What do you think you are? A pair of queens?
The Met officially announced today that the company will stage Anna Bolena for Anna Netrebko for the opening night of the 2011-2012 season (old news to you, cher public!) and, the following season, Maria Stuarda for Joyce DiDonato.The company has no current plans to produce Roberto Devereux. In what La Cieca is choosing to consider a stinging slap in the face to -- well, at least one soprano -- Peter Gelb explained, "The problem is casting ....There's no singer around today who can sing [Elisabetta]."
And you may make what you will of la Netrebko's statement about the Bolena: "Fortunately, it's far enough in the future that I'll have time to learn it really well."
POSTED at
10:05 PM
76 Comments:
Wait! The Met can cast Norma and Lady Macbeth and Wagner but can't cast one of Donizetti's Queens? WTF? What they seem to be saying is that no one in the world could sing repertoire that disparate singers like Gencer and Sills sang. Total bullshit.
Yah, sure. Didn't Frau Netrebko know at the end of 2003 she would be doing Puritani at the Met - 3 years before the Performance! and still arriving unprepared? And WHY would you cast a soprano in a belcanto piece who can't sing an even scale???
But hey, it will be a "lyric" Anna Bolena with all the coloratura at quarter speed, right.
Sure, another Netrebko show will be a great success for the Met and she will look beautiful!
I think Trebs could be amazing as Anna, but there is a hell of lot that she still has to learn about belcanto style if she is going to make it work. If she sings Anna like she sang Elvira in Puritani, well, no thanks. The color of her voice is remarkable, and her stage presence can be electric, but until she learns and ABOSORBS bel canto style into her BEING, she won't make the impression that she should.
I am assuming that La Donato is singing the mezzo version of Stuarda, and I have no doubt whatsoever that she will knock the role right out of the park. There is something truly remarkable about this singer, something I also saw in Lorraine Hunt Lieberson: HUMANITY. She is riveting, because she is absolutely truthful about everything she does on stage.
And as for Elisabetta, are you fucking kidding me! Give me a break Gelb, the part is difficult for sure, but is it really and harder than Anna? NO. Fleming would not work in the part, but why not someone like Pendatchanska (sic)? She is a fiery and exciting singer who knows her way around this type of music. I suppose it comes down to economics really. When Gelb says there isn't a singer aroung today who can sing this music he really means "There isn't a singer around today who can appeal to the average opera go-er enough to get them to shovel out big dough to see them". I suppose that is true, sadly.
There must be a soprano to complete
Donizetti's trilogy. Maybe she was asked and turned Gelb down. Netrebko's statement shows that she wising up and wants to be perfect this time and avoid repeating the criticism of her Elvira.
Anna will be splendid.
I thought the Met didn't think Joyce DD was a "star"?? Clearly, they do!!
I really try to be a nice person, but I tend to agree with the above posts. Netrebko to me is so far from bel canto, it is not even funny. Why does she not stick to Boheme or Onegin? I feel as if the public is being bamboozeled? There is something strange going on when someone who can't sing the operas gets to sing them!!
I Realize a lot of people have nothing good to say about Gruberova....Except me, But this role is still in her active rep, the recent dvd on DG is better than a lot I've heard (has no one seen this)...and she is scheduled in devereux up till 2010...age appropriate as well.
No?
David A
La Cieca may choose to think it's a slap in the face to Renee about the Devereaux, but who's to say Gelb didn't offer her the role and she said no. If she did say no, she obviously showed better judgment than Netrebko, who seems to be out to butcher every bel canto role she can.
Anonymous: it was La Cieca's impression (she may be wrong) that the Puritani last season was originally intended to be a revival of the 2006 Don Pasquale. When Gelb came in, he decided to change the opera while retaining the same leading performers and so Netrebko, Florez and Kwiecien were assigned to Puritani. (It should be noted that both the men had performed the Bellini opera already; Elvira was a new role for Netrebko. At some point in the process, Florez and Kwiecien both withdrew, which would explain the less than stellar casting of Arturo and Riccardo -- the Met had to come up with substitutes on a short lead time.
La Cieca agrees that Netrebko was not well prepared for the beginning of the run, though you must admit she grew somewhat into the role as the season progressed. But if my information is correct, she didn't in fact have three years to learn the role; more like three or four months.
Sanford: after the Norma debacle this year, it is understandable why the Met would hesitate to mount so demanding an opera as Roberto Devereux. Even if they had a singer up to its demands (as I agree Pendatchanska would be) they still wouldn't have the caliber of star necessary to drive ticket sales. (When the NYCO did Devereux a few years back with local fave Lauren Flanigan, the houses were not very full.)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0yJqQeBPp6w
David A
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AnVbip0T8FE
I had also heard there was a switch sometime in the middle of the year from Don Pasquale to I Puritani. Also, you have to take into consideration that Netrebko also had her first Manon a few months earlier. Then she had a Sonnambula which she hadn't performed since her early days at Mariinsky, then a Boheme, which she'd only performed one time prior to her appearance at the Met. Netrebko has admitted to making a mistake and biting off more than she could chew and has mentioned she isn't about to make the same mistake again. I think this is a far cry from some people's assertions that she wasn't prepared due to laziness.
Now, I'm not sure she will ever be a true bel canto singer with her training being in the Russian tradition but I think she should be fine.
I agree with Josephine. There is certainly something "fishy" about Netrebko!!!!!!!!
Actually, I think La Cieca and I are wrong about when the switch was made. It was 1 year before not 4 months. Netrebko mentions having to peform I Puritani around late December of 2005 in an interview. I believe it was published in March or April. Perhaps it was Opera News.
This is still not enough time. At this point Netrebko is having to learn her first Mimi for one performance. Then she has her debut as Norina and a pretty heavy schedule in the spring and summer. Then she has her debut as Manon, the Sonnambula and one more Mimi before the Puritani. I don't know what made her think she could tackle that much.
Well, something strange is going on! This blog started becoming fiendlier to Netrebko. There must be a belief that there is some talent in her. If she's really recognized here, she has finally arrived!
Dear Cieca,
I hate to be the "Know-it-all" person, but if my memory does not let me down, the Puritani was planned years in advance. I seem to remember an interview Netrebko gave for DG whilst recording her album "Sempre Libera" (it was available as a promo video clip on DG website) in which the interviewer asked her about the different characters she was portraying. She was also asked about Elvira, and she stated that she had no idea what the opera was about but she was scheduled to do the opera at the met.
I don't know if the interview is still available or not, but it was funny ( and I supposes that why it stayed in my mind) as you could feel the astonishment on behalf of the interviewer that she did not know more about Elvira's Character other than was going mad.
date of the interview must have been Feb or March 2004
In the EVENING STANDARD (London) published on September 9, 2004 Frau Netrebko states she will sing the Puritani in a few years time. Please check for yourself on her website
http://www.annanetrebko.com/articles.shtml
Fact: She knew she would sing the part at the MET for more than 2 years!
Ok that Edita Youtube brought tears to my eyes. She needs to do Devereux here
tommassini is at it again.
Horrid signing and matronly Manon is whitewashed into the best thing since sliced bread and Marcello is marginalized. The BEST singing on that stage was HIM. Typical german loving fuk. Good old Tony sayd Giordani was over emotional. They said the same thing about Corelli in his day, and Tucker. What an idiot that man, Tomassini is. When can the times clear the stench of his vividly horrid reviews all slanted for his german ear. GO HOME. or rather stay home and let's get a critic is isn't so strapped for brains.
Jennifer Larmore as Jane Seymour, thank you very much. Her OONY Jane was super duper!!! Better yet, dump that over-hyped Nedbrabko and Met please get Mariella Devia back, one more time...PLEASE!
You don't need a big voice to sing this role. Sills proved you can have the voice the size fo a fucking bee and get away with it! Also, if there are no singers around who can't handle Devereux, is Gelb really expecting us to swallow the bull shit that Netrebko can fulfil the role of Anna Bolena?
I'm not sure it's Renee whose face La Cieca thinks is the recipient of the stinging slap. For my money, Gelb's offensive statement can only be a slap at Gruberova, who sings this role to (well-deserved) 30-minute curtain calls in Europe. David A is right - if we must bow down to the god of age-appropriateness, there could be no quarrel with Gruberova on that score. And does Joyce di Donato sell out the house or come anywhere close?
Why does joyce di donato not sing Elisabetta which sits lower? She has sung the role before to great acclaim I believe. maria and Elisabetta are really very similar sized parts, so why the alteration to the score?
I just listened to Edita's Devereaux clip, and while I've never been a huge fan of hers, she would knock New York's socks off in that part. And she could also have been our Norma, another role that has sung to great acclaim. I think it's ageism, because she's not young or pretty. And I would be surprised if Renee hasn't thought about doing it. She's done Il Pirata and she's having the Met revive Rossini's Armida. Why would she thing she couldn't sing Elizabetta? I wouldn't want to hear it, but that's another story. I bet there are any number of lyric-coloraturas out there who would jump at the chance, some of whom are already retiring roles like Queen of the Night and moving into Manon. And if they cast someone now for that season, then they have a few years to hype them to death so they fill seats when the performances come up. And they have singers on their roster who might be able to sing it. What about Ruth Ann Swenson? Fine singer and actress and she's certainly paid her dues with the company.
As for Netrebko, and I say this as a singer who hated preparing roles and was usually underprepared, she has no one to blame but herself. If she's overbooked, she needs to say no. If she's overhyped, she needs to stop buying into it herself. And if she's underprepared, then she will have to learn how much time it takes her to learn a role and give herself that time. Sooner or later, management will get tired of her showing up unprepared. I think she's an attractive woman with an attractive purely lyric voice, with no coloratura to speak, and no innate bel canto style. But I'll have to wait until Gelb actually calls me for my casting ideas.
Speaking on Tomassini''s take on MANON LESCAUT...
Since he went ape over Karita's Salome, she remains one of his "great singers" whom he will praise in everything: quality by association.We''ve seen this over and over again, as with Voigt's Tosca. There is also the predictable reference to the "cool, Nordic sound" which he makes of anyone he perceives to be from "a Nortnern country"-- he initially said that of Netrebko, who grew up in the Russian equivalent of the San Diego desert.
And speaking of deserts he resorts to the TIMES' usual low comedy chortle, passed on from hack to hack, about the "desert" outside New Orleans. Read the fucking novel. guys. the French concept of "desert" means "wilderness", as in "Mount Desert Island":
"In the demanding final scene, when she and des Grieux are dying in the wilderness (Puccini, seemingly with scant knowledge of Louisiana geography, set the scene in a desert on the outskirts of New Orleans)"
But Tony clearly hasn't read Prevost if he supposes that des Grieux is dying too-- the novel is told from his recollective point of view as a mature man back in France.
But hey, gosh darn it, TIMES culture editor Sam Sifton say of Tony: " He's a gem." More: " I'd put our critics up against virtually all comers, and watch as they acquit themselves with grace and style. "
By 2011 Mme Netrebko may be retired, but certainly not prepared.
Gruberova sang Roberto Devereux again with great success in Vienna last season (with Ganassi and Joseph Calleja). Her formidable technique has lost almost nothing over the years (she is currently 61) and she has the role scheduled for the Vienna Opera's visit in Tokyo next season and still later in Munich. She will also still be performing Zerbinetta in Vienna in the 2008-09 and 2009-10 seasons, a role which most sopranos relinquish by the age of 45.
In 2011 she will perform Anna Bolena in Barcelona. In Vienna she can do no wrong. Her Lucia last season was still fantastic.
Not everyone loves her voice as such as it is not an Italian sound but no one can question her technique even today. Nor the fact that she is a great star in her (currently) main houses, Vienna, Munich and Barcelona and almost all of her performances are completely sold out.
Of course Gelb would not want to book a 65 year old singer for a new production of a hard to cast difficult role in a lesser known opera which Gelb would probably want to repeat in 2013 or 2015.
But currently Gruberova probably has no equal as Elisabetta, Koenigin von England.
Does Gruberova perform outside of Europe these days?
She seems to concentrate almost exclusively on a few houses in mainland Europe.
Reading some of your comments, I am glad I can feel "comfortable" to say good things about Gruberova here. I saw her Elisabetta (in Roberto Devereux) last July. It is true the part lies a bit low for her, but nonetheless it was an AMAZING performance. The closing scene was one of the most exciting things I have ever ever seen.
PS - She sings regularly in Spain (Lucrezia Borgia next month, for example) and in Japan. The rest of her performances are, otherwise, mainly in Germany, Austria etc.
As rd points out, Gruberova chooses to sing in a limited number of theaters. I don't think she has sung in the United States since her last Met Puritani in 1991.
And even if EG were willing to commit to a run of performances five years hence, La Cieca can certainly see why (from a business angle) Peter Gelb would be diffident about giving so big a buildup to a singer with almost certainly no future at the Met. Artistically, yes, I agree this would be a great event, but it makes far more sense practically for the Met to continue grooming young artists into stars.
Various commenters: La Cieca admits that the lead time on Netrebko's Elvira at the Met was probably longer than I first asserted. But it was still relatively short by current standards and (more to the point) Netrebko took on a very demanding schedule of new roles during that period, the last of which was Puritani, which means that it wasn't quite ready in time. It's a pity and a shame, but so far as I can tell, it doesn't seem to be a pattern: any artist who can make four role debuts in a season is not "lazy" by any reasonable definition of the word.
I don't think she's lazy, but I do think she leaves herself open to criticism. She is experienced enough to have known that 4 roles debuts in 1 season was too much. Too many balls in the air and one is bound to fall. I understand why Gelb wouldn't commit to Gruberova. I still don't understand why he thinks no one in the world can sing that role. I would love to know what names he actually bandied about for it, and what names others suggested but that he nixed.
Having sung opera, I am amazed that anyone learns 20 roles in a career let alone 50 or more. Domingo is up to some ginormous number of roles and still adding new ones. I envy people who can memorize roles quickly; I was terribly slow (and I admit it, lazy) when it came to learning roles. TO me, the most fun was picking up a new score for the first time and singing through it. Drilling it to learn was boring.
Well,
There is a lot of ignorance being thrown about in this thread concerning the vocal demands for the role of Elisabetta in Devereux. It is exceedingly difficult, long, emotional, low-lying, and calls for every trick in the vocal arsenal from trills to extreme breath control to high pianissimo singing and so on.
Gruberova is easily (there can be no argument) the greatest exponent of this fiendish role since its initial revivals in the mid 60s. Great as they were, neither Caballe nor Gencer surmounted the technical hurdles with the same ease and assurance that Gruberova does and has, since she debuted the role in 1990 (yes, she has been singing it for almost 20 years).
Cieca is correct: Gruberova has not sung in the US since her Puritani at the MET in 1991. Her fees are much much higher and her working conditions much better (i.e., longer, more comfortable rehearsal times) in the various European venues she concentrates on. Plus: THEY ADORE HER THERE, and truly understand her greatness - as one comment indicated - she regularly receives extended, hysterical ovations. I have seen both her Bolena and Devereux myself, and they are astounding, immensely moving portrayals.
I tend to agree that there are few (if any) sopranos around today that can bring proper authority to Elisabetta. Pendatchanska is inadequate - though she is energetic. She would probably be about as proficient as Netrebko will be as Bolena (unless the latter takes this challenge seriously). I do think Netrebko could be very good. Fleming would be ALL WRONG as Elisabetta, and I am sure she wouldn't even consider it (so, hardly a "slap"). Than again, I seem to be wrong about these things (as I was both on the Fleming Norma and this Netrebko Bolena). Flanigan also was very pallid in the role at NYCO, covering for vocal shortcomings with lots of "hystrionics". Possible Elisabettas: Devia (but she is not really "right" for the role, and will be quite near the end of her career), and Theodossiou (has made a great impression in the role, but seems to be suffering vocal decline). Aside from these two, it is hard to think of ANYONE, really, so I agree with what Gelb says.
I have to give credit to Cieca for being "correct" about these details - and I do think it is hugely exciting to know these operas are coming (finally) to the MET. Di Donato should be thrilling, and hopefully Netrebko will come through and impress us all.
Evenhanded: we should also keep in mind that there is a possibility that between now and 2013 a singer may emerge who can sing an exciting Elisabetta -- and then, Gelb would have the prestige of launching a new superstar. Better, I think, to wait for an amazing interpreter than to schedule the opera and hope to find someone who can get through it "somehow."
I'd be really curious what comments here were "ignorant". They may not jibe with your opinions, but I think it's a little condescending to think that your views are smarter than anyone else's.
And let's not forget that we're talking about Peter Gelb, the same man who has a tenor singing in Barbiere for whom the final aria now has to be cut. And who seems intent on furthering Treb's career in bel canto. Anna Bolena was sung by Callas, Sutherland, and Sills, as well as many other great lyric-coloraturas. Does Gelb really think that Trebs can sing like that?
Coincidentally, Music Choice on Cablevision is playing Maria Stuarda as I type this. Gruberova, Baltsa (could she have sung Elisabetta in her prime?), and Araiza, who could sing the hell out of the final Barbiere aria.
And for those of you who have seen other posts of mine, don't think I didn't notice I just went against my own advice about not personalizing other people's comments; it's far easier to give advice than take it.
La Cieca, did you see the email about reuniting me with a friend I hadn't spoken to in almost 30 years? He saw me on this site, figured out it was me, and emailed me. Turns out a mutual friend of ours works at Washington Opera, alongside who? Giovanni Reggioli, my new favorite hunkonductor.
And Just remembered that Trebs is also scheduled to sing all 4 heroines in Hoffmann in a few years. WHo was the last person to do that? Moffo? Sutherland? Moffo was certainly more capable of singing Olympia than Trebs.
Sanford: Yes, that was a very moving thing for you to write. Thank you.
All sorts of people, some well-suited and others not so, have sung the Contes at the Met -- Cathy Malfitano, Carol Vaness and Ruth Ann Swenson are three who come to mind.
how about Damrau or even Dessay for Elisabetta?
EEWWWWW! Carol Vaness as Olympia! Get that picture out of my head!
I was actually thinking about Dessay or Damrau. Damrau was who i was referring to about retiring the Queen of the Night and moving on to Manon.
But how about a different tactic. How about a dramatic mezzo with a good top? How about someone like Dolora Zajick?
It really does knid of make me long for a voice like Eileen Farrell, who could have sung nearly anything she wanted to, and done it well.
Casting Netrebko in bel canto operas is still a puzzle to me. She may be able to make the performances interesting and even enjoyable with the innate beauty of her voice, her looks and personality, acting, etc. But all these would serve her to a much higher degree in the lyric repertoire. Even as Juliette, lovely as she was, she couldn't trill. Why take on roles that expose her weaknesses? Not to mention comparison with legendary coloraturas. But obviously she and her managers don't see it that way.
Bolena is a tough role. No child's play. It calls for a true dramatic coloratura. Of the three queens, Maria Stuarda is the only one that I see making any sense for Netrebko to undertake.
I'm not sure that I quite see the logic behind DiDonatto singing Mary Stuarda in the mezzo version either. Will that have selling appeal for a Met opening night? DiDonatto singing Queen Elizabeth would seem a lot more interesting to me. It can claim to be the actual leading role in the opera and would probably fit DiDonatto to a T.
I'm also a fan of Gruberova and wish I could see her as the Queens but don't expect it to happen. My understanding is that she never felt welcome in New York and is not interested in coming back to the US at all. I've shared before the story of how after her return to the Met for Lucia after something like a 15-year absence, I helped her get a taxi outside the Met. She had no limo, no escort, no impresario, agent or manager taking her out to dinner, no party to go to. That's no way to treat a diva. I wouldn't come back to NY either.
You know, Gelb has all of these great lyric-coloraturas on the roster: Miklosa, Damrau, Dessay. He even still has Hei Kyung Hong. Why the hell does he even need Trebs for the coloratura stuff? I heard Ms. Hong in Central Park (as Violetta) 2 summers ago, and she was tremendous.
Cieca -
Of course, you are 100% correct, and that is an excellent observation I hadn't thought about. Dear God, let us HOPE a good Elisabetta comes around by 2013. Perhaps Gelb is holding the idea "in reserve". (FWIW, I hope he is - I'd love to see it done in NY).
Iltenoredigrazia: I agree completely with your comments both on Bolena (a damn difficult sing that requires a dramatic coloratura - though, to be fair, "lighter" voices have gotten away with it - Sills, Gruberova, more recently, Devia and Mosuc) and Stuarda (why in the world give the title role to Di Donato?). I am sure Di Donato will be very good, but she would also be GREAT as Elisabetta in that opera, leaving the title role to a lyric (like Netrebko for whom this would be a good fit).
Sanford: I apologize for using the word "ignorant", and it was not directed at you personally. Still, you are saying that Gelb's assertion that he cannot find a singer for the Devereux Elisabetta is "bullshit" (to quote you exactly). If this is true, please give me one reasonable suggestion that Gelb might consider. Of those you have mentioned, Baltsa and Zajick are mezzos, and this is emphatically NOT a mezzo role. Even though the vocal line often plunges downward, the overall tessitura is much too uncomfortably high for mezzos (even ones "with good tops"). I appreciate and agree with your praise of Farrell, but while she might have easily had the temperament for the role, surely the coloratura would have defeated her. So none of those three are reasonable suggestions. This is based on the demands of the role and music - not my opinion. Someone else mentioned Dessay and Damrau, both of which are extremely outlandish ideas, even if both outstanding singers have more than enough technical ability to sing the music per se. The overall "weight" of the role is far beyond the means of either. You also mentioned Fleming in one post - something like: If she sings Imogene and Armida, why not Elisabetta? Again - there are fundamental differences in requirements here. Imogene was possibly a mistake - the voice is really to rounded and small for the role - at least in a house like the MET (huge). I feel she acquitted herself honorably, but many criticized her for the small "scale" of her portrayal. In addition, the tessitura for Imogene is signifiantly higher than for Elisabetta. ((The original Imogene - Henriette Meric-Lalande was known for the strength of her highest register.)) Armida is indeed lower and more similar to Elisabetta, but the orchestration for the Rossini piece is MUCH lighter and more transparent and the character requires vastly less overt emotionalism than does Elisabetta (though who knows what Fleming will do in this area). Armida is extremely demanding in terms of florid singing (more so than Elisabetta), but does not require the same dramatic declamation that the Donizetti heroine must have. Thus, neither Imogene nor Armida really indicate suitability for Elisabetta.
Again, these statements reflect my opinions, yes, but they also illuminate (I hope) the specific demands you can find yourself by looking in the pages of the score(s).
I'm not sure that I quite see the logic behind DiDonatto singing Mary Stuarda in the mezzo version either.
The logic surely is that she has already sung the role with great success, and (in broader terms) the role as written for Malibran lies quite well for a high mezzo-soprano. When DiDonato says, "Janet Baker version," I am thinking she means mostly "without altissimo interpolations."
Though ... I haven't heard DiDonato's Maria, so I can't speak authoritatively about any tranpositions she may have made. Anyone?
No, the Met can't cast Norma or Lady Macbeth -- what makes you imagine otherwise?
Stoyanova would be (IS) a great Anna Bolena; I'm sure she'd be terrific in Roberto Devereux as well. Di Donato would be a wonderful Elizabeth in Maria Stuarda.
I am pretty sure you mean Joyce is singing Elisabetta in Maria Stuarda at the MET. If you go to her website she has photos of her in the role of Elisabetta and the video is from the same production. This must have been a mistake.
Evenhanded, apology accepted. My point about Gelb's stance being bullshit has nothing to do with whether or not I have a specific suggestion, but whether or not General Managewr of a world class opera house can't find a soprano capable of singing the role anywhere on this planet. He has already shown that he has no problem hiring second tier singers (I'm not advocating that, just pointing it out), so at any given moment, there are how many first and second tier sopranos singing around the world? And there isn't one anywhere who currently has the role in her repertoire or might be adding it in time for 2013, 5 years hence? And my point about Fleming isn't that should sing the role, but that I'd be surprised if she didn't want to. here's my exact statement: "Why would she thing she couldn't sing Elizabetta? I wouldn't want to hear it, but that's another story."
As for your statement - "This is based on the demands of the role and music - not my opinion." - all casting choices, whether ours or Gelb's, or anyone else's boil down to opinions. There are plenty of people singing all over the place that I wouldn't hire, were I running a company, and plenty of people that deserve a break, who don't get one because someone doesn't like the way they look or sing. Marion Anderson didn't have as big a career in this country, not because of the demands of the music as written in the score, but because someone was of the opinion that an African-American shouldn't sing in a certain hall. Hence, her performance on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. How many auditions did it take for Sills to get hired at NYCO? And how long did it take for someone to be of the opinion she was worthy of the Met? And I'm sure there were quite a few people who were of the opinion that she shouldn't have done the Three Queens, as long as we're on the subject. Did she cut years off of her career? We'll never know. We can assume it, but she might have retired at the same point anyway. My opinion is that we have three great recordings that we wouldn't otherwise have had.
As a singer, I can tell you from first hand experience that I could read a score like a novel. There are a lot of roles that should have fit in my voice based on the notes on the page and just didn't. And some things that I thought I would never be able to sing, like a Rossini song I did on a recital, complete with high A, fit wonderfully. I had all of the notes for Rossini's Figaro... didn't work for me. I had all of the notes for Mozart's Figaro... and yet The Count was better in my voice. Can we please get beyond lecturing each other now?
La Cieca, evincing the damage her brain suffered during her hedonistic youth, made some wild claim that Joyce DiDonato has already sung Maria Stuarda. Obviously she hasn't. But perhaps La Cieca's willingness to believe that she has sung the part "with great succeess" should be understood as an indicator of how well La Cieca thinks she will do in the role...
Sanford...we'll stop lecturing if you stop waxing about your "career"...oy.
Cieca -
Glad you caught the error - easy to do for all of us, since the character of "Elisabetta" appears in both Stuarda AND Devereux. Di Donato HAS sung the Stuarda Elisabetta with success in (at least) Geneva. I have the recording, and she was very good. Of the two central female roles in that opera, Elisabetta is more traditionally the "mezzo" role, but BOTH can be sung by a wide variety of voice types.
Anonymous: the discussion of Di Donato as "Maria" in Stuarda is NOT a mistake. If you look at the press release Cieca has provided, Di Donato clearly indicates she will be singing the TITLE role. Interestingly, she makes a comment about how she won't be including any "high E-flats". Actually, NO ONE would, as all potential accuti in this opera for Maria are high Ds (in particular, the finales of both acts). ((I guess we can assume no high Ds from Di Donato either - lol)). On the other hand, Baker was indeed EXCELLENT as Maria, so hopefully Di Donato will succeed.
Sanford - I was not lecturing, actually, just trying to share some information about these operas. You are entitled to your opinions, and far be it from me to attempt to "educate" you. Still, your own comments as to appropriate singers for Elisabetta in Devereux do disclose a substantial lack of understanding of what this particular role requires. Forgive the bluntness, but anyone who thinks Baltsa might have made a good Elisabetta in Devereux needs to go back and listen again - both to the score AND the singer (regardless of his own personal career experience).
Bolena and Elisabetta have a lot of similarities in terms of the demands on the soprano but they are different roles. Elisabetta is closer to Norma in terms of the required weight. Bolena requires a lot of fioratura but it lies higher than Elisabetta (as has been pointed out) and doesn't require as much thrust in the singing. I think that Netrebko can do very well in the role and I'm optimistic that she'll be great in the role. If she really works at it, she could be very fine. Because of her breath control, she'll never be a great bel canto singer but she can definitley pull this off with success.
There was a time when the rumours suggested that Fleming was going to take on the Devereux Elisabetta. I'm sure that if she wanted to sing it, Gelb would be signing her up right away. She seems to be wisening up and that's a good thing. And Gelb is being quite pragmatic in waiting until he has a star to cast in the role (and I agree compltely with La Cieca's arguments re: Gruberova). In fact, the delays in announcing Devereux will generate even more excitement. The Netrebko/DiDonato news is already pretty meaty.
I wonder who will sing Elisabetta opposite DiDonato's Stuarda.
All in all, as a lover of dramatic bel canto operas, I think it's a very good thing that the Met is taking Donizetti's queens and presenting them as major star vehicles. Bravo Gelb!
What ever happened to gheorghiu singing Bel Canto? I love Netrebko's Sound, but Gheorghiu seemed to have a much stronger Coloratura technique(oh, that implies that Netrebko has a coloratura technique whoops)How bout her As Anna Or Elizabeth?
Its No insult Anna...
Imagine Schwarzkopf as Norma for instance...thats just as "far out" there...but thank god that never happend.
A while back when La Cieca posted the first rumous about the Met's Donizetto Queens, it was going to be Netrebko as Stuarda, Fleming as Elisabetta and Gherghiou as Bolena.
I agree that Gherghiou's coloratura technique is solid but I guess her voice is too light for the role...? Who knows? She's still listed as singing Carmen for heaven's sake. I think she could be sublime in that final scene.
It could also be that Netrebko wanted to sing Bolena and not Stuarda (which is not as exciting a role, IMO) and she's got more pull with Gelb than Gherghiou. Netrebko is the Met's biggest star right now and she probably got first right of refusal on Bolena.
trebs would be so great as maria stuarda, its too bad she's not singing it to didonato's elisabetta. Gheorghiu could do bolena in a much much smaller theater. But, if her voice were a few sizes bigger, her technique and coloration would be perfect for it. Who knows, maybe garanca will be elisabetta to didonato's maria. Joyce will surely mop the floor with her.
Im Glad So many people Including La cieca Hold Gruberova's Portrayal of Elizabetta so highly...All too true about the timing in her Career and the Mets Objectives. I'm going to have to head to Europe to see her in the flesh before she roles up the carpet.
Where are the New Sills/ Sutherland/ Caballe/ Gruberova's?
My generation Needs someone who can sing something above a c without having a stroke.
damrau! she is the real thing! its a pity she isn't a "star" quite like trebs and the like.
Evenhanded, you just basically called me ignorant again. And again, I will defend your right to your opinion as you claim to defend mine. Let's just agree to disagree.
And before anyone corrects me...
I know there are singers capable of singing above a high c....Dessay for instance. But as i said....singing above a high c...Long sustained high passeges, Trills...Five second long E flats, and all that...Sills Interpolated high ending to Vive Ingrato, for instance...I want to hear a singer do that again...
without having a stroke.
We do, her name is Diana Damrau. And I think she could be a remarkable Elisabetta.
I just checked some of her youtube videos out and yes Diana Damrau is very good...a lot of weight to her voice, she would make an interesting Elizabeth. It doesnt look as though she has any of the heavier Donizetti or Bellini roles in her rep though....yet.
i'm sorry to be a heretic, but... edita is indeed a great artist and great singer, but from the beginning (when she was singing things like zerby and tebaldo in Don Carlos), i never liked her voice -- too bright and thin, too weird, that strange sliding of the tone, almost like a scoop. i bought one of her early tapes -- "the art of the coloratura"? -- and i couldn't stand it.
gelb says he can't find an elisabetta for RD? what, guleghina is not available? how's casting that any harder than norma, abigaille or lady macbeth? that didn't stop him from finding a certain inappropriate singer for those roles.
as it's been said, gheorghiu's voice is just too small for bolena or any of the other queens. she's just not a dramatic type (although she thinks she is). when she sang Simon Boccanegra last year, it was a lovely little tweety bird, but the gentleman in front of me complained at intermission he couldn't hear her (i could hear her fine, but it was a small voice) and then never came back for the 2nd act.
now, i heard a rumor that at one point eaglen was singing these donizetti roles. is that true? although i wouldn't want to hear her sing any of them at this point.
i second the suggestion of zajick as the RD liz. i think she'd be great.
And about Fleming in Devereux...
Didnt she just decide against Norma and pull out of the performances scheduled?
Sills wrote that she could sing Norma in her sleep but that Devereux left her finished after every performance...So why would Renee even be Considered or considering Elizabeth?
I've seen Renee Three times Live and Im a Big Fan, But Coloratura isnt where her voice is most Comfortable.
I don't disagree with any of the above re Gruberova's age and the "Met's objectives" - and of course there are those who don't like her voice (what singer does not have their detractors?) - but I feel the need to voice an impotent protest nevertheless. It may be unrealistic, but I bristle at how everyone seems to have accepted that presenting Gruberova would be investment the Met would not be able to recoup. Am I alone in still believing that the Met's primary charter is to present the greatest artists?
I think Guleghina has to do it all! :))
Notheragent, in theory, that is the purpose of the Met. However, they are still a bottom-line business, and Younger stars bring in the ticket sales. I don't The Met should exclude Gruberova, assuming she would even say yes, but I think they will.
Guys:
Remember that Stuarda was written for Maria Malibran, who by all intends and purposes was a mezzo. di Donato as Maria Stuarda is not that far from what was heard in the premiere.
I think we are a little jaded because most of us learned the opera with Caballe, Sills, Ricciarelli and Gencer.
Oh yeah RIGHT.
I'm SURE it'll be the same thing all over again for Netrebko. Her Puritani wasn't great. Her Juliette was horrible, and you can't really say that the role (other than Je Veux Vivre) puts a huge demand on the singer as far as coloratura is concerned (and I don't think that's a new role for her, although I may be wrong). I'm sorry, but SHE CAN'T SING FLORID MUSIC. I don't think it's a matter of being prepared. She just doesn't have the CHOPS for it. She will sing a shitty Bolena, people will forgive her because she's so "pretty", and the same cycle will start all over when she starts preparing her NORMA. *GAG*
And as for Sills having "a voice the size of a fucking bee"...you really can't knock Sills for ANYTHING can you? She was phenomenal and had the technique to sing ANYTHING (although I will admit she did sometimes tackle things like Norma that sounded funny with her voice). Her Queens were AMAZING, in particular Elisabetta. She was dramatically involved, too. They don't make singers like Sills anymore. She was one of a kind.
Gruberova had good technique...other than the weird scoops and chopping the ends of phrases off (my pet peeve). It was never particularly Italianate. She is still in decent voice though.
So Gruberova is too old and not bankable (ticket sales wise)?
Im sure the opera houses she sings at in europe would disagree....she sells out constantly.
It wasnt too long ago when you could hear Price, Sutherland, Crespin or Nilsson all in their 50's sing to sell outs at the Met...
Gruberova, no matter her age or state of voice cant be equalled in the role....a young singer wouldnt be able to pull it off. Even Sills was in to her 40's when singing the role.
But as everyone said, Edita probably wouldnt even Return their calls if the wanted her.
OK, after reading 67 comments, I want to go back to the early ones...why not PENDATCHANSKA??? Does the Met have some problem with her? She appears to strong effect in the Naples DEVEREUX with Sabbatini. It's about time she got a major role at the Met!!
Talking about age, if you have the "goods," it doesn't matter. Magda Olivero at age 69, on April 18, 1979 in Cleveland, OH at the Met's tour, she sang Tosca to Pavarotti's Cavaradossi. She was as fabulous, dramatically and vocally, as ever. And Spoletta was Charles Anthony who, in his mid seventies, is still on the Met's roster!
I quite agree that the Met's responsibility is to present the very best singers. And after all, as of last season the Met was still giving new productions to Domingo - though, interestingly, he does not seem to figure into the Met's plans after 1 or 2 Siegmund's next season (the rumors regarding the Boccanegra do not yet appear on the Met Futures page).
It seems unlikely given his affinity for the young and nubile, but for all we know Gelb may have tried to woo Gruberova, and she refused. If so, he could hardly have said in his press announcement that "The problem is casting ....There's no singer around today who can sing [Elisabetta] who would condescend to sing here."
Well, I have a small theory about it, actfive. Mme Pendatchanska has a contract with a label with a human face that turns out meaningful, successful recordings, and she develops her career in a sensible way. Mme Netrebko has Universal hype smeared all over her, what from the "new Callas" to "the greatest temptation in the history of opera", alongside with M Villazon who takes a great, self-professed pride in "being a product". It makes you fit for one thing and unfit for another, just like oil and water won't mix. And your Mr. Gelb is one of the Universony pack, has always been. The only response to those who point out that Mme Netrebko is wrong in pitch, rhythm, dynamics, phrasing, expression, and everything will be to devise some new, unheard of kind of hype, just like you do with soft drinks and washing powder.
Joyce DiDonato can in fact sing high Ds- as you can hear in the recording of RESURRECTION
Now now...La Cieca lovelies let's turn this into a positive! Anna finally gets to sing a role she is so suited for - a fetching lass who insinuates her way into a relationship with a married men, er man -never considering or caring about reconciliations with the wives, er wife.
Along with her recent "conquest" of the happy hooker Violetta, I am positive that Anna will make this Anna Bolena role her very own. She so resembles the part. And Peter Gelb will continue showcasing this marginally gifted singer who just looks good enough to pull it off.
Brava Anna. Brava!
while i agree that gelb runs a business and has to be mindful of the box office, i also think he is crazy to think he can keep presenting "star" singer who are totally unsuited for these roles. netrebko is not a coloratura or bel cantista. same with guleghina. is that so hard for him to get? i know opera is not his forte, but i'm sure someone's told him that already.
while i'm not a fan of gruberova (see above), it'd make more sense to me to engage her, devia, theodossiu, coelho, pendatchanska, stoyanova, etc. for these donizetti and rossini roles. but then i don't run the met.
oh yeah, another reason why i haven't been to the met all season (in contrast, last season i went 7 times). i wanted to see norma and macbeth, but not with THAT woman. i should have travelled to chicago for the frau ohne schatten. i hear it was really good.
Just a reminder, folks, that the "new" parterre.com is up and running. Check out the "welcome" posting at the WordPress site.
Perhaps by the 5th or 6th performance Nebs will have actually learned the part ... afterall, I hear from a friend that by the last performance of the Puritani run she was actually singing almost all of the notes in the score.
Yes, she really is THAT good.
Post a Comment
<< Home