Classical Music II

[Gwaimir Windgem]

No, no, I didn't mean Horne was a contralto; I meant that the classification of "contralto" was left out.

Best Contralto Today: Podles
Best Contralto of the Past: Ferrier

[hectorberlioz]

BST: Hard to say, but I like Karita Mattila a lot. Though Renee Fleming is the most famous... Emma Kirkby is also nice, but in a different style.
BMT: Cecilia Bartoli
BSITD: Sutherland.
BMITD: er, Horne I guess. Though as Tessar points out, she was naturally a soprano.

Not all that familiar with contraltos.

Favorite countertenor? Tenor? basses/baritones?

[Tessar]

Hector, if you want to classify people by their 'natural' voice then Cecilia would be a soprano as well since her voice extends to the F or F# above soprano C. She has also actually sung soprano rep. such as the Mozart Alleluja .

[hectorberlioz]

What are you naturally, Tessar? Alto? Bargain-counter tenor?

I guess what I mean about Horne is that she sounds like a soprano, even in her mezzo roles. It could just be the "big" sound she had, like Sutherland.

[Tessar]

I'm obviously a lyric spinto helden coloratura bassitone.

[hectorberlioz]

Hm, except for the pinto bean part, that actually sounds pretty cool

[Gwaimir Windgem]

Originally Posted by hectorberlioz

BST: Hard to say, but I like Karita Mattila a lot. Though Renee Fleming is the most famous... Emma Kirkby is also nice, but in a different style.
BMT: Cecilia Bartoli
BSITD: Sutherland.
BMITD: er, Horne I guess. Though as Tessar points out, she was naturally a soprano.

Not all that familiar with contraltos.

Favorite countertenor? Tenor? basses/baritones?

Karita Mattila, ew....she's way too old to be playing Salome.

[Gwaimir Windgem]

Originally Posted by hectorberlioz

What are you naturally, Tessar? Alto? Bargain-counter tenor?

I guess what I mean about Horne is that she sounds like a soprano, even in her mezzo roles. It could just be the "big" sound she had, like Sutherland.

Must be, cause I would say her voice has darker tones than most sopranos (at least in Orpheo and Orlando furioso).

Favorite countertenor? Tenor? basses/baritones?

Countertenor today: Jaroussky
Countertenor of the past: Can't really take them seriously, though I do keep James Bowman as a guilty pleasure.
Tenor today: Bostridge, I have to say. Villazon and Florez are grand, but Bostridge is the best in my book.
Tenor of the past: Pavarotti. Caruso, Gigli, and other greats I've heard were over-rated. They were good, but just didn't measure up to Luciano.
Bass/Baritone: Hvorostovsky or Terfel. Not sure which, honestly. I don't really know Bass/Baritones of the past, so I withhold judgment.

[hectorberlioz]

Originally Posted by Gwaimir Windgem

Karita Mattila, ew....she's way too old to be playing Salome.

You should be persecuted for saying that. Blasphemer! Karita Mattila is top-notch. Have you heard her in Solti's recording of Die Meistersinger von Nurnberg? Delicious. Oh, and Iris Vermillion's voice (she's mezzo) is also delicious in that

[Gwaimir Windgem]

Nope. Just saw her in the Met broadcast of Salome. She was icky. The dance of the seven veils came off as some sort of jaded attempt to have fun "La Dolce Vita" style, more than the erotic and sensual revelation it should be.

[hectorberlioz]

I don't watch opera much, so I have the advantage of not being bothered by that stuff . I don't like most of the production stlyes anyways. People don't want to go to operas to see Fidelio in a modern setting. It's distracting and it's crap.

[Gwaimir Windgem]

It's not crap, it's relevant. Can be insightful.

Though, sometimes, it is crap, but not by virtue of modernization simply. When it becomes too stylised, or too post-modern, is the problem. The Giulio Cesare with Scholl, which I posted the va tacito from above, is generally a confused mishmash of stylizations and symbols, which ends up being meaningless. The Salome from the Met was too stylized. Salome is already surreal enough, and needs a sensible setting so you can have something to hold on to.

The Glyndebourne Cesare, however, was excellent. The portrayal of the Romans as British imperialists, and the flavouring of the Egyptians as Indians was insightful. Choreography was excellent. Even the Bollywood-style dances fit, somehow (probably because they were restricted to the more light-hearted arias).

But if you think opera was ever staged with historical accuracy, I am afraid you are rather mistaken. The world has just come to acknowledge the fact in the past few decades.

[hectorberlioz]

Originally Posted by Gwaimir Windgem

It's not crap, it's relevant. Can be insightful.

But if you think opera was ever staged with historical accuracy, I am afraid you are rather mistaken. The world has just come to acknowledge the fact in the past few decades.

Opera? Historically accurate, well of course! ....NOT.

Either way, the modernization/set-changing is not my thing. Yes, I can definitely see how some people might want to 'switch around' the settings to make it more relevant. But I don't care about relevancy in opera. It'll probably take me a century to listen and accept Nixon in China as an opera.

[hectorberlioz]

So I've been reading Norman Lebrecht's The Life and Death of Classical Music. It tells the inside story of the major labels---RCA, Columbia/Sony, EMI, Decca, Philips, and Deutsche Grammophone. The business of recording, what artists they chose etc...

It's a fascinating read in that sense. The bad thing about it is that it tends to portray artists only from a business point of view: as if Solti's only concern was which label to record with.

Lebrecht also makes the mistake of feeling sorry for the failing of these labels in the present day. I'm sorry, but I don't feel all that sorry for them. Yes, they are behind in the innovations/creativity department, but they still do have some important and very good artists. Hilary Hahn and Joshua Bell are more than stars: they are great interpreters (listen to each of Bell and Hahn's Brahms Vln Concerto!)

I also dislike Lebrecht's whining when discussing certain artists. And his use of composition titles as nouns. For him it's Beethoven Fidelio, instead of Beethoven's Fidelio. Stupid, and confusing.

[Gwaimir Windgem]

This is fun. An unusual take on the opening aria of Vivaldi's Orlando Furioso.

[hectorberlioz]

*bows before the all-holy Jaroussky*

Actually, I quite enjoyed that aria and the interpretation . Opera duels are great. Jaroussky's not half-bad...
I love Vivaldi's orchestration though.

[Gwaimir Windgem]

Bow before the all-holy Lemieux, too! Her Stabat Mater (Vivaldi) is awesome, one of my regular listens.

I do have to say, though, that

If you think Jaroussky's not half bad, listen to this: More Vivaldi

And for a great duet with Lemieux: Ave Regina Caelorum

[hectorberlioz]

Oh yes, she was quite impressive as well. I'd only seen her name till now.

But Jaroussky is impressive because he has almost as much vocal power as she does. Can really hold down the fort. And I say that because it seems to me that a lot of CTs seem to be on the edge of losing their breath.

[Gwaimir Windgem]

Like that long high note in the nel profondo.

[hectorberlioz]

Grieg's "March of the Dwarfs" sounds a million times better on piano than orchestra. I usually don't say that, but in this case I really felt the piano was better.