Tag Archives: Ezio Pinza

Episode 159. Forgotten Broadway II

August 26, 2022African American Singers, Broadway, Canadian Singers, Comic Relief, Crossover, Great Baritones, Happy Birthday, In Memoriam, Mezzo Madness, Music for a World in Crisis Series, Needle Drop, Operetta, Pop Icons, Queer Pride, Singers of Color, Twentieth Century Music, Voiceless WondersAlan Jay Lerner, Anton Coppola, Anyone Can Whistle, Cesare Siepi, Charles Strouse, Clay Warnick, Cy Coleman, David Atkinson, David Opatoshu, Dick Hyman, Dody Goodman, Donald Gramm, Dorothy Fields, Elaine Stritch, Ethel Ennis, Ezio Pinza, Fred Ebb, Frederick Loewe, Gary Geld, George Siravo, Hal Hackady, Harold Hastings, Harold Rome, Harry Guardino, Harry Pleva, Harvey Schmidt, Herbert Greene, Jack Cassidy, James Stenborg, Jane Powell, Jean Kerr, Jerry Herman, Jimmy Jones, Jimmy Van Heuse, Joan Ford, John Kander, Johnny Burke, Johnny Green, Joyce Brown, Lanny Meyers, Larry Grossman, Larry Kert, Lee Adams, Lee Remick, Lehman Engel, Leo Robin, Leonard Bernstein, Leroy Anderson, Linda Lavin, Louie Bellson, Mary Rodgers, Me and Juliet (Rodgers & Hammerstein), Melba Moore, Milton Kaye, Milton Schafer, Minnie’s Boys, Ogden Nash, Oscar Hammerstein II, Oscar Kosarin, Pat Suzuki, Pearl Bailey, Peter Udell, Rebecca Luker, Richard Rodgers, Richard Weiss, Rita Gardner, Robert Goulet, Rod Derefinko, Ron Raines, Ronny Graham, Sam Pottle, Sarah Fleming, Shannon Bolin, Sigmund Romberg, Skitch Henderson, Stephen Sondheim, Susan Johnson, Sylvan Levin, Sylvia Syms, Ted Thursday, Tom Jones, Vernon Duke, Walter Kerr, Walter Marks, William Raycountermelody

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The follow-up episode to my previous Forgotten Broadway episode is an epic one, chock full of fascinating composers, lyricists, performers and shows. We begin with a tribute to birthday boy Leonard Bernstein, a song from Peter Pan sung by gay Broadway icon Larry Kert. From there we encounter shows by Lerner and Loewe, Rodgers and Hammerstein, Kander and Ebb, Cy Coleman, Dorothy Fields, Strouse and Adams, Jerry Herman, Stephen Sondheim, Schmidt and Jones, Vernon Duke, Mary Rodgers, Sigmund Romberg, Harold Rome and Leroy Anderson, among others, performed by Jane Powell, Pat Suzuki, Melba Moore, Rita Gardner, Jack Cassidy, Rebecca Luker, Cesare Siepi, Susan Johnson, Dody Goodman, Pearl Bailey, Ezio Pinza, Elaine Stritch, Shannon Bolin, and others. Diverse topics discussed include the Broadway revue, queer subjects and performers, and the place of performers of color on Broadway. This is a long episode that I recommend listening to in segments! And please be aware that an equally mammoth third segment on Forgotten Broadway will be published this weekend for my Patreon supporters!

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 52. Operaish Broadway (Crossover Classics VIII)

September 13, 2020African American Singers, Broadway, Comic Relief, Crossover, Mezzo Madness, Needle Drop, Operetta, Pop Icons1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, Adam Guettel, Adolph Green, Alan Jay Lerner, Alfred Drake, Anton Coppola, Audra McDonald, Barbara Cook, Betty Comden, Bruce Yarnell, Camilla Williams, Candide, Carol Brice, Carolyn Leigh, Cesare Siepi, Claibe Richardson, Cy Coleman, Dorothy Sarnoff, Du Bose Heyward, Eve Queler, Ezio Pinza, Florence Henderson, Franco Corelli, Franz Allers, George Forrest, George Gershwin, Georges Bizet, Giorgio Tozzi, Giuseppe Verdi, Harold Arlen, Harold Rome, Helen Traubel, Ira Gershwin, Irving Berlin, Jacques Brel, Jerome Kern, Jerry Ross, Joe Darion, John Raitt, John Reardon, José Van Dam, Judy Kaye, Jule Styne, Kenward Elmslie, Lawrence Winters, Lee Venora, Lehman Engel, Leonard Bernstein, Leslie Scott, Lisa Vroman, Lorenz Hart, Madeline Kahn, Marin Mazzie, Mitch Leigh, Mona Paulee, Nicolai Gedda, Oscar Hammerstein II, Paul Gemignani, Porgy and Bess, Rebecca Luker, Richard Adler, Richard Rodgers, Risë Stevens, Robert Gilbert, Robert Trehy, Robert Wright, Rosemary Clooney, Sheldon Harnick, Shirley Verrett, Show Boat, Stephen Sondheim, The Grass Harp, The Light in the Piazza, Victoria Clark, Yip Harburgcountermelody

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Today’s episode (in celebration of Countermelody’s first birthday!) picks up where the last one left off: more musicals, more opera (and operaish) singers! Excerpts from cast recordings, radio broadcasts, telecasts, and live performances highlight the work of singers who divided their time, to a greater or lesser extent, between the Broadway stage and the operatic stage. We begin with the great bass-baritones (Ezio Pinza, Cesare Siepi, Giorgio Tozzi, and José Van Dam) and move through the great Broadway (and sometime opera) baritones (Alfred Drake, John Raitt, Bruce Yarnell, Robert Trehy, Leslie Scott, Lawrence Winters, and John Reardon) with a nod to other opera singers who have also graced the Broadway stage (Helen Traubel, Shirley Verrett, Mona Paulee, Dorothy Sarnoff, Risë Stevens, Lee Venora, Camilla Williams, and Carol Brice). We then consider singers whose vocal abilities could easily have put them on the opera stage, had they chosen to so devote themselves (Alice Ghostley, Madeline Kahn, Barbara Cook, Florence Henderson, Judy Kaye, Lisa Vroman, Audra McDonald, Victoria Clark, Rebecca Luker, and the late Marin Mazzie). The episode also features tributes to two recently deceased divas (Gabriella Tucci and Christiane Eda-Pierre) as well as a spotlight on the gorgeous soprano Margaret Tynes, who just celebrated her 101st birthday.

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!

Episode 48. Cesare Siepi (Crossover Classics IV)

August 16, 2020Art Song, Crossover, Giuseppe Verdi, In Memoriam, Lieder, Needle DropAlfredo Mazzucchi, Cesare Siepi, Cole Porter, Easy to Love, Eduardo di Capua, Ezio Pinza, Funiculi funicula, Giuseppe Verdi, I Get a Kick out of You, In the Still of the Night, Johannes Brahms, La sonnambula, Luigi Denza, Nabucco, Oscar Hammerstein II, Paolo Tosti, Renato Brogi, Richard Rodgers, Roland Shaw Orchestra, Sigmund Romberg, Some Enchanted Evening, South Pacific, Vincenzo Bellini, Visione venezianacountermelody

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Last month marked the tenth anniversary of the death of the great Italian basso Cesare Siepi, one of the most important basses of the twentieth century, after such figures as Nazzareno de Angelis, Tancredi Pasero, and, particularly, Ezio Pinza, the latter, like Siepi, particularly associated with the title role of Mozart’s Don Giovanni. His dashing good looks, solid technique, sonorous voice and appealing artistry, placed him in the forefront of the opera world, particularly in the 1950s through the 1970s. In this episode, rather than his celebrated Mozart and Verdi portrayals, however, we will focus primarily on his 1958 Decca/London album, Easy to Love: The Songs of Cole Porter. Siepi also made two appearances on Broadway, including 1962’s Bravo, Giovanni, from which we hear two excerpts. Other musical selections in this episode include two operatic arias, several favorites from the Neapolitan song repertoire, and live and television performances from Brahms to Sigmund Romberg. Revisiting this artist, and particularly his spot-on Cole Porter performances, is a nostalgic journey for me, and I hope to convey to you his enormous appeal.

Episode 34. Charm

May 11, 2020African American Singers, Art Song, Comic Relief, Lieder, Needle DropÁguas de Março [Waters of March], Anna Wheaton, Antônio Carlos Jobim, Ar hyd y nos [All Through the Night], Arne Dorumsgaard, Arthur Schwartz, Barbara Cook, Bidu Sayao, Buddy De Sylva, Carlos Gardel, Charles Gounod, Con amores la mia madre, David Lochary, Dawn Davenport, Divine, Don Shirley, Edith Massey, Eileen Farrell, Elisabeth Welch, Elly Ameling, Ernani Braga, Ezio Pinza, Female Trouble, George Gershwin, Georges Brassens, Gerald Moore, Gerard Souzay, Howard Dietz, Hugues Cuenod, I Wanna Be Loved By You, Jacques Offenbach, James Herrod, Jerome Kern, John Waters, Jorma Hynninen, Juan de Anchieta, Judy Holliday, La Périchole, Le Fiacre, Lehman Engel, Léon Xanrof, Louis van Dijk, Love Walked In, Marcel Delannoy, Marilyn Monroe, Martha Flowers, Mary Martin, Mary Vivian Pearce, Narciso Yepes, Naughty Marietta, Ninon Vallin, On the Sunny Side of the Street, Patachou, Paul Zakrzewski, Philippine (Delannoy), Regine Crespin, Reynaldo Hahn, Richard Dyer-Bennett, Richard Lewis, Russell Oberlin, Seymour Barab, Stephen Schwartz, Susannah McCorkle, Teresa Berganza, The Girl from Ipanema, The Quaker Lover, Till the Clouds Roll By, Victor Herbert, Victoria de los Angeles, Vincent Youmans, Wally Harper, Yvette Guilbertcountermelody

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I have planned a series on five different artistic traits that guide a singer through their artistic journey. The designations are my own, and as such, purely idiosyncratic. Charm is defined as “the power or quality of giving delight or arousing admiration.” In this episode, we examine singers of many genres singing music from many lands. Featured artists include Bidú Sayão, Carlos Gardel, Mary Martin, Régine Crespin, Richard Lewis, Victoria de los Angeles, Eileen Farrell, Ezio Pinza, Patachou, Judy Holliday, Hugues Cuenod, Elisabeth Welch, Ninon Vallin, Richard Dyer-Bennett, Jorma Hynninen, Susannah McCorkle, Barbara Cook, Ninon Vallin, Teresa Berganza, Yvette Guilbert, and many others. Because there is so much charm and enchantment in the world, the episode threatened to stretch to an untenable length, I will present additional examples of Charm in the next episode. I also pay tribute to the Lebanese-American mezzo-soprano Rosalind Elias, who died a week ago at the age of 90.

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.