LA TRAVIATA:Verdi
Strasfogel; Moffo, Morell, Sereni
Original Air Date: 04/21/1962
SID.20160213
I’m sure I heard this performance while I was still living in Texas, but despite the visual glamor of Moffo, I find her appeal in this part limited. Along with Albanese (not one of my favorites) with 87, Moffo with her 80 Violettas totally dominate the chronology. Sembrich and Bori are the next two down and by more than two and half dozen. Most Violetta totals at the Met hover between 15 and 25. This is Moffo’s first Violetta broadcast, so probably her best. Her other two (in different seasons) come in 1967, and I know those performances well. Although Moffo had a high selling Traviata for RCA, this is the first of her three broadcasts, and the only one that has been on Sirius. I like her commercial, but as early as 1967, vocally I found her compromised (but always with huge E flat). Morell and Sereni are OK, no more. This is the first of Moffo’s three Violetta broadcasts; the other two are in 1967 (in different seasons). Moffo was a gorgeous Violetta, and very successful. I’m not sure how well it bears up in live performance in an audio only mode, but I’ll give this a try. As for the other Met broadcast Traviatas, I wish the Met would reach back to the 1935 Ponselle/Tibbett Traviata under Panizza. This has been on private labels for years and exists in good enough sound. Ponselle will not be to everyone’s taste, but I find the duet with Tibbett with Panizza’s masterly support to be of the highest quality. Albanese is the dominant Violetta (with several broadcasts from Sayao none on Sirius), but her only appearance on Sirius is her last Violetta broadcast in 1959. It’s a little late, but since I don’t much care for her Violetta (see Paul Jackson’s analysis of Met broadcasts– he worships Albanese), she is partnered by Valletti, and they make a winning pair. Two performances which have been on Sirius and are both on Met Player are the Steber with DiStefano and Merrill from 1949 (she’s replacing Sayao and practically doing a lesson in vocal technique and exquisite vocalism) and Tebaldi from 1957, where first act transpositions are mostly irrelevant to one of the most celebrated performances ever. Tebaldi did 21 performances in a single season, and Bing sent her everywhere. If not quite the perfection of the Tosca, this Violetta is quite memorable. Almost worth a Met Player subscription on its own. Surprisingly, the 1964 Sutherland Violetta has not been on Sirius. This omission should be corrected as part of the Guild’s upcoming memorial to her. I saw her Violetta at least 3 times, and it was one of her most memorable roles. Sutherland is not the only omission that should make its way to Sirius. I remember Cruz-Romo’s fine 1973 broadcast (very much in the Tebaldi tradition), Rita Shane replacing Sills in 1976 (Wixell’s only Germont broadcast), Maria Chiara in 1977, Malfitano in 1982 (I think the first to do two verses of Addio del passato), Maliponte in 1984 (I don’t remember this performance but she’s a favorite of many on this list including me) 1987 with Tomowa Sintow (again I have no memory, but she’s a singer I remember fondly) and the 2000 broadcast with Gallardo-Domas. While I thought Butterfly too heavy for her, her Violetta is one of the very best, and this has not made it to Sirius. Sirius has some heavy lifting to do for Traviata!
SALOME:Strauss
Böhm; Nilsson, Liebl, Dalis, Cassel, Shirley
Original Air Date: 03/13/1965
MOD Audio
SID.20160214
This is an absolute MUST. Mercifully it’s on Met Player (at least for North America). Bohm and Nilsson are ablaze. I saw two performance this first season of the Rennert/Heinrich production and as much as I loved the Solti recording, and later Nilsson with Solti and CSO at Carnegie Hall, Bohm and Nilsson burned ever so brightly, and the conductor threw in a concert Don Juan before the Salome to warm the orchestra up. I added Ernst Wiemann who as First Nazarene makes his presence known, and he was part of excellent Met singers in secondary parts. The supporting cast is very strongly cast (the five Jews and the Nazarenes Ernst Wiemann and the recently deceased Calvin Marsh are very distinctive. One of the great performances captured, with Nilsson in her only broadcast Met Salome, and it’s a humdinger. Liebl and Dalis both in the new Rennert production and their vivid singing contribute strongly, but in the end it’s a Birgit and Karl show.
ADRIANA LECOUVREUR:Cilea
Fulton; Scotto; Shicoff, Cortez, Sereni
Original Air Date: 02/26/1983
SID.20160216
Scotto is a vivid Adriana, if caught a bit late. A good part for Shicoff. This is not my favorite work, and while Scotto is very attentive to the veristic details, we’re starting to get into the “scratchy” years. While I like the Sony recording (with Obraztsova, Domingo) with her a bit better, she is a vivid Adriana, and Shicoff is an excellent Maurizio. Available in MOoD.
DAS RHEINGOLD:Wagner
Ehrling; McIntyre, Dunn, Peterson, Rintzler, Rundgren, Macurdy
Original Air Date: 02/15/1975
SID.20160317
This performance marks Donald McIntyre’s Met debut (broadcast debuts are not so common) and the farewell of Glade Peterson who had made his debut as Loge five days before. McIntyre would be the main reason for listening, but he has the Chereau Ring from Bayreuth three years later on video. I saw the 1978 Chereau Ring live, and he was definitely one of the brightest elements. 6/6/12 – This is only a three performance outing this week where McIntyre is the only real point of distinction. Not awful, but what’s the point? 6/22/11 – The cream of this 1975 cycle were the Nilsson parts of the Ring. Nothing especially remarkable here.
ORFEO ED EURIDICE:Gluck
Rudolf; Stevens, Amara, Cundari
Original Air Date: 01/18/1958
MOD Audio
SID.20160318
The strongest thing about this performance is Rudolf’s conducting. Stevens was definitely a star Orfeo, but she’s never an audio favorite of mine. A very great artist outstanding advocate for American artists , and the role of the arts in general. She had quite a following, but her audios alone do not make a career. She is still with us, and may she have many more years. For me this is much too late for Stevens (She retires in 1960). I did check Paul Jackson’s authoritative volume on Met broadcasts– and he’s at his best in the 40s and 50s, but has nothing to say about this performance. This performance has been on before and is on MOoD.
MADAMA BUTTERFLY:Puccini
Schick; Scotto, Alexander, Grillo, Dunlap, Schmorr
Original Air Date: 01/01/1966
MOD Audio
SID.20160428
This is *Scotto*’s first broadcast, after debuting the previous October. This EVENING broadcast had one of the more infamous Singers Roundtables as I remember (Milanov and Gedda come to mind) remember but alas we never get the interrmission features. I don’t much care for *Dunlap* as Sharpless, but *Scotto* is a major *Butterfly*.
THE GREAT GATSBY:Harbison
Levine; Hadley, Upshaw, Croft, Graham, Baker, Lieberson
Original Air Date: 01/01/2000
MOD Audio
SID.20170102
Levine is a great promoter of Harbison’s work, but I miss the appeal. First appearance of Hunt Lieberson whose only other role was Didon in the new Troyens production whose broadcast marks Hunt Lieberson’s Met farewell in February 2003 before her untimely death in July 2006.
FALSTAFF:Verdi
Farnes; Schultz, Pérez, Lemieux, Johnson Cano, Demuro, Maestri, Rodríguez
Original Air Date: 02/22/2019
SID.20170103
Baritone Ambrogio Maestri brings his larger-than-life portrayal of the title role back for the first time since his Met role debut in the 2013–14 season. Robert Carsen’s insightful production—which moves the action to postwar England in the 1950s—features an exceptional cast that includes soprano Ailyn Pérez as Alice Ford and soprano Golda Schultz as Nannetta.
WOZZECK:Berg
Levine; Van Dam, Silja, Ulfung, Weller, Cassilly
Original Air Date: 03/08/1980
SID.20170104
Levine dominates Wozzeck performances almost as much as Clemenza- 48 for Levine, 14 for Bohm, 4 for Colin Davis, and 3 for Jeffrey Tate. This performance with van Dam and Silja in crackling form was also issued as part of Levine’s 40th anniversary CD box (and now available singly as well). There is also a video from 2001 with Dalayman and Struckmann under Levine that was only issued during Levine’s 40th anniversary DVD box (and still available from Amazon among others). This performance was unavailable in any format for many years.
COSÌ FAN TUTTE:Mozart
Hager; Vaness, Lopardo, Ziegler, Cowan, Upshaw, Feller
Original Air Date: 12/07/1991
SID.20170105
Vaness is the champion Fiordiligi at the Met with 44 performances (Steber, the number 2 only has 29). She deserves her top place because in an era of very fine Mozart singers, her assumption ranked with the best. I always find the Vaness tone a little less individual than a Steber, a Lorengar, Te Kanawa, or Fleming, but all the pieces really come together for her. I’m not sure one does not do better in terms of overall casting with one of the other Vaness broadcasts or the telecast (with Bartoli as Despina ) which is available in MOoD.
LA FORZA DEL DESTINO:Verdi
Levine; Price, Giacomini, Nucci, Giaiotti, Jones, Fissore
Original Air Date: 03/24/1984
SID.20170106
This is a 3 performance group intended to capture the Price Leonora on video ; fall performances had featured mostly Bumbry (with a few to Amara) partnering Carreras. This is a solid performance but I prefer Price a decade earlier with Bergonzi in 1972; her supporting cast are full-throated Italians (Paskalis is Greek, but Bergonzi and Siepi are Verdians to their fingertips and that is much the best of the 1970s. Giacomini in this 1984 performance gets some rare visibility, and deservedly so.
ELEKTRA:Strauss
Esa-Pekka Salonen; Nina Stemme, Waltraud Meier, Adrianne Pieczonka, Eric Owens
Original Air Date: 04/30/2016
Live in HD
SID.20170107
IL BARBIERE DI SIVIGLIA:Rossini
Davis; Workman, Battle, Blake, Capecchi, Montarsolo
Original Air Date: 03/13/1982
MOD Audio
SID.20170208
The Met Database shows this as previously rebroadcast on Sirius, but not recently. The plus is relatively early Battle performance, but she also has a 1988 telecast reissued on commercial DG DVD (still available per Amazon). The difference between William Workman and Leo Nucci on the DVD is considerable. I was surprised that this telecast is not in MOoD. In fact, the two videos there are the excellent DiDonato, Florez, Mattei performance rom the first season of Met LIve in HD, and the second last season’s Barbiere with Isabel Leonard, Brownlee, and Maltman. Surely this 1988 performance needs to be in MOoD.
DIE FRAU OHNE SCHATTEN:Strauss
Böhm; Rysanek, Nagy, Ludwig, Berry, Dalis
Original Air Date: 01/16/1971
SID.20170209
This is the third of Bohm’s four broadcasts of the legendary 1966 production which premiered in the opening weeks of Lincoln Center. Nagy is the first major change in the ensemble, and had been the Apparition in the premiere — James King was the regular Emperor. Nagy more than holds up his end, and is fully up to the vocal challenges. The ensemble is still a marvel a half century later, even if Bohm managed to excise more pages of the score with each successive revival; not a completist, but absolutely a master Straussian. If one is looking for MOoD coverage of Frau, the only Bohm performance has two major cast changes from the original Frau 1966 “ensemble”, Dunn as Nurse, and Schroder-Feinen as Dyer’s Wife. It would be very nice to have another Bohm performance in MOoD, which covers those interpretations, preferably the first broadcast, which has the fewest cuts.
PARSIFAL:Wagner
Gergiev; Domingo, Urmana, Struckmann, Pape, Putilin
Original Air Date: 04/12/2003
MOD Audio
SID.20170210
The main attraction here is Pape’s first Gurnemanz. I was not much taken with Gergiev’s work, but the part is a good one for Domingo, and the rest of the cast are top tier. It’s certainly a change from Levine, and one of Domingo’s better German offerings. Because of the contributions of Pape and Gergiev, MOoD should have this performance as well. Pape is represented in the new production on video on MOoD and on DVD. There are a number of Parsifals that have not made it to either Sirius rebroadcast or MOoD. Broadcasts featuring Crespin (under Pretre, 1966) Varnay with Hotter, 1954, Dalis with Siepi and Stewart, 1971 and several interesting casts under Levine including Gwyneth Jones are all unrepresented.
PARSIFAL:Wagner
Gergiev; Domingo, Urmana, Struckmann, Pape, Putilin
Original Air Date: 04/12/2003
MOD Audio
SID.20170211
The main attraction here is Pape’s first Gurnemanz. I was not much taken with Gergiev’s work, but the part is a good one for Domingo, and the rest of the cast are top tier. It’s certainly a change from Levine, and one of Domingo’s better German offerings. Because of the contributions of Pape and Gergiev, MOoD should have this performance as well. Pape is represented in the new production on video on MOoD and on DVD. There are a number of Parsifals that have not made it to either Sirius rebroadcast or MOoD. Broadcasts featuring Crespin (under Pretre, 1966) Varnay with Hotter, 1954, Dalis with Siepi and Stewart, 1971 and several interesting casts under Levine including Gwyneth Jones are all unrepresented.
TOSCA:Puccini
Mehta; Crespin, Raimondi, Bacquier
Original Air Date: 01/13/1968
SID.20170212
Crespin was the first prima donna to repeat Tosca on the airwaves during the Bing era. I generally prefer her supporting cast here, and will be eagerly listening to this. She could be an uneven singer, but you know it is she from the first note. Raimondi (Gianni, not Ruggero– no relation) has a brief Met career, but I prefer him to Konya, and Bacquier is astrong Scarpia.
EUGENE ONEGIN:Tchaikovsky
Ozawa; Leiferkus, Freni, Hadley, Svendén, Ghiaurov
Original Air Date: 12/19/1992
MOD Audio
SID.20170213
This is Freni’s second Met broadcast of Tatiana. In 1989 with Levine conducting, Hadley repeats with Hynninen in the title role, and Robert Lloyd as Gremin. The 1989 performance is available in MOoD. This is one of Ozawa’s two matinee broadcasts, the second one 16 years later in Tchaikovsky’s Queen of Spades. Ozawa is ok, but there’s plenty of fine Onegin conducting at the Met.
VANESSA:Barber
Mitropoulos; Steber, Gedda, Elias, Resnik, Tozzi
Original Air Date: 02/01/1958
MOD Audio
SID.20170214
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.
TOSCA:Puccini
Villaume; Yoncheva, Grigolo, Lucic
Original Air Date: 01/27/2018
SID.20170215
Sir David McVicar’s “smashing new production” is “a grand triumph” (Huffington Post), featuring an exciting cast led by soprano Sonya Yoncheva in the title role of the fiery diva and Vittorio Grigolo as her passionate lover, Cavaradossi. The pair are “youthful, ardent, and innocent … their duets electric, their kisses hot and numerous” (Wall Street Journal). Yoncheva’s sound is “richly textured and shimmering,” and “Grigolo’s Mario is a true hothead … complete with thrilling top notes” (New York Times). Željko Lučić is “an imposing figure with a voice to match” (Wall Street Journal) as the villainous police chief, Scarpia, and Emmanuel Villaume conducts. Production a gift of Jacqueline Desmarais, in memory of Paul G. Desmarais Sr; The Paiko Foundation; and Dr. Elena Prokupets, in memory of her late husband, Rudy Prokupets Major funding from Rolex -metopera.org
LUCIA DI LAMMERMOOR:Donizetti
Santi; Devia, Hadley, Pons, Plishka
Original Air Date: 01/29/1994
SID.20170216
Devia has not been a frequent Met performer (73 performances over 15 years). This is her final broadcast from the Met (and she has not been at the Met for 18 years w, though still quite active in Europe.) For me she is a much superior Lucia to Dessay, Netrebko, or Swenson, even if she is not in the Sutherland class. Who is? This performance is available on Met Opera on Demand (MOoD).
ROMÉO ET JULIETTE:Gounod
Lewis; Corelli, Blegen, Gill, Munzer, Carlson
Original Air Date: 12/07/1974
SID.20170317
This performance does not catch Corelli at his best. This is his final season and he completes his Met broadcast career 2 weeks later with a Turandot (and Bjoner’s final met appearance). For a man with almost 400 Met performances, he is richly represented in the broadcast archives. Better to listen to the Trovatore or Turandot in 1961 (a month apart!!!) or the AIda or Tosca from 1962 (also a month apart) or many others. Blegen is OK, but would be better paired with a different Romeo. This performance is on MOoD as well, and Blegen is very good. This is towards the end of the Corelli era (his next to last broadcast) and a close examination of his work is not always satisfying. This is Corelli’s penultimate Met broadcast, with Turandot occurring three weeks later (also Bjoner’s farewell to the Met in that performance). Corelli is second only to de Rezke in Romeo totals at the Met with his 36 performances. When paired with Freni as they were for the production’s premiere in 1967, one does not worry quite so much about the mostly absent French style. Freni had Gedda as her partner for the first broadcast of this production, then Corelli comes back for the next with Pilou as his partner and Lombard in the pit. Corelli has a second broadcast with Boky that finds neither of them in best voice. Blegen is a fine Juliette with him on the third, but the weak link for me this time is the conductor, Henry Lewis, who is no better than the weaker members of the Met’s Asst. Conductor staff. You can hear for yourself on MOoD.
MACBETH:Verdi
Rosenstock; Colzani, Rysanek, Tozzi, Bergonzi
Original Air Date: 03/24/1962
SID.20170318
Rosenstock picked up much of the conducting load previously assigned to Leinsdorf, who had decamped to the Boston Symphony as Music Director. Rosenstock had debuted at the Met in 1929 with six appearances not to reappear again until 1961 when he began a 248 performance run at the Met ending in 1969 with Meistersinger which he had premiered in November 1962 in a new production by Robert O’Hearn and Nathaniel Merrill. In other repertory most of this late career could be described as correct, and nowhere at the level of Bohm, Leinsdorf, or Stiedry.This is Rysanek’s third and last Lady Macbeth performance, and she is not in the form of her debut 4 years earlier, nor is Rosenstock as up to the task as Leinsdorf who replaced the orgiinally scheduled Mitropoulos in 1958. Colzani can be a bit rough hewn, but that works as Macbeth, and Bergonzi is as classy as it gets; Tozzi I prefer to HInes, but I prefer Giaiotti to either– a role Siepi never did at the Met (and don’t notice it elsewhere either).
LES CONTES D’HOFFMANN:Offenbach
James Levine: Joseph Calleja, Anna Netrebko, Kate Lindsey, Alan Held
Original Air Date: 12/19/2009
Live in HD
SID.20170323
THE MERRY WIDOW:Lehar
Andrew David: Renée Fleming, Nathan Gunn, Kelli O’Hara, Thomas Allen
Original Air Date: 01/17/2015
Live in HD
SID.20170431
LA TRAVIATA:Verdi
Fabio Luisi: Natalie Dessay, Matthew Polenzani, Dmitri Hvorostovsky
Original Air Date: 04/14/2012
Live in HD
SID.20170539
AT HOME GALA:Various
Featured Artists
Ildar Abdrazakov Moscow, Russia
Roberto Alagna and Aleksandra Kurzak Le Raincy, France
Marco Armiliato Lugano, Switzerland
Jamie Barton Atlanta, Georgia
Piotr Beczała Zabnica, Poland
Angel Blue Alpine, New Jersey
Lawrence Brownlee Niceville, Florida
Joseph Calleja Mellieha, Malta
Javier Camarena Zurich, Switzerland
Nicole Car and Etienne Dupuis Paris, France
David Chan Closter, New Jersey
Anthony Roth Costanzo New York, New York
Stephen Costello and Yoon Kwon Costello New York, New York
Diana Damrau and Nicolas Testé Orange, France
Michael Fabiano Bonita Springs, Florida
Renée Fleming Virginia
Elīna Garanča Riga, Latvia
Christine Goerke Teaneck, New Jersey
Gunther Groissböck Lugano, Switzerland
Jonas Kaufmann Munich, Germany
Quinn Kelsey Toronto, Canada
Isabel Leonard New York, New York
Ambrogio Maestri Lugano, Switzerland
Peter Mattei Bromma, Sweden
Erin Morley New Haven, Connecticut
Anna Netrebko and Yusif Eyvazov Vienna, Austria
Lisette Oropesa Baton Rouge, Louisiana
René Pape Dresden, Germany
Ailyn Pérez and Soloman Howard Chicago, Illinois
Matthew Polenzani Pelham, New York
Anita Rachvelishvili Tbilisi, Georgia
Golda Schultz Bavaria, Germany
Nadine Sierra Valencia, Spain
Bryn Terfel and Hannah Stone Wales
Elza van den Heever Montpellier, France
Michael Volle Berlin, Germany
Sonya Yoncheva Geneva, Switzerland
Original Air Date: 04/25/2020
SID.20170646
In its most ambitious effort yet to bring the joy and artistry of opera to audiences everywhere during the Met’s closure, the company will present an unprecedented virtual At-Home Gala, featuring more than 40 leading artists performing in a live stream from their homes all around the world. The event will take place Saturday, April 25, at 1 p.m. EDT, and will be available for free on the Met’s website. General Manager Peter Gelb and Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin will host from their homes in New York City and Montreal, respectively. Mr. Nézet-Séguin will also participate in the gala as a pianist, and will be featured as conductor in pre-recorded performances by the Met Orchestra and Chorus, which will be created from individual takes from the homes of each of the musicians in the days leading up to the gala. After the live showing, the gala will be made available for on demand viewing on the Met website until 6:30 p.m. EDT the following day. The At-Home Gala is part of the Met’s urgent “The Voice Must Be Heard” fundraising campaign to support the company and protect its future.”
TURANDOT:Puccini
Carignani; Stemme, Hartig, Berti, Tsymbalyuk
Original Air Date: 01/30/2016
Live in HD
SID.20170645
A Performance form January 30, 2016
First Intermission: Feature- The sound of nostalgia in operas; Interviews – HD Host Renée Fleming interviews Anita Hartig, Alexander Tsymbalyuk and Marco Berti ; Kat’a Kabanová preview
Second Intermission: Feature – Rosemary Nencheck Cameo; HD Host Renée Fleming interviews Nina Stemme
LA CENERENTOLA:Rossini
Luisi: DiDonato, Flórez, Pisaroni
Original Air Date: 05/10/2014
Live in HD
SID.20170755
Read RWW’s Review of the HD Broadcast with this cast.