Comments on: And I am telling you I am not belting

Clita del Toro commented

Clita del Toro — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 14:40:01 +0000

Acting/Singing

Acting with the voice is, imo, is much, much more important than doing a lot of carrying on and running around the stage. Vocal acting is accomplished through the phrasing, vocal color variations, use of dynamics and the articulation the text in a meaningful way. Grunts, groans, breathiness, etc. are also part of the process, but should be used sparingly for the best effect–and depending on the style of the music.
Callas could just stand in one spot and project tons of the drama and emotion—through the voice alone.

Moving around the stage, rolling around on the floor and other silly distractions as Dessay, Trebs and others now do (and it call acting) are not successful, imo, unless the emotion comes across mainly through the singing.
For example, Voigt tried that stuff in the LOC Salome, and it was just kinda amusing at best.

CruzSF commented

CruzSF — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 03:14:47 +0000

I think it might be a semantics issue, my continual (over-)explaining. I agree with you and Peter Mattei that separating the two will take an artist into trouble. I think I’ve been saying this all along — if not, I’ve been trying to say this: that acting & singing must be integrated into a performance. Not singing without acting. Not prioritizing acting over singing. The two together.

I listened to “Il Tabarro” and “Suor Angelica” last night, and listened very closely to Senza mamma. Racette was in much better control of her voice last night than last week. There was no hint of cracking while I listened and I thought her tone was smooth and lush.

Graciella Scusi commented

Graciella Scusi — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 03:01:53 +0000

Cruz@5.2.17…
If acting doesn’t come through the music then what are the words for? Peter Mattei in an intermission interview last night on Sirius said that you get into trouble if you try and separate them. Perhaps it’s just a semantic thing and by “acting” you mean movement, which is certainly a part of it. Racette, by the way was in much better voice last night.

mrmyster commented

mrmyster — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 02:18:01 +0000

Because they asked him to.
Do you realize there are virtually no venues left, few daily papers, no magazines, that offer an opportunity for serious music reportage and criticism?
I am glad he’s writing for the Post, and
esp. glad they are still covering the Met.

CruzSF commented

CruzSF — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 01:58:03 +0000

I might be the only one who still cares about this thread, so let me finish it by saying this: after thinking more about the issue of extramusical effects, I realize that I overstated their importance even to me. I realize that while they may have a place in some operas, for some characters, and some styles (e.g., verismo), I think they are certainly not always necessary to create a fully-fledged character nor are they even appropriate in major sections of the repertory (e.g., classical and bel canto era works).

I still think that acting isn’t the same as singing, and that, for me, the great opera singers integrate acting into their performances.

CruzSF commented

CruzSF — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 08:44:42 +0000

for maven: what I hear as extramusical effects in Callas/de Sabata Tosca:

Act II : Track 8: 1:44 before Tosca repeats “Ah, non posso più”. Audible and inelegant breath suggesting desperation.

Act II : Track 13 “Vissi d’arte” : 2:51 to end, sobbing breaths

Act III : Track 21 “E lucevan le stelle” at 2:25 where Cavaradossi sings “…mai tanto la vita,” his voice nearly breaks with emotion

Act III : Track 24 “Senti, l’ora è vicina” at 0:18 where Tosca laughs while singing “prima sarai fucilato”

There were certainly fewer instances than I remembered, but surely you won’t beat me up over a faulty memory.

mrmyster commented

mrmyster — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 19:11:50 +0000

Dear Harry, dear dear Harry: Try hearing it in
Italian!!!
And if Sayao (above) does not sell you — well,
something is wrong!

mrmyster commented

mrmyster — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 19:08:33 +0000

And in English, of course, eh Vic?
Keep ‘em coming!

Harry commented

Harry — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 16:49:19 +0000

Oh Vicar, you are now really letting down your principles. The Commonwealth singer Joan Hammond’s 78rpm version of that Puccini ditty ‘Oh my beloved Daddy’ sold zquillons of copies over the decades. As a kid I laughed when women mentioned it as one of their favorites/ at the same time – misinterpreting its intended meaning in the opera . They thought it represented something truly ‘devotional’. I cannot stand the bloody thing!!!!!!!!!!

Tamerlano commented

Tamerlano — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 16:14:51 +0000

What always gets me about this clip is how insanely MUSICAL she is…People always talk about how Callas was the epitome of musicality, but I dare say Sayao trumps her. She truly phrases like a great violinist, and her breath control is astonishing. I am not sure I have ever heard this aria sung with such a sense of the music’s delicate architecture. Add to that the lovely silvery tone and personal charm and you have a remarkably potent package.

The Vicar of John Wakefield commented

The Vicar of John Wakefield — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 15:03:09 +0000

Of course the SCHICCHI ditty is best heard from the lips of its creatrix, Yorkshire lass Florence Easton.

arepo commented

arepo — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 14:10:12 +0000

I’m with #6(Baritenor). Patricia Racette is a breath of fresh air in the opera world. Her voice is lovely, her commitment to her roles is superb, and the lady herself is a charmer. I give thanks for her.

I am struck by how similar the voices of Stephanie Blythe and Marilyn Horne are. Uncanny!

CruzSF commented

CruzSF — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 23:48:11 +0000

Thank you, maven, for reminding me of the words I used. Let me correct my statement: in my opinion, extramusical effects are a necessary PART of creating a fully realized character on the stage. I do not define “extramusical effects” as being limited to grunts, growls, gasps, and sobs.

quoth the maven commented

quoth the maven — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 20:57:13 +0000

Graciella–That’s exactly my point in the first place. I’m still reeling from that moronic New Yorker profile of Dessay where she said words to the effect of “It’s harder to sing when you’re acting”–in that case, using “acting” to refer to movement, as if that were inherently more expressive, and more of a contribution to building a character, than, um, singing.

Cruz–You did indeed say “yes, I think that extramusical effects are necessary to create a fully formed character on the stage.” Not “can be part of” but “necessary.” There’s a difference. In my own opinion, there can be a role for such things in operatic characterization. (I wouldn’t want to do without Leonie’s Sieglinde scream.) But too often, they’re used to signify “acting,” when in fact the harder work is to make the musical line express character and emotion.

And yes, like you I have heard singers “who have simply sung all the notes, followed the musical lines, putting little emotion into the song or aria or character.” Those are bad singers.

Graciella Scusi commented

Graciella Scusi — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 20:45:12 +0000

I remember an interview (I think it was Leona Mitchell, but I’m not positive) where the soprano said something like, well first I learn the music and then before we get on stage I put the acting in. Now, I’m sure there are many different processes for singers preparing a role, but for me, in the best performances, you can’t separate the acting from the singing; it would be like tearing flesh from bone…they should be one.

Graciella Scusi commented

Graciella Scusi — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 20:32:09 +0000

As far as Racette trying to “do something expressive with the note” at the end of ‘Senza Mamma’, to my ears, all she did was try and relax so it would float and she could taper it off. We’ve heard sopranos do this dozens of times, some times successfully, some times not. I don’t think “float” is something that comes easily for Racette. Sills was known for her gorgeous, easily floated high notes, but when she went into heavier roles beyond her natural endowment she eventually lost it.

CruzSF commented

CruzSF — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 20:18:27 +0000

maven, I’m getting the feeling that you are focusing on just one part of what I wrote. I didn’t say that “grunts and growls” MADE a fully-rounded character. I said — or tried to say — that they, LIKE other extramusical touches, can be a part of a fully-rounded character. I didn’t say that a performance without grunt & growls was less than fully realized.

quoth the maven commented

quoth the maven — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 20:13:32 +0000

Ok, without the recording at hand, I can’t recall where Callas’s “grunts and growls” occur on the first Tosca recording. Can you point me in the right direction?

I’m quite sure that she did not employ “grunts and growls” in the first Lucia recording, but then again I am willing to be corrected. Assuming she does not, does this mean that she failed to create “a fully formed character”? Or if I am indeed wrong, does she create “a fully formed character” in those moments in which she grunts and growls, while falling short of that goal elsewhere?

CruzSF commented

CruzSF — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 20:04:04 +0000

quoth: Maybe it is I who is confused about what you mean by extramusical effects. From Tosca, I would include growls and gasps. Or would you file those under "musical effects"? I don't have the Lucia with me at the moment and would like to re-listen to it before giving specific examples.

quoth the maven commented

quoth the maven — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 19:54:28 +0000

And what extramusical effects does Callas employ in Lucia–or for that matter, in the de Sabata Tosca?