Memorable live experiences
Derek McGovern
relate some of their most memorable live experiences at the opera or
recital hall. Our member Bob Davies, for instance, shares his home
with an interesting fellow named Mike, who at the age of 15 attended
Lanza's first Albert Hall recital. (Perhaps we can share Mike's
account of that extraordinary evening at a later date.) Another
member, Savage, heard the fabulous Fritz Wunderlich many times in
Vienna in the 1960s. Armando (if my memory serves me right) sang in
the chorus of a production of The Land of Smiles with Di Stefano!
(Admittedly, Giuseppe was already past his prime then. Nevertheless,
Armando got to know him well.)
My own most memorable operatic experience was attending a production
of Carmen at the Rome Opera in January 1987, with Carreras as Don
Jose. (This was only months before he was stricken with leukaemia.) I
saw two performances, and it was fantastic edgy stuff from Jose' -
pushing his voice to the limit, admittedly - and made all the more
memorable because the chorus was on strike at the time, appearing on
the stage but refusing to sing (much to the anger of the
audience!).
Anyway, feel free to share your most memorable stories, folks...
Selma Singer
subscription for Sunday matinees and a seat in the tenth row, about three
seats from the isle.
She did Leonard Bernstein's opera MASS during the year or so before
Bernstein died. Bernstein was there, a couple of rows in front of me, on the
aisle.
Sarah's productions were always very innovative and full of drama and for
this opera, she had music coming from the back of the theatre, and people
coming in from the sides and all manner of interesting effects. Probably the
most innovative and dramatic of all was at the very beginning: the curtain
opened on a stage with 200 cathedral-like windows spead across the back and
sides of the stage; in each window was one of the 200 members of the male
(dressed as priests) chorus; in the middle of the stage was a cross the
entire height of the stage and proportionally wide, and around this, I think
about seven other crosses. I still get goose-flesh just remembering it.
Throughout the performance, Bernstein was jumping around in his seat to
catch every sound and sight and nuance of the production. He was oviously
entranced with everything.
When it was over he was, of course, called to the stage where Caldwell was
already standing. I don't know if many of you know anything about Sarah
Caldwell's appearance, but she was unique in her total lack of regard for
her appearance. She generally wore dirty sneakers, a baggy sweater and skirt
and her hair was always unkept and greasy-looking. Bernstein rushed on to
the stage and fell on his knees before this woman and madly kissed her hands
for many thrilling moments.
I am very happy that I was able to be there.
Selma
Derek McGovern
Bernstein is one of my musical heroes. Thank you for this!
Incidentally, were you aware that Bernstein coached Lanza (briefly) at
Tanglewood in 1942? Mario later referred to him as one of several
"strict taskmasters" with whom he worked for eight to 10 hours a day
while preparing for his operatic debut. Both men were discoveries of
conductor Serge Koussevitzky.
One of the most memorable Bernstein performances I've seen (though
only on video, not in the flesh) was his concert version of Candide
with Jerry Hadley in December 1989 - just 10 months before his death.
Though stricken with the flu, he was in great form that night - &
still the amazingly vibrant man of yore.
Selma Singer
Sarah was the first woman to conduct the orchestra at the Met and was also
the recipient of many honors: she was on the cover ot Time magazine and
received 35 honorary degrees, a Pressidential medal, etc , etc.
As artistic director of The Opera Company of Boston, she had no peer; but
she also meddled in the administration and in the financial affairs at which
she was completely inadequate and probably, ultimately caused its failure
although who knows?
I had a subscription to The Opera Company's last year that it was supposed
to be in business and had sent in my money for the season when the whole
thing collapsed. I still have the letter saying that I had first choice of
seats when they resumed production, which they never did. I have no negative
feelings about any of that.
What I don't understand is why a city like Boston cannot support a
world-class opera house when a city like Santa Fe. with a population a small
fraction of that of Boston, can support their magnificent opera house year
after year. There is a fairly good opera company in Boston, The Lyric, but
it is hardly world-class.
Anyway, I am grateful to have been able to see some of her wonderful
productions. The first one I saw was Medea. I'm not sure of this (it was
many years ago) but I think she staged this with a Greek Chorus singing in
Greek; the rest in French with English subtitles. I posted to opera-l saying
that I loved it and I got blasted right out of the computer- but I have a
lot of company for that experience.
I also had to nerve to say I liked Jose Cura-don't ask.:-)
I'm enjoying the list very much, Derek.
Savage
My most memorable night at the opera was the night of January first,
1966. I obtained my usual standing room ticket atthe Vienna State
Opera and prepared to experience a young tenor I had never heard of,
Giacomo Aragall. What a surprising and magical night it turned out to
be! Aragall was in robust voice and enchanted the crowd with
beautiful sound and phrasing. His Che Gelida Manina was sheer
perfection with amazing clarity of tone and ringing high notes. The
superb phrasing and overall vocal impression sounds very close to
DiStefano's 1950 recording. In fact, I listen to this recording quite
often and imagine that I am back in Vienna on that evening. Aragall's
acting was excellent as well. He was a talented gymnast as well as a
singer and was a visual treat as the young poet. The Mimi of the
evening was Jeanette Pilou, an equally attractive figure on the
stage. They acted, sang, and lived the Mimi-Rodolfo love story on
stage that night. An elderly lady who had been to almost every
performance since the days of Caruso said that she went home on cloud
nine that night. Aragall was mobbed at the stage entrance after the
performance and lost his footing when the crowd surged in his
direction. It was a night of glorious opera with a bit of mass
hysteria thrown in. Wish there were a video recording of that fine
performance.
David Savage
Derek McGovern
fabulous Fritz Wunderlich on a number of occasions; would you put
Aragall in the same league (vocally) as him?
I must admit that I've never really listened to Aragall, except for a
videotape of Tosca from Verona (with Marton & Wixell, I think) in
1984. He would have been in his mid-40s then. On this performance, he
acts well and the high notes are still there, but the voice is quite
dry. I must check out some of his earlier performances, though. I know
that Domingo thought very highly of him. Are there any recordings of
Aragall that you could recommend?
Savage
and matchless vocal beauty, Still, Aragall deserves credit as an
exciting vocalist with spectacular high notes and great phrasing, at
least as a young man. I've never heard a recording that does him
justice or even comes close to what I experienced that evening. If I
ever find a good recording from his early years, I'll let you know.
Unlike Aragall, Wunderlich's recordings present an accurate record of
his artistry.
The sound you hear on CD's is identical to what was heard in the opera
house. I'll post more about Fritz soon.
David
On Nov 5, 8:45 pm, "Derek McGovern" <derek.mcgov...@gmail.com> wrote:
> What a wonderful anecdote, David! Of course, you also heard the
> fabulous Fritz Wunderlich on a number of occasions; would you put
> Aragall in the same league (vocally) as him?
>
> I must admit that I've never really listened to Aragall, except for a
> videotape of Tosca from Verona (with Marton & Wixell, I think) in
> 1984. He would have been in his mid-40s then. On this performance, he
> acts well and the high notes are still there, but the voice is quite
> dry. I must check out some of his earlier performances, though. I know
> that Domingo thought very highly of him. Are there any recordings of
> Aragall that you could recommend?
>
> > > Anyway, feel free to share your most memorable stories, folks...- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -
Heidi
My most memorable concert experience took place on April the 16th in
1958 at the Musikhalle in Hamburg. My sister and i entered the hall to
hear Mario!! Our seats were located at the balcony on the2.floor, we
could look at the stage from the top, on stage a big piano, some
greenplants and several rows of chairs
with the public taking place. The concert had been sold out in a very
short time. From 8 PM to 8,15 the audience aplauded regulary and
called Mario,Mario!! slowly the rumor grew up. 8.20 a black
haired man entered the stage, I said: there he is, wondering very much
because he looked very different to the photos I knew( later on I
learned it was Costa) but at the same moment I noticed a large man
behind the black haired.This one I knew very well, it was Kurt Collien
a wellknown Concert manager from Hamburg.He told us that Mario could
not sing because he was ill, Mr. Collien was angry because it was the
2. cancellation of the Hamburg concert by Mario, he asked the audience
whether he should give a new date to him and the public
roared NO.Costa tryed to explane why Mario could not sing but
meanwhile the crowd entered the stage an run him over, at first we
thought they have knocked him down,we could not see him anymore, it
was very loud in the Halle and the sliced programs were flying like
snow from the balcony.Costa came out of the hall with the help from
the securitymen in safety..
My sister and I were very sad but not angry, we thought: He is young,
we are young we will meet another day.But unfortunately fate would not
allow it.
Meanwhile I own a film snippet showing Mario arriving Hamburg, the
rumor at the Vierjahreszeiten and his departure the other mornig, some
times I watch this film and listen to "Live from Londen" ,while
closing the eyes I`m dreaming Mario is singing in Hamburg.....
cheers Heidi
On 21 Okt., 19:35, Derek
Derek McGovern
so close to hearing Lanza in person and then to have that opportunity
snatched away...I can only imagine how you must have felt.
I know that Lanza was savaged in the German press at the time for this
second non-appearance in Hamburg. Of course, no one believed at the
time that he was ill. But when Lanza died just 18 months later, was
there a softening in attitude towards him in Hamburg when people
finally realized that his illness had - essentially - been genuine?
Of course, prior to the Hamburg non-concert, Mario had sung
magnificently by all accounts in Hanover and in Kiel (not to mention
Stuggart three months earlier). Have you ever spoken to anyone who was
present at those recitals? If so, I'd love to know their comments!
Derek McGovern
Savage
difficult to pinpoint the most memorable evening.
Accordingly, I'll just mention a few great performances I experienced.
1. Wunderlich as the Italian Singer in Rosenkavalier was
unforgettable and to this day I have not heard a recording as exciting
as that one live Wunderlich performance. His stage presence and
beautiful voice made the whole evening for me.
His was a voice of moderate size and amazing beauty. He played the
comic role brilliantly but above all sang magnificently.
2. Wunderlich as the Steuermann in the Flying Dutchman, an opera I'm
not particularly fond of. I went to see the Flying Dutchman twice in
order to hear Fritz sing the short aria in the beginning of the opera.
I was not disappointed.
3. Fritz as Tamino in the Magic Flute was an experience I'll never
forget and I was fortunate enough to hear him twice in the role. He
was "the" Mozart tenor in his prime and seemed ideally suited for this
role with his wonderful phrasing and breath control. He didn't have
total control over his emotions on the stage, however, and almost fell
into hysterical laughter during comic scenes with Papageno. Like
Lanza, he had a powerful stage presence to match his voice.
4. The aria Il Mio Tesoro from Don Giovanni remains for me the most
masterful performance. (brilliant phrasing, outstanding breath
control, haunting vocal beauty). At the time I knew I was witnessing
something wonderful but had no idea that the young man's career would
end in just a few months. Thank God for the great recordings which
offer a clear
representation of the voice I heard.
David
Derek McGovern
hear on record of this great artist was the real thing. His EMI
rendition of Il Mio Tesoro (in German) is amazing in terms of line and
breath control.
Incidentally, I understand that there's an excellent (and fairly
recent) German documentary on Wunderlich that's now available on DVD;
I must get it. If it's the same programme that I'm thinking of, it
also doesn't gloss over the fact that Wunderlich was a heavy drinker
(not that it seems to have affected his ability to perform).
One of my favourite Wunderlich recordings is Komm, O Holde Dame from
La Dame Blanche. Towards the end, Fritz actually sounds quite Mario-
like in places.
Heidi
Sorry for the delay, but I`ve had to re-read the newspaper-clips I`ve
collectet at that time. Yes ,the press was a little softer to him,
after he had died but all the three daily newspapers of Hamburg showed
the pictures from the cancellation.They told us that only some close
friends knew that he has been ill.
Sorry, I never met somebody who attended one of his concerts.I wish
that I had lived in KIEL at that time!!!
Heidi
On 15 Nov., 01:58, "Derek McGovern" <derek.mcgov...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Oh, Heidi: the memorable experience that might have been! To have come
> so close to hearing Lanza in person and then to have that opportunity
> snatched away...I can only imagine how you must have felt.
>
> I know that Lanza was savaged in the German press at the time for this
> second non-appearance in Hamburg. Of course, no one believed at the
> time that he was ill. But when Lanza died just 18 months later, was
> there a softening in attitude towards him in Hamburg when people
> finally realized that his illness had - essentially - been genuine?
>
> Of course, prior to the Hamburg non-concert, Mario had sung
> magnificently by all accounts in Hanover and in Kiel (not to mention
> Stuggart three months earlier). Have you ever spoken to anyone who was
> present at those recitals? If so, I'd love to know their comments!
>
>
> - Zitierten Text anzeigen -
Derek McGovern
kinder to Lanza after he died!!
Still, at least a couple of the German critics who actually heard
Mario in recital in 1958 wrote some wonderful comments about his
singing. (Dr. Kurt Klukist in Kiel, for example.) I'd love to get hold
of more reviews from that final tour. A few years back on the Opera-L
forum, someone posted this interesting message about one of Lanza's
concerts in The Netherlands:
"During that same tour Dutch critic Leo Riemens (of the Kutsch-Riemens
Sgerlexicon) heard him. Riemens was an absolute Lanza-basher who hated
every record the tenor made. After he heard him, Riemens didn't
withdraw one single word he ever wrote on Lanza's sense of style but
he grudgingly admitted that the basic colour was very pleasing and
that he was surprised at the volume; a voice almost double the size of
Bjorling's."