Best opera singers
Posted by: Alamanka on 04 February 2011
I know nothing about opera.
But thanks to someone on this forum (thank you Edouard), I discovered a few weeks ago the immense talent of CECILIA BARTOLI.
Is it humanly possible to sing better than her? What other ultimate artists have I been missing?
Posted on: 04 February 2011 by Richard Dane
Too many...
But for starters, some from the not too distant past;
Maria Callas - a very distinctive voice, if somewhat controversial, but just take a listen to her singing something like Bizet's Carmen, Rossini's Barber of Seville, or her Paris recitals. It also helps that I personally think she was one of the most stunningly attractive women ever to have lived.
Renata Tebaldi - Try Ponchielli's La Giaconda. Her "Suicidio" was legendary.
Leontyne Price - Try Puccini's Tosca with Von Karajan. Much as I love MC (and her early Tosca in particular is amazing), I'm tempted to give the nod to this one.
Birgit Nilsson - Take your pick of any of her incredible Wagner performances.
Posted on: 04 February 2011 by graham55
Richard, it would be hard to disagree with any of the examples that you mention.
But, surely, Maria Callas' greatest ever recording was her 1953 'Tosca', with Victor de Sabata conducting. Leontyne Price's 1963 recording under Karajan is superb, and any decent library needs both, but Callas and de Sabata (who hated recording even more than Carlos Kleiber) outdo Price and Karajan at every point.
In addition to the sopranos whom you mention, others such as Schwarzkopf, Lisa della Casa, and many others centred around Vienna in the late 1950s remain unmatched.
Cecilia Bartoli pales by comparison, in my opinion.
Graham
Posted on: 04 February 2011 by JWM
La Stupenda - Joan Sutherland. The madness scene in Lucia di Lammamoor, of course. But also the Decca 'Turandot' with Pavarotti, Caballe, Pears, etc. Magnificent.
I love Callas, with her rather dark tones. For me it has to be her Tosca.
Personally, I also love the voice of another Greek, Agnes Baltsa. My introduction to live opera was at Athens when I was on an archaeology study there in 1984 - the cast of the then recently-recorded Carmen by DG, in the Odeon of Herodes Atticus, the larger of the two ancient theatres around the base of the Acropolis. Karajan conducting. The Greek crowd adoring their own Baltsa. Pre-illness Jose Carreras. With wonderful support from Jose Van Dam and Katia Ricciarelli.
The same team also recorded a wonderful Verdi Requiem shortly afterwards.
The Swedish Tenor Jussi Bjoerling, who has been mentioned elsewhere on thsi Forum recently.
Others, I hope, will add further names!
Posted on: 04 February 2011 by Richard Dane
Graham, it's a fair cop. I do acknowledge the brilliance of Callas' earlier Tosca with de Sabata. I love it and couldn't be without it. However, I'm guilty of making a very personal choice with Price's Tosca under Von Karajan as it was my first proper exposure to opera, and you know what they say about the first time...
Posted on: 04 February 2011 by mudwolf
At Tower records on Sunset in LA, nice people knew their stuff. One sales guy said ABC. Aida, Boheme, Carmen are 3 great basics everyone should have.
Aida with Leontyne Price, Grace Bumbry and Placido Domingo on RCA, L S O.
Boheme with Sir Tom Beecham, Victoria de los Angeles, Bjorling, Merrill EMI Classics
Carmen , so many choices but Callas would be the darkest naughty girl on the block.
I only took to opera in my mid 40s, it's a wonderful world so I don't know all the ins and outs. My FIRST staged opera was Peter Grimes with Langridge singing. Just love that dark opera, I can understand the words being in English and the Sea Interludes are sumptuous.
The end of first act in Boheme they finally get around to the big scene, it's too erotic to describe here. You have to be mature for that one. Have a hanky for the end.
Have a great time sooooo many to discover. The new Met HD broadcasts are incredible, they're on DVD now.
Posted on: 05 February 2011 by Howlinhounddog
The end of first act in Boheme they finally get around to the big scene, it's too erotic to describe here. You have to be mature for that one. Have a hanky for the end.
That's not very mature Muwolf
Posted on: 05 February 2011 by EJS
Best opera singers? The list started well before the invention of recording, and as of 1914 there has been endless procession of greats, starting with Enrico Caruso, Ferruccio Tagliavini, Beniamino Gigli, Lauritz Melchior just among tenors. Since the 50s, the number of recordings has exploded and continues to a certain extent to this day. I have hundreds of recordings, mostly complete operas (and I'm sure there are some on this forum whose collections dwarf mine) and I wouldn't be able to pick favorites! I regularly post some of my personal thoughts on the 'what are you listening to' thread, for what it's worth.
Anyway, just explore with an open mind! In my particular case, I find that I hardly ever agree with the established critics however amusing they are.
One recent recording that I particularly like, not least for La Gheorghiu's contribution:
And a good starter opera (besides the ones mentioned above) is Mozart's Le Nozze di Figaro. Plenty of good recordings to choose from, but this one is cheap and has Bartoli in a major role which you may appreciate:
EJ
Posted on: 05 February 2011 by EJS
Just to add a bit of background: my first opera experience was Aida, in the open air theater in Verona, when I was 16. Been hooked on opera ever since. Things went out of control when my parents gave me my first CD as a present - this one, which I still love and admire as one of the best Aida's ever committed to disc. Luciano Pavarotti was especially good in this role - a sincere, lyric tenor with an heroic tinge (no hanky in sight).
EJ
Posted on: 05 February 2011 by mudwolf
WOW EJ, how great to see it in Verona. When I went thru there I could only imagine as it was late fall and raining. That's on my bucket list. Pavarotti was incredible when he was young.
Posted on: 05 February 2011 by Alamanka
Thank you all.
Posted on: 07 February 2011 by EJS
Alamanka,
Never realized Bianca Castafiore would lure people to the opera - here's Maria Callas singing Ah, Je ris...etc from Faust (from her 1963 recording with George Pretre):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHrSfxtTe64Regards,
EJ
Posted on: 07 February 2011 by Alamanka
Whaow! I am wondering if my speakers are still working after that.
This morning I listened to the first half of Barbiere de Siviglia, conducted by Alceo Galliera, with the same Maria Callas, Tito Gobbi and Luigi Alva. I really enjoyed (Figaro qua, figaro la....). The male singers really shine in this opera.
Maria Callas beauty and powerful voice are indeed striking. I have not yet listened to all the recordings indicated above, but I will.
Posted on: 07 February 2011 by JWM
Snap! My wife and I also went to see Aida at the Verona Arena, on our honeymoon in 1988. With the perennial Grace Bumbry.
As a Classics graduate it was also great in that regard to be able to see live performance in a Roman arena, with the cries of 'Panini', 'Gelati' - very atmospheric
Even more atmospheric was the weather. It had been stiflingly hot in the whole region (we were based at Lake Garda for most of the hol), and on the night of the performance a storm broke over the hills some miles away, so there was a background of gently illuminating skies and low rolls of thunder - nothing intrustive - timed beautifully to conclude with the final scene, "O terra addio".
This is the mindblowing performance by Placido Domingo (Radames), Aprille Millo (Aida) and Dolora Zajick (Amneris) from the 1989 Met production. Just watch the emotion in Zajick's expression particularly, she's almost in tears, but the singing remains exquisite throughout. Not flawless perhaps, but it does it for me!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pp872-DIBQE&feature=relatedPosted on: 10 February 2011 by Sister E.
Can't believe nobody has mentioned Victoria De los Angeles. There's a warmth and humanity in her singing which is unmatched, in my opinion,
Sister xx
Posted on: 10 February 2011 by Richard Dane
Coincidentally, I was listening to Victoria de Los Angeles just last night on the Reel2Reel and realised then that I should have included her. Also, should have included Natania Davrath singing Chants d'Auvergne.
Posted on: 09 April 2011 by Alamanka
What do you all think of Anna Netrebko?
Just listened tonight to her album Sempre Libera with Claudio Abbado (Deutsche Grammophon 2004). Note: the cover and back pictures of her are also quite impressive.
Regarding some of the "older" artists mentioned in that thread, I tried some but I must admit I am partial to the more recent recordings and artists. I am listening on CD and the old recordings transferred on CD during the 80's do not sound very good on my system (NaimUniti + Wilson Benesch Arc).Recordings done in the last ten years are the one I can really enjoy.
Posted on: 10 April 2011 by EJS
Alamanka,
It's a good recital disc. I'm listening to Netrebko now, in the complete recording of Bellini's "I Capuletti e i Montecchi" (Romeo and Juliet). I think her voice is particularly well suited to Donizetti and Bellini, both represented on Sempre Libera. She's also worth seeing - her I Puritani from the Met is excellent.
Cheers,
EJ
Posted on: 10 April 2011 by Whizzkid
Great thread guys, so carry on I'm taking notes
Dean...
Posted on: 10 April 2011 by GraemeH
Posted on: 10 April 2011 by Sister E.
Originally Posted by GraemeH:
The greatest, IMO. What a talent!
Posted on: 10 April 2011 by EJS
Unfair. More so than Gigli or Caruso, Foster-Jenkins suffered from the primitive recording techniques in her time. Had she been able to record a duet with Justin Bieber her place in history would have turned out quite different!
Posted on: 10 April 2011 by George Fredrik
Surely all she needed was a little digital editing and auto-tune and she would have been a real celebrity singer nowadays?
It is amazing the wonders of modern technolgy!
ATB from George
PS: No one has mentioned two great Tenors from a bygone era. Aksel Schiøtz from Denmark, and Heddle Nash - both stylish Mozartian Tenors from an age dominated by the more famous Italian Operatic style in their celebrity status. And unlike many Tenors they were not what Sir Adrian Boult characterised as being, "Not so much musicians as a disease!"
Posted on: 10 April 2011 by graham halliwell
I like Montserrat Caballe, and let's not forget Kathleen Ferrier (although mainly known as a recitalist and English opera).
One of my current favourites is Sara Mingardo; I think she has a dark Ferrier like quality in her voice.
I think we have also left out Janet Baker.
Posted on: 10 April 2011 by onip
Some of my favorites (in the order I recalled them only)....
Sutherland, Tibaldi, Horne, Fischer-Dieskau, Nilsson, Frick, Ludwig, London, Uhde
Fischer-Dieskau was great with Wagner, but I also really liked him in his recording of Wozzek (a great Berg opera). Horne is incredible. Beautiful and powerful voice, every note on the money, and music phrasing that moves me.
Posted on: 11 April 2011 by JWM
