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Posted by Vicki Wallshein on November 4, 2024, 2:40 pm, in reply to "Re: Opera Singers of the Past"
SO difficult to narrow this down to one response. However I will NEVER forget hearing Domingo in the early 1980’s “Fanciulla” at Covent Garden. It was the first time I heard him live and his Dick Johnson was mind blowing. As a matter of fact, from the minute he strode into the saloon carrying his saddle and introducing himself as the stranger asking for whiskey and water-well I was hooked! 
Previous Message
What performance and singer do you think has been your favorite that you have seen? I am always excited to hear from people who have heard some of my favorite artists, so I can talk about this all day! thanks, Noah Previous Message
No; unfortunately I never heard Vickers or Nilsson. Domingo came over pretty well, particularly as Radames, Dick Johnson and even Siegmund when I heard him; he never really had a top C - at least, not for long - and yes, he started to sound pinched in the higher regions quite early, hence his ill-advised transition to "baritenor". You set me thinking and I realise that I heard other great voices whose like are long gone: Rita Hunter, Carlo Bergonzi, Rosalind Plowright in her soprano phase, and Angela Gheorghiu at her best. Some whom I thought were wonderful are now comparatively neglected, such as Anthony Raffell as a great Wotan with Linda Esther Gray's superb Brünnhilde at the ENO, Very few singers of the last thirty years are on their level, I think. Previous Message
That is an excellent list of singers to have seen, and I am quite jealous! A shame you missed Vickers and Nilsson. Do you think that the currently performing singers that you mentioned are the equals of those older stars or are they still not on the same level. Also, I am curious to hear about Placido Domingo. He always sounds a little bit pinched in his recordings, especially up high, and I was wondering if that was a product of the microphone or not. Thanks
Noah Previous Message
I began listening to live opera in the 70s and am in no doubt that I had access to far more great voices of a volume and beauty exceeding most of those today. Most of these I heard in London and New York (where I lived for four years) but I have lived elsewhere and travelled a fair bit, so have heard others elsewhere, too. My selection is inevitably random and subjective, but I especially recall Dame Janet Baker, Nicolai Ghiaurov, Montserrat Caballé, Mirella Freni, Valerie Masterson, Carol Neblett, José Carreras, Yuri Masurok, Fio
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Opera Singers of the Past - Noah Tunell October 28, 2024, 7:42 am
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