The aria Suicido hangs over all of this----mixed with a mania of fame and adulation after Maria was dead. McNally was a grave digger as well, and his plays posturing, not insightful or worse. The reviews for her last tour with DiStefano were lacerating as well. Maria was not a goddess but a victim, somewhat like Princess Diana or JFK junior to the media mob.
Had I been a young opera singer, with a chance to be mentored by accomplished artists such as these - Maria Callas, Luciano Pavarotti, Christa Ludwig, Joyce DiDonato, Renee Fleming, Gerald Finley - I suspect I would have been, as is said colloquially, "all in my feelings." On one hand, I would have felt honored to have been chosen to learn from an established master of the craft. On the other hand, I would have been starstruck at best, and insecure and intimidated at worst, to have such larger-than-life opera stars offering technical tips on my vocalizations, aligning them with a composer's intent, stopping my warbling often, and critiquing my errors based on their informed and active listening. Surely there were more than a few folks in those masterclasses who dissolved into tears and had their lofty opinions of themselves shaken😄. In the clip from "Master Class" Terrence McNally, Zoe Caldwell and Audra McDonald gave us a good sense of what might happen on the other side of the equation.
I accidentally discovered a link to the late Peter Mennin, President of the Juilliard School from 1962 until 1983, who started the Master Class Program. You undoubtedly know about Juilliard's Peter Mennin prize for Outstanding Achievement and Leadership in Music. (Do you know if it has been awarded to any opera singers, or their masterclass mentees, whose names we know today?)
Meanwhile, here are links for folks like me, who can go off on a tangent after one of your posts🧐.
The aria Suicido hangs over all of this----mixed with a mania of fame and adulation after Maria was dead. McNally was a grave digger as well, and his plays posturing, not insightful or worse. The reviews for her last tour with DiStefano were lacerating as well. Maria was not a goddess but a victim, somewhat like Princess Diana or JFK junior to the media mob.
My introduction to the great French baritone Gerard Souzay was in a master class at my alma mater, an eye-opening event (he remains one of my most favorite lieder singers). If you've not seen it, Renee Fleming in her association witylh the Kennedy Center conceived of a multi-day master class event showcasing established performers in master classes in jazz (Dianne Reeves), opera (Eric Owens), pop (Ben Folds), broadway (Sutton Foster), etc. It was packaged as a 1.5 hour PBS Great Performances special. And it was eye-opening special. Here's a Washington Post review link: https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/music/renee-flemings-american-voices-festival-transcends-lousy-concert/2013/11/24/ef3d7d82-5534-11e3-ba82-16ed03681809_story.html&sa=U&ved=2ahUKEwiTks7IpJD9AhUhk2oFHX-jDxE4ChAWegQIBhAC&usg=AOvVaw3qOseLABPuSrgshgvNQRDF
Love love love ❤️
Had I been a young opera singer, with a chance to be mentored by accomplished artists such as these - Maria Callas, Luciano Pavarotti, Christa Ludwig, Joyce DiDonato, Renee Fleming, Gerald Finley - I suspect I would have been, as is said colloquially, "all in my feelings." On one hand, I would have felt honored to have been chosen to learn from an established master of the craft. On the other hand, I would have been starstruck at best, and insecure and intimidated at worst, to have such larger-than-life opera stars offering technical tips on my vocalizations, aligning them with a composer's intent, stopping my warbling often, and critiquing my errors based on their informed and active listening. Surely there were more than a few folks in those masterclasses who dissolved into tears and had their lofty opinions of themselves shaken😄. In the clip from "Master Class" Terrence McNally, Zoe Caldwell and Audra McDonald gave us a good sense of what might happen on the other side of the equation.
I accidentally discovered a link to the late Peter Mennin, President of the Juilliard School from 1962 until 1983, who started the Master Class Program. You undoubtedly know about Juilliard's Peter Mennin prize for Outstanding Achievement and Leadership in Music. (Do you know if it has been awarded to any opera singers, or their masterclass mentees, whose names we know today?)
Meanwhile, here are links for folks like me, who can go off on a tangent after one of your posts🧐.
Callas* – Callas At Juilliard, The Master Classes
Label: Audio Encyclopedia – AE 101
Format: CD, CD-ROM, MP3, 32 kbps
Country: US
Released: 1998
Genre: Classical
Style: Romantic, Opera
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christa_Ludwig
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terrence_McNally
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zoe_Caldwell
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Audra_McDonald
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Mennin
There was also feature coverage by Alan Rich in NY Magazine, Opera News, and The NYTimes as well for first hand source material on Callas at Julliard.