This performance by Marilyn Horne has always stunned me and everyone I play it for.

Some singers only need a few seconds to show what they are all about. Listen to Ursula Hesse von den Steinen in this stunning performance to see what I mean.

One of my favorite mezzo performances is Tatiana Troyanos in Cavalleria rusticana.

One of the greatest to ever do it.

Oralia Dominguez: deranged, demented, an absolute triumph.

Remember, kids: if you sing with a “splatty” chest you’ll lose access to your top, which is why Agnes Baltsa had such a short international career.

One of the few truly great mezzos I’ve heard in the 21st century here at the Metropolitan.

Elina Garanca has moved on from roles like Angelina in La Cenerentola, but this clip from 2001 shows why she became such a big star.

Cheers to Teresa Berganza, a Cenerentola for the ages.

I have chosen “Våren” (The Spring) which is one of my favorite Grieg songs and which is sung perfectly by Anne Sofie von Otter.

Florence Quivar’s blend of triple cream voice and superior musical expression earned her a discography and videography to rival those of any of her contemporaries.

Sometimes, the first time you hear an oeuvre, it becomes the definitive performance for you.

An elegant rendition, and an artistically true one.

The open, skyward deliveries at the beginning and end of the aria as she addresses heaven! The mournful softness of her interceding “O mia Regina.”