Tag Archives: Cesare Valletti

Episode 226. Maria Callas: Singer of the Century

December 3, 2023Bel canto, Canadian Singers, Giacomo Puccini, Giuseppe Verdi, Great Tenors, Happy Birthday, In Memoriam, Mezzo Madness, Music for a World in Crisis Series, Needle Drop, NYCO Divas, Opera in Translation, Queer Pride, Renata Scotto, Singers of ColorAmilcare Ponchielli, Andrea Chénier, Angela Vercelli, Anna Bolena, Antonino Votto, Carmen, Cesare Valletti, Dario Caselli, Fausto Cleva, Franco Corelli, Gabriella Carturan, Gaetano Donizetti, Georges Bizet, Giacomo Puccini, Giacomo Vaghi, Gianandrea Gavazzeni, Gianni Raimondi, Giuseppe Verdi, Herbert von Karajan, I Puritani, I vespri siciliani, Jeffrey Tate, Jon Vickers, La Gioconda, La sonnambula, La Traviata, Lucia di Lammermoor, Ludwig van Beethoven, Macbeth (Verdi), Maria Callas, Medea (Cherubini), Mirto Picchi, Nicola Rescigno, Norma (Bellini), Plinio Clabassi, Robert Sutherland, Tosca, Umberto Giordano, Victor de Sabata, Vincenzo Bellini, Vittorio Guicountermelody

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What is there to say about today’s featured artist, Maria Callas, who was born 100 years ago today? So many of my esteemed colleagues are weighing in with their Callas tributes today (both encyclopedic and deeply perceptive and knowledgeable) and there are all varieties of reconstituted Callas material also suddenly appearing, from newly-colorized films of Callas in action to virtual concerts with Maria as hologram, to some new biopic (goddess forbid!), to audio remasterings both laudable and ridiculous. I have nothing comparably “new” or erudite to add to the mix, so can only offer an episode predicated on my encounters with the voice and artistry of Maria Callas. There is no singer in the history of opera more important to me (and, I daresay, to opera in general) than Callas, who revolutionized bel canto and set completely new standards for every type of role she sang. I have chosen from among my favorite (live) Callas material to supplement my musings, going as far back as her Norma and Macbeth in 1952 and as late as her 1974 comeback and her last recording, made the year before her untimely death. In these musical excerpts, La Divina is joined by tenor colleagues (and Countermelody favorites) Cesare Valletti, Jon Vickers, and Franco Corelli. As I listened to Callas this week, I remarked anew at her creative genius, which sprang primarily from faithfulness to the written score, and a burning need to make every phrase she intoned “say something.” May this episode be as cathartic a listening experience for you as it was for me in preparing it. Maria per sempre!

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 journalist 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 support at whatever level you can afford. Bonus episodes available exclusively to Patreon supporters are currently available and further bonus content including interviews and livestreams is planned for the upcoming season.

Episode 198. Cesare Valletti

May 26, 2023African American Singers, Art Song, Bel canto, French Opera, Full-Figured Baroque, Giuseppe Verdi, Great Tenors, In Memoriam, Lieder, Music for a World in Crisis Series, Needle Drop, Pop Icons, Schubert, Twentieth Century Music, Voiceless Wonders, Wolfgang Amadeus MozartAlessandro Scarlatti, Alexandre Dumas, Cesare Valletti, Cosi fan tutte, David Bowie, Dichterliebe, Eduard Mörike, Edvard Grieg, Eleanor Steber, Eugène Scribe, Felice Romani, Francesco Maria Piave, Franz Schubert, Friedrich Martin von Bodenstedt, Fritz Stiedry, Gaetano Donizetti, Gianandrea Gavazzeni, Gioacchino Rossini, Giuseppe Antonicelli, Giuseppe Verdi, Hector Berlioz, Heinrich Heine, Hugo Wolf, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Jules Massenet, L’amico Fritz, L’italiana in Algeri, La Traviata, Leo Taubman, Les nuits d’été, Lorenzo da Ponte, Mafalda Favero, Maria Callas, Matthäus von Collin, Nicola Rescigno, Pietro Mascagni, Robert Schumann, Rosanna Carteri, Ruth and Thomas Martin, Stefano Donaudy, Théophile Gautier, Tina Turner, Tito Schipa, Vittorio Gui, Werther, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozartcountermelody

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Today’s episode celebrates the Italian tenore di grazia Cesare Valletti (18 December 1923 – 13 May 2000), perhaps the last in a lineage of Italian lyric tenors. Valletti studied under his illustrious predecessor Tito Schipa and rapidly conquered first the Italian opera houses, and then the world stages, with his small-scale but superbly produced voice and his spontaneous yet exacting musicianship. From 1953 through 1960 he was a mainstay of the Metropolitan Opera and also performed at opera houses and festivals worldwide under some of the greatest conductors and at the side of the greatest singers of his day. We hear a sampling of his greatest operatic roles, including duets with Eleanor Steber, Rosanna Carteri, and Maria Callas, as well as the repertoire in which – nearly unique for an Italian singer – he excelled: art song. The combination of his Italianate timbre with his scrupulous and imaginative musicianship makes for an ineffable and deeply satisfying artistic experience. He made five LPs of recital repertoire, including two live recitals from the stage of Town Hall in New York City, excerpts of which are all offered here. The episode begins with a tribute to the beloved Queen of Rock ‘n’ Roll: Tina Turner, who died on Tuesday at the age of 83.

Episode 197. Theatre Dreams

May 19, 2023African American Singers, Art Song, Behind the Iron Curtain, Broadway, Comic Relief, French Opera, Giuseppe Verdi, Great Baritones, Great Tenors, Happy Birthday, In Memoriam, Music for a World in Crisis Series, Needle Drop, Opera in Translation, Operetta, Renata Scotto, Richard Wagner, Singers in Old Age, Singers of Color, Twentieth Century Music, Twentieth Century Opera, Verismo, Voiceless Wonders, Wolfgang Amadeus MozartAbbé Prevost, Alain Boublil, Alice Ripley, Arnold Schoenberg, Arrigo Boito, Arthur Endrèze, Benjamin Britten, Birgit Nilsson, Biserka Cvejić, Bohuslav Martinů, Brigitte Fassbaender, Carl Maria von Weber, Cesare Valletti, Charles Gounod, Charles Kullman, Claude Devos, Claude-Michel Schönberg, Cy Coleman, Daniel Gundlach, Der Freischütz, Der Zigeunerbaron, Deva Dassy, Dorothy Fields, Edith Mathis, Eduard Künneke, Eleanor Steber, Elektra, Emily Skinner, Ettore Panizza, Eugen Jochum, Fiddler on the Roof, Frank Porretta, Franz Allers, Frieder Weissmann, Gabriel Faure, Georg Solti, Georges Neveux, Geraint Evans, Giovanni Martinelli, Giuseppe Verdi, Grace Bumbry, Hanna Binyamini, Harold Barlow, Henri Defosse, Henri Meilhac, Hildegard Behrens, Hugo von Hofmannsthal, Ira Gershwin, Iris (Mascagni), Ivo Žídek, Izhak Graziani, Jacques Brel, Jacques Offenbach, James Levine, Janet Baker, Jaroslav Krombholc, Jean Laforge, Jerry Bock, Joe Darion, Johann Strauss II, José Van Dam, Jules Barbier, Jules Gressier, Jules Massenet, Kurt Weill, La Belle Helene, Lady in the Dark, Lawrence Tibbett, Lea Dulitzkaya, Lee Venora, Leopold Ludwig, Léopold Marchand, Les Misérables, Lloyd Arriola, Lohengrin, Louis Beydts, Ludovic Halévy, Luigi Illica, Man of La Mancha, Manon, Mária Tauberová, Marie Pappenheim, Martin Isepp, Mattiwilda Dobbs, Melitta Muszely, Michel Carré, Mitch Leigh, Nello Santi, Nicolai Gedda, Oklahoma!, Oscar Hammerstein II, Otello, Patrick Baton, Philippe Gille, Pierre Monteux, Pietro Mascagni, Renata Scotto, René Leibowitz, Richard Rodgers, Richard Strauss, Richard Tauber, Richard Wagner, Robert Massard, Robert Stolz, Roland Gilbert, Romand Bussine, Roméo et Juliette, Sheldon Harnick, Shmuel Rudenski, Shraga Friedman, Spiros Argiris, Sweet Charity, The King and I, Todd Ellison, Victoria de los Angeles, William Shakespeare, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Zafrira Yaronicountermelody

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I’ve been plotting an episode on the subject of Dreams for a while. Given the profusion of music that references that altered state of consciousness, my challenge was narrowing down the topic. I chose to focus today on theater music (opera, operetta, and musicals) that references actual rather than figurative dreams. Even within these parameters, there was a plethora of material and as usual my repertoire choices are strangely and uniquely my own. So on this episode you’ll hear everything from a 1965 recording of Tevye’s Dream from Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish, from the first Israeli production of the musical; Renata Scotto in late career essaying the haunted dreamscapes of Arnold Schoenberg’s monodrama Erwartung; Mattiwilda Dobbs in a rare 1952 recording of “Ruhe sanft, mein holdes Leben” from Mozart’s Zaide; excerpts from unusual French and German operettas featuring Robert Massard and Charles Kullman, respectively; birthday tributes to Birgit Nilsson and Richard Tauber; and the great Welsh bass Geraint Evans in a live performance of Bottom’s Dream from Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. And much, much more, including a teaser of next week’s subject the Italian lyric tenor Cesare Valletti; and Janet Baker live in recital in 1966, a preview of the first in a series of bonus episodes that will feature rare LPs from my personal collection. As always, thanks for your support; enjoy!

Episode 194. Great Mozart Tenors

April 28, 2023African American Singers, Canadian Singers, Great Tenors, Music for a World in Crisis Series, Opera in Translation, Singers in Old Age, Singers of Color, Voiceless Wonders, Wolfgang Amadeus MozartAlex Banfield, Alfredo Kraus, Anton Dermota, Arthur Goldschmidt, Bernard Haitink, Cesare Valletti, Charles Holland, Charles Mackerras, Claude Génetay, Clemens Schmalstich, Cosi fan tutte, David Rendall, Die Entführung aus dem Serail, Die Zauberflöte, Dimitri Mitropoulos, Don Giovanni, Emanuel Schikaneder, Ernst Haefliger, Ferdinand Leitner, Ferenc Fricsay, Francisco Araiza, Fritz Wunderlich, Georg Solti, George Shirley, Gerhard Wimberger, Gösta Winbergh, Guido Cantelli, György Fischer, Hans Müller-Kray, Herbert von Karajan, Hermann Jadlowker, Idomeneo, István Kertész, Jeffrey Tate, Jerry Hadley, John Aler, John Alexander, John McCormack, John van Kesteren, Jörg Ewald Dähler, Josef Dünnwald, Joseph Rosenstock, Julius Rudel, Kálmán Pataky, Karl Alwin, Karl Böhm, Karl Erb, La Clemenza di Tito, La finta giardiniera, Le nozze di Figaro, Leontyne Price, Leopold Simoneau, Lorenzo da Ponte, Luigi Alva, Marcel Wittrisch, Margaret Price, Maria Ivogün, Mitridate, Nicolai Gedda, Nikolaus Harnoncourt, Otto Ackermann, Peter Schreier, Philip Langridge, Pietro Metastasio, Pilar Lorengar, Richard Tauber, Roberta Alexander, Ryland Davies, Semyon Bychkov, Stuart Burrows, Waldemar Kmentt, Wiesław Ochman, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Wolfgang Sawallisch, Zaidecountermelody

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Today’s is a mammoth episode, one of my longest ever, so I suggest you listen to it in easily digestible segments. It’s mammoth because it’s a gigantic subject: great Mozart tenors of the 20th century, covering more than 100 years of recorded documents of the finest examples of tenorial interpretations of the big Mozart operas as well as some of his lesser-known works, including his concert arias. You will be dazzled (and that is a promise and a guarantee) by performances by Fritz Wunderlich (for many of us, the ne plus ultra of lyric tenors), George Shirley, Richard Tauber, Anton Dermota, Léopold Simoneau, Nicolai Gedda, Gösta Winbergh, John McCormack, David Rendall, Peter Schreier, and countless others, including lesser-known figures such as John van Kesteren, Kálmán Pataky, and Wiesław Ochman, and duets featuring Pilar Lorengar, Leontyne Price, Roberta Alexander, and Margaret Price. I also feature a peek into the future with a special salute to the young tenor Alex Banfield, whose work has impressed me enormously. The entire episode is dedicated to the memory of my friend Jerry Hadley, one of the supreme Mozart tenors of all time.

Episode 59. Rosanna Carteri In Memoriam

November 1, 2020Bel canto, Giuseppe Verdi, In Memoriam, Needle Drop, Operetta, VerismoArtur Rodzinski, Carlo Bergonzi, Cesare Valletti, Charles Gounod, Ettore Bastianini, Ferruccio Tagliavini, Francis Poulenc, Gabriele Santini, Gaetano Donizetti, Georges Pretre, Giacomo Puccini, Gilbert Bécaud, Gioacchino Rossini, Giuseppe di Stefano, Giuseppe Gismondo, Giuseppe Taddei, Giuseppe Verdi, Leonard Warren, Mario Rossi, Nicolai Gedda, Pierre Monteux, Pietro Mascagni, Rosanna Carteri, Serge Prokofiev, Tullio Serafin, Vincenzo Bellezza, Vittorio Guicountermelody

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I had been planning a 90th birthday tribute to this extraordinary artist in December, but alas, the great Rosanna Carteri departed this earth a week ago today, just a few weeks short of that landmark celebration. But let us celebrate today nonetheless, that this long-lived artist, who abandoned her performing career in 1966 when she was only 35 years old, brought her full-throated voice and impeccable artistry to operatic stages around the world for fifteen exceptional years. Carteri’s was a lyric yet full-bodied voice with facility that allowed her to undertake soubrette parts as well as some spinto roles. I feature extended examples of her versatility over the course of that entire career, including excerpts from La traviata, La bohème, La rondine, Guglielmo Tell, Falstaff, L’elisir d’amore, Madama Butterfly, Roméo et Juliette, Otello, Pietro Mascagni’s L’amico Fritz and Iris, Prokofiev’s War and Peace (the final version of which she created in Florence in 1954), the premiere recording of Poulenc’s Gloria and Gilbert Bécaud’s Opéra d’Aran (which she premiered in Paris in 1962). These operas represent just a fraction of her repertoire, in which are featured, among others, Giuseppe di Stefano, Nicolai Gedda, Leonard Warren, Carlo Bergonzi, Ettore Bastianini, Ferruccio Tagliavini, Giuseppe Taddei, Cesare Valletti, and Giuseppe Gismondo and conductors Tullio Serafin, Pierre Monteux, Vittorio Gui, Georges Prêtre, Gabriele Santini, and Artur Rodzinski. In other words, the crème de la crème of the operatic firmament in the 1950s and 1960s, in which company Carteri most emphatically belonged.

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 journalist yields an exciting array of anecdotes, impressions, and “inside stories.” Occasional guests from the “business” (singers, conductors, composers, coaches, and teachers) lend their distinctive insights. 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. Bonus episodes available only to Patreon supporters are currently available, including a new extra episode further exploring today’s topic.