I still want to hear her do something bigger (Brunnhilde, for example). Reports of that have been mixed.

And yes…the Gwyneth Elektra in San Francisco was one of those great apocalyptic nights.

Costa was also one of the great Violettas of all time and was a superb Marguerite in Faust, Margherita/Elena in “Mefistofele,” Rosalinda, Musetta, Rosina and as Titania in the American premiere of “Midsummer Night’s Dream.” Like many other great stars of that time, she lacks the recorded legacy but the pirate recordings are really the best way to assess Costa’s work.

In addition to San Francisco Opera, which was her home house in the U.S., Costa had big successes in other important opera houses — Manon, Violetta and five other roles at the Met, Violetta at the Bolshoi and Covent Garden, Giuletta in “Capuletti” opposite Simoniato at Carnegie Hall, Manon in Lisbon and Geneva with the Paris Opera on tour (opposite Alain Vanzo.) She had a big success as Musetta for the Met’s historic first tour of Japan in 1975. Someone mentioned already that she also starred as Cunegonde in the first London production of Candide and at the request of Leonard Bernstein returned to the role for the opening week of the then new Kennedy Center with Bernstein conducting.

The BBC also mounted full television productions of “Traviata”, “Faust” and “The Merry Widow” for the diva. She has spent the last few years working hard to bring desperately needed funding for opera and symphony orchestras serving on the Advisory Council of the National Endowment for the Arts.

when it comes to gwyneth, i too saw her ortrud in lohengrin at covent garden early in 1997 (it must have been february as i remember queueing for a last minute ticket/standing ticket outside when it was snowing … that was before they sold standing in advance and when one had to queue outside the opera house, gosh luckily things have changed since), which was the first time i came across her singing and even though she had a considerable stage prescence, i thought the singing per se was by far the worst i had ever heard so far. then i bought the lohengrin set under kubelik from 1971 (or 1969?) and i found her ortrud on there terrible as well. so for me that spoilt gwyneth for a long time.

i still don’t like her voice but have since heard her first operatic recital, which is very good indeed. but as i heard her giving vocally such an under par performance in lohengrin that really put me off her. so i personally always approach her with caution, but then i didnt see her live in her heyday. i dont like the studio recording that she made of ägyptische helena and i used to her her late wagner recital on chandos (which i resold very quickly) BUT her excerpts of the trovatore leonora on youtube are absolutely lovely and what i have seen on there of her elektra is impressive as well…

but that ortrud, that ortrud … it still makes my ears ache

Or indeed any recording of Fassbaender as Die Amme! The only FrOSch evidence for her we have is as one of the maids/offstage voices – I think it’s in the Karajan 1964 performances (the one where Popp is the Falcon/Guardian and Wunderlich the Apparition of a Young Man!!)

I saw a FroSch in Munich in 1988 with Studer, Gwyneth and Fassbaender. Can’t remember who the men were, I have to confess, which is a bit shameful, because Barak is a role I’d love to sing if I had the voice for it.

And I saw that Covent Garden Arabella with Popp and Weikl, which was one of my greatest operatic evenings ever. I was snivelling away at the end. Popp might have been a wee bit on the light side vocally for Arabella, and a wee bit on the round and saftig side physically, but who cares? She had such soul and spirit. (Having since seen Mattila in the flesh as Arabella, and Renee on DVD, I realise that Popplet has ruined it for me for ever – it’s hard to love either of those two gals, admirable though they can be in different ways.) And I doubt Weikl could be bettered as Mandryka. He picked her up and swung her round at the end and it was completely heartwarming.

Google ads strike again. I’ve never seen so many disgusting recipes for Spam as on my gmail…

For the record, I came into live opera – after a few Coli experiences with singers a certain man of the cloth would justifiably mock – via Joanie (remember the box of eggs?) Unfortunately Maria Stuarda made me see that her glory and the rep she sang didn’t quite match up, so I was off to hear Behrens in Salome and realised that was where my heart really rested. Now I’ll listen to a really artistic singer like Dessay or Miricioiu in duff-as-old-Donizetti with pleasure.

Freni was still around then but I can’t believe the Verdi roster for Karajan which included her, Carreras, Baltsa, Cappucilli, Raimondi, Domingo etc, and which needless to say I never experienced in the flesh, has ever been surpassed. I have great hopes for Harteros and Kaufman, though, and Gheorghiu on a really good night – that hasn’t happened for me since La Rondine, pure star charisma – can (could?) be something.

Agreed, CK, Brewer is almost Margaret Price, but not quite. Maybe they shouldn’t be compared. Christine’s Isolde, done an act a week/month at the Barbican, was unforgettable but doesn’t quite translate to CD. I don’t think Dame G ever did, quite, survive the leap from that weird built-in luminescence you got live to the cordons of recording.

My big regret was giving up my ticket to see Popp as Arabella. I never saw her in opera but did see her do Frauenliebe und Leben at the Wigmore Hall.

Boheme Hong, Leech Mills
Sam/Dal Redmon, Baker
Clem/Tito Maguire, vonStade, Jepson, RCroft
Walkure Charbonnet, Ginzer, Morris, Forbis
Fledermaus Esperian, Grissom, Guzman, Gilfrey, Welborn
Fledermaus Lott, REvans, Castle, Allen, Bottone (CHICAGO)

And I love that Vienna Dalibor, with the Rysanek sisters banging out successive full-voiced high Bs in the first act. Very exciting.

it’s not surprising that I can’t help a slight feeling of anticlimax when I go to the opera these days………

The production was economical for the tour but haunted the memory. The Hockney-designed show was a bit of a mess – some great sets, some horrid (the Pavilion scene), clashing with the bad costumes which DH should have designed.

Cocky, you make me feel old – now I really am going into reminiscence mode. And I thought only seeing Birgit at 62 in a Prom, and never having caught Barbirolli, Klemperer or Boult – thrice the brindled cat hath mewed, spawn of Satan – made me a young ‘un.

I have the CD of that Elektra – it is the best I’ve heard Anne Evans, but I’m not really a fan of her. Rysanek is, of course, sensational.

Ever seen Gwyneth as Isolde? I read her saying she felt it was the one role she was born to play (something to do with Isolde and Gwyneth both meaning ‘the white one’ in some languages or other), but I’ve always thought it was the one role she was a bit wrong for. Too much precision required, in terms of both pitch and rhythm – never Gwyneth’s strong point, having always done things in her own sweet time and always with her generous vibrato… I’ll bet it was exciting live though. I’ve heard a rumour that the Royal Opera has her from the early 80s opposite Jon Vickers – I hope it makes it to their Heritage series.

Two things: (1) Dame Gwynneth could be matchless on a good night, as you pointed out. I’ll never forget her Turandot at Covent Garden in 1987. The best I ever heard (and I was a big Nilsson fan). I was at the performance of the BBC telecast and therefore missed the interview with Dame Eva Turner at intermission. Do you know if there’s a copy out there? Then there were the “good” nights at Bayreuth (which unfortunately were not the ones that were recorded for the Cherault Ring). Her performance of Helen at Carnegie Hall was not one either. In fact, the good nights were infrequent …

(2) Alessandra Marc sounds sensational here, but she never sounds like this in live performances, or the ones I’ve been to anyway.

That Welsh FrOSch also features Anne Evans as the Empress – very nice indeed as I recall (as is her Chrys to Jones’ Elektra on the 1990 Geneva Cd with Rysanek’s Klyt) – must dig the tape out again….

Kicking myself for not going to Alice in Wonderland last year.