DIE ZAUBERFLÖTE:Mozart
Original Air Date: 01/22/1977
Conlon; Valente, Burrows, Uppman, Shane, Plishka
SID.19340320
This Zauberfloete features old and new performers in a well-balanced performance. The conductor, James Conlon, was in his debut engagement; and the Sarastro, Paul Plishka, was doing his only series in the role (one of his first major roles). The talented Benita Valente was especially noted for her Mozart roles. On the lesser known and underappreciated front, we have a sparkling Rita Shane as the Queen of the Night. Finally, on the veteran front, we have Theodore Uppman, doing the last of his 60 Papagenos at the Met. Maybe most notable for a future Broadway composer Adam Guettel (RRodgers’ grandson) as one of the Genie. All in all, an enjoyable Mozart outing.
LA GIOCONDA:Ponchielli
Original Air Date: 03/16/1946
Cooper; Milanov, Tucker, Warren, Stevens, Vaghi
SID.19340321
The Met doesn’t reach back into the 1940s often, but La Gioconda is a good opera to do that. This is from Tucker’s debut broadcast (his house debut is in the same role the previous season). Milanov, Tucker, and Warren really show the type of voices necessary for this work. The MOoD from 1953 substitutes Baum for Tucker, but you pick up Barbieri and Siepi. A major Gioconda omission from rebroadcast is the 1959 the only other Gioconda broadcast with Milanov and Tucker together. It also features Merrill and Siepi which is about as potent a male lineup as can be imagined. Sirius, Met, how about a look at 1959, and the addition of this 1946 performance to MOoD.
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NORMA:Bellini
Original Air Date: 02/17/1973
Cillario; Caballé, Cossotto, Cossutta, Tozzi
MOD Audio SID.19340422
This is from Caballe’s first run at Norma with the reliable Cossotto; they are certainly a team. Cossutta missed the premiere, and this is his debut; he would go on to do 12 more Polliones with Caballe, Galvany, and Verrett and that is his Met career. Tozzi would not be my choice for Oroveso. Norma is one of Caballe’s best roles.
DER FLIEGENDE HOLLÄNDER:Wagner
Original Air Date: 02/16/1963
Böhm; London, Rysanek, Kónya, Tozzi
MOD Audio SID.19340423
This is a legendary partnership of Bohm with London and Rysanek. Bohm and Rysanek are together for two later broadcasts in 1965 with David Ward, and 1970 with William Dooley. This 1963 broadcast was swapped with Ariadne two weeks earlier when the Hollander cast could not be assembled. That swap denied the broadcast audience the chance to hear Della Casa’s Ariadne. There is no Senta like Rysanek. Rysanek and London are certainly a remarkable pair, and the applause for their Act 2 duet (in the 3 act version) regularly seemed unending. The Met Hollander premiere three years earlier with Rysanek and London was with Schippers. There is nothing like the finale. Tthis performance is on Met Player, and is far more thrilling than the studio performance with much the same cast under Dorati.
LULU:Berg
Original Air Date: 04/13/1985
Levine; Migenes, Mazura, Lear, Lewis, Foldi
SID.19340424
This performance was also issued in Sony’s Historical series on CD, but strikingly not in the Met Opera on Demand (MOoD) which features a performance from the season before with the same conductor, Figaro, Count, and Cherubino. Della Casa is swapped with Amara and Soderstrom (as Susanna) is swapped with Peters. Siepi is the chief attraction here. His Figaro is represented by 3 other Nozze performances, but strangely his Mephisto only has one streaming representation, but neither Bjorling (1950, 1959) nor a strong cast for his last turn at the microhones in 1969.
THE GAMBLER:Prokofiev
Original Air Date: 03/31/2001
Gergiev; Galouzine, Guryakova, Alexashkin, Obraztsova
SID.19340425
This is the Met broadcast premiere of this work. Seven years later Galouzine and Gergiev are together again for another broadcast at the Met, but with Diadkova in for Obraztsova. Galouzine has been through a lot of heavy singing in the seven years, so this is overall the best bet for experiencing the Prokofiev. Unfortunately, the MOoD only has the 2008 broadcast. In the theatre with lot of intense visuals, this was a most enjoyable production. Even with audio only Gergiev and Galouzine are still powerhouses.
I VESPRI SICILIANI:Verdi
Original Air Date: 03/09/1974
Levine; Caballé, Gedda, Milnes, Díaz
MOD Audio SID.19340426
This is a performance where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. If Caballe does not have every note in place, she is still very near the top of her considerable form, and the ensemble reflects the new production intensity and first appearance of a major Verdi opera in the Met repertory. Gedda has the most performances of Arrigo, the challenging tenor role. Tucker was scheduled for a run (including broadcast) the year he died, but none of the hearty tenors of the past had the right timing– no Corelli, Bergonzi, and only five for Domingo, and he was gone. This performance is available in Met Opera on Demand (MOoD) and is a strong performance.
MANON:Massenet
Original Air Date: 12/18/1954
Monteux; de los Angeles, Valletti, Corena
SID.19340427
This performance is notable for the special qualities of Monteux , de Los Angeles, and Valletti, a performance to treasure. Once again I will put in a plea for the December 1959 broadcast with de Los Angeles and Gedda under Jean Morel, which has not been heard on Sirius at all.This performance is notable for the special qualities of Monteux , de Los Angeles, and Valletti, a performance to treasure. Once again I will put in a plea for the December 1959 broadcast with de Los Angeles and Gedda under Jean Morel, which has not been heard on Sirius at all.
IL TROVATORE:Verdi
Original Air Date: 02/18/1967
Molinari-Pradelli; Tucker, Arroyo, Cvejic, Merrill, Michalski
SID.19340428
This is a pretty standard Met Trovatore cast, though Juntwait in her introduction indicates it was the only time Arroyo, Tucker, and Merrill were on the airwaves together; Cvejic did not make much of an impression as Azucena. Paul Jackson is pretty hard this performance, primarily because of Molinari-Pradelli, and I don’t disagree. Mediocre conducting and a faceless Azucena adds up to less than zero Trovatore. Tucker and Merrill are very much up to the music after more than two decades before the footlights. Arroyo was a solid Leonora, but for me this is the great Verdi soprano role. In terms of music, possibly even more interesting than Violetta (both written so closely together).
DON PASQUALE:Donizetti
Original Air Date: 12/05/1970
Franci; Corena, Grist, Kraus, Krause
MOD Audio SID.19340529
This is a fine performance, but I would love to hear Corena from 1956 with Peters and Valletti in Schippers debut season. I also notice Pinza did a broadcast in 1935 which I think does not survive. Love to hear Pinza and Donizetti, though for the patter duet Corena is absolutely the last word, closely followed by Baccaloni. Corena’s 1965 broadcast with Peters has been on Sirius and is on MOoD, but that’s with Alva, not Valletti.
DIE ZAUBERFLÖTE:Mozart
Original Air Date: 01/22/1977
Conlon; Valente, Burrows, Uppman, Shane, Plishka
SID.19340530
This Zauberfloete features old and new performers in a well-balanced performance. The conductor, James Conlon, was in his debut engagement; and the Sarastro, Paul Plishka, was doing his only series in the role (one of his first major roles). The talented Benita Valente was especially noted for her Mozart roles. On the lesser known and underappreciated front, we have a sparkling Rita Shane as the Queen of the Night. Finally, on the veteran front, we have Theodore Uppman, doing the last of his 60 Papagenos at the Met. Maybe most notable for a future Broadway composer Adam Guettel (RRodgers’ grandson) as one of the Genie. All in all, an enjoyable Mozart outing.
TOSCA:Puccini
Original Air Date: 03/20/1999
Santi; Vaness, Pavarotti, Morris
MOD Audio SID.19340531
This is Pavarotti’s fifth and final Cavaradossi broadcast. I always find his voice a tad light for the role, but no one exceeds him in his honeyed delivery of the text. Vaness is a low wattage Tosca. Available on MOoD there is a 1995 performance of the Pav with Holleque and Pons. Best of all, at least for him is the 1978 telecast (on MOoD) and DVD with Verrett and MacNeil under Conlon.
FALSTAFF:Verdi
Original Air Date: 02/03/1996
Levine; Plishka, Daniels, Quilico, Horne, Bonney, Groves
MOD Audio SID.19340532
Levine, Plishka, Bonney, and Horne are all in the 1992 revival which is on MOoD, but with Freni for Daniels, and Bruno Pola for Quilico. My experience with almost all of the Falstaff casting in the Levine era is OK, but not really an ensemble. We still keep having the Bernstein performance overlooked (LB’s only other Met broadcast beside Cavalleria) from 1964. The bad luck continues with Rosenstock’s conducting from 1965 and Amaducci’s conducting fom 1967. The Dohnanyi performance from 1972 features Gobbi in one of HIS two Met broadcasts (the other is Otello, no Scarpia on the Met airwaves alas) with Tebaldi, Resnik, Paskalis in sterling support. This should be in MOoD.
IL BARBIERE DI SIVIGLIA:Rossini
Original Air Date: 03/09/1963
Strasfogel; Guarrera, D’Angelo, Shirley, Corena, Tozzi
SID.19340533
The only known I will vouch for in advance is Corena, one of his very best roles. Tozzi becomes more variable in this period, so I don’t want to praise a performance I have not recently heard. This performance could be anything from a train wreck to a secret gem. What I am sure about is that it is not the Zedda critical edition (not yet published).
Various:Various
Original Air Date: 01/01/9999
Various Artists
SID.19340534
Various selections between scheduled operas. Siriusxm Radio and web player will show the Composer and Title.
LA CLEMENZA DI TITO:Mozart
Original Air Date: 04/20/2019
Koenigs; Fang, van den Heever, DiDonato, Murrihy, Polenzani, Van Horn
SID.19340535
Mozart’s opera of ancient Rome, La Clemenza di Tito, returned to the Met starring Matthew Polenzani in the title role of the Roman emperor Tito, with Elza van den Heeveras the vengeful Vitellia, who plots his assassination. Joyce DiDonato sings the trouser role of Sesto, Tito’s most devoted friend, who is also in love with Vitellia. The trio of leading artists is reunited at the Met after their acclaimed performances together in the company’s new production of Donizetti’s Maria Stuarda in 2013. Emily D’Angelo and Ying Fang sing the roles of thelovers Annio and Servilia, Sesto’s friend and sister, respectively, andChristian Van Horn portrays the captain of the Praetorian Guard, Publio. Lothar Koenigs conducts all six performances of Jean-Pierre Ponnelle’s 1984 staging, which ran March 30 through April 20, 2019.
I PURITANI:Bellini
Original Air Date: 03/13/1976
Bonynge; Sutherland, Pavarotti, Milnes, Morris
MOD Audio SID.19340636
Bing delivered a lovely production, and the four principals all were well suited to their roles. This was a big break-out part for Morris and the Suoni la tromba duet with Milnes almost stole the show from Pavarotti and Sutherland. Sutherland is 50 for this performance, and amazingly is back ten years later for another Puritani broadcast. This 1976 is the preferred broadcast and deservingly is on Met Player. It’s just a shame it wasn’t videod as well (the first video of the modern series comes a year later). It is a fitting document to one of the strongest Puritani quartets ever. There is no arguing that Met casting was top tier, and this certainly lifted Morris up from being promising to being major.
MANON:Massenet
Original Air Date: 12/18/1954
Monteux; de los Angeles, Valletti, Corena
SID.19340637
This performance is notable for the special qualities of Monteux , de Los Angeles, and Valletti, a performance to treasure. Once again I will put in a plea for the December 1959 broadcast with de Los Angeles and Gedda under Jean Morel, which has not been heard on Sirius at all.This performance is notable for the special qualities of Monteux , de Los Angeles, and Valletti, a performance to treasure. Once again I will put in a plea for the December 1959 broadcast with de Los Angeles and Gedda under Jean Morel, which has not been heard on Sirius at all.
LA GIOCONDA:Ponchielli
Original Air Date: 03/16/1946
Cooper; Milanov, Tucker, Warren, Stevens, Vaghi
SID.19340638
The Met doesn’t reach back into the 1940s often, but La Gioconda is a good opera to do that. This is from Tucker’s debut broadcast (his house debut is in the same role the previous season). Milanov, Tucker, and Warren really show the type of voices necessary for this work. The MOoD from 1953 substitutes Baum for Tucker, but you pick up Barbieri and Siepi. A major Gioconda omission from rebroadcast is the 1959 the only other Gioconda broadcast with Milanov and Tucker together. It also features Merrill and Siepi which is about as potent a male lineup as can be imagined. Sirius, Met, how about a look at 1959, and the addition of this 1946 performance to MOoD.
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NORMA:Bellini
Original Air Date: 02/17/1973
Cillario; Caballé, Cossotto, Cossutta, Tozzi
MOD Audio SID.19340639
This is from Caballe’s first run at Norma with the reliable Cossotto; they are certainly a team. Cossutta missed the premiere, and this is his debut; he would go on to do 12 more Polliones with Caballe, Galvany, and Verrett and that is his Met career. Tozzi would not be my choice for Oroveso. Norma is one of Caballe’s best roles.
LULU:Berg
Original Air Date: 04/13/1985
Levine; Migenes, Mazura, Lear, Lewis, Foldi
SID.19340640
This performance was also issued in Sony’s Historical series on CD, but strikingly not in the Met Opera on Demand (MOoD) which features a performance from the season before with the same conductor, Figaro, Count, and Cherubino. Della Casa is swapped with Amara and Soderstrom (as Susanna) is swapped with Peters. Siepi is the chief attraction here. His Figaro is represented by 3 other Nozze performances, but strangely his Mephisto only has one streaming representation, but neither Bjorling (1950, 1959) nor a strong cast for his last turn at the microhones in 1969.
THE GAMBLER:Prokofiev
Original Air Date: 03/31/2001
Gergiev; Galouzine, Guryakova, Alexashkin, Obraztsova
SID.19340641
This is the Met broadcast premiere of this work. Seven years later Galouzine and Gergiev are together again for another broadcast at the Met, but with Diadkova in for Obraztsova. Galouzine has been through a lot of heavy singing in the seven years, so this is overall the best bet for experiencing the Prokofiev. Unfortunately, the MOoD only has the 2008 broadcast. In the theatre with lot of intense visuals, this was a most enjoyable production. Even with audio only Gergiev and Galouzine are still powerhouses.
Original Air Date: 03/09/1974
Levine; Caballé, Gedda, Milnes, Díaz
MOD Audio SID.19340642
This is a performance where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. If Caballe does not have every note in place, she is still very near the top of her considerable form, and the ensemble reflects the new production intensity and first appearance of a major Verdi opera in the Met repertory. Gedda has the most performances of Arrigo, the challenging tenor role. Tucker was scheduled for a run (including broadcast) the year he died, but none of the hearty tenors of the past had the right timing– no Corelli, Bergonzi, and only five for Domingo, and he was gone. This performance is available in Met Opera on Demand (MOoD) and is a strong performance.
FALSTAFF:Verdi
Original Air Date: 02/03/1996
Levine; Plishka, Daniels, Quilico, Horne, Bonney, Groves
MOD Audio SID.19350101
Levine, Plishka, Bonney, and Horne are all in the 1992 revival which is on MOoD, but with Freni for Daniels, and Bruno Pola for Quilico. My experience with almost all of the Falstaff casting in the Levine era is OK, but not really an ensemble. We still keep having the Bernstein performance overlooked (LB’s only other Met broadcast beside Cavalleria) from 1964. The bad luck continues with Rosenstock’s conducting from 1965 and Amaducci’s conducting fom 1967. The Dohnanyi performance from 1972 features Gobbi in one of HIS two Met broadcasts (the other is Otello, no Scarpia on the Met airwaves alas) with Tebaldi, Resnik, Paskalis in sterling support. This should be in MOoD.
Strauss
Original Air Date: 04/18/1992
Levine; Daner, Voigt, Rysanek, Rootering, King
SID.19350317
This broadcast is best as a document of Rysanek’s only Met broadcast Klytemnestra, and Voigt in young, fresh voice. Daner sang all other performances of this new production, when Behrens cancelled after the premiere. I was at the premiere and kept wondering when the performance would be halted. Daner is a competent replacement, but nothing memorable. An annual cycling seems a bit excessive to me.
DON GIOVANNI:Mozart
Original Air Date: 02/15/2003
Cambreling; Mattei, Radvanovsky, Furlanetto, Diener, Trost, Netrebko
MOD Audio SID.19350318
This Don Giovanni is a solid performance especially in key roles, and proof that not all fine performances are pre-1980. Radvanovsky and Netrebko have gone on to extraordinary careers, but Mattei and Furlanetto make for a fresh and effective pairing as the Don and Leporello (Mattei will reprise his DON later in the 2014-2015 season, but I don’t think Furlanetto does Leporello so much these days. I’ve listened to this performance thanks to previous Sirius appearances. Recommended. This performance is on Met Player, it’s a splendid afternoon. I saw an earlier performance with Mattei and found him one of the very best of recent Giovannis. I’m not forgetting Siepi, but Mattei managed to be both dark of drama and sunny of voice. The women are among the very best of recent trios, with Radvanovsky just starting to take off, Diener very solid, and Netrebko one of the lushest Zerlinas ever. Furlanetto is not chopped liver as Leporello, and Trost is OK. Not all fine performances took place 40 years ago.
ERNANI:Verdi
Original Air Date: 12/17/1983
Levine; Pavarotti, Mitchell, Milnes, Raimondi
MOD Audio SID.19350319
This is the audio that goes with the video available on DVD. I love Ernani, and Pavarotti and Mitchell are quite good. Milnes and Raimondi are not my usual choices in this music; I prefer by a lot MacNeil and Siepi. Levine is lively, and a week with Ernani always makes me feel better. I think Pavarotti may only have one other run in this role (Verona?)but unusually Domingo’s Ernani total at the Met is lower — one.
MANON LESCAUT:Puccini
Original Air Date: 03/23/1968
Molinari-Pradelli; Tebaldi, Alexander, Guarrera, Michalski
SID.19350320
I am always happy to hear Manon Lescaut, and Alexander is an under-appreciated singer so happy to have him here, BUT Tebaldi’s greatness in the role is in the 1959 broadcast with Tucker (not yet broadcast on Sirius). Also on Met Player . Although this performance is available on Met Player, for some reason the Met keeps avoiding the 1959 performance with Tucker– he is represented with Kabaiwanska in a very decent performance from 1966. Once again I would call on the Met to restore to broadcast availability one of the remarkable unions of two Met legends of Tebaldi and Tucker. This 1968 performance captures Tebaldi after two long runs in Gioconda, and the voice was simply not the same. I yield to no one in my admiration of John Alexander, but it is still inexplicable to me that the 1959 broadcast with Tebaldi and Tucker remains un-rebroadcast, and this performance is in MOoD and regularly on Sirius. For Tebaldi, the 9 year span makes a huge difference. By the time of this broadcast she is well on her way through her Gioconda marathon after a vocal crisis in the early 60s. She has many wonderful moments, but surely Met listeners deserve to hear the Tucker/Tebaldi/Puccini combination one more time (I’ve written on the 1956 Tosca many times).
RODELINDA:Handel
Original Air Date: 05/06/2006
Summers; Fleming, Scholl, van Rensburg, Blythe, Dumaux, Relyea
MOD Video SID.19350321
This performance in the second season of the production and Scholl’s first appearance at the Met. There was a third broadcast which includes an HD moviecast of Rodelinda with Fleming and Scholl under Bicket (whom I prefer to Summers) but the intervening 4 years do not benefit either Fleming or Scholl. This video is available also in MOoD so you can compare for yourself. I like Scholl much more than David Daniels so this is my preferred Rodelinda.
RIGOLETTO:Verdi
Original Air Date: 12/07/1968
Cleva; Merrill, Moffo, Bergonzi, Michalski, Love
SID.19350422
A bit of a mini-Robert Merrill festival with his Scarpia and Rigoletto in one week. While RM may be a good shot away from the dramatic demands of Scarpia, Rigoletto worked better for him, not least because of the richness of his voice. I remember this performance well, and while neither Bergonzi nor Merrill are perfect, they brought me much pleasure. Moffo is not in especially good voice (Lucia awaits her before the broadcast microphones 8 weeks later).