Joyce Di Donato - Armida, Final Scene (Rossini)

[saagua1953]

Joyce is a true soprano sfogato, that is a soprano with the range of a contralto plus that of a soprano. Patti and Colbran were the classic examples. I don't think Horne could ever go as high as DiDonato, at least not with the same ease.

[primohomme]

@saagua1953

I don't know if I consider Joyce a true soprano sfogato, as for me the greatest soprano sfogato is Maria Callas

But she certainly has a wonderful voice and range.

I think you meant Pasta instead of Patti, Adelina Patti was a light coloratura and Giuditta Pasta was a soprano sfogato :)

[Axil1991]

I like Joyce DiDonato' s version of Armida but her voice doesn't have the darkness that Armida needs in the final aria. Armida' s voice is supposed to be tremendous and vindictive (in this specific aria). Nevertheless, her voice is excellent and like crystal. :-)

[MrLupo23]

@Axil1991 I agree with u.

[debislo]

Well this is in everyway better that Fleming or even Anderson at her best. Wonderfulll impersonification and voice and meaning everywhere, what could one ask ofr more? oh yes,,, Maria Callas's genius and supreme fuck you I'm the best ever rendition!

[Pywacket2]

Brava!

[CallasAfrica]

I think Joyce is a wonderful technician!!...she sings armida brilliantly ... vocally she is amazing but emotionaly, she is no armida!!!... fleming is by far a better armida than didonato!.. when i listen to joyce i'm blown away by the skill and precision of her voice but when i listen to fleming i'm heartbroken by her pain in dov'e son io and then i really feel her anger and sense of betrayal in the last part where she gets all mad and crazzzzzzzzyyyy!!!

[raigekimaru]

@CallasAfrica

well, probably mostly because Fleming is a soprano and her voice is better able to handle this repertoire. the upper range of the soprano voice is naturally more emotive and "crying" so to speak. for mezzos, the more emotive part of their range is in the lower register, listen to her sing Where Shall I Fly and you'll get a better idea of her acting capabilities =)

[CallasAfrica]

@raigekimaru couldn't agree with you more!!!.... i listened to her sing elisabetta regina d'inghilterra and i heard the regal queen come to life!!... she blew me away!!... she sang it like a queen... I'm a huge didonato fan!!!

[youfeda]

MERAVIGLIOSA

[PetoAntoni]

Congrats! Remember Joyce is a true mezzo. I love the way she executes this difficult piece of Rossini.

Saw her live at the MET in the new Barbiere. She was only brilliant in every way!

[saagua1953]

Fleming first did Armida in 1992 essentially reviving it. There is a recording of her performance. If she is not as good at the Met now this might be because she is 18 years older (agility declines with age). I do think DiDonato a better coloratura in general than Fleming.

[primohomme]

@saagua1953

Yes, her coloratura was cleaner before, but her characterization is much better now. Her most vocally perfect Armida is in 96 though.

[MastersoftheOpera]

I prefer Di Donato singing Armida and not Renee Fleming who is presently singing the role at the Met. Di Donato has a genuine lyric-dramatic-coloratura voice aptly able to sing bel canto opera and arias di bravura. Her Mozart, Baroque and bel canto is the best by far. Fleming has lost her touch, and her voice is mush. She uses too many mannerisms, scoops and trills. Di Donato serves music and understands the music she sings. This is thrilling. Her Armida is the best since Maria Callas

[thisizjoey]

move over fleming!

[VivaMariaCallas]

She really should be singing Armida at the MET rather than Renee Fleming....

[primohomme]

Armida not only goes low but also has many high phrases that would be challenging for a mezzo.

[VivaMariaCallas]

I know, it is a true assoluta role. But I think Di Donato does a really great job with the Armida excerpts on the CD, I think she could pull it off.  Meanwhile, the recent live recordings of D'amore al dolce impero by Fleming are not so promising.....

[distefano13069609]

yes but it was a role WRITTEN for a mezzo, so technically, a mezzo, or mezzo coloratura, should be able to go AT LEAST up to a high D. DiDonato has a nice C, and I'm sure that she'd have a nice D!!!!

[primohomme]

Colbran wasn't a straight up mezzo. She also sang Donna Anna which is a true true soprano role.

[suzanneetmoi]

@distefano13069609 Believe it or not, a whole step may not be within a singer's range, so it doesn't always follow that if the have a "C" that they'd have a"D", in fact, one can have a lovely High B and High D and yet not have a good C- it's a very individual thing. This role was written for Isabella Cobran, but also keep in mind that she had a very large range.

[Marroiamaxu]

@VivaMariaCallas She "SHOULD" be really singing Zerlina and the likes and not ARMIDA

[primohomme]

@Marroiamaxu

Well, Joyce has the range and the agility to sing Armida...

[BetuliaLiberata]

@primohomme So DOES every soprano..it's not about range and agility ONLY, that's a prerequisite of course, the thing is her tone colour and 'coloratura di forza' do not do the role justice. One needs to have a voice like Deutekom, Edda Moser and the likes to get the full efect this role can bring. EVEN Sutherland did not bring it to justice.

[primohomme]

@BetuliaLiberata

Sutherland never sang Armida, she couldn't have...the role goes too low and her chest voice was shit. Deutekom just cackled through the coloratura in a ghastly manner, and dodged all the low notes, she rewrites the vocal line so she doesn't have to dip down to the low G.

[BetuliaLiberata]

@primohomme YES, Deutekom has that weird coloratura..but Deutekom sang Abigail really well and that's the voice I believe gives Armida the "icing on the cake". Sutherland recorded the aria. It's about "edge" on the voice. Do you know June Anderson? I do like her on Armida, it's not about a "round" tone or a full tone, but rather the "acid" quality that she has when she sings Armida, that type of "bel-canto" type of emission. You kknow what I mean?

[primohomme]

@BetuliaLiberata

I don't think Sutherland ever recorded anything from Armida, and yes...June Anderson sometimes was good, but none of them had the notes in their voice. I mean, why would anyone sing Armida if they can't sing the role as written and have to transpose things up or down? And based on that...well, Sutherland should have never sung Norma or Anna Bolean as well.

The best to this day is Maria Callas, followed by Renee Fleming in 1966 Carnegie Hall.

[BetuliaLiberata]

@primohomme June Anderson did not have the notes?PLeeeeease! All those sopranos chest those low notes, they have it. I just do not agree when you say the one of the best Armidas are Fleming's...CALLAS YES, no doubt...but Fleming???

[primohomme]

@BetuliaLiberata

No, June DID NOT have the notes. One thing is singing a low note in a whispered way so only the first row can hear if at all, and quite another is sing it with weight and force as it is supposed to be delivered. June does not do that, and neither does Deutekom.

[MastersoftheOpera]

@primohomme Fleming sang Armida in 1996, not 1966. Fleming sang it @Carnegie Hall that year. She is currently singing at the Met but I think she's singing it terribly. Di Donato is glorious singing this type of music. Her Baroque, Mad Scenes, arias di bravura, Mozart and bel canto is thrilling and grand. Yes, Callas i unbeatable but right now Di Donato is doing a marvelous job.

[primohomme]

@MastersoftheOpera

LOL, if I typed 66 is just a typo...I have her 96 performance and her 93, she is the best Armida on record after Callas. Di Donato's coloratura is flawless, but Renee's characterization is the best.

[spenzur]

@primohomme I agree. I think people judge Fleming too hard sometimes, like everything she sings is bad. I think Fleming is the best Armida but DIdonato does a very good job too.

[Randidan]

This is much less impressive than the other clip--way too much breathy modern singing and not enough even sheer voice. It invariably ends up spoiling the composer's line and dynamic markings. This is not Jazz where re-writing the thing is acceptable. I must admit that I didn't expect even this level of performance these days... Would like to hear her in person (theatrical voice or not??)

[primohomme]

Ornamenting the line in a tasteful way is allowed in bel canto style. What's not allowed is singing stuff up an octave or two, the way some sopranos have done in this role.

[sicuro75]

I definately hear another Flemming. So now we have 2 flemmings.

[raigekimaru]

she sounds more like a soprano sfogato that anyone else I've heard.

[primohomme]

Well the biggest soprano sfogato is Maria Callas...after her one can count Leyla Gencer, Julia Varady and Marisa Galvany, but the three of them lacked in technique so they were never at the level of Callas.

[raigekimaru]

that's true. Maria Callas was a bad ass

[kgarmaker123]

@primohomme I have been listening to her donato... and I am impressed with her voice.. and her coloratura.. she is something.

[yodavidnavarro]

What do you think about Dimitrova? I love her!

[primohomme]

Great dramatico coloratura, but no chest voice...her Abigaille and Lady Macbeth show that.

[yodavidnavarro]

To dear primohomme. But she successfully sang mezzo roles! How did she do that?

[primohomme]

No idea, because based on her Lady Macbeth, she has no chest voice. Never heard her in a pure mezzo role, but if she can't convinsingly sing the low B's in Lady Macbeth...

[yodavidnavarro]

She was Amneris in Aida sevral times. You know a singer's voice changes.

[yodavidnavarro]

Dear PRIMOHOMME I'm not sure but I think she also sang princess Eboli in Don Carlos.

[operastud82]

@primohomme Dimitrova was ALL chest voice!! And yes, her Abigaille (studio and live versions), Lady Macbeth, Gioconda, Tosca all show it off! And if an artist makes the decision to not use chest voice for an effect, doesn't necessarily mean they are incapable of using it...but she was a true dramatic soprano who had the ability to sing coloratura.

[primohomme]

I've heard her as Amneris and Eboli recently and she does have a great chest voice. But when she sang Lady Macbeth and Abigaille, it did not show.

[ubedajils]

A su voz le falta ENTIDAD para representar, para interpretar este dramático papel.

[jeepgerhard212]

this is from her FANTABULOUS Rossini "Colbran" arias CD. Wahoo! The whole record is just incredible.

[Operaphile]

Out of this world!!!!!! Dare we hope Ms Fleming is taken ill later this season and that Ms Di Donato is available?

[AlexVB622]

WOW???

[figliadibolena]

OMG. How wonderful would that be?????

[guardian2079]

I bet they'll repeat the new production the following year and cast her. She's quite excellent! There aren't many good recordings of this scene.

[StarRaft]

@Operaphile

no, the cover is angela meade. but the met intends to present it again in 2 yrs or so, again with fleming. no idea who the cover is.

[xafnndapp]

FANTASTICA

[LohengrinT]

-Her note-variation at 1:50 is pure Heaven

-Her ornaments are fantastic... I suppose she has written them too??