Wherefore?
La Cieca hears that Rolando Villazón, who recently canceled his Salzburg Festival appearances citing "long-term illness" ("einer längerfristigen Erkrankung"), may pull out of the Met's fall revival of Roméo et Juliette as well. The tenor is scheduled for five performances of the Gounod opera between September 25 and October 11, followed by another four in December. Matthew Polenzani has already been announced for the final two performances of the run including the New Year's Eve gala. The matinee performance of Saturday, December 15 is scheduled for HD simulcast with Villazón and Anna Netrebko.
Labels: la cieca ci guarda la cieca ci vede, netrebko, telecast, villazon
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12:31 PM
30 Comments:
Perhaps his jet-setting lifestyle has finally caught up with him.
Matthew Polenzani is scheduled to sing the Duke in Rigoletto in Philadelphia between October 5 and October 17.
And in between the MET Romeos he isdue to sing Nemorino at Covent Garden.
Yniold
I think he's supposed to sing Don Carlo at Covent Garden as well. That's a role he should never have sung, and I assume he'll cancel.
I wonder if it's vocal troubles. The guy has been singing like there's no tomorrow. I hope he's OK. He's one of the few bright lights in our tenor world...
He certainly had vocal troubles in Manon in Barcelona. And speaking of vocal troubles, tune in Kunde and Merritt in the Pesaro opening night Otello on Radio Tre right now. Florez is quite good, however.
He already cancelled his Sept. 27 Berkeley recital. The announcement last month said he "has decided to space his concert and operatic appearances further apart".
Which Otello is Merritt doing; Joe Green's or Jimmie Rossini's?
OK--I checked Radio Tre and Merritt is doing the Rossini Jago instead of Otello. Any story on when he switched roles? i amm not that familiar with this particular work, even though I heard part of it from Chicago several years ago.
And Villazon is supposedly going to sing Lohengrin in a few years?
Yeah, right.
To ljc: scroll through Opera Chic (http://operachic.typepad.com/opera_chic/)for info re: the Rossini Otello cast changes.
Villazon has lots of personality, but the voice has always sounded dangerous to me, as if it were being pushed out of his throat.
Or maybe he is peeved at Ms Netrebko hogging too much limelight ...
is villazon in vocal troubles?....yep!
take a look at this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jnDTo3d73o4
JF in DC
I think YOU should sing Lohengin in a few years...I think that would be much better
Dear JF in DC
I think YOU should sing Lohengrin in a few years...that would be much better I am sure....do you look good without your shirt on?
Dear JF in DC
I think YOU should sing Lohengrin in a few years...that would be much better...do you look good without your shirt?
And, Anna Netrebko has just cancelled Salzburg. She cancelled the Dress plus the 1st two Donna Annas at Covent Garden. Both she and Rolando need guidance. They are both ruining their careers in a hurry. Maybe they should contact Aprile for advice as she had a too, too short career by singing the wrong things at the wrong time.
I hope Polenzani gets the rest of the Met run. In a better world, his Romeos in Chicago would have been star-making. It's beyond time that true artistry - not the likes of Netrebko - be rewarded.
I was just reading that Pavarotti has been admitted to hospital. I hope it is not too serious.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6938313.stm
In a better world, Polenzani would sing nothing heavier than David in Meistersinger. And we would have a Thill and a Bjoerling for Romeo.
I've heard that Villazon is having thyroid troubles, so the problem may not be vocal after all.
Wow - well, if that's true, thyroid problems can CREATE vocal problems. The changes can affect your vocal health, and the medication can cause extreme dryness, which if happens in the middle of a career can cause disruption - one gets into a rhythm in a show - when do you need a drink of water, how long can you go without one, etc - and if you are singing dry, it can cause vocal problems. Well, let's all hope he's doing better soon. Mr. Polenzani is fantastic, and I am excited to hear he will be singing these.
There is a tone of Schadenfreude in some of these comments that sickens me. Has everyone forgotten how saddened we all were by the recent death of a colleague whose "vocal troubles" were part of a tragic mix of problems that became overwhelming? Does anyone know the absolute terror and sadness an injured performer feels when unable to do what he or she loves most? The psychological consequences can be huge. Does overuse and perhaps poor technique contribute to vocal injury? Surely, in some cases. How about willful carelessness and egomania? I don't think so. Those characteristics are not compatible with the kind of discipline and dedication required to reach the highest levels of professional performance. The arched eyebrows and snickering, gossipy speculations that accompany so much discussion of "vocal difficulty" are shameful. Who can blame artists that are less than forthcoming about their problems? And who could be surprised that faced with such a reaction, they too often shortchange the healing process and perpetuate cycles of overuse and reinjury. It's really time we treated injured artists with the respect, support and sympathy they deserve.
Bravo Bassetto- If this man is seriously ill, who cares about a Lohengrin years down the line. He is an individual first and foremost.
Why is it that sport pros are allowed to talk openly about their ailments and broken hands and feet and their back problems in magazines and newspapers? And why are they treated with respect and not schadenfreude? People think they do hard work and illnesses and accidents happen. Everybody hopes they get cured soon, so one can see them again doing wonderful things for their teams or their nations.
If a singer has problems, it is always his own fault.He or she should not have sung this or that role, he's done too much out of greed or/and has the wrong technique alltogether. And she/he gets all this crap from fellow musicians who should know better.
Not being a pro, but having had professional training at a Conservatoire in Europe, winning prizes an scolarships at an early age, and then running into major problems with my voice an loosing it for some time, having an operation on my vocal chords, I felt like a total looser and outcast.
Most of my fellow students treated me all of a sudden like somebody with a contagious illness. Speaking about my fears and my depression about not being able to sing anymore was almost not possible, nobody wanted to hear it. Maybe out of fear, that something like that could happen to them too. My teacher - I'd been her star student - turned away and did not support me anymore. Being a singer without a voice all of a sudden was a terrible experience - like a soccer player wo has an amputated leg maybe.
My voice healed, but it was too late for professional carreer. I have another profession now who makes me happy and sing for fun semiprofessional.
But my heart goes out to singers who have voice problems. If famous or not.
Perl
Yeah, yeah but look at that clip, look at the jaw and the mouth position, watch his shoulders and look at the tension in his arms as he pushes in at his diaphragm. This is a tricky aria, but he does not use the vowels -- lOIn de mOI to phonate into the head and avoid the second crack; he plunges on in the throat. (By going into head, I mean essentially adjusting the laryngeal position but the sensation would be at the bridge of the nose or higher).
That is an obvious solution to this moment, and I saw the 90 year old Alfredo Kraus and Nikki Gedda at about 80 do it -- and they didn't crack (but they weren't throaty and they did not have this heavy pressure in their singing). Who knows about this illness.
But as I have said from the beginning (back at Boheme at City) too ingolato and too high pressured to maintain a heavy schedule.
Villazon may be suffering from hyperthyroidism- excessive levels of thyroid hormone produced by the thyroid gland. This results in nervousness, hyperactivity, insomnia, and characteristically protrusion of the eyeballs (exophthalmia), which has been so apparent on his video interviews for some time. The treatment is medical and seldom requires surgery which can end a singer's career, if the nerves to the vocal cords are injured. On the other hand, the medication will shrink the thyroid gland, the pressure on the larynx will decrease, and the
voice will not be affected, if not improved. It may take longer than 2-3 months to correct the problem. All opera lovers, let's pray for Ronaldo's quick recovery
Amen, Constantine! Like you, I've noticed that Villazon's appearance indicated a possible thyroid problem, and I think his wacky behavior some time back on the Met Opera Quiz may have been an indication as well. Thus, I'm not surprised at this, but if this is the problem, at least it's treatable. Some years ago, a radio announcing colleague of mine was having problems with her voice and general health, and she turned out to have thyroid problems. With radioactive iodine treatments and medication, she wound up healthy and sounding good again, without any need for surgery. I hope that Villazon gets similar positive results!
Let us all hope for a quick Villazon recovery ... but why do we have to pray?
I wouldn't call Villazon's behaviour on the Met quiz "wacky". Exuberant, lively, yes.
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