Knockout!
Oh, hell to the yes, it’s a divorce.
Angela Gheorghiu wishes to emphasize that she has been separated from Roberto Alagna for the last two years. Her attempts to save the marriage in this period failed. Having initiated divorce proceedings months ago, she awaits the finalisation of their divorce as soon as possible. Ms. Gheorghiu understands that Mr. Alagna is bitter about this situation. As for her part, contrary to his declarations, she would like to live her life now with peace and tranquillity.
Opera Chic caught this one first and best, but La Cieca will do her best take the low road here by pointing out that the meltdown of the Alagnas’ marriage is yet other failure of Rudy Giuliani‘s disastrous incumbency in New York City.
I adore Popp. Truly one of the most “honest” singers that ever lived.
Who was her partner?
Her second husband was Peter Seiffert. Forgot who was the first. Something tells me it was Bernd Weikl, but maybe I’m wrong.
Thanks, operadent, for the kind words. But I just realized what a silly-sounding comment this is:
“She was a throwback to the days when singers could be trusted to think through every bit of it.”
Of course such a time never existed. What I meant to speak of was a time when directors weren’t the bosses of opera and singers had to do the show with some kind of logic that came out of their own experience and the music. While the results necessarily varied, people like Sills really could be trusted. I used to say that I wished that, when she retired, she would become a legit actress. I thought she had a sort of Bette Davis flair for riveting drama. Instead she went for the role of macher and fundraiser. I still would have like to seen her stay on the stage in some capacity. She was a theatrical animal.
(And of course the first sentence in my second paragraph was garbled. Must have had a cocktail or something.)
Popp also sang Marschallin in Muenchen. I thought her Sophie was sublime and never warmed that much to Marschallin but her Arabella was to die for. I always still saw her as Sophie somehow. Her Frau Fluth was enchanting and the Elsa later worked nicely but she was at her limit. She never sang louder than pretty. We had her there every season in many different roles. She was very much beloved and adored there. She was also I am told a warm human being.
I don’t know if he was husband number one or number two (or if they were ever married) but Sir Peter Jonas was Popp’s partner for quite a while before Peter Seiffert came into the picture. Several posters here have suggested that Seiffert was not exactly the picture of conjugal devotion during Popp’s final illness and after her death.
So what’s the story about Angela Gheorghiu and Jonas Kaufmann?
Of course, all of Popp’s song recitals are great too. Her Frauenliebe with Parsons is my favorite, but the rest is fabulous too. Never heard her live, unfortunately.
The Annick Massis clip is great! She has been repeating her Princes Eudoxie in Amsterdam last month, and she was the greatest singer of the evening, in my opinion.
Mesplé is a style icon, Sandford (see the new Inva Mulla cover!) and this is my favorite video of hers.
Every Diva should have a frock like this in her wardrobe. I saw a lot of them in “Valentino- the Last Emperor” yesterday….frocks so good it almost made me wanna turn into a drag just so I could wear them. Some of the Divas would do well to wear Valentino instead of their regular disasters- I don’t think I’ve ever seen a bad one from him.
Agreed Ruxton, it is a dream. Just a dream.
Popp was first married to Georg Fischer – a cousin of Ivan and Adam Fischer – and he conducted her first EMI recital, a disc of Handel and Mozart arias, including a wonderful Piangero la sorte mia. He was a house conductor in Cologne for many years which is why she sang so frequently in what, for her, must have been a “B” house with less than world-class fees (although she sang with Margaret Price, Julia Varady, Yvonne Minton and Werner Hollweg as part of their Mozart “ensemble”). After and Fischer were divorced she became briefly the partner of Peter Jonas and subsequently married Peter Seiffert. And, as Lindoro says, she never lacked for company!