Bleak bummer
Which soprano's sudden cancellation of all her future engagements thankfully has nothing to do with illness, and everything to do with, well, spite? She was in love, and he she loved proved bad, and did forsake her. For his secretary. Since the songbird's soon-to-be-ex-husband still has an interest in her future revenue stream, she has decided to sit and sulk rather than financing the love nest.
Meanwhile, the casts, they are a-changin' over at Lyric Opera of Chicago. Simon Keenlyside is out of Iphigenie en Tauride, replacement TBA and obviously soon, since the production opens in a little over a month. And mezzo-soprano Jane Irwin will be Mere Marie in LOC's Dialogues of the Carmelites, replacing the late Lorraine Hunt Lieberson.
Meanwhile, the casts, they are a-changin' over at Lyric Opera of Chicago. Simon Keenlyside is out of Iphigenie en Tauride, replacement TBA and obviously soon, since the production opens in a little over a month. And mezzo-soprano Jane Irwin will be Mere Marie in LOC's Dialogues of the Carmelites, replacing the late Lorraine Hunt Lieberson.
POSTED at
2:36 PM
173 Comments:
Could it be Barbara Bonney? There was a brief notice in yesterday's SF Chronicle that she was cancelling a scheduled duo recital here in Dec. with Angelika Kirchschlager, along with all other "forthcoming appearances". It mysteriously cited "personal circumstances". I assumed the voice had crashed and burned, as it has been problematic of late with some less than stellar reviews. Oooh, but this is ever so juicy!! Leave it to cher Cieca to uncover the real dirt for us.
I heard a rumor that Ms Bonney was battling cancer. At the risk of sounding malicious, I would rather she have a fight with her boyfriend than cancer indeed. I hope that is the case of her cancelation (the breakup, not the cancer)
Well, La Cieca. Juicy indeed. I, too, think it's Barbara Bonney.
of course it's Bonney. She has cancelled all performances for the next three years. The announcement is on musical america and the IMG website
Lyric in Chicago hired WHO to replace Lorraine Hunt Lieberson? Some nobody? And what about Keenlyside's debut? Is Lyric becoming the company of nobodies?
anyone know what the lovely Simon pulled out?
Miss Jane Irwin is on a 'nobody' as bill bookbinder suggests. She is a up and coming talent based in the UK and has many successes over here. Her web site is www.janeirwin.co.uk
Um, since when is it a bad thing to hire nobodies at big companies. Doesn't everyone need to start somewhere and be given a chance. I trust LOC to make a wise enough decision with their casting choices. Who knows, maybe these singers could turn out to be the next greats. keep an open mind. Besides are any of the "great" singers really great these days? I think not. They have really good publicist and representation that has them plastered on every classical music magazine, as if that somehow covers up the multitude of oh so shitty singing. um, no.
well, if its truly Miss BB what a decision! and i wonder how it will affect her rebooking?
and i wonder what she will do in the meantime... master classes?
It's difficult to engage a big name artist on short notice. And as it has been already suggested, big names gotta start somewhere!!
Kashania--
Well put!
Perhaps Mr. Bookbinder would prefer Andrea Bocelli as Mere Marie? It is his kind of narrow minded thinking that continues to give us any number of forgettable, but highly marketable, performances.
Some of the best evenings in opera can be when debutantes set the stage on fire. But I suppose Mr. B. would have shunned Tebaldi's first American Aida at SFO or the first Price/Corelli Met Trovatore because they were "nobodies." Give me a break.
Ms. Bonney doesn't have cancer, and it's not because of her voice. We all get bad reviews from time to time. I worked with her last year and she was a class act from beginning to end.
She is going through a nasty divorce from a rotten (soon-to-be-ex) husband, and doesn't feel like giving him and his mistress 50% of her earnings.
I am behind her all the way. She is a wonderful colleague.
Jane Irwin is hardly up and coming this side of the pond. She has just sung the mezzo part in Das Lied von der Erde at the Edinburgh Festival, and has sung at Bayreuth.
A bit worrying about Simon Keenlyside - I hope he has broken no more bones being hyperactive on stage.
Barbara Bonney has been cutting back on her opera appearances, and truth to tell the voice has become a bit fragile. She did say in a BBC radio interview that her performances of Zdenka in the next CG revival of Arabella would be her last. I'll miss her.
Um, also, Mr. Bookbinder? Lyric has taken plenty of chances on "nobodies" who have gone on to have great careers. We all have to get our start somewhere. How are we supposed to get past "nobody" status unless we sing in big houses sooner or later?
I'm another "nobody" who Lyric has hired for next season, by the way. So go ahead and get your panties in a wad!
Even nobodies once in a while can bring down the house. Remember Sunnegardh?
If Simon Keenlyside is ill, I have one of my mom's old nursing hats that I could put on and play nurse to him! Simon do you need a rub to make you feel better?
If I read correctly about Callas, she was a "nobody" singing in Greece when some Italian impresario first took a chance on her and hired her for a prestige performance.
Wasn't Mary Garden a "nobody" when she took over a "Louise" in mid-performance and became an overnight sensation?
I was present in San Francisco when a "nobody" named Deborah Voigt took over a "Ballo" for an ailing Susan Dunn.
Didn't Lawrence Tibbet graduate one night from the chorus into a lead role at the Met? (Ford in "Falstaff"?)
i think its quite courageous of bonney to withdraw from performing for such a long period - hands down to her! she could still do guest appearances for free though ...
but i for one am looking forward to having her back on track once the divorce is through.
jane irwin isnt a nobody though, hasnt she sung quite a bit at the met already? and in the end somebody is always a nobody until somebody else gives them a chance...
I have nothing against Barbara Bonney, but her decision sounds nutty to me, somewhat selfish and nasty. Evidently the people who had bought tickets for recitals in the next few months don't count for much in her eyes. She is apparently not concerned about her contractual obligations to others. Somebody should tell her that living well is the best revenge. She is ending her career in a sad way.
Hey winpal ... you really need to read up on your history. Miss Price, Miss Tebaldi, and Mr. Corelli were all huge international stars when they made their MET debuts; they weren't nobodies. Miss Irwin is a nobody. And I don't think that LOC -- with top ticket prices over $200 -- should be a place to try out unknowns. That's for Omaha or NYCO.
Miss Wall -- I hardly think you are in the same category as Miss Irwin. You have a track record of success at LOC; Miss Irwin does not. LOC makes dumb decisions like this all the time like a couple of seasons ago when Cedolins canceled Tosca and instead of giving the run to her cover -- Aprile Millo --they engaged some poor girl (Doina Dimitriu) who was a like a deer caught in the headlights.
It does sound like BB is ending her career. I saw Masterclasses and performances she gave at Tanglewood in 1999, when she claimed to be 43. If she is 50 now, she'll be 53 or 54 before she starts back up again. I would be bet she took off a few years. When I last heard her, she sounded great. As for the voice recently sounding "fragile", it always was a small instrument, so nothing has changed.
Miss Bonney doesn't have to explain why she's cancelled as it's nobodies business! She'll have her reasons.If she wants you to know them she'll let them know. I am very saddend that she's chosen to do it - but it's her choice. I've heard her a lot rhoughout her career and can tell you she doesn't sound fragile (whatever that means). She sounds remarkably consistent to me - never heard her be less than very good indeed. She is a wise singer and an inspiration.
Now, because somebody hasn't sung much in the States doesn't mean they're a nobody. Hard as it can sometimes be to believe, there is a thriving operatic world outside of the US. AND everybody is a 'nobody' at some time - though the earlier posters comments about Corelli and Tebaldo being nobodies when they made their US debuts is a bit worrisome. Read your books guys!
Incidently I've sung a lot in the US (and I'm a european singer - born and based) and I'm a nobody! I don't sell out theatres - my colleagues do!
AND Ms Wall is a very fine singer indeed - we like her a lot. Ms Irwin is a very fine singer and I like her - the difference is I've heard both singers and i'm not sitting clutching my breast that someone I haven;t heard of (perhaps through my own ignorance) dares to open thier mouth to sing somewhere. Maybe Jane should have turned it down. I bet she sat and thought "Hmm, US company debut - it sounds nice but they haven't heard of me so perhaps I should say no".
Keep up the good work - and the good sense too - Ms Wall. Hey I'm back at LOC in a few years - maybe we'll sing together. It's be a privilage!
Bora da!
Mr. B. – OK, Tebaldi, Corelli, and Price weren’t the wisest choices for analogy. But the point I was trying to make is that many people don’t pay attention to credentials that are established elsewhere, particularly non-US, and dismiss singers simply because THEY haven’t heard of them. I would bet there were people (maybe not the cognoscenti like the gang here, but the general audience who doesn’t pay attention all that closely) who had never heard of Tebaldi et al prior to their US debuts, and probably would have preferred to see a name they already knew. The Jane Irwin comments are a prime example. A review of her bio shows she has been singing over 10 years with performances at Covent Garden, Bayreuth, Scottish Opera, ENO, and Opera North and she will be singing Brangane at SFO this fall. She has sung with the SF, Seattle and Pittsburgh Symphonies (the latter at Carnegie Hall), the Rotterdam Philharmonic, the Orchestre de Paris, the Philharmonia, Academia di Santa Cecilia, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, Hallé Orchestra, Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, the BBC Philharmonic, Academy of St Martin in the Fields, Spanish National Orchestra, Finnish Radio Symphony, Deutsche Symphonie-Orchester, and many others. She has performed at the Edinburgh and Berlin Festivals and given recitals in Paris, London, Geneva, Aix-en-Provence, and Japan. Hardly a “nobody,” yet she is unfairly dismissed as that by some on this blog and relegated to Omaha.
SPEAK IT Winpal!
Clara Barlow had sung Isolde about 30 times in Europe before she did it in NY and got good reviews for her acting, but she was Not Birgit and her career went nowhere in the USA. (Jump all over this if I am wrong.)
Lot's of companies make silly choices on occasion when there backs are against the wall, particularly in the States, where the pool of artists available for certain roles is much smaller. Chicago, a first-rate company, makes miscalculations, like all the others. At least they didn't hire Sunnegardh (yet). And as for Ms. Wall, I'm looking forward to hearing her eventually, and have to admire someone with a career in this business who has the courage to attach a face to her online opinions (and a nice pic it is, too...)
As to Klara Barlow, well, the voice was pretty dried out when I worked with her when she was about 60. This doesn't mean much, but I had the impression that there perhaps wasn't as much natural gift there as some, although the timbre was attractive, and she certainly knew the rep. Part of the reason her career didn't go as far was because of her mouth, which was about as rude as with any singer I've ever met, which made her persona non grata with several noted conductors, one of whom told me he couldn't stand to be in the room with her. It's a shame, because she was one of the most beautiful woman I've ever seen onstage.
Thanks for the info on Barlow. I listened to her Met matinee of Isolde, and always wondered what the background story was on her.
BTW, callasorphan, let me know if you need any help with that Simon K. project. :)
Winpal, at my age an extra pair of hands would be very helpful--those younguns are so fiesty!
Off the topic but still germane -- in case there was ever any doubt the "Sweeney Todd" was NOT an opera, it was just announced that Johnny Depp will perform the title role in Tim Burton's film adaptation of Sondheim's P-O-C.
And who will play Mrs. Lovett in this "Sweeney Todd" movie? I hope Meryl Streep, but the way Hollywood thinks, it'll probably be Beyonce.
Mr. Bookbinder, do you think it's easy to find a
STAR to sing in a production THIS SEASON? The sort of people to whom you refer are booked years in advance and just aren't available. And this is no easy role LOC is trying to fill either. Bear in mind that the intention was to have STARS! Ms. Hunt-Lieberson and Mr. Keenlyside! Replacing them at this late date can't be an easy task.
And BTW - Aprile Millo? Seriously. Did you hear her sing the Toscas she was contracted for at LOC? I did, and much preferred Ms. Dimitriu. Flame away, but we both know there is but a small group of hangers-on that still believes that Miss Millo is a talent.
My memory might be quite faulty, but I don't think Aprile was anybody's cover. There were two Toscas - Millo and Cedolins, and Cedolins cancelled.
Yes, Ms. Wall, your memory is wrong on this one. Cedolins was the "hired" Tosca and Millo was the cover -- the reward for which she was given two of the performances. When Cedolins canceled, Millo lobbied for the rest of the run since she was the cover. LOC decided to hire an unknown (dimitriu) who never once looked at another singer while singing; she had her eyes fixed on Bartoletti. It was embarassing.
Speaking of Lorraine Hunt Lieberson and IMG, you would think they would have put up some sort of memorial or something. They still have her full profile up on their website.
To BB: You keep sighting one instance of LOC's poor casting. I really think you should just give it up on this one and prepare to be amazed at how many wonderful singers there are out there, who if not given a chance, would fall into nothingness. Not everyone knows someone, not everyone is willing to blow someone. Having said that, it is obvious that in today's opera world, as much as in the past, that is too often the case. And as far as the price of tickets being a reason for not hiring newcomers, um that is lame. Try harder. I have paid 200 bucks to hear the big names sound like nothing more than a fart onstage. You are always taking a gamble with art. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder or in this case the ear of the listener. What may be your idea of shitty singing may indeed be someone else's idea of singing perfection. keep an open mind. Just remember there were a lot of famous singers who were not widely accepted in the US. Maria Chiara never sang that much at the Met nor did Magda Olivero to my knowledge. What a pity. Instead, we are stuck with big names, not saying those two aren't big names in their own right in major opera houses of the world, but relatively unaccepted here. MC and MO were not names that were spoken as often as Tebaldi, Callas, Price, Freni etc. by the average opera-going public of a greater age of singing. I spoke to the late Charlie Riecker about this before he died and he said one of his greatest disappointments was not having MO sing at the Met. Does that mean that MO isn't an outstanding extremely accomplished singing personality? Absolutely not. But, if you were to ask the public in the US in the 50s and 60s, not necessarily the standard opera afficiandos, but the general public,.....their names would more than likely not have rung a bell. So, my point is this. Chill out. Stop being close minded. It serves no purpose to anyone. No one wants to hear Renee Fleming sing every opera, although she tries desperately to venture into every genre. I like hearing new and exciting singers. It is what this business is all about........DISCOVERY.
I was a supernumerary slave coupled up to a woman I couldn't stand, in chains, who was freed by Barbara Bonney in the first scenes of an "Idomeneo" production in San Francisco not that many years ago, directed by John Copley.
Since that moment, all I can say is that Ms. Bonney was a personal angel and a very sweet lady during that production (and she sang quite incredibly beautifully too), and I give her every prayer for her own personal freedom. Age 50 is a good time for a rest and a refocusing before finishing out a career. I quite look forward to hearing her again.
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Millo shared the Tosca's in Chicago.
She was scheduled for two and it was bumped to three. I agree with Bookbinder, they should have given Millo the run or at the very least, half. The program said, "the long awaited return of Aprile Millo to the Lyric". They were given equal importance, with Cedolin of course doing opening night, and Millo arriving later for her's. When Cedolin cancelled, Millo agreed to protect all the performances-I thought she was really wonderful.
MASTERCLASS
CHERYL STUDER, soprano
ARMIN FUCHS, pianist
9 - 15 October 2006
Wagner - Wolf - Mahler - Strauss
http://www.dtkv-bayern.de/p_kurs_2006_22_studer.pdf
Wow - so many comments. My favorie "nobody" story would have to be Rosa Ponselle. She was singing in a Vaudeville house when Caruso heard her and the rest is history.
As for casting nobodies, I'm only a low man on the totem pole in a regional house - but I am involved enough to know that it is very difficult trying to balance budgets while keeping opera afficianados happy and interested - and - at the same time - educating and attracting new audiences. It's a constant struggle.
Many of our patrons do travel to other companies and know who the stars are and want that level brought here - but most of our single ticket buyers wouldn't know Renee Fleming from Rene Russo. So what do you do?
Well, if "canadienne" is indeed Erin Wall, may I congratulate her on a splendid Marguerite in Lyric's '03 FAUST. A lovely job opposite a problematic tenor.
Love Barbara Bonney. Have any of you heard heard a Strauss/Wolf recording of hers on DG with Parsons? 'Tis quite stunning.
During the whole Upshaw/Battle glory years, I was wondering why she was left out.
Back after 3 days absence!
I attended one of Ms. Bonney's Masterclasses and in April...she knew a lot about her method of singing (i.e. with as little vibratto as possible) and I learned a lot. I hope she's back in the game soon: She did a great Susanna about a week later.
Don't forget a nobody hasbeen named Flagstad, who had been getting nowhere in her career in Europe when she showed up at the Met for an audition and blew the roof off the old place.
The old place then dropped her for most of her post war career. Why the animosity, when other Scandinavians like Svanholm,Ralf and Berglund who all made notable careers in Nazi Germany( where she never sang) were all welcomed? Or do we not want to visit again the political affiliation/artistic career nexus covered ref. Mme Schwarzkopf?
I'm no Millo lover. I find her wildly uneven but I saw all 3 of her LOC Toscas and each one got better and better -- both vocally and dramatically. Poor Dimitriu was awful from beginning to end which I suppose why she has not be re-engaged by LOC but it was a missed opportunity to not give Millo the run.
As for LOC's casting I cited a couple of examples but there are many, many others. Why do they keep hiring La Scola and Aronica when there are far better tenors out there? Why long after SF, LA, and the MET have engaged Netrebko and Villazon have they yet to show up at LOC? And where was Florez? Meier? Gheorghiu? Alagna? Vargas? John Relyea? I could name around 50 others. But instead we are treated to mediocrities like Dina Kuznetsova, Aronica, La Scola, Bartoletti, and on and on ... LOC is coasting on a reputation from the 1980s and early 1990s that they no longer deserve.
Oh great....everybody dissing Dimitru, and GUESS where she's singing? In Denver for Un Ballo in Maschera....Why can't we get Hasmik back?
Bill Bookbinder-I do agree with you. Do you really want to see Richard Margison sing Calaf? Go to Chicago, you will!!! I do not want to generalize and say all bad but not all good either.
After seeing Algana at the Met I am not sure his voice would carry in that barn theatre known as LOC!!! If Ricky Alagna cannot do it, imagine Florez. Let's face it, pretty voice, but you cannot hear him!!! Those houses do not help people like him...Remember Rockwell Blake?!
Re ljc's post much further up:
Miss Sunnegardh, although certainly a nobody, hardly "brought down the house", no matter what the attendant publicity blitz would have you believe.
MASTERCLASSES
CHERYL STUDER, soprano
ARMIN FUCHS, pianist
9 - 15 October 2006
Wagner - Wolf - Mahler - Strauss
http://www.dtkv-bayern.de/p_kurs_2006_22_studer.pdf
Violettas and Turandots 'bring down the house'...not Leonoras.
On a side thought, didn't a young Aprile Millo step in for Anna Tomowa-Sintow for something big and receive a lot of attention? I may be wrong. Enough Millo fans on this site to correct me!!!
newinnyc--actually Florez sang at LOC last season, a much belated debut and could be heard perfectly. And he was wonderful I might add!
Bill-
Miked- a la Battle in Rosenkavalier?
I cannot imagine his voice sailing over an orchestra. I am not saying I hate the voice; I am just saying it is small.
newinnyc-
No, Florez was not miked and he had no problem sailing over the orchestra either at LOC or at the MET. It may be a "small" voice but that has little to do with how it is heard. It all has to do with projection and his voice is like a laser and projects marvelously.
Florez' high larynx, hyper nasal, driven vocal production definitely makes that nasty 'alvin the chipmunk on helium' tone of his carry.....unfortunately he is usually quite audible.
In reference to something mentioned earlier about Kathy Battle....Was she really miked at the Met? I didn't realize that the Met did that. Not being an insider, I wouldn't hear about that sort of thing, but it does surprise me if it is true. (But understandable. I heard her sing several recitals at Alice Tully Hall, and even in that small venue, you had to lear forward to catch it all.)
If she was miked, it makes me wonder who else is. Anyone know anything about this?
I'm probably opeing a big can of worms here but is it such a big deal if certain singers are miked? I'm not suggesting that opera singers use electronic projection on every performance, but given an artist of Kathy's calibre, surely a mike is better than having her scream over the orchestra or not being heard at all.
This is not an excuse for say, casting a Charlotte Church as Butterfly, but for highly established artists like Kathy and, rumours has it, Cecelia Bartoli, small voices but otherwise highly talented people, using such technology provides better support for them so that they may do their jobs to the best of their advantage.
I'm thinking that Gheorghiu, an otherwise perfect Tosca save her vocal resources, would be greatly complemented with miking, despite some unfairness when compared to those who can sing the role unaided but not neccessarily having the interpretive qualities. Any opinions?
Personally, I do´n´t like the idea to use miking in an opera house. It´s unfair to all the other singers and can destroy the real unity of a performance. By the way, in the last Traviata Broadcast I believe Kauffmann had a lot more of voice than Gheorghiu, but I accepted that as a natural thing (particulary in "Un di felice" she was barely audible when they sing together)
I am hearing some people turn over in their graves at the mention of miking: Callas, Corelli, Nilsson, Martinelli, Caruso, Flagstad et al.
Absolutely not!
Battle needed more than miking! How about a therapist to get rid of all of those facial contortions! I would have loved to see a Battle-Bartoli duo recital. It would be two contests: Whose overhyped voice is smaller and who can make the ugliest facial contortions?
Am I the only one who mike Gheorgiou but thinks, "Is she really that good?"
In the end: If you cannot carry over the orchestra like so many good singers do, give recitals, not operatic performances. Let's face it my opera-loving friends, that is a huge part of the rush...Hearing that natural instrument in sync with that orchestra.
Amen
ooops I said 'mike Gheorgiou and meant 'like Gheorgiou'
Speaking of Mrs. Alagna and Battle, I wonder if small voices translate to insecurity which translates to being intolerable b******!!!!
Good Christ people. Let La Battle rest in peace. The woman's career is over. Who cares if she was miked. Lord knows we'd never hear Florez if he wasn't miked.
In re: miking. Isn't the purpose of being an opera singer, in part, the ability to rise above orchestras and be heard au naturel? The problem today is that everyone feels they have a right to be a singer, regardless of talent or audibility. The other side of this, of course, is that opera houses now are 2-3x the size of the houses that debuted the works in question.
Yes and people carry them. There were great singers that did not sing these houses for that reason. Remember a coluratura named Erika Koth-best Queen of the Night recording I heard but never sang here. Freni never sang Butterfly for the same reason (at least that's why I think why).
sdsop.your comment is accurate. Let's have Charlotte Church sing Susanna (Oh God NO!) But you get the point. (Sarah Brightman can be the Countess...Ouch, there I go again)
I am opposed to miking, but let's face it. It IS done for singers of a certain caliber/status unfortunately. Sorta like NYCO - hmmmm Sills, Triegle, Curtain et al never needed "accoustic enhancement" when they sang at the NY State Theater. But you cast operas by body type rather than vocal - that is what happens.
nycoq-Are you saying they miked Sills Triegle et al? I guess I never knew this.
I never heard Sills live but I must say it is a rather uneventful voice. I like Phyllis Curtin doing Art Song but never heard her do opera. Wasn't she the first Floyd Susannah?
NOOOO! They were not miked, but about 7 or 8 years ago NYCO added "accoustic enhancements". It was not needed when singers were cast in their fach. Apparently over the course of 40 years the accoustics in that house have drstically changed. Yes I am being sarcastic.
I was just surprised, that's all. I thought the Met absolutely didn't mike singers. It would seem to be a pretty complicated thing (technically and politically).
All this talk about Kathy Battle has gotten me to think about her again. Every time I went to see her, I used to have to warm up to her. I had a few friends in the business that worked with her and I always went to her recitals/appearances with their stories of her outrageous behavior in my head. So, I'd get to my seat, and at the first sight of her on stage I would be instantly angry and asking myself, "why in the hell did you come to this?" (Usually I had a friend performing with her or something.) But, after a few minutes of her artistry, I was almost always won over.
She was a very interesting, thoughtful musician with a pretty voice, and that got me past her tiny voice and her very limited breath. It's sad what happened to her. Usually people with personality disorders like that have someone in their lives to urge them to get help. I suspect she had no one in her life like that. I imagine that she was surrounded by people who turned her into a product that was sold for as long as it lasted and as long as other people would tolerate the behavior that pressure produced.
I hope in the life she has had after her career, she's found some contentment.
Julienned-Than you for you very sensible response. I am EXACTLY like you. I know what a pain she was backstage and it was inexcusable. I am told that Jimmy Levine partially created part of that. I could not get past that at performances.
I do not think she was that talented to pull what she did; especially to fans. I cannot help but feel satisfied that her career went the way it did. Not that I relish anyone's downfall but...you reap what you sow!
There was a recent article about the "black bitch" syndrome. An article basically in reference to the Star Jones melee, but it goes on to talk about the Omarosa/Star/Condoleeza thing. I would definitely include Ms. Battle in this category. Yes she was out of control, but when confronted with being openly called an "uppity nigger" in the 90's and being expected to perfect (she was known for the beautiful sound) and being pushed into houses that were far too big for the voice. I don't think a huge majority of her detractors see the self defensive side she had taken in a lot of situations. Mind you she got waaaaaay out of control, but the slap down she got and the fact that 10 years after the fact people are gleefully replaying support that deep down most of the classical music community feel that the "black bitch" got what she deserved. There are a lot more people involved in this industry who have a lot more to answer for karmically than just being an outta diva.
Sorry - outta control diva
Re my Sunnegardh comment; I was being snarky. She did not from what I have heard bring down the house. Actually on the day of the Fidelio matinee I was very busy in my hootch cleaning, and caught the beginning of Fidelio and the intermission and the ending big ensemble. And that night read the comments in Ciecaland. Beethoven was being bitchy and did not contact me.
Re Flagstad: the traditional acount is that her husband worked in the Quisling govt., and she made some comments about Hitler's lovely blue eyes. Apparetly she never worked with the Norwegian underground during the war. Lemnitz gave Heil salutes in London during recitals, and of all people Pinza was locked up in NY for his comments about the great Italian army.
Oh please let's not start up with the Nazi thing. Remember that Schwarzkopf commentary that went on and on and on.....let's not have a rehash
You mean Schwarzkopf was miked by the Nazis? : )
How did we get from Kathy Battle to Nazis?
I need another martini for this discussion.
Ah, but any discussion of the Battle Matter is going to lead eventually to an angle of Racism: so there we go toward that unpleasant topic.
Oy....
Didn't this start out as a Bonney discussion?
We could discuss what the picture at the top of this site is supposed to be.
Look at what has been discussed; divas and divos in the world everyone else lives in: Bonney's marriage and income, ES and political leanings and her husband, and Battle's place in American society. (Even Birgit had tax troubles). Maybe there is an opera singer somewhere totally removed from the issues of the world and just dedicated to rarified singing, but tell me who? Even Italian divos probably had to deal with a Communist sometime.
I think that's a production still from Le Grande Macabre.
And don't forget that Don Vito C. had an opera diva singing at his daughter's wedding bash. Wish I knew who the lady was supposed to represent. Opera singers' mob commections would be an interesting subject.
I saw Battle sing Zerbinetta the day the opera was broadcast to Europe (and videotaped). I did not hear her sing it, however, very well: she was nearly inaudible, even over the chamber orchestra--however I saw her in many other roles that seemed, at the time, more appropriate (Despina, Rosina). I was also at the Viaggio premiere at NYCO that was, apparently, using some miking. I don't remember disliking it, or thinking it was unnatural. That was Camila Tilling's US debut, and that was, for me, the most memorable aspect of the evening. By the way, the NY State Theater was designed to muffle the sounds made by ballet slippers--the acoustics are supposedly inhospitable, at best, for opera, so I don't blame anyone for the occasional use of miking, as long as it's very judicious and doesn't try to make a spinto out of a soubrette. I do not like, however, the way Broadway shows are so over-miked. Everything is so loud and one can't even tell who's singing, or if people are even actually singing (and not synching) at all...
Just FYI, in April I was lucky enough to hear (from 3rd row center) Florez in PASQUALE one night, and Fleming in MANON the next afternoon. Guess who I had more trouble hearing???
Another problem with miking is "the collegue". Battle, as Zerbinetta, was miked. James King was not. Guess who was irritated?
I don't think JD Florez is miked.
That's just what the chorus boys tell him backstage when they put a cockring on him. "Don't worry. This is where we put the mike in New York." And he believes them. Every time.
Just so there is no doubt about my earlier "FYI": Renee, NOT JD, was the one overwhelmed by the orchestra.....especially in the middle and low parts of her voice.
JUST SAY NO TO MIKING! I think that justifying miking certain singers just opens a great big can of worms. Singers with small voices should stick to venues that are appropriate for their voices. The Met was an odd place for Battle to call home considering the size of her voice. But from I hear, one usually got used to the size of her voice after a while.
Some theatres, like the NY State Theatre in Lincoln Centre or the Hummingbird Centre in Toronto use acoustic enhancement -- sort of a "light" miking. But that's done because of the venue's lacking acoustics -- not to help a particular singer who can't project adquately. In those venues, everyone is equally miked. Miking certain singers and not others is just wrong, with the negatives far outweighing any positives.
Miking's bad... m'kay?
ljc-
just a correction from the site's resident Godfather geek: That singer at Connie Corleone's wedding is, according to the screenplay, a cousin of Carlo's, not a professional singer. If you notice, most of the singers at the wedding are family members: even Mama Corleone gets a song in.
and, just to get on topic, Miking is bad. But lip-synching is worse.
Just think - if miking becomes commonplace,then we could have a JLo Carmen or, perhaps, a Beyonce Aida!
I have heard stories of Giuseppe DeStefano playing cards with 'the boys' backstage in Chicago. I believe Mario Lanza had a connection with the Philly gang.
I found it funny that the singer at Connie and Carlo's wedding was singing 'Non so piu' of all things. Thought they would pick something more EYE-talian. But how about Al Martino's 'Vicin' al mar': Beautiful. He was a frustrated opera singer and even sings Nessun dorma on one of his recordings.
Not Pavarotti's but it has a lot of heart!
Since in the videos I have seen of her Beyonce does not wear much, her Aida might be actually authentic ancient Egyptian/Ethiopian. At least she would not look like an unusually well-fed slave.(Think Zinka). Don't know what her Patria Mia would sound like.