7 Comments
Oct 8, 2020Liked by Opera Daily

This was truly beautifully sung, thank you.

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Oct 12, 2020Liked by Opera Daily

Juan Diego FlĆ³rez delivered a sweet rendition of "Una furtiva lagrima" from Donizetti's "L'Elisir d'amore". Pavarottiā€™s version was very impressive, though Iā€™m not sure that his muscular singing really matched the character of Nemorino, a humble ā€œnobodyā€. Of three artists I explored, I liked Enrico Carusoā€™s performance best. It was musically interesting, had more emotional depth, was credible in light of the story, and had the creativity and decorative qualities characteristic, I gather, of bel canto singers.

I now know that ā€œopera buffaā€ is the term used for two comic operas I enjoyed in my youth - "The Barber of Seville" and "The Marriage of Figaro". I imagine opera composers and fans alike welcomed a respite, from time to time, from the heaving bosoms and tragic laments that dot the operatic landscape.

Finally, I checked out this amazing website by Tom FrĆøkjƦr, http://www.enricocaruso.dk (English). Itā€™s an extraordinary labor of love with all of Carusoā€™s recordings and incredible photos. Iā€™m hooked on Caruso now. (YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t936rzOt3Zc )

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Oct 13, 2020Liked by Opera Daily

Thank you for this: "You can hear the arias again and again, with different singers and with full operas, different stagings, and with each hearing you will not merely hear music you know, but experience it again, and in deeper ways. While I go through the process of curating multiple interpretations of a role or an aria each week, my love of opera has deepened." This is exactly what it's been like for me to follow your (so much more than a) newsletter. You're like The Pied Piper without the unhappy ending. This pandemic, and you, have given us subscribers a blessing. Amen.

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George Jellinek the Hungarian/New York music historian hosted The Vocal Scene on WQXR in the 1970's-1980's. His programs are a gold mine of Classical Music and Operatic Singers History,

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