, but I'm always astonished by Flagstad's 1936 live Covent Garden recording of Tristan und Isolde - particularly the verklarung/liebestod. To deliver this after four hours on stage is some singing.


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## Tuoksu (Sep 3, 2015)

Kollwitz said:


> My field of reference is too limited to have any authority in claiming this as the best, but I'm always astonished by Flagstad's 1936 live Covent Garden recording of Tristan und Isolde - particularly the verklarung/liebestod. To deliver this after four hours on stage is some singing.


Incredible indeed!


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

Kollwitz said:


> My field of reference is too limited to have any authority in claiming this as the best, but I'm always astonished by Flagstad's 1936 live Covent Garden recording of Tristan und Isolde - particularly the verklarung/liebestod. To deliver this after four hours on stage is some singing.


There are many recorded Liebestods by Flagstad, but this one has an exceptional tenderness. Some said that Flagstad's simple nature never really understood Isolde, but she certainly understood the woman in love, and we can hear that here. It might be interesting to compare this gentle interpretation with the 1933 live recording of Flagstad's great Wagnerian predecessor at the Met, Frida Leider, who gave, at the end of her long evening, an outpouring of vibrant tone and sustained rapture that hasn't, in my estimation, been equaled:






Flagstad's Isolde is well-represented in a number of recordings, but this is apparently all we have of Leider's Isolde in the opera house.


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## silentio (Nov 10, 2014)

Callas/Gui in Medea, Florence 1953.






Tebaldi/Mitropoulos in La Forza, Firenze 1953.






Listen to these two ladies at their vocal best, one can understand all the fuss about the alleged rivalry.


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## Kollwitz (Jun 10, 2018)

Woodduck said:


> There are many recorded Liebestods by Flagstad, but this one has an exceptional tenderness. Some said that Flagstad's simple nature never really understood Isolde, but she certainly understood the woman in love, and we can hear that here. It might be interesting to compare this gentle interpretation with the 1933 live recording of Flagstad's great Wagnerian predecessor at the Met, Frida Leider, who gave, at the end of her long evening, an outpouring of vibrant tone and sustained rapture that hasn't, in my estimation, been equaled:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Thanks, that's quite remarkable, particularly the sense of rapture you mentioned. Based on the whole opera and Isolde's character, I think it captures her intensity better than Flagstad.

I'd listened to a few Leider Ring excerpts before after seeing them recommended on here (probably by you), but hadn't heard this recording.


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## PaulFranz (May 7, 2019)

Treigle live in Susannah. For me, the most beautiful, electrifying, and just all-around fulfilling singing ever captured.


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## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

Maria Callas *Anna Bolena* (1957) at La Scala, *La Sonnambula* (1957) in Cologne, *Lucia di Lammermoor* (1955) in Berlin, *Medea* at La Scala (1953), Florence (1953), Dallas (1958), *Nabucco* (1949) in Naples, and the list goes on.


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## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

MAS said:


> Maria Callas *Anna Bolena* (1957) at La Scala, *La Sonnambula* (1957) in Cologne, *Lucia di Lammermoor* (1955) in Berlin, *Medea* at La Scala (1953), Florence (1953), Dallas (1958), *Nabucco* (1949) in Naples, and the list goes on.


This list surprises me:lol:


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## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

Seattleoperafan said:


> This list surprises me:lol:


Not to forget *Il Trovatore* (1953) La Scala, which wasn't mentioned, or another *Norma* (1953) in Trieste replete with enormous voices (Corelli was one, Nicolai another). Did I or anyone else mention the prodigious *Armida* (1952) in Florence, full of astonishing roulades and scales and incredible high notes?


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## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

MAS said:


> Not to forget *Il Trovatore* (1953) La Scala, which wasn't mentioned, or another *Norma* (1953) in Trieste replete with enormous voices (Corelli was one, Nicolai another). Did I or anyone else mention the prodigious *Armida* (1952) in Florence, full of astonishing roulades and scales and incredible high notes?


Armida might be one of the top best performances ever recorded, but one of the most poorly recorded, except for Armida's big D'amore aria which has much better sound than the rest. I may have played that aria more than anything I've ever listened to LOL.


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## Shaafee Shameem (Aug 4, 2021)

1953 Florence Medea, 1952 Covent Garden Norma, 1952 Florence Armida, 1952 Scala Macbeth, 1954 Scala Lucia, 1954 Scala Vestale, 1954 Scala Alceste, 1955 Scala Somnambula, 1955 Scala Traviata, 1957 Scala Bolena among others by Callas

"Ho Jo to ho" by Frida Leider and Salomea Krushelnytska/Kruszelnicka

"Condotta ell'era in ceppi" by Ebe Stignani

"O mio Fernando" by Armida Parsi Pettinella

"Fuor del mar" by Hermann Jadlowker

"O muto asil del pianto" by Lauri Volpi

"Eri tu" by Mattia Battistini

"Di provenza" Guiseppe De Luca

"Au bruit des lourds marteaux" by Pol Plancon


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## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

Shaafee Shameem said:


> 1953 Florence Medea, 1952 Covent Garden Norma, 1952 Florence Armida, 1952 Scala Macbeth, 1954 Scala Lucia, 1954 Scala Vestale, 1954 Scala Alceste, 1955 Scala Somnambula, 1955 Scala Traviata, 1957 Scala Bolena among others by Callas
> 
> "Ho Jo to ho" by Frida Leider and Salomea Krushelnytska/Kruszelnicka
> 
> ...


Well, I didn't want to list *all* of Mme. Callas' recordings, people might have thought me biased! :lol:

I'm with you on Jadlowker - astonishing!


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## Tsaraslondon (Nov 7, 2013)

Nobody's mentioned the 1955 La Scala *Norma* with Callas, Simionato, Del Monaco and Zaccaria. Of all the Callas Normas, I think it's the one where voice and art find their truest equilibrium.


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## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

Tsaraslondon said:


> Nobody's mentioned the 1955 La Scala *Norma* with Callas, Simionato, Del Monaco and Zaccaria. Of all the Callas Normas, I think it's the one where voice and art find their truest equilibrium.


I thought both the 1955 *Norma*s were mentioned.


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## Tsaraslondon (Nov 7, 2013)

MAS said:


> I thought both the 1955 *Norma*s we're mentioned.


I must have missed that post.


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## Shaafee Shameem (Aug 4, 2021)

Tsaraslondon said:


> Nobody's mentioned the 1955 La Scala *Norma* with Callas, Simionato, Del Monaco and Zaccaria. Of all the Callas Normas, I think it's the one where voice and art find their truest equilibrium.


They are great as well, though personally, I prefer Gui's conducting to Votto's, and find that Callas was in exceptionally great voice in 1952 London.


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## Shaafee Shameem (Aug 4, 2021)

MAS said:


> Well, I didn't want to list *all* of Mme. Callas' recordings, people might have thought me biased! :lol:
> 
> I'm with you on Jadlowker - astonishing!


At first I was only going to mention Medea, since the others had already been mentioned, but as this is just my second post, I didn't want to restrain myself.


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## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

Shaafee Shameem said:


> At first I was only going to mention Medea, since the others had already been mentioned, but as this is just my second post, I didn't want to restrain myself.


This is an opera forum - no restraint required!


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## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

Tsaraslondon said:


> I must have missed that post.


I think you yourself posted something from the La Scala 1955 *Norma*


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## Tsaraslondon (Nov 7, 2013)

MAS said:


> I think you yourself posted something from the La Scala 1955 *Norma*


Oh dear! I might well have done. My memory isn't what it was


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## Op.123 (Mar 25, 2013)

Callas/Votto, Norma, 1955
Callas/Bernstein, Medea, 1953
Milanov/Cellini, Il Trovatore, 1952
Nilsson, Corelli/Stokowski, Turandot, 1961
Del Monaco, Tebaldi/Erede, Otello, 1954
Flagstad, Melchior/Reiner, Tristan und Isolde, 1936
Mödl, Vinay/Karajan, Tristan und Isolde, 1952
Thorborg/Schuricht, Das Lied von der Erde, 1939

A few that come to mind immediately...


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## The Conte (May 31, 2015)

Op.123 said:


> Callas/Votto, Norma, 1955
> Callas/Bernstein, Medea, 1953
> Milanov/Cellini, Il Trovatore, 1952
> *Nilsson, Corelli/Stokowski, Turandot, 1961*
> ...


I take your Stokowski Turandot and raise you with the Mehta from 66 with Nilsson, Corelli and Freni.

N.


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## Op.123 (Mar 25, 2013)

The Conte said:


> I take your Stokowski Turandot and raise you with the Mehta from 66 with Nilsson, Corelli and Freni.
> 
> N.


I find that performance more even in regards to the chorus and orchestral playing but find neither Corelli or Nilsson as fresh or exciting as in the earlier performance.


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## PaulFranz (May 7, 2019)

Lohengrin with Thorborg, Rethberg, and Huehn.


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## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

Wagner *Die Walküre *

*Lauritz Melchior * Siegmund
*Marjorie Lawrence * Sieglinde
*Emmanuel List * Hunding
*Kirsten Flagstad * Brunhilde 
*Julius Huehn * Wotan
*Karin Branzell * Fricka

*Erich Leinsdorf * Conductor
*The Metropolitan Opera Orchestra *
17 January 1940

Demigods on stage in a miraculous restoration
https://www.pristineclassical.com/products/paco125?_pos=2&_sid=00a0fdabe&_ss=r


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## BalalaikaBoy (Sep 25, 2014)

Woodduck said:


> Gencer must have been a formidable Lady M.


She got into some bloody weird habits latter in her career, but for some reason, I still enjoyed listening to her. Sometimes people do things wrong in a way that just....works. I'd lump her in with the likes of Leontyne Price and Ewa Podles: a singer with a muddy vocal production (late in her career at least) that imparted a kind of charisma that worked particularly well for certain roles (ex: we don't want Ulrica to sound clear and youthful or Bess to sound high class and crisp).


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## Shaafee Shameem (Aug 4, 2021)

BalalaikaBoy said:


> She got into some bloody weird habits latter in her career, but for some reason, I still enjoyed listening to her. Sometimes people do things wrong in a way that just....works. I'd lump her in with the likes of Leontyne Price and Ewa Podles: a singer with a muddy vocal production (late in her career at least) that imparted a kind of charisma that worked particularly well for certain roles (ex: we don't want Ulrica to sound clear and youthful or Bess to sound high class and crisp).


Gencer is at her best in the 1950s. Afterwards, all sorts of problems crept in. She once stated that she permanently damaged her voice by singing Prokofiev's The Fiery Angel.


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## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

Shaafee Shameem said:


> Gencer is at her best in the 1950s. Afterwards, all sorts of problems crept in. She once stated that she permanently damaged her voice by singing Prokofiev's The Fiery Angel.


It can also damage the ears! :lol::lol:


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## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

BalalaikaBoy said:


> She got into some bloody weird habits latter in her career, but for some reason, I still enjoyed listening to her. Sometimes people do things wrong in a way that just....works. I'd lump her in with the likes of Leontyne Price and Ewa Podles: a singer with a muddy vocal production (late in her career at least) that imparted a kind of charisma that worked particularly well for certain roles (ex: we don't want Ulrica to sound clear and youthful or Bess to sound high class and crisp).


I just discovered her recently. I think with her beauty along with her lovely singing she must have been great onstage. To me it is a voice that is hard to pick out from other voices but she sings really well and had a very broad repertoire. She would have been a great house soprano as she was so versatile. She is in a contest or two.


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## ScottK (Dec 23, 2021)

I love the male voice so much that when I just think about glorious renditions of a song I think of

Gigli - Le Roi d'ys aria he has a few but the one on the songs and arias LP
Bjoerling/Merrill Pearl Fishers Duet forget about it!
Ghiaurov Aleko aria baritone velvet and bass authority
Bergonzi Lucia Fra Poco a me Ricovero my idea of perfect


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## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

Okay, not to be too insistent, this rediscovered recording has the most interesting cast in their best voice with, in my experience, the best Siegmund _I've _ ever heard. So for that role alone, I nominate the 1965 Covent Garden *Die Walküre*.






Of course, others may have heard what _they_ consider their best Siegmund recording, as I haven't heard all, even though I've heard Melchior in the role. Kozub is my ow favorite.


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## ScottK (Dec 23, 2021)

MAS said:


> Of course, others may have heard what _they_ consider their best Siegmund recording, as I haven't heard all, even though I've heard Melchior in the role. Kozub is my ow favorite.


I've thought about your boy Kozub alot since you turned me on to him, and I will get to the whole thing eventually. But just based on the end of Act I and the Todesverkundigung I really have no trouble giving him the label of the most beautiful Helden Tenor voice I can remember hearing. And I've always thought Vickers voice was beautiful. But Kozub takes it. And of course, he is more than that.


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## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

ScottK said:


> I've thought about your boy Kozub alot since you turned me on to him, and I will get to the whole thing eventually. But just based on the end of Act I and the Todesverkundigung I really have no trouble giving him the label of the most beautiful Helden Tenor voice I can remember hearing. And I've always thought Vickers voice was beautiful. But Kozub takes it. And of course, he is more than that.


Glad you think so, too ScottK!


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## Parsifal98 (Apr 29, 2020)

"A seamless outpouring of golden tones", as someone once coined on this forum (not sure if I remember it correctly...).


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## OffPitchNeb (Jun 6, 2016)

Parsifal98 said:


> "A seamless outpouring of golden tones", as someone once coined on this forum (not sure if I remember it correctly...).


Count me among the heretics but I have never been moved by Jussi Bjorling (but with the acknowledgment of his beautiful timbre). But for Gueden, I came to appreciate her a lot lately. She was born Austrian but sang these light coloratura Italian roles much better than some more popular names.


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## ScottK (Dec 23, 2021)

OffPitchNeb said:


> Count me among the heretics but I have never been moved by Jussi Bjorling (but with the acknowledgment of his beautiful timbre). .


You're a heretic!

But just since you put it out there and I want to post something.....Yes, he can certainly leave me cold at times. But for me, when he's right, and sings with that un-embellished classical style of his, he can be just about the very best. Ideale, the "Il mio nome non sai.." section from Turandot, Pearl Fishers with Merril, his early Trovatore....top of the mountain stuff!


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

Parsifal98 said:


> "A seamless outpouring of golden tones", as someone once coined on this forum (not sure if I remember it correctly...).


The sound quality here is weird and badly misrepresents the timbres of these singers.


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## ScottK (Dec 23, 2021)

Woodduck said:


> The sound quality here is weird and badly misrepresents the timbres of these singers.


Hadn't listened...it REALLY is!!


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## Parsifal98 (Apr 29, 2020)

Woodduck said:


> The sound quality here is weird and badly misrepresents the timbres of these singers.


I think the sound quality in this video is better. I've taken it directly from _The_ _Ed Sullivan Show _Youtube channel.


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

This sounds bad too. Quite distorted.


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## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

Parsifal98 said:


> I think the sound quality in this video is better. I've taken it directly from _The_ _Ed Sullivan Show _Youtube channel.


Miss Gueden looks a bit long in the tooth for Gilda here.


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## Parsifal98 (Apr 29, 2020)

Woodduck said:


> This sounds bad too. Quite distorted.


Yes it is but I find it clearer than in the other video I posted. There is a third version on Youtube but the quality is not any better so I do not think it is worth posting it.



MAS said:


> Miss Gueden looks a bit long in the tooth for Gilda here.


She is only 39! At least she still sounds the part.

One of the most beautiful Brangäne I have ever heard:


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## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

MAS said:


> Okay, not to be too insistent, this rediscovered recording has the most interesting cast in their best voice with, in my experience, the best Siegmund _I've _ ever heard. So for that role alone, I nominate the 1965 Covent Garden *Die Walküre*.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Is Kozub a name or a nickname. Never heard of that name.


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## Tsaraslondon (Nov 7, 2013)

Seattleoperafan said:


> Is Kozub a name or a nickname. Never heard of that name.


Ernst Kozub, tenor, (1924-1971). He recorded Erik in *Der fliegende Holländer *under Klemperer with Theo Adam and Anja Silja. He was originally cast as Siegfired in the Solti *Ring, *but was replaced by Windgassen because he failed to learn the part.


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## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

Tsaraslondon said:


> Ernst Kozub, tenor, (1924-1971). He recorded Erik in *Der fliegende Holländer *under Klemperer with Theo Adam and Anja Silja. He was originally cast as Siegfired in the Solti *Ring, *but was replaced by Windgassen because he failed to learn the part.


I saw Anja Silja as Senta in Bayeuth at 15. I think her jaw was bigger than Sutherland's. I just added Kozub to some contests. Thanks. I always learn from you people. To be a successful opera singer it takes more than talent. You have to work very hard as well according to my sister. She had a best friend who had a more extraordinary voice than hers. My sister said if she had that voice she could have been a big name prima donna but her friend floundered because she was lazy.


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## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

For sheer joy of singing, I nominate Fritz Wunderlich’s recording of Lara’s *Granada. *It’s sung in German, but no one has even come close to matching the exuberance and sheer generosity of tone and open throated vocalism. He proves that, even in the wrong language you can communicate the spirit of a song.


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## Tsaraslondon (Nov 7, 2013)

MAS said:


> For sheer joy of singing, I nominate Fritz Wunderlich’s recording of Lara’s *Granada. *It’s sung in German, but no one has even come close to matching the exuberance and sheer generosity of tone and open throated vocalism. He proves that, even in the wrong language you can communicate the spirit of a song.


If ever a record exuded the sheer joy of singing, this is it. You feel that Wunderlich went into the studio that day feeling on top of the world and his singing reflects that. It's been a favourite of mine for years.


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## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

MAS said:


> For sheer joy of singing, I nominate Fritz Wunderlich’s recording of Lara’s *Granada. *It’s sung in German, but no one has even come close to matching the exuberance and sheer generosity of tone and open throated vocalism. He proves that, even in the wrong language you can communicate the spirit of a song.


My car buddy and I listened to this recently and it was a kick. Really wonderful.


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## Kundry0013 (9 mo ago)

Max Lorenz as Tristan in Act III of the 1943 Heger Tristan und Isolde. It's an unbelievable performance, never to be topped on record.


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## nina foresti (Mar 11, 2014)

DarkAngel said:


> Good mention NF (young miss callas) when Corelli gets the green light to go full Franco amazing things happen, I learned very quickly when you see "bel canto society" CDs you buy first and ask questions later.......


Indeed! As in "Adriana Lecouvreur" with four masters of the art - Corelli/Olivero/Bastianini/Simionato


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## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

Though I do not like *Der Rosenkavalier *much beyond the heavenly Presentation of the Rose and the final trio, this 1979 performance at the Bavarian State Opera under Carlos Kleiber is deservedly a classic, not least because of Gwyneth Jones, Lucia Popp and Brigitte Fassbeinder. And Kleiber, of course. Legendary.


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## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

nina foresti said:


> Indeed! As in "Adriana Lecouvreur" with four masters of the art - Corelli/Olivero/Bastianini/Simionato


Was it at this performance that Olivero deputized for an ailing Tebaldi?


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## nina foresti (Mar 11, 2014)

MAS said:


> Was it at this performance that Olivero deputized for an ailing Tebaldi?


One of the cornerstones of any Magda Olivero collection is a November 28, 1959 ADRIANA LECOUVREUR broadcast from the stage of the Teatro San Carlo in Naples. The scheduled Adriana, Renata Tebaldi, became ill. Olivero, who was herself recuperating from surgery, stepped in at the very last moment to save the performance. And it is the performance of a lifetime. A mesmerizing account of Adriana’s entrance aria, ‘Io son l’umile ancella’, inspires a prolonged, ecstatic outburst from the Naples audience. And from there Olivero moves from strength to strength, providing a master class in the art of verismo opera performance. Even if the remaining principals were only acceptable, this 1959 Naples ADRIANA LECOUVREUR would be essential listening. But on this occasion, Olivero was joined by three of the greatest performers of the era, all at the height of their powers. Mezzo Giulietta Simionato is a force of nature as Adriana’s rival, the Princess Bouillon. Adriana’s lover, Maurizio, is Franco Corelli in prime voice, which is to say one of the most sumptuous and brilliant tenors documented on recordings. In addition to his bronze vocal quality and ringing high notes, Corelli’s remarkable breath control allowed him to create magical effects with extended crescendos and diminuendos, both in evidence here. And while Corelli was not in Olivero’s league as an actor (few were), he throws himself wholeheartedly into the role of Maurizio. Michonnet, the stage manager who secretly pines for Adriana, is more of a character baritone role than a heroic one. Ettore Bastianini was famous for his assumptions of the latter type of part, but he brings admirable sensitivity to the role, along with his characteristic rich, dark, and vibrant tone. Mario Rossi, a first-rate conductor of Italian operatic repertoire, leads a performance that both crackles with energy and savors Cilea’s rich orchestral palette.


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## Tsaraslondon (Nov 7, 2013)

MAS said:


> Though I do not like *Der Rosenkavalier *much beyond the heavenly Presentation of the Rose and the final trio, this 1979 performance at the Bavarian State Opera under Carlos Kleiber is deservedly a classic, not least because of Gwyneth Jones, Lucia Popp and Brigitte Fassbeinder. And Kleiber, of course. Legendary.


This is indeed a wonderful performance.

I actually saw Gwyneth Jones as the Marschallin at Covent Garden back in tthe 1970s with Brigitte Fassbaender as Octavian, but with Edith Mathis as Sophie. It was an excellent performance, but, for me, Jones didn't quite eclipse memories of my first Marschallin, Helga Dernsech. Hard to put my finger on why, but Dernesch was somehow more naturally aristocratic.

I know you don't like her, MAS, but Schwarzkopf also had an aristocratic authority that suited her for roles like the Marschallin, Countess Madeleine and the Countess in *Figaro.*


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## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

Tsaraslondon said:


> This is indeed a wonderful performance.
> 
> I actually saw Gwyneth Jones as the Marschallin at Covent Garden back in tthe 1970s with Brigitte Fassbaender as Octavian, but with Edith Mathis as Sophie. It was an excellent performance, but, for me, Jones didn't quite eclipse memories of my first Marschallin, Helga Dernsech. Hard to put my finger on why, but Dernesch was somehow more naturally aristocratic.
> 
> I know you don't like her, MAS, but Schwarzkopf also had an aristocratic authority that suited her for roles like the Marschallin, Countess Madeleine and the Countess in *Figaro.*


]
Schwarzkopf was my first Marschallin, Tsaras, in the Karajan film that you show above, and also my first recorded Contessa in the EMI recording, but I didn’t encounter the Strauss _Gräfin in *Capriccio *_until I saw Te Kanawa in the opera in San Francisco (1990), in costumes by Versace!


I love Dernesch and read about her sojourn in England early in her career, which explains why she has such good English. I had never heard such a rich middle register until I heard hers (in *Fledermaus*!).


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## Ludwig Schon (10 mo ago)

Tsaraslondon said:


> This is indeed a wonderful performance.
> 
> I actually saw Gwyneth Jones as the Marschallin at Covent Garden back in tthe 1970s with Brigitte Fassbaender as Octavian, but with Edith Mathis as Sophie. It was an excellent performance, but, for me, Jones didn't quite eclipse memories of my first Marschallin, Helga Dernsech. Hard to put my finger on why, but Dernesch was somehow more naturally aristocratic.
> 
> I know you don't like her, MAS, but Schwarzkopf also had an aristocratic authority that suited her for roles like the Marschallin, Countess Madeleine and the Countess in *Figaro.*


My God, that is awful rubbish.

There are foxes and cats in my back garden who make a better racket in their midnight face-offs than those three wenches. Trash…


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## Becca (Feb 5, 2015)

Ludwig Schon said:


> My God, that is awful rubbish.
> 
> There are foxes and cats in my back garden who make a better racket in their midnight face-offs than those three wenches. Trash…


You certainly have a way of demeaning people with your opinions. Are you sure that _you_ aren't Hurwitz?


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## Ludwig Schon (10 mo ago)

Becca said:


> You certainly have a way of demeaning people with your opinions. Are you sure that _you_ aren't Hurwitz?


I’m sorry, it just sounded terrible. I actually thought it was out of sync at first, and then realised it wasn’t. Just awful.

I absolutely love Richard Strauss, but my God…

It actually reminds me of that Dog Pound scene in Lady & the Tramp…


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## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

In 1975, the San Francisco Opera audience fell in love with Monteverdi’s *L’incorinazione di Poppea* and with Tatyana Troyanos as Poppea. This was a Raymond Leppard edition in which Nero is played by a tenor, Eric Tappy (we did not know it was usually performed by a mezzo or soprano _en travesti_), who was as handsome in voice and physique as his Poppea.
Fortunately, YouTube has a snippet available to remind us. 

Please note this was before the days of super authentic performance practice, but it was a good approximation. Here’s the final Nero-Poppea duet and forgive the dated sound:


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## NoCoPilot (Nov 9, 2020)

[video]


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## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

NoCoPilot said:


> [video]


Did you wander in from the wrong thread?  This is the “Opera” one, not that we’d object to Glenn Gould.


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## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

*Bachianas Brasileiras No. 5 *by Heitor Villa Lobos, originally composed for violin and cellos, was adapted for voice and cellos by the composer at the request of Brazilian soprano Bidu Sayao and recorded in 1945. I don’t think this recording has been surpassed - in the section _a la bouche fermee, _Sayao sounds like a violin, and the octave leap to the _pianissimo _high A is accomplished in one breath and that note is, well, breathtaking! It was recorded as an experiment, and was so good that it was published by Columbia (now Sony). As this was the age of the 78 rpm, it occupied 2 sides and each side was recorded in a single take.


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## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

While I don’t think Stratas would be a viable *Salome *on stage, this is stunning on film, especially given Teresa Stratas’s physical acting abilities. The rest of the cast is hardly deficient and the conductor is also a legend. Götz Friederic‘s direction is justly famous and here we have Hans Beirer again. Astrid Varnay‘s Herodias is too grotesque. The lip synching is not the best, but it‘s part of this kind of film.

I’m wondering, though if this can be considered “live!”


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

MAS said:


> While I don’t think Stratas would be a viable *Salome *on stage, this is stunning on film, especially given Teresa Stratas’s physical acting abilities. The rest of the cast is hardly deficient and the conductor is also a legend. Götz Friederic‘s direction is justly famous and here we have Hans Beirer again. Astrid Varnay‘s Herodias is too grotesque. The lip synching is not the best, but it‘s part of this kind of film.
> 
> I’m wondering, though if this can be considered “live!”



Nobody does operatic camp like Strauss. All that voluptuous rolling on the floor, and the crazy poetry everyone talks in... "The moon is like the egg of an amorous dove, your forehead is like the slopes of Ararat, I love the marks of your teeth in my fruit, I want to kiss your whatever." The better it's performed - quite brilliantly here - the more wonderfully kitchy it is. I got quite a few chuckles out of it. Isn't this fundamentally comic? Oscar Wilde may have thought of it that way. It certainly isn't a study in the sacred and the profane, since Jokanaan is part of the fun.

Why would you consider this live?


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## The Conte (May 31, 2015)

Woodduck said:


> Nobody does operatic camp like Strauss. All that voluptuous rolling on the floor, and the crazy poetry everyone talks in... "The moon is like the egg of an amorous dove, your forehead is like the slopes of Ararat, I love the marks of your teeth in my fruit, I want to kiss your whatever." The better it's performed - quite brilliantly here - the more wonderfully kitchy it is. I got quite a few chuckles out of it. Isn't this fundamentally comic? Oscar Wilde may have thought of it that way. It certainly isn't a study in the sacred and the profane, since Jokanaan is part of the fun.
> 
> Why would you consider this live?


I couldn't disagree more. Firstly, the crazy poetry everyone talks in is Wilde in German translation. Of course, Strauss obviously appreciated the text or he wouldn't have agreed to write the opera. I like Wilde's overly decadent text and there's nothing I know of that suggests Wilde wrote it as a campy comedy. I'm not sure he intended it to be a "study in the sacred and the profane" and I've always thought it to be a metaphor for unspoken desire. Salome is a Prometheus figure. Every age needs people who push boundries, but does Salome push too far? Do you need to push to extremes in order to move even one step forward?

The play isn't as consistent or as powerful as Elektra (Sophocles?) and the same is true of the respective operas. However, Salome is a fine work of art and its highly poetic text is a feature rather than a bug.

N.


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## Op.123 (Mar 25, 2013)

Woodduck said:


> Nobody does operatic camp like Strauss. All that voluptuous rolling on the floor, and the crazy poetry everyone talks in... "The moon is like the egg of an amorous dove, your forehead is like the slopes of Ararat, I love the marks of your teeth in my fruit, I want to kiss your whatever." The better it's performed - quite brilliantly here - the more wonderfully kitchy it is. I got quite a few chuckles out of it. Isn't this fundamentally comic? Oscar Wilde may have thought of it that way. It certainly isn't a study in the sacred and the profane, since Jokanaan is part of the fun.
> 
> Why would you consider this live?


Yes, I’ve always thought that this was very much a black comedy and am fairly certain that Wilde understood it on those terms too, he was, after all, best known for his comic works. In fact I think Salome works so well because both Wilde and Strauss appeared to have a similar sense of humour and both certainly found an expressive outlet in writing fundamentally comic dramas (Strauss always wanted to write comic operas). I have discussed Salome with a fairly well-renowned expert on Wilde who has similar thoughts. It is certainly not a ‘comic opera‘ but there is a comic vein which runs throughout the play, the moments of light-relief, the camp exaggerations etc. Salome is best seen as a dramatic pastiche on the decadent art of that time and I think it’s all the more enjoyable and meaningful for it.


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## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

Op.123 said:


> Yes, I’ve always thought that this was very much a black comedy and am fairly certain that Wilde understood it on those terms too, he was, after all, best known for his comic works. In fact I think Salome works so well because both Wilde and Strauss appeared to have a similar sense of humour and both certainly found an expressive outlet in writing fundamentally comic dramas (Strauss always wanted to write comic operas). I have discussed Salome with a fairly well-renowned expert on Wilde who has similar thoughts. It is certainly not a ‘comic opera‘ but there is a comic vein which runs throughout the play, the moments of light-relief, the camp exaggerations etc. Salome is best seen as a dramatic pastiche on the decadent art of that time and I think it’s all the more enjoyable and meaningful for it.


The very high camp Salome's Last Dance movie capitalizes on this, having whores perform the roles from the play in front of Wilde and his lover. it is quite funny


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## The Conte (May 31, 2015)

Op.123 said:


> Yes, I’ve always thought that this was very much a black comedy and am fairly certain that Wilde understood it on those terms too, he was, after all, best known for his comic works. In fact I think Salome works so well because both Wilde and Strauss appeared to have a similar sense of humour and both certainly found an expressive outlet in writing fundamentally comic dramas (Strauss always wanted to write comic operas). I have discussed Salome with a fairly well-renowned expert on Wilde who has similar thoughts. It is certainly not a ‘comic opera‘ but there is a comic vein which runs throughout the play, the moments of light-relief, the camp exaggerations etc. Salome is best seen as a dramatic pastiche on the decadent art of that time and I think it’s all the more enjoyable and meaningful for it.


There are certainly humorous moments and a few Wildean one liners (although fewer than in his later better known plays). Wilde did term it a tragedy, though and I see no evidence for it being a pastiche of the art of its time. The poetry is more in line with biblical imagery, but it's totally Wildean and can be found in some of his other works (especially the short stories).

N.


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## Op.123 (Mar 25, 2013)

The Conte said:


> There are certainly humorous moments and a few Wildean one liners (although fewer than in his later better known plays). Wilde did term it a tragedy, though and I see no evidence for it being a pastiche of the art of its time. The poetry is more in line with biblical imagery, but it's totally Wildean and can be found in some of his other works (especially the short stories).
> 
> N.


I find that the biblical language just adds the comic, satiric side of the work. I wouldn't be able to listen to the work as a serious tragedy without seeing a little image of Strauss with a sardonic grin in my head, with all those little growls from the brass, those dashes of 'fairly music' and wry, playful rhythms. I don't think I'd enjoy it half as much either.


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## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

Op.123 said:


> I find that the biblical language just adds the comic, satiric side of the work. I wouldn't be able to listen to the work as a serious tragedy without seeing a little image of Strauss with a sardonic grin in my head, with all those little growls from the brass, those dashes of 'fairly music' and wry, playful rhythms. I don't think I'd enjoy it half as much either.


Seeing it live is a different experience altogether.


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## Op.123 (Mar 25, 2013)

Callas, 1955 Norma
Flagstad, Liebestod, 1938
Dominguez, Del Monaco, Aida act 4 duet, 1951
Tagliavini, e la Solita Storia
Ponselle, O Nume Tutelar 
Lina Bruna Rasa, Voi lo Sapete, 1938
Tagliabue, Il Balen del tuo Sorriso 
Tebaldi, Pace, Pace, 1953
Björling, Ah si ben mio, 1938


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