"Vissi d'arte" from Tosca - Raina Kabaivanska (Better Quality)

[Erdrick345]

I guess Brava has limited exposure to operatic singers to say that this performance is better than Callas. That is one of the most ridiculous comments I've heard yet! I'm sure that it is Riana's dream to be compared to Callas. This is a good version. One should really listen to Callas and also the 1949 recording of Renata Tibaldi. The thing about Callas is that she became the role personna that she sang and this is conveyed to the listener in her interpretation.

[amlirco]

@Erdrick345 Speculating about people's dreams is quite ridiculous behavior too, don't you think? Yet even more ridiculous is to say that Raina does not convey emotions to the listener through her interpretations.

[hazelssister]

 Have heard better.

[hoiho96]

Fantastico!!!!!!!!!!

[Sofoclaudio]

Strabiliante!

[gestas60323]

Kabaivanska was one of the most unforgettable Toscas on stage. And this movie is beautiful, a real treasure - even if the lyp sinc does not match...

[Zebrinne]

Sobriété et sincérité, là est l'essentiel !Bravo !

[CThunderofLB]

The dude is just like, alrite, honey you go sing your heart out. Im gonna get some tea. LOL.

[abracadabranque]

Aucune sensibilité,de la sensiblerie tout au plus.De plus,le timbre est laid,nasillard.

[bellini7verdi]

precioso sonido...preciosa voz....a mi encanta.....me parece...clara....fuerte....y bonita.....e importante.....pero decir que mejor que callas es un total error...CALLAS es de sonido insuperable en este tipo de arias.....veristas....indiscut­ible.......su interpretacion y su voz eran insuperable en estas lides......por eso CALLAS ES CALLAS......TOTAL ALMA Y LECTURA DE LOS SENTIMIENTOS......

[ranigema]

mi ricordo le sue recite dal vivo,era una bravissima Tosca!poi aveva la voce pucciniana o non,questo é un'altro discorso.brava.

[nade1231]

Raina Kabaivanska is one the Greatest Opera Divas ever existed.

"Tosca of the past was Callas. Tosca of our time is Kabaivanska,"

- Luciano Pavarotti, 1994 

[tetsurohori]

É a melhor Vissi d'art de todos os tempos!!

Que interpretação! Principalmente a finalização.

Essa superou a Callas.

[charluti]

Rayac, of course she could sing this aria on her knees,  Many, many directors stage it this way. Why not try going to the opera a little bit before commenting on youtube and looking like a complete ignorant idiot?

[dulittle1000]

point taken....but not quite :P

[lucentis2]

completely agree with asterimbg. I'm bulgarian myself and of course proud of our amazing opera singers! But let's do not nationalize them. Their recognition is beyond any doubt.

Let's keep Average Joe away from opera. Those two do not mix well together!

[asterimbg]

dulittle1000 - actually, the opera world does recognise her name - she's been featured in many opera books and reviews - in Italy, Spain, UK. I fail to see your point. I know that serious opera fans and connoisseurs appreciate her as a great lirico-spinto soprano. After all she sang with Plácido Domingo and Franco Bonisolli. Opera singer are not pop stars (despite what you might think) - it's a pretty elitist form of entertainment so don't expect Joe Average to know her!

[gestas60323]

@asterimbg

well said !!! Every opera buff knows her name and she was revered in Italy (still is). And plenty of great opera singers are from Bulgaria !!

[dulittle1000]

The curse of being born in Bulgaria again! If only she was american, german, english or whatever but bulgarian! The whole world would recognise her name and would bow down before her talent!

[Vendimi3]

@dulittle1000

Well, it does seem to me that Kabaiwanska is pretty known in the world. Who knows opera, knows the big part she had in it in the last decades.

[ViolinistD]

Does any one in the States know enough about the great Bulgarian singers?... Listen to this for example... They are classes above and beyond some of the current opera stars who happen to be blessed with abundance of exposure and fame. Someone needs to stop the brainwashing and really open peoples eyes, and in this case ears. People, go and search and discover the gold that's out there. Thank you you tube! Bravissima Raina...what a beauty to watch and listen. The final cadenza made me cry...

[FaithLehan]

people like her make us bulgarians realy proud, she's great

[Manigran]

Well done Raina! The end was especially heart wrenching!

[pdomett]

she makes me cry

[bodiloto]

LA DIMITROVA !!!!!

[SiEtIn1]

why are you posting this??? what does this mean??? LA DIMITROVA WHAT DAMN IT??? what about la dimitrova?

[giosuecarducci1982]

The best vissi d'arte vissi d'amore of the world! The best Floria Tosca is her: Raina!

[tonyhan0903]

There is dramatic depth into the timbre of her voice. Her voice is suited for the tragic arias in which a singer has to convey the despair of the character. Such a moving rendition.

[schmup53]

Those eyes, so beautiful

[rayrac]

The vid and the singing don't match up. So someone has been doing some technicals.

She couldn't sing like that from that crouched position, but obviously she did sing it somewhere.

Great singing, but I like Callas's acting and dramatics better, it's just that Callas's top notes had vibrato problems to my ears.

You choose, I'm beggered if I can!

[napat14]

sure, the picture and the sound won't be together course this is a movie version not in a concert so, they use the sound from the record which is not while she was singing in this :)

[amlirco]

Of course, she CAN sing this aria from any position. You can see such videos of life performances here on youtube. In fact, she barely has sung this in any other position. You can see also a video with explanation about her artistic approach (in italian) in which she says: "Don't ask me where from and how I take breath, I don't know it myself".

[bkmustang07]

@rayrac this was a movie i have this video im sure they recorded it and were lip synching

[Bret6464]

@rayrac Why such a convoluted comment? This is a DVD, a "movie" with "sound" :-)

Of course Raina can sing surreally in that position, she is one of the greatest ever, Luciano's favorite Tosca! Never did like Callas in Tosca, enough said :-)

[mradkova]

@rayrac According to Raina's own words, she's always sung "Vissi d'Arte" sitting or laying on the floor to express Tosca's torments better. There are some live performances here, on YT and she proved she can do it /although singing that way is quite uneasy/.

As far as Callas' Tosca, Maria was idol of Raina and her director in "Vespri Siciliani" . But their interpretations are different; Raina's never meant to imitate her Tosca. I respect your opinion though. Callas was a great singing actress!

[PuddleOfHappiness]

she's my favorite Tosca of them all :)

[KeisonMibute]

Me too!

She nails it at 2:50 when her heart snaps in two.

[tonyhan0903]

Sublime pianissimo, penetrating high note... Volatile yet vulnerable, such a believable and heart breaking Tosca. Yeah, the explosion at 2:50 penetrates the core of my heart.

[KeisonMibute]

I know right! I've seen this about six times live, with different singers, but no one has caught the moment like this. Maybe it is because you can try it again on film, when live you can't do that. live on stage. I don't know. When I first saw this on DVD I did not think she would make a good Tosca, because Tosca was supposed to be plump. : ) But man, I am glad I watched it...

[Divecchio1784]

Kabaivanska e veramente la mia pucciniana preferita-bellissima, perfetta, tutte le emozioni giuste, ed in questa scena si crede nella eroina abbandonata. Bravissima Raina!

[angelpaz55]

BRAVA!!!!! Awesowe voice & performance...even better than Caballé or Callas....Perfect Tosca !

[Aetion]

Excellent, brava!!

[MisterSoprano]

Isn't she great as Tosca? Perfect!

[LilyTook]

*Wow.*

[gonzalojosevb]

En esta interpretacion, Raina supera a todas las sopranos, aun hasta a Maria Callas, es para mi la mejor Tosca de la historia. Voz, interpretacion, sentimiento, actuacion, potencia, etc etc

[MusicaParola]

What an artist! It does not get better than this. Brava!

[Divecchio1784]

Mi piace Raina per la sua voce chiara e forte. Anche mi piace le sue canzone di Madama Butterfly e Suor Angelica. E veramente una "Pucciniana" nei occhi miei!

[pesciolinotriste]

What a voice!

[zangsoo99]

너무도 전률적인 곡..

[Acacallide]

La mia "Vissi d'arte" preferita è quella di Leyla Gencer. Ma... complimenti a Raina Kabaivanska, grandissima!

[magghot]

sublime!!sontuosa..potente..un­a tosca immortale..grazie Raina

[zzzzzzzaaaaa09]

I have this version of Tosca- her voice is fantastic and strong!!!

[EmmyKami]

I'll have to agree with that!