Saffo(Pacini),Norma,Trovatore,Ballo,Otello,Mefistofele,Gioconda, Cavalleria,Tosca and four songs by Grieg,Simonetti, Tosti,Denza and Bach/ Gounod Ave Maria.

 Tomorrow I call Magda Olivero (104 years old) and tell her to sing this repertory..Well, maybe only a little..BET SHE COULD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!.

1. Ivan Koslovsky               Lohengrin aria (in Russian)

2. Selma Kurz                      Seraglio   "Ach ich liebte"

3.Lotte Lehmann                 Walkure Sieglinde aria

4. Jose Luccioni                    Werther Ara

5. Roberta Peters/Cornell MacNeil      Rigoletto act three duet

6. Lois Marshall                       Seraglio aria  (same as Kurz)

7. Dorothy Maynor                 Zauberflote aria

8. Lauritz Melchior                Tannhauser Rome Narrative

9. Aprile Millo                         Trovatore act four aria

10. Claudia Muzio                 "Ninna Nanna"

11.Gustave Neidlinger           Das Rheingold Curse

12. Anna Netrebko                 Rusalka aria

13. Olive Middleton                Trovatore Miserere (not for purists)

14.Magda Olivero                    Fedora Finale

15.Rosetta Pampanini           Iris aria

16. Alfredo Piccaver               Meistersinger act three aria

17. Vassilka Petrova              Trovatore (I think!)

18.Bruno Prevedi                   Butterfly Addio

19.Lina Bruna Rasa/Afro Poli   Cav Duet

20. Regina Resnik     (as soprano)   Voi lo sapete

21.Katya Ricciarelli           Zaira aria

(After Petrova is Podles Cenerentola aria/..aorry!)

(After no.17,i think I made an omission.)

With the usual annoying Met cuts in those days,here is a Lohengrin. Leinsdorf in 1940 with Melchior,Rethberg,Thorborg, List,Huehn

I saw her so many times and she was a superb artist, with a rich tone. Here are arias from Don Carlo,Gioconda,Tristan und Isolde, Das Rheingold, Walkure, Gotterdamerung, Samson and Delilah (with that famous long hair that got caught in Del Monaco's boot.) Also included in the Mahler Cycle,"Lied eined fahrenden Gesellen.)

From Florence, 1978, under George Pretre, here is the great Alfredo Kraus as Werhter, with Lucia Valentini-Terrani, Rolando Panerai, and Anastasia Tomaszewska Schepis (how long does it take her to sign an autograph?)

Please note my disc was flawed so act two finale is not on the podcast.

So it is not is Russian. I saw it in English (with George London, as in this cast) .This 1955 Vienna version under Berislav Klobucar is a GREAT show. Leonie Rysanek, Anton Dermota, and the blackest basso voice, Gottlob Frick, complete  this wonderful cast. With this kind of singing, I'll take it in hip-hop!!

From 1946 Geneva, under Nino Sanzogno, I bring you a true rarity; We never think of Mario Del Monaco,one of the greatest dramatic (and I do mean DRAMATIC!) in Ballo in Maschera. Well,here he is , with a cast featuring Giulietta Simionato, Carla Castellani, Piero Basini, Marisa Morel (Oscar). I am glad he could scale down that enormous voice for this music.

We loved that lady!!!!! Here Leyla Gencer (She told us it is pronounced "GENGER" ( Hard first G and second G like "ginger.) Here she sings all Mozart:Seraglio,Don Giovanni,Nozze di Figaro, and Idomeneo. What could she not do??????

June 11, 1864    Richard Strauss born!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

June 11, 1913       Rise Stevens born!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  The Gods were good!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I knew Rise and we had our Rise club meetings at her home every year.

  She loved Lotte Lehmann....and imagine that they sang in Rosenkavalier together!

       My tears flow!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Giuseppe di Stefano, affectionately known as "Pippo" had one of the most glorious tenor voices in opera history. Sadly, he made some poor choices, and the career did not last as long as it should have,but what a voice! Just that high C diminuendo in theFaust aria tells you he could do. Here are some arias as sung (mostly live) by this fabulous tenor.

Turandot,Tosca,Ballo,Faust,Mignon, Aida, Forza (with Bastianini),Boheme