Breaking: David Daniels is the Met’s Orfeo
The mystery is solved, and, as usual, La Cieca predicted it well ahead of the official announcement. Per the Met’s website, David Daniels will sing the four performances of the new Orfeo ed Euridice production in May 2007.
David joins a distinguished group of artists who have interpreted the role of Orfeo at the Met, including Louise Homer, Kerstin Thorborg, Risë Stevens, Grace Bumbry and Marilyn Horne. The revival of Orfeo will mark the Met’s first performances of the opera since 1972.
The Met’s website notes that the production is dedicated to the memory of Lorraine Hunt Lieberson.
rysanekfreak
I´m sure Orfeo and Euridice is going to be the last Broadcast of the next MET season, on May 5th, so you don´t have to miss Daniels in it
You know, Daniels is singing Ottone in LA in November. Isn’t he usually Nerone, and isn’t Ottone too low for him?
I wonder did anyone ever see Rise Stevens in Samson & Delilah at the Met? She is one of my all time favourites and I’m sorry there are too few recordings of her.
Baritenor, I think you’re right about DD usually doing Nerone, at least that is the role he did in SFO’s last Poppea 7 or 8 years ago. But I don’t think switching to Ottone is unusual. Although I’ve only seen Ottone sung by baritones, it is frequently done by countertenors. It’s one of those roles that can be cast either way depending on the performing version being used. Now, if he were singing Drusilla, I would be surprised.
i thought it was standard nowadays to have a countertenor as ottone in poppea? though the distribution of voices is always a matter of edition. last time i saw/heard poppea it was with a tenor as nerone and a mezzo as poppea. especially a mezzo as poppea didnt sound right to me, even though it was vesselina kasarova!
when it comes to orfeo i defo prefer a mezzo, the soundspectrum is just that much richer than that of a countertenor.
Unless the Met does 21 live broadcasts (excluding the archive one in January), they will not be giving us the “Orfeo.” They are starting with “Idomeneo” on Dec 9, and the 20th broadcast is “Trittico” on April 28.
According to the website, the last broadcast is the Trittico. Damn.
Has January archive broadcast been announced?
My introduction to Poppea was also with a tenor Nerone, mezzo Poppea, and baritone Ottone. Now, some 30 years later, it remains on my list of all-time great performances. Troyanos was Poppea — sexy, voluptuous, dark hair flowing, cleavage for days in her red and gold gowns, and vocally smoldering. Eric Tappy as Nerone was every bit her equal, virile and elegant. When they sang the “Pur ti miro” duet at the end as stars were illuminated behind them, I would have gladly joined them for a 3-way (well, OK, maybe I would have preferred Tappy and Stilwell). To top it off, Maureen Forrester was riveting in Arnalta’s lullaby, transporting in her gentle, heartfelt eloquence.
This was in Raymond Leppard’s realization, and the music was simply gorgeous. I know the purists will scoff but they can piss and moan all they want about the cuts, rearrangements, and concessions to modern performing practices. I have heard several historically “correct” versions with every goat trill and countertenor in place, and they have all left me cold. None have been as exciting as that Leppard/Troyanos performance.
In the Met´s Website and in press realeases, the Traviata performance on January 27 is not going to be Broadcast, just in order to Broadcast the Orfeo in May 5. There are two historic rebroadcasts for January 20 and 27
Here is their press realease
“The season closes on May 5 with Gluck’s Orfeo ed Euridice in its first Met broadcast in 36 years, with David Daniels and Lisa Milne in the title roles. Choreographer Mark Morris stages the new production. The Metropolitan Opera dedicates these performances to the memory of Lorraine Hunt Lieberson, who was originally scheduled to sing the role of Orfeo”