ferocity
Your doyenne continues to marvel at the riches preserved on YouTube. A random browse this evening turned up a particularly rare gem: a snippet of Aïda as performed by legendary Romanian divas Virginia Zeani and Elena Cernei.
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This is a wonderful demo of where opera was in , I guess, the 50s, when I started going. Neither of these was a recording superstar but neither has any problem in filling the house with perfectly-pitched (except when using an effect), ringing tone, clear words and personality. And, re Gencer, Gavazzi, Simionata discussion of chest voice, this is quite a display of how to use a correctly-placed lower register to musical and dramatic affect. And not a fat lady in sight; Cernei is voluptuous, but that was not unfashionable in the period. The acting? Well, styles change – just like they do in the movies. Not subtle, but thrilling MUSIC drama> Thanks for posting this.
Right! …and anyway, that style of acting was not meant for close-up scrutiny or ever anticipated being shown on anything like YouTube. Subtlety doesn’t cut it from the back row of any opera house. Needs to legible and big. So it was and work it DID!
Excellent singing and arm-flailing, bosom-clutching fun!
This is the minority report, I guess, but I don’t hear any part of Cernei’s sumptuous voice that isn’t driven to the edge of pitch, and frequently over the edge, by serious chest abuse. A tremendous natural voice pushed mercilessly.
The acting is the acting; I’ve seen much worse recently in the “careful!–they’ll see us reacting” mode. And this career set and lighting designer was beguiled by the Hollywood lushness of the production. Any word on which opera house the performance comes from? Bucharest itself, perhaps?
How splendid to re-encounter my first Met Amneris (1968? but who was Aida? Tucci?).
The YouTube caption says it was the Bucharest National Opera, 1970.
You can see why long gloves were so important in those days.
I liked the set — wish we’d had something like that last month in Portland. Is it just me, or does Cernei sound like she’d make a good Ramfis?
I’d say those two were camera-ready, even by current standards. Both acting and singing make Grace Ann’s glamour-laden duet with herself (also on YouTube) look positively subtle. I just love Ms Cernei’s “Fiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiglia dei faraoni.” The 50s-style pointy boobs are good too.
What a neat video. Neither of them seems to have trouble with it at all, even though their voices both have very distinctive quirks, they have learned to make them work to their advantage.
Thank you Cieca