Ruth Ann Swenson - Je veux vivre

[BGSourgas]

hers was the first version of this aria i ever heard. it made me happy every time i listened to it and still does! brava

[pedrofribeiro]

Best rendition EVER. Even better than the "unmatcheable" version of Kathleen Battle. Pure perfection.

[MusicoftheHeart1]

This is the best I've heard this aria in a long time!

[SuperPerformingArts]

Ruth Ann Swenson is stellar. One of the most unique and beautiful voices of our time as well as a gifted artist and musician. Hearing her live is such a joy. Thank you Ruth Ann for being such an inspiration! :)

[furmitten]

I saw Ruth Ann Swenson sing Juliette at the Met, her voice filled the hall effortlessly and was so sweet and touching, it was one of the most beautiful performances I've ever seen at the Met.

[Silasbenjamin]

I know I shouldn't say it, but I will: This is my voice teacher's wife! (He's her voice teacher too) It's a little scary when you're performing a university opera and you know that Ruth Ann Swenson is out in the audience watching you. Lol. Unfortunately, I still haven't seen her perform live yet.

[rebeccafarleysings]

One of my favorite renditions!

[windstorm1000]

Wow--people just are just not vanilla on Netrebko--she elicits strong pros and cons all over YouTube...In the mean time, Ms. Swenson is so professional, sings so cleanly and nails the high note-- and really makes us hanker for those Harry Winston's and Tiffanay's!! Marilyn M. should have sung this!

[gczwarkiel]

Her performance of this is absolutely fantastic!

[OLIVCHEN77]

BRAVA BRAVA

[Babs22h]

she is amazing listen to how that sound just opens up from 3:10-3:15 FABULOUS! HOW DOES SHE DO THAT:-)

[312pipi]

Where have all the trillers gone?

Nice performance overall, one of the better ones on youtube. But I would just once like to hear this aria with defined and beautiful trills, rather than have those notes washed over. At least Swenson attempts the trills...

[utlandagatan]

No doubt she's better than Netrebko and Fleming combined. A true coloratura repertoire fit for her. Levine's choice to sing this aria.

[Silasbenjamin]

Yay! Brava! That's my voice teacher's wife!

[Hemmeditha]

This woman is amazing. I've yet to see any videos of her that weren't spot on. I'm puzzled how anyone could criticize any part of this performance. Opera lovers need to stop picking apart performances and just enjoy the artistry and skill when they are soooo obvious.

[brulhilde]

BRAVISSIMA, I love her clean coloratura and perfect legato!! No unnecessary stress and strain on the voice compared to many other singers these days unfortunately...

She's a an amazingly elegant lyric coloratura!!

[AminasDream]

She is great!!! Definitely knows how to use her beautiful and rich voice. Netrebko singing this reminds me a train out of control :p

[arpeggio1358]

It doesn't get any better than this. Swenson's voice is perfectly suited to this piece. Swenson has always sung material that is appropriate for her voice, has never tried to sing roles that are too heavy for her.

[SuksiVittuun]

i think i found my favorite juliette :D

[arpeggio1358]

@SuksiVittuun I know this is my favorite!

[nelsonfmsilva]

Gostei muito nunca vi assim uma pessoa a cantar notas tão agudas

[mjmacmtenor]

An excellent example of Ruth Ann at her best.  The piano attack on the final hi C - followed by a flawless crescendo - is worth the price of admission alone!

[deliriousTT]

Sublime

[classicalgal14]

Wonderfully voice, but she isn't as interesting to watch as Anne Netrebko.

[dingle1988]

i agree with you totally jimmymartinezzz!!! this is meant to be a hopeful aria and it doesn't in this performance!!!

[ech313]

Oh. My. Goodness. That was just incredible. As a light lyric soprano myself, I basically aspire to sound like her. Ruth Ann is fabulous!

[Lovelytenor1]

A beautiful, sparkling woman with a beautiful voice intelligently & artfully used. Worth the price of admission alone.

[jamesdeperu]

Ufff con las justas

[gestas60323]

She is a very lovely woman in great voice !!!

Brava Ruth Ann !!!

[MastersoftheOpera]

I love Ruth Ann Swenson's Juliette, very romantic interpretation. She doesn't have a decorative trill and she's mainly a lyric singer but I love her studio recording with Placido Domingo from around 1996. She has excellent technique. Brava

[Discipal4goodmusic]

She is great!

[lady00010]

Wonderful

[Chilair1]

Love her voice...but honestly her chest took a lot of the attention..

[classicalgal14]

@Chilair1 She has battled breast cancer please don't make rude comments like that.

[Chilair1]

@classicalgal14 I wasn't being rude, I honestly think she should have covered up more.

[leprincebeaumont]

Stupenda! Sembra Miss Piggy dei Muppett e canta divinamente!

[TaVo78]

que mamon ha ha .... ma certo che l'aria é bella

[schmup53]

Unfortunately, I can't hear this very well on my computer...Ruth Ann is wonderful and I actually remember her audition for the Merola Program I think it was 1981 at UT-Austin? I was a student there at the time. It was a jaw dropping audition if I am thinking of the right soprano.

[smcdon817]

I have been waiting to hear it sung like this... BRAVA MS. SWENSON!!! : )

[schmup53]

This is so much better than Netrebko ; Netrebko has vibrato you can drive a truck through

[doeraybaby]

its not really her vibrato its her tone she has a dark tone... mayhap im being the weirdo...

[leprincebeaumont]

Io l'adoro! Trent'anni di carriera splendida, sempre all'insegna di un belcantismo impeccabile, ma non con la vocetta del sopranino, ma con belle vibrazioni da soprano lirico! Eppoi è carinissima, sembra Miss Piggy dei Muppett. La amooooo!

[Lohengrin]

this is the lolest coloratura soprano in the history of their kind ;)

[trudiDumb]

No. Ghorghius french is horrible!

Swenson did a good job, but Netrebko do it better!

[Houndentenor1998]

The final cresendo on the high C is Stunning! Anyone else out there doing it? NO

[skitzo429]

the C is beautiful, but its actually strikingly out of tune, its extremely sharp.

[Houndentenor1998]

I'd perfer it sharp to flat.  BTW listen to the recording other than this youtube and then have your hearing checked out..

[skitzo429]

i love her voice, but if you cant hear that thats out of tune youre the one who needs your hearing checked, not me.

[Houndentenor1998]

I love your passion for opera as a 20 musican, MSU is a great school. I only went MSM.

Westminster for my MM

We can agree to disagree. Once again I love you passion for opera. The opera needs a younger audience.

[blancopatri]

We also need younger operas, the ones that people play most of the time are centuries old

[CatalinaDM56]

O_O

[doeraybaby]

there are new operas, its just that they're not standard repertoire

[Houndentenor1998]

So she can't act....big deal.  Opera is about voice, Voice, VOICE. A voice is what she has!

[katesinger]

you NEED to be able to act. otherwise you are BORING. but i think she does this quite nicely.

[Babs22h]

acting while singing to me is a BIG dEAL. how can she convey properly the characters experience without good acting inspiring the singing!!!... otherwise for me its like well what is the purpose behind this person singing? is it for their enjoyment?apparently not mine

[doeraybaby]

well cause opera was like the musicals of the old days so yeah your still supposed to act.

[Houndentenor1998]

I think she's fabu singing this aria...... way ahead of Netrebko and the others

[ajking26]

she makes it sound so easy

[josh194]

I think she's fantastic. But so is Anna Netrebko, and Natalie Dessay, and Diana Damrau and...Why choose?  I've seen them all live, and they're all incredibly talented, and different, and the world is far richer for the variety.

[raymzi]

peter gelb doesnt think so.

[josh194]

now that is someone I'm happy to criticize.

[dirulovely]

Her melismas are so clear. She's the only one that I've hard that sings it like that.

Amazing.

[Babs22h]

school me whats a melisma and where can i find them in this piece?

[dirulovely]

A melisma is a series of moving notes on one syllable. They're usually fast.

3:04

3:33 is a really good example.

[silvija73]

excellent!

[curiosus1]

é Stupenda!

[trudiDumb]

she is not bad, you are right. But it is to vibrant.

Anna Netrebko sang it lighter..=)

[jimmymartinezzz]

Anna Netrebko sings nothing light. She over darkens her voice and makes it too heavy to pull off the necessary coloratura for this aria. She sings the poison aria fairly well (as out of tune as it is). But Ruth Ann Swenson is FAR superior to Anna Netrebko.

[Gaaraoftheoasis]

Before Netrebko came along, I wouldn't have believed that opera singers could have fanboys, but now they do. Too many confuse looks with talent and I find it hilariously stupid.

[bruckner0001]

@jimmymartinezzz Thank you for saying this. I've always thought that Netrebko darkens her voice too much.  Swenson rules!

[numetutelare]

@jimmymartinezzz Da sempre sostengo che la Netrebko non ha la flessibilità, la messa di voce, gli arpeggi e le scale cromatiche della coloratura sono raffazzonate, inoltre a parte le facce "d'espressione" che sono altro dal senso artistico interpretativo ha problemi negli acuti spesso lanciati e malamente tenuti "tenuti". Non si tratta di gareggiare, ma solo di stabilire chi é una cantante lirica e chi lo sembra...un po' come Bocelli che é un buon cantante... punto, la lirica é altro.

[arpeggio1358]

@jimmymartinezzz I couldn't agree with you more!

[katesinger]

sorry, WHAT the hell!?

[cgczf76777]

prerfect technique

[cgczf76777]

perfect

[kelliletner]

Beautiful! I'm working on this piece and she's an inspiration for sure!

[LondiniumGaia]

I am no expert

this is my favorite version more so than Callas sorry folks

sang with most sentiment and warm my bones

and cheers us up !!

she can fetch me anytime !!!

great stuff

thanks

[montsyblackmaddona]

This is golden age singing!

[SVENSKSOPRAN]

SDCmorg! Glad to see there are after all some sensible people on youtube...though in a hopeless minority

[BroadwaySomeday37]

fabulous. that high c at the end gave me chills. what a remarkable performance.

[skitzo429]

the C is very sharp

[BGSourgas]

u can tell they've worked together before, lovely to watch on all counts!!!

[SDCmorg]

I find Swenson a fetching Juliet.. or at least she sings this thing like she cherishes being alive. A great thing!

And... honestly.. what's with all this 'my diva is better than your diva' thing? If your favorite singer can't be praised on her own merit (as opposed to having to always be at the expense of another singer), then what does that really say?

These singers are, more often than not, cordial colleagues or friends. Think about that before engaging in silly flame wars like this.

[trudiDumb]

terrible. sorry, xgianpatrick. swenson is old, not Anna Netrebko.

Anna is wonderful and Swenson is pffff.....

[waldotube]

Que maravilla.. no me canso de verlo.. que maravillosa

[saturne46]

Ruth Ann Swenson a la voix idéale pour cet air. Magnifique prestation. Bravo !

[erstesangerin1]

Excellent! Such a gorgeous tone!

[trudiDumb]

really good. But Anna Netrebko is much better, sorry.

Swenson has got a beautiful voice and she speaks the french language much better than angela gheorghiu. But it is not perfect.

[xgianpatrick]

You've got to be kidding. Netrebko is a sharp, muddy, sloppy mess. No comparison. Swenson is terrific! Clean, stylish, charming, and in tune! Netrebko is like an old power-sprayer that has been rusting in the garage too long.

[gczwarkiel]

@xgianpatrick Your critique is a bit over the top wouldn't you say? You should post a video of yourself performing at the height of your operatic splendor. I am sure it would leave us amazed!

[xgianpatrick]

@gczwarkiel : Why is it not possible to critique the highest-paid soprano in the world? Netrebko on her best day is no match for Swenson on her worst. My comment was on the mark: had she looked like Caballe (no offense to Caballe fans) she never would have made it out of the chorus.

[arpeggio1358]

@xgianpatrick I agree. Netrebko is overhyped and has a voice that is no match for Swenson or many other of the world's operatic sopranos. There is an unfortunate tendency to emphasize looks in opera today. The voice should be what matters always. Alas, I'm afraid the "pretty people" are here to stay in opera, Netrebko among them.

[MissMiasWorld]

@arpeggio1358 I fully agree with about the whole "pretty people" thing, Elina Garanca is prime example of this, mediocre singing pushed in our faces just because of a pretty face and tight ass :(. Although I disagree with the insinuation that Ruth isn't a "pretty person" sure she is a little soft and round but I think she is just as pretty as Netrekbo or Garanca. Plus she has better hair! Not all over-processed and straw-like! And that's got to count for something!!

[arpeggio1358]

@MissMiasWorld I'd have to disagree about Garanca. i think she's very good. Netrebko, however, is very overrated. Swenson is very pretty, but if she were just starting out today, there are unfortunately many opera houses that wouldn't hire her because of her weight. Look at what happened to Deborah Voigt. The voice should be the only thing that matters.

[jimmymartinezzz]

Oh i caertainly hope you are kididng. Anna Netrebko's version of this aria is heavy and old old and out of tune, not to mention SLOPPY. This is some of the most spectacular singing I have ever seen. She is youthful and vibrant and wonderful.

[skitzo429]

comparing anyone to Netrebko on the point of diction is almost laughable, Netrebko's french is atrocious.

[nichtsleezy]

YOU ARE WRONG!!! Netrebko is atrocious(most of the time)

[skitzo429]

thats what i said...try reading more carefully

[twilightdewdrops]

please stop bitching about netrebko all the time. she might or might not be atrocious, but everybody please spare us your self righteousness, it's tiresome.

[schmup53]

I saw Netrebko sing the Lucia at HD and I remember thinking what the fuss was all about; then I saw her Sempre Libera video and I got it but I don't think I've heard anything that good since

[cgt2631]

So much better than Anna Netrebko!!! I love her!!

[WQA12345]

Bonito pero sin alma. Ni nada de francés non plus.

[americanidol006]

She has excellent control! I hope one day I can control my dynamics like that!

[fruitsandberries]

i like her acting and expressions too

[miuzefreak]

I ve been captivated by Swenson since I first heard her in "L'Africaine" (DVD) ... great performance here once again !!!

[blondiesoprano]

WOW---This is gorgeous. :-D

[Monte2537]

She played the youthful part well. And the unexpected dynamics were a pleasant surprise. Exciting performance. :)

[lalaindahouse]

I have to say that i like her rendition of this aria. she sings this beautifully and captures the youthful essence of the piece.

i've listened to beverly sills singing this aria and it's not my favorite. don't get me wrong, beverly sills is my favorite singer of all time but she has that biting voice which i didn't like for juliette. ruth ann swenson has a warmth to her voice that lends itself well to this piece.

just my two cents :)

[johnmannno]

I've read the comments, and listened carefully. I must say I prefer Beverly Sills' rendition of the aria (which you may listen to on this site). The conductor's tempo of the aria on Ms Sills's recording is a better one as well. I've listened to opera and classical music all my life, in fact only that, and am a classical musician who loves opera, so I'm not a dilettante I think.

[dem24utube]

I don't feel any need to compare her to any other singer. She sings beautifully, and in my New York days I loved to hear her at the Met.

[Davidoff1Gustav]

wait as a singer, Ruth Anne is awesome, yes she covers a bit and modifies vowels but here career has lasted and she is one of the met's work horses ... further watch her sing in the pavarotti plus don pasquale an actress and personality and she sings on key ALWAYS from what i have heard.. i would rather hear the melody than screeching which is what so often happens

freni is my favorite and from the first i heard swenson,,, that is her intelligence.. care for my voice and sing

[amorepercallas]

Swenson sets the record straight on this one, brava!

[CHerbek]

Beautiful!

[Ruxton]

She's absolutely charming and stays on key unlike so many of the others

[fundfreq]

She stays in the key, but she struggles for a few high notes, sliding into them

[Iareto]

Have you heard her high notes elsewhere? They're fabulous. She is really a wonderful singer.

[fuzmiq]

So gorgeous.

[ererofea]

Por cierto, para mi es una interpretación bellísima!!!. For me this is a wonderful performance. I cannot find any trouble at all!!

[796824]

Suggestion is to read THE TWILIGHT of BEL CANTO by Leonardo di Ciampa. There are also CDS of the Golden Age of Singing, E.Rethberg, Lucrezia Bori, Nellie Melba, Mado Robin, and Ada Sari to mention just a "Few." No one knows how to sing today. It is purely generic shouting.

[Iareto]

Yeah? Well they're all dead. Why don't you go lock yourself up in a storage room with just yourself and the records of your twittery nightengale sopranos while we enjoy what's currently out there? The correct thing to say would have been "I prefer (insert name of singer here)" not "No one knows how to sing today".

[796824]

The public has been "manipulated" to believe that what they're listening to is singing. There is a reason the PAST was ENTITLED the

"GOLDEN" AGE of "SINGING." Beethoven, Mozart and Verdi are dead, but we still LISTEN to their music because it is GREAT. Listen to LUCREZIA BORI, ADA SARI, GALLI CURCI to begin with. The list of COMPETENT singers from the past is far too long to include.

[musiqmarquis]

While that is true, the other reason that the past was called the Golden Age is that, as you've pointed out without meaning to, there was an abundance of talent. The people all over the world singing were real singers. You weren't playiing roulette when going to the opera. Today that is not true. However, it does not mean that no one know how to sing today.

[Iareto]

Unfortunately the world of opera shouldn't stop just because you don't like the way people sing today. Who do you suggest we listen to today in the theatre?

[kngiht84]

I would pay to hear Avril Lavigne singing Madame Butterfly and Paris Hilton in Tosca, hahaha

[33blueberries]

No, it shouldn't stop. But nor should the criticisms of its shortfalls.

[musiqmarquis]

You are correct. 796824 must remember that in the "Golden Age" singers sang and didn't really act at all. They did cutsy things here and there and the acting was in the voice. But the days of stand an deliver are over. Now the acting is in the voice and the body. Tell the "Golden Age" marvels to do that and see how they sound. Like I said earlier, the quality is here today, you just just look for it more.

[musiqmarquis]

Tell me that her singing at 2:40 is generic shouting, go ahead, but I will not listen to you. You can wish for the "good old days" but the voices of the present stylistically have some of the same characteristics of the great singers of the past. The power, the agility it is there. You just have to search for it more.

[796824]

The idea is that this is not the Art of Singing. It is covered and hooty without any brilliance and threaded throughout, there are two notes in each tone from the attempt to make the voice larger. There are also intonation problems.

[ererofea]

Tratando de entenderte, ¿serías tan amable de marcar con tiempo en dónde están los problema de entonación? ¡Gracias! Trying to understand you, Would you be so kind to mark with time tracking where the intonations problems are? Thank you.

[Iareto]

Don't try to understand him. He has no idea what he's talking about.

[fundfreq]

I am a voice major and a student of vocal pedagogy; my voice teacher was taught by Barbara Doscher. I totally agree with everything you have said on here.

[796824]

It is wonderful to know that there are connoisseurs who recognize quality. Thank you

[robinorene]

she is so fantastic. I"m a new fan!

[aleduffoo]

great!

[urgrad03]

My goodness what gazongas! That said, wonderful singing.

[onasis83]

I think it is wonderfull performance.She is so enjoing the singing,and it is one of the difficult arias for the soprano.She is singing so naturally,and it is looking so easy,all these difficult passages and high notes.BRAVO!

[sulaine]

Again, from me...because I live in China, I so appreciate these youtube postings. I can't get to performances such as these...other than occasional glimpses via this forum. So...thanks for posting.

[astragirldxx]

Don't worry, we live in the West and can't get to those performances either - it's just too expensive. In a way it makes sense because of the cost of mounting a full Opera. So we're thankful to the poster - and I'll probably go and buy the DVD soon :)

[sulaine]

Amazing. Beautiful...does her husband have anything on youtube? And how about her sister-in-law? Denise?? Just wondering...

[FantasmaLuna666]

My favorite aria!

[796824]

This is not the teenage Juliet. Listen to Pons, Mado Robin, Nezhdanova. This is nonsense

[Meyerbeer1]

So what?? it's still wonderfull.

[musiqmarquis]

Amen to that!! It is a woman in love, which may I remind you, IS what the song is about. No teenager could sing this anyway. Not this way. Their voice would be too thin, so I must say I prefer this rendition to the alternative.

[796824]

It's a matter of frequencies. A beautiful tone should never be covered. There is no brilliance in this performance. Listen to Mafaldo Favero on YouTube/La Traviata and ELIZABETH RETHBERG in the TRIO FROM I LOMBARDI.

[musiqmarquis]

You mean to say that her vocal quality is too dark for your preference? Ok fine, but remember that it is only your preference. I can appreciate both for their stylistic diffences. I prefer a warmer sound, and you obviously do not which is fine. Say that this is not your taste instead of this is horrible for the first is what you mean.

[796824]

NO, it is "NOT" a matter of taste. There is a "reason" the past is described as being The

"GOLDEN" age of SINGING" when "CHIAROSCURO" was symbolic to "coloring" of the voice. It was the hallmark of the stellar artists of that era. Singing was SPONTANEOUS, another imprint of great singing. The evidence is

incontestible. This era is better known as

The Age of "BELLOW" Canto. Suggest you listen to the singers mentioned in the prior e-mail. No more to add, so Goodbye.

[musiqmarquis]

I know of and have heard many recordings of the artists of whom you speak. I know the era and I understnad as a singer the technique differences between singers now and singers then.

You explain things as if you are the only one who is capable of understanding what you are saying. I know exactly what you mean, however I do not agree with you. You prefer a more natural sound that does not have the space or "hoot" in it that is present in most singers today. Fine, but this again is taste!

[jetsetjordan]

What a loser you are.

[lidiacool]

It is from Romeo and Juliette, Gounod.

[tklogan11809]

aside from the crack at the end, the singing was beautiul. They did fix the bad note when the CD was released.

[mtrav95]

The set I believe is for "Arabella." Lovely to hear her voice in its prime.

[ARReith]

what scenery is the set from?

[verdiguy]

The Met's superb production of Arabella,

which is available on DVD with Kiri te

Kanawa and Wolfgang Brendel. Thielemann

is the conductor.