Word: lirico
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Wagnerian heldentenors have rarely stirred the hearts of more than a minority of opera buffs, though, which is where Jose Cura and Marcelo Alvarez come in. Alvarez, 36, is a light lyric tenor whose high notes are fresh sounding and secure; Cura, 36, is a weightier lirico-spinto with an impressive touch of baritonal muscle. Alvarez made his Met debut last month in Franco Zeffirelli's bloated new production of La Traviata, in which his engaging singing was overshadowed by the spectacularly vivid Violetta of Patricia Racette. Cura's turn comes with next season's opening night, when he will...
Vocally, Pavarotti in recent years has skillfully negotiated the most treacherous shoals that face a tenor. Early in his career he was a classic tenore lirico, ideally suited to lighter lyric roles like Rodolfo, and florid bel canto roles like Nemorino in L'Elisir d'Amore. With age, however, a tenor's voice takes on a heavier tone and darker coloration. By the time he is in his 40s, a tenore lirico is usually ready for roles in the intermediate spin to (pushed) range, like Cavaradossi in Tosca, and maybe even in the forceful, baritonal tenore drammatico category, like...
That early training, Tucker feels, helped him to catch on at the Met, mastering 25 major roles as he developed from a lyric tenor to a lirico spinto (midway between lyric and dramatic). He is not identified with any single role, but ranging between the romantic bel canto flights of Lucia di Lammermoor and the more declamatory style of Turandot or La Fanciulla del West, he has created some memorable characterizations: Don Jose in Carmen, Rodolfo in La Boheme, the Duke of Mantua in Rigoletto...
...wrote music for revues at the Teatro Lirico, and in 1932 began croaking his own songs in an immensely popular radio program. Lara became a kind of musical version of Rudolph Valentino. Touring neighboring republics, he was mobbed by women in the streets. After quarreling with his actress-wife, Carmen Zozoya, Lara met Movie Star María Felix just before a party in honor of her first big picture. "Please come, Señor Lara," cooed María. "But I warn you that we have no piano. Just a guitar." Next day he sent her a snow-white...
...Hour. He got four pesos a day in a café, where he married the cashier. His playing attracted a well-known singer named Maruca Perez, and Lara moved on to the famous El Retiro restaurant near the bull ring. He began writing music for revues at the Teatro Lirico, in 1932 was signed by Mexico's leading radio station for a program well named the Hora Intima, This has become Mexico's most popular radio feature...