Shall I Go On?
Volume XX - 2 Party CDs of Vocal Oddities
2 CDs / $12
w/o jewel case:
w/ jewel case:
DATABASE
LISTEN TO EXCERPTS:
Volume XX:
CD 1: Adriana thru Pagliacci
CD 2: Pecheurs de Perles thru Die Walküre
01 ADRIANA
Lucine Amara is one of those singers whose vocal wristwatch stopped running decades ago. In other words, she still has, at age 87, all the shining qualities she had 50 and 60 years ago. On April 14, 2012, Harmonia Opera Company presented a Benefit Concert for Young Talent commemorating the first anniversary of the earthquake and tsounami of Japan. Amara appeared as special guest, singing "Io son l'umile nacelle" from Adriana Lecouvreur. Her accompanist is Bob Wilson.
02 AIDA
Giulietta Simionato makes the wrong turn in the Judgment Scene during one of those well-known Mexico City Aidas (you know, Callas and her high Eb). The date is March 30, 1950.
03 BARBIERE
Because he still could, Robert Nagy sang the role of Count Almaviva in Il barber di Siviglia in Vienna on March 10, 2003, age 74.
BREAKING NEWS: This is not American tenor Robert Nagy. This is Rumanian tenor Robert Nagy
04 CARMEN
A sick sack of Swedish psychos from Gothenburg's Backa Theater "perform" the Habanera from Carmen on March 20, 2010.
05 CITIZEN KANE
It is a great scene, comic and horrible: the horror created by Orson Welles' masterful direction - see how tiny Sara is on stage! - the comedy supplied in no small part by composer Bernard Hermann. The Aria from Salammbô was entirely Hermann’s creation, an all too authentic-sounding piece of fake opera deliberately placed in a key to stretch a soprano to breaking point and climaxing with a high D well out of the reach of the amateurish would-be diva...
With the aria, Herrmann's stated aim was to give us "a terrified girl floundering in the quicksand of a powerful orchestra". The vocals for actress Dorothy Comingore were supplied by soprano Jean Forward. She was deliberately bad.
06 ELEKTRA
Brigitte Fassbaender and her kryptonite kords defied all limits of register range by singing, for all intents and purposes, the entire role of Klytemnestra in chest during this New York performance of Elektra on January 22, 1994. Her Elektra is Hildegard Behrens.
07 ERNANI
Here is a 1973 Ottawa slam-bam-thank-you-mam performance of "Ernani involami" by Joan Sutherland accompanied by her husband Richard Bonynge. They passed Go and collected $200 in cutting the introduction to the cabaletta.
08 FANCIULLA
Things don't go so well for Giuseppe Giacomini while singing "A la mia vita a l'ammo during this performance of La fanciulla del West.
09 GÖTTERDÄMMERUNG
Katarina Dalayman, unable to sustain high notes longer than a few beats, merely gets through the end of the Immolation Scene during this May 3, 2012 performance of Götterdämmerung.
10 IMITATOR
A comedian imitates the voices of Richard Tauber and Feodor Chaliapin.
11 LEO SLEZAK
Heinz Holecek imitates Leo Slezak.
12 LUCREZIA BORGIA
Robert Allman, age 81delivers a firm and resonant performance of "Vieni la mia vendetta" from Lucrezia Borgia during this 2008 performance.
13 NATIIONAL ANTHEM
During this April 2, 2012 NCAA March Madness basketball tournament in Kansas, a band called The Fray destroys the National Anthem.
14 NON TI SCORDAR DI ME
From the same aforementioned April concert, Lucine Amara sings "Non ti scordar di me".
15 NOZZE
From the same aforementioned April concert, Lucine Amara sings "Porgi amor" from Le nozze di Figaro.
16 ONEGIN
Ivan Kozlovsky (ca. age 63) and Sergei Lemeshev (ca. age 61) sing an improvisation of Lensky's aria from Eugene Onegin for their tributes thanking the public. This probably took place between 1962 and 1964.
17 PAGLIACCI
Mario del Monaco proves he still has what it takes while singing "Vesti la giubba" during this January 19, 1974 Naples performance of Pagliacci. He was 59.
18 PAGLIACCI
From the same above performance, the finale of the opera as sung by Mario del Monaco, Antonietta Cannarile, Cornell MacNeil, Giorgio Grimaldi and Otello Borgonovo.
CD 2:
01 PECHEURS DE PERLES
This goes under the heading of "It's so wrong it's right": Nicolai Gedda sings "Je crois entendre encore" from Le Pecheurs de peerless accompanied by an orchestra of balalaikas.
02 PORGY
And this goes under the heading of "If it ain't broke, don't fix it": listen to Eleanor Steber sing "Summertime" from Porgy and Bess with a far more preferable come scritto ending.
03 PURITANI
Continuing SIGO's survey of puritani ArTuro Tenors aTTempTing The Tops, here is the second verse of "A te o cara" from I puritani as sung by Aldo Bertolo and his Elvira, Mariella Devia during this July 27, 1985
04 PURITANI
From the same performance, here is "Vieni far queste brachia" from I puritani as sung by Aldo Bertolo and his Elvira, Mariella Devia.
05 PURITANI
From the same performance, here is "Credeasi misera" from I puritani as sung by Aldo Bertolo and his Elvira, Mariella Devia.
06 PURITANI
And now, here is the second verse of "A te o cara" from I puritani as sung by Salvatore Fisichella and his Elvira, Edita Gruberova during this July 27, 1985 Bregenz performance.
07 PURITANI
From the same performance, here is "Vieni far queste brachia" from I puritani as sung by Salvatore Fisichella and his Elvira, Edita Gruberova.
08 PURITANI
From the same performance, here is "Credeasi misera" from I puritani as sung by Salvatore Fisichella and his Elvira, Edita Gruberova.
09 RIGOLETTO
No one dubbed this voice: here is Marni Nixon in a 1950 television performance of "Caro nome" from Rigoletto, accompanied by Jan Popper.
10 RIGOLETTO
Juanita Banana gives her take on the same aria from Rigoletto.
11 RODELINDA
Marilyn Horne hits the Wall of Memory Lapse during this 1967 Berkeley recital singing "V ivi tranno" from Handel's Rodelinda.
12 SIEGFRIED
Siegfried, end of duet, Jay Hunter Morris, Deborah Voigt, April 21, 2012. Shall I go on?
13 SONNAMBULA
Ana Durlovski interpolates a high F at the end of "Ah non giunge" from La Sonnambula 042912
14 TRAVIATA
William McAlpine interpolates a high C during his offstage serenade to the Violetta of Virginia Zeani during this January 13, 1960 Covent Garden performance of La traviata.
15 TRAVIATA
Piotr Beczala interpolates a high C during his offstage serenade to the Violetta of Andrea Rost during this May 11, 2004 Athens performance of La traviata.
16 TRAVIATA
Natalie Dessay's interpolated high Eb at the end of "Sempre libber" wasn't thaaaaaat bad during this April 14, 2012 performance, but she made history when she actually apologized for it on global television.
17 TRAVIATA
Mario Sereni interpolates a high Ab at the end of Act II, Scene 2 of La traviata during this December 5, 1970 performance. Alfredo was sung by Placido Domingo.
18 WALKÜRE
To celebrate his 70th birthday, Lauritz Melchior sang a concert version of Act I from Die Walküre on March 31, 1960 in Copenhagen. His Sieglinde is Dorothy Larsen.
19 WALKÜRE
Leonie Rysanek submits her signature shriek in Act I of Die Walküre during this 1958 Bayreuth performance with Jon Vickers as Siegmund.
20 WALKÜRE
Leonie Rysanek submits her signature shriek in Act I of Die Walküre during this February 24, 1968 performance with Jon Vickers as Siegmund. He must have really brought it out in her.
21 WALKÜRE
It's all Katarina Dalayman could do to get through "Ho-jo-to-ho" during this April 28, 2012 performance of Die Walküre.
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