"Ah si, ben mio"/"Di quella pira": Corelli vs. Del Monaco (or your favorite)
Wilshmil
I've been spending a lot of time with Il Trovatore lately, which has led me to
wonder who others find to have been the best Manrico. I'm feeling indecisive
on this issue - tell me what you think!
By the way, at the very end of "Di quella pira", Corelli takes the last note,
holds forever(as he would!) and then takes an infinitesimal pause before
continuing the note. Is there a name for this - is it a particular vocal
trick? Enlighten me.
Richard Wall
Ah, Enzo, such good taste.
Richard
Enzo62 wrote:
>
> >I've been spending a lot of time with Il Trovatore lately, which has led me
> >to
> > wonder who others find to have been the best Manrico.
>
> Corelli and Del Monaco are great. But I'd have to nominate Carlo Bergonzi as
> my favorite Manrico. I love his recording with Stella, Cossotto and
> Bastianini on DG. I also enjoy Tucker in his live recording from Florence
> with Caballe as Leonora and Thomas Schippers conducting. Tucker displays a
> gorgeous sense of line, real spinto tone and interpretative authority.
>
> Enzo Bordello
Enzo62
Richard wrote:
>Ah, Enzo, such good taste.
Troppo, signori, troppo . . .
Actually, this thread got me to thinking about which Manricos I actually had
seen in the theater. You won't believe what I came up with:
*1976--New Orleans-Ermanno Mauro (w/Lili Chookasian as Azucena!!!!!! Quale
orror, indeed!)
*1988--Metropolitan Opera-Ermanno Mauro AGAIN (w/Susan Dunn, Lyudmilla
Shemtshuk and Lajos Miller.) A man was passing a bottle of red wine back and
forth in my aisle to fortify the audience.
*1993--Lyric Opera of Chicago-Chris Merritt (w/Lyuba Kazarnovskaya as Leonora.)
When Merritt came out for his bows after "Di quella pira," there were the
automatic bravos from the CEO'S and their wives down in the orchestra section.
Well, a woman in the balconies stands up, beside herself, screaming: "Fools!
Idiots! PUUUHLEEEEZE!" She stormed out of the theater and did not return
for the last act.
Needless to say, I haven't had much luck in the theater with Trovatore!
Enzo Bordello
Mike Richter
Wilshmil wrote:
>
> I've been spending a lot of time with Il Trovatore lately, which has led me to
> on this issue - tell me what you think!
>
> By the way, at the very end of "Di quella pira", Corelli takes the last note,
> holds forever(as he would!) and then takes an infinitesimal pause before
> continuing the note. Is there a name for this - is it a particular vocal
> trick? Enlighten me.
IMHO - none of the nominees so far (Bergonzi, Bjorling, Corelli, del
Monaco) sings Ah, si, ben mio col essere. Some manage the dynamics
pretty well but none has the trill - and that is *not* optional.
Fortunately, you can hear the aria come scritto from Josef Schmidt.
For Di quella pira, Schmidt may be too tasteful for most. If you want
those big high C's (gratuitous, but I love 'em, too), then pick the
tenor who most satisfies your thrill meter.
One great thing about Trovatore is the conflict of Manrico: he is the
tender lover, the caring son and the heroic leader of his band. Ideally,
one wants a tenor with both the tenderness and the heroism in his voice.
Of the recordings I know, the Salzburg under von Karajan comes closest
to me - and that would make Corelli the 'winner'.
Mike
Mike
--
mric...@mindspring.com
http://mrichter.simplenet.com
CD-R http://resource.simplenet.com
donpaolo
Matthew B. Tepper <ducky....@deltanet.com> wrote in article
RAA1...@ladder02.news.aol.com>,
<snip>
> It's called "showing off."
...And, what's wrong with flaunting what you have?
Rather, it's called THRILLING the opera going public/giving them their
money's worth!
> Matthew B. Tepper: WWW, science fiction, classical music, ducks!
> My personal home page -- http://www.deltanet.com/~ducky/index.htm
> My main music page --- http://www.deltanet.com/~ducky/berlioz.htm
> And my science fiction club's home page --- http://www.lasfs.org/
>
>
James Jorden
Matthew B. Tepper wrote:
> It's called "showing off."
Or, in Italian, "bravura".
==========
james jorden
jjo...@ix.netcom.com
www.anaserve.com/~parterre
"Maenner! Lieber Gott, wenn du wirklich wolltest,
dass wir ihnen widerstehen sollten, warum hast du
sie so verschienen geschaffen?"
AValeo1752
Bjoerling was great both in the theater and in the recording
studio.
Check out his recording with Milanov. I have a live recording
done in Sweden which showed him at his best.
Ed Rosen
In <62e26a$msh$5...@news01.deltanet.com> ducky....@deltanet.com
(Matthew B. Tepper) writes:
>
>In article <19971019215...@ladder02.news.aol.com>,
>wils...@aol.com is alleged to have said...
>>
>>I've been spending a lot of time with Il Trovatore lately, which has
>>led me to wonder who others find to have been the best Manrico. I'm
>>feeling indecisive on this issue - tell me what you think!
>>
>>By the way, at the very end of "Di quella pira", Corelli takes the
>>last note, holds forever(as he would!) and then takes an
infinitesimal
>>pause before continuing the note. Is there a name for this - is it a
>>particular vocal trick? Enlighten me.
>
>It's called "showing off."
>
>--
>Matthew B. Tepper: WWW, science fiction, classical music, ducks!
>My personal home page -- http://www.deltanet.com/~ducky/index.htm
>My main music page --- http://www.deltanet.com/~ducky/berlioz.htm
>And my science fiction club's home page --- http://www.lasfs.org/
>
Hi again- It's called a tape splice!!!
Ed
GregF NC
mric...@mindspring.com wrote
>Ideally,
>one wants a tenor with both the tenderness and the heroism in his voice.
Get a copy of Bjoerling's 1941 Met performance on Radio Years for a really
great Manrico.
I really like Corelli, but the Salzburg performance has him sputtering all over
Di quella pira. I can't imagine what he was trying to do.
Greg Fitzmaurice
Durham, NC
James Jorden
Ed Rosen wrote:
> Tucker didn't do his first Manrico until 1964, at age 52, and sang it
> until he passed away in 1975.
Wow, those intermissions must have been LONG!
Edward A. Cowan
Enzo62 wrote:
>
> Actually, this thread got me to thinking about which Manricos I actually had
> seen in the theater. You won't believe what I came up with:
>
> *1976--New Orleans-Ermanno Mauro (w/Lili Chookasian as Azucena!!!!!! Quale
> orror, indeed!)
>
> *1993--Lyric Opera of Chicago-Chris Merritt (w/Lyuba Kazarnovskaya as Leonora.)
>
> Needless to say, I haven't had much luck in the theater with Trovatore!
>
> Enzo Bordello
I first saw _Il trovatore_ in San Antonio in 1949. The tenor was Kurt
Baum. (But the Count was Leonard Warren!). Then again in Dallas, 1957,
Met tour performance, also with Baum (and Warren!), and yet again in
San Antonio, 1960, still with Baum. <sigh> Then, finall, came another
Met tour performance in Dallas with Carlo Bergonzi, and finally I was
happy... --E.A.C.
Claud H. Shirley III
Ed Rosen wrote:
>
>
> BTW,, all the above mentioned tenors lowered the Pira 1/2 tone in
> performance- yes, even Franco, every time. Most tenors did this. The
> only ones that come to mind that didn't, are MacCracken, Bonisolli,
> Baum- and I'd rather hear a B from the others than a C from any of
> them!
>
I heard Bergonzi in the early 70's with the Met in Atlanta do Manrico
with Scotto, Cossotto, MacNeil - he did the Pira in key, taking both
C's, although it took him a second or two to actually tune to the note.
He sang Rodolfo the same week to Tucci's Mimi, and he also did Che
gelida in key, and he took the High C at the end of the act as well - a
formidable display of the best spinto technique I ever witnessed. The
ovations that greeted these performances were lengthy and tumultuous -
the demonstrations after Trovatore taking at least 30 to 40 minutes, and
I distinctly recall that at one point there were tears in this great
man's eyes.
Erik Jan van Sten
I like Del Monaco's Trovatore, the one with Tebaldi. The way he sang Di
quella pira in full glory is unmatched. Del Monaco always was (the?)
best in the loudest parts of the loudest roles, and Manrico is one of
the loudest roles I know.
But to me the definitive Trovatore recording is Giulini's, with Domingo
as Manrico - his Di quella pira is also one of the most beautiful I ever
heard, much better than his later Manrico with Levine. To appreciate
Giulini's conducting you have to like slow tempos, but once you adjust
yourself to them this recording is fabulous.
I never much liked Corelli's voice, so he's not an option for me.
Regards,
EJ