La Cieca (not pictured) wants to get a jump on this busy birthday season by offering a remembrance of Birgit Nilsson a day early. After the jump, a souvenir of one of La Nilsson’s greatest nights in New York (but weren’t they all?) Read more »
Our own JJ (not pictured) received a belated birthday present in the form of an excerpt from last night’s concert in Vienna in which Anna Netrebko spreads her wings for a performance of “D’amor sull’ali rosee,” assisted by the luxe Manrico of Jonas Kaufmann. Read more »
Since you so adroitly identified the voice of the mystery Leonora as Anja Harteros, La Cieca thought you might like to hear the soprano in the complete Act 4, Scene 1 of Il trovatore. Read more »
This is the way the public used to greet the entrance of a beloved star, and La Cieca is very unhappy to think that she will never hear the like again.
Faithful and sharp-eared member of the cher public reedroom notes, “…an observation about the Levine 40th Wozzeck CD (Anja Silja/Jose van Dam)—the second CD (acts 2 and 3) has to be a different performance, different cast and different year. It is undoubtedly Hildegard Behrens on the 2nd CD. I don’t know who the baritone is but it is NOT van Dam. The orchestra/stage balance is different on the 2nd CD and it sounds like a “better” orchestra too. Am I nuts? “
In light of all the recent discussion of Norma, La Cieca thought it would be interesting to listen to a great (and controversial) Druidess of the recent past.
The Norwegian dramatic soprano, often called “the voice of the century,” was born 115 years ago today. The hard-working singer became a sensation “overnight” when, after the first act of her Met debut as Sieglinde, she was hailed by intermission commentator Geraldine Farrar as a new star.
Cher Public