No Sleep 'Til Sunnyside
Not a whole lot of news on matters operatic in the past couple of days, so La Cieca has decided a competitive quiz is in order. The clip below is the "Sleepwalking Scene" from Verdi's Macbeth divided among 14 sopranos and mezzo-sopranos. All you have to do is name the 14 singers in the correct order. (La Cieca has decided to be merciful this time and omit overly obscure singers. Each singer in this clip is or was internationally famous. However, La Cieca cautions you that not all these singers included Lady Macbeth in their onstage repertoire.)
When you believe you know all 14 voices, send your answer to lacieca@parterre.com. First correct answer will receive a gift certificate from amazon.com. Should there be no entry with all 14 correct answers by midnight on Tuesday, January 29, La Cieca will choose randomly among the entries with the highest number of correct answers.
In the meantime, please feel free to discuss and make wild guesses in the comments section.
UPDATE: As of Monday evening, La Cieca has not declared a winner. There is a tie for first place with two entries each naming 13 out of 14 correctly. Interestingly, they both mistake the same Lady. For those of you who might want to do a little more intensive study of the Ladies (and La Cieca doesn't mean only the lesbians in the audience!), here's the mp3 to download.
When you believe you know all 14 voices, send your answer to lacieca@parterre.com. First correct answer will receive a gift certificate from amazon.com. Should there be no entry with all 14 correct answers by midnight on Tuesday, January 29, La Cieca will choose randomly among the entries with the highest number of correct answers.
In the meantime, please feel free to discuss and make wild guesses in the comments section.
UPDATE: As of Monday evening, La Cieca has not declared a winner. There is a tie for first place with two entries each naming 13 out of 14 correctly. Interestingly, they both mistake the same Lady. For those of you who might want to do a little more intensive study of the Ladies (and La Cieca doesn't mean only the lesbians in the audience!), here's the mp3 to download.
POSTED at
6:57 PM
63 Comments:
God! I am wrecking my brain with #6 and #10. The other ones I think I got.
Very interesting mix Cieca carissima.
I keep getting thrown off by the wide variance in tempo between #1 and #2. If the conductor for #2 conducted a complete performance at this speed, the opera would last 6 hours! (When you do the big Reveal, would you also please identify the conductor of #2?)
I love you, Cieca, for these guess the singers AND guess the regie AND look at the barihunks and tenorhunks.
I think the conductor of #2 is Riccardo Muti
Conductor no 2 can not be Muti because that would make the Lady Cosotto and that voice does not sound like Cosotto, at least to me. Cosotto's voice was much brighter than that.
I guesses Leonnie, but I am sure i was wrong.
I'm sure it's Muti!
And the Lady is not Cosotto!
I recognized 3 women for sure, and I think my favorite is in there somewhere near the end. If the second conductor is muti, it certainly isn't from his recording, which was with Cossotto and Milnes. I can't wait to see the reveal on this.
Sorry guys, no. 2 is Régine Crespin. I guess the conductor is Prêtre. I have to say until no. 10 this was an easy game - but 11, 12, 13 and 14 do not ring a bell here.
Muti conducted (and recorded) Macbeth with Scotto.
Muti never recorded Macbeth with Scotto commercially, any versions of that combo that exist are private or broadcast recordings.
14 doesn't ring a bell !!!!!??????!!!!!
I know seven of them for pretty much sure. I thought I'd ace this, but several have me stumped. I'd never have guessed the second one, for instance, and I'm curious who's so out of tune in the excerpt after Price.
Price is my only definite, although I'm fairly sure I've spotted Modl, Rysanek and Dimitrova in there too. And someone doing a Vishnevskaya impersonation, possibly even Vishnevskaya.
To my horror, I realise that the only sleepwalking scene I'd definitely recognise from a single note is Margarita Grandi...
Cieca - Phenomenal job!
I too thought I would ace this - but there are always singers we don't know very well, aren't there? Damn. To me, 4, 6, 8, and 10 are the tough ones - think I have the rest. 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13, and 14 are no-brainers. Love how you spread them out like that. Thanks for this!!
The first time through, #8 and #14 were the only two that I recognized immediately.
It's interesting that we know our ladies by their high notes, but when they are singing in the low register and in chest tone, it is very difficult to recognize a lot of them. (You know...it's like you can recognize your male porn stars nekkid from the front from the waist down, but you might not always recognize them nekkid from the back.)
Where is Amy Shuard? Where is Commonwealth Artist Joyce Barker?
And where is Our Own Dame Jo???
I got numbers 1, 2, 6, 7, 9, 10, and 12 immediately.
The rest I don't recognize.
What a fun quiz.
The first german one is Martha Moedl. I'm not sure of the second one in german, but would hazard a guess on Nilsson. No Varnay? There are at least three versions with her, two in italian and one in german. No doubt who the final one is.
Can't believe I didn't get number 4 first time round *shame*
Hmmm- is that Borkh?
I got Caballe immediately. I also think I got Verrett, and definitely got Price. Not sure if I heard Sylvia Sass in there or not; I can usually identify her, since she's my fave Lady macbeth. The difference in tempo from 1 to 2 was astounding. 2 sounds like the conductor was on valium. And at least one excerpt seems to be in an entirely different key then the clip before it. Floria, Muti's recording with Milnes and Cossotto is on EMI (available on Amazon), also with Carreras and Raimondi, The ambrosian Opera Chorus and the New Philharmonia. When I met Marilyn Zschau in the 80s and she mentioned that she was learning lady Macbeth, I gave her my copy the next time I saw her.
I think the conductor for No 2 might be Pretre ...
Sanford,
I have Muti/Scotto copy at home, one of my absolutely fave's! It is recorded in London, april 1981.
With Bruson, Robert Lloyd, Shicoff and Robert Tear (Malcolm).
And yes, I did recognised Caballe (who wouldn't!?), but I didn't know she sang the role!
I'm guessing that the Caballe version comes from her Verdi recital for EMI. A young Thomas Allen as the doctor, IIRC.
This one's a tough one for me. The only ones I guessed right away are Caballe, Price and Callas. The second German one could be Varnay, which threw me off cause I know that she recorded it in Italian. But she could have recorded it in German as well.
And yes, #2 is Crespin with Pretre.
Funny, but I didn't hear Callas at all!
Varnay did a radio recording in german (with Metternich) but I know it, and neither of the german versions are hers.
You are wright, Amerjaquino, the Caballe version comes from her Bellini/Verdi recital, recorded in 1971. I didn't listen to it for ages, so I even didn't know (remember?) that the young Tom sings on it... It was a great pleasure to hear his beautiful voice again, as he is my all time's IDOL! How old was he then? 25? My god!!!!!!
His name is not mentioned on the credits ...
The version I'm thinking of is with Bainbridge and Allen, with the RPO under Guadagno.
?
The one I have at home is conducted by (yes!) Muti ...
Do you know (have) more? Everything concerning Thomas Allen is more then welcome!
Greetings and decidedly off topic!
Yes, I've been silent for a year now (something to do with community service at the Crisco factory) but I couldn't help notice:
No comments on the Kozena fiasco as Cenerentola at Covent Garden.
Why the hell did she think she could do it? There's a whole world of difference from a mezzo and a short soprano and she's the latter. In her Gluck/Mozart/Whatever his name is aria recital her chest register is dull as ditchwater and in her French Opera Aria recital she's decidedly uncomfortabe on top A and Bflat is a matter of wishful thinking and getting off the note as quickly as possible. Jeez!
Caro Cieca, can you fill us in more thoroughly on Kozena in Cenerentola? Audio or video?
I haven't heard anything about the supposed fiasco. But I agree that Kozena is a short soprano and not really a mezzo. I think she's a lovely singer but a limited one because of her range.
parsifal79's blog has some audio clips of the non piu mesta. its STRANGE
is #4 gencer or callas?
Opera South: Callas is mos def in there!
OK - I was felt so stupid about not guessing no.14 that I've made an extra effort and, yes, I know who it is now. I have no problem with 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 8, 9 and 10 - and have good guesses for 4 and 6. But not 11, 12 and 13. As for the German girls, it seems they are Rysanek and Mödl, at least to my ears...
#6 has me stumped...the straight tone maked me think of Gwyneth, but the voice just doesn't sound quite like her. #10 I have NO CLUE about. Although, I got Caballe, Crespin, Rysanek, Price, Modl, I think Verrett, and one is DEFINITELY Dimitrova. I like to think I'd know a great singer's voice anywhere...evidently not. LOL.
Kozena is a moderately talented, moderately photogenic semi-soprano who sings everything in the same tight style - notably with a sort of mock legato where each note is slightly separated from the one on either side. Very mock baroque legato, in fact.
Has anyone heard her ludicrous version of that aria from Massenet's Cleopatre about poison? No sense of the musical or verbal style. Anna Moffo in the RCA Thais is far more convincing.
Still, she's hooked a powerful conductor. Clever girl.
i think 3, 8 and 14 are the easiest
Callas is there, but is heard in regions of the voice in which she often came to grief. Not here, though. Verrett sounded oddly tentative in her snippet--the incisive bite of her phrasing and thrust of her tone seemed missing. A late-career Lady?
Did anyone else hear Souliotis, or am I totally off-base?
Are we not supposed to give the answers away here? I am a bit confused because everyone is so secretive. Well, I thought #2 was Scotto but others have indicated that it is Crespin. Really? I don't hear it.
i could only hear caballé, crespin, x, gencer (when she sings TANto sangue...), x, suliotis?, x mödl, and then up to the d flat. not much... :(
Josephine,
Last time everyone published their guessing lists and it was fun to compare them, but this time I've noticed everybody is being discrete - so I have restrained to publish it. As for giving away the answers, I guess only La Cieca could do it - the rest of us can only guess. In any case, I'm 100% positive about Crespin :-)
What a great quiz. Thanks, Lacieca!! And thanks to everyone for their restraint in not shouting out the answers while we were trying to figure it out.
Ok guys,
no.1 Caballe'
no.4 Gencer
no.5 L. Price
no.7 Verrett
no.9 Millo
no.12 Scotto
no.14 Callas
The above I found pretty easy and am 100% sure.
No.8 Moedl,pretty sure.
No.2 Crespin indeed! After you clever guys suggested I checked the CD immediately! I thought it was an Italian singer but hey! Crespin is one of my ever favourites and didn't recognise her :(
Now to my guesses (more or less educated!):
no.3 Bumbry
no.6 Nilsson
no. 10 Varnay
no.11 Dimitrova
No.13 I haven't a clue! But I like the pianissimo!
Grazie Madame La Cieca for another demanding and stimulating enigma!
I hope my lack of "restraint" didn't upset anyone!! Just thought it nice to share. Though I guess one can always look away! Plus I'm probably wrong anyway
I got Caballe, Price, Verrett, Modl, Nilsson and Callas ... and I think Scotto. Missed Crespin -- foobash. If it's flawless, it HAS to be Crespin. Not sure which were Ludwig and Rysanek.
Fascinating.
gosh i am really shite at those guessing games ... methinks the only one i am 100% sure about is borkh (and that is partly because of the language!!!) and probably mödl after. why didnt we get a lady in swedish as then it would have been easy to say nilsson ;)
but thanks la cieca for those 'quizzes' - they rock!
yes italianainbristol! I got those ones too plus Dimitrova #11; I am wondering about #6; G. Jones? #8 Rysanek? and I think Sass in in there as well. I am stunned that #2 seems to be Crespin; sounded more like Zampieri but...better. And of course the great Callas giving us the last piece of heaven with Scotto just before. Thanks La Cieca! this is great!
OK, since someone started, here is my list as I submitted it to Cieca. I know that there are 9 correct ones.
1. M. Caballe
2. L. Rysanek
3. C. Ludwich
4. L. Gencer
5. L. Price
6. A. Varnai?
7. S. Verrett
8. M. Moedl
9. A. Millo
10.L. Rysanek (again? In German?)
11.G. Dimitrova
12.M. Zampieri
13.R. Scotto
14.M. Callas
Now, we've been told that #2 is Crespin (can anyone post that complete recording? i have never heard it) I am anxious to see where I faltered.
these are my guesses that i submitted and i was told 11 out of the 14 were right, so here goes...
1. caballe
2. nilsson (although i now know it to be crespin...)
3. ludwig
4. gencer
5. price
6. soliutis
7. verrett
8. modl
9. millo (who knew!)
10. borkh
11. dimitrova
12. cossotto
13. scotto
14. callas
This is all I could get:
1 - Caballé
2 - Crespin
3 - Ludwig
4 - Gencer
5 - L. Price
6 - ? (I even thought of Zampieri...)
7 - Verrett
8 - Rysanek
9 - Millo
10 - Mödl
11 -?
12 -?
13 -?
14 - Callas
very similar to what I got, except I thought 3. was Guleghina. 11. is Suliotis, 12. Cossotto, 13. Scotto & 14. Callas - at least I think so!
This game is certainly fun - of course no. 12 is Cossotto! I had the feeling that I should know that voice.
Number 11 is surely Sylvia Sass.
Nope, I am a almost positive it is Dimitrova...the give away is the way she hurls that high note out --very slavic, all in the back of the throat. Sass did it too, but her voice wasn't nearly that big. The hair-pin turn of dynamics on the note was also a Dimitrova trick.
Sass and Suliotis... Both so attractive, so highly promising, a few fabulous documents, a ridiculously early vocal decline (Sass still sings, btw, in Hungary). Ricciarelli, similarly in a way. Why are some of us attracted to the flawed ones?
Anyway, "researching" for questo enigma della Cieca, I bumped in these outstanding performances on Youtube, by Sass. One is a concert performance in Japan. Absolutely riveting and immaculate. This is Sass at her best. It's all there. One of the best scenes ever recorded in my opinion:
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=nuZamvbba_Y
Not as keen on her Turin 1977, more dramatic, less controlled, but some hairraising moments, just as it should be: http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=X-0wgwOxOl8
I have also relistened to Suliotis Decca Macbeth, with Fisher-Diskau, Ghiaurov and Pavarotti, and the rather marvellous conducting of Gardelli. Why has this recording been so underrated and even trashed? Gardelli's Verdi is so right. It works. Ok Suliotis is well passed her very early recordings but still compelling.
Finally, it seems I mistake Scotto and Cossotto. No.12 to me sounds so Scotto, not so no.13, but this is against all the consensus here... Maybe no.13 is Zampieri... who knows. mmmm Also, it looks like I can't tell my Ludwig from my Bumbry (no.3) Oh dear??!! Sorry guys!
No.11 I also definitely feel it's a slavic voice and am pretty sure it's Dimitrova.
Can't wait to fnd out.
On a completely different note, you might find the following interview with gorgeous Maltman of interest. Wow the guy is so sexy!
http://music.guardian.co.uk/classical/story/0,,2246075,00.html
I think part of the trick to these is knowing which performances are live and which are not...there is no live recording of Cossotto as lady macbeth, but there are only live recordings of scotto as the lady.
at first listening, all i could get was price (very distinctive) and verrett (not at her best, but i can tell it's her, it's sort of a very distinctive struggling with the tone that is hers).
i seem to confuse souliotis with cossotto a lot. they do sound alike to me.
i couldn't think of dimitrova, even though i kept thinking, i recognize that "throb" in her voice, when it booms out that high note. i kept thinking, gorchakova does that too, but it's not her voice. but yes, it is dimitrova, no doubt.
oh well, i couldn't make out caballe either even though i think i know her voice very well.
how are we supposed to pick callas (14) from just one note????
13 sounds a little bit like caballe at the beginning. wait, no, it's VdlA. it's vicky!
i love how gencer (4) just screams.
The last singer has four notes, including that very characteristic attempt at a fil di voce on the D.
Ok guys here goes :
The easy ones :
1. Caballe 2. L. Price. 7. Verrett
8. Modl 12. Cossotto 14. Callas
The not so easy :
2. Crespin (I thought it was Zampieri at first because of the tempo (Sinopoli) but no, the tone is fuller and more interesting)
3. Rysanek or Ludwig
4. Gencer
now I have a hunch about 10. Anja Silja?
The wild guesses:
6. Dimitrova
9. Scotto
11. Gulegina or latter day Sass
13. Ricciarelli possibly, Well I don't know...
Thats all
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