Patrice Munsel & Richard Tucker "Love Duet" Madama Butterfly

[opertutto]

This television appearance by Munsel and Tucker brings back many happy memories of early television and singers who graced it. Thank you Oneguin65.

[MissFireMagic]

Tucker is SOOOOO fantastic in so many ways! Thanks for posting!

[halavey]

Tucker did not die from over eating I had dinner with him a couple of times and he was not obese at all but of stocky build, not tall but a big man. He had heart disease from the time he was 48 years old, Bjorling died much younger at age 49 and Tucker had a brother who also died of a heart attack so did Bjorling. Heart trouble back then could not be corrected by an operation called by pass as today Tucker did not smoke, hardly drank but it was in his family as with Bjorling. Warren the same

[rogharm]

i know nothing about opera but patrice munsel and richard tucker are great singers. i heard this selection for the first time in my life. someone might sing it better but i would know or could not judge. i like to sing but i am terrible. both sing 1000% better than i do. tv or stage, i think they are both great singers. and i never heard patrice munsel sing. she in my non-educated opinion kept pace with the great richard tucker who died too young from over eating. he died from a heart attack

[laddnyc]

It amazes me that most people prefer to find fault with things than to take them for what they are...or were. Naturally Munsel would NEVER have sung this role on stage, but it's a TV show for goodness sake! She was attractive and was a name, at the time. I pose the question to any critic out there: haven't you ever wanted to do something that you maybe won't be the best at, but do it anyway to say you've done it. I suppose that anyone who plays golf should not if they can't be Tiger Woods.

[sdorr]

PM is like today's AG + musical skills of all kinds that that the latter does not possess.

[Zva26]

I'm really surprised that Patrice Munsel would undertake such heavy and dramatic music with her very small voice. Butterfly is a role for the likes of Tebaldi, de los Angeles, Price, etc, and Munsel's voice was nowhere as large as theirs. She's really in very deep water here, and of course, she never would have undertaken this role on the stage. She had a serviceable voice in lighter stuff, but not here. Tucker, of course, is on much more solid and reliable ground.

[SiEtIn1]

@Zva26 you mean Victoria MiniVoice de los Ángeles? Im just kidding with the name calling, but VdlA actually was a small voice very lyric, but I hear it was very piercing

[Zva26]

@SiEtIn1 - Munsel was an attractive performer and, given her limited vocal equipment, had a wonderful career.

To compare her to de los Angeles is inappropriate. De los Angeles performed Butterfly on the stage and in her 1950's prime such roles as Elisabeth in "Lohengrin", Manon (the Massenet one), Traviata, Desdemona, Amelia in "Boccanegra", Mimi, the Countess in "Figaro.  Her recital repertoire included Brahms, Schubert, Faure, Debussy, Ravel, and virtually ALL of the classical composers.

[Zva26]

@SiEtIn1 I meant all of the Spanish classical composers. Her voice was beautiful, though admittedly short on the top. She made her debut as Strauss' "Ariadne" in 1944, and I myself heard her in recital in 1963, 1968, 1977, 1983, and in 1993! Her career spanned the whole second half of the century. Truly, she was one of the greatest artists of the Twentieth Century. Patrice Munsel, with all due respect, was nowhere hear D.diA, who in her way was as great as Callas, SchwarZkopf, Tebaldi, etc.

[pearlmuth3]

Tucker as usual very fine and he sang this opera at the met rarely as he really did not care much for it because the tenor sings mostly in the first act and then nothing till the last act and at that not much--- he said he liked to get out and sing, he loved his work. His recording in 1949 with Steber is very fine and again later 1962 with the great soprano Price.

[skeptic49]

Patrice Munsel is screetches, as always...how terrible to hear her sing a dramatic part like this..she should have stuck to "La Perichole"

[OperaSnob]

Wonderful - Tucker is great as always and I've always loved Patrice Munsel. She choose to end her operatic career so early and opera recordings of hers aren't exactly easy to come by, unfortunately.

[beriflor]

p. munsel, you have to put her on the first page, the premier table of the greatest voices of all time, none better

[pearlmuth3]

Tucker always a great tenor and rock solid tehnique

[guy1938]

great

[fuzmiq]

I love patrice munsel

[michaelantonelli1957]

legends