The first part of the Freni/Domingo Fedora and then highlights from a commercial recording of the opera with Gilda Dalla Rizza (pictured) and Antonio Melandri.  (73 min.)

  I CRY my eyes out!!!! One of the greatest singers I ever heard!!!!! The beloved Shirley Verrett.

Three samples from Piotr Beczala's new album!!!!

   A  preview pf the beautiful album "Heart's Delight," that honors the great Richard Tauber, who would be thrilled to have the wonderful Piotr Beczala sing his material. I just received this album, and I sincerely recommend it to you. Piotr is fast becoming one of our "opera icons," and he is to be highly praised.

  You never know when the emotion will strike you;I just played this Arabella scene, perhaps George London's greatest role as Mandryka. My eyes just did fill up with tears, thinking of this great man, who might have had a longer career.

  There is a foundation for young artists in his name. The man will never be forgotten.

Born May 30, 1919, George London was one of opera's greatest stars. His career was somewhat shortened by a herniated vocal chord, but he had a fabulous career.On stage he was a true DYNAMO!!!!!! We adored him!!!

Mme.Calabro is pretty good for over 80......

You sopranos out there....Watch out or you may end up like this...and of course,you can learn good Italian from Mari.

  DEAR lady and great singer...Olivia Stapp.born May 29, 1940. We became friends over the years, and tell me if ANY dramatic soprano today compares....Love her.

Del Monaco holds it 5 hours!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

FUNNY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 Maxim Mironov sings the Barbiere aria. Amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I hope you like this compilation of 10 sopranos singing Odabella's entrance aria and cabaletta from Verdi's "Attila."In order,they are:

Antonietta Stella, Dimitra Theodossiou, Gilda Cruz-Romo, Mara Zampieri, Marie Krikorian, Caterina Mancini, Marilyn Zschau, Angeles Gulin, Linda Strummer, and Marisa Galvany.   (67 min.)

 One might wonder how an essentially "lyric coluratura" could pull this off, and it was one of the great deats of singing/acting in our experience.

Not just the voice..but the LOVE of the vocal line!!!!!!!!! Bless her memory!

   May 15, 1929 is the birthday of this 'kid" who surely made so many opera lovers out of people,owing to her infectuous personality and he great voice and stage presence.

 The great Mario del Monaco sang his first Otello in Buenos Aires in 1952.The conductor is Antonino Votto. The late Delia Rigal sings Desdemona, and the role of Iago (who became an Otello years later) is sung by Carlos Guichandut. The Cassio is Eugenio Valori and the Emilia is Emma Brizzio.  (71 min.)

One of the legendary Maria Callas performances. This Tosca from Mexico 1952 is conducted by Guido Picco. Giuseppe Di Stefano is the Cavaradossi and Piero Campolonghi is the Scarpia   (72 min.)

Leonie Rysanek and George London in the terrifying finale of the Flying Dutchman. You have no idea what that was like..her FEROCIOUS attacks on the top notes..the acting by both of them.It was stupendous!!!!

   Happy 200th, great man!!!!!!!

 This is SOME VOICE!!!! Kipnis sings scenes from  Seraglio, Simon Boccanegra, Don Carlo, Meistersinger, Parsifal (with Fritz Wolff) and then three Russian folk songs,followed by the Brahms "Vier ernste Gesange" and then Brahms' "Von ewige liebe" and finally Schubert's "Erlkonig" "Heidenroslein" and "Ungeduld."     (72 minutes)

 How do you do full justice to one of the greatest geniuses in all music? On May 22, we celebrate the 200th birthday of Richard Wagner. We know from various sources that he was not exactly a Teddybear, but most of us who appreciate opera, treasure his work, separately from any personality characteristics;in fact, if we delved into the lives of many composers, we might not find everyone as lovable as we might want. Who cares?

   Here are some scenes from his operas with the Vienna Philharmonic under Hans Knappertsbusch:

Gotterdamerung: Dawn and Siegfried's Rhine Journey and Funeral Music

Parsifal: "Ich sah das Kind" sung by Kirsten Flagstad

Walkure Finale sung by George London

Tristan und Isolde Prelude and Liebestod sung by Birgit Nilsson.        (63 min.)

The finale of the closing  of the old Met. "Auld Lang Syne" gets to me every time. Remember, I lived my youth on the old standee line, and the joys of friendship with so many other opera lovers, the fun we had, the great performances we saw (after freezing outside the Met for so many hours.) will remain in my heart forever.

Aida  Triumphal Scene:  Verna,Madeira, Baum, Sereni,Macurdy, Scott.

Cosi Fan Tutte:  Trio with Stratas, Miller, Guarrera

Magic Flute: Quintet with Pracht, Grillo, Kriese, Shirley, Uppmann

Vanessa: Quintet  with Steber, Thebom, Dunn, Alexander, Harvuot

Rosenkavalier Final Trio with Caballe, Raskin, Elias

Andrea Chenier: Final Duet with Milanov, Tucker (Zinka's very last Met appearance.)

Faust (the opera that opened the Met in 1883) Trio with Tucci, Gedda, Hines

Auld Lang Syne  (and many,many tears)          (56 min.)

 Here is part two of the Met closing of April 16, 1966:

Osie Hawkins first announces some cancellations, and then the following are sung:

Forza final trio:  Rigal,Peerce,Tozzi

Gioconda Act 2 duet:  Crespin, Cvejic

Trovatore: D'amor sul'alli rosee:   Price

Manon Lescaut Act 2 Love Duet:  Tebaldi, Corelli

Die Meistersinger  Prize Song:  Sandor Konya.

Gotterdamerung Immolation Scene;  Nilsson         (48 min.)

 Part one of the closing of the Old Met.Contents as follows:

Nat.Anthem;Lauder Greenway greeting; Tannhauser Entrance of Guests (Stokowski) and introduction of honored guests;Rudolf Bing Greeting.

Lucia Sextet: Moffo, Sergi,Walker, Diaz, Ordassy,Anthony

Ballo: Eri tu:  Merrill     Otello duet: McCracken,Colzani

Don Carlo aria: Siepi     Louise Depuis le jour: Kirsten

Carmen Quintet:  Resnik, Votipka, Baldwin, Franke, Cehanovsky

Butterfly Un Bel di:Albanese (and she kissed the stage)

Walkure: Wintersturme: Vickers

Barber of Bagdad: Heil,diesem Hause   Corena

Barbiere: Una voce poco fa    Peters

  Some of my favorite singers in this Vespri Siciliani from Palermo, 1957 under Tullio Serafin. Featured are Antonietta Stella, Giuseppe taddei, Mario Filippeschi, and Bernard Ladysz.  (70 min.)

  The great miracle of singing, Birgit Nilsson, was born on May 17, 1918. In tribute to her we present the following scenes:

Ariadne:Est gibt ein Reich (Stockholm, 1949) under Eugen Jochum

Die Frau Ohne Schatten: Act 2 finale (Munich 1977) w.Theo Adam under  Wolfgang Sawallisch   

Tristan act 2 sc.w.Grace Hoffman (Florence 1977) under Artur Rodzinski

Liebestod from Orange 1977 under Karl Boehm

Siegfried Final sc.w.Hans Hopf  Bayreuth 1960 under Rudolf Kempe

Gotterdamerung Immolation Scene  Bayreuth 1960 under Kempe       (71 min.)

An exciting performance of Verdi's "I Lombardi" from  Rome, 1969 under Gianandrea Gavazzeni, with Renata Scotto, Luciano Pavarorri, Ruggero Raimondi, Anna di Stasio (Viclinda), and Umberto Grilli (Arvino.)

 Marisa Galvany and I go back 45 years...Still one of the greats....and I make sure everyone knows it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  The OPERA GODS must have loved May 17, for they created Zinka Milanov (1906) and Birgit Nilsson (1918). Bless their memories!!!

What more is there to say??I have heard this live and on records over a zillion times, and the effect never ceases to be less than a MIRACLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  When we did Anna Bolena in Paterson,New Jersey in 1970....did I think someday Sam Ramey and Marisa Galvany would be doing it at City Opera (but without me). Just to stand there (as Rochefort) and hear that final D....wow!!!! Our maestro,Armen Boyajian makes the piano sound like an orchestra!!!

 I wish all the mommies out there a Happy Mothers' Day, hoping it does not resemble what Marisa Galvany did.

  Sayao, born may 11, 1902, DEFINED the word "beloved." She did not have to have a huge voice...but what she did (including using chest voice), was just a miracle of style and love of the phrase. She once delighted us by spening an entire Met intermission with us, answering questions, etc. She was adored!!!!

From Salzburg, 1937, Arturo Toscanini conducts the Vienna Philharmonic in scenes from Die Meistersinger with Hans Herman Nissen, Maria Reining, Kerstin Thorborg, Herbert Alsen (Pogner), Hermann Wiedemann (Beckmesser), Henk Noort (Walther), and Richard Sallaba (David.)  (72 min.)

  I am glad my mommy never was like this.Otherwise, I might have turned out to be abnormal, when you all KNOW I am totally together....Right??????

Which one would you love for your mommy????????????????

  Nothing like the Roberto Devereux finale............

  Watching this gorgeous DVD of Tchaikowsky's "Iolantha" today and discovering yet another marvelous artist. Look,there are so many out there. Ekaterina Scherbachenko has a rich,luscious voice and I hope you enjoy the Onegin sample here.

  Boy,are we LUCKY that the great George Gershwin's estate included the provision that ONLY Afro-Americans could appear in "Porgy and Bess."  One thing I will say, is that Gershwin might have liked Mari Lynn's wonderful jazzy interpolation, but I guess it is just as well, because Catfish Row would never be the same with Mari......You know, I love to listen to Mari, because it makes me feel so normal..YEAH!!!!

BUY the new Tchaikowsky Iolantha on DVD (paired with Stravinsky's "Persephone.") This is a great performance from Madrid with Ekaterina Scherbachenko and this wonderful Pavel Cernoch, seen here with my great love,Kristine Opolais.  This was a glorious afternoon for me,seeing the Iolantha!!!!

 A beautiful compilation of famous artists of the past singing Puccini material. Arias and scenes are from Tosca,Boheme,Suor Angelica, Gianni Schicchi, Mme.Butterfly, and Manon Lescaut. All selections are announced.  (69 min.)

 A collection of music as composed by Erich Wolfgang Korngold. The contents are as follow:

1. Der Ring Des Polykrates aria   Gundula Janowitz

2. Violantha Duet with Hans Hopf and Hildegard Hillebrecht

3. Die Tote Stadt  Act One scene including Marietta's aria  Ilona Steingruber and Anton Dermota

  and 4. the baritone aria from act 2 "Mein sehnen,mein Wehnen"   Alfred Poell

5. Das Wunder Der Heliane   "Ich ging zu ihm"   Steingruber  (also check out Lotte Lehmann's rendition on Youtube, which is one of my all-time favorite recordings.)

6. Die Kathrin   Scene w. Steingruber

7-11  songs as follows:  "Ich bin ein Liedersanger"   Janowitz and Rudolf Christ.

" Soldaten Marsch und Gebet"  Steingruber

"Szene in Nachtlokal"   Rose Schweiger and Anton Dermota

"Arie des Malignac"   Alfred Poell

"Wanderlied"  Anton Dermota

       The Austrian State radio Orchestra from Vienna, 1949   (59 min.)

  More material from the career of 172 year old diva Olive Middleton, the cult figure of the 1960's and star of the (in) famous La Puma Opera Company. After a decent "Pace" from around 1955, Olive sings highlights from Trovatore, Gioconda,Fedora, Norma, Walkure (as Sieglinde) and I just could not resist playing you a "typical" La Puma adventure, the act two opening of Walkure. As I always warn, if you are a purist, do not listen...(I bet you can't resist!!)  (36 min.)

 My dear Diana Soviero stars in this La Boheme from 1980, Los Angeles, under John Mauceri. The cast features Riccardo Calleo, Frederick Burchinall, Robert Hale(Colline), Robert McFarland (Schaunard), and Stephanie Sundine    (69 min.)

35 years later I am so happy I found her,one of opera's great artists and a treasure in my life.

(The photo is ancient. I had hair.)

A mini podcast of scenes from acts 3 and 4 of Charpentier's Louise. This is 1977 under Julius Rudel and in addition to the great Beverly, one of the most beloved figures in opera, we have John Alexander,Frances Bible, and Robert Hale. The sound is a bit distant, but the voices come across pretty well. (38 min.)

Frida Leider was born at Berlin, where she studied singing while working in a bank. Her first engagements led her to opera houses in Halle, Königsberg, and Rostock. After an engagement with the Hamburg State Opera in 1923, she was hired by the Berlin State Opera as first dramatic soprano. After her retirement from the stage in 1946, she remained there as the director and manager of a studio for the rising singers of the Berlin State Opera.

Frida Leider made regular guest appearances for over 15 years at the Royal Opera House at Covent Garden in London, at the Metropolitan Opera in New York, at La Scala in Milan, and at the State Operas of Vienna and Munich. Naturally, she also made appearances at the Bayreuth Festival, where she was the unrivaled star soprano of the 1930s. In the 1920s she alternated Wagnerian roles with Florence Austral at Covent Garden and the two recorded large parts of The Ring for HMV.

Leider married the first concert master of the Berlin State Opera, Prof. Rudolf Deman. The couple had no children. She died in her home city of Berlin.

Leider had a wonderful voice, and especially the warmth and feeling is there. We hear first two excerpts of two commercial recordings of Tristan from 1929 under Leo Blech, with Elfreide Marherr as Brangaene, and then under Sir John Barbirolli in 1931. This is followed by live Gotterdamerung  Act 2 scenes from 1936 with Herbert Janssen and Ludwig Weber, followed by a commercial recording of the Immolation Scene in 1929 under Leo Blech.

From the Russian Gala this week..Who would imagine this "Adina' as Lady Macbeth???Just amazing!! The delivery..the furor...the lady is an amazing artist..who continues to grow..and thrill the world!!!!

THIS is the way they used to do it.Nowadays it is a BORE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    Happy no.83 to Roberta Peters, a fine artist and someone deserving of the best!!!!!

 From La Scala 1969,under Thomas Schippers, we present the Rossini "L'Assedio di Corinto," featuring Beverly Sills, Marilyn Horne, Justino Diaz, and Franco Bonisolli.  (70 min.)

Just returned from the Met where I heard Lisette Oropesa live for the very first time. She was one of the finest Gildas I ever heard ; the voice is so seamless in tone and she is a consummate artist in every sense of the word. This clip is a bit faded, but you hear the wonderful technique. I am so glad for her!!!!  Charlie

...because it makes my life so treasurable...A world without the Ring for me would not be the same.Here is the great finale of the Valencia Gotterdamerung under Zubin Mehta. The entire Ring has so many wonderful effects..I recommend it...just go on food stamps like me!!!

  I have previously posted,from Youtube, some material of the Latvian soprano,Kristine Opolais. I wish to present the final portion of her Suor Angelica, under Andris Nelsons, with Lloba Braun as the Zia Principessa. By now, you know I have spoken of all the great divas I have heard for over 60 years, and you do understand that when I rave, it is because I have found someone very special. New York audiences will be treated next season to her Mme.Butterfly.(You will excerpts on Youtube.)  What a revelation for the usually jaded Charlie to find such an artist among us.   (29 min.)

   The Magic Flute (in Italian) from RAI Rome 1953 under Herbert Von Karajan. In the cast are:

Nicolai Gedda,Elizabeth Schwarzkopf, Giuseppe Taddei, Mario Petri, Rita Streich, and Alda Noni (Papagena)       (64 min.)