Bless you all for a Happy New Year!

Happy Birthday to my favorite singer

of this generation....sweetest guy

I love....one of the greats, and I have

heard them all!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  No words adequately express

  what this man was!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Love and Happy Holidays to all of

you great people!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I have not been well *(nutjob)...and long

to see Piotr...I hope I can.

Thanks for your support...Carlo Magno Traditore

Thanks,Milka Ternina   12/19/1863

You gave us the greatest Kunc of my life.

Did you ever spank Zinka????????????

Have just found her..Canta con cojones!!!!

Galvany Numero dos...She is great!!!!!!!

Saloa Hernandez....WOW!!!!

Met yesterday....she knows NOTHING!!!!

Put on Zeani,Callas...even ME.....These

divas know NOTHING of Passion:Play:

"Alfredo,Alfredo,di questo cuore"   but

who knows Tiziana????????????

Who needs Muzio and Carteri

Mari Lynn RULES!!!!!!

RosannaCarteri   12/14/30

 Muzio would love it.I adore Carteri

beloved!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

To a beloved and courageous man!

  When he was in the hospital,he used to

  visit childrens' cancer wards and sing

  little songs to them, even in his condition.

This Vespri scene summarizes what

she was!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  Words fail us!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

From the Met last week!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Great Guy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

If you celebrate Thanksgiving,here

is a GREAT soprano from Turkey.

Have some SCOOPS of stuffing!

 I know I am pazzo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!    Loveya!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sorry...have been down...some

croooook took 10,500 from my acct...

working on it......be back soon!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Victoria  11/1/23  The most divine

voice!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I have been ill and need to catch up.

Tito Gobbi.Legendary  10/23/13...…

BUT she never got it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

She did 635!!My favorite 

Part of the entire opera is:

"Alfredo,Alfredo"

 She refused to wear knee

pads when she died, accounting

for the arthritis. "I want eet to

feel real!!!"

Happy Birthday to my adored

"sorella"  Virginia is FAMILY!!!!

  One of the greatest!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Were there no Callas...….she was it!!!!

   ADORE HER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Rest bin Peace,o Great One!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Adore Franz Grundheber!!!!

  Bryan Hymel....Wonderful voice

He laughed when I told him I would

review his Rodolfo..and would LIE!!!!!

Tragedy!!!!!!!!!!!!!! On of the greats!!!!!

  Coming up on Wednesday!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yes,some tenors have brains!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  I go NUTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

On the "FA" before the "RO"

we gasped!!!! He was a sensation!!!

LEGEND!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Bet you can't!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Not a Warren or MacNeil TOP, but

a voice of pure gold.

Gone too Soon!!! Fabulous voice.

Night after Warren died,he did a 

Chenier that was as great as a Warren.

LORD@!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Mario helps me to see if all

is OK.....

Test to see everything is OK

test

  I wrote support...something wrong w.page

LOVE IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

(Although Tebaldi's first at the Met

broke the chandeliers)

Otto Schenk re-enacts REAL THINGS

Have you ever seen a live flub?????

She is pushing into heavy stuff.

Elsa is a good choice...for the future

and that may come..but stay away from

too much pushing...….CH

  She can do big stuff!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  One of the very few singers who recall the olden days! Pushing 

into heavier stuff...but still UNIQUE!!!!!

Great MAN!!!  9/13/29...Often sang

with Freni..What a couple!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Tatiana Troyanos left us too soon.

9/12/38 birth. One of the greats!!!!

My "sister" Virginia,at 92, is in

a Florida facility. We speak often

and she is not doing badly. I

love her as I did Tebaldi!!!!

  So sorry at the passing of Tito.

He was an icon in the music world!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

When we first did Bolena in 1970,

Marisa Galvany held the D so long,I ran

out of breath on my middle D. A new

guy named Ramey was the King. Galvany

and I go back over 50 yrs. and I know

all her fake names!!!!!

Bad panic attack tonight and selfishly

wish to distract myself and give you

Sue Hassell....I sang with her....Orrrrrrrore.

9/10/27      I love calm singers.

She hits T over J#

  He has better chest notes than his dear

wife Linda!!!!   He is a great guy!!!!

I Love my friend???? And you?????

To my wonderful friend and superb

artist. Irina is  so dear. I am glad

they are now back to traditional

productions. (????)

Sylvia Sawyer teaches Italian diction!

Someone named Petrova has a birthday

today,,,Reminds me of VASSILKA

Petrova, who had us pppp'ing for years.

She paid for her operas.....I would not trade this in for Malibran's debut!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Brought the house down at his 1972

farewell..especially "But ask Corelli twwwwwice."

They feuded like mad, but he respected her.

  I will never forget my friend of 50 yrs.

  Regina meant so much to me!!!!!!!!!!!!

  1:42:48...who said he did not

sing high C onstage????????

You  sang with the best!!!! Love to

dear Paul on his birthday!!!!!

My old buddy!..Paul...we met in 1961

You were Guardiano.I was Melitone

and Marchese..GEE,one of us made it!!!!

Illustrious career of one of the most

beloved people I know. Happy Birthday!!

Sorry..I tried something new, and the

Tucker post came out twice and some

text cut off...but you get some idea!!!!

My Favorite Tenor Tucker once told his dear friend Ed Rosen, "I do not like to bunt..I hit home runs." Believe me he "bunted" a lot...The legato was there..despite some complaints...so what if he held "bellezzze" in Tosca a bit longer, and there was evidence of the cantorail training and some sobs......so...big deal.....Ever hear of GIGLI?? You take the man as a whole...a fabulous lirico-dramatico voice..rang through the Met like a golden tone of incredible size and beauty at the same time. I used to go ballistic when he dropped the sword in Forza, came up front, and let out that glorious B at the end of the "Sleale" duet. I also adored the act 2 Chenier "Credi al destino," showing the legato that some deaf people did not hear. I saw him maybe 65 times..NEVER gave a bad performance in my view...gave 1000%...perhaps too much after the first heart attack,where George Jellinek asked him to take it a bit easier.NO WAY! The 1964 Cav w.Farrell echoes in my mind so vividly...especially, "Per me,pregate Iddio." Sorry he did not get to do the Juive at the Met.His last perf.from Spain show he could have gone on at least 15 years more. Thank you,dear Richard Tucker........there was NO ONE like you!!!!!!!! I was at the unveiling of the monument at Lincoln Center. I believe pigeons are scared to death to go near the statute..They have as much respect as do millions of others.... Love Charlie

Tucker once told his dear friend Ed Rosen, "I do not like to bunt..I hit home runs." Believe me he "bunted" a lot...The legato was there..despite some complaints...so what if he held "bellezzze" in Tosca a bit longer, and there was evidence of the cantorail training and some sobs......so...big deal.....Ever hear of GIGLI??
You take the man as a whole...a fabulous lirico-dramatico voice..rang through the Met like a golden tone of incredible size and beauty at the same time.
I used to go ballistic when he dropped the sword in Forza, came up front, and let out that glorious B at the end of the "Sleale" duet. I also adored the act 2 Chenier "Credi al destino," showing the legato that some deaf people did not hear.
I saw him maybe 65 times..NEVER gave a bad performance in my view...gave 1000%...perhaps too much after the first heart attack,where George Jellinek asked him to take it a bit easier.NO WAY! The 1964 Cav w.Farrell echoes in my mind so vividly...especially, "Per me,pregate Iddio."
Sorry he did not get to do the Juive at the Met.His last perf.from Spain show he could have gone on at least 15 years more.
Thank you,dear Richard Tucker........there was NO ONE like you!!!!!!!! I was at the unveiling of the monument at Lincoln Center. I believe pigeons are scared to death to go near the statute..They have as much respect as do millions of others....
Love Charlie

Great artist left us 8/26. One of the

wonderful artists!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Jose Van Dam  8/25/40

One of the supreme singers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  I recall Dever and Zajick backstage

 after a Trovatore comparing flu symptoms.

  How do they do it???? Mme.Dever has

  a gorgeous voice and is an endeared

member of Facebook, along with so

many Met singers.(I have to be nice,because

they sneak around).

GORGEOUS rich mezzo...Barbara Dever.

I want more of you to know about singers

who are not as well-known as they should be..she is wonderful...

More from my buddy,Ta'u!!!!!

Glad he has a turntable so he can

RAID my unplayed LP's...………………….

Happy Birthday to a guy I "discovered"

Ta'u Pupu'a...Former football star

who NEVER sang a role until our

Rigoletto,and I flipped!

Ta'u thought a passaggio was an

Italian dish...no kidding!!!!!!!

Great guy!!!!!

I TOLD Sam to teach Sam.Jr. Mefistofele

but the kid likes Jay-Z!!! Vergogna!!!!

  Hope my favorite singer feels better

  after some laryngitis!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

But I am tired of a tenor singing baritone..it

is a "gimmick."...even though we are both Jan.21

babies...……Sorry, Placido.

Lots of "stuff" but love it......

My beloved friend....40 yrs...………………..

Wants to do heavy stuff..Oh well.

Get the stopwatch!!!!!

  But who knows her???????????????????

test

Janet Baker...GREAT lady...8/21/1933!!!!!

Gianna Rolandi  8/16/51...….NOTHING funnier

in all my opera life!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Imagine..Magda once was told, "Don't quit your day job!!!"

LORD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Happy Birthday to a sweet guy, and glad

he is feeling batter after an illness.

He is a great talent and what a gorgeous 

family.....flown in suddenly to replace

Giordani a few years ago..HUGE success.

Leon Nucci continues his fabulous career!!!!!

After mom died, I started to sing again..I cannot read music but I did listen a lot to Corena.

Hope you do not mind my ego!!!!!!!!

Give the kid a break!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

When Ashley Putnam made City Opera

debut, some lady in the audience did

this. I told Henry Price said, "I was there."

He said, "ME TOO!!!"

Great man!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  GORGEOUS VOICE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And Weikl born a few days earlier in 1942

When I would sing (lower key) "Dein ist mein ganzes herz" ma liked Gedda more...Why?

Today she would like Piotr more!

v

They bought out Piotr's contracts

elsewhere so he could do this. He is an electrician.

I always said he was a live wire!!!!  BUT No RATS?????

  One of the most gorgeous voices EVER!!!!!!!!!!!!

   Still a great sound..and did the opera live. I'll take it 

any day.

I saw one of his few Manricos. This is

dubbed but still you get the idea.

  I am staying with videos.The audio stuff is

a problem.  OK????   Charlie

 Mario did guest Lescaut a year before "official" Met debut.

You hear what he was...not s Gerard Souzay!!!!

  We went nuts over this great man!!!!!!!

Hey, Mario.I was there in 1958 when you

RAN out of the tent on "Trahison." You KNEW 

it was a broadcast so you sang to the mikes!

The two of them looked better than Victor Mature

and Hedy Lamar.

   First singer I ever saw (1951)…..first of 40 times.

I recall "white teeth" coming toward me in Aida,

my first opera ever.  He was a GOD!!!!!!!!

Huge voice from bottom to top.A "bronze column of

sound"..Unforgettable man!  Came out stage door

once and said, "Hello,boys" in my poor ear. I

never recovered!!!!!

   I hate "dubbed" but what greatness!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Our new hero!!!! Camarena is now "King of the bises."

He is something extraordinary in our opera world.

Sorry Zinka and Renata,....Antonietta Stella

1956 Met debut still remains my great

favorite.Big,luscious voice..ADORE!!

  I had only heard Caruso do this aria

and suddenly here is my beloved

favorite singer, Piotr Beczala, doing

it. This guy thrills me more than

his idol,Nicolai Gedda. Before he

did his first Lohengrin,I did give

him the CD set of Gedda's only one.

Very few singers today remind me of

my "Golden Age" from my youth.