Good morning, friends! If you missed any of the previous pieces (this turned out to be Tosca month!), you can catch up here:
Tosca is pretty much the perfect opera and one of the most accessible ones for those new to opera. It’s about obsession, sex, murder, suicide—all of them! Cavaradossi (a painter) and Tosca (a soprano) are falling for each other. Every so often, the two of them go for a weekend together at Cavaradossi’s villa outside of Rome. Meanwhile, Scarpia, the police chief, has also fallen for Tosca. Scarpia arrests Cavaradossi and offers Tosca a trade — her sexual favors for her lover’s life — but Tosca manages to kill Scarpia before that happens.
Today we’re listening to…
"Vissi d'arte", a soprano aria from Act 2 of the Italian opera Tosca by Giacomo Puccini. The role of Tosca is perfect for a lyrico-spinto soprano (a soprano voice type that has both lyric and dramatic qualities to it). This aria requires the soprano to use her top notes, as well as her lowest ones, to describe her feelings of anguish and hate.
Scarpia arrests Cavaradossi and lures Tosca to his house. Scarpia wants Tosca. He tries to bargain with her and offers to stop the torturing of her lover Cavaradossi for a night together. This aria represents a shift in Tosca’s personality from a somewhat vain, flirtatious girl to a woman who suffers and turns to a higher power for help. She sings here of the two great driving forces in her life: love and music.
If you can believe it, this aria almost did not make it into the final version of the score as Puccini felt it stalled the action in the scene.
We are listening to Maria Callas here, and like so many of her roles, she does not just sing Tosca — she is Tosca. As you can see (and hear) below, I think the crowd in Paris the evening of December 19th 1958 would agree :-)
🎧 Listen here (4 minute listen), Maria Callas, "Vissi d'arte", Tosca, December 1958, L'Opera de Paris
Her 1964 comeback at London’s Royal Opera House is probably the most famous performance of Callas singing Tosca, which you can find here.
“Vissi d'Arte” (“I lived for art, I lived for love”)
I lived for art, I lived for love, I never harmed a living soul!
With a discreet hand, I relieved all misfortunes I encountered.
Always with sincere faith, my prayer rose to the holy tabernacles.
Always with sincere faith, I decorated the altars with flowers.
In this hour of grief, why, why, Lord, why do you reward me thus?
I donated jewels to the Madonna's mantle, and offered songs to the stars and to heaven, which thus did shine with more beauty.
In this hour of grief, why, why, Lord, ah, why do you reward me thus?
Here are some other interpretations of the piece:
Mirella Freni (she never sang this role on stage and she was definitely not known for her recording of this opera, but I still love the purity of tone here)
Full productions of Tosca:
Callas/Di Stefano/Gobbi, La Scala, 1953
Verrett/Pavarotti/Macneil, The Metropolitan Opera, 1978
Gordoni/Corelli/D’Orazi, Parma, 1967
Kabaivanska/Domingo/Milnes, London New Philharmonia Orchestra, 1976
Do you have a favorite soprano singing the role of Tosca? Or a specific performance you prefer? Please leave it in the comments!
Thank you for listening,
Michele
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Opera Daily knows what they're talking about! (I said "they" because I don't know if "Michele" is masculine or feminine.) I once took a course by a well-known opera expert at Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton, Florida, on great opera singers. He taught that the best opera singers could not only stand and sing the arias, they could also show the emotions of the characters they were singing. The best examples: Maria Callas and Placido Domingo. In the Opera Daily wording, "Callas IS Tosca!" The professor proved his point by showing Callas singing the exact aria that Opera Daily provided today. Outstanding choice, Opera News. Brava to Callas!
Tosca's "Vissi d'arte" has officially knocked Norma's "Casta Diva" off the pedestal as my favorite soprano aria. I can't say yet who, among our five divas, is my favorite. That will require more listens and seeing the last two full operas (and perhaps more).
Choosing favorite singers, male or female, is like trying to decide which is your favorite wine - some are sweet, some are dry, some are a little tart, some sparkle like champagne. If you know enough about different wines, choosing a favorite just might depend on your experience and your mood. Today I felt that Shirley Verrett's rendition of "Vissi d'arte" hit the right notes. To have seen her and Luciano Pavarotti in rehearsal, and then perform "Tosca" at The Met (1978) (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vog5qEClTT), really lifted my spirits. She was so beautiful, so expressive and they seemed to bring out the best in each other.
I also realized today that "Vissi d'arte" is not a love song, but a profoundly sad lamentation. I felt the full weight of Floria Tosca's anguish, loss of faith, despair, disillusionment and self-pity. To hear this aria, during the seasons of Passover and Easter, heightened its meaning for me. Who among us has not asked of God or human: Why have you forsaken me? What have I done to deserve this?
At any rate, here are the Italian lyrics I stumbled across, for anyone who likes karaoke opera.
Vissi d'arte, vissi d'amore,
non feci mai male ad anima viva!
Con man furtiva
quante miserie conobbi, aiutai.
Sempre con fe' sincera,
la mia preghiera
ai santi tabernacoli salì.
Sempre con fe' sincera
diedi fiori agli altar.
Nell'ora del dolore
perché, perché Signore,
perché me ne rimuneri così?
Diedi gioielli
della Madonna al manto,
e diedi il canto
agli astri, al ciel, che ne ridean più belli.
Nell'ora del dolore,
perché, perché Signore,
perché me ne rimuneri così?