About this section: Audio of the Month is a monthly section where a song, an aria or an opera will be presented, with focus on the tenor. The audio files will be available for a limited time only and will be of low bitrate quality. Current section editor: Geoffrey Mallinson, UK.
Je pense a vous
Aria from the opera "Maître Pathelin" by French composer François Bazin (1816-1878), first performed in 1865.
Tenors: Gaston Micheletti (1930), Miguel Villabella (c1930), André D'Arkor (1931), Laurence Dale (1988), Roberto Alagna (2001) and Piotr Beczala (2008).
Mystery Voice: ?
Review: Geoffrey Mallinson
La vita è inferno all'infelice
Aria from the opera "La Forza del Destino" by Giuseppe Verdi, first performed at the Imperial Theatre, St. Petersburg, November 10th, 1862.
Tenors: Barry Morrell (1960s), Flaviano Labò (1961), Bruno Prevedi (1964), Gianfranco Cecchele (1966), Giuseppe Giacomini (1996) and Taro Ichihara (1999).
Mystery Voice: Jess Thomas (c1970)
Review: Geoffrey Mallinson
Va pour Kleinzach!
Aria from the opera "Les Contes d'Hoffmann" by Jaques Offenbach, first performed at the Opéra-Comique in Paris, February 10, 1881, and four months after the death of Offenbach himself.
Tenors: Richard Tucker (1955), Sandor Konya (1962), Nicolai Gedda (1964), Waldermar Kmentt, Neil Shicoff (1988) and Rolando Villazón (2007).
Mystery Voice: Vincenzo la Scola (2001)
Review: Geoffrey Mallinson
Una vergine, un'angiol di Dio
Gaetano Donizetti (1797-1848): La Favorite (1840)
Opera: Based on Baculard d'Arnaud's play Le comte de Comminges, the story takes place in 14th century Spain and reveals a love triangle involving the King of Castile Alfonso XI, his mistress - La Favorite - Leonora, and her lover, Fernando.
Tenors: Roberto D'Alessio (x), Christy Solari (c.1930-35), Jaume Aragall (1968), Alfredo Kraus (1971), Franco Bonisolli (1974) and Roberto Alagna (2003).
Mystery Voice: ?
Review: Geoffrey Mallinson
Teco io sto
Giuseppe Verdi (1813-1901): Un Ballo in Maschera (1859)
Opera: The opera is based on the assassination of King Gustav III of Sweden, but is not historically accurate. First premiered at the Teatro Apollo in Rome in 1859.
Voices: Giuseppe Di Stefano and Antonietta Stella (1956), Giuseppe Zampieri and Gre Brouwenstijn (1958), Franco Corelli and Regine Crespin (1964), Carlo Bergonzi and Leontyne Price (1966), Flaviano Labo and Montserrat Caballe (1969), Jose Carreras and Katia Ricciarelli (1977) and Jaime Aragall and Mara Zampieri (1985).
Mystery Voices: ?
Review: Geoffrey Mallinson
Inspirez-moi, race divine
Charles Gounod (1818-1893): La Reine de Saba (1862)
Opera: A French Grand Opera based on the historical figure of the Queen of Sheeba. First premiered at the Paris Opera in 1862.
Tenors: Evan Williams (1908-09), Cesare Vezzani (1912), Enrico Caruso (1916), Guy Cazenave (1927), Walter Widdop (1929), Frank Mullings, Gustave Botieux (1950-55) and Rolando Villazon (2005).
Mystery Voice: Cesare Vezzani (1923)
Review: Geoffrey Mallinson
Mamma, quel vino è generoso
Pietro Mascagni (1863-1945): Cavalleria Rusticana (1890)
Opera: Based on Giovanni Verga's short story "Cavalleria Rusticana" (1880), about life in rural Sicily. First performed on 17 May 1890 at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome.
Tenors: Giovanni Martinelli (r1927), Achille Braschi (r1952), Daniele Barioni (r1960), Eugenio Fernandi (r1960s), Gianfranco Cecchele (r1967) and Corneliu Murgu (c1980).
Mystery Voice: Francesco Merli (1926)
Review: Geoffrey Mallinson
Elle ne croyait pas
Thomas Ambroise (1811-1896): Mignon (1866)
Opera: Based on Goethe's "Wilhelm Meisters Lehrjahre," the opera was first performed at the Opéra Comique, Paris, on November 17, 1866.
Tenors: Alfred Piccaver (1914), André d'Arkor (1931), Anatoli Orfionov [or Orfenov] (1940s), Giuseppe di Stefano (1947), Georgi Vinogradov (1948) and Roberto Alagna (2001).
Mystery Voice: Giovanni Malipiero (c1939)
Review: Geoffrey Mallinson
Dies Bildnis ist bezaubernd schön
W.A. Mozart (1756-1791): Die Zauberflöte (1791)
Opera: Mozart's last opera, premiered only a few months before the composer died. One of the most enigmatic and profound works in the history of opera.
Tenors: Koloman von Pataky (1927), Joseph Schmidt (1931), David Lloyd (1940), Anton Dermota (1941), Fritz Wünderlich (1960) and Nicolaï Gedda (1967).
Mystery Voice: Deon Van Der Walt (1995)
Review: Geoffrey Mallinson
Winterstürme
Richard Wagner (1818-1883): Die Walküre
Opera: The second of the four operas that comprise Der Ring des Nibelungen (The Ring of the Nibelung), premiered at Munich's National Theatre on 26 June 1870. (wikipedia.org)
Role: Siegmund
Tenors: Part 1: Francisco Viñas (r1908), Giuseppe Borgatti (r1914), Jaques Urlus (r1915), Walter Widdop (r1926), Giovanni Martinelli (r1958) and Alberto Remedios (r1973). Part 2: Modest Menzinsky (1910), Riccardo Martin (1911), Cesare Vezzani, Lauritz Melchior (1931), Piero Pauli (1933) and Robert Dean Smith (2001).
Mystery Voices: Part 1: Hans Hopf (1956) and Part 2: John Coates (1929).
Review: Geoffrey Mallinson
Dein ist mein ganzes Herz
Franz Lehár (1870-1948): Das Land der Lächelns
Opera: One of Lehar's later works, a romantically toned operetta in three acts and first performed at Berlin's Metropol Theatre on 10 October 1929 with Richard Tauber in the lead role.
Role: Prince Sou-Chong
Tenors: Anton Dermota (1929), Joseph Schmidt (1929), Richard tauber (1935), Charles Craig (1964), Werner Krenn (1971), Rolf Björling (1980) and Franco Bonisolli (1985).
Mystery Voice: Peter Anders
Review: Geoffrey Mallinson
Ah! Leve-toi, soleil
Charles Gounod (1818-1893): Roméo et Juliette
Opera: Opera in five acts by Charles Gounod to a French libretto by Jules Barbier and Michel Carré, based on the play by Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare. It was first performed at the Théâtre Lyrique, Paris on April 27, 1867 (wikipedia.org)
Tenors: Jussib Björling (r1945), Joseph Calleja (r2005), Rolando Villazon (r2005), Jose Luccioni (r1947), Cesar Vezzani (r1923) and Nicolai Gedda (r1953)
Mystery Voice: Zoran Todorovich (r2001)
Review: Geoffrey Mallinson
RIP: Luciano Pavarotti (1935-2007)
A special feature on Luciano Pavarotti, who passed away on 6 September 2007. On 10 October he would have been 72.
Review: Geoffrey Mallinson
O Paradiso
Giacomo Meyerbeer (1791-1864): L'Africana, 1865
Meyerbeer's last work, set to a libretto by Eugène Scribe, depicting fictional events in the life of the explorer Vasco da Gama.
Tenors: Hipólito Lázaro (r1916), Costa Milona(r1922), Miguel Fleta (r1927), Antonio Cortis (r1930), Joseph Schmidt (r1933) and Raoul Jobin (r1947)
Mystery Voice: Guy Chauvet (r approx 1960)
Review: Geoffrey Mallinson
Ideale
Francesco Paolo Tosti (1846-1916) music to Carmelo Errico's (1848-1892) poem.
Tenors: Enrico Caruso (r1906, 2001 orchestra re-recorded and added),
Alfred Piccaver (r c1920),
Giacomo Lauri-Volpi (r1923),
Giuseppe di Stefano (r1944),
Jussi Björling (r1955) and
Carlo Bergonzi (r1977).
Mystery Voice:
Review: Geoffrey Mallinson
Mit gewitter und sturm aus fernem Meer
Wagner: Der Fliegende Holländer (The Flying Ducthman), 1843
According to legend, a Dutch sea captain named Vanderdecken was condemned by the Devil to roam the seas until redeemed by a woman's love. In Richard Wagner's opera the sea captain leaves the ship every seven years to search for a wife. He finds Senta, who is willing to marry him. However, the Dutchman fears she has been unfaithful. Prepared to die for him, Senta throws herself off a cliff into the sea. The ghost ship with the Dutchman and Senta vanish forever.
Tenors: Richard Lewis (r1961), Gerhard Unger (r1968), Harald Ek (r1971), Werner Krenn (r1976), Robert Schunk (r1985) and Thomas Moser.
Mystery Voice: ??
Review: Geoffrey Mallinson
Weber; Der Freischütz (1821)
Opera in three acts by Carl Maria von Weber to a libretto by Friedrich Kind. It is considered the first important German Romantic opera, especially in its national identity and stark emotionality. Its plot was taken from German folk legend and many of its tunes were inspired by German folk music. The selected tenors in this AM sing the aria Durch die Walder, durch die Auen, in English translated as Through the forests, through the meadows.
Tenors: Dermota, Anders (1952), Holm (1960), King (1967), Schock (1967) and Gedda (1969).
Mystery Voice: Peter Seiffert (r1994)
Review: Geoffrey Mallinson
Verdi: Rigoletto (1851)
Rigoletto is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi, commissioned in 1850 by the Teatro La Fenice of Venice. This AM presents the different arias for and duets with tenor in the opera.
Volume One:
The aria "Questa o quella" from the first act.
Tenors: Giusepe Anselmi (1908), Enzo de Muro Lomanto (1928), Dino Borgioli (1930), André D'Arkor (1931), Giovanni Malipiero (c.1935), Alain Vanzo (19xx) and Jan Peerce (1950).
Mystery Voice: Roberto D'Alessio (c.1929)
Volume Two:
The act one duet between the Duke and Gilda, "È il sol dell'anima"
Tenors: Donald Smith (1964), Franco Bonisolli (1977) and Joseph Calleja (2006).
Volume Three:
The 2nd act opens with the Duke's aria, "Ella mi fu rapita"
Tenors: Tito Schipa (1928), Ferruccio Tagliavini (1940), Giuseppe di Stefano (1956), Peter Dvorsky (1986) and Marcelo Álvarez (1998).
Mystery Voice (Possente amor mi chiama): Richard Leech
Volume Four:
The famous aria from the Duke, "La donna è mobile"
Tenors: Tony Poncet (1958), Richard Verreau (1959), Nicolai Gedda (1967), Alfredo Kraus (1978), Stefano Secco (1997) and Yu Quiang Dai (2004).
Mystery Voice: ??
Tchaikovsky: Eugene Onegin (1879)
Eugene Onegin is an opera in three acts by Tchaikovsky to a Russian libretto by Konstantin Shilovsky and the composer, based on the poetic novel of the same name by Pushkin. In this AM, the tenors sing the aria "Kuda, Kuda," known in English as Where, o where have you gone, golden days of my youth?
Tenors: Lemeshev (1950), Korolev (1960), Noreika (1968), Grishko (1998), Larin (1998) and Didyk (1999).
Mystery Voice: Peter Lindroos
Review: Geoffrey Mallinson
Donizetti: Lucia di Lammermoor (1835)
The final scene of Donizetti's successful opera Lucia di Lammermoor, as the opera concludes finally a showpiece for the tenor: "Tombe degli avi miei ... Fra poco a me ricovero ... tu che a Dio spiegasti l'ali"
Tenors: Gigli (1927), De Muro Lomanto (1928), Tucker (1954), Raimondi (1967), Bergonzi (1970) and Aragall (1972).
Mystery Voice: Giovanni Malipiero (1939)
Review: Geoffrey Mallinson
One of the greatest Otello's of the mid 1920s and 1930s Chilean born singer Renato Zanelli commenced his career as a baritone in 1916, before switching to tenor in 1924.
Puccini: Tosca
The tenor's first aria of the opera where he compares the beauty of the dark-haired Floria Tosca with that of the blonde Magdelene.
Mystery Voice: János B. Nagy with Jozsef Gregor
Review: Geoffrey Mallinson
Verdi: Otello
"Verdi at his most inspired," writes Geoffrey Mallinson of the tine-spingling duet between Otello and Iago: "Yes, I swear by the marble heaven."
Mystery Voices: Nicola Fusati and Riccardo Stracciari (1928)
Review: Geoffrey Mallinson
Haunting aria sung by Faust, who has sold his soul to the Devil.
Tenors: Alain Vanzo, Richard Crooks, Gianni Poggi, William Matteuzzi, Tito Beltran and Fernando de la Mora.
Mystery Voice: Joseph Hislop (1884-1977).
Review: Geoffrey Mallinson
