Tag Archives: Benedetto Marcello

Episode 409. Arie antiche [Schirmer Edition]

November 7, 2025African American Singers, Arie antiche, Art Song, Bel canto, Forgotten Divas, Full-Figured Baroque, Great Baritones, Great Tenors, Happy Birthday, In Memoriam, Listeners' Favorites, Mezzo Madness, Needle Drop, Singers in Old Age, Singers of Color, Voiceless WondersAlessandro Parisotti, Alessandro Scarlatti, Alessandro Stradella, André Collard, Antonio Caldara, Antonio Lotti, Antonio Sabino, Arie antiche, Benedetto Marcello, Beniamino Gigli, Christoph Willibald Gluck, Claudia Muzio, Claudio Monteverdi, Colin Tilney, Dalton Baldwin, Dick Marzollo, Dino Olivieri, Dmitri Hvorostovsky, Edith Lang, Elly Ameling, Francesco Bartolomeo Conti, Francesco Durante, Franz Holeček, Georges Thill, Gerald Moore, Gerard Souzay, Giacinto Prandelli, Gino Nastrucci, Giovanni Battista Pergolesi, Giovanni Bononcini, Giovanni Legrenzi, Giovanni Paisiello, Giulio Caccini, Giuseppe Giordani, Giuseppe Valdengo, Gottfried Hämpel, Guido Agosti, Hina Spani, Igor Gorin, Irina Arkhipova, Irma Kolassi, Jacqueline Bonneau, Joan Sutherland, John McCormack, Leone Mageira, Lorenzo Molajoli, Luciano Pavarotti, Maurice Faure, Michael Schneider, Miguel Zanetti, Monserrat Caballé, Neville Marriner, Nigel Rogers, Pēteris Sipolnieks, Rainaldo Zamboni, Reginald Boardman, Richard Bonynge, Roberta Alexander, Roland Hayes, Suzanne Danco, Tancredi Pasero, Theodore Baker, Tito Schipa, Twenty-Four Italian Songs and Arias, Vincenzo Legrenzo Ciampi, Willard Straightcountermelody

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Today’s potpourri episode is a special one for anyone who has ever studied voice in a college, university or conservatory. One of the primary sources of repertoire for instructors of singing has been a book first published by G. Schirmer in 1894 entitled Twenty-Four Italian Songs and Arias, consisting primarily of arie antiche, i.e. songs from the Italian baroque (Caldara, Monteverdi, Scarlatti, Durante, and others), heavily edited, and often virtually rewritten, by musicologist Theodore Baker. Many of the works were also falsely attributed to composers (Pergolesi, Stradella, and Marcello in particular) who had nothing to do with the pieces in question. In spite of those editorial issues, these songs have figured prominently ever since in the early repertoire of most young singers. They have also been a staple of the concert platform for as long (and, truth be told, even longer), and remain so to this day. Today’s episode focuses on this repertoire as recorded by some of the greatest singers of the twentieth century. Some of these artists are Countermelody favorites (Claudia Muzio, Elly Ameling, Igor Gorin, Roberta Alexander, Irina Arkhipova, Gérard Souzay) but many others have, in spite of their stature, received relatively little exposure on the podcast (Luciano Pavarotti, Suzanne Danco, Roland Hayes, Georges Thill, Montserrat Caballé, John McCormack, Dmitri Hvorostovsky, Nigel Rogers, and Beniamino Gigli, among many others presented in the episode). And let us not forget to raise a glass to Joan Sutherland, whose 99th birthday is observed today, and whose voice is the last one heard on the episode, in a rare 1960 radio recording, stunningly vocalized, that might surprise you.

Countermelody is a podcast devoted to the glory and the power of the human voice raised in song. Singer and vocal aficionado Daniel Gundlach explores great singers of the past and present focusing in particular on those who are less well-remembered today than they should be. Daniel’s lifetime in music as a professional countertenor, pianist, vocal coach, voice teacher, and author yields an exciting array of anecdotes, impressions, and “inside stories.” At Countermelody’s core is the celebration of great singers of all stripes, their instruments, and the connection they make to the words they sing. By clicking on the following link (https://linktr.ee/CountermelodyPodcast) you can find the dedicated Countermelody website which contains additional content including artist photos and episode setlists. The link will also take you to Countermelody’s Patreon page, where you can pledge your monthly or yearly support at whatever level you can afford.

Episode 402. Ina Souez Revisited

October 13, 2025Art Song, Bel canto, Broadway, Forgotten Divas, Full-Figured Baroque, Great Baritones, Great Tenors, In Memoriam, Lieder, Music for a World in Crisis Series, Needle Drop, Operetta, Singers of Color, Twentieth Century Music, Verismo, Wolfgang Amadeus MozartAdriana Lecouvreur, Amy Cheney Beach, Antonio Guarnieri, Arturo Colauti, Benedetto Marcello, Carl Schuricht, Carmen, Cosi fan tutte, Don Giovanni, Eduardo di Capua, Ernest Legouvé, Eugène Scribe, Felice Romani, Francesco Cilea, Fritz Busch, Georges Bizet, Gioachino Rossini, Giuseppe Carpani, Giuseppe Verdi, Harold Fraser-Simpson, Harry Graham, Heddle Nash, Heinrich Heine, Henri Meilhac, Ina Souez, Johannes Brahms, John Barbirolli, John Brownlee, Koloman von Pátaky, Lore Fischer, Loyd Simpson, Ludovic Halévy, Ludwig van Beethoven, Luigi Arditi, Luigi Denza, Luise Helletsgruber, Maurice Maeterlinck, Messa da Requiem (Verdi), Norma, Ottorino Respighi, Prosper Mérimée, Robert Browning, The Maid of the Mountains, Thomas Haynes Bayly, Tobia Nicotra, Vincenzo Bellini, Vittoria Aganoor Pompilj, Webster Booth, Willi Domgraf-Fassbaender, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozartcountermelody

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The extraordinary Ina Souez (1903 – 1992), was one of the few Native American singers to achieve worldwide fame on the operatic stage. Though her career was truncated by the collapse of her European career because of the impending World War, Souez’s place in the history of recorded sound is assured by virtue of her participation in the series of Mozart operas as produced by HMV in the mid-1930s as souvenirs of the first seasons of the Glyndebourne Festival. Indeed, one could argue that her Fiordiligi remains the standard by which all other interpreters are judged. Souez, the 33rd anniversary of whose death is observed in December, was one of the few Native American singers to achieve worldwide fame on the operatic stage. This episode focuses on an ultra-rare 1957 self-titled album of songs and arias that marked a comeback of sorts for Souez, who upon escaping Europe as a star found herself a virtual non-entity when she returned to her native country. I also play excerpts from the classic mid-1930’s recordings of Don Giovanni and Così fan tutte from Glyndebourne which have forever cemented the reputation of Souez in the hearts and minds of lovers of great singing. In addition, we hear 1935 recordings of Micaela’s aria as well as the “Casta diva” from Norma and a pair of light classical 78s in which Souez’s voice rings out with youthful vigor and enthusiasm. Other singers heard on these recordings include soprano Luise Helletsgruber; tenors Heddle Nash, Webster Booth, and Koloman von Pátaky; contralto Lore Fischer; and baritones John Brownlee and Willi Domgraf-Fassbaender. Conductors include John Barbirolli, Carl Schuricht, and, of course, the great Fritz Busch.

Episode 32. Fedora Barbieri (Mezzo Madness III)

April 25, 2020Art Song, Mezzo Madness, Needle DropAlessandro Parisotti, Alessandro Scarlatti, Amilcare Ponchielli, Antonio Caldara, Antonio Vivaldi, Argeo Quadri, Arlene Saunders, Benedetto Marcello, Chi vuol la zingarella?, Claudio Monteverdi, Come raggio di sol, Demofoonte (Cherubini), Dick Marzollo, Die Liebe der Danae, Fedora Barbieri, Francesco Cavallo, Francesco Conti, George Frideric Handel, Giacomo Carissimi, Giovanni Battista Pergolesi, Il mio bel foco, La Gioconda, La Gioconda (Ponchielli), Le violette, Luigi Cherubini, Suor Angelica, Teresa Żylis-Garacountermelody

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The Italian mezzo-soprano Fedora Barbieri (1920-2003) was never a great favorite of mine. That is, until I recently came across her rare 1953 recording entitled Fedora Barbieri Sings Old Italian Songs and Airs, accompanied by Dick Marzollo, an assistant of Toscanini’s and one of the principal coaches at the Met in the 1950s. Though possessed of an extraordinary voice, Barbieri’s vocal problems prevented her from making her full mark in much of the dramatic mezzo-soprano repertoire in which her compatriot and arch-rival Giulietta Simionato excelled. However, in this recording of songs by Vivaldi, Pergolesi, Paisiello, Cherubini, Scarlatti, and others, recorded in New York for the Vox label, Barbieri reveals herself as that true rara avis, a classicist with guts. The episode also includes recordings from either end of Barbieri’s five-decade-long career and begins with a tribute to the great American jugendlich dramatisch Sopran Arlene Saunders, who died last week at the age of 89.

Countermelody is a podcast devoted to the glories of the human voice raised in song. Singer and vocal aficionado Daniel Gundlach explores great classical and opera singers of the past and present with the help of guests from the classical music field: singers, conductors, composers, coaches, agents, and voice teachers. Daniel’s lifetime in music as a professional countertenor, pianist, vocal coach, voice teacher, and journalist yields an exciting array of anecdotes, impressions, and “inside stories.” At Countermelody’s core is the interaction between singers of all stripes, their instruments, and the connection they make to the words they sing. Please visit the Countermelody website (www.countermelodypodcast.com) for additional content. And please head to our Patreon page at www.patreon.com/countermelody to pledge your monthly support at whatever level you can afford.