What would I give to get my hands on that recording, if it exists? It must have been the most sublime of all operatic duos! Why did the recording companies never release it? In fact, did they ever actually record it, or were they caught wrong-footed? We'll never know - such a shame.
Jussi sang with Callas in trovatore in two sucessive performances at the Chicago lyric theatre in 1955, also there were Ebe Stignani and Ettore Bastiannini. What a couple of nights they must have been. Rumour has it that a pirated recoding or an in house recording was made.
Perhaps someone can enlighten me - why on earth was Bjorling, as the world's greatest tenor, never paired with Callas, arguably the world's greatest soprano? Was it purely due to contractual restraints on both, or is there a more sinister reason?
@MrMoggie96 I agree adamantly,Björling with Callas. What a potential earth-shaker. And why not more with Tebaldi? One other, perhaps silly notion: countryman Nicolai Gedda is a fine, elegant tenor, but how I'd love to insert Björling in his place in the recording of Faust with Christoff & de los Angeles. The late Bulgarian basso had a distinctive, emotion-packed sound. I'm grateful to have a recording of him & B. joined in a beautiful segment of Aida. Alas, the only one I know.
Bjorling was undoubtedly the greatest tenor in the world in the 20th century (I only discount Caruso and Gigli because of the limitations of recording technology during the periods of their fame). I disagree with the poster who thinks that Corelli is better - Corelli could not really reach the high D in Nessun Dorma, whereas Bjorling (in the 1959 recording of Turandot) does it with ease and considerable and considerable panache! Bjorling has never been equalled, at least thus far.
Björlings greatest asset was, aside from the beautiful voice, an incredible musicality. Always making music, not just belting the notes to make an effect. Always tasteful singing. This is evident in all his recordings. Listen to his Che Gelida Manina! I wish other singers today had these qualities.
@culturevulture2011 You couldn't be more right! Thanks to more modern recording techniques available when Bjorling was at his peak, we are left with an incredible legacy of memories of the world's greatest tenor, EVER!
LA PERFEZIONE ASSOLUTA : MERAVIGLIOSA INTERPRETAZIONE !!!
JUSSI BJORLING E RENATA TEBALDI : MERAVIGLIE DEL MELODRAMMA SENZA CONFRONTI !!!
TUTTI E DUE SUBLIMI, UNICI E IMMORTALI : CHE VOCI FANTASTICHE !!! CHE TECNICHE ECCELSE !!! CHE STILI MERAVIGLIOSI !!! CHE INTEPRETAZIONI SENTITE, PROFONDE E PASSIONALI !!!
Grazie per tutte le emozioni che ci avete saputo regalare in tanti anni di onorata carriera : non vi dimenticheremo mai ! Cantanti come voi segnano la storia.
The way Bjorling draws out some of the notes in the section "Ma il mio mistero è chiuso in me, il nome mio nessun saprà! No, no, sulla tua bocca lo dirò quando la luce splenderà!" is absolutely beautiful and makes me want to hear so much more!
Growing up Bjorling was my idol of what a tenor should be. Now so many years later I still think he was the best. The pathos in his singing is outstanding. Corelli's voice has more power but the beauty here is beyond any other tenor I have heard. I just melt when I hear him.
Thank you VERY much for sharing this generous helping of a VERY good recording of TURANDOT with us - and an equally good "Nessun dorma," too. What a pity that Bjoerling's heart problems led him to withdraw from what would have been a POWERFUL recording of IL TABARRO in 1960; according to the biography by Anna-Lisa Bjoerling and Andrew Farkas, his co-stars were to have been Leontyne Price and George London.
very beautiful but i think corellis version just beats it for raw power and passion but this is superb aswell they were indeed gods probably never to be seen again.different class to todays so called stars
@gerry4339 I agree with you about Corelli's recording (that recording of the opera was made in part because Nilsson was unhappy about her performance on THIS recording); but Corelli also had a considerable number of outstanding performances of TURANDOT under his belt by the time he recorded it. Now, to be fair, Bjoerling almost certainly WOULD have sung this opera on stage, had he lived.
@jmccracken1963 yes i think he would of sung it on stage and very beautifully aswell. we are so lucky to be in an age when we can hear recordings of these great artists. but overall i think i am a corelli fan mostly. his voice just touches me so much . although there have been many superb artista aswell. . today sadly they are second rate compared to yesteryear
Wow! This is a superb recording, even though it is now about sixty years old. Jussi was truly exceptional and Renata was very special in this production. What a combination! Thank you very much for including this!
This recording was not made on Planet Earth. Mt. Olympus sent us their divine beings, the greatest tenor ever (Björling), the supreme Verdi Soprano (Tebaldi), and the magnificent Wagnerian heldensoprano (Nilsson). The gods also gave us Björling with celestial soprano Victoria de los Angeles and two reigning baritones, Robert Merrill & Leonard Warren in a never-equaled recording of Pagliacci.
@MTondeleo You probably won't read this after two years, but very well said anyway. Very little of Bjorling's work has ever been equalled - Victoria de los Angeles, Birgit Nilsson, Renata Tebaldi et al (not Zinka Milanov, regrettably) certainly added something to his greatness, but the true greatness lies in his exceptional voice control, phrasing, diction, panache (ability to attack high notes seemingly effortlessly) and his perfect pitch. Who will ever beat all that?
@MrMoggie96 I most certainly did read it, and with pleasure. Thanks, and take note, just recently I was listening to Jussi Björling's duet recording and made the same comment about Milanov, without a doubt a great soprano, but didn't seem to work so well with Björling. One of the few pleasures of being my age is that I was fortunate enough to see and hear him on stage several times.
Yes this is from the recording but can someone please translate from Italian to English even if it is not exact? How was Jussi's Italian here? This is late Bjorling, should be pretty good.
Grazie Il Gruppo. Ruoli che sono rari per questi due cantanti. Si sente che Calaf sarebbe un pochino pesante per Bjorling e gli acuti delicati di Liu forse non abituali per La Tebaldi, ma come registrazione di studio ha le sue bellezze.
What would I give to get my hands on that recording, if it exists? It must have been the most sublime of all operatic duos! Why did the recording companies never release it? In fact, did they ever actually record it, or were they caught wrong-footed? We'll never know - such a shame.
MrMoggie96 5 days ago
Jussi sang with Callas in trovatore in two sucessive performances at the Chicago lyric theatre in 1955, also there were Ebe Stignani and Ettore Bastiannini. What a couple of nights they must have been. Rumour has it that a pirated recoding or an in house recording was made.
twlldinbachdel 1 week ago
Perhaps someone can enlighten me - why on earth was Bjorling, as the world's greatest tenor, never paired with Callas, arguably the world's greatest soprano? Was it purely due to contractual restraints on both, or is there a more sinister reason?
MrMoggie96 2 weeks ago
@MrMoggie96 I agree adamantly,Björling with Callas. What a potential earth-shaker. And why not more with Tebaldi? One other, perhaps silly notion: countryman Nicolai Gedda is a fine, elegant tenor, but how I'd love to insert Björling in his place in the recording of Faust with Christoff & de los Angeles. The late Bulgarian basso had a distinctive, emotion-packed sound. I'm grateful to have a recording of him & B. joined in a beautiful segment of Aida. Alas, the only one I know.
MTondeleo 2 weeks ago
Bjorling was undoubtedly the greatest tenor in the world in the 20th century (I only discount Caruso and Gigli because of the limitations of recording technology during the periods of their fame). I disagree with the poster who thinks that Corelli is better - Corelli could not really reach the high D in Nessun Dorma, whereas Bjorling (in the 1959 recording of Turandot) does it with ease and considerable and considerable panache! Bjorling has never been equalled, at least thus far.
MrMoggie96 2 weeks ago
Estupendas interpretações. Talvez a melhor de todas. Tebaldi, belissima.Björling insuperável.
sunahohemu 1 month ago
So incredible vocalizing. Thank you.
MrIV74 1 month ago
Björlings greatest asset was, aside from the beautiful voice, an incredible musicality. Always making music, not just belting the notes to make an effect. Always tasteful singing. This is evident in all his recordings. Listen to his Che Gelida Manina! I wish other singers today had these qualities.
culturevulture2011 2 months ago 2
@culturevulture2011 You couldn't be more right! Thanks to more modern recording techniques available when Bjorling was at his peak, we are left with an incredible legacy of memories of the world's greatest tenor, EVER!
MrMoggie96 2 weeks ago
LA PERFEZIONE ASSOLUTA : MERAVIGLIOSA INTERPRETAZIONE !!!
JUSSI BJORLING E RENATA TEBALDI : MERAVIGLIE DEL MELODRAMMA SENZA CONFRONTI !!!
TUTTI E DUE SUBLIMI, UNICI E IMMORTALI : CHE VOCI FANTASTICHE !!! CHE TECNICHE ECCELSE !!! CHE STILI MERAVIGLIOSI !!! CHE INTEPRETAZIONI SENTITE, PROFONDE E PASSIONALI !!!
Grazie per tutte le emozioni che ci avete saputo regalare in tanti anni di onorata carriera : non vi dimenticheremo mai ! Cantanti come voi segnano la storia.
GRAZIE !!!
31122051 5 months ago
The way Bjorling draws out some of the notes in the section "Ma il mio mistero è chiuso in me, il nome mio nessun saprà! No, no, sulla tua bocca lo dirò quando la luce splenderà!" is absolutely beautiful and makes me want to hear so much more!
mdod4f 9 months ago
Growing up Bjorling was my idol of what a tenor should be. Now so many years later I still think he was the best. The pathos in his singing is outstanding. Corelli's voice has more power but the beauty here is beyond any other tenor I have heard. I just melt when I hear him.
Nonprez
nonprez 10 months ago 3
What an outstanding rendition indeed!
Thank you.
Aetion 1 year ago
Comment removed
The99Gambo 1 year ago
Thank you VERY much for sharing this generous helping of a VERY good recording of TURANDOT with us - and an equally good "Nessun dorma," too. What a pity that Bjoerling's heart problems led him to withdraw from what would have been a POWERFUL recording of IL TABARRO in 1960; according to the biography by Anna-Lisa Bjoerling and Andrew Farkas, his co-stars were to have been Leontyne Price and George London.
jmccracken1963 1 year ago
It is very difficult not to become very emotional when listening to such wonderful singing.
The99Gambo 1 year ago 2
very beautiful but i think corellis version just beats it for raw power and passion but this is superb aswell they were indeed gods probably never to be seen again.different class to todays so called stars
gerry4339 1 year ago
@gerry4339 I agree with you about Corelli's recording (that recording of the opera was made in part because Nilsson was unhappy about her performance on THIS recording); but Corelli also had a considerable number of outstanding performances of TURANDOT under his belt by the time he recorded it. Now, to be fair, Bjoerling almost certainly WOULD have sung this opera on stage, had he lived.
jmccracken1963 1 year ago
@jmccracken1963 yes i think he would of sung it on stage and very beautifully aswell. we are so lucky to be in an age when we can hear recordings of these great artists. but overall i think i am a corelli fan mostly. his voice just touches me so much . although there have been many superb artista aswell. . today sadly they are second rate compared to yesteryear
gerry4339 1 year ago
This recording is second to none.
fajamaqui 1 year ago 4
Wow! This is a superb recording, even though it is now about sixty years old. Jussi was truly exceptional and Renata was very special in this production. What a combination! Thank you very much for including this!
99Gambo 2 years ago
This recording was not made on Planet Earth. Mt. Olympus sent us their divine beings, the greatest tenor ever (Björling), the supreme Verdi Soprano (Tebaldi), and the magnificent Wagnerian heldensoprano (Nilsson). The gods also gave us Björling with celestial soprano Victoria de los Angeles and two reigning baritones, Robert Merrill & Leonard Warren in a never-equaled recording of Pagliacci.
MTondeleo 2 years ago 12
I couldn't agree more. This is fabulous. Victoria de los Angeles is also magnificient in her recordings with JB.
The99Gambo 5 months ago
@MTondeleo You probably won't read this after two years, but very well said anyway. Very little of Bjorling's work has ever been equalled - Victoria de los Angeles, Birgit Nilsson, Renata Tebaldi et al (not Zinka Milanov, regrettably) certainly added something to his greatness, but the true greatness lies in his exceptional voice control, phrasing, diction, panache (ability to attack high notes seemingly effortlessly) and his perfect pitch. Who will ever beat all that?
MrMoggie96 2 weeks ago
@MrMoggie96 I most certainly did read it, and with pleasure. Thanks, and take note, just recently I was listening to Jussi Björling's duet recording and made the same comment about Milanov, without a doubt a great soprano, but didn't seem to work so well with Björling. One of the few pleasures of being my age is that I was fortunate enough to see and hear him on stage several times.
MTondeleo 2 weeks ago
+ 6 !!! IMMORTALI !!!!!
bodiloto 2 years ago 2
Soul music. Beautiful beyond words. Thank you.
RudySunseeker 2 years ago 2
una pareja magnifica puesta en esta obra maestra de PUccini...
gracias por compartir estos registros del recuerdo....
susana*
callasdimitrova 3 years ago 2
al tempo que deseaba Puccini, BRAVO!!!!
coralrabida 3 years ago 3
Yes this is from the recording but can someone please translate from Italian to English even if it is not exact? How was Jussi's Italian here? This is late Bjorling, should be pretty good.
pearlmuth3 3 years ago
Intensely beautiful. Thank you.
tomfroekjaer 3 years ago 6
This is indeed rare, and beautiful to my taste, although I must agree with sospello's sharp observation.
wolkowy1 3 years ago
Grazie Il Gruppo. Ruoli che sono rari per questi due cantanti. Si sente che Calaf sarebbe un pochino pesante per Bjorling e gli acuti delicati di Liu forse non abituali per La Tebaldi, ma come registrazione di studio ha le sue bellezze.
sospello 3 years ago
D'accordo con voi,signor sospello.
Ma la voce del Björling ne aveva quel fascino brumoso..incantatore...
Per me,è un gioiello questo registro!
ankhsnammon
Ankhsnammon 3 years ago