Tag Archives: Le Prophete

Episode 264. Rescue Mission (Forgotten Divas Edition)

May 31, 2024African American Singers, Alternate Universe Bel Canto, Bel canto, Black History Month 2024, Forgotten Divas, French Opera, Full-Figured Baroque, Giacomo Puccini, Great Tenors, In Memoriam, Mezzo Madness, Music for a World in Crisis Series, Needle Drop, Orchestral Songs, Pop Icons, Singers of Color, SpiritualsAnnabelle Bernard, Antonio Salvi, Antonio Vivaldi, Ariodante, Arnold Schoenberg, Benny Goodman, Carmen, Christoph Willibald Gluck, Cole Porter, Delcina Stevenson, Didier Gold, Ernest Ragogini, Ethel Ennis, Eugène Scribe, George Frideric Handel, Georges Bizet, Giacomo Meyerbeer, Giacomo Puccini, Giuseppe Adami, Gwendolyn Killebrew, H. Vincent Mitzelfelt, Harold Adamson, Heinrich Hollreiser, Henri Meilhac, Jan Savitt, Jens Peter Jacobsen, Jerome Kern, Johann Sebastian Bach, Johnny Watson, Jonel Perlea, Julius Rudel, Le Prophete, Ludovic Halévy, Mark Russell, Michael Gielen, Orfeo ed Euridice, Otto Harbach, Prosper Mérimée, Ray Noble, Robert Franz Arnold, Ryan Diehl, Slam Stewart, Spirituals, Stef Scaggiari, Veronica Tyler, Walt Namuthcountermelody

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During Black History Month this year I featured a group of five exceptional singers I dubbed, for lack of a better term, “Forgotten Divas.” Each of these women, sopranos Delcina Stevenson, Annabelle Bernard, and Veronica Tyler, mezzo-soprano Gwendolyn Killebrew, and jazz singer Ethel Ennis, represents the peak of achievement in each of their respective fachs. These proved to be among the most popular and far-reaching of my recent episodes. At that time, I promised my listeners that I would continue to seek out rare recordings of each of these women and that, if and when such material surfaced, I would be sure to share it with my listeners. True to my promise, I present a brand-new episode featuring (for the most part) newly discovered material with each of these singers: a live Washington Opera Ariodante from 1971 and a live Carnegie Hall Orfeo ed Euridice from 1967, both with Veronica Tyler; live original language performances of Puccini’s Il tabarro and Meyerbeer’s Le Prophète from the stage of the Deutsche Oper Berlin which starred Annabelle Bernard; Gwendolyn Killebrew singing the Habanera from Carmen, one of her most celebrated roles, as well as the Waldtaube in Schoenberg’s Gurrelieder; rare studio recordings of Delcina Stevenson singing Bach and Vivaldi from the early 1970s; and live material featuring Ethel Ennis over the course of nearly fifty years of her career, 1958 through 2005. As more of this material resurfaces, I will present further episodes of this new “Rescue Mission” series featuring both these singers and others I have already featured on the podcast, performing material that adds to our understanding and appreciation of their artistry.

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.

Episode 263. Contralto Central

May 24, 2024African American Singers, Art Song, Behind the Iron Curtain, Bel canto, Black History Month, Black History Month 2024, Broadway, Forgotten Divas, French Opera, Full-Figured Baroque, Gustav Mahler, In Memoriam, Lieder, Mezzo Madness, Music for a World in Crisis Series, Needle Drop, Orchestral Songs, Pop Icons, Queer Pride, Richard Wagner, Singers of Color, SpiritualsAafje Heynis, Adriana Lecouvreur, Alec Redshaw, Alec Wilder, Alexander Pushkin, Alphons Diepenbrock, Andrès Wheatley, Armando La Rosa Parodi, Arnold Sundgaard, Boris Khaikin, Carmen, Caroline Kaart, Cassandra Wilson, Cesare Sterbini, Charles Baudelaire, Charles Gounod, Christoph Willibald Gluck, Clara Butt, Cloë Elmo, Cor Lemaire, Das Rheingold, Édouard Blau, Edward Elgar, Émile Augier, Émile Deschamps, Ernestine Schumann-Heink, Eugène Scribe, Eugenia Mantelli, Ewa Podleś, Felix de Nobel, Florence Kopleff, Florica Cristofereanu, Folk Songs, Francesco Cilea, Franz Schubert, Frederick Stone, Friedrich Rückert, Gaetano Donizetti, Georges Bizet, Georges Hartmann, Germaine Cernay, Giacomo Meyerbeer, Gioachino Rossini, Gustav Mahler, Gustave Cloëz, Hall Johnson, Helen Watts, Henri Meilhac, Herbert Hughes, Il barbiere di Siviglia, Jasmin White, Jimmy Webb, Johann Sebastian Bach, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, John Fletcher, Jules Massenet, Kathleen Ferrier, Kerstin Thorborg, Kindertotenlieder, Kosti Vehanen, La favorita, Langston Hughes, Le Prophete, Ludovic Halévy, Margaret Bonds, Marguerite D’Alvarez, Marian Anderson, Matthias Claudius, Mikhail Glinka, Milton Kaye, Nina Simone, Norma Procter, Orphée et Euridice, Paul Milliet, Peter Warlock, Philippe Riga, Pierre Beaumarchais, Prosper Mérimée, Richard Gannett, Richard Wagner, Robert Burns, Robert Shaw, Rosario Bourdon, Ruslan and Lyudmila, Sandy Dennis, Sapho (Gounod), Sea Pictures, Shannon Bolin, Sigrid Onégin, Spirituals, Thurston Dart, Václav Neumann, Valentina Levko, Valerian Shirkov, Vera Little, Věra Soukupová, Voltaire, Werthercountermelody

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Finally, the first in my long-promised series on the contralto voice! The contralto is a rara avis in the today’s opera and classical music scene, and yet back in the day, there seem to have been more of them before the public. And of course contraltos have always been a powerful presence on the popular music scene, whether in blues, disco, jazz, or as purveyors of the Great American Songbook. There is no way that I can cover all of the great (and near-great) contraltos in recorded history, but that doesn’t mean I’m not going to try! Today’s selections span a wide chronological range , even for this podcast: nearly 120 years, and include voices both fleet and monolithic (and sometimes both). We begin with a tribute to the late Polish coloratura contralto Ewa Podleś and along with way we hear the most famous contraltos like Kathleen Ferrier and Marian Anderson, and jazz and pop contraltos like Nina Simone and Cassandra Wilson. We also sample singers from the earlier twentieth century such as Ernestine Schumann-Heink, Cloe Elmo, Clara Butt, Eugenia Mantelli, Kerstin Thorborg, and Sigrid Onégin (about whom I spill some major tea!) Throughout the episode are sprinkled some of the most beautiful voices of any kind that I have ever heard: the Scottish Caroline Kaart, the Romanian Florica Cristofereanu, the Czech Věra Soukupová, the Dutch Aafje Heynis, the French Germaine Cernay, the British Norma Procter, and the Russian Valentina Levko. And if like me you have despaired of ever hearing another true contralto again in our lifetime, we hear in young Jasmin White cause for rejoicing. And if your favorites are not heard today, fear not, for this is the tip of the iceberg: many more great singers will follow when the series continues in two weeks.

Episode 1. Welcome to Countermelody, or Claudia and Zazà

September 12, 2019MusicA te o cara, Adriana Lecouvreur, Agnese di Hohenstaufen, Alberto Franchetti, Alfred Bachelet, Alfredo Catalani, Alfredo Silipigni, Allan Dwan, Allan Segall, Als flotter Geist, Alvino Misciano, Amelia al ballo, Amelita Galli-Curci, Amilcare Ponchielli, Andrea Chénier, Anita Cerquetti, Antoine Boësset, Anton Coppola, Aprile Millo, Arne Dorumsgaard, Arrigo Boito, Arturo Buzzi-Peccia, Arturo Toscanini, Bachelor Hall, Bianca e Fernando, Bidu Sayao, Boesset, Bonjour Suzon, Cary Grant, Cecil B. DeMille, Cecilia, Charles Long, Charles Simon, Chère nuit, Christoph Willibald Gluck, Cincinnati Opera, Clara Petrella, Clarence Brown, Claudette Colbert, Claudia Muzio, Denia Mazzola Gavazzeni, Der Roland von Berlin, Der Zigeunerbaron, Dir che ci sono al mondo, Domenico Alaleona, Edipo Re, Edith Mason, Edoardo Garbin, Eide Norena, Eleonora Duse, Emma Carelli, Emmy Destinn, Enrico Caruso, Erich Korngold, Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari, Ernestine Schumann-Heink, Esser madre è un inferno, Eugenia Mantelli, Eva Le Gallienne, Eva von der Osten, Fedora, Florence Quartararo, Francesca da Rimini, Francesco Cilea, Franco Alfano, Franco Corelli, Franco Ghione, Franz Schubert, Friedrich Hollaender, Gabrielle Réjane, Gaspare Spontini, George Cukor, Geraldine Farrar, Gerard Powers, Gerard Souzay, Giacinto Prandelli, Giacomo Lauri-Volpi, Giacomo Meyerbeer, Giacomo Puccini, Gianandrea Gavazzeni, Giancarlo Menotti, Gioacchino Rossini, Giovanni Martinelli, Giulio Crimi, Giuseppe Danise, Giuseppe de Luca, Giuseppe Verdi, Gloria Swanson, Guglielmo Tell, Guillaume Tell, Gus Kahn, H.B. Warner, Harrison Fisher, Heinrich Rehkemper, Hercule de Fontenailles, homosexuality, Hugo Hasslo, I Puritani, Il barbiere di Siviglia, Il tabarro, Il Trittico, Isa Miranda, Isadora Duncan, Italo Montemezzi, Jacqueline Bonneau, Jacques Offenbach, Jean Sibelius, Jeanette MacDonald, Joan Crawford, Johann Stauss II, Jorma Hynninen, King of Kings, La Fanciulla del West, Le Prophete, Léo Delibes, Licinio Refice, Lilo, Lodoletta, Loreley, Lorenzo Molajoli, Lotte Lehmann, Luca Canonici, Madama Butterfly, Madame Sans-Gêne, Mafalda Favero, Magda Olivero, Maria Pedrini, Mario Sammarco, Mary Garden, Mefistofele, Miriam Hopkins, Mrs. Leslie Carter, Nelson Eddy, O del mio amato ben, O prêtres de Baal, Oliviero de Fabritiis, Ombra di nube, Paride ed Elena, Pasquale Amato, Patricia Craig, Pauline Frederick, Pierre Berton, Pietro Mascagni, Ralf Gothoni, Randolph Scott, Renata Scotto, Renato Castellani, Rene Gaveau, Resurrection, Riccardo Zandonai, Risurrezione, Rosa Ponselle, Rosa Raisa, Rosina Storchio, Ruggero Leoncavallo, Selva opaca, Senza mamma, Sigmund Romberg, silent film, Smouldering Fires, Sorgi o padre, Spiagge amate, Stefano Antonucci, Stefano Donaudy, Sunset Boulevard, Suor Angelica, Teatro Grattacielo, The Fighting Westerner, The Girl of the Golden West, This Modern Age, Titta Ruffo, Umberto Giordano, Un bel dì, Una voce poco fa, Victor Maurel, Victorien Sardou, Vincenzo Bellini, Vittorio Gnecchi, Wolfgang Windgassen, Yvette Guilbert, Zaza, Zazà piccola zingaracountermelody

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Our first episode answers the question on everyone’s lips: “Where did the logo and the theme music come from?” We discuss the legendary Italian diva Claudia Muzio whose series of iconic recordings, particularly those recorded shortly before her premature death in 1936, are so extraordinary that they have kept her reputation intact to this day. We consider in particular her November 1920 recording of an aria from Ruggero Leoncavallo’s little-remembered verismo opera Zazà, in which her extraordinary artistry is on full display.

Countermelody is a new 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 also visit the Countermelody website for updates, additional content, and to pledge your support. www.countermelodypodcast.com