Leonard Warren sings "Gran Dio ! - Oh de verd'anni miei"

[mazzone1]

dull and what's that top note all about? bet Callas would have a thing to say about that.

[Fasolt100]

Wunderbar!

[Scarpia90]

@julesrod totally agree my friend! I totally agree!

[DonPaolissimo]

MacN was a good second, but Warren was the KING & has not been approached as Rigoletto 50 years after his death!

[DonPaolissimo]

MacN was a good second, but Warren was the KING & has not been approached as Rigoletts 50 years after his death!

[redgrapeskins]

@izar1234 Exactly !!! There are those who just don;t want to admit that someone is peerless- Whether in sports, acting, dancing, speaking, singing etc-- They will argue for the sake of argument - Warren was a giant The students and professionals alike from the time [and even today] would agree with you --He is the standard -Warren I'm sure was aware of this!

[kgarmaker123]

He is unbelievable. His voice is dark, with a buzz... freedom to do what he wanted dynamically, so he is so expressive, ... a very musical man. He is the King among baritones.

[sgmrmp]

Warren's voice with its perfect rich baritone color is a unique natural phenomenon, before you even consider technique. One of my favorite voices. It's unfair to compare him to other baritones except in terms of execution and interpretation.

[ShawDAMAN]

I think Macneil is unsurpassed on this particular aria, but Warren is fantastic as well. primobaritono, could you tell me where you got this recording? I'd like a copy!

[redgrapeskins]

@ShawDAMAN Macneil was the king of the wobble !! There is a vocal vibration which falls within the acceptability of any voice where vibrato is concerned - To fast a tremolo- too slow a wobble-- Macneil faiiled -His was too slow-These are the scientific facts that lab tests [and one's ears] will show -Yes he had range and power --But at the cost of a perfectly produced voice. Even Milnes, who sang flat more often than not had his moments!! Just listen to Warren Tibbett and Merrill

[ShawDAMAN]

@redgrapeskins I know the problem of which you speak regarding macneil but early in his career he was fine. you may have heard them already, I think his prime performances of this were superb... one is posted on youtube by mrcafiero and it will knock your socks off. I don't doubt that Warren had a more healthy technique though as well as the others you mention.

[redgrapeskins]

@ShawDAMAN I am sometimes too hard on Cornell --he had a thrilling top and power to spare --- I listened to him quite often during the Saturday boadcasts- He was a staple in his roles as Warren was - He stayed on pitch and always gave 110% as Warren did - McNeil was naturally dramatic in his approach and this stirred his admirers - To me his voice sounded older earlier than it should have [ unlike Pavarotti]-I will listen to those early McNeil performances

[stevevandien]

@redgrapeskins Actually, I think MacNeil's wobble problems have been exaggerated. Yep, he had it from time to time, no doubt about it. But go through his YouTube vids and you won't hear it as omnipresent, even in some performances from the 1970s and early 80s (and he was born in 1922). We should also note that NO singer, even the great ones, has ever been PERFECT that we know of. Each has had some faults, which must be granted when we assess them.

[erne3BT]

Listen to Cappuccilli sing this (also on YouTube). He has much lighter a voice. But they sang the same repertoire..!

[flaze3]

Absolutely fantastic. Very impressive :)

[flaze3]

Apparently he's pretty quiet.

[spock445]

um dos maiores baritonos de sempre

[operadoc]

Horostovsky is a very good baritone and one of the best we have right now. Warren is a legend- with one of the greatest operatic voices of all times. Horostovsky is just not in that class- but nobody right now is. I still do enjoy hearing him- but I am grateful we have these recordings of Warren since I was not around when he was singing

[operafan85]

Hvorostovsky is a great baritone!

[embenadorfinearts]

Thank you for your pertinent comments ! The singer mentioned in other comments has a small voice which project well (mostly in records). Warren has not only a great voice (as good as Hans Hotter in a complete different repertoire) but has musicality. He knows what personage he needs to be as well as understanding each word he sings.Thank you once again for your comments.

[mezereum]

El Maestro Warren tuvo la muerte que todo cantante de opera hubiese querido ... En el escenario , en una Funcion de La fuerza del destino de verdi , paradogicamente despues de haber cantado el Aria Morir Tremenda Cosa ... Urna fatal .

Saludos

[canafinwe]

Beautiful, strong, noble, dramatic and lyric. A real MAN voice.

[stevevandien]

Nobody around like Warren today. The ultimate Verdi baritone --

[lpvcrcd]

Ditto!Are there any Verdi baritones today?

[stevevandien]

I sure can't think of any:)!

[HeldenB]

Listen to Spaniard Carlos Alvarez ....superb.

[janejones11]

What a great Verdi Baritone! The Warren sound always makes me think of the finest Italian velvet and those high notes were mind blowing !

[nickbaritone]

This is from a live Met performance with Mitropoulos conducting. It's available on CD. I absolutely love Warren in this role. Perfect in his voice.

[Crampton1983]

Bravo! en què año fue este Ernani??? grazie.