tosca film, with domingo & milnes

looks like a must-see -- 1976 film version of 'tosca,' with raina kabaivanska, placido domingo and sherril milnes, filmed...in situ -- in rome

i can't wait to see her vissi d'arte -- she's got a gorgeous voice

il quartetto encore: quattro più...e...una 'tutte le feste'

a domingo duke -- with isola jones, ileana cotrubas & cornell macneil

an anna moffo quartet -- with alfredo kraus, rosalind elias and robert merrill

something else, from the movie 'quartet' -- i noticed, and really enjoyed, the slow...instrumental-only...renditions of the quartet -- beautiful -- and...various parts of the piece too -- works...great -- just...tremendously beautiful music

cruising around on youtube, i came across, from that same '77 met production, ileana cotrubas & cornell macneil's 'tutte le feste al tempio' -- beautiful,...gorgeous,...spell-binding

jose carreras -- apparently, from one of the two times he played the duke...with new york city opera (in 1973) -- with patricia wise, margaret yauger, louis quilico

another pavarotti-sutherland pairing -- this time with huguette tourangeau and sherrill milnes, in the studio, in 1971 -- with sutherland's husband, richard bonynge, conducting

funny -- or, is that...mad

i didn't now this existed -- that there were...enough...madness out there

i came across the album cover, while looking for a picture of sutherland & sherrill milnes (for their duet)

quartet-mania

i just saw the movie 'quartet' again -- even better, second time around -- really moving (like opera -- like...good opera) -- brought tears to my eyes, many times -- although, i've been a bit teary-eyed, of late

so, i'm on another...quartet-high -- and...i'm going to share....

so, get ready...to be deluged...by quartets -- quartets...to the...quadruple power

i can't help it -- there are...so many...incredible renditions

something else...about this -- i know of no other scene...in the history of literature (and not only...musical theater), as beautifully set,...set up,...developed, as exquisitely choreographed...as this -- dramatically speaking -- and, when well acted, well sung, it's...incomparable -- the height of...everything

well, if any one...knows of another scene -- whether by the bard, the blind bard, aristophanes, anybody...that matches this -- comes close -- i'd love to hear about it (see it, read it, imbibe it) -- a few years ago, i was...kicked in the gut...truly wrenched, inside,...by a scene or two (or more) in oedipus -- but,...hard to imagine...a scene...being set -- played out -- with character-development,...characters' motivations, depth of feeling...to match this one

so, here goes -- feast your eyes, your ears...your soul

first -- and you could, just as well, stop right here -- the legendary pairing of pavarotti and dame sutherland -- one for the ages, this performance -- and, of course, one mustn't forget isola jones and leo nucci -- how could one

here, luciano...takes it from the top, in this great film version -- with edita gruberova as gilda, ingvar wixell as rigoletto, victoria vergara as maddelena, and ferruccio furlanetto as sparafucile

here's an exquisitely rendered -- not to mention, elegant -- quartet,...from 'classic' american television -- with cesare valetti, blanche theborn, roberta peters & cesare siepi -- those were the days

another, with dame sutherland -- and nicolai gedda, mildred miller & tito gobbi -- all of whom act beautifully and sing exquisitely -- and versa vice

another great...pavarotti quartet -- with renata scotto, bianca bortoluzzi & kostas paskalis

jussi bjorling, anna roto, roberta peters & robert merrill

one, starring the great mexican tenor ramon vargas, with elina granaca, anna netrebko & ludovic tezier

another, anchored the splendid argentinian...marcelo alvarez -- with judith howarth, denyce graves & bryn terfel

i just came across another tour de force by alvarez -- here, with cecilia bartoli, mariella devia & leo nucci

maria callas -- with giuseppe di stefano, adriana lazzarini & tito gobbi

a recent one, with juan diego florez, christa mayer, diana damrau & zeljko lucic -- with an interesting...dramatic twist

i just came across this collection of superstars -- pavarotti, june anderson, florence quivar & sherrill milnes

finally, a couple...from the record books -- literally -- from the records -- and, even, before...records

caruso, from 1907, with bessie abott, louise homer & antonio scotti

caruso, from 1917, with flora perini, amelita galli-curci, giuseppe de luca -- read about the picture

finally, john mccormack & lucrezia bori, from 1914

in the comments (posted on youtube, under this video), there's a lovely story...about mccormack and caruso...in an elevator -- mccormack greets caruso: 'and how is the world's greatest tenor today?,' to which caruso replies, 'and since when, john, did you become a baritone/'

i could go on and on (and i already have -- and i will,...anon -- i just came across a domingo duke (and others), and i'll look for a better quartet con 'la bellissima' -- but i have to stop, for now) -- you may (go on and on) -- and...share

all of this...led me to wonder, if there's a collection of the quartets -- if it's possible, to make a record -- cd -- of just the quartets -- i did a quick search on amazon -- didn't find anything -- i wonder, of course, if copyrights...would prevent... -- something...to think about