In this 11th year, over ten nights performances from the Met’s Live in HD series will be shown starting with a screening of FUNNY FACE in a special co-presentation with Film at Lincoln Center. Screenings run from August 23 through September 2. There will be 3000 seats in the Plaza in front of the Opera House with an additional standing room area. Cancellations due to thunder/lighting or high wind will not be rescheduled.
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.
?pubId=610394115001&videoId=5839999932001
AIDA:Verdi
Original Air Date: 10/06/2018
Luisotti; Netrebko, Rachvelishvili, Antonenko, Kelsey, Belosselskiy, Speedo Green
Live in HDMOD Video SID.19349992
In what should be a highlight of the new season, soprano Anna Netrebko sings her first Met Aida, going toe-to-toe with mezzo-soprano Anita Rachvelishvili as Amneris. Later in the season, a second star-studded cast takes over, with Sondra Radvanovsky and Dolora Zajick as the leading ladies.Tenors Aleksandrs Antonenko and Yonghoon Lee alternate as Radamès, and Nicola Luisotti and Plácido Domingo take the podium for the Met’s monumental production. Production a gift of Mrs. Donald D. Harrington Revival a gift of Viking Cruises
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.
ERNANI:Verdi
Original Air Date: 12/17/1983
Levine; Pavarotti, Mitchell, Milnes, Raimondi
MOD Audio SID.19350103
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.
RIGOLETTO:Verdi
Original Air Date: 12/07/1968
Cleva; Merrill, Moffo, Bergonzi, Michalski, Love
SID.19350106
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).
UN BALLO IN MASCHERA:Verdi
Original Air Date: 03/17/1962
Santi; Bergonzi, Rysanek, Merrill, Rothenberger, Madeira
SID.19350212
This is the cast that premiered the new production a few weeks earlier, and brought Bergonzi’s matchless Riccardo to Met audiences. He would go on to sing it with the Met 33 times, a house record. Bergonzi has two distinguished studio recordings, and for anyone who saw his performance, it was one of the great assumptions of the postwar Met. He had no better Verdian role, and no other tenor so epitomized the virtues of Verdi’s music. July 13, was Bergonzi’s birthday, and we all truly wish him Cent’anni. Rysanek received good reviews, but the scrutiny of the broadcast microphones show more of a mixed bag. Rysanek does two more Amelias the following season and with a broadcast Don Carlo in 1964, Rysanek is done with Verdi at the Met. She continues at the Met for another 32 years with many distinguished performances, but Italian opera which was her original calling card (as Lady Macbeth) is gone from her repertory. Renato was one of Merrill’s best roles, and recently hearing him in 1963 with Nilsson and Tucker in this Ballo production on Sirius, Merrill makes a strong case for this as the third starring role. He dominated the broadcast airwaves in this role for close to two decades, and especially when he gets to Eri tu and the drawing of the lots, he really leaves competition inside and outside the Met far to the rear (Cappuccilli has a distinguished video from Covent Garden, and his mostly non-Met presence (debut and farewell as Germont on the same night) remains a great loss for the Met. Only Santi and Bergonzi are still with us, and I think Santi is still conducting. This is the cast of the premiere of the new production, and finds Rysanek in uneven form. Bergonzi, Merrill and Rothenberger are just about as good as you can get. Merrill is here in his 3d of 8 broadcasts of Renato from 1955-1975. Milnes breaks the chronology for 1 broadcast in 1973, otherwise if Ballo is on the radio, it’s Bob on board. The conspiracy scene is further strengthened by Giaiotti’s Sam.
LA TRAVIATA:Verdi
Original Air Date: 01/24/1959
Adler; Albanese, Valletti, Sereni
SID.19350214
This Is Albanese’s final Violetta broadcast her 10th. She is also the Met champion Violetta at 87 (Moffo has 80, then the ranks start to disperse rapidly. This is not my first choice Violetta (I never saw her in the part) but she is part of a Violetta tradition that has vanished. Happy that Sirius is broadcasting it. A few further Albanese Traviata notes– although she is the Violetta for Robert Merrill’s debut in 1945 (with Tucker but never with a broadcast microphone. Tucker, whose Alfredos go from 1945-1972 does not appear on the broadcast microphones for it after 1954 when the trio is Albanese, Tucker, Warren. Albanese also has a broadcast VIoletta with Bastianini and Prandelli in 1955. Sadly for the #1 Violetta in performances is not represented in MOoD. This 1959 is ok, but I would love to hear either the 1954 or 1955 on Sirius first.
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.
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).
LA TRAVIATA:Verdi
Original Air Date: 01/24/1959
Adler; Albanese, Valletti, Sereni
SID.19350423
This Is Albanese’s final Violetta broadcast her 10th. She is also the Met champion Violetta at 87 (Moffo has 80, then the ranks start to disperse rapidly. This is not my first choice Violetta (I never saw her in the part) but she is part of a Violetta tradition that has vanished. Happy that Sirius is broadcasting it. A few further Albanese Traviata notes– although she is the Violetta for Robert Merrill’s debut in 1945 (with Tucker but never with a broadcast microphone. Tucker, whose Alfredos go from 1945-1972 does not appear on the broadcast microphones for it after 1954 when the trio is Albanese, Tucker, Warren. Albanese also has a broadcast VIoletta with Bastianini and Prandelli in 1955. Sadly for the #1 Violetta in performances is not represented in MOoD. This 1959 is ok, but I would love to hear either the 1954 or 1955 on Sirius first.
UN BALLO IN MASCHERA:Verdi
Original Air Date: 03/17/1962
Santi; Bergonzi, Rysanek, Merrill, Rothenberger, Madeira
SID.19350428
This is the cast that premiered the new production a few weeks earlier, and brought Bergonzi’s matchless Riccardo to Met audiences. He would go on to sing it with the Met 33 times, a house record. Bergonzi has two distinguished studio recordings, and for anyone who saw his performance, it was one of the great assumptions of the postwar Met. He had no better Verdian role, and no other tenor so epitomized the virtues of Verdi’s music. July 13, was Bergonzi’s birthday, and we all truly wish him Cent’anni. Rysanek received good reviews, but the scrutiny of the broadcast microphones show more of a mixed bag. Rysanek does two more Amelias the following season and with a broadcast Don Carlo in 1964, Rysanek is done with Verdi at the Met. She continues at the Met for another 32 years with many distinguished performances, but Italian opera which was her original calling card (as Lady Macbeth) is gone from her repertory. Renato was one of Merrill’s best roles, and recently hearing him in 1963 with Nilsson and Tucker in this Ballo production on Sirius, Merrill makes a strong case for this as the third starring role. He dominated the broadcast airwaves in this role for close to two decades, and especially when he gets to Eri tu and the drawing of the lots, he really leaves competition inside and outside the Met far to the rear (Cappuccilli has a distinguished video from Covent Garden, and his mostly non-Met presence (debut and farewell as Germont on the same night) remains a great loss for the Met. Only Santi and Bergonzi are still with us, and I think Santi is still conducting. This is the cast of the premiere of the new production, and finds Rysanek in uneven form. Bergonzi, Merrill and Rothenberger are just about as good as you can get. Merrill is here in his 3d of 8 broadcasts of Renato from 1955-1975. Milnes breaks the chronology for 1 broadcast in 1973, otherwise if Ballo is on the radio, it’s Bob on board. The conspiracy scene is further strengthened by Giaiotti’s Sam.
?pubId=610394115001&videoId=5839999932001
AIDA:Verdi
Original Air Date: 10/02/2018
Luisotti; Netrebko, Rachvelishvili, Antonenko, Kelsey, Belosselskiy, Green
SID.19350535
In what should be a highlight of the new season, soprano Anna Netrebko sings her first Met Aida, going toe-to-toe with mezzo-soprano Anita Rachvelishvili as Amneris. Later in the season, a second star-studded cast takes over, with Sondra Radvanovsky and Dolora Zajick as the leading ladies.Tenors Aleksandrs Antonenko and Yonghoon Lee alternate as Radamès, and Nicola Luisotti and Plácido Domingo take the podium for the Met’s monumental production. Production a gift of Mrs. Donald D. Harrington Revival a gift of Viking Cruises
RIGOLETTO:Verdi
Original Air Date: 12/07/1968
Cleva; Merrill, Moffo, Bergonzi, Michalski, Love
SID.19350639
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).
ERNANI:Verdi
Original Air Date: 12/17/1983
Levine; Pavarotti, Mitchell, Milnes, Raimondi
MOD Audio SID.19350743
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.
UN BALLO IN MASCHERA:Verdi
Original Air Date: 03/17/1962
Santi; Bergonzi, Rysanek, Merrill, Rothenberger, Madeira
SID.19350744
This is the cast that premiered the new production a few weeks earlier, and brought Bergonzi’s matchless Riccardo to Met audiences. He would go on to sing it with the Met 33 times, a house record. Bergonzi has two distinguished studio recordings, and for anyone who saw his performance, it was one of the great assumptions of the postwar Met. He had no better Verdian role, and no other tenor so epitomized the virtues of Verdi’s music. July 13, was Bergonzi’s birthday, and we all truly wish him Cent’anni. Rysanek received good reviews, but the scrutiny of the broadcast microphones show more of a mixed bag. Rysanek does two more Amelias the following season and with a broadcast Don Carlo in 1964, Rysanek is done with Verdi at the Met. She continues at the Met for another 32 years with many distinguished performances, but Italian opera which was her original calling card (as Lady Macbeth) is gone from her repertory. Renato was one of Merrill’s best roles, and recently hearing him in 1963 with Nilsson and Tucker in this Ballo production on Sirius, Merrill makes a strong case for this as the third starring role. He dominated the broadcast airwaves in this role for close to two decades, and especially when he gets to Eri tu and the drawing of the lots, he really leaves competition inside and outside the Met far to the rear (Cappuccilli has a distinguished video from Covent Garden, and his mostly non-Met presence (debut and farewell as Germont on the same night) remains a great loss for the Met. Only Santi and Bergonzi are still with us, and I think Santi is still conducting. This is the cast of the premiere of the new production, and finds Rysanek in uneven form. Bergonzi, Merrill and Rothenberger are just about as good as you can get. Merrill is here in his 3d of 8 broadcasts of Renato from 1955-1975. Milnes breaks the chronology for 1 broadcast in 1973, otherwise if Ballo is on the radio, it’s Bob on board. The conspiracy scene is further strengthened by Giaiotti’s Sam.
LA TRAVIATA:Verdi
Original Air Date: 01/24/1959
Adler; Albanese, Valletti, Sereni
SID.19350746
This Is Albanese’s final Violetta broadcast her 10th. She is also the Met champion Violetta at 87 (Moffo has 80, then the ranks start to disperse rapidly. This is not my first choice Violetta (I never saw her in the part) but she is part of a Violetta tradition that has vanished. Happy that Sirius is broadcasting it. A few further Albanese Traviata notes– although she is the Violetta for Robert Merrill’s debut in 1945 (with Tucker but never with a broadcast microphone. Tucker, whose Alfredos go from 1945-1972 does not appear on the broadcast microphones for it after 1954 when the trio is Albanese, Tucker, Warren. Albanese also has a broadcast VIoletta with Bastianini and Prandelli in 1955. Sadly for the #1 Violetta in performances is not represented in MOoD. This 1959 is ok, but I would love to hear either the 1954 or 1955 on Sirius first.
LUISA MILLER:Verdi
Original Air Date: 04/14/2018
de Billy; Yoncheva, Beczala, Domingo, Vinogradov, Belosselskiy, Petrova
Live in HD SID.19359997
Plácido Domingo adds yet another role to his legendary Met career in this rarely performed Verdi gem, a heart-wrenching tragedy of fatherly love. Sonya Yoncheva sings the title role opposite Piotr Beczała in the first Met performances of the opera in more than ten years. Bertrand de Billy conducts. Production a gift of Catherine and Ephraim Gildor Revival a gift of Rolex and Mrs. Jayne Wrightsman
LA FORZA DEL DESTINO:Verdi
Original Air Date: 12/30/1961
Schick; Farrell, Tucker, Merrill, Hines, Vanni, Corena
SID.19360212
This production was on tour in Dallas five months later with Amara replacing Farrell who was ill, and Peerce who was doing his first Alvaros with the Met. Schick has the forces very mobilized. Farrell is not ideal, but nice to hear her. The men are all in close to absolute prime even if the fare is more Idaho than pasta, it’s top quality.
AIDA:Verdi
Original Air Date: 03/11/1950
Cooper; Welitsch, Vinay, Harshaw, Merrill, Hines
MOD Audio SID.19360315
Welitsch has some powerful moments, and a pleasure to hear early Merrill in this role. He is the Met champion Amonasro with 72 (MacNeil is 71, and Amato 70)
LA FORZA DEL DESTINO:Verdi
Original Air Date: 12/30/1961
Schick; Farrell, Tucker, Merrill, Hines, Vanni, Corena
SID.19360428
This production was on tour in Dallas five months later with Amara replacing Farrell who was ill, and Peerce who was doing his first Alvaros with the Met. Schick has the forces very mobilized. Farrell is not ideal, but nice to hear her. The men are all in close to absolute prime even if the fare is more Idaho than pasta, it’s top quality.
AIDA:Verdi
Original Air Date: 03/11/1950
Cooper; Welitsch, Vinay, Harshaw, Merrill, Hines
MOD Audio SID.19360531
Welitsch has some powerful moments, and a pleasure to hear early Merrill in this role. He is the Met champion Amonasro with 72 (MacNeil is 71, and Amato 70)
RIGOLETTO:Verdi
Original Air Date: 05/01/2019
Luisotti; Feola, Zaharia, Hymel, Gagnidze, Ivashchenko
SID.19360535
Verdi’s tragic jester returns in Michael Mayer’s neon-bedecked, Las Vegas–themed production. Baritones Roberto Frontali and George Gagnidze share the title role, and soprano Nadine Sierra reprises her portrayal of Gilda, the role that helped launch her now-blossoming Met career. Tenors Vittorio Grigolo, Francesco Demuro, Matthew Polenzani, and Stephen Costello share the role of the lascivious Duke, and Nicola Luisotti conducts.
LA FORZA DEL DESTINO:Verdi
Original Air Date: 12/30/1961
Schick; Farrell, Tucker, Merrill, Hines, Vanni, Corena
SID.19360744
This production was on tour in Dallas five months later with Amara replacing Farrell who was ill, and Peerce who was doing his first Alvaros with the Met. Schick has the forces very mobilized. Farrell is not ideal, but nice to hear her. The men are all in close to absolute prime even if the fare is more Idaho than pasta, it’s top quality.
AIDA:Verdi
Original Air Date: 03/11/1950
Cooper; Welitsch, Vinay, Harshaw, Merrill, Hines
MOD Audio SID.19360747
Welitsch has some powerful moments, and a pleasure to hear early Merrill in this role. He is the Met champion Amonasro with 72 (MacNeil is 71, and Amato 70)
I LOMBARDI:Verdi
Original Air Date: 01/15/1994
Levine; Flanigan, Pavarotti, Beccaria, Plishka
MOD Audio SID.19370208
This is the Met’s only broadcast of Lombardi. Pavarotti is in both the December telecast and January broadcast and Ramey was in the premiere and telecast, Plishka in the audio broadcast. Neither Flanigan nor Beccaria are really up to this major assignment. Flanigan except for two Musettas the following fall, disappears from the Met roster. Her contributions to contemporary opera are significant, and she has some excellent work at NYCO, including a fine Lady Macbeth. Both this broadcast and the telecast a month earlier in December are on Met Opera on Demand (MOoD). The telecast was originally to have been Millo, but she left the production shortly after opening night. Ramey did the Met premiere (and telecast), but Plishka is on this broadcast. This broadcast is Beccaria’s Met farewell. Levine, the chorus, Pavarotti, and the bass deliver rather well some of Verdi’s lustiest music, but it’s far from the level of Ernani in terms of finish. In a week’s rotation, Lombardi is an interesting diversion. I Lombardi alla Prima Crociata to use its full name only got to the Met stage with this series of performances. Millo who originated the production was mostly replaced by Flanigan after 2 performances. Beccaria in a major part really is lacking in the face you want. Pavarotti of course gets La mia letizia, one of the great Verdian tenor arias; there is also the unforgettable trio (with violin obbligato) which Levine did for Gniewek as much as for himself. It’s not as good as either Ernani or Macbeth in my view, but several of the choruses are stirring, and with the newly energized Palumbo leadership, the Met could well revive this. The distinctive Pavarotti aside, the soprano and tenor parts could be very reasonably cast today. This performance at hand is also on MetPlayer.
OTELLO:Verdi
Original Air Date: 03/11/1967
Mehta; Caballé, McCracken, Gobbi, Lorenzi
MOD Audio SID.19370211
This is the first Otello broadcast from the new house at Lincoln Center. Caballe is very fine in the fourth act, but earlier acts do not find her fully engaged. McCracken and Gobbi are fully engaged from first note, and Mehta is a solid participant. Sirius continues to deprive us of Tebaldi’s 1955 and 1958 Desdemonas which capture her (especially 1955) in remarkable voice. This is Caballe’s first broadcast from the Met, and McCracken, Gobbi and Mehta are wonderful partners. Compared to some other Desdemonas, I found her a little short until Act Four, but in the final act she was on all eight cylinders. I love the chemistry of McCracken and Gobbi. This fine performance is available on MetPlayer also. There never was a tenor quite like James McCracken—a veritable force of nature vocally, he fought his way to an international career that would come to be dominated by his seething portrayal of the title role of Verdi’s Otello. In this March 11, 1967, broadcast conducted by Zubin Mehta, McCracken’s finely sung Otello rages with a raw-nerve fury but also brings heroic tenderness to the love duet and his final moments. Montserrat Caballé’s singing, regal in its beauty throughout, gives way to towering passion in Desdemona’s clash with Otello in Act III. Tito Gobbi is utter, impeccable evil as Iago, heard in the savage glee he finally takes in hurling Cassio’s name, like a knife, at Otello at the end of Act II. This performance is available in Met Opera on Demand (MOoD) and definitely worth your time.
I LOMBARDI:Verdi
Original Air Date: 01/15/1994
Levine; Flanigan, Pavarotti, Beccaria, Plishka
MOD Audio SID.19370424
This is the Met’s only broadcast of Lombardi. Pavarotti is in both the December telecast and January broadcast and Ramey was in the premiere and telecast, Plishka in the audio broadcast. Neither Flanigan nor Beccaria are really up to this major assignment. Flanigan except for two Musettas the following fall, disappears from the Met roster. Her contributions to contemporary opera are significant, and she has some excellent work at NYCO, including a fine Lady Macbeth. Both this broadcast and the telecast a month earlier in December are on Met Opera on Demand (MOoD). The telecast was originally to have been Millo, but she left the production shortly after opening night. Ramey did the Met premiere (and telecast), but Plishka is on this broadcast. This broadcast is Beccaria’s Met farewell. Levine, the chorus, Pavarotti, and the bass deliver rather well some of Verdi’s lustiest music, but it’s far from the level of Ernani in terms of finish. In a week’s rotation, Lombardi is an interesting diversion. I Lombardi alla Prima Crociata to use its full name only got to the Met stage with this series of performances. Millo who originated the production was mostly replaced by Flanigan after 2 performances. Beccaria in a major part really is lacking in the face you want. Pavarotti of course gets La mia letizia, one of the great Verdian tenor arias; there is also the unforgettable trio (with violin obbligato) which Levine did for Gniewek as much as for himself. It’s not as good as either Ernani or Macbeth in my view, but several of the choruses are stirring, and with the newly energized Palumbo leadership, the Met could well revive this. The distinctive Pavarotti aside, the soprano and tenor parts could be very reasonably cast today. This performance at hand is also on MetPlayer.
OTELLO:Verdi
Original Air Date: 03/11/1967
Mehta; Caballé, McCracken, Gobbi, Lorenzi
MOD Audio SID.19370427
This is the first Otello broadcast from the new house at Lincoln Center. Caballe is very fine in the fourth act, but earlier acts do not find her fully engaged. McCracken and Gobbi are fully engaged from first note, and Mehta is a solid participant. Sirius continues to deprive us of Tebaldi’s 1955 and 1958 Desdemonas which capture her (especially 1955) in remarkable voice. This is Caballe’s first broadcast from the Met, and McCracken, Gobbi and Mehta are wonderful partners. Compared to some other Desdemonas, I found her a little short until Act Four, but in the final act she was on all eight cylinders. I love the chemistry of McCracken and Gobbi. This fine performance is available on MetPlayer also. There never was a tenor quite like James McCracken—a veritable force of nature vocally, he fought his way to an international career that would come to be dominated by his seething portrayal of the title role of Verdi’s Otello. In this March 11, 1967, broadcast conducted by Zubin Mehta, McCracken’s finely sung Otello rages with a raw-nerve fury but also brings heroic tenderness to the love duet and his final moments. Montserrat Caballé’s singing, regal in its beauty throughout, gives way to towering passion in Desdemona’s clash with Otello in Act III. Tito Gobbi is utter, impeccable evil as Iago, heard in the savage glee he finally takes in hurling Cassio’s name, like a knife, at Otello at the end of Act II. This performance is available in Met Opera on Demand (MOoD) and definitely worth your time.
OTELLO:Verdi
Original Air Date: 03/11/1967
Mehta; Caballé, McCracken, Gobbi, Lorenzi
MOD Audio SID.19370637
This is the first Otello broadcast from the new house at Lincoln Center. Caballe is very fine in the fourth act, but earlier acts do not find her fully engaged. McCracken and Gobbi are fully engaged from first note, and Mehta is a solid participant. Sirius continues to deprive us of Tebaldi’s 1955 and 1958 Desdemonas which capture her (especially 1955) in remarkable voice. This is Caballe’s first broadcast from the Met, and McCracken, Gobbi and Mehta are wonderful partners. Compared to some other Desdemonas, I found her a little short until Act Four, but in the final act she was on all eight cylinders. I love the chemistry of McCracken and Gobbi. This fine performance is available on MetPlayer also. There never was a tenor quite like James McCracken—a veritable force of nature vocally, he fought his way to an international career that would come to be dominated by his seething portrayal of the title role of Verdi’s Otello. In this March 11, 1967, broadcast conducted by Zubin Mehta, McCracken’s finely sung Otello rages with a raw-nerve fury but also brings heroic tenderness to the love duet and his final moments. Montserrat Caballé’s singing, regal in its beauty throughout, gives way to towering passion in Desdemona’s clash with Otello in Act III. Tito Gobbi is utter, impeccable evil as Iago, heard in the savage glee he finally takes in hurling Cassio’s name, like a knife, at Otello at the end of Act II. This performance is available in Met Opera on Demand (MOoD) and definitely worth your time.