Roberto Alagna & Bryn Terfel "Au fond du temple saint"

[joelditsebe]

I like it and want to buy it.

[placidodu31]

Arrêtez d'halluciner, Alagna a une voix faîte pour ce type d'aria....elle est douce, haute , claire et munie d'une diction sans égale.

[StSilverJohn]

I love this duet! Alagna and Bryn Terfel have incredible voices, beautiful mix! Belle mise en scène, good prononciation of french. I've a preferance for Nicolai Gedda and Ernest Blanc's version (listen to it ;))

[corzoidor]

It's seems to me more like "Les Pecheurs de Sardines"..!!!

[Burning0Lilac]

@corzoidor lol!

[Francisco7amaral]

Bravi! Fantástico!

[ruggierojhn]

Wasn't this song in Don Hertzfeldt's Everything Will Be OK?

[OldGamesNstuff]

@ruggierojhn

Correct, but the piece used in "Everything Will Be OK" was sung by Jerry Hadley and Thomas Hampson.

[sampaiomarcia1]

Thanks to whom posted this wonderful duet! Maravilhosos singers, I love them!

[8x8MaVerick8x8]

This is very good. Better perhaps then I've ever heard either of them. I don't love the choice of splitting up the last three words, however.

[kala69ism]

Best compliment is to say it's a close second to bjorling

[MrAndrePBC]

It's beautiful, though Bryn's accent is a little annoying.

C'est beau, même si l'accent de Bryn semble un peu agaçant.

[calvink2005]

I love this, it was my Nans favourite, reminds me of how much I miss her.... thank you for posting it.

[tingen3811]

Made me chuckle that they are standing so far apart.  Apparently to minimize the obvious difference in height.

[fotzekopp1234]

@tingen3811 its obviously because terfel moves towards alagna in the end and it has a huge effect with the music changing

[paulostroff99]

Glorious.TY M for posting.

[ericfennell]

My favorite recording of this duet. Both singers in their prime and a live performance as well.

[akarpowicz]

This is right up there with the Björling/Merrill version on my 'goosebumps' meter. Thanks for posting.

[biastg]

Bizet wrote this when he was 23 years old, after winning the commission in a competition. The opera's story is quite silly. When the librettists heard Bizet's music, one of them remarked, "If we had known the boy had such talent, we would have given him a better libretto."

[LucaYune]

@biastg 23...thats really incredible he was a genius

[reduxmisc]

Alagna, an Italian voice (production) on a Frenchman... Finally.. An Italian voice where the French cannot complain about his French ! They must be ecstatic...

[b3a5t1e]

@reduxmisc Alagna is French, but of Sicilian descent

[thebloke777]

@PrevitaliA ce que tu racontes que vous fucking idiot???

[webutterbreadwith]

Masterful would be an understatement to describe this duo.

[gaspamagik94]

o terfel è 2 metri o alagna è il 7 nano!!XD

[barcampos]

Mais uma vez fico emocionado com a linda interpretacao desse fantastico tenor!

[qwertyoop]

is it me or is alagna a mini version of bryn?

[legalmenteclau]

Adoro la flauta traversa que va dibujando melodías mientras ellos cantan...

[thegoodsish]

runs rings around Bocelli

[SheffieldBeagles]

@thegoodsish What's sculpture got to do with it? ; )

[AngeliOzellia247]

hìhí_pásst_hìèr_nèt_rëîñ_àbå_ì­ch_bìn_sõ_êiñsãm_wíll_jémãñd_m­ìt_mïã_schréîbèn

[jsmilgin]

Sublime > supernal.

[byheavenlyhosts]

It's so wonderful to see them singing!

[jamesrattle]

This duet turned me on to opera almost 40 years ago. If you have friends who are not opera fans, please let them listen to this and see how it should be performed. If they fail to be moved they have no soul. Just kidding. Opera is not for everybody, but this beautiful music and such strong voices should turn anyone on to opera. If you can afford it (Phew) seeing this performed live is just earth moving.

[guedjg]

roberto on t'aime

[Nick9494]

tres bien!

[LucaYune]

I wonder how Bizet created such beautiful themes a musical genius

[colora40]

colora40 Pasta and Pavarotti I answer to you. He is not Italian tenor ,no,he is Sicilian as he always says.

[PastaAndPavarotti]

Let's not call Alagna a French tenor. He is Italian. so let's give a little credit to the Italian side and share the pride. 2 of the finest voices around today.

[saintsaens21]

@PastaAndPavarotti Nope. He's as french as baguette and natalie dessay

[mazz529]

@PastaAndPavarotti Alagna is of Italian heritage (Sicilian) but he was born outside of Paris France and he is a French citizen.

[ChumpChange91]

Satan approves of the amount of green thumbs

[qwertyoop]

if bryn was a food he'd be a steak

[nick1962100]

at kan muziek in deze vorm toch mooi zijn...............elke keer weer een ontdekking.

2 top zangers die een klassieker vertolken zoals het mag zijn.

Helemaal top!!!!

[MrQuebec]

D'accord avec Gaytenor.

Alagna est le plus grand ténor français depuis Georges Thill.

[artec90]

simply perfect! :D

[zegermans750]

so roberto alagna was young once and not "go-to-guy when we need a mid-40s-looking-tenor" Who knew?

[TheRevellingJester]

Great version! Hahah, the size difference between these guys is comic!

[coracleman]

Alagna does not outshine Terfel, but he is Bryn's equal. This is a fabulous rendering - and maybe the fact that BT does this 'at every turn' means there are not even duets of this sort for male singers?

coraclewoman

[JohnnyBlowstar]

Terfel trots out this party piece at every available paid opportunity, and he's recorded it with Bocelli, Alvarez, and for all I know, Kiri te bloody Kanawa - but none so outshines him as much as Alagna, just the perfect voice for this.

[bobjunr]

this music make me feel chills, and I cry every single time that I hear this, really touch the deepest points of the human heart!

[Metalface123]

so beautiful, but don't forget to give cred to the conductor toooooo

[MrSbunk]

this is an excellent version and I am delighted to be able to hear such beautyful music. I think this is the best version i have heard and as jcamija says Alagna is pronouncing french the right way!

[jcamejia]

In addition to others comments, even if is not a rule in opera, the fact that Roberto Alagna is pronouncing French (he is french) makes this version magical for me.

[maxhansendk]

This is excellent stuff! Still I prefer Jussi Bjorling and Robert Merrils version.

But I am happy we have more versions then one! ;-)

[caquenanaud1]

un seul mot : magnifique. Ce duo est magique

[b0bthekillar]

this is the best ive seen on youtube

[SquabTheBlob]

Alagna is scooping his way through another aria.Pity realy.

[tdeane34]

@SquabTheBlob First of all, this is not an aria. Second of all, where are the scoops? This is long before he started scooping. This Alagna would have gone down as one of the great tenors.

[baritonodaw]

Here is where I first fallen in love with ROBERTO..... :-)

[NatalieLuvsBabyChi]

beautiful. This is probably my favorite song in the whole opera.

[killabotpegasi]

this is possibly my favorite version on youtube

[heasmans]

There's a recording of these two singing this duet at some sort of gala in NYC in the 1990's (I think). It was gruesome in the extreme. Their voices were grotesquely unmatched. This rendition is considerably better.

However, I can't help thinking that Alagna is singing at the very upper limit of his range. He really should desist. I know it's unfashionable to say so, but give me the Bjorling/Merrill rendition any time.

Stuart

[arpeggio1358]

@heasmans I, too, love the Bjorling/Merrill recording. The blend of their voices is perfect.

[RatherLargeAllan]

@arpeggio1358 If only we could have Bjorling and Terfel!!

[ximenadore]

simplemente maravilloso, Alagna and Terfel GREAT VOICES, Roberto I love you

[oznoddy]

Good to see Roberto in this verstion with Bryn - much better singing from Roberto than when he did it with Christopher Schaldenbrand. I still prefer the tempo to move on a little bit more though.

[AriaSinger1]

@2:14, I started crying! This is so beautiful, I think that the words and music compliment each other beautifully.

[soprani69]

A fantastc performance from both artists. I would defy anyone who professes to love music, not to be bowled over by this beautiful melody.

Thank goodness that there are still many excellent voices in the world of classical music, as sadly I can't say the same for much of the modern day singers of the easy listening genre.

[tjh58]

Well now - who has heard of French tenors??? :)

[Umbriaga]

squisito Grazie Mille!

[Tuperatacu]

Grandi!

[clarksc1988]

As I listen to this, recently having listened to some of Terfel's current singing, I can't tell you how much I wish he'd return to this type of voice. I'm all for a brighter, more forward placement, but what he's doing now runs the risk of being extremely abrassive. At least here there is some richness and space in the tone.

[seektheforce]

@clarksc1988 So this is an example of good placement?

[mazz529]

awesome duet.

[Odeceixelove]

bien terfel muy bien!!!

[coracleman]

terfel and alagna - a knockout combination! Da iawn mr Terfel, bravo M. Alagna!

coraclewoman

[totolinkerpian]

bien alagna muy bien

[JoanNilson]

This was LOVELY!! Clearly one of the great tenor/baritone duets of all time. I'm an old timer - so I am not that familiar with either Alagna or Terfel - They are wonderful here - even if not at the level of the recordings of this duet by Gedda/Blanc, Bjoerling/Merrill or Kraus/McDaniel recordings - but still exquisite. Also - there is a recording of Pavarotti and Ghiaurov of this duet ...and I can't help but think how Terfel really looks like the phenomonal Ghiaurov!

[shinawillful]

The size difference works rather nicely in view of the opera itself. The baritone eventually sacrifices his life in order to allow the tenor to escape with the woman they both love.

[CaptainPommby]

Awesome!

[MaaikeJJ]

One of Alagna's more focused performances. He should sing French opera always!

[MOGGS1942]

What about Bjorling and Merrill?Any significance in not having it here?

[domesongwish]

Dear Somewiseguy84

Singers come in all shapes and sizes. Joan Sutherland is large and Sumi Jo is tiny. There are small Baritones and large Tenors. Many pro-baritones can sing top C, only their timbre sounds more comfortable for baritone roles.

Operatic singing stretches human voice capability .. this in turn allows variety to appear - even more so now as other cultures such as Orientals are entering into the ring of cheer-vocal expression.

Best regards

Dome Songwish

[brodsky96]

true!!!

[somewiseguy84]

I've been watching a lot of versions of this duet and something struck me: the baritone is ALWAYS taller than the tenor. I never really thought about it but it makes sense that if they are taller they would have longer vocal chords, too. Is this a coincidence?

[LucaYune]

compare celo with violin. smaller instruments make sharper and higher sounds

[GpD79]

@somewiseguy84: There is actually some truth to that. Sure, as domesongwish said, singers come in all shapes and sizes. But it is especially more frequent with male singers. It's not always true, but tenors tend to be shorter and more stout and baritones tend to be taller and longer. Like I said, it's not ALWAYS true, but there is a tendency for this. I remember when I was in music school, one of the vocal instructors pointed it out to our class and every began to laugh. Fond memory.

[cryozo]

Yes probably, i'm 5'5" and have a very dark baritone voice. Almost a bass.

[aaqetnna]

atomic!!!!

[enzogrella1]

Grande Bizet......

[CluainSharoise]

Excellent. Thanks for posting.

[clamdip2]

Were these angels singing?

[LucaYune]

ALAGNA !!!

[johnbbailey]

Vocally very beautiful-no doubt-the slight lack of facial expression is a bit annoying, and the comradery is not quite there.....admittedly a concert performance so understandable to a point but physically a little bland.

[granitePillar]

Absolutely Brilliant !!

[acobrian]

Well matched together- what a great performance! Thanks for the post!

[mactopolis]

This is one of the best modern rendition done..in the top 3...

[chicocucea]

muy interesante :)

Ambas grandes voces!

Creo que la voz de Terfel es una de las mejores voces de barítono jamás escuchadas (no hay que dejar fuera a Dmitri Hvorostovsky). y Alagna, bueno... Alagna es Alagna!

vaya dueto más gracioso! El enorme Bryn y el pequeño (en comparación) Roberto.

[6666werner]

Wahrlich eines der besten Duetts für Männer.

Fantastisch

[myyellowlabfan]

To johneunson - nothing "happened" to Alagna except people trashing him on You Tube - You can access a lhis performances from 1992 to 2009 on You Tube. Granted, he does not have the sweetness & purity of his early years, but his voice is warmer as well as darker. He is singing "Carmen" at the Met this January & I already have my tickets!

[tenor9216]

wow, I never thought Alagna ever sang that well in his life... he paid the price of trying to have a big voice, a tendency which is sadly frequent among singers. Here he sings with a voice that is lighter than now, but more natural and oh how more beautiful.

[RoseBlackWarlock]

Fully agreed!!!

[guimaul69]

this was in 1996... the voice change with age, and generally it gets darker and louder...

[sirmercutio99]

Superb!

[Baritone04]

Without a doubt, one of the best-known and best-loved duos in all of opera. It has all the right mixture of drama, sentiment, and melody. Hard to top any music accompanied by the harp! Beautifully interpreted by two marvellous singers. Bravi signori!!!

[tuadolcefanciulla]

@Baritone04 I agree with everything you have written. WELL SAID!

[selysia]

This is an example of why I once thought that Alagna had a great future before him. Sadly, it didn't turn out that way, but this performance here is wonderful.

[Englishtenor2]

I do know what you mean, but I saw him recently as Manrico at Covent Garden and the rough voice sort of worked...

[PalazzoFarnese]

Yeah, unfortunately you're right and is really pity, it's so beautiful to listen this...

[EdwardMirzaPromotion]

why, what went wrong?

[johneunson]

what happened to alagna? why no great future? i haven' heard him for ages. is he ill? this is a genuine enquiry and you seem to know the opera world well.

[gcalvet81]

Superbe interprétation, bravo.

[puffin02]

I especially liked the last phrase. Normally the baritone just vamps along until the tenor decides to come off the A, but this actually had the music in mind. Fine performance.

[Englishtenor2]

It's a B flat actually...

[ophliablue]

Well he sings Rudolfo alot.. maybe he just got off the set of Boheme.. nyuk nyuk.

[marceldelta666]

Roberto looks like a beggar. What with his hair and beard?

[nicevidbro]

i think that makes him look very sexy.

[weedorf]

2:45

[aguacun]

This is the repertory of Alagna.

[MBXChquer]

Can you compare Alagna to Kraus? Alagne doesn't have a pinch on Kraus for technique but it just works for him nevertheless and the combination is good as Terful has the same playfull style.

[radiologist301]

whose the midget trying to sing next to Terfel....

[gaytenor]

The greatest French tenor since Thill and, in his repertoire, still the best. If you have any questions of this watch Villazon trash the role of Romeo. Constant comments about the state of Alagna voice forget how much longer he has lasted than DiStefano for example.

[jhgreenhorn]

I just find it disappointing when someone like Alagna has the the money and access to get whatever teacher he wants to maintain the technique he had when he was younger and he just doesn't get one. Or maybe he does have a teacher and that teacher just sucks, because anyone with an ear can hear some somewhat serious technical problems with his singing of late. But he is quite a talent!

[Pawelp]

@gaytenor Lasting longer than Di Stefano goes for almost any tenor. But indeed Alagna did justice to operatic roles well beyond the reach(in multiple ways) of Villazon.

[lucyliesinashes]

@gaytenor I think I like Alagna better in French rep than anything else he sings. His Werther was lovely.

[TheRevellingJester]

He, He, it's like watching Chang the Chinese Giant and Tom Thumb! Beautifully done though!!

[sandrik100]

Great duet.

For today these singers are the best in their fach: Alagna the best lyrico-spinto tenor and Terfel the best bassbaritone.

[Ferrettimeister]

when you hear something like that, you don't anything more to be happy in your like. Everything is completed.

[kimm0130]

Fantastic combination!

[Ritzounett]

Two great voices. PERFECT.

[estanteriax]

Thanks so much Muezzab!

[VolkgartenBySquirrel]

Yes! Much thanks for this upload - I hit the wrong hand!

[AbsGuy]

Men at their best!!

[meluzyna55]

Czy mi się tylko tak wydaje, że Alagna to trochę "cieńki Bolo"? Słabiutki ten głos....

[pinkpolitics]

Is it at the Met?

[mpuma]

a mon avis la meilleure combinaison serait Alagna Tezier!Meme diction impeccable meme classe!!

[jl19g10]

bjorling Merill ce n'est peut être pas le meilleur français mais il y a la vibration des deux voix et c'est ça qui vous dresse les poils ...

[Sudare1960]

WOW...this is so perfect!! Thank you.

[AmoreHL]

Oh, I have loved this aria for so many years! I'm a big Roberto Alagna fan too, so thanks for putting this up!

[christophelemotard]

c'est tres bien, mais j'ai une preference pour le duo Jussi BJORLING/Robert MERRIL

[devastaticon]

damn right, bjoerling/merril will never be matched!

and to be honest, this is far from the best we've seen of alagna...

but terfel delivers like always.

[israellee3]

wow! i LOVE IT!

[richardmarseille]

de beaux artistes dont l'adaptation à ce duo me semble inadéquate - La voix d'Alagna s'est corsé et manque aujourd'hui de la lumière et la légèreté pour Nadir - Terfel est un formidable baryton basse beaucoup dont la voix est trop grave pour Zurga.

[homestar440]

As nice as this is to hear, if you want a different take on it, you should look up the East Village Opera Company. There version of this song is top notch, if your into that kind of thing

[Briselance]

A pure treat for ears ^^

Anybody knows what's the height of big Terfel ?

[ianochaye]

6'4"

[jacoskiba]

pure magic

[nopass11]

uMMm like O-M-G this is so stupid HAhahha

lets chat In

[Barikiel]

At about6:03-6:05 you can see that Terfel turns to make sure they ended together, and they both stumbled slightly, but I thought this was a great duet and they should do more.

[louvet66]

C'est vrai, il est étonnant que Jussi Björling

chante l'opéra français mieux que n'importe quel ténor français.Son timbre y est sans doute pour beaucoup.

[PhiliptheFace]

This is definitely the most pleasing version of this song to watch on youtube. They both really show their emotions and happiness during their solos and such. They also sound amazing together.

[crimebloggers]

This is awesomely well-sung, but does anyone else notice them blowing the slow center part where both characters sing "elle fuit?"

And I'm a tenor, and I'm 6'0", so I don't buy the stuff about short tenors either.

[seanlee747]

Bizet's way of saying "Bros before ho's"

(With appoligies of anyone whose offended by that)

[thiste]

lol that one cracked me up ! :D sooo true :)

[JackOperaMan]

thanks for that, I was going to look up the libretto and now I don't have to. :)

[matthieusarah]

It must be difficult to find someone bigger or as big as terfel anyway. he's a giant. But gigantic they are both in their permformance.

[danielBlckz]

This is enchanting but Alfredo Kraus with Barry McDaniel rendition is superb!

[Kitrianna]

Just beautiful...

[reidetodos]

Qué musica tan hermosa coño!!!

[danielpavarotti]

Beautiful!!And very funny jaja :)

[trahregor]

What on earth has the physical size of the two artists got to do with their magnificent performance here...Bizet wrote this for two life-long friends discovering their love for the same person, not as a conetest for who could sound/look or outperform the other ..some of these comments tell an awful lot more about the ignorance of the commentators than it does about the Pearl Fishers!

[caltrops555]

I agree!

[Martinou1975]

Alagna looks so physically unsignificant compared to Terfel ... he is such a powerful beast

[lyghdha]

Tenors are often short. But what does it matter. Only sound matters. And I prefer Björling and Merrill.

[bafitchbb24]

well i'm a tenor and a good one and i'm 6'3 so that kind of disproves that comment ;)

[motardbear15]

I have been listening to all the version " here" , sorry for that , but it the "best" version of this beautiful duet ! Why ??? The two voices are absolutely well balanced together , Alagna does ALL the pianissimi WRITTEN and Terfel is very impressive (what a legato and a colour ) , there is (maybe??) another "old" version with José Luccionni and Paul Deldi in the 1950's (two French Singers stars of that time )

[ahmad123987]

did u see bocelli and Luis Ledesma duet of this song

or Bocelli and Terfel version of this.

[ttmor]

Ah Bocelli .... the blind leading the deaf.

[Kaian77]

That's quite ironic.

[35mm35]

I don't know the technical side of singing as you evidently do, but I picked this one after hearing "all" the others.

[Liedliebhaber]

Brilliant. Alagna is so effortless, and Terfel is Terfel!

[aguacun]

Agreee...efortless because this is his repertory... not Aida, Trovador, Tosca

[cMarie101st]

Ha, they should have had Roberto stand on a phonebook or something.....it would have been funny.

[maestraconway]

oh my gosh! They look like Goliath and David. Alagna looks tiny...

[chrisibzu]

hahahaha it's true!