Search - Verdi, Price, Bergonzi :: Il Trovatore

Good Old-Fashioned 'Night at the Opera': L. PRICE Live!!

Donizetti's Kid | NYC, NY United States | 04/17/2003

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This performance of Verdi's "Il Trovatore" was one of the series that introduced the legendary American diva, sop. Leontyne Price (singing one of her 'signature' roles)to Spanish audiences live. The famous "debutante" was joined by (3) of the finest Verdians to ever sing his music. The result is a performance from the old-fashioned days when vocalists just stood & sang, competing with their colleagues on the length of high notes, & intermittently providing artistic insight into their respective roles & music. This was somewhat surprising, given the supreme artistry of (3) of the principals. The tenor, Carlo Bergonzi has long enjoyed a sterling reputation for impeccable 'musical manners', but on this night he seemed determined to out-sing his Italian mezzo compatriate Fiorenza Cossotto whenever they 'duetted', often at the expense of any phrasing or dynamic shadings. Cossotto's own artistry is usually unassailable, especially in this, one of her most sublime creations, however she matches Bergonzi long- held note for note. It may have been the altitude because Italian Piero Cappuccilli, renowned both for his splendid baritone voice AND a stolid dramatic persona, joins in the fray, trying to actually outlast Ms. Price in THEIR scenes together. Its all very exciting, mostly thrilling in its vocal exhuberance, and definitely applause-enhancing. If only their actual vocalism matched the competitive energy expended. Bergonzi is clearly stretched by the vocal demands of one of Verdi's most heroic roles, and makes little capitol of the more lyric oppotunities in the music, notably "Ah,si ben mio". He astonishingly lowers the "Di quella pira" a whole tone instead of the traditional semitone, and still manages to sound strained by the B-flat he does bawl out! Ms. Cossotto's upper register, never easy when singing this music, is sorely tested this evening, with scant compensation from her usually outstanding middle & chest voice, sounding more nasal than normal, and suprisingly under-powered for this big-voiced artist. Cappuccilli is loud, powerful, and, for the most part, crude in even the graceful "Il balen" aria, NOT the standard for this usually estimable singer. It is left to the 'newcomer' Ms. Price to provide the musical felicities otherwise largely absent from her fellow cast-mates offerings. She does so, while providing throbbing luscious tone in her middle voice, an arresting chest voice (with a touch of rasp that evening), and a refulgent upper register that produced a vibrant high "C" at the climax of "Tacea la Notte", and several exquisite "Bs & Cs" elsewhere. Her "D'amor sull ali rosee" deservedly received the greatest ovation in the performance. Ms. Price was fluid in the coloratura passages, dramatically urgent in the "Miserere" & the opera's finale. Not surprisingly, perhaps, the prima donna is quite unafraid to test her mettle in holding high notes when challenged (most notably by Mr. Cappuccilli), and never falters in delivery - even on a superbly sung high D flat in alt that ends Act I. The role of 'Ferrando' is roughly sung by basso Ivo Vinco,also Ms. Cossotto's husband.
Maestro Oliviero de Fabritiis, Ms. Price's conductor nearly 10 years earlier on her now-legendary "Blue Album", brings welcome panache to this, one of Verdi's grandest operas, but fails to rein-in his cast of thoroughbred singers, and musically, things are never really cohesive. Nonetheless, you're quite unlikely to encounter anything even close to the majestic vocalism of these supreme Verdians on an 'imperfect' night in our present operatic climate!! The Argentinian audience in Buenos Aires that night certainly welcomed the full-blooded singing of this performance, and so will you. Admirers of the fabulous Leontyne Price will find this a valuable historical addition to their collection. She never sang in Argentina again, though she continued to excell in this opera into her fifties. Enjoy!"