Measha Brueggergosman In New Wessendonck Recording on DG with Cleveland Orch/Welser-Moest
mark
on the 27th.
I think she's fabulous on this. Never heard of her before.
The orchestral-only selections on the album are well played but seem
rushed to me and are a bit lacking in character. Could be because it's
a live in-concert recording.
I'd be interested in what others think. Free listen here:
ricercar
http://www.amazon.com/Strauss-Songs-Wagner-Prelude-Liebestod/dp/B000001GLT/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1279568442&sr=1-1
> http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=128513819&surl=h...
Stephen Jay-Taylor
mortality a year or so ago. I first heard her here three years ago
singing Strauss' Vier Letzte Lieder conducted (very, very badly) by
Gustavo Dudamel with the Gothenburgers at a private acoustic test in
the newly-reconstructed Royal Festival Hall when she was still Jessye
Norman sized, on which basis DG gave her a contract hoping for
lightning to strike twice and have now released four CDs with her.
This new one is the first fruit of the slimline, Mk. II version of Ms.
Gosman (married to Mr. Bruegger: or possibly vice versa). The Strauss
disappointed greatly, both vocally and interpretativel. But a recent
recital here in London this year at the Wigmore Hall suggested that
she's coming into her own, the voice better focussed, the registers
better integrated, the colours more imaginatively applied. Welser-
Most's Wagner is fast, tout court. I heard him conduct Meistersinger
here in two minutes over 4 hours, surely a world record. DG has a LOT
invested in the pair of them for the future, so let's hope she doesn't
go the way of the poor old boot so beloved of the nutter above...
SJT
wkasimer
wrote:
> She's lost about half her body weight following a brush with cardiac
> mortality a year or so ago.
I believe the chronology is somewhat different; she had a life-
threatening aortic dissection about a year ago, a couple of years
after her weight loss.
Bill
Stephen Jay-Taylor
SJT, resuming an all-pie and chips régime immediately
mark
wrote:
As I said, I had never heard of her before this recording which I
listened to online today.
I don't see any resemblance to Jessye Norman in her singing. She
happens to sing in tune while Norman doesn't. Her sound is also
slimmer than Norman's, more compact and focused. And, she seems to
have better control of her registers and her breath than Ms Norman.
graham
"mark" <markst...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:c3885377-b2c2-4776...@x24g2000pro.googlegroups.com...
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
IIRC, when she was obese, she sang at a concert in London that SJT attended.
He wrote that her stage mannerisms copied those of JN.
Graham
M forever
You still haven't provided any concrete proof for your claim that
Norman sings out of tune all the time, or more specifically, flat all
the time. You pointed to a few recordings but those did not exhibit a
general problem in that area. She does have a very dark voice, so I
guess you are one of those people with only vague perception of
precise intonation who are easily fooled by the color of an
instrumental or vocal timbre. That is quite common, actually.
pianomaven
wrote:
She's a blowsy sort of gal, I would say, a mite over the top, bent on
diva status, the voice can be good, but it is on the big side for a
lot of song repertoire, she really needs big operatic stuff.
A friend of mine, critic of the Globe and Mail, heard her 4 last
songs. He is NOT a Strauss lover, and he thought they were OK.
Not surprised DG took her on. There are precious few voices of her
size around these days and who knows she may turn into a real
Wagnerian one day. The weight loss is troubling, but the Met has
already fired so many good singers because they were overweight. One
has to wonder what they would do with a Helen Traubel, a Flagstadt,
today. Also anti-feminism is rampant; they don't have the same
yardstick for men.
The fat people of America should picket outside the Met, at least
until James Levine loses 100 pounds.
TD
mark
Hey, Michael, how have you been? I haven't seen you posting here much
at all. Nice to see you back. Hope things are well with you.
I happen to like dark voices, just not out-of-tune voices...except for
those singers for whom out-of-tune singing is an endearing quality.
mark
the Met has
> already fired so many good singers because they were overweight. One
> has to wonder what they would do with a Helen Traubel, a Flagstadt,
> today. Also anti-feminism is rampant; they don't have the same
> yardstick for men.
>
Actually, Traubel and Flagstad (there's no "t" on the end) would not
look overweight compared to many of the extremely large soprani of
today. Jessye Norman and Deborah Voigt have had excellent careers even
before their dramatic losses of weight. Caballe was always zaftig and
then some.
Even Babe Ruth looks practically slim when compared to the girth of
today's average overweight American.
ivanmaxim
No question - we have had much larger singers at the MET than either
Flagstad or Traubel - certainly Caballe. And Botha is from what I can
discern from photos, larger than Melchior. Flagstad hated three things
and one of them was spelling her last name as if it were German - BTW
I wonder exactly which singers were fired from the MET because they
were too fat. the Wagner fan
rich...@gmail.com
proportion of head to body, than Jane Eaglen, and for men, I remember
that Chris Merritt also seemed quite large to me in terms of
proportion, although when you get into that issue, you have singers -
there's a tenor in particular I am thinking or but blanking on his
name, Ed will know, - where he looks so permanently pregnant that,
even if his weight is less than others, he basically seems far too
large.
My understanding from the MET costume shop, incidentally,was that the
late and beloved (to me) Rita Hunter had, while she was there, the
exact same height measurement and girth measurement.
> were too fat. the Wagner fan- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -
edo...@gmail.com
wrote:
Do you mean Francisco Casanova? He is unfortunately very obese, and it
has cost him many engagements. He has a very beautiful voice. He's
also very short, which doesn't help. He's a lovely man. Or do you mean
Botha??
Ed
pianomaven
Marvis Martin is one. Career over in the twinkle of an eye. Voigt was
given "the option". There are lots more.
Caballe would never be hired today, I feel quite sure. Sylphs are in.
Fat is out. How gross! As Mimi? Simply won't do.
Actually you only need to fire one and the word is out. And not hire
any fat sopranos.
Fire one "pour encourager les actress".
Peter Gelb is not sentimental. Neither was his predecessor. Neither
was Bing, who fired the greatest singer of the 20th Century.
TD
pianomaven
Clearly you have not heard her sing.
She sings almost consistently off pitch.
TD
M forever
LOL! How would *you* know? You don't hear anything.
M forever
I have been very busy at work, but I am OK. Thanks for asking.
> I happen to like dark voices, just not out-of-tune voices...except for
> those singers for whom out-of-tune singing is an endearing quality.
I see, but can you actually tell the two things apart?
BTW, it's "Wesendonck", not "Wessendonck". With a long first e and a
voiced s, not like "Wessex".
rich...@gmail.com
is just so obese.
> Ed- Hide quoted text -
Matthew B. Tepper
to be typed in news:bc33fe33-d973-4d59-a211-ea4cd936b722
@w31g2000yqb.googlegroups.com:
> On Jul 20, 1:37 pm, [pianoclavin] wrote:
> the Met has
>> already fired so many good singers because they were overweight. One has
>> to wonder what they would do with a Helen Traubel, a Flagstadt, today.
>> Also anti-feminism is rampant; they don't have the same yardstick for
>> men.
>
> Actually, Traubel and Flagstad (there's no "t" on the end) would not look
> overweight compared to many of the extremely large soprani of today.
How about Dessay? Fleming?
> Jessye Norman and Deborah Voigt have had excellent careers even before
> their dramatic losses of weight. Caballe was always zaftig and then some.
>
> Even Babe Ruth looks practically slim when compared to the girth of
> today's average overweight American.
Actor John Goodman notoriously had to LOSE weight in order to portray Babe
Ruth in a film.
--
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