Divas Discuss Chest Voice (Hint: They're against it")

[Darjaius]

Leyla Gencer = Goddess.

[edgarmean]

Winne the pooh? LOL the guy sound like him lol

[tantris3]

Calling the lower register 'chest voice' is a misnomer. Both male and female have two registers. Some keep them seperate and others learn to mix them favoring one register or the other. But to give the name 'chest voice' to the lower distorts what it is. They are both produced in the throat and resonated in the throat and mask.

[4444marla]

One would imagine a castrato sounding like this interviewer. But I thought they were extinct!

Regarding "voce di petto"......."Maschera", singing in the mask is a matter of placement. Petto, is the register and quality of sound which still needs to be in the mask.

[bjorganmorten]

You're right. The interviewer has a horrible (my opinion) femi voice. But very interesting program.

Great ladies.

morten b

[sharonmary]

The interviewer is Stefan Zucker. Check him out on Wiki.

[Weihafan]

I love Carla Gavazzi in this interview. She speaks so authentic, her words coming straight from her heart.

[mrbouncelol]

What the hell is wrong with the interviewers voice? Doesn't use the speech mode but still laughs so heartily?

[v0zbox]

@mrbouncelol So bizarre. 

[troppofiato1]

Obviously "voce di petto" to the italian operatic singers is not what English speakers call "chest voice". A case of semantics not of technique. Most Pop music singers sing in "voce di petto" - opera singers don't because the voice is always placed "in maschera" (forward placement) as Simionato explained and clearly demonstrated. These artists showed great patience and grace with the interviewer.

[wattever333]

so they just disagree on the definition of chest voice. this debate is becoming extremely boring. define your words clearly and then you can have a discussion. (I'm telling this to the people in the video, not the readers)

[ivennein]

Chest voice is not Low voice

Chest Voice are low,medium,High notes but With resonance in the chest, Womans Can do it but some girls find it difficult.

[OperaMystery80]

These veteran/retired opera singers hate chest voice and go as far as saying "it doesn't exist". Nonsense. It was used by Maria Callas, Leonie Rysanek, Montserrat Caballe, Leontyne Price, Grace Bumbry & Shirley Verrett. It exists in both soprano & mezzo soprano ranges. It was written into the score of operas as Norma, Lucrezia, Bolena, Deveraux, Trovatore, Macbeth, Forza, Nabucco, even Tosca. Their singing sounded like men, baritones, basses, that deep lol

[Detie002]

It's amazing how people misinterpret what chest voice is lol

What was Fedora demonstrating? what chest voice really is, not what people think it is

[thesoundofmusic1991]

I had to chuckle when almost all of the women in the clip reacted to the phrase "chest voice" as if the interviewer had cursed at them.

[steakopera]

There is no shame in using chest voice. It's necessary and exists in the highest note one could sing.

[Anibaal]

bien, sería interesante saber quiénes son las viejas cantantes que aparecen en esta entrevista por orden de aparición.

[operamusicfan]

They're talking about different things.

[lpw0021]

So many gems in this. 1:53 is brilliance.

[Snuti]

Can't stop watching this!!! The ladies are too cooly and the journalist is hilarious when he laughs with his chest voice and then tries to be serious by using falsetto... LOL

TEEEEEEEEEEEE VOGLIOOO BEEEEENEEEEE

[gaemp]

who is this stupid "journalist" (?!??) making incredible questions...?????

[lelecoloco]

who the heck is this guy???? Can somebody call security????

[nihilistopher]

I can't stand this guy's voice.

[RiPcOrDz83]

Poor Guy,Did You Hear His Voice!!That Girl Voice Is More Masculine Than His...

[AudreyN]

Mmm, they're arguing semantics. No, chest voice does not come from the chest nor resonate in the chest, but it is so called because of *sympathetic vibration.* Thus, it exists.

[espinaca79]

@AudreyN Sure it exists, they don't like to admit it because it was not well recieved by the opera business during their time.

[couturesixfour]

@AudreyN thank you so very much for that explanation. the work of the voice is NOT done in the chest!!!

[Bigman240]

These Great singers know so little about singing! LOL

[tenorismo]

The interviewers is Stefan Zuker

[sterneflamme]

Marcella Pobbe was a fine lyric soprano singing at her best between the second half of the 50's and the end of the 60's After that she began singing, with a true liryc voice, more dramatic roles not really suited to her voice. So her career faded before time. But she was a good singer, perhaps not a 1st rate, but surely not a 4th one.

[jovi1715]

la Barbieri era una matta! Adoro!

[sillyboydeux]

This could be a 10 part series entitled "Cattive Donne Parlano". How funny that Simionato, of all people, would deny that such a thing as "chest voice" existed, when she had the darkest colored "low notes" of all the Italian mezzos! Barbiere sang like Livia Soprano. The lady at the end, Potrebbe, was talking through her ass.

[MrLupo23]

mio dio ma come non esiste la voce di petto?!?!?!?!?

[distefano13069609]

is he a castratto????

[gattoamoremio]

tremende queste vecchiette

[rocketto8]

they are all italian!!! anyway i agree with most of them

[wysiwyg248]

WTF is wrong with the interviewer's voice?

Can you say castrato? LOL

[chrizosthemis]

I think this man is contrtenor, isn't it?

[iubanne]

Leyla era un pò carognetta...tutte quelle frecciatine....

[ciociosan]

fedora! hai laaaaaab yoooooooooooooooo!

[Homoclassicus]

Carla Gavazzi is the funniest of all. Her Italian Mamma gestures, her words and comments about the sopranos and lighthearted outrage make me laugh - positively, I mean. What a pity she passed away last year.

[Cavaradossi1981]

Wow, i am in love with Marcella Pobbe!!! She had the purest and loviest voice ever, thats why she did such a great career.She was alittle bit complicated as a person (I have met her) but who cares? Do you have the wonderful Adriana and Tosca films of her? Brava POBBE!!!!

[maipisimo67]

Marcella Pobbe was a very ridiculuos provincial cheap artist, she was 4th rate

[tristanchord85]

"This from them?"--CLASSIC!

By the way, it seems like the interviewer is against chest voice also, because he speaks in falsetto the entire time.

[couturesixfour]

@tristanchord85 i am screaming in laughter. i love you tristan!!!

[polilaurito]

@tristanchord85 - in filipino we say..."impakta"!! she-devil or harpy...but a very classy one!!

[HansHottest]

This video is at the same time weird and amazing. And that's what's Opera is all about.

[VivaMariaCallas]

Mme. Gavazzi (the last diva presented here) passed away on May 25th... may she rest in peace.

[Jokanaan]

I feel so ignorant, but who is the very first person he interviews in this clip? I recognize everyone else.

[MusicaParola]

The soprano is Marcella Pobbe.

[moreno2394]

Marcella Pobbe was an horrible and very mediocre artist and she was a bitch

[SiEtIn1]

waht is your problem with the world? forget it nobody cares

[Alexandrarafalo]

haha! poorly labeled video friends...obviously when they show examples they are singing in what we now call "chest voice" they can say whatever...i think the term was something else in those days......but it all depends on the definition of the term.

they say no no no....but when you listen.....they sing chest voice...so OBVIOUS!!!

[joanabanyeres]

Sempre quando ascolto queste cantante ho veramente voglia di ridere e di ridere. Tutte cantano con voce di petto. Leyla e la più sincera. E vero che la scuola francese non vuole la risonanza di petto, ma credo che e perché non sanno come utilizzarla. Bisogna ridere con la Barbieri e ubriaca

[alceste66]

grazie Zucker!!!!!!!!!!

grazie a questo spaccato di umanità riderò tutta la vita e riderà tutta la mia stirpe!!!!!! sei un personaggio da cartone animato!!!!! Non entro nel merito delle opinioni delle "Dive", perchè rischierei la galera. LA VOCE DI PETTO ESISTE ECCOME!!!!bisogna saperla usare però!!! e qui mi fermo.

non ho notizie sull'attività extra artistica della Pobbe....

[ginodina]

le gencer e per me una delle piu grande cantante di tutti i tempi ma pero e un po "vipera"

con le amiche a chi vuole "molto bene"

[ercole1962]

La Gencer è stata solo sincera e in questo mondo è difficile esserlo.Ercole1962

[galehout]

Hanno ragione tutte nella misura in cui mettono in maschera tutte le note, sia quelle cosidette "di testa" perché hanno più risonanze in testa, e quelle cosiddette "di petto" perché hanno maggiori risonanze in petto. La voce lirica però non è mai di petto, neanche la più profonda di basso. Si fa confusione fra voce di petto e note di petto: sono due cose diverse!

[tetrazzini]

I want to reincarnate in Leyla Gencer, please

[joanabanyeres]

may be you will

[charmeueueur]

@tetrazzini You take the first reincarnation, I take the next. deal ? :D

[DivaDeb1234]

I like the interview..but not the guy interviewing them. He is very smug.

[drbarbarabaker]

This discussion concerns terminology. Chest voice refers to the mechanism in the voice that creates the note. They are discussing chest resonance. Different thing.

[mm9913]

Great post thanks for your committment to the art.

[ciociosan]

I didn't know that Fedora is a basso profundo!

[senilangakali]

after a few grappas!!!

[Grupner]

ma che voce ha zucker?

[epa300]

I'm convinced this film is all about Zucker doing his best to make fools of history's great singers. A drunken Fedora singing a Italian song and poorly, etc. Throughout this video, you see one thing: Zucker making others looks small so he looks less so. I'm pleased that, even at their most ridiculous, they are still interesting, where Zucker at his best is anything but pathetic.

[joanabanyeres]

I think that Stefan Zuker dos not understand how to sing, the fact that he sings with an horrible voice. All big sopranos use voce di petto when they sing important operas. These Ladies did it too, and Diva GENCERr knows

exactly what is voce di petto, of course

well done without throaty sounds.

It's incorrect to use it in classic operas in oratorios and lieder

[seligster125]

Oh, the irony! Zucker chirping in falsetto about how "indispensabile" chest voice is, and Barbieri and Simionato growling away, refusing to admit they're using it. Wonderful. They're still marvelous singers, though. And Gencer (my favourite) and Carla Gavazzi are stupendous here.

Take a look at the recent interview with Gencer in which she describes hanging onto Amonasro's leg in the Nile scene to get him to sing the music, not play to the audience for applause. She's great.

[epa300]

Found it. For others, it's titled "Leyla Gencer Interview 2007"

[joanabanyeres]

what amazes most, it's the way that famous and fabulous operas singers answer to the question, ( voce di petto.) They all used it , naturally mixed with maschera resonance. I don't understand why some french purists speak so badly about chest resonance. May be it is not elegant to sing too much in melodies , lieders and oratorios.But in opera it is impossible not to use it if you want to be heard. Always with taste

[joanabanyeres]

Look for the video I put under the experience,it' s funny!

[joanabanyeres]

I saw this video and did no make a recording. It's hilarious. Please put more in You_Tube Suker speaks also with Marcella Pobbe and she almost put him out of her home for his indiscretions This man is an idiot and should go to a throat specialist By the way I have him singing in one of my videos, he is hilarious.

[epa300]

I watched him in the video you mentioned. Oh, my, God! That he would allow anyone but the shower listen to him sing says all that needs to be said.

[espacecardin]

Carla Gavazzi is the best of the interview.

Simionato shows her reputation for being a hateful woman.

Gavazzi is a hearty woman and she is the only one who say interesting things.

[joanabanyeres]

May be ,but l prefer the comments of Leyla, Gencer... Gavazzi has been a good Nedda...

[espacecardin]

What a courage to give opinions that Marcella Pobbe...She never existed as a singer and she was a bitch

[joanabanyeres]

ce que peut-être vous ne savez pas c'est que beaucoup d'artistes lyriques ont presque toujours un passé un peu trouble. Ne parlez pas mal de Giuletta qui elle ,a été toujours une dame. Votre terme de hateful womman est très fort...Pour cela sa carrière a été très difficile, ce que Stefan n'aurait pas du faire c'est de demander de parler de sa vie intime a Marcella, un bon soprano. Je regrette de n' être pas de votre avis.

[espacecardin]

Giulietta Simionato es lo mas alejado de ser una gran dama, es una mujer bastante ordinaria y odiosa a mas no poder como se puede ver en la entrevista.

Marcella Pobbe no fue nada como cantante y como persona era una perra.Yo no voy a escribir algo asì si no estuviera seguro en lo que me baso.

[joanabanyeres]

si potrebbe scrivere molte cose sopra molti cantanti. Adesso anche ci sono alcuni che veramente fanno la carriera per molte cose, che e meglio non parlarne. Pero mi piace la Simionato ,e una persona sincere e ha fatto una lunga e stupenda carriera. Pobbe si non e una cantante perché Stefan gli fa una intervista ?

[fleville]

Maestro Gavazzeni diceva Simionato: carogna.

Lei è una donna molto cattiva, lei odia a la grande Cossotto che aveva una voce piu grande en tutto sentito, ke la Simio

[Semiramidha]

What's the song starting 06:41?

[GrandTierBox]

I believe it's the Intermezzo from Manon Lescaut by Puccini. It sounds like it has been reorchestrated for a small ensemble.

[VivaMariaCallas]

No, it's 'Crisantemi'. Puccini wrote it in his student years. Puccini used the theme/atmosphere for Act IV of Manon Lescaut (while Manon dies). The intermezzo has a different melody.

[JuillHope17]

@GrandTierBox that is NOT the intermezzo from manon lescaut. it's something else... i've heard it but i can't think of what it is.

[Rcoppin91]

@GrandTierBox Chrysanthimums by Puccini

[beezoid27]

Loved this! Is there more?

[drdre333]

Woohoo! This clip is BACK... I LOVE this! Gencer is hilarious too. And then of course there's the wacked-out interviewer who doesn't obviously believe in using chest voice himself, especially when speaking! HAHAHA!

[Orfflevel2]

This man's speaking voice is HORRENDOUS. What an odd voice he has!

[agnellodei]

I know!!! sounds like a woman who has taken sterois.

[urgrad03]

Sup with the interviewer? I had a friend who sounded like that until he had nodules removed.

[soundfond]

It couldn't be Gina Cigna even though she was still alive back then. Is it Carla Gavazzi?

[soundfond]

I just found out! It's Carla Gavazzi. Look up Bel Canto Society webpage. The guy's name is Stefan Zucker. I know, he's got some problems in his pharynx I'd say.

[ariodante76]

Wow, I've never heard of Carla Gavazzi, I'll have to look her up. Anyhow, this is a wonderful souvenir of some of the greatest talent of the post-war generation. The Italian contralto is now an extinct species. In a way, Cossotto carried the torch, but her voice was not as secure in the lower register, and she did have that nasty habit of trying to upstage sopranos in duets. Sutherland was right to let the train of her costume drape across Cossotto on that one occasion!

[epa300]

What is this story about the costume? I haven't heard it.

[ariodante76]

My mistake, Sutherland did it to Kabaivanska.

(Taken from Norma Major's biography of Joan Sutherland)

"There was one occasion, when [Sutherland] had been so irritated at Raina Kabaivanska's attempts to upstage her in Beatrice di Tenda that when, as Agnese, she fainted at Beatrice's feet and the hem of her costume trailed across Kabaivanska's face, the temptation to leave it there had been quite irresistable."

[soundfond]

ariodante76, I couldn't agree more with you, especially when one recalls Simionato was then 88 (now 97). IMO, Simionato still possesses the most exquisite timbre among mezzosopranos of all times. As for Barbieri(in memorian) then 78, I was equally impressed with her Quickly and the drunken romanza on dinner. One of the most powerful and edgy voices among all types of singers. However, I couldn't ignore the raw comical aspect of the video, not as impressive but sure amusing.

[ariodante76]

I couldn't identify the woman at the end, singing "Amami, Alfredo."  Who is she, do you know?

[soundfond]

I couldn't either. And her comments are very wise. She sings beautifully too, considering her age. I could be wrong, but I noticed a slight French consonant 'R' in her Italian, mainly in the beginning when she said 'la misuRa..'. GrandTierBox, who's she?

[ariodante76]

I'd also like to know the identity of the interviewer.  I have seen him once on television- how horrible, to be saddled with such a hooty speaking voice.

[epa300]

Stefan Zucker. Please forget his name as hopefully history will.

[ariodante76]

What is most impressive about this video is not the lively discussion of chest voice, but the incredible voices Barbieri and Simionato had, even in their old age (in the case of the former, not the drunken song at the table, but her brief demonstration of Quickly). ROCK SOLID voices, that utterly put to shame the vast majority of emerging "talent" today!

[ChuckNYC71]

You picked up on that too. They broadcasted this on PBS and I was too late to tape it. really wonderful. Now, the interviewers voice I can do without, LOL

[soundfond]

This video is hilarious...lol. Thank you so much for uploading it. Leyla Gencer's remarks are just hysterical, yet quite clever. Then, Barbieri friggin' wasted during dinner is a knock-out...lmao...