How tief is your love
Surrounding the second act of D'Albert's opera Tiefland on the current episode of Unnatural Acts of Opera is a veritable plethora of special features. First, La Cieca takes a telephone call from an icon of stage, screen and recordings (hint: she was the surprise star of Broadway's Hit the Sky). Then our old, old, old friend Tallulah Bankhead drops by the studio along with none other than legendary, lovely Marlene Dietrich for a Sapphic singalong. After the act, your doyenne introduces the latest installment of The Enigmas of La Cieca, and, yes, it's another vocal identification. Take the quiz and determine your Norma-Q! Unnatural Acts of Opera.
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12:47 AM
8 Comments:
I must say that Teifland was an inspired choice for a podcast La Cieca! It's a gorgeous opera, and it's always nice to hear another performance of this work. This recording you found is especially winning. It's nice to hear Treptow in something other than Wagner.
If anyone is interested another recording of this opera, I suggest they listen to the Janowski recording with Marton and Kollo (on the Arts Music label).
There's also an old recording I own conducted by Hans Zanotelli (I have no idea who that is, either), starring Rudolf Schock and pretty much no one else of note. The Soprano is Isabell Strauss. Anyone know who she is?
I have always preferred the pearlescent tones of Helen Lawson to the meretricious croonings of Neelie O'Hara.
Ciecochka, (well why shouldn't there be Russian diminutives of Italian words?) am I correct in surmising that on this player, there is no way to uh...I mean for those of us who like playing voice ID but are not deeply smitten with the oeuvre of Herr or M. D'Albert, is there a way to go straight for the cookies? I futzed and futzed and could not futz my way there.
Cher Maury,
It does appear the current play allows only a limited fast-forward. For those of you who wish to play the Norma game, I'll post the clip on parterre.com sometime Tuesday.
Isabel Strauss was a dramatic soprano-- Belgian, German? ) who also appeared as Marie on the Columbia Boulez WOZZECK opposite Walter Berry.
There is a video on Google of her in 1965 doing the LOHENGRIN Act II duet with Elsa extraordinaire Elisabeth Gruemmer, who at 54 must have been twenty years her senior. Not the best nor the worst Ortrud one has seen.
Sadly, Isabel Strauss died in the early 1970s, as part of a double suicide pact as I recall.
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As a longtime broadcaster and radio history fan, I thank you, La Cieca, for the photo of Tallulah Bankhead before an NBC microphone.
I assume this photo is from when she hosted "The Big Show." For those who don't know of the original "Big Show," it was a big-budget radio variety show from the early 50s that was meant as a blow against the increasing prevalence of TV. And yes, a number of opera singers were on the program: Robert Merrill and Lauritz Melchior come to my mind. The show aired a few years before this "Celtic Priestess" cut down her first sprig of sacred mistletoe, but my father used to tell me how great it was, and he was right. Now, I have many airchecks of this terrific show, and I've enjoyed Tallulah and her many talented guests on CD ever since. Thanks again, La Cieca, for remembering La Bankhead's place in radio history!
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