Word: sopranos
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Dates: during 1960-1969
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...brought up to believe that it is polite to wait until you are asked," Soprano Eileen Farrell invariably replied when people wondered why she had never sung at the Met. The Metropolitan Opera's Rudolf Bing continued to ignore Farrell, either because of misplaced gallantry over her heft (5 ft. 5½ in., 180 Ibs.) or because of her limited operatic repertory. But the snub did not hinder the progress of Farrell's career or silence the critics, who acclaimed her the U.S.'s top soprano. Finally, a year ago, Bing and the Met beckoned, and last...
...midst of all this. Soprano Farrell proved only a partial blessing. In the middle range her voice is still gloriously warm, rich and powerful, as moving as any voice heard in opera today. But in the upper registers it was strained and at times shrill. Once past the strenuous milestone of a Met debut, Farrell is now eagerly awaiting La Gioconda, her other Met starring role this season. "Gioconda," she says confidently. "That's a role you can really sink your teeth into...
...considerably more competent. The melodic lines were supple, the tone solid, and the phrasing refreshingly simple. But these good people were often forced to compete with the instrumentalists who were accompanying them. I was particularly impressed by Lila Woodruff's clear and completely unaffected reading of the soprano aria, Quia respexit, which she accomplished by completely ignoring a jarring accompaniment by a very poorly tuned oboe d'amore...
...later wrote his own Barber of Seville and drove the older work from the stage. In this recording, Paisiello's Barber emerges as a smaller-scaled work than Rossini's but with a gay, quicksilvery score, some limpidly graceful airs, and several scenes of truly inspired buffoonery. Soprano Sciutti, fresh-voiced and fanciful, makes Rosina seem one of the most appealing heroines in opera...
...Rosalind Elias, Giorgio Tozzi; Vienna Philharmonic and Vienna Society of the Friends of Music, under Fritz Reiner; RCA Victor, 2 LPs). A clean-lined, beautifully balanced and honest version, full of tranquil breathing space. The performances by Tenor Bjoerling, in his last, full recording role before his death, and Soprano Price, at the incandescent top of her form, stand out as stunning achievements...