Maria Callas Remastered

[TruHart1]

Yes - until another director comes along with a mandate about fitting into a "little black dress" lol.

Well, both stage directors of opera and dramas who have to stuff a concept into a production have always been and will always be with us. In the opera world, they are not the important movers and shakers. The art is vocal, not dramaturgy, though both may work at times, but the next time I see a Carmen set in Franco's Spanish Civil War or a Marriage of Figaro updated and set in Trump Tower, I am liable to run as far away from the box office as I can! UNLESS THE SINGERS ARE PHENOMENAL!!!

 

TruHart1

[bostonman]

Well, both stage directors of opera and dramas who have to stuff a concept into a production have always been and will always be with us. In the opera world, they are not the important movers and shakers. The art is vocal, not dramaturgy, though both may work at times, but the next time I see a Carmen set in Franco's Spanish Civil War or a Marriage of Figaro updated and set in Trump Tower, I am liable to run as far away from the box office as I can! UNLESS THE SINGERS ARE PHENOMENAL!!!

 

Sometimes I think that opera directors try too hard to compensate for the often broad, generic "acting" that passes for operatic staging. Instead of finding ways for some singers to discover a more nuanced, less "park and bark" approach, they smother the opera in "concept." (I think another explanation for many concept productions is that directors get bored with all things traditional, and somehow assume that audiences are equally bored.)

 

I disagree somewhat that the "the art is vocal" - opera was invented to be a cohesive collaboration of many artistic disciplines, and over the centuries, it has gone through many changes both musically and dramatically - although we can all agree a well-sung performance is necessary at very least, I also feel that the best overall performances MUST be more than just that. Yes, we have recordings and even concert performances, but I truly believe that opera at its utmost is indeed theatre, not just music.

 

But - it's interesting that you use the word "dramaturgy." Because that too is part of the problem. Acting is not dramaturgy, nor is good directing - though both disciplines can certainly be aided by the work of a dramaturg. But I feel often in "concept" productions that "dramaturgy" is exactly the thing the director is presenting us with - not living, natural theatre itself, but the cerebral, analytical, academic stuff that is part of the basis on which live theatre is built. Techniques like the use of allegorical sets and costumes, or the academic nature of transplanting a story to a different (often modern or "significant") era - these are cerebral techniques, but they often don't cater to the emotional effect we want to get from the music, the characters, and the story. Peter Sellars may have thought he was being clever by setting The Marriage Of Figaro in trump tower, but it's just really an academic exercise - what does the new setting add to the emotional side of the drama? Telling us that human nature hasn't changed in all these centuries is already kind of obvious, isn't it?

 

I'd much rather see an opera staging where the singers actually express the TEXT that they are singing, and are interacting/reacting/listening to one another as we do in real life (and as we expect actors to do in spoken drama), so that we see real, vital relationships between the characters. If singers can do that, there's no need for updated sets or avant-garde staging, etc.

 

But, coming back to where I started, I tend to think that some directors think it's considerably easier to pour all sorts of allegorical nonsense on top of a production to make it "meaningful" and "relevant," rather than to guide the cast to a more vibrant, believable, simple method of storytelling.

[whipped guy]

But my main point is that if a new Caballé or Sutherland were to hit the operatic scene today, opera lovers would accept the way they looked, if the voice was of high enough caliber! I don't think exceptional voices will ever be excluded no matter what a singer looks like. Your personal opinion of a Meade, Barton, or earlier Jane Eaglen and the late Johan Botha falling just short of excellence for you is simply your opinion of their interpretations/limitations @whipped guy and certainly have no connection to their body weight.

 

TruHart1

Again as I stated above you are right... totally right! I also would hope that the next Caballé or Sutherland would be accepted and I am sure that they would be ... as would the next Callas if she like Callas first appeared on the scene as the plump version.

 

Also, I never mentioned anything about Johan Botha... and if I did and don't recall it then I'm going senile! So please forgive me!! Please, if Mr. Congeniality of the Realm does not forgive me who will.

 

Also, since I posted very extensively about Norma above and did not mention Meade in it (I could not include every singer who did not record the part commercially) I thought it appropriate to comment on her performances of the part. It had nothing to do with her appearance. It was simply my impression of her interpretation and how it affected me personally. I also included my comments about two other roles: Anna Bolena, a part written for Giuditta Pasta who was the first Norma and the title role in Semiramide an opera that influenced Bellini when he when he composed Norma. That was done to place my comments in the proper perspective. Of course I could not resist making a quip about Pollione liking full figured women so perhaps that made it seem as though I was equating size with vocal ability.

 

Incidentally, one friend years ago told me that Caballé's girth made her totally believable as Norma from a dramatic point of view. How would a svelt Norma be able to bear Pollione two kids and not conceal it for 9 months!!!! My response was that Callas was able to get away with it because she had the kids when she was the 1952 model year (as in the Covent Garden production) and then went on her infamous diet and reappeared as the slim 1955 model year ( as in the La Scala production)!

[+ quoththeraven]

Also some thin women don't start to show until late in their pregnancy. So it's still believable.

 

Then there are those who are already built like Amazons. They tend not to show quickly either.

[whipped guy]

I just came across this from a year ago... and it does prove @TruHart1 's point that full figured sopranos, mezzos, and even tenors are being hired. Incidentally the excerpts sung in the clip are done quite well. However, this was not the performance upon which I based my comments about Meade's Norma.

 

Don't shoot the messenger, as this is NOT my comment, but if you go to the original YouTube page one of the comments posted implies that the opera could be called "ENORMA". Again NOT my comment! However, another poster did echo my quip that at least Pollione was interested in a certain type of woman...

 

[whipped guy]

I meant to post this a couple of months back, but Immortal Performances has released an excellent copy of Joan Sutherland's initial production of Norma from Vancouver Opera in 1963. Consider this like my mention of Angela Meade above as an addendum to my Norma post.

 

The principals in the cast are the same as on her first commercial recording. However, all actually perform to a higher standard than on the 1964 Decca release. Sutherland is more in tune with the drama, Marilyn Horne is her usual reliable self, and tenor John Alexander actually sings better live than in the studio. Bass Richard Cross is reliable as well. Bonynge even conducts with more vigor, and at times a bit too much! Some traditional cuts are taken and a few portions such as part of the aria " Casta diva" (unfortunately) and a bit of the first act tenor/(mezzo)soprano duet are missing from the original tape. While this performance has circulated in the operatic underground for years it did so in dismal sounvd. This is the first time it is officially available on CD and in restored sound. I simply can't believe that Sutherland is so alert to the drama and that this was her first experience with the role! Perhaps hearing the performance in better sound made me more aware of that fact. So she probably did absorb a thing or two from being on stage in the small role of Clotilde with Callas at Covent Garden in 1952!

 

It is on three discs that are priced as two. The third disc contains bonus material of Sutherland in a number of roles including such unlikely parts as Wagner's Eva and Puccini's Tosca. She's splendid there as well and especially as Tosca!

 

http://immortalperformances.org/documents.php?d=13#53

[TruHart1]

Again as I stated above you are right... totally right! I also would hope that the next Caballé or Sutherland would be accepted and I am sure that they would be ... as would the next Callas if she like Callas first appeared on the scene as the plump version.

 

Also, I never mentioned anything about Johan Botha... and if I did and don't recall it then I'm going senile! So please forgive me!! Please, if Mr. Congeniality of the Realm does not forgive me who will.

 

Also, since I posted very extensively about Norma above and did not mention Meade in it (I could not include every singer who did not record the part commercially) I thought it appropriate to comment on her performances of the part. It had nothing to do with her appearance. It was simply my impression of her interpretation and how it affected me personally. I also included my comments about two other roles: Anna Bolena, a part written for Giuditta Pasta who was the first Norma and the title role in Semiramide an opera that influenced Bellini when he when he composed Norma. That was done to place my comments in the proper perspective. Of course I could not resist making a quip about Pollione liking full figured women so perhaps that made it seem as though I was equating size with vocal ability.

 

Incidentally, one friend years ago told me that Caballé's girth made her totally believable as Norma from a dramatic point of view. How would a svelt Norma be able to bear Pollione two kids and not conceal it for 9 months!!!! My response was that Callas was able to get away with it because she had the kids when she was the 1952 model year (as in the Covent Garden production) and then went on her infamous diet and reappeared as the slim 1955 model year ( as in the La Scala production)!

No forgiveness required @whipped guy, since you never did mention him, I just alluded to Botha because he was (unfortunately he passed away relatively recently [9/8 this year] at quite the young age of 51. And lest you get the wrong impression, he died of cancer, not any weight-related illness!) a tenor of enormous girth who was in very high demand for dramatic tenor roles by all the major opera houses world-wide! Besides that, your tastes may be different in voices than mine are, just as we may differ in our opinions on our favorite escorts. I expect that, and I'm glad there are as many preferences for personally favorite singers as there are clients, er, I mean, music lovers! :D:D

 

TruHart1

[body2body]

I saw Caballé in recital late in her career. We were astonished when she showed up, because the health issues caused by her obesity had resulted in her being as famous for her cancellations as her performances. She walked on the stage with obvious effort wearing a pearl studded black velvet Caftan. She positioned herself and began to sing. Her voice was glorious, but the singing was very mannered, studied, and devoid of emotion. She sang a series of Italian arias, Spanish and Catalan songs, and it all just blurred together into a beautiful mush. She held a handkerchief in her clasped hands, which seemed never to move.

For me Opera is theater, the highest most wonderful kind of theater. Just because a singer has a wonderful voice does not mean they belong on the operatic stage. Their size has nothing to do with it. I remember a production of Ariadne auf Naxos in Santa Fe in 1990, the Ariadne was Alessandra Marc. She was a very large woman but she sang beautifully and her acting brought the character to life. I don't agree with the idea that in the good old days all the singers had to do was perform stock gestures and sing well. The first Opera I saw was La Fanciulla del West in a San Francisco Opera production in 1961. Dorothy Kirsten was Minnie, and she was a terrific actress.

[body2body]

Seriously, a lot of the name singers are not any better than the second string players. Plus, a name singer who is over the hill often needs to be sent back down to the minor leagues. However, as with star baseball players that hardly ever happens. Plus, often young artist programs feature many diamonds in the rough. Some make it and others don't, but I have heard many promising young singers in such situations. One such person was soprano June Anderson who had a wonderful international career. She was from one town over in CT. Those who knew her (I didn't) described her as a "shy wall flower"!

I loved June Anderson. I had the great pleasure of seeing her in Lucia di Lammermoor in Los Angeles in the early 90s. She had it all, looks, voice, and great acting skills.

This clip is from the Paris Opera.

[whipped guy]

I loved June Anderson. I had the great pleasure of seeing her in Lucia di Lammermoor in Los Angeles in the early 90s. She had it all, looks, voice, and great acting skills.

This clip is from the Paris Opera.

I know one of June Anderson's former teachers from her high school days. When he learned that I liked opera he asked if I ever followed her career. When I responded in the affirmative and told him that I had heard her at the MET a number of times he said that he could not believe that she had reached such heights. Even though he was a very cultured individual he really knew very little about opera. I figured that he would be most impressed with her Lucia so I made him a compilation CD of highlights from her MET Lucia broadcast from 1992 with the role of Lucia given complete. He was completely in awe upon hearing what one of his former students had achieved and especially since it was a live broadcast!

 

I don't recall exactly when it happened but it probably was in the very late 1980's she when returned to the area and gave a concert as "local girl makes good". She sang 'Bel raggio" from Semiramide, "Una voce poco fa" from Il Barbiere di Siviglia, the Mad Scene from I Puritani, "Ah forse lui... Sempre libera" from Traviata among other things with enough fioritura, high E's, and E-flats to fill three operas!

[whipped guy]

The Callas Lucia di Lammermoor and I Puritani 1953

 

 

 

Earlier in this thread I discussed Andrew Rose's Pristine Classical remastering of the famed live 1955 La Scala performance of Bellini's Norma. It along with the version released by Divina Records are the two best masterings of this legendary performance. If in the intervening months I behave come to slightly prefer the Divina version it is because the Pristine mastering is ever so slightly over-processed. Yet it is a virtual tossup.

 

Consequently I decided to sample Rose's versions of the two earliest Callas EMI releases... the 1953 recordings of Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor and Bellini's I Puritani. Both performances have sonic problems in their most most recent incarnations as part of Warner's "Callas Remastered" series. The Donizetti was simply never state of the art even when initially released and the Bellini has a somewhat bright and harsh aspect to it in as remastered.

 

I decided to sample the Bellini first and in the ambient stereo version. As noted earlier in this thread in conjunction with the aforementioned La Scala Norma, this is emphatically not fake stereo, but rather the monaural recording experienced in an acoustic space. One hears a mono recording with a bit of extra air and space around it. On first hearing it was obvious that the Pristine version had a richer sound. There was more depth to the timpani and the strings sounded smoother and richer. In the Warner version there were times when a certain harshness affected not only Callas, but more significantly tenor Giuseppe DiStefano as well. This was totally missing in the Pristine version. Therefore Rose's version can be considered an improvement and is recommended to those who might be troubled by the sound of EMI/Warner.

 

I then sampled the Donizetti and here the jury is still out. The Warner mastering is a bit lean, but never overly harsh. Indeed there is more presence to the voices than in the previous dry sounding CD releases and the old EMI/Seraphim LP release. In comparison the Pristine version is larger than life. There is a plushness that is anything but lean. Again there is more depth to the timpani and the strings sound richer. However, I also hear what can only be described as a "disturbance of sorts" that permeates the proceedings and especially during the loudest passages. The problem is most likely present in the original master tape and is accentuated by the mastering process. Still, the Warner sounds cleaner if nowhere as rich and the fact that it sounds leaner seems to hide the distortions that are more evident in the Pristine. Bottom line: there are differences and neither is perfect. Perhaps having both is the perfect solution to the sonic dilemma?

 

Incidentally it should be noted that both masterings predate the current Warner versions and when they were introduced were definite improvements on the then current EMI CD versions. Interestingly as a bonus on the Lucia set one gets the three arias that Callas recorded for Cetra in 1949. However, the transfers are not the best and are pitched higher than other versions at A=460 vs. A=440. It sounds wrong to my ears even though Andrew Rose supposedly has a convincing theory that the orchestra tuned at that pitch. In this instance the Warner versions in the Callas Remastered series of this materiel take pride of place.

 

In closing I need to comment on both of these performances as I only touch on them briefly earlier in this thread. One can not overly emphasize their importance in the history of recorded sound. Only when one reads contemporary reviews that accompanied the release of these two recordings can one truly appreciate the stir that they generated in the musical world. Though recorded second it was I Puritani that was first released in the US. Not only was the opera unfamiliar, but it was the first time many got to hear this then rarely heard Bel Canto masterpiece sung as originally intended at least as far as the soprano role is concerned. Excerpts of the opera that were readily available were usually sung by light bird-brained coloratura sopranos. Few had really experienced such a large voice singing this music and in a dramatic manner to boot! Callas is simply masterful in the way that she phrases the contours of Bellini's long, graceful, and elegiac vocal lines. In any event, the only other complete performance of the piece with Callas dates from the previous year and it exists in poor sound from a rather rowdy Mexican broadcast and is not in the same class as the studio recording.

 

Thus the stage was set for the release of Lucia an opera that was very familiar, but again at the time only as a show piece for light canary-voiced coloratura sopranos. Callas proved to the world that Lucia indeed had some meat on her bones and was meant by both Donizetti and his librettist to be taken seriously. This was not music that was designed simply to show off a pretty voice. It was written in a style where the vocal acrobatics were designed to depict and enhance the drama. There was actually a dramatic justification for all of that intricate and difficult to sing fioratura. Yes, all those little notes actually meant something and were not intended to be mere vocal display. Given that the Callas voice was not pretty, out of necessity she channeled her efforts into infusing each note with dramatic substance. As such she laid the foundation for the Bel Canto revival that is in full swing today. While there were some detours along the way, there would be no turning back. Callas singlehandedly revealed the intrinsic nature of the Bel Canto style and confirmed that in addition its technicial difficulties the essence of the the art of Bel Canto was based on dramatic truth. It should be noted as referenced earlier in this thread that Callas was to deepen and refine her interpretation of Lucia and especially in performances conducted by Herbert von Karajan and in a second recording made six years later for the stereo medium. Yet much of what made her Lucia so memorable is already present in this first recording even if she would add a kaleidoscope of colors and shadings in future performances. Plus the voice is steadier than often would be the case in the future.

 

Unfortunately both operas are heavily cut as was the tradition at the time. However, what is performed is masterfully conducted by Tullio Serafin and the supporting casts are quite strong. In both operas Callas is partnered by tenor Giuseppe DiStefano. He was not a natural Bel Canto artist, but indeed not many tenors were at the time and it was only much later that tenors capable of doing total justice to these operas began gracing opera stages on a regular basis. Given that fact, while Di Stefano is definitely more comfortable as Edgardo in Lucia, he does make a valiant attempt at the more difficult role of Arturo in Puritani. It was often lamented at the time that Callas had no true Bel Canto tenors to partner her in these operas. Now we have the tenors, but are waiting for the arrival of the next Callas.

 

Addendum: In December the Pristine Classical website was hacked and in the process of trying to undue the damage they lost everything on their site. As of a few days ago they were back on line and back in operation. All their performances are available as 24 or 16 bit FLAC and MP3 downloads or may be purchased as regular physical CD's for those who are not tech savvy.

 

https://www.pristineclassical.com

 

https://www.pristineclassical.com/collections/artist-maria-callas/products/paco085

 

https://www.pristineclassical.com/collections/artist-maria-callas/products/paco084

[whipped guy]

Addendum to to the above for those who might be interested in the more readily available Warner versions.

 

 

 

Note: the Warner Lucia is better than the two previous EMI CD issues regarding the presence of the voices which place things in a very unflattering and dry acoustic. However, the Puritani has those damned distortions noted above such that the earlier EMI CD releases while sounding darker are considered by some to be better than the more recent Warner mastering. Nothing is ever easy!

 

In any event, the importance of these two recordings regarding Callas and the Bel Canto revival can't be overemphasized and ideally should be part of any serious Bel Canto collection in one form or another.

[whipped guy]

1953 Lucia update... I have been comparing the Pristine and Warner versions and while it's still close I think that the Pristine definitely edges out the Warner due to its less analytical nature. There is a richness and depth to the overall sonic picture that sounds more natural. If the orchestra sounds more natural then by extrapolation the voices should as well. Baritone Tito Gobbi is especially well served in that regard as he comes through as having more vocal substance with much more "presence" compared to the Warner version, and that is indeed how he sounds on other recordings of the period. Callas sounds a bit fuller as well and it is as she should because this was the period where she still had more weight in her voice. Yes, what has been unflatteringly referenced as her "fat" (that is larger and more dramatic) sound. That she also was "bulkier" during this period probably supports the theory that the voice often mirrors a singers physical appearance. In summary, the increased plushness of the sound more than compensates for the presence of any distortions in the Pristine version, which distortions seem a small price to pay for the enhanced sonics.

[whipped guy]

It was only a matter of time that Warner Classics would turn to the live Callas recordings that have been making the rounds for well over a half century.

 

However, based on some of the results of their remastering of the studio recorded EMI material (see: above post) which in essence was a total scam one needs to question what Warner has done with the live material. Consequently, I would be quite hesitant to jump on the bandwagon as many of the EMI issued versions of live material were among the worst available and if those are what was used for this project the results will be a disaster.

 

Warner claims that some of the material is supposedly from newly found tapes discovered by Tom Volf who is the author of the expensive coffee table book Maria by Callas: In her own words. He has a movie Maria by Callas that will open on September 16 that coincides with the 40th anniversakry of the death of Callas. These releases are part of the hype.

 

In the past the term "newly found tapes" has only meant a different generation of the only existing material. Perhaps they will pitch them correctly and clean up the sound, but if the source is problematic then the results will likewise still be questionable.

 

In any event, here is the current Warner hype:

 

Maria Callas – Live

 

Remastered Recordings 1949–1964

 

Callas at Covent Garden (London 1962 & 1964)

 

blu-ray

 

Callas in Concert (Hamburg 1959 & 1962)

 

blu-ray

 

Toujours (Paris 1958)

 

blu-ray

 

BELLINI

 

NORMA

 

Mirto Picchi, Ebe Stignani, Giacomo Vaghi

 

Covent Garden, Vittorio Gui

 

LA SONNSMBULA

 

Cesare Valletti (Elvino), Maria Callas (Amina), Giuseppe Modesti (Rodolfo), Gabriella Carturan (Teresa), Eugenia Ratti (Lisa), Pier Luigi Latinucci (Alessio), Giuseppe Nessi (Notaro)

 

Teatro alla Scala, Leonard Bernstein

 

IL PIRATA

 

Pier Miranda Ferraro, Costantino Ego, Glade Peterson

 

Nicola Rescigno

 

CHERUBINI

 

MEDEA

 

Gino Penno (Giasone), Maria Callas (Medea), Maria Luisa Nache (Glauce), Fedora Barbieri (Neris), Giuseppe Modesti (Creonte), Enrico Campi (Capitano), Angela Vercelli (Prima Ancella), Maria Amadini (Seconda Ancella)

 

Teatro alla Scala, Leonard Bernstein

 

DONIZETTI

 

LUCIA DI LAMMERMOOR

 

Giuseppe di Stefano, Rolando Panerai, Nicola Zaccaria

 

Herbert von Karajan

 

ANNA BOLENA

 

Gianni Raimondi, Nicola Rossi Lemeni, Giulietta Simionato

 

Gianandrea Gavazzeni

 

POLIUTO

 

Franco Corelli, Ettore Bastianini, Nicola Zaccaria

 

Antonino Votto

 

GIORDANO

 

ANFREA CHENIER

 

Mario del Monaco (Andrea Chénier), Aldo Protti (Carlo Gérard), Maria Amadini (La Contessa di Coigny), Silvana Zanolli (La mulatta Bersi), Maria Amadini (La Contessa di Coigny), Lucia Danieli (Madelon)

 

Teatro alla Scala, Antonino Votto

 

GLUCK

 

ALCESTE

 

Maria Callas (Alceste), Renato Gavarini (Admète), Paolo Silveri (Grand Prêtre d'Apollon), Rolando Panerai (Apollon), Giuseppe Zampieri (Evandre), Nicola Zaccaria (La voix de l'Oracle), Silvio Maionica (Dieu infernal), Enrico Campi (Un Héraut)

 

Teatro alla Scala, Carlo Maria Giulini

 

IPHEGENIE EN Tauride

 

sung in Italian

 

Francesco Albanese, Anselmo Colzani, Fiorenza Cossotto

 

Nino Sanzogno

 

PUCCINI

 

TISCA

 

Tito Gobbi

 

Carlo Felice Cillario

 

ROSSINI

 

ARMIDA

 

Maria Callas (Armida), Francesco Albanese (Rinaldo), Mario Filippeschi (Gernando), Gianni Raimondi (Eustazio), Alessandro Ziliani (Goffredo), Antonio Salvarezza (Ubaldo), Mario Frosini (Idradote), Marco Stefanoni (Astarotte)

 

Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, Tullio Serafin

 

SPONTINI

 

LA VESTALE

 

Franco Corelli (Licinius), Maria Callas (Giulia), Ebe Stignani (Gran Vestale), Enzo Sordello (Cinna), Nicola Rossi-Lemeni (Grande Sacerdote), Vittorio Tatozzi (Un Console), Nicola Zaccaria (Aruspice)

 

Teatro alla Scala, Antonino Votto

 

VERDI

 

NABUCCO

 

Gino Bechi (Nabucco), Maria Callas (Abigaille), Amalia Pini (Fenena), Gino Sinimberghi (Ismaele), Iginio Riccò (Gran Sacerdote), Luciano della Pergola (Abdallo), Silvana Tenti (Anna)

 

Vittorio Gui

 

 

I VESPRI SICILIANI

 

Giórgios Kokoliós-Bardi (Arrigo), Maria Callas (La Duchessa Elena), Enzo Mascherini (Guido di Montforte), Boris Christoff (Giovanni da Procida), Mario Frosini (Il Conte Vaudemont), Bruno Carmassi (Il Sire di Bethume), Mafalda Masini (Ninetta), Gino Sarri (Danieli), Aldo De Paolo (Tebaldo), Lido Pettini (Roberto), Breno Ristori (Manfredo)

 

Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, Erich Kleiber

 

AÏDA

 

Maria Callas (Aida), Mario del Monaco (Radamès), Oralia Domínguez (Amneris), Giuseppe Taddei (Amonasro), Roberto Silva (Ramphis), Ignacio Ruffino (Il Re di Egitto), Rosa Rodríguez (Una Sacerdotessa), Carlos Sagarminaga (Un Messaggero)

 

Palacio de las Bellas Artes, Oliviero de Fabritiis

 

RIGOLETTO

 

Giuseppe di Stefano (Duca di Mantova), Maria Callas (Gilda), Piero Campolonghi (Rigoletto), Ignacio Ruffino (Sparafucile), María Teresa García (Maddalena), Ana María Feuss (Giovanna), Gilberto Cerda (Monterone), Alberto Herrera (Marullo), Carlos Sagarminaga (Borsa), Francisco Alonso (Conte di Ceprano), Edna Patoni (Contessa)

 

Palacio de las Bellas Artes, Umberto Mugnai

 

MACBETH

 

Enzo Mascherini (Macbeth), Maria Callas (Lady Macbeth), Italo Tajo (Banco), Gino Penno (Macduff), Luciano della Pergola (Malcolm), Angela Vercelli (Dama), Dario Caselli (Medico), Attilio Barbesi (Domestico), Mario Tommasini (Sicaro)

 

Teatro alla Scala, Victor de Sabata

 

LA TRAVIATA

 

Franco Ghione, Alfredo Kraus, Mario Sereni, Laura Zannini

 

WAGNER

 

PARSIFAL

 

sung in Italian

 

Rolando Panerai (Amfortas), Africo Baldelli (Parsifal), Maria Callas (Kundry), Boris Christoff (Gurnemanz), Giuseppe Modesti (Klingsor), Dmitri Lopatto (Titurel)

 

Vittorio Gui

 

 

Maria Callas (soprano)

 

Maria Callas Live captures the legendary soprano in action on the stages of the world’s great opera houses and concert halls. Thanks to new audio remastering from the best available sources, this 45-disc set reveals Callas’ compelling genius as a singing actress with a new truthfulness and immediacy. Containing 20 complete operas – including 12 works she never recorded in the

 

studio – and five complete filmed recitals on Blu-ray, Maria Callas Live is the indispensable complement to Maria Callas Remastered, Warner Classics’ landmark collection of her studio recordings.

 

This deluxe box set comprises 42 CDs (20 complete operas) and 3 Blu-ray (5 recitals).

 

12 of the operas were never recorded by Callas in the studio

 

Verdi: Nabucco

 

Verdi: I vespri siciliani

 

Verdi: Macbeth

 

Wagner: Parsifal

 

Donizetti: Anna Bolena

 

Donizetti: Poliuto

 

Rossini: Armida

 

Bellini: Il pirata

 

Gluck: Alceste

 

Gluck: Ifigenia in Tauride

 

Spontini: La vestale

 

Giordano: Andrea Chénier

 

The 8 other operas in the box result from performances which have made the legend of Callas on stage:

 

The historic performance of Verdi’s Aida (when she sang an interpolated high E flat at the end of the Triumphal Scene to ecstatic applause from the audience), La traviata (Lisbon 1958, conducted by Franco Ghione with Alfredo Kraus), her only incarnation of Rigoletto on stage, Bellini’s Norma at the height of her voice in London, Donizetti’s Lucia di Lammermoor in the legendary perfomance with Karajan at Staatsoper Berlin, Cherubini’s Medea and Bellini’s La Sonnambula under Leonard Bernstein at La Scala, and the heartbreaking Puccini Tosca from Covent Garden, 1964.

 

Each recording in this edition has been newly remastered, using the latest audio technology, great care has been taken to assure accuracy of reproduced pitch, which has been corrected in various instances.

 

Some performances presented in this boxset (Nabucco, Armida, La Vestale, Alceste) were recorded under difficult technical circumstances and this remains evident in the audio quality. That being said, Warner Classics has made a conscious choice in including them, since they offer the only opportunity to hear Maria Callas in roles that she did not perform in the recording studio.

 

This set makes use of the best available source material, which includes tapes recently discovered by Tom Volf (director of the forthcoming film Callas in her own words) in the archives of the Italian collector, Oscar Costellacci.

 

As a result, Callas’s voice, as heard in the opera house and concert hall, can be experienced with unparalleled authenticity in all its stunning presence. While the imperfections inherent in vintage recordings of live productions have not disappeared, the majority of the performances in this collection can now be enjoyed in sound of unprecedented quality and fidelity.

 

Each of the 20 complete operas (CD) and the 3 Blu-ray recitals in the box set is presented in a digipak, and will also be available as an individual release, in physical and digital

 

Scheduled for release on 15 September 2017.

 

 

STAY TUNED!

[whipped guy]

Here are some images from the new Callas Coffee Table book by Tom Volf.

 

 

 

http://www.assouline.com/media/catalog/product/cache/1/image/680x555/040ec09b1e35df139433887a97daa66f/m/a/maria-de-callas_spread6.png

 

http://www.bestdesignbooks.eu/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/Book-Review-Fell-in-Love-with-Maria-Callas-5.jpg

 

 

 

http://media.npr.org/assets/img/2017/06/06/callas_lascala5-807b31fd5389093361e74647994fc51e9c2658a2-s1000-c85.jpg

 

[whipped guy]

Here are some images from the new Callas Coffee Table book by Tom Volf.

 

 

 

http://www.assouline.com/media/catalog/product/cache/1/image/680x555/040ec09b1e35df139433887a97daa66f/m/a/maria-de-callas_spread6.png

 

http://www.bestdesignbooks.eu/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/Book-Review-Fell-in-Love-with-Maria-Callas-5.jpg

 

 

 

http://media.npr.org/assets/img/2017/06/06/callas_lascala5-807b31fd5389093361e74647994fc51e9c2658a2-s1000-c85.jpg

 

[+ Italiano]

Thank you for your usual very interesting posting about la Divina @whipped guy !

 

It looks like the documentary by Tom Volf should have some previously unseen images of Callas on stage....

Will see if it's just a rumor or not!

[whipped guy]

Thank you for your usual very interesting posting about la Divina @whipped guy !

 

It looks like the documentary by Tom Volf should have some previously unseen images of Callas on stage....

Will see if it's just a rumor or not!

Yes, that seems to be the part of the hype. Plus, the book has never previously seen photos as well and those with which one might be familiar have never looked better. Such as the Ifigenia in Tauride curtain call photo shown above. Supposedly Tom Volf never knew who Callas was until a few years ago. I find this quote from Volf interesting:

 

“The reason my book is called Maria by Callas is because there was an interview which had been lost for 40 years, but I retrieved, in which she said, ‘There are two people in me. There is Maria and there is the Callas, who I have to live up to.’ That gave me a distinct understanding of the duality that was in her.”

 

Here is a photo of Callas playing the role of the bejeweled opera diva. I wonder if that's "Maria", "Callas" or "both of her personas"!?!?!

 

L

Callas choosing Cartier Jewelery, Milan 1957.

[+ WilliamM]

“The reason my book is called Maria by Callas is because there was an interview which had been lost for 40 years, but I retrieved, in which she said, ‘There are two people in me. There is Maria and there is the Callas, who I have to live up to.’ That gave me a distinct understanding of the duality that was in her.”

 

I not find that unusual at all. Many famous performers may feel the same way.

[whipped guy]

Sound samples of the new Warner live masterings are available via iTunes. Given the limitations of such snippets (though I did listen through my stereo system) sampling reveals that the results are in general not a dramatic improvement and in some cases they sound the same or worse than what is already available. Many are not pitched properly and are overly filtered as well. So caveat emptor.

 

Particularly egregious are the Anna Bolena and La Traviata which are taken from inferior sources with the former plagued with issues of pitch. The Norma is simply a better pitched retread of the inferior sounding EMI version. The Il Pirata is taken from the original source or copied from the Divina Records version as noted earlier in this thread and is probably one of the better sounding versions. The Armida is not complete. The Sonnambula is taken from the only available poor sounding source and is similar to the previous EMI version. The Poliuto is decent and sounds similar to the previous EMI version. The Berlin Lucia sounds fine, but is pitched a bit sharp. The Vespri is a conflation of the best of the two available sources, one of which is not note complete, and one of the better examples. The BluRays included are simply repackagings of the most recent releases of that material, so nothing new regarding the video components of the set.

 

My preliminary conclusion is that the set is simply hype to promote the upcoming movie and not a serious attempt to provide the best sounding masters of this material. I see no need to replace that which I already have. However, it may be a good place for the novice to begin a collection if the set can be purchased at a bargain price with the caveat that not all the operas represent the the best that is currently available. However, given that many of the best sounding versions are not easy to locate, the Warner set has some value. Last I checked it was available for preorder from Amazon for about 80 dollars. The individual components are also available separately. The release date is September 15.

[whipped guy]

I did a further analysis of the "new" Warner Anna Bolena and the first scenes of the first act seem to be based on the horrendous EMI version and play flat. Things improve with the remainder of the act, but while the pitch seems to be better the proceedings are highly filtered so as to make things sound dull. Most of the second act is the same except for the beginning of the final scene at the words "Piangete voi" where a different source is used to filter out some radio interference. Things seem not to be pitched properly at this point as well. Then were are back to the original sound of earlier in the act for the conclusion of the piece. Still there is an overall lack of presence as things sound washed out.

 

This is total incompetence by a "professional" recording team. Stick with Divina Records. http://www.divinarecords.com/

[whipped guy]

Another source for exellently mastered live Callas material is Ars Vocalis. All are produced in limited quantities and are periodically sold on eBay. Now is the time to order. Much better than Warner and similar to Divina records in quality.

 

https://www.ebay.com/sch/ars_vocalis/m.html?item=232454004766&hash=item361f56a01e%3Ag%3AvxwAAOSwgy5ZlgiU&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2562