villazon antics

i watched that great netrebko-villazon boheme movie again -- then watched a few behind-the-scenes videos, including this one, of villazon's antics

gotta love this guy -- he's so cute -- gotta get me one of those rubber noses too

kristine opolais: let's play two

what a tour de force, by kristine opolais

she sang butterfly, friday night -- her first time, singing the role at the met -- she would say,...i lived it

then unwound, had a late dinner -- goes to bed, around five

seven-thirty, the phone rings -- peter gelb's on the phone -- anita hartig's sick -- can you sing mimi, in five hours

what are you talking about -- impossible

five minutes later, she...has second thoughts -- why not

they go through the whirlwind of costumes, makeup, hair, steps, staging, all that -- bob's your uncle -- she makes her met debut as mimi

first time that's ever happened -- in met history -- 131 years -- two met debuts, in 24 hours -- more like...15 hours

she was incredible -- what a rich...and husky voice -- full...deep

great acting, too

[april 14: i just came across this detailed analysis of the show]

there was a beautiful shot of rodolfo (grigolo) and mimi (opolais), from below -- he's on the ground; she's on the upper level -- act three, just inside the paris gate -- i didn't get my camera out, to capture it -- it's just before they come together,...here

she,...and her duet with rodolfo, in that scene,...were spine-tingling

she must have had a good sleep, last night

[april 10: saw it again, this evening -- even more powerful, the second time -- maybe, because of what i've learned, since -- or...the effects of it, sinking in -- well, i thought it was one...for the ages -- she is...something else -- i'll be following her -- during the intermissions, i listened to her, on my phone, as butterfly, live from the met -- from the movie screen, i got this picture, from act three]

then, in this great interview, she says she's going to sing both soprano roles...in boito's mefistofele -- this girl...likes to play -- and...that's not enough

Often when I finish an opera I always say that I would like to sing more.

she's got some interesting takes...on magda,...tosca,...and mimi -- she likes to shake things up -- desdemona too -- and carmen

her husband says...she is...tosca

she's also going to be manon lescaut, with jonas kaufmann -- covent garden, in july -- that one...should be special -- super-special -- he's a teacher and mentor, for her -- idol, too -- will be broadcast in movie theaters

this 2008 butterfly, in covent garden, was conducted by her husband, andris nelsons

looking for a mimi clip, there's a boheme, with villazon -- wow -- i've gotta see that one

the last scene

part of 'addio, senza rancor'

soave fanciulla

here's an 'addio,'...that was added, today -- so, maybe, it's from yesterday

she's got a 'quando m'en vo' -- in concert

all right -- that's enough

now i've gotta figure out,...where i saw her, before

reading on in the interview, i think i might have seen a video of her, singing, with her husband, conducting -- he's the incoming music director of the boston symphony -- they'll open next season, together

netrebko-villazon boheme film

i just finished this film version of boheme -- beautiful -- fantastic -- how come nobody told me about it

the leads...are in full voice -- and splendid acting -- perfectly shot...set

they do add a sex scene...in act one -- not explicit -- i also miss the...pum-pum,...the last two notes of act three

the volume, here, is low

seems better, in the below version -- although the subtitles get in the way...of the movie -- the full...movie effect

february -- the puccini month

i just realized, that boheme, butterfly and tosca...all debuted in february -- i wonder why

for the record, boheme debuted in 1896, with arturo toscanini, wielding the baton, in turin; butterfly, in 1904 -- milan; and tosca, in 1900, in turin

well, it's obvious, from the dates, that he's an olympian -- belongs with the gods...on mount olympus

look at gheorghiu & kaufmann, in action

too bad...it gets cut off, at the end

i think he and villazon are the two top tenors, today

what the heck -- here,...with her 'ex' -- before he was...'ex'

she's a powerhouse

i forgot florez

bjorling & de los angeles, in love -- in puccini love

maybe the best boheme...on record

then, from act 3

their butterfly...together

wilhelmenia fernandez

i watched the movie 'diva,' last night -- for the first time in decades -- it became an instant cult-classic, when it came out, in '81, '82

the movie brought wilhelmenia wiggins fernandez to the attention of the world, with her great rendition of 'ebben? ne andro lontana' -- at the start of the movie

here are two more great performances

a very slow take...on 'patria mia' -- in luxor

a 'vissi d'arte'...that just floors you

she was musetta, in a 'boheme' with kiri te kanawa and placido domingo

some great soave fanciullas

what a great concert that was

what a great voice -- beautiful high note she finishes on

the cover image, below, is not right -- the voices, though,....

what a gorgeous voice elizabeth holleque has

what a concert that must have been

there they are again -- before

he's such a cutie

she gets around,...that mimi -- very popular

he gets around too

a bucharest duo

all we need now, is a bohemian boheme

pavarotti-freni boheme

i finally watched the pavarotti-freni boheme, from san francisco in '88

oh, my goodness -- what can one say -- pavarotti is beautiful -- freni is adorable...in acts one and two -- amazing...in voice, too

at the end, the flowers fly -- brought tears to my eyes -- what joy

the video of the whole...on youtube...has some 'scratches,' especially early on, and as it goes on, the audio and video grow progressively more out of sync

such synchronicity, though, between pavarotti and freni

i'll have to get a quality video...audio...of it

i'll also have to find pavarotti's first boheme -- in '61 -- his debut -- again, i think, with freni -- or, is it,...'deja vu,...all over again' -- backwards -- back to the future

it says, on his wikipedia page, that they were childhood friends, and that their mothers worked together in a cigar factory

i just found another pavarotti-freni pairing, from 1969

again, o soave fanciulla

how many times did they do it together

on a pbs special about him, he said that boheme was his lucky opera -- did it, every time he premiered in a city...with a company

here's another pavarotti-freni pairing -- 1996 -- just as moving -- maybe more,...by the end

wow -- they did it, together,...for maybe over 35 years

there's an exquisite rendition by enrico caruso and antonio scotti of the gorgeous rodolfo-marcelo duet from act four -- i just love those chords...near the end

this 1907 recording (on youtube) is a little scratchy -- the one you can access via the wikipedia page for boheme is much cleaner

on a youtube page featuring the two, it says they were close friends

finally, pavarotti, doing it with domingo -- with freni, watching on -- on stage -- looks like feruccio furlanetto, on stage too -- on the left side of the circle -- luciano comes up to him, early in the duet -- looks like quite a constellation of stars...on stage -- i caught thomas hampson

a shorter version -- without the fiori...that surrounded them, at the beginning

barcelona boheme

a couple of weeks ago, i saw, in the movie theater, a boheme from barcelona -- great -- a much better production than the previous one i saw at the movies, from vienna, with maps of the city, all over the stage

the liceu's promo is on youtube, at http://youtu.be/VYh8pYqREcI -- i couldn't include it here

they have another trailer -- charming -- with the four leads, inviting people to attend...and introducing themselves and the opera -- in three languages...maybe four -- at http://youtu.be/J53NgS8CL_I

[i just looked on wikipedia, and it appears that ainhoa arteta, the musetta, is basque]

here's el periodico's video -- clips from the opera, the house, and an interview with the mimi, fiorenza cedolins, who was wonderful -- perfect, for the part

here she is, singing si, mi chiamano mimi

vargas seemed a little off, though -- didn't...'turn it on,' till the last act, when he was back in the apartment, with mimi

the colline, carlo colombara, looked so familiar

he might have been the colline in the vienna production, from the previous year, starring anna netrebko and piotr beczala

he was great -- as were the musetta (arteta) and the marcello (christopher maltman) -- his duet with rodolfo was great -- she did an unbelievable trill (if that's what it's called), at the end of quando m'en vo' -- she really 'turned it on' -- the charm -- the sex appeal -- not to mention, the voice -- i wish i had a video...audio...of it

here she is, singing it at the met, in 2008 -- the video goes all the way to the end of the act, into the curtain call, and beyond -- it starts, though, right with her, singing -- we don't get the music...leading up to it

here's another version, which starts with the music lead-up, but cuts off, abruptly, as she finishes her...main portion -- the picture is bad -- the sound is great -- and we've got subtitles

yup -- i just found him -- it was salzburg, though -- not vienna -- colombara is in the green top

the blog around the world with irina has pictures from the barcelona production, with angela gheorghiu and saimir pirgu in the leads -- instead of fiorenza cedolins and vargas, whom i saw

from boheme: quando me'n vo' & rodolfo-marcello duet

i attended opera western reserve's annual show, friday, and the quando me'n vo' scene...is quite a...dramatic scene -- lots...going on -- from all quarters

i'd like to find a longer video, with translations of all the lines

what a cast, though, here -- vargas and gheorghiu -- the musetta is ainhoa arteta

here's another version -- longer -- with pavarotti

also, the rodolfo-marcello duet is beautiful

old friend jason budd was colline

in june, we led jason, on and off the stage, in opera circle's rigoletto -- he was monterone -- nice job with the coat song, tonight

the swedish-italian connection; rigoletto comes to cleveland

yesterday (or was it the day before), i heard this incredible rendition of 'o soave fanciulla'...by jussi bjorling and renata tebaldi

all right -- i don't like the word 'incredible'...so much -- it was, certainly,...gorgeous -- amazing -- spine-tingling -- profound -- well,...you fill in...your own....

well, that combination...of a swede and an italian...connected, nicely, with my recent meeting of marco stella, the product of another...swedish-italian...duo -- marco's father is italian; his mother is swedish -- macro lives in gothenborg (pronounced 'yot'ti'bori' -- i think i got that right) -- and he's a very good guy

marco's in cleveland, to play rigoletto, on june 15, in a production by our local...opera circle -- in a return of opera to downtown cleveland -- playhouse square

i met marco, wednesday, after he performed with dorota sobieska, with her husband, jacek (yat'sek) on piano -- in a preview concert

i only caught part...of gilda's death scene...of the concert -- i'd come from the much-more-important concert of my nephew's fifth-grade...orchestra/band/chorus -- he plays the flute (like me, when i was a couple of years older than him)

speaking of...me -- my...musical...involvements -- i tried out for rigoletto's chorus -- joined in...two rehearsals -- couldn't cut it -- can't read the stitches on the fastball, couldn't hit the curve -- why, i couldn't even tell the difference between a fastball and a breaking pitch -- didn't know the count -- my batting stance...was a mess -- swinging...at all kinds of pitches -- fishing.... -- it was fun...fishing, though -- i'll keep on fishing

i might still get...to walk on stage

someone who will definitely be on the stage...is christina carr, as maddalena -- i met christina, a couple of months ago, at the wagner symposium, in walsh college

i just told marco about the great bjorling-tebaldi duet, and asked him if there's anything special -- in opera -- in history -- culturally -- between italy and sweden

'no,' he said, 'i think i'm writing that chapter'

i told him i was going to write this, and he...very helpfully...suggested a link...to a sample of his singing -- why didn't i think of that -- where does he get off,...telling me...how to do my job,...what to do

here goes

by the way, marco...loves his uncle bob

well,...here's another swedish-italian...coupling -- bjorling and pavarotti -- also from 'la boheme'

where do they get off...doing that duet