I heard Milnes live in Chicago as Iago some 10 years after this film was produced. He was then in the middle of a vocal crisis, which he described with powerful detail in his autobiography. Yet his voice in Chicago remained ENORMOUS and powerful.
The only suggestion that he wasn't at his best was some minor hoarseness and loss of squillo on some (not all) acuti, which nevertheless remained free --
Milnes is absolutely magnificent as Scarpia. While I would personally put Gobbi and Raimondi over him, Milnes especially in the te deum really engrosses himself into the part and gives one of his better vocal performances in the process. Different being younger and more handsome than most Scarpias, but that doesn't detract from the size of his voice and stage presence. I too am starting to get hacked off at those who say Milnes has an inferior technique, his voice is so unique when at his peak
sherrill sei un baritono che si annida nel cuore e nell'anima come scarpia, travolgente, una voce cattiva e perfida, ottima interpretazione, sguardo assassino e eccitato, voce profonda e seducente. sei il migliore!!!
It's always difficult to say with certainty whether his (or anyone's) vocal crisis can be simplistically attributed to matters of technique. As one trained in opera myself, I have to say that singing at this level is such a combination of physiological, neurological and even psychological factors, as well as solid technique, one can never be really sure whether a particular vocal crisis is a matter of technique. No two voices are alike, and no two age the same way or at the same rate.
I've read through many of the comments here, including the carping about Milnes' alleged "small voice" and "poor technique." I heard Milnes numerous times in the late 70s and early 80s at the met. In his prime, prior to experiencing a bit of a vocal crisis somewhere around '83 or '84, his voice was huge in the house. He never really re-emerged from the vocal crisis. ...[cont'd]
For me was and is Sherrill Milnes the best Scarpia after Tito Gobbi until today!
His voice is fantastic, his presence with great charisma - and he is really a nice
human. I know he has a good sense of humor - and whatever people talk is not important enough. He was and is a great artist, a perfect singer - e basta!
this is great. i prefer the way milnes sang at the beginning of his career to later on (too peculiar for me). my favorite quote from him - "i'm a full stomach singer."
he is one of the best scarpias ever to sing this piece! its kinda scary because you can really see he not only PORTRAYS the part...he BECOMES the part. I suppose thats what its all about!
I had the absolute pleasure of watching this film on a big screen last night with Sherrill telling stories and answering questions in between the acts. He's still a stud!!!
@REBECCAtheSOPRANO I was in the Lyric for that also, and I loved between the second and third acts how he discussed different roles and how he learned them and attacked them, That was the Second time I had seen him live. The first time was at the University of Michigan in 1983. Definitely one of the Greatest Baritones ever to cross the Stage of the Metropolitan Opera... BRAVO!!!
LOL LOL LOL LOL Milnes LOL LOL Ha ha ha ha ha what a bum, His voice was not Huge in the house He Yaowled his way through every principle persona he played. He was not the best in the buisness . RCA sold the most records because of him and the other nothing domingo.. THere are and were so many other great bartiones other than him. LOL LOL LOl LOL Milnes .
Very constructive tenorismo, I notice you criticize but do not offer examples of "good" tenors or baritones, I do not know why you bother to comment at all if you have nothing good to say.
@tenorismo I heard Milnes twice in 1979, once at the Met in Luisa Miller (with Domingo, who was also excellent) and in Seattle as Don Giovanni. He had the biggest baritone voice i have ever heard in a theater.
I also attended his Master Class. Great singer and a very nice guy.
I remember Milnes so well from PBS Met telecasts in the 80s and a couple of Met live performances. Not only his voice was huge, but he was a great actor. He was Scarpia.
He is really magnificent but i have seen Tosca at stockholm opera house with Ingvar Wixell as Scarpia and i must say WOW hes the master of this role !!
All these Milnes critics are just a bunch of ignorant chit-chatters. You put them all together singing and I bet you they all together cannot make up for a quarter of what Milnes could do with his voice. He was a great baritone who had an unbelievable world class voice and yes, first class technique and a world class career for many years. So enough of the stupidity please!
il migliore, voce straordinaria e fascino ed espressività da grande attore! Qualcuno ha scritto di sentire l'inflessione statunitense quando canta. Io a parte nella frase "Tre sbirri, una carrozza" nn l'ho notata!
unvergessen seine Auftritte mit noch unvergesslichen Darstellungen des Scarpias, in der Wiener Staatsoper in den 80 ern,,auf den Fersen Wippend, die pure macht und mordlust, getrieben von einbem immensen Liebeshunger den nur irdisch mächtige verspüren können erleiden müssen....
Milnes will always be the best, in my opinion. His voice was so powerful, it shook my ribcage. He was big and brawny and sexy and lusty and just .... wow. Oh, and his voice was pretty darn good too! :)
Thanks, Steve! I meant every word. Sherill Milnes will always be the best, most powerful baritone in the world to me! Although... I'm really starting to like this Bryn Terfel guy ... :)
@Peppi94 I love Terfel, but he's a bass-baritone; and Milnes was a high Verdi baritone. On the other hand, Scarpia isn't a particularly high part, which is why bass-baritones and basses like Raimondi, Ramey, Morris, London have sung it successfully. Terfel reminds me of London -- a full, powerful voice with considerable tonal beauty. I look forward to his Scarpia. By the way, I had a similar impression of Milnes during the one time I heard him live -- an ENORMOUS voice:) --
@Peppi94 I'll try again ... Steve, I must admit, I'm not as familiar with those other baritones. I'm sure I've seen them in Met productions over the years, but honestly, in the vast ocean of the world of opera, I'm a little pollywog skimming along the top of the water. I don't know enough about different performers to compare/contrast them in any knowledgeable fashion; I just know who appeals to me, and I try to watch them as much as possible.
I get sick of hearing about his alleged inferior tecnique. His voice was huge in the house because of his tecnique not in spite of it. There are other voices which as big but don't have near the audibility because of their lack of tecnique. All the myths and misconceptions I read about this man enrage me. He was the best in the business from the late 60's to about 1985.
No baritone since has been able to handle the repertorie he sang nearly as well as he did with his "inferior" teqnique.
@bigusslikus Yes, Yes, Yes!! Absolutely agree with your assessment of the voice and the technique for Milnes singing Scarpia!! Relative to American baritones: Tibbett, Merrill, then Milnes...any American since? Ruptured capillary on or near the posterior of the vocal cord was not caused by poor technique. Nothing wrong with his technique prior to the vascular problem. See his Si pio, in costume, on YouTube. Tenor was probably Domingo...how to follow that!!
@bigusslikus Agreed:). I heard Milnes in person just once, as Iago in Chicago during the fall of 1985. But at least in that context, this was the largest and most powerful baritone voice I'd heard up to that time, or indeed since. Given his height, long legs and physical grace, Milnes also looked wonderful onstage and moved very well there.. Lyric Opera of Chicago seats I forget how many, 2,000? Yet Milnes seemed quite at home performing for so many in person:).
@bigusslikus Amen. As I've said before, I heard Milnes live in Chicago as Iago in 1985, and this voice (at least in that venue) was the largest, most powerful baritone I'd ever heard. Also a superb figure onstage and fine actor.
Credo che il piu importante non è l´accento dell´americano. È vero cquando dici che stonna da Roma.. sono d´accordo! Ma non sia così esigente... stile? anni settanta cara!
Guardi, a me S. Milnes sinceramente piace più di altri. Sicuramente aveva notevoli pregi : voce molto estesa ( quasi tenorile negli acuti ), di bel colore, notevole presenza scenica, buone capacità recitative, ma anche difetti molto marcati : dizione non sempre impeccabile ( contraddistinta da quel fastidioso accento di cui ho già parlato ) e tendenza, spesso e volentieri, a " trascinare " le vocali. Meglio comunque di tanti altri : prima di tutto di L. Nucci, almeno Milnes canta e non urla.
Se solo mitigasse quel marcatissimo accento americano che ha e che in un'opera ambientata a Roma stona davvero moltissimo, avrebbe tutto per essere un buon baritono. Artista dotato ( sia in senso vocale che tatrale ) ma che, a mio giudizio, manca molto di stile.
He is the GOD of Baritones. I saw him perform this several times at The Met and each and every time he was right on point - this younger version is spectacular - I have never seen or heard this recording - un-friggin-believable - and a MAN's MAN on top of that - whew!
How did his voice come across at the Met? I heard Milnes' Iago in Chicago, where his voice seemed ENORMOUS -- but never had the opportunity to hear him in NY --
His voice is sizable and carried all the way up - I heard him from several different vantage points in the house and he was crystal clear in tone and, when all the brass are wailing, he easily sailed over the entire orchestra at its heaviest and most dense sections. He's was never a perfect technically but he more than made up for it with sheer size of the voice and the passion that he always had while singing. I don't recall him ever just "phoning it in."
@abstractpapabear hahahaha Either you went to a very tiny theatre or you are kidding. Milnes has a very beautiful voice. But in a theatre...two trumpets play and bye bye Milnes...you don't hear him anymore. I like him technically, though. If his technique hadn't been great, he wouldn't have sung so many belcanto roles so well.
@f1a6b3 That is just an unmitigated lie. Milnes had a very big voice, more than enough to fill the Met. Why else would he keep being invited to sing there? Would the Met audience give ovations to someone they couldn't hear? What nonsense. I heard Milnes sing at the very end of his career when his voice was in bad shape, and even then it was still a big voice, if ragged.
Why posers keep spreading falsehoods about Milnes, I don't know... professional jealousy perhaps?
Tosca might be VERYfamiliar with that (OMG!) evil little smile, (and that voice)! These two have a history.
Gentle reader, in that ob-scene the camera cuts away from, just who is savoring visions of delicately conquering claws and lace? Insence, INSENCE, god help us! (not a chance) what's - on - FIYAH?!!
So with a polite observance of proper form, Angelotti and Cavadorossi get it. But this is opera, so everyone dies at the end.
Otherwise, these two would have burned Rome to the ground.
Just do a YouTube search of Warren and you'll find lots of great stuff:). That's not to denigrate Milnes, whom I like very much. But Warren -- well, he seemed almost to be in another category altogether. An enormous, beautiful voice and a top even better than Milnes'. Simply spectacular, especially in Verdi. Milnes had great admiration for Warren, as he notes in his autobiography --
The fact that Scarpia's mother was in this case a Church organist, plus that angelic appearance that Milnes simply cannot conceal (he always was known as the man with the greatest compassion for other artists in opera), make this a particularly devastating performance. Having seen the DVD about thirty times, it still occurs to me to cheer when Tosca finally shoves in the knife.
As I recall, one of the criticisms of this film was that Milnes was too handsome, and therefore too sympathetic, for Scarpia:). On the other hand, he sings this much more powerfully than I remember, not having seen the film for something like 25 years --
Of course Scarpia, or any Devil, would be handsome and very appealling. Also Samuel Ramey in his many Devil roles. Otherwise how would so many drawn to The Dark Side.
Since I bought my first opera LP in 1975 because of Pavarotti (Rigoletto with Pavarotti and Sutherland, DECCA 1973), I fell in love with Milnes' voice and he is still my favorite baritone! Where are such good and charismatic singers nowadays? Thanks for this video, no question that I would have prefered Scarpia to Cavaradossi! ;-)
Yeah! Thanks for sharing. This is great. He's so good. Is he stuck up? I think he is but I;m not sure? is he? what do you guys think. this is such a great piece of art.
that's really really really good to know. i absouletely love this man. it's really cool that he is American. He sounds like he's from Italy. His Italian is fuckin incrreduble.
The voice prof where I went to college said that Scarpia's little phrase to the trapped Tosca, "Here's where we get to be good friends" (or whatever) really meant "Let me undo your bra strap, my dear." I have wanted Milnes to undo mine since I was 16 and saw his photo for the first time.
But seeing Louis Quillico shuddering against a pillar in the orgasmic final few notes of this act was almost as good...
Your professor must've been joking or else he made a very unenlightened comment. The phrase itself "Ed or fra noi parliam da buoni amici" means exactly what Scarpia says. The subtext, of course, is full of Scarpia's suppressed desire for Tosca.
Man, that brings back memories and sends chills down my spine! Now IF I were Tosca, I'd dump Cavaradossi and make a date with Scarpia :-) Milnes was always my favorite in this...
Oooooh Scarpia you're a nasty nasty man! LOL. Seriously, tremendous to hear Milnes at his very best. No-one could touch him in this role - especially this aria. Thanks for sharing.
He looks like an evil ass Ryan Gosling.
cherubicnerd 1 month ago
epic!
yumiyumiharu 2 months ago
And I also think that singing Scarpia has allot to do with the "vocal crisis"... few people say openly or wright down their mistakes...
I say there is a good chance that Scarpia broke his voice, just as it has done with many others...
It takes voices "made to measure" to sing well the Scarpia, and get away SAFELY with it, like George London did.
Gabvelri 4 months ago
God! ...he sounds fantastic here! He was always a brave sincere singer... he gave it ALL always!!!
His timber is not the cutest one, but before that "vocal crisis" the brightness and the size, I mean THE SIZE of the voice, were spectacular!
I, personally think that PROYECTION has to do with Technic, but SIZE or VOLUME are God given qualities, not a self merit.
Gabvelri 4 months ago
Es la Mejor Opera.. I love Puccini-Butterful
MsAlisson1975 9 months ago
I heard Milnes live in Chicago as Iago some 10 years after this film was produced. He was then in the middle of a vocal crisis, which he described with powerful detail in his autobiography. Yet his voice in Chicago remained ENORMOUS and powerful.
The only suggestion that he wasn't at his best was some minor hoarseness and loss of squillo on some (not all) acuti, which nevertheless remained free --
stevevandien 9 months ago
Milnes is absolutely magnificent as Scarpia. While I would personally put Gobbi and Raimondi over him, Milnes especially in the te deum really engrosses himself into the part and gives one of his better vocal performances in the process. Different being younger and more handsome than most Scarpias, but that doesn't detract from the size of his voice and stage presence. I too am starting to get hacked off at those who say Milnes has an inferior technique, his voice is so unique when at his peak
Beth29252 10 months ago
sherrill sei un baritono che si annida nel cuore e nell'anima come scarpia, travolgente, una voce cattiva e perfida, ottima interpretazione, sguardo assassino e eccitato, voce profonda e seducente. sei il migliore!!!
maryp1984 10 months ago
It's always difficult to say with certainty whether his (or anyone's) vocal crisis can be simplistically attributed to matters of technique. As one trained in opera myself, I have to say that singing at this level is such a combination of physiological, neurological and even psychological factors, as well as solid technique, one can never be really sure whether a particular vocal crisis is a matter of technique. No two voices are alike, and no two age the same way or at the same rate.
markpkessinger 11 months ago
I've read through many of the comments here, including the carping about Milnes' alleged "small voice" and "poor technique." I heard Milnes numerous times in the late 70s and early 80s at the met. In his prime, prior to experiencing a bit of a vocal crisis somewhere around '83 or '84, his voice was huge in the house. He never really re-emerged from the vocal crisis. ...[cont'd]
markpkessinger 11 months ago
spoletta*
KoliKidah 1 year ago
hey ,
is this baron scarpia the baritone or is it spollteta?
KoliKidah 1 year ago
@KoliKidah No, this is Scarpia -- in one of the most famous baritone scenes in all of Italian opera!
markpkessinger 11 months ago
This has been flagged as spam show
and also, look at him! He is gorgeous.
operas6 1 year ago
For me was and is Sherrill Milnes the best Scarpia after Tito Gobbi until today!
His voice is fantastic, his presence with great charisma - and he is really a nice
human. I know he has a good sense of humor - and whatever people talk is not important enough. He was and is a great artist, a perfect singer - e basta!
ALYSSA09MUSICSTARS 1 year ago
que voz,maravillosa!
TheVivaopera 1 year ago
this is great. i prefer the way milnes sang at the beginning of his career to later on (too peculiar for me). my favorite quote from him - "i'm a full stomach singer."
56mikeo 1 year ago
he is one of the best scarpias ever to sing this piece! its kinda scary because you can really see he not only PORTRAYS the part...he BECOMES the part. I suppose thats what its all about!
musicalopera93 1 year ago
POCO STILE E POCO GUSTO.
31122051 1 year ago
I had the absolute pleasure of watching this film on a big screen last night with Sherrill telling stories and answering questions in between the acts. He's still a stud!!!
REBECCAtheSOPRANO 1 year ago
@REBECCAtheSOPRANO I was in the Lyric for that also, and I loved between the second and third acts how he discussed different roles and how he learned them and attacked them, That was the Second time I had seen him live. The first time was at the University of Michigan in 1983. Definitely one of the Greatest Baritones ever to cross the Stage of the Metropolitan Opera... BRAVO!!!
MAR3668 1 year ago
What a stud!
REBECCAtheSOPRANO 1 year ago
Sherill Milnes als Scarpia mit dem "Te Deum" (Tosca) - in dieser Rolle ein Teufel in Menschengestalt - grandios gesungen!!!
Tiberius302 1 year ago
LOL LOL LOL LOL Milnes LOL LOL Ha ha ha ha ha what a bum, His voice was not Huge in the house He Yaowled his way through every principle persona he played. He was not the best in the buisness . RCA sold the most records because of him and the other nothing domingo.. THere are and were so many other great bartiones other than him. LOL LOL LOl LOL Milnes .
tenorismo 1 year ago
@tenorismo
Very constructive tenorismo, I notice you criticize but do not offer examples of "good" tenors or baritones, I do not know why you bother to comment at all if you have nothing good to say.
jorfel49 1 year ago
@tenorismo I heard Milnes twice in 1979, once at the Met in Luisa Miller (with Domingo, who was also excellent) and in Seattle as Don Giovanni. He had the biggest baritone voice i have ever heard in a theater.
I also attended his Master Class. Great singer and a very nice guy.
eblackadder3 1 year ago
@eblackadder3 Listen to Aldo Protti then get back to me.
tenorismo 1 year ago
He was and still be the best Scarpia... of course!
NeoNesscom 1 year ago
Incredible, unbelievable voice that of Milnes!!! Beyond doubt he is among the greatest
voltape 1 year ago 2
Wow dude....
Chriswren9 1 year ago
Bellisimo! anche un rollo meraviglioso per milnes era Rigoletto
borneo230 1 year ago
Bellisimo! anche un rollo meraviglioso per milnes era Rigoletto
borneo230 1 year ago
I remember Milnes so well from PBS Met telecasts in the 80s and a couple of Met live performances. Not only his voice was huge, but he was a great actor. He was Scarpia.
jewelmarkess 1 year ago 2
Scarpia = Tito Gobbi.
31122051 1 year ago
He is really magnificent but i have seen Tosca at stockholm opera house with Ingvar Wixell as Scarpia and i must say WOW hes the master of this role !!
stematt100 1 year ago
All these Milnes critics are just a bunch of ignorant chit-chatters. You put them all together singing and I bet you they all together cannot make up for a quarter of what Milnes could do with his voice. He was a great baritone who had an unbelievable world class voice and yes, first class technique and a world class career for many years. So enough of the stupidity please!
kimancuo 1 year ago
Oye, pero que interpretacion...
misterfully 1 year ago
I love Sam Ramey but this blows his doors off.
Magnificent.
BillF1967 2 years ago
il migliore, voce straordinaria e fascino ed espressività da grande attore! Qualcuno ha scritto di sentire l'inflessione statunitense quando canta. Io a parte nella frase "Tre sbirri, una carrozza" nn l'ho notata!
stellavega77 2 years ago
unvergessen seine Auftritte mit noch unvergesslichen Darstellungen des Scarpias, in der Wiener Staatsoper in den 80 ern,,auf den Fersen Wippend, die pure macht und mordlust, getrieben von einbem immensen Liebeshunger den nur irdisch mächtige verspüren können erleiden müssen....
taxijunkie 2 years ago
Milnes will always be the best, in my opinion. His voice was so powerful, it shook my ribcage. He was big and brawny and sexy and lusty and just .... wow. Oh, and his voice was pretty darn good too! :)
Peppi94 2 years ago
"His voice was so powerful, it shook my ribcage" -- what a wonderfully expressive phrase:) - Best, Steve
stevevandien 1 year ago
@stevevandien
Thanks, Steve! I meant every word. Sherill Milnes will always be the best, most powerful baritone in the world to me! Although... I'm really starting to like this Bryn Terfel guy ... :)
Peppi94 1 year ago
@Peppi94 I love Terfel, but he's a bass-baritone; and Milnes was a high Verdi baritone. On the other hand, Scarpia isn't a particularly high part, which is why bass-baritones and basses like Raimondi, Ramey, Morris, London have sung it successfully. Terfel reminds me of London -- a full, powerful voice with considerable tonal beauty. I look forward to his Scarpia. By the way, I had a similar impression of Milnes during the one time I heard him live -- an ENORMOUS voice:) --
stevevandien 1 year ago
@stevevandien Hmmm, not able to post my response, for some reason.
Peppi94 1 year ago
@stevevandien This is ridiculous -- I'm trying to post a reply to your comments, and it's just not working!!
Peppi94 1 year ago
@Peppi94 I'll try again ... Steve, I must admit, I'm not as familiar with those other baritones. I'm sure I've seen them in Met productions over the years, but honestly, in the vast ocean of the world of opera, I'm a little pollywog skimming along the top of the water. I don't know enough about different performers to compare/contrast them in any knowledgeable fashion; I just know who appeals to me, and I try to watch them as much as possible.
Peppi94 1 year ago
What opera house produced this video?
singerandsailor 2 years ago
I got this version at the library. WHAT a voice!!! God bless all singers.
Mamasan41 2 years ago 4
I get sick of hearing about his alleged inferior tecnique. His voice was huge in the house because of his tecnique not in spite of it. There are other voices which as big but don't have near the audibility because of their lack of tecnique. All the myths and misconceptions I read about this man enrage me. He was the best in the business from the late 60's to about 1985.
No baritone since has been able to handle the repertorie he sang nearly as well as he did with his "inferior" teqnique.
bigusslikus 2 years ago 29
@bigusslikus Bravo! Milnes really was exceptional.
bassfanne45 1 year ago
@bigusslikus Agree he sang with the voice right in front of his face
vivegedda 1 year ago
@bigusslikus - i thoroughly agree- perhaps the best atcually - if the production had looked much more
sinister - that would have clinched it! His voice is fabulous here - better than Gobbi or even Terfyl
lovehighart 1 year ago
@bigusslikus Yes, Yes, Yes!! Absolutely agree with your assessment of the voice and the technique for Milnes singing Scarpia!! Relative to American baritones: Tibbett, Merrill, then Milnes...any American since? Ruptured capillary on or near the posterior of the vocal cord was not caused by poor technique. Nothing wrong with his technique prior to the vascular problem. See his Si pio, in costume, on YouTube. Tenor was probably Domingo...how to follow that!!
Chuckbach
chuckbach 6 months ago
@bigusslikus Agreed:). I heard Milnes in person just once, as Iago in Chicago during the fall of 1985. But at least in that context, this was the largest and most powerful baritone voice I'd heard up to that time, or indeed since. Given his height, long legs and physical grace, Milnes also looked wonderful onstage and moved very well there.. Lyric Opera of Chicago seats I forget how many, 2,000? Yet Milnes seemed quite at home performing for so many in person:).
stevevandien 4 months ago
@bigusslikus Amen. As I've said before, I heard Milnes live in Chicago as Iago in 1985, and this voice (at least in that venue) was the largest, most powerful baritone I'd ever heard. Also a superb figure onstage and fine actor.
stevevandien 3 weeks ago
Credo che il piu importante non è l´accento dell´americano. È vero cquando dici che stonna da Roma.. sono d´accordo! Ma non sia così esigente... stile? anni settanta cara!
hardstud78 2 years ago 2
Guardi, a me S. Milnes sinceramente piace più di altri. Sicuramente aveva notevoli pregi : voce molto estesa ( quasi tenorile negli acuti ), di bel colore, notevole presenza scenica, buone capacità recitative, ma anche difetti molto marcati : dizione non sempre impeccabile ( contraddistinta da quel fastidioso accento di cui ho già parlato ) e tendenza, spesso e volentieri, a " trascinare " le vocali. Meglio comunque di tanti altri : prima di tutto di L. Nucci, almeno Milnes canta e non urla.
31122051 2 years ago
Se solo mitigasse quel marcatissimo accento americano che ha e che in un'opera ambientata a Roma stona davvero moltissimo, avrebbe tutto per essere un buon baritono. Artista dotato ( sia in senso vocale che tatrale ) ma che, a mio giudizio, manca molto di stile.
31122051 2 years ago
Scarpia = Stoyan Popov !!!!
bodiloto 2 years ago
He is the GOD of Baritones. I saw him perform this several times at The Met and each and every time he was right on point - this younger version is spectacular - I have never seen or heard this recording - un-friggin-believable - and a MAN's MAN on top of that - whew!
abstractpapabear 2 years ago 4
His technique always needed work. Did you ever hear about his surgeries?
dherrington 2 years ago
But I'm not saying that he doesn't have an excellent voice, which he does.
dherrington 2 years ago
How did his voice come across at the Met? I heard Milnes' Iago in Chicago, where his voice seemed ENORMOUS -- but never had the opportunity to hear him in NY --
stevevandien 2 years ago
His voice is sizable and carried all the way up - I heard him from several different vantage points in the house and he was crystal clear in tone and, when all the brass are wailing, he easily sailed over the entire orchestra at its heaviest and most dense sections. He's was never a perfect technically but he more than made up for it with sheer size of the voice and the passion that he always had while singing. I don't recall him ever just "phoning it in."
abstractpapabear 2 years ago
@abstractpapabear hahahaha Either you went to a very tiny theatre or you are kidding. Milnes has a very beautiful voice. But in a theatre...two trumpets play and bye bye Milnes...you don't hear him anymore. I like him technically, though. If his technique hadn't been great, he wouldn't have sung so many belcanto roles so well.
f1a6b3 1 year ago
@f1a6b3 That is just an unmitigated lie. Milnes had a very big voice, more than enough to fill the Met. Why else would he keep being invited to sing there? Would the Met audience give ovations to someone they couldn't hear? What nonsense. I heard Milnes sing at the very end of his career when his voice was in bad shape, and even then it was still a big voice, if ragged.
Why posers keep spreading falsehoods about Milnes, I don't know... professional jealousy perhaps?
BorisGodunov 1 year ago
superb! °_°
AlmaSchiwago 2 years ago
i dont really like opra but i had to perform this at sunderland empire.
wickedSPR 2 years ago
This has been flagged as spam show
LOL LOL LOL LOL MILNES HAHA LOL LOL Yowling as usual.
tenorismo 2 years ago
The only yowling I hear is your whiney tenor....
asp3750 2 years ago
Mi Scarpia favorito.
55patri 2 years ago 5
Tosca might be VERYfamiliar with that (OMG!) evil little smile, (and that voice)! These two have a history.
Gentle reader, in that ob-scene the camera cuts away from, just who is savoring visions of delicately conquering claws and lace? Insence, INSENCE, god help us! (not a chance) what's - on - FIYAH?!!
So with a polite observance of proper form, Angelotti and Cavadorossi get it. But this is opera, so everyone dies at the end.
Otherwise, these two would have burned Rome to the ground.
VolkgartenBySquirrel 2 years ago 4
He is great, but try George Londons version.. Unbeatable!!
mightymoo1 2 years ago
Vom Feinsten...
WernerHenckmann 2 years ago 2
He simply was THE BEST in his day!
AmadeusJMB 2 years ago 4
OMG!! Simply amazing -- at the top of his game here.
TTODD245 2 years ago 2
He will always be my favorite Scarpia!
Carson1028 2 years ago 4
It puts tears in my eyes, unbelievable piece of music.
ChrisKennedyBarnard 2 years ago 25
Офигенно!!!!
15f85 2 years ago
i think sherril milnes is the best baritone of the history
alcvdb 2 years ago 3
He's certainly one of my favorites, but have you ever listened to Leonard Warren??? Milnes himself thought Warren was the best.
leadoffeohippus 2 years ago
no i didnt listen to Leonard Warren but id like to listen. could you recommend me one aria of Warren?
alcvdb 2 years ago
The clip of him singing "si puo" from vaimusic here on youtube is really good.
leadoffeohippus 2 years ago
Comment removed
alcvdb 2 years ago
Just do a YouTube search of Warren and you'll find lots of great stuff:). That's not to denigrate Milnes, whom I like very much. But Warren -- well, he seemed almost to be in another category altogether. An enormous, beautiful voice and a top even better than Milnes'. Simply spectacular, especially in Verdi. Milnes had great admiration for Warren, as he notes in his autobiography --
stevevandien 2 years ago 2
Despite the miming this has real voltage - Milnes is sexy and frightening so bang on for Scarpia.
Thanks for posting.
PIPZZZ02 2 years ago 5
Eccellente baritono, bellissimo timbro e voce potente
dayalhari 3 years ago 3
...
BoisduMoine 3 years ago
Voir commentaire sur la version de 92
BoisduMoine 3 years ago
The fact that Scarpia's mother was in this case a Church organist, plus that angelic appearance that Milnes simply cannot conceal (he always was known as the man with the greatest compassion for other artists in opera), make this a particularly devastating performance. Having seen the DVD about thirty times, it still occurs to me to cheer when Tosca finally shoves in the knife.
wachtelms 3 years ago
Milnes = Superb. Great singer. Great voice. Great actor. No one can touch him in this role... Thanks.
OdysseyArts 3 years ago 4
At 3:10, who's the person lying in the glass case behind Milnes/Scarpia?
amadeus5889 3 years ago 6
I think the body which amadeus5889 means is probably the lying image of a saint (or a cardinal, due to the clothes).
acla9000 3 years ago
He is almost too good for the role of such a villain. Bravo!
TheRealEmit 3 years ago
Mmmm! With a Scarpia like him, I'd ignore Cavaradossi. Baritones are the MEN! :D
And this evil lustful cop is the same man who sings Posa absolutely noble and hearthbreaking. One of my fave baritones ever.
Oh, and he's got SIDEBURNS! *melts* Sideburns are sexy. Especially on singing cops, ya know. *wink*
Sieglinde84 3 years ago 4
As I recall, one of the criticisms of this film was that Milnes was too handsome, and therefore too sympathetic, for Scarpia:). On the other hand, he sings this much more powerfully than I remember, not having seen the film for something like 25 years --
stevevandien 3 years ago
Of course Scarpia, or any Devil, would be handsome and very appealling. Also Samuel Ramey in his many Devil roles. Otherwise how would so many drawn to The Dark Side.
junehilde 3 years ago
Right, excellent point. I forget who it was that said the devil is "a very pleasant gentleman:)" --
stevevandien 3 years ago 2
Since I bought my first opera LP in 1975 because of Pavarotti (Rigoletto with Pavarotti and Sutherland, DECCA 1973), I fell in love with Milnes' voice and he is still my favorite baritone! Where are such good and charismatic singers nowadays? Thanks for this video, no question that I would have prefered Scarpia to Cavaradossi! ;-)
marcelissimo 3 years ago
marcel
heh, mine was milnes, domingo, and price in Tosca and he's still my favorite too.
askungen01 3 years ago
Great charasmatic baritones:
James Morris
Thomas Hampson
Dimitri Horovstosky
Richard Paul Fink
junehilde 3 years ago
wow! Bravissimo Maestro Milnes!
rafanegrete 3 years ago 2
Yeah! Thanks for sharing. This is great. He's so good. Is he stuck up? I think he is but I;m not sure? is he? what do you guys think. this is such a great piece of art.
"Tosca... you make me forget god!"
jaymeeharkeen 3 years ago
sherrill is one of the kindest people i know. he isn't stuck up at all, he's honest, but never stuck up... he's the man.
djxjam2daz 3 years ago
that's really really really good to know. i absouletely love this man. it's really cool that he is American. He sounds like he's from Italy. His Italian is fuckin incrreduble.
jaymeeharkeen 3 years ago
lol We are all lusting over a very mean villain! hahaha
Voluptuossa1234 3 years ago 2
how could tosca resist such scarpia? we can never understand. mille grazie, sherrill!
renamunich 3 years ago 3
The voice prof where I went to college said that Scarpia's little phrase to the trapped Tosca, "Here's where we get to be good friends" (or whatever) really meant "Let me undo your bra strap, my dear." I have wanted Milnes to undo mine since I was 16 and saw his photo for the first time.
But seeing Louis Quillico shuddering against a pillar in the orgasmic final few notes of this act was almost as good...
Goethefemme 3 years ago 6
umm ok...
ah332 3 years ago
Your professor must've been joking or else he made a very unenlightened comment. The phrase itself "Ed or fra noi parliam da buoni amici" means exactly what Scarpia says. The subtext, of course, is full of Scarpia's suppressed desire for Tosca.
JohnInMableton 3 years ago
Man, that brings back memories and sends chills down my spine! Now IF I were Tosca, I'd dump Cavaradossi and make a date with Scarpia :-) Milnes was always my favorite in this...
doulacindy 4 years ago 6
I agree - I'd do the same!
Voluptuossa1234 3 years ago 2
no kidding eh? sheesh what was she thinking? ;)
askungen01 3 years ago 2
Oooooh Scarpia you're a nasty nasty man! LOL. Seriously, tremendous to hear Milnes at his very best. No-one could touch him in this role - especially this aria. Thanks for sharing.
rossmcl177 4 years ago 5