Today we’re listening to…“Voi che sapete” a mezzo-soprano aria from Act II of Le Nozze di Figaro by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The Marriage of Figaro (Le Nozze di Figaro in English) is a comic opera – light and humourous with a happy ending. Ceceila Bartoli is singing the role of Cherubino (kehr-oo-BEAN-oh) here, and while she makes it sound effortless, this is one of those Mozart arias that seems simple from the outside, but require a lot when it comes to the details. You can like or dislike Bartoli’s timbre or quality of her voice (or the sometimes distracting facial expressions she makes while singing), but there is no denying that she has a gift. Her voice is rich, dark, and super-expressive.
The greatest Mozart I ever heard was the Paris Opera production with Georg Solti conducting Jules Bastin, Federica VonStade in the Versailles production by Giorgio Strehler when they came to the Kennedy Center. Of special note: Norman Treigle sang the Count at City Opera who I remember for his stage presence. Paris Opera was stupendous. Zaide is a fragile work never staged at The Met.
What fun to sing “Voi che sapete”in Italian with Cecilia Bartoli. She would probably say I "killed it"! The concept of the "pants role" in opera makes me laugh three centuries later. I vaguely recall that in Shakespearean plays, the roles of women were often performed by men. Betcha they weren't called "dress roles"!
As for overtures, I love them! They're sort of like sneak previews at the movies. My favorite overture of all time is the introduction to the original Broadway production of "Man of La Mancha". This one is on the list.
I love the way you describe the overtures - this comment and another one is making me think I should pull the trigger on my opera overtures theme week!
Daniel P QuinnSep 15
The greatest Mozart I ever heard was the Paris Opera production with Georg Solti conducting Jules Bastin, Federica VonStade in the Versailles production by Giorgio Strehler when they came to the Kennedy Center. Of special note: Norman Treigle sang the Count at City Opera who I remember for his stage presence. Paris Opera was stupendous. Zaide is a fragile work never staged at The Met.
What fun to sing “Voi che sapete”in Italian with Cecilia Bartoli. She would probably say I "killed it"! The concept of the "pants role" in opera makes me laugh three centuries later. I vaguely recall that in Shakespearean plays, the roles of women were often performed by men. Betcha they weren't called "dress roles"!
As for overtures, I love them! They're sort of like sneak previews at the movies. My favorite overture of all time is the introduction to the original Broadway production of "Man of La Mancha". This one is on the list.
I love the way you describe the overtures - this comment and another one is making me think I should pull the trigger on my opera overtures theme week!