Dame Joan Sutherland Talks about Maria Callas' Voice

[coolmamac]

@weightfeather1 She was the only soprano who could drown out Pavarotti.

[calaftheeast]

I guess to be a great soprano, you have to have cheekbones as high as Mount Everest - Callas, Sutherland, Caballe, Nilsson...

It seems like a pattern.

[assindiastignani]

@cuoredeinidi The men you mention above are/were all ardent Callas fans, and they took as gospel anything and everything Callas said (most of it bad) about anybody who she felt treated her unjustly. Bing and Adler were gentlemen who did not believe in airing dirty laundary in public. Besides, they both greatly admired Callas and wanted her back in future seasons. Read the Cederna book if you can get ahold of it.

[assindiastignani]

@cuoredeinidi Bing and Adler were justified.Callas cancelled an engagement in San Francisco beause of "laryngitis" but when Adler called Milan, he discovered she was singing Medea at Scala in the same time period. Bing was six weeks before rehearsals of a new Macbeth production (a relatively unknown opera at the time, very hard to find last-minute replacements for the main roles) Callas after a year still hadn't signed her contract, nor would she answer his telegrams. Ghiringhelli was personal.

[Ariadne7710]

@cuoredeinidi ...she just wanted a normal life like we all do. A marriage and family. But whatever she did was exaggerated out of all proportion. She didn't cancel any more than anybody else. We all get colds, flu,throat infections etc. When she cancelled it was headline news. Her vocal defects were blazoned in every publication. Others go on singing for 10 years or more with horrible wobbles but nobody minds. When I was in NYC last Susan Graham cancelled. It didn't make front page news!!!

[Ariadne7710]

@cuoredeinidi I don't know of any others who could change the timbre of their voices. Callas did it with all her performances. She herself said in interviews that for every role she studied the character she was going to sing to find the "right voice" for it. Of course whenever she sang with Gobbi they were amazing together. I agree, her relationship with Onassis was a disaster. He was a complete peasant. Very uncultured, uncouth and ignorant. but I can sympathise with her.......

[Ariadne7710]

@cuoredeinidi I heard her Lord Harewood interviews (he was a good friend of hers by the way - he was very knowledgeable on opera and on the board of the Royal Opera House for many years) and also a very old interview with Bernard Levin which was extremely serious and very good. He was a Times columnist and Wagner specialist. She did the change of voice timbre deliberately because she believed that the voice had to fit the character which I happen to believe is the correct way to sing a role

[Ariadne7710]

Just for academic information to anyone who might be interested, Beethoven rated "Cherubini" very highly as an operatic composer and "Medea" his great masterpiece and the most accomplished opera composed. And so did Brahms.

[Ariadne7710]

@cuoredeinidi She attended the same performance as me and did some marvellous sketches immediately after the performance which capture the core of the whole thing very skilfully.The thing with Callas was that she changed the timbre of her voice to fit into the role. Medea needed a scary voice. In Traviata in act 1 she was a vivacious good time girl. By act 3 you could hear in her voice that she was dying. That is why audiences found her so riveting.  And of course her technique was flawless.

[Ariadne7710]

@cuoredeinidi From her first entrance she was electrifying, mesmerising. Standing at the far end of the stage wrapped in her cloak with only her eyes showing for quite a few minutes before she speaks. Then when Creon asks who is the woman who wants to enter she calls out in an ominous voice "Io Medea" sending shivers down your spine. The burning robes scene is pretty terrifying but the worse is the scene when she kills her childen. it is gruesome. Look up CharlotteinWeimar's channel.....

[Ariadne7710]

@cuoredeinidi I saw her London Medea in 1959. The music in Medea is somewhat different to the usual type of early 19th century music. In certain passages it employs the style called "canto parlato"  which is an almost spoken form of singing. And as quite a lot of the dialogue is in the shape of arguments it might be the reason the Dallas audience felt it was dark and foreboding. Medea is a witch. She is not a sweet girl. Callas coloured her voice to be credible in this role. She was scary..

[assindiastignani]

@cuoredeinidi P.S. If it interests to read the facts, check out Alfonsi Signorini: "Troppo fiero, troppo fragile" and Camilla Cederna: "Maria Callas." It's fascinating. I loved Callas, but she got completely out of control in the late 50's, and as for Onassis - she chose to go into and stay in this relationship, knowing full well how self destructive it was. But who of us can judge? That was a great love...from both sides.

[assindiastignani]

@cuoredeinidi Adler and Bing let Callas go, because she didn't honor contracts, and Ghiringhelli was angered over her disloyalty to Scala, blaming them publicly for the "misundestanding" (we'll give Callas the benifit of the doubt and call it that) over the "additional" SONNAMBULA performance in Edinburg.This is all amply documented in the Italian, French and English press of the time.Within 6 months however both Ghiringhelli and Bing were in negotiations with Callas for future seasons.

[Sadiesexy]

I am very happy that Joan recognized the talent of her peers.

[musikenergy]

@cuoredeinidi I agree.

[Ariadne7710]

I did not see Callas when she was fat but I saw her several times when she slimmed down in Bolena, Norma, Traviata and Medea. Simionato and Scotto who sang a lot with her both before and after the weight loss said in several interviews that the only difference they noticed was in the lung support. I believe that if the exercise techniques available now were known then and she had a personal trainer to help her with chest and lung exercises her voice might have lasted a lot longer.

[NEBESHIKU]

@Ariadne7710 you are so right on that!

[Ariadne7710]

@NEBESHIKU I believe so. But after the weight loss she never sang again most of the heavy roles that she sang before. Macbeth Turandot Vespri Isolde or Kundry. She stuck mostly to the belcanto roles which don't need such a big voice, or much stamina. Norma and Medea were probably the exceptions that she continued with. She had no difficulty with Traviata, Lucia, Bolena, Puritani, Sonnambula etc .They were not hard for her to sing. But in both Norma and Medea she was incredible believe me.

[thekaliko]

@Ariadne7710 Please tell me what modern chest and lung exercise techniques you're talking about so I can research them.

[Ariadne7710]

@thekaliko I am sorry I don't know what specific exercises are the correct ones to do. I am not an exercise instructor. I do know though that a number of younger generation singers who are naturally slim do a lot of gym work to strengthen their lung and chest capacity and power. You will need to talk to someone who is an exercise instructor and also to your own voice teacher to decide what is best for you.

[AceofGallifrey]

Maria Callas was a marvel, it's true, but I've always felt that her voice was a bit acidic in certain parts of the range. Then again, many people have said the same of Sutherland, so I suppose it's a matter of personal taste.

[poupounakis]

all opera stars allways talk about great DIVINA MARIA CALLAS.leyla gencer, natali dessay and many aothers this is the point...and DAME SUTHERLAND was great singer but Callas was and is the most important person in all opera time. thats the true.my opinion..

[AOG93]

I think that if she had los her weight gradually, and not too much, and taken time to watch her technique and adjust she would've had less trouble. But life is not mathematical. Everything went into play with the vocal deterioration: her lifestyle, stress, weight-loss, illness, anxiety, repertoire, age, etc, etc. Like she herself said, and so many artists [and we ourselves can] attest, she has no problem with technique [I mean, she could sing Amina and Isolde for God's sake!]

[sillyboydeux]

Well, she has had an amazing life, our Madame Joan S. Her Puritani in '76 was so beautiful that it left the audience nearly disabled. People just stayed in their seats at the last curtain call, as no one wanted it to end. Her voice came from some heavenly chamber that no one had ever heard before: light as a feather, penetrating, perfectly placed in every way with a bewitching sense of melody that appeared seamless. I don't remember her taking a breath during "Qui la voce"!

[meltzerboy]

@sillyboydeux I recall Sutherland's performance of Elvira at the Met in the mid-70s. It was incredible and received tremendous critical acclaim.

[papo8545]

Comparisons are odious. But by God, how we do enjoy being odious!

[Zva26]

I think JS probably right. Prior to 1953 Callas' voice had a Godzilla-like power and volume that was overwhelming. In 1954, as Callas slimmed, so did her voice. The sheer Amazonian power was gone, but she still continued to sing the same way she always had. Of course there were great performances still to come (Medea, Anna Bolena, Ballo, Traviata, Sonnambula) through 1958, By the time she sang Pirata at Carnegie Hall in 1958, the voice was already in trouble. The recordings prove it.

[meltzerboy]

@Zva26 I remember Sutherland (and Horne) once stated that Anna Moffo lost her voice due to her weight loss. Interesting that S & H have this idea about singing correlated with weight; perhaps there is some truth to it, particular for spintos and dramatics.

[meltzerboy]

@meltzerboy That should be "particularly."

[1146beaver]

@meltzerboy It is all about support and support is all about lung capacity!

[meltzerboy]

@Zva26 And, remember, Nilsson said that to sing Wagner, one had to be built like a football player.

[meistersinger92]

@meltzerboy i can attest to this.

[galehout]

Weight loss not damage the voice quality: it's impossible. But the evolution of the voice of Callas went hand in hand with the evolution of his person, for better or for worse. After the weight loss she was happier, and his voice was more precise and brilliant, but also weaker, more tired then, finally, and the support mechanism did not work any more. Even when she was fat a few technical things were not safe: but the breath support was perfect, due to a young and healthy physical

[Shahrdad]

@galehout As a doctor, I have to agree but only to a point. Weight loss does not affect the voice box or resonators. However, after a deep breath, the air in a far person's lungs tried to escape out with a much higher pressure than a thin person. This remains constant even under anesthesia.  When they lose weight, the chest wall thins out and its elasticity increases and its resistance decreases, resulting in a lower expiratory pressure.

[Shahrdad]

@galehout One a fat singer loses weight, in order to keep the same expiratory pressure (also called support), they must utilize the accessory muscles such as intercostals and abdominals and obliques. This has to be done systematically until it becomes a habit and prevent "stacking" of breaths. Some of the weight is also lost as muscle mass, which could make this more difficult. With patience and training, a great fat singer can become a great thin singer, but only with serious retraining.

[LazarNewDeal]

Weight loss was THE problem?

What about 1957 Anna Bolena? it is surely 'her prime'

Just take a look on the chronology of her perfomances...

Since 1948 to 1958 was Turandot, NAbuco, Norma, Medea, Lucia, Back to Medea, Sonnambula, Trovatore, Chenier, back to Lucia, Vestale, Medea, back to Sonambula... Repeatdelly and with no more than 20 days of rest.

A concert program in 1954 (London): In questa Reggia, Sola perduta abbandonata, La mamma morta, Ombra Leggera and Lakme's Bell song (among others)

[Cadenza9]

How can coca-cola be qualified to assess the quality of champagne?

[65attila]

@Cadenza9

Can't you think of anything original or on point? Callas called herself champagne and Tebaldi cola. Sutherland's long and brillinat ought to be a model to younger singers on how to care for the voice. Callas had great intensity and PR smarts to continue singing after her voice was horrid. Joan managed on vocal skills only and was a great diva.

[Shahrdad]

@65attila Actually, that is one of those Callas myths that has become fact thanks to the Time Magazine article in 1956. People who were present at the interview said that Callas only said that comparing her with Tebaldi was like comparing Chapagne and Cognac, after which a bystander jumped in and said, No, with Coca Cola. Of course attributing this to Callas was much more "exciting" in the article. Of course, the two were so different that any comparison was ridiculous.

[raigekimaru]

@Shahrdad

I disagree. I think Callas and Tebaldi are similar enough for honest comparison (not bashing, but fair comparison). they were both large dark soprano voices with similar comfortable tessitura however, Callas and Sutherland would be far too different to compare.

[MadonnaImperia]

@raigekimaru I'm not sure I agree with you. Callas and Tebaldi both had dark sounds and also shared some roles (Tosca, Violetta, Aida for instance), but their vocal methods were very different. Tebaldi was a continuation of the current Italian verismo spinto soprano tradition (and a very brilliant continuation at that). Callas produced her voice in a very different way due to her training with the former coloratura soprano Elvira de Hidalgo... (to be continued)

[MadonnaImperia]

@raigekimaru ... This gave her other strengths (for instance a better legato) and other weaknesses (for instance a more prnounced register break) than Tebaldi. Both Sutherland and Callas called themselves dramatic coloratura sopranos and also shared several roles (Violetta, Norma, Lucia, Amina, Elvira for instance). I think that the big difference between them was their "attitude" to opera, Sutherland focusing mainly on the technical aspects of singing and after that, on the interpretation...

[MadonnaImperia]

@raigekimaru ... whereas Callas would use the technique as a way of expressing the character's emotion or even sacrifice technical purity for the sake of expression. Who's right or wrong is a matter of taste, personally I love both Tebaldi, Callas and Sutherland. As for comparing Coca Cola to champagne, that is ridiculous, since a soft drink is used for one purpose and a sparkling wine for another.

[raigekimaru]

@MadonnaImperia

it also has to do with the style. in bel canto, perfect technique and beauty of sound are everything. in verismo, interpretation is often more important than technique. this is partially do to the target audience. common people don't care about technique (just look at today's pop music), and verismo was aimed at common, everyday hardships. as I'm a bit of a snob, I tend to have a slight preference to bel canto, baroque and Verdi =)

[MadonnaImperia]

@raigekimaru Actually I think that perfect technique and beauty of sound ISN'T everything in bel canto. It the starting point - it's the basis for a nuanced interpretation, because the greater your technical assurance is, the greater will your freedom be as an interpreter to choose between different means of expressing an emotion. Unfortunately though, some singers do seem to think that a perfect technique is enough, but the great singers of the bel canto period such as Pasta and Malibran...

[MadonnaImperia]

@raigekimaru ...went beyond that if we are to believe the contemporary reviews, and these were the singers whom Bellini and Donizetti adored and wanted to create the roles they wrote.

[AOG93]

@MadonnaImperia couldn't agree more!

[Shahrdad]

@raigekimaru Callas, in her pre-53 prime, had a much larger voice than Tebaldi, who considered herself a lyric soprano. Tebaldi's range was also much less, and she could not go above a high C, whereas Callas could easily reach a high E natural. Also, Tebaldi's voice had very little agility, and she could not perform fioretura and trills well, whereas that was second nature to Callas. In the proper repertoire, Tebaldi was wonderful, but she and Callas were two completely different singers.

[lastupendaboy]

I think we have to trust that she is right,since she heard callas before and after the weight loss.Recordings are impossible to trust for scope of voice,overtones,projection in space....I think JS didn't mean anything by the fat comment...simply stuck with the word after using it ti describe her voice,a GOOD thing,a fat sound.She would call herself fat in a flash,surely!

[operbathosa]

I totally disagree with JS et al. about the voice of Maria Callas. Maria Callas changed the pronouncement and "sound" of her voice. Ask yourself: Does one _quote"try to recreate the fatness of sound" of their voice when they know they no longer have the body frame to do so? That's a ridiculous statement and quoted hypothesis. A serious error of judgement by JS.

[moghedien13]

if i had a colossal dark expressive instrument that callas had and my weight loss reduced it, i would be tryin my ass off to regain it.

[ChrisStockslager]

You would think so. I wonder why she didn't try to? Sutherland gained and lost weight throughout her career, but I guess it wasn't enouigh to matter. I wonder how different Caballe would sound if she lost all that weight?

[Hako2004]

There is definitely a connection between physique and "sound". It is no accident that most great voices reside in large, and frequently, over-weight people.  I think Dame Joan's word choice is a little confusing, but she is correct, Callas' voice changed when she lost all the weight. I don't think she had the physique or stamina to support that huge voice afterwards. Smaller voices don't require big bodies, but I remember Pavarotti saying " Important voices need important bodies".

[operbathosa]

Hako, You are correct that JS choice of words and phrasing of her statement is incorrect. But MC continued to provide the full roundness of sound in every character she portrayed both on and off the stage after 53'. You have to isolate the variable here and and ask ourselves if none of us ever saw MC in the physical sense, would we be able to judge and say that there was a significant difference in her voice? It's because we have been conditioned to see a fat Maria and then a slim Maria. No?

[operbathosa]

I strongly believe and so do others that Serafin put an incredible strain on Maria Callas's vocal chords to perform in multiple roles at the same time and further demands. Maria Callas picked up on this and demanded that if other Soprano's could sing in all of these roles in that order then they can be compared with the "Callas". And Maria Callas was right on the mark. As Maria Callas stated "I know my job very well"!

[Richiesutherland]

As a singer myself, I would respectfully and gently disagree with operbathosa. We, as singers, have an image, right or wrong, of what our sound is. When I lost 25 pounds too quickly, I suddenly found my body could not support the type of tone I had recently produced So, I believe, this was true with Callas. Callas did much very beautiful singing after she became thin, but it rarely seems (on pirates) to be of the prodigaiity of her famous Vespri, Nabucco, Macbeth performances.

[leoperarm]

nice interview!

[LohengrinT]

Well Lucia is a role that can be sung by tin pot coloraturas without too much harm done except that the House will be half empty and no one will remember the performance afterwords.

The rest of the bel canto roles when they are sung by tin pot coloraturas the result is a disaster.

Still, Damrau will be singing Bolena as I heard (I would throw airplane and premiere tickets out of the window even if they were given to me for free)

[LohengrinT]

I suppose you know this asdfopera, but in the dress rehearsal of the 1959 Covent Garden Lucia, in the audience there was Maria Callas and Elisabeth Schwarzkopf. Elisabeth describes: and there Callas sat in silence hearing the only singer who could sing Lucia as well as she did. Callas later said: I will never sing Lucia again in England. You have your Lucia now (1959 is the year when Callas lost the E6flat forever)

[Hako2004]

Yes, and I remember the story of Callas at a rehearsal of Sutherland's debut Lucia at Covent Garden. She listened, and peered, trying to make out the figures on stage. She was silent and eventually said "this isn't good". When asked "you mean you don't like it?" she replied "no, it is too good". I believe there is a picture of Callas visiting Sutherland backstage afterwards. Sutherland was a bit flustered at first. They were both giants of the stage, and with truly legendary careers.

[LohengrinT]

Well I have heard worse vocal purists saying that Callas' prime ended in 1953! But still I like the fact that Sutherland did not exclude the incredible year 1955 or 1954!! (the Karajan Scala Lucia!!!) from the Callas prime. Still, and that is the reason I ever posted in youtube, no-one understands the vocal phenomenon Callas was, if he doesnt study the Early Live Callas recordings.

[caleche78]

@LohengrinT I heard to say the '55 Berlin Lucìa was something extraordinary but when I got the CDs I was very dissapointed. Callas voice is very unsteady and very little too. She was only 31 in Berlin Lucìa, she lasted nothing!

Sutherland debuted Lucìa in 1958/59 season and she sang it to the stars and with a big voice until 1989/90 !!!

More than the half of things told about Callas greatness are lies

[soundslikeblue]

@caleche78 I'm a huge Sutherland's fan, but you aren't being fair to Callas. In the 80's Sutherland already sung most of the hardest arias in Lower keys than what she sung in 60's or 70's ... But I don't criticise her for it. Voice ages, its a natural thing. I just can't agree when you compare Sutherland's 59 Lucias with the 80's ones (there is a huge distance in terms of vocal quality in my opinion, inspite of Sutherland's perfect control). (to be continued)

[soundslikeblue]

@caleche78 Callas' greatness isn't a Lie, cause I think we must judge an artist looking at his best works (like we do with Painters or Architects, etc). And one of the problems about Callas, is that she had much more fame when her voice was actually getting less heavy than when she was at her Prime.

So, most of her best renditions are recorded with bad sound quality and aren't as well known as the later recordings. Callas gave a new life to many roles, as Sutherland did. Each one in her own way!

[christiaandhooghe]

Oh please post MOOORE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!