Word: basses
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Dates: during 1950-1959
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...nearly 40 extraordinary years, Basso Pinza had it. Blessed with a brawny, 6-ft.-1-in. frame, a handsome, dignified face and a flexible, powerful bass voice, he ranged through 82 operatic roles, singing and acting them in a style that had his admirers reaching far back into opera's Golden Age for comparisons. When he left the Metropolitan Opera at 55 in 1948 to appear with Mary Martin in South Pacific, Pinza slipped into the role of Broadway matinee idol with such ease that many postwar fans were scarcely aware that he had ever done anything else. After...
Toward the Double Bass. The new concerto is a close collaboration between Piatigorsky's Russian ebullience and Walton's polite English diligence. Composer Walton started his work two years ago on the Italian island of Ischia, but he and Piatigorsky, then touring the U.S. and Asia, kept in close touch. "I would cable him, IN BAR FOUR AFTER F. IS THAT A B OR B FLAT," says Piatigorsky. "and I would get an answer: B FLAT. SORRY. LOVE, WILLIE." The cabled exchange of suggestions and corrections went on even after the Boston premiere, and up to the Concerto...
...leprosy, and continue with a sort of Freudian secret society that tries to honor Dr. Blok by returning him to the womb (whether literally or symbolically, Author Piatigorsky does not say). But something goes wrong, and Dr. Blok winds up not in the planned destination but in a double-bass case. "I am a little bit Blok myself," says Piatigorsky...
...large cast, while not having extraordinary voices as a rule, performed credibly, with tenor Malcolm Ticknor and bass Thomas Beveridge singing especially well. A fine all-around performance by David Black as one of the Chaplains stood out especially. With a better libretto, this could really be an exciting new opera, but even for those who don't find the prospect of seeing a good modern work attractive watching, An Incomplete Education may be better than staying home to study "Ictheology...
...soloists were Sarah-Jane Smith, who, as well as having a lovely voice, is a fine musician, and Thomas Beveridge, who is a true bass and not a warmed-over baritone. Oboist Cynthia Deery played with a fine woody tone, but had a curious way of ending a phrase abruptly. The strings were fine, especially in the final duet, but the high point of the cantata was the accompanied recitative for the two soloists, with daring harmonies and beautiful, sweeping, melodic lines...