Tears of a clown

On this day in 1960 tenor Jon Vickers made his Metropolitan Opera debut as Canio.

On this day in 1960 tenor Jon Vickers made his Metropolitan Opera debut as Canio. 

Robert Sabin in Musical America:

Mr. Vickers had made an excellent impression at his New York debut, on Nov. 20, 1956, when he sang the role Florestan in the American Opera Society’s concert performance of “Fidelio.” He is an intelligent and sensitive artist, which (believe it not) is a great help in giving a good performance as Canio. We were spared excessive sobbings and rantings, and shown genuine heartbreak, instead. Vocally, Mr. Vickers strained a bit on top tones, but this may well have been debut nerves. At all times, his singing was well phrased and dramatically alive. One looks forward to hearing him in artistically more rewarding roles.

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s92o-CAahv0

WindyCityOperaman

Dan Soda (Windy City Operaman) is a Chicago native whose first visit to opera was at age 17 and Massenet’s Werther with Troyanos and Kraus. Nothing was ever the same. Opera and concert performances, recordings and video are an obsession. He prepares Parterre Box’s daily birthday and anniversary tributes. He also enjoys concerts, live theater and movies.

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