1983 MET 100 GALA: Le nozze di Figaro. Dove sono / Mozart

[lynnharrell]

I was there for this gala, and my heart still jumps up at the memory slip poor Kiri had. Levine and the orchestra jump to catch her miraculously but she knew something was amiss so jumped into another place. We,on youtube, can forget that there is a nervousness and excitement in performance that can mean so much positive energy!

[toddydelahov]

The Best Interpretation!

[angielove1]

5:59- Soprano moment. She bounced back though. Cheers!

[zzzut]

This was such a small mistake, really. In a production of Prince Igor (I was singing in the opera chorus at the time) the baritone forgot his words and for about 8 bars he improvised in mock-Russian. It was so well done that only the few Russian-speaking members of the audience noticed the mistake. They all found it very funny! Hey, nobody's perfect!

[olympicrange]

I reiterate-- why do people have to resort to being "bitchy" as if that built them up in some way. BTW I have met Dame Kiri a number of times and she is a lovely and gracious person. She has also had a distinguished career which more than acquits her from anyone's snide remarks. You may prefer another voice, or quibble with stylistic differences-- but her accomplishments speak for themselves. Now that hat she wore when she sang for the Charles and Diana wedding-- that's another matter.

[olympicrange]

You can like Dame Kiri or not vocally and stylistically-- but she is a lovely person and fine artist. Why do people have to resort to the "bitchy" in their alleged first hand knowledge of singers. Amusing and irritating....

BTW Kiri the Countless was stunning--

[barmanjoe]

@olympicrange You mean the countess? Countless lol

[avalokiteshivara]

Ela ñ errou quem errou foi a orquestra,

sacanagem esta...

[DavidoffGustav]

I met Kiri in Chicago after the St. Matthew Passion.. she was humble and gracious .. just like I said hi to a good friends mom that just sang..

[DavidoffGustav]

I've met her she is very gracious..

[DavidoffGustav]

Mistakes happen, that's part of live performance... shows what a great orchestra it is, what a great artist she is, and what a blessing it is that we were privileged to witness this!

[kleinkeske]

Ooops....don't worry Kiri, just keep on singing so wonderfully, nobody minds!..xxx

[renzo0510]

Oh damn! Poor Kiri...

I agree with lareto, it happens when you do something too many times!

Still, she was great and the recovery was excellent

[Iareto]

Beautiful. As for the mistake, it happens to the best of them and it's actually easier to make a mistake with something you sing a lot. She's so wonderful anyway. I'd still take this over pretty much every other Countess.

[chucknyc123]

A great recovery, imho. Her Italian diction is flawless, and the voice is from heaven. She is also regally beautiful and probably the sexiest woman in opera at that time. Mozart would certainly approve.

[RVP57]

Oh Bravo Kiri my ass. She managed to screw up a standard aria of no great difficulty on one of the greatest occasions in musical history. She may be sweet and giving and nice and all that, but she's also dumber than a glass of ice water.

[Iareto]

Glad to hear you've never made a mistake.  She's human.

[RVP57]

Human she may be. Mistake-proof I am not. I stand by my comment, no matter how unpopular it may be, The facts stand.

[phantomfn8]

@RVP57 That is why she gets paid to sing opera every day while you sit on YouTube, not getting paid to sing opera daily, and insult other artists who are richer, probably more talented, and more famous than yourself.

[jlee800]

When I saw this as a kid I always wondered who that person at 5:51 was. It's the prompter!

[NaniJoplin]

She is perfect anyways...no doubt about that...nobody is perfect, and even the greatest artists make mistakes...Bravo Kiri!!!!

[OperaLover84]

I love that she messes up -- it's amazing to see great artists (and great conductors) save themselves on stage when they goof ;)

[ejasiewicz]

Rarely heard another performance of this aria sung as beautifully, even in tatters. I remember the broadcast, sensing the blind panic that ensued when she took the wrong turn, and still loved it. But, just think how magical her performance would have been had the glitch not happened! I'm convinced this is typical: artists "scare" themseselves sometimes when things start coming together TOO well...

[samschultz]

Watch her hands when she messes up. They get so tense! Then she stares straight into the camera. This is hilarious!

[GoKaJ101a]

As entertaining as watching someone have a root canal job done without anasthetic.

And it's done by the nastiest most vicious old slag of them all; and God knows there are a lot of nasty vicious old slags in the opera community -- just have a look around YouTube.

But this lowlife and her vendettas is in a class of her own: scum.

[operastud82]

Bite you tongue. You have absolutely NO idea what you are talking about. According to who (other than you) is Dame Kiri vicious and mean? She happens to be an extremely lovely and giving individual. She is a noble and wonderful lady and artist who has never been anything but sweet and nice to her colleagues, conductors, and young singers alike. Do some research first before you start slandering people in comments.

[shivastotravali]

Yeah, I don't know the exact time signature for this aria, but she drops at least two whole measures ("mi portasse...una speranza"). That's why they usually have prompters. :-) But good for them for getting back on track and pulling it off in the end. And Te Kanawa can be faulted for a lot of little minor things, but not for having a glorious voice.

[shivastotravali]

Yeah, I don't know what the time signature is for this aria, but she drops at least two whole measures ("mi portasse...una speranza"). But good for them for getting back on track and pulling it off in the end.

[garconfrancais01]

see i didnt even notice it really.

[LizN90]

Love the look on Levine's face! It was Dame Kiri who made the mistake. The mark of a true professional--she went on and got right back to finish it up just fine! People always talk badly about her for forgetting words, etc., but I am sure it happens more often than we know in opera! Besides, her voice more than makes up for the error!

[garconfrancais01]

its actually very true. opera singers get lost, miss a note, and forget words all the time, but most of the times we dont notice it or tell.

[vtboylyric]

It's amazing how when Kiri or Levin gets "lost", at 5'51" thru 6'01",they find their way back to Mozart! Brava! Bravo!

[belcantokai]

She's so charming!

[GoKaJ101a]

So charming! Pond scum charming. Treated people like dirt all her life and attempted to destroy the career of anyone who got any limelight of their own. Did real damage to some local opera singers, I believe.