Mario del Monaco - Che gelida manina (studio recording)

[rockmeistro]

does anyone know how old MDM was in this recording?

[Maratta21]

Efectivamente Mario Lanza fue un gran estudiante de cantom pero jamás terminó de estudiar y La Scala siempre le cerró sus puertas esa fue la gran frustración de su vida. Esta última nunca le perdonó que diera a conocer este tipo de arte a través del cine.

[Thesiculus01]

Heldenbaritone.

You know opera fairly good, yet you mention Lanza has an excellent tenor?????

Lanza voice NEVER was perfected and in his life his performances were mediocre like his voice. However had he continue to train, he could have had a place in history (opera)

[sugarbist]

@Thesiculus01 Many of Lanza'So called American songs were excellent& not mediocre at all.Lanza did many concerts & recordings that were always better than mediocre.Lanza's quality of voice was as good or better than any tenors.Lanza's voice was also pitched extremely well & like Bjorling Gigli Di Stefano Cortis, Lanza was incapable of uttering an ugly sound.Lanza , like Pavarotti was also responsible for making opera more popular by bringing it to the hearts of the people,Enjoy

[SHICOFF1]

@heldenbaritone I would never compare him to Pav or lanza .He was a dramatic tenor not a yric spinto and when I heard him in house his top the high ones where big and great. Even Pav and Bjorling also, a great lyric tenor sang B's later, at times. MDM's voice was big and he sang Otello a role Pavoratti sang in Chicago but it was not for his voice really and he sang it when older in the concert version . MDM had a very big voice. I heard him in 1959 at the La Scala, in Otello his best role!

[SHICOFF1]

The LP and it was originally on ( LONDON 5121 Mono) starts with the Baritone Prologue from Pagliacci which he sings perfectly. I bought it brand new in Chicago over 50 years ago at Kenmac records on the North side. Mac a middle aged man then tenor's and we would play all the great recordings in the little private booths and then only decide to buy or not buy. Those where the days! He loved Lanza. I remember he would blast his records out into the street. Times where great!

[SHICOFF1]

@rockmeistro I bought this recording in the early 60's or late 50's. Mine is a Mono LP. recorded in the 50's as far as I know.  London Records #5121 . I have another recital, studio LP also, that I bought later, it's Stereo in the 60's.

[SHICOFF1]

@gaytenor Excellent easy High C in this Studio rec. Later he did sing B's live of course. The Gencer Trov. video was Studio, sung with feeling and he could act on stage. Look how well- early anyhow he managed roles that where not dramatic and sang perfectly, like Ballo in 1946 and then went on to be a great Otello and that I heard him do in house, 1959. His C here is magnificent , better then some popular lyrics we know who where high C tenors! This is well sung. A Great dramatic tenor !

[SHICOFF1]

@sugarbist I agree with all you said here. Different greats for different roles.

[rockmeistro]

Just curious, but what year was this recorded?

[hazelssister]

i started listening to opera at the age of 7 because my parents listened to it and i really liked it . i listened to this aria and la boheme so many times off of 78' s that i knew this aria including all of the words by the time i was 8. that is just one of the fond memories i have about my love of opera .

[aasse]

fantastic

[Heldenbariton1]

Very dramatic Voice! But the high notes were not like Mario Lanza or Luciano Pavarotti. Del Monaco always had problems with high notes! Wonderfull an great artist!

[sugarbist]

@Heldenbariton1 Del Monaco NEVER had problems with his high notes.Lauri Volpe mentions that MDM had the best B-flats& Jerome Hines stated that you could chins on his B-flats.Del Monaco also hits a D-flat in the terzetto of Il Trovatore with Gencer& Bastianini.Remember as a dramatic tenor,there is no reason to have a high C, Your remark is really not accurate.Lanza was a lyric spinto& Pavarotti was a lyric tenor, whom both had good facility in the upper registers.MDM's hi notes were much larger.

[Allzumenschliches44]

I never knew Del Monaco was so fantastic in this piece also. Truly one of the greatest ever!

[federic017]

Finalmente una gelida manina cantata con sentimento e non con leziosità come siamo abituati a sentirla...grande interpretazione saluti

[errpinin]

Excelent voice. Butt this is not the repertoire for Del Monaco.

[Bobbyo60]

OK, I've now listened to this aria by Del Monaco, Pavoratti, Corelli, Gigli, Bjorling, and di Stefano and now ready to render a verdict.

And the winner is........ME, for having the good fortune to be able to hear all these wonderful men!!!

[rugbyboy198127]

@Bobbyo60 haha i love your comment mate - perfect - keep it up! cheers from England

[hajsus]

wow!!!! 3:35

[duxdelceresio]

WOW !!

how hold is this recording ?

[halavey]

Melchior also was very powerful. I heard Del Monaco on stage in 59 sing Otello, a dramatic tenor, great Otello. Bjorling was a lyric spinto.voice of course, very different voice type. Corelli, Tucker Del Monaco all big voices for big roles, Forza, Chenier, etc.

[VivaRenata]

Il più grande di tutti i tempi - non posso dire di più. Viva MDM!

[aaronsande]

An incredible recording! Not only was my favorite tenor's voice more powerful than anyone's before or since, except Caruso, but also his registers were so developed! His squillo starts much lower than most tenors. His vibrancy is matched only by Pavarotti's.

On the spectrograph of this performance, his formants are all strong, especially the squillo ones and the dramatic ones. But on that high C, oh that high C. The squillo is almost as powerful as his first formant! True CHIAROSCURO! Bravo!

[seektheforce]

@aaronsande You can hear the falsetto coordination in his voice.

[aaronsande]

@seektheforce Truly! And, a much better way of saying it than my highly technical jabber. LOL

[sugarbist]

@seektheforce I dont think MDM did any falsetto singing.The beginning is almost a spoken piano which is on the breath with minimal diaphram applied.Falsetto is usually a head tone, but I did read that MDM had a trick soprano voice which I never did hear.Enjoy

[seektheforce]

@sugarbist He didn't use pure falsetto, but falsetto was present in his sound, which is why his voice sounds better than Franco Corelli.

[GermanOperaSinger]

@seektheforce 'Better?' That's a matter of opinion, and I don't mean to be rude, but your comment about falsetto is completely off the mark.

[seektheforce]

@GermanOperaSinger True, I guess it depends on who's using what sources. Singing technique is subjective as well.

[sugarbist]

@seektheforce MDM&Corelliare2of my favorites,with the edge going toMDM,However I do prefer Corelli in some arias&operasoverMDMbut only marginally.I prefer FC in Celeste Aida&MDM in the rest of the opera.I love them both in Chenier. But I think I like FC in Tosca over MDM .I like FC'S Di Quella Pira. But I prefer MDM in the rest of the opera.I don't think any 1 tenor sings EVERYTHING better than another.I prefer different singers in different roles.I thinkVolpi was the best Manrico,But so what

[gaytenor]

@aaronsande What high c? Del Monaco recorded the aria a semitone down. A beautiful performance to be sure. When he did sing the c'' it didn't have the impact that the high b had. If you want to hear Del Monaco at his very best try the Manon Lescaut from Mexico City which is among the wildest performances I've ever heard.

[aaronsande]

@gaytenor I made that comment over a year ago, and have learned much since then. I don't have perfect pitch, and wasn't aware of how often tenors have sung arias down a semitone. I merely referred to the high note as it is written, not concerned with whether it was transposed.

Some actually think MDM didn't have a high C, never sung one. Of course I'm not in that camp. Thanks for the recommendation.

[gaytenor]

@aaronsande The RAI Trovatore with Gencer, etc., has a high d-flat at the end of the first act trio. On you tube the love duet from Un Ballo in Maschera with Herva Nelli done live in San Francisco has an excellent high c'' but I wonder whether he had the c'' later on myself he was a dramatic tenor afterall and his high b was stunning.

[Bobbyo60]

Tears...Tears, Bravo, Bravo, wonderful Mario!!

[mfrances0503]

Grande!! Grande!! Grandisssssssiiiimmmooooo!!! He just made me cry!!! This is the best Che Gelida Manina I have ever heard!!! So wonderfull in the high C!!!!!

[larvael32]

I CAN'T FIND WORDS FOR THIS...

[larvael32]

BREATHTAKING! ASTONISHING!...

[jd1906sf]

Mario Del Monaco had one of those massive, almost overpowering voices, as did Franco Corelli. No one was more powerful than Del Monaco, but when he sang bel canto, and lyric parts, he still found a way to touch the heart, the warmth, the pianissimo. For a voice that deep and resonant to hit those high notes is astonishing: Caruso could do it, and Bjorling, and Del Monaco.  Del Monaco had all the gifts.

[AZo9jojo]

I would say that Enrico Caruso is also very powerful...

[romanazazel]

brilliant, rare, wild.

[tomzoricic]

As I said , the most magnificent high C in history of opera

[bettygirven8]

I fell in love with Mario Del Monaco as a young girl in the 1950s. I had no idea that he was SO handsome - I had only seen him in character! This is one of my favorite arias-

YoouTube (and you) have brought him back to me === THANK YOU!!!

[baritolo]

Indimenticabile Mario. Qui, bravo anche in un ruolo da tenore lirico.

[luciano1935]

excelente

[78bi78]

del monaco...sei il meglio vivi in mio padre come vivi in me...si o megl il number one...bravoooooooooooooooo dina da genova

[callasdimitrova]

mario del monaco the best tenor!

bravooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Aetion]

Immortal Mario!

[Chiliarches]

Wow.

[fabrizzzio48]

Sounds very young Mario, a little insecure, but as always given 100% of effort.