DON CARLO:Verdi
Original Air Date: 04/05/1952
Stiedry; Tucker, Rigal, Silveri, Barbieri, Hines, Hotter
MOD Audio SID.18520749
This is most distinctive for being Tucker’s first Don Carlo broadcast and one of Hotter’s few. This is the first of Tucker’s three Don Carlo broadcasts, and I find his 1955 preferable. What I’ve never heard, but also from 1952 (but next season) is his second which has a better supporting cast with Merrill for Silveri, and Siepi for Hines as Filippo; Erede is in the pit for his only Don Carlo broadcast. Also unusual is that though Tucker went on to sing the opera for 15 more years after his 1955 broadcast with Steber, he never went to the airwaves for it again. At 26 performances, he is by far the Don Carlo champion– I saw him in it three times. most notably at a fall 1968 matinee not broadcast with (Orlandi, Verrett, Merrill, Ghiaurov, and Talvela under Abbado). Bing did not see Hotter in leading roles and in Walkure he was cast as Hunding, not Wotan. What has not been rebroadcast on Sirius is Hotter’s farewell which is a 1954 Parsifal with Svanholm, Varnay, and London, and Hotter as Gurnemanz under Stiedry. I would love to hear that.
ESCLARMONDE:Massenet
Original Air Date: 12/11/1976
Bonynge; Sutherland, Aragall, Tourangeau, Grant
MOD Audio SID.19010101
This is the Met’s only broadcast of Esclarmonde, and the performance in addition to the predictable glitter from Sutherland, captures Aragall in one of his best performances. For many, his material was the best of absolute best, and the new generation of tenors in the 1970s, but it never quite all came together. Here is the exception. Enjoy.
LES CONTES D’HOFFMANN:Offenbach
Original Air Date: 03/27/1982
Chailly; Domingo, Morris, Welting, Troyanos, Eda-Pierre, Howells
MOD Audio SID.19380101
This is Chailly’s only Met appearance, and is the premiere year of the Schenk, Schneider-Siemssen production. I’m surprised this performance is not the one in MOoD instead of the Levine from 1993. Much as I like Vaness and Held, an 11 year younger Domingo with the above cast (and especially Senechal) would seem more likely. Still, this performance is a welcome choice for the Sirius rotation (it’s not new this week, but not often included).
MADAMA BUTTERFLY:Puccini
Original Air Date: 12/17/1977
Patanè; Scotto, Aragall, Love, Edwards, Atherton
SID.19010317
Aragall only has 38 Met performances in his nine season tenure. His two broadcasts are Esclarmonde with Sutherland and this Butterfly with Scotto in close to her very best voice. I saw one of these 1977 Butterflys and few tenor voices had such unforced beauty. His Met farewell comes in Boheme 2 days after this broadcast Aragall suffered from severe nervousness which could affect his pitch. Luckily his two Met broadcasts capture mostly just the remarkable voice, one much respected by his peers– Carreras, Domingo, and Pavarotti. Patane lamentably died much too young at 54 while conducting at the Bavarian State Opera, Munich. He was an excellent maestro in the Met’s Italian wing, and is the conductor for Pavarotti and Ricciarelli’s Ballo in Maschera telecast/DVD. He also is number 4 in Gioconda performances at 25 (Cleva at 65 (Milanov and Tebaldi); Serafin at 55, Toscanini at 29 surpass him).
SAMSON ET DALILA:Saint-Saëns
Original Air Date: 12/26/1936
Abravanel; Maison, Wettergren, Pinza
MOD Audio SID.19010318
This is the second oldest Met performance to have been rebroadcast on Sirius — the Lawrence/Melchior Gotterdammerung also from 1936 (but previous season) is the oldest. Abravanel is more remembered as longtime conductor of the Utah Symphony, but his three Met seasons beginning with this broadcast showed him as a sure hand in the French and German wings of the repertory. The principals have plenty of profile, and Pinza is an excellent High Priest.
TANNHÄUSER:Wagner
Original Air Date: 01/21/1978
Levine; McCracken, Kubiak, Bumbry, Weikl, Macurdy
SID.19010319
This is McCracken’s only broadcast outing as Tannhauser, and he is really very fine. Weikl and Bumbry are tops in these roles and Kubiak is a very decent Elisabeth. Levine is at his very best. What is inexplicable to me is why this performance has not made its way to MOoD. McCracken has 597 Met appearances, more than 300 of them after his return as Otello in March 1963. Bumbry, to my mind is the most important American mezzo of the 20th century. Venus was a breakthrough role for her in 1960 at the Bayreuth Festival. This is her only broadcast from the Met of Venus. This performance does great honor to all of the cast and I am grateful that it has been regularly on Sirius, but the better sound afforded in MOoD would definitely benefit Tannhauser.
JENUFA:Janácek
Original Air Date: 01/25/2003
Jurowski; Mattila, Polaski, Begley, Ventris, Nadler
SID.19010320
I like Jurowski’s work, but I find Mattila and Polaski (encouraged by the director) to be cold with little of the warmth that one should finally feel at the opera’s resolution.
A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM:Britten
Original Air Date: 12/21/1996
Atherton; McNair, Kowalski, Rose, Streit, Bunnell, Gilfry, Gustafson
MOD Audio SID.19010321
The work was revived under Conlon in 2013 for 3 Sirius streamed live broadcasts, one of which was rebroadcast on Sirius as part of their June Friday night encores, but no national free network. I saw a lovely production at the original Sadler’s Wells Theatre almost 20 years ago under the late Richard Hickox. It’s one of those works I seem to like less as the years go on, but that may be just me.
DER ROSENKAVALIER:Strauss
Original Air Date: 1/29/2000
Kout; Mentzer, Studer, Halfvarson, Norberg-Schulz, Opie
SID.19010422
This is Cheryl Studer’s penultimate Met performance in her 39 performance Met career. The Met has cast Rosenkavalier more strongly, but Studer still has major Strauss credentials.
TANNHÄUSER:Wagner
Original Air Date: 01/21/1978
Levine; McCracken, Kubiak, Bumbry, Weikl, Macurdy
SID.19010423
This is McCracken’s only broadcast outing as Tannhauser, and he is really very fine. Weikl and Bumbry are tops in these roles and Kubiak is a very decent Elisabeth. Levine is at his very best. What is inexplicable to me is why this performance has not made its way to MOoD. McCracken has 597 Met appearances, more than 300 of them after his return as Otello in March 1963. Bumbry, to my mind is the most important American mezzo of the 20th century. Venus was a breakthrough role for her in 1960 at th e Bayreuth Festival. This is her only broadcast from the Met of Venus. This performance does great honor to all of the cast and I am grateful that it has been regularly on Sirius, but the better sound afforded in MOoD would definitely benefit Tannhauser.
IDOMENEO:Mozart
Original Air Date: 12/21/1991
Levine; Heppner, Upshaw, Vaness, Mentzer, Kazaras
MOD Audio SID.19010424
This is a solid performance, and especially so for the young Heppner, and Vaness, who is probably the best Electra the Met has seen.
TRISTAN UND ISOLDE:Wagner
Original Air Date: 12/18/1971
Leindsorf; Thomas, Nilsson, Dalis, Tozzi, Doole
MOD Audio SID.19010425
This performance is not often rebroadcast, and is as distinctive for Leinsdorf’s sleek conducting as for Nilsson’s continued mastery of Isolde. I find Jess Thomas less ingratiating than most, but this is one of his better performances.
TRISTAN UND ISOLDE:Wagner
Original Air Date: 12/18/1971
Leindsorf; Thomas, Nilsson, Dalis, Tozzi, Doole
MOD Audio SID.19010426
This performance is not often rebroadcast, and is as distinctive for Leinsdorf’s sleek conducting as for Nilsson’s continued mastery of Isolde. I find Jess Thomas less ingratiating than most, but this is one of his better performances.
VANESSA:Barber
Original Air Date: 02/01/1958
Mitropoulos; Steber, Gedda, Elias, Resnik, Tozzi
MOD Audio SID.19010427
Vanessa received its world premiere with this cast two weeks before this broadcast. Though Steber was not the first choice for the title role, she does some of her best broadcast singing on this. The Skating aria (later removed by Barber from the published score) has as many technical hurdles as any of Steber’s Mozart heroines, and she is up to them. The libretto gets its deserved criticisms, but Barber’s music has allowed the work to continue performances if none yet in the Met’s Lincoln Center theatre.
IDOMENEO:Mozart
Original Air Date: 12/21/1991
Levine; Heppner, Upshaw, Vaness, Mentzer, Kazaras
MOD Audio SID.19010428
This is a solid performance, and especially so for the young Heppner, and Vaness, who is probably the best Electra the Met has seen.
MACBETH:Verdi
Original Air Date: 02/03/1973
Molinari-Pradelli; Milnes, Arroyo, Raimondi, Tagliavini
SID.19010529
The Saturday night premiere of this revival was one of the most challenging performances to hustle a ticket ever– why I don’t know. Arroyo sings the Lady superbly and Milnes is well caught (his best is still from Vienna with Ludwig). The other two males are adequate, but when I want to hear Banquo, I turn to Giaiotti from the Met stable, or on airchecks/recordings either Ghiaurov or Christoff. Christoff did perform the aria in his Carnegie Hall orchestra concert, and that was indeed thrilling. Bergonzi premiered Macduff in the Met 1958 premiere and is still the gold standard, but Calleja in the recent Netrebko performance was also quite fine. One of the great memories of this performance was Arroyo’s highly successful realization of Lady Macbeth’s music. No ugly voice here. Molinari-Pradelli provides strong idiomatic conducting.
WERTHER:Massenet
Original Air Date: 04/16/1988
Fournet; Kraus, von Stade, Upshaw, Stilwell
SID.19010530
This is not exactly big scale vocal artillery except Kraus (he broadcast Werther nine years earlier with Crespin), but the Met brings out one of the better French repertoire conductors, and Kraus is a good match for von Stade. This is available all the time on Met Player, as is Kraus/Crespin.
LUCIA DI LAMMERMOOR:Donizetti
Original Air Date: 12/12/1992
Panni; Anderson, Leech, Fu, Plishka
MOD Audio SID.19010531
Nothing really saves this afternoon as can be read in the Met database listing for the second performance of this new production by Francesca Zambello which comes in for some pretty harsh treatment from Martin Mayer– far from my favorite critic, but I think he has the right bead on this performance if not the musical excellence of Lucia as a great musical achievement. A Volpe miscue of large proportions (18 performances this season). 9/3/2013 – From my comments then: This is the newly preferred Sirius Lucia which I don’t think is very good. It does feature the conducting of Marcello Panni, who died shortly after his run of La Juive at the Met.
IL TROVATORE:Verdi
Original Air Date: 02/27/1960
Cleva; Bergonzi, Stella, Simionato, Bastianini, Wilderman
SID.19010532
Wonder of wonders. Sirius/the Met finally figured out they could broadcast this again. This is Simionato’s only Met broadcast, and her supporting singers are in her league. Now this performance is worth hearing at least twice a year (at least until the Met sees fit to put it in the MOoD catalog. It’s also Bergonzi’s only broadcast Manrico from the Met. Please note that this performance is NOT in MOoD (it should be) and is rarely in rotation 8/1/2011- Outstanding broadcast alert. Simionato’s only Met broadcast; Bergonzi’s only Manrico broadcast. One of Bastianini’s outstanding broadcasts, as also for Stella.
MADAMA BUTTERFLY:Puccini
Original Air Date: 12/17/1977
Patanè; Scotto, Aragall, Love, Edwards, Atherton
SID.19010533
Aragall only has 38 Met performances in his nine season tenure. His two broadcasts are Esclarmonde with Sutherland and this Butterfly with Scotto in close to her very best voice. I saw one of these 1977 Butterflys and few tenor voices had such unforced beauty. His Met farewell comes in Boheme 2 days after this broadcast Aragall suffered from severe nervousness which could affect his pitch. Luckily his two Met broadcasts capture mostly just the remarkable voice, one much respected by his peers– Carreras, Domingo, and Pavarotti. Patane lamentably died much too young at 54 while conducting at the Bavarian State Opera, Munich. He was an excellent maestro in the Met’s Italian wing, and is the conductor for Pavarotti and Ricciarelli’s Ballo in Maschera telecast/DVD. He also is number 4 in Gioconda performances at 25 (Cleva at 65 (Milanov and Tebaldi); Serafin at 55, Toscanini at 29 surpass him).
SAMSON ET DALILA:Saint-Saëns
Original Air Date: 12/26/1936
Abravanel; Maison, Wettergren, Pinza
MOD Audio SID.19010534
This is the second oldest Met performance to have been rebroadcast on Sirius — the Lawrence/Melchior Gotterdammerung also from 1936 (but previous season) is the oldest. Abravanel is more remembered as longtime conductor of the Utah Symphony, but his three Met seasons beginning with this broadcast showed him as a sure hand in the French and German wings of the repertory. The principals have plenty of profile, and Pinza is an excellent High Priest.
TANNHÄUSER:Wagner
Original Air Date: 01/21/1978
Levine; McCracken, Kubiak, Bumbry, Weikl, Macurdy
SID.19010535
This is McCracken’s only broadcast outing as Tannhauser, and he is really very fine. Weikl and Bumbry are tops in these roles and Kubiak is a very decent Elisabeth. Levine is at his very best. What is inexplicable to me is why this performance has not made its way to MOoD. McCracken has 597 Met appearances, more than 300 of them after his return as Otello in March 1963. Bumbry, to my mind is the most important American mezzo of the 20th century. Venus was a breakthrough role for her in 1960 at the Bayreuth Festival. This is her only broadcast from the Met of Venus. This performance does great honor to all of the cast and I am grateful that it has been regularly on Sirius, but the better sound afforded in MOoD would definitely benefit Tannhauser.
JENUFA:Janácek
Original Air Date: 01/25/2003
Jurowski; Mattila, Polaski, Begley, Ventris, Nadler
SID.19010636
I like Jurowski’s work, but I find Mattila and Polaski (encouraged by the director) to be cold with little of the warmth that one should finally feel at the opera’s resolution.
VANESSA:Barber
Original Air Date: 02/01/1958
Mitropoulos; Steber, Gedda, Elias, Resnik, Tozzi
MOD Audio SID.19010637
Vanessa received its world premiere with this cast two weeks before this broadcast. Though Steber was not the first choice for the title role, she does some of her best broadcast singing on this. The Skating aria (later removed by Barber from the published score) has as many technical hurdles as any of Steber’s Mozart heroines, and she is up to them. The libretto gets its deserved criticisms, but Barber’s music has allowed the work to continue performances if none yet in the Met’s Lincoln Center theatre.
Various:Various
Original Air Date: 01/01/9999
Various Artists
SID.19010638
Various selections between scheduled operas. Siriusxm Radio and web player will show the Composer and Title.
A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM:Britten
Original Air Date: 12/21/1996
Atherton; McNair, Kowalski, Rose, Streit, Bunnell, Gilfry, Gustafson
MOD Audio SID.19010640
The work was revived under Conlon in 2013 for 3 Sirius streamed live broadcasts, one of which was rebroadcast on Sirius as part of their June Friday night encores, but no national free network. I saw a lovely production at the original Sadler’s Wells Theatre almost 20 years ago under the late Richard Hickox. It’s one of those works I seem to like less as the years go on, but that may be just me.
TRISTAN UND ISOLDE:Wagner
Original Air Date: 12/18/1971
Leindsorf; Thomas, Nilsson, Dalis, Tozzi, Doole
MOD Audio SID.19010641
This performance is not often rebroadcast, and is as distinctive for Leinsdorf’s sleek conducting as for Nilsson’s continued mastery of Isolde. I find Jess Thomas less ingratiating than most, but this is one of his better performances.
TRISTAN UND ISOLDE:Wagner
Original Air Date: 12/18/1971
Leindsorf; Thomas, Nilsson, Dalis, Tozzi, Doole
MOD Audio SID.19010642
This performance is not often rebroadcast, and is as distinctive for Leinsdorf’s sleek conducting as for Nilsson’s continued mastery of Isolde. I find Jess Thomas less ingratiating than most, but this is one of his better performances.
IL TROVATORE:Verdi
Original Air Date: 02/27/1960
Cleva; Bergonzi, Stella, Simionato, Bastianini, Wilderman
SID.19010743
Wonder of wonders. Sirius/the Met finally figured out they could broadcast this again. This is Simionato’s only Met broadcast, and her supporting singers are in her league. Now this performance is worth hearing at least twice a year (at least until the Met sees fit to put it in the MOoD catalog. It’s also Bergonzi’s only broadcast Manrico from the Met. Please note that this performance is NOT in MOoD (it should be) and is rarely in rotation 8/1/2011- Outstanding broadcast alert. Simionato’s only Met broadcast; Bergonzi’s only Manrico broadcast. One of Bastianini’s outstanding broadcasts, as also for Stella.
IDOMENEO:Mozart
Original Air Date: 12/21/1991
Levine; Heppner, Upshaw, Vaness, Mentzer, Kazaras
MOD Audio SID.19010744
This is a solid performance, and especially so for the young Heppner, and Vaness, who is probably the best Electra the Met has seen.