J. Vickers & C. Macneil "Si per ciel marmoreo" Otello

[Maripudelmonaco]

Aquí, en este duo, se estan ahogando los dos, no puedenn con él, lo que no quiere decir , que VICKERS no fuera un grandísimo OTELLO, pero en esta representación hubo de todo, frente a momentos sublimes, otros dejaban que desear, no por parte de RENATA SCOTTO, por supuesto, que estuvo inmejorable, de las mejores  DESDEMONAS, que se pueden escuchar.

[raycanto76]

I love Vickers because He has this "Technique be damned..." mentality in his portrayls...It all about the moment..the emotion..... The greatest acting dramatic tenor ever!!!

[rossmcl177]

The singing and orchestration are both superb. The acting and costumes leave a little to be desired. However, with opera I'd rather have the right sounds and questionable visuals (These days you often get the other way round!).

[stevevandien]

@rossmcl177 AMEN!

[erial80]

Temo ser la voz discordante, pero...MacNeil canta todo de forte a fortissimo: inclusive en "Era la notte". que exige sutileza. Cuando canta "Desdemona soave" lo hace en forte... Incluso su actuación es matonesca, no se ve el hombre que se ve "forzado" a revelar una verdad ingrata a su jefe y amigo,,,

Otelo y Yago exigen talento dramático y vocal; si no, se puede caer en una parodia de 'I Pagliacci'-

Erial80

[55werther]

¡¡¡Magnificos!!!, tal ves, no sera la epoca en que mejor estaban; pero de todas

formas se muestran soberbios y con una calidad artistica y vocal, que verdade-

ramente, dan una catedra a muchos. Tienen altisima Gran Altura De Dos Gran-

des Artistas. Verdaderamente Alto Nivel De Dos Grandes.

[ReichssenderBerlin]

Is Vickers singing in Hungarian?

[Ettoredipugnar]

@ReichssenderBerlin in Italiano lol

[Pywacket2]

WOW!

[Sebastian740]

Vickers was OTELLO in his day!! There was NONE better.

[Sebastian740]

Vickers was OTELLO in his day!!

[iriisblue]

Absolutely first rate. There are no two singers before the public today who could generate this level of vocal power and virility.

[operasanger]

Vocally, Jon Vickers IS Otello! Perfection!!!

[Martinowor]

One of the greatest performances that I might have been alive to witness.... I didn't, but I DID hear both of them live, and I treasure this clip...

[tenorismo]

This production is a work of art not just the singing but the acting as well. The rich stageing etc

[65attila]

Well from the recordings he left in German 1929 of Di Mio Potevi and Nium Di Tema -- Lauritz Melchior would be my first choice as Otello. Vickers/DelMonaco/Domingo/Merl­i/Vinay were also towering. This performance by J. Vickers & C. Macneil is magnificent.

This perfoamnce

[assindiastignani]

Excuse me, but did any of you ever actually hear any of these people sing these roles LIVE?? Because I did, and I am hear to tell you: no Otello of the last 60 years ever sang more mezza voce or piano (if you will) than dal Monaco. Noone, and I heard them all!

[phatphace]

Two of the darkest, most helden operatic voices in recording history. With that, two truly great interpreters of the art as well. I really enjoy this rendition, despite the fact Vickers left Macneil hanging for the final hug in pledge...

[tenorismo]

Your head 's flat

[leadoffeohippus]

Macneil is a bit flat but his timbre is still there.

[Pywacket2]

MacNeil is the consummate Iago, malevolence personified (though he's having pitch problems). Vickers, as always, hams it up magnificently without sacrificing vocal power or technique. What a treasure this is. Bravo Verdi. Bravo Boito.

[rexeterna]

mac the end of era la notte is supposed to me mezzavoce, come on.

[rexeterna]

haha vickers has a 'fro!!

[jozz2]

ma io credea Otello nero...?

jaja. belle voci!

[lopezverdi]

Extraño, pero excitante!

[odontotazio]

Vickers ha una voce fredda, con pochi armonici quasi brutta, eppure, non so perchè. a me piace moltissimo. Se Del Monaco è l'unico, solo, insuperato Otello della storia, Vickers nel "Dio mi potevi" è ancora più grande. Ottimo Macneil, ce ne fossero di Otello e Jago così oggi....

[jmccracken1963]

If Anthony Bliss had shown a shred of loyalty to a singer who had stepped into the breach when Jon Vickers withdrew from TANNHAUSER the previous season for "religious reasons" (when he really couldn't sing the role), this telecast would have been either TANNHAUSER or OTELLO starring James McCracken! THEN we would have video documentation of McCracken in his "signature role" (not just in concert form). What a pity!!!

[Martinowor]

@jmccracken1963 but do we have any recorded documentation of McCracken in the role? I'd love to hear it

[jmccracken1963]

@Martinowor The only VIDEO documentation of McCracken, in costume and on stage, singing OTELLO is from a telecast of Act IV only from Covent Garden in 1981, with Kiri Te Kanawa as Desdemona, and with Sir Colin Davis conducting. This IS posted on YouTube in 4 or 5 parts - WELL worth the view!) Otherwise, there are the Met broadcasts from 1963 (with Solti), 1964 (with Santi), and 1967 (with Mehta), and a 1962 Rome perf. with Serafin, as well as an EMI/Angel studio recording with Barbirolli.

[jmccracken1963]

@Martinowor Unfortunately, as far as I know, the last of the four Met broadcasts of OTELLO in which McCracken sings the title role is unavailable, even through "improper channels." This was the 4/8/1972 broadcast during the premiere Met season for this Zeffirelli production (he staged and designed the sets; Peter J. Hall designed the costumes), conducted by Karl Bohm, and with Teresa Zylis-Gara, Sherrill Milnes, Shirley Love, Enrico di Giuseppe, and Paul Plishka in the cast.

[pearlmuth3]

Bjorling could record it but the role was wrong for his lyric voice it needs a very big powerful voice, Del Monaco, Martinelli, Vinay, Vickers, many spinto's have sung it like Domingo but Del Monaco and other dramatics did it well but Bjorling had the greatest recording ever of Calaf in Turandot and yet he never sang it on stage.

[deepfugue]

They are great! Not sure how one could sing that better than Vickers?

[MrNorm1949]

I must agree. Gobbi counters with a superb Iago on the RCAVictor Living Stereo release.

[MrNorm1949]

I agree Vickers is the sll-time best Otello. He sings the role opposite Tito Gobbi and Leonie Rysanek on the RCA Victor Living Stereo release.

[quis178]

Vickers' voice resonates from his head.

[CONTESTAR]

I have always liked Vickers' highly personal timbre even with his instability at the high sometimes.

His histrionics are rather, hmm, bewildering... but he believes so much in it that I can't help but go for him.

[grandeopera]

The "Big Mac" is a compelling Iago!

[Sadiesexy]

Are Jon Vickers still alive?

[Onegin65]

Yes, he is 81 years old

[Sadiesexy]

Wow, and can one write to him?

[paintballKid545]

@Sadiesexy you mean is

[dontbeatool]

WOW! That was the best rendition of the tenor part of that duet I've ever heard. Woah.

[figaro92]

vickers mediocre, macneil un po' meglio. Pessima la concertazione...

[johnhoie]

Vickers never had a great voice, but he wrung every last ounce out of it. He was great in dramatic roles, including a fabulous Otello.

What's with the criticism of MacNeil? I thought his voice sounded strong, full and on key here. Besides, Verdi wanted a singing actor for Iago. He said he would trade a good voice for good acting in the role.

[hedgechair]

Vickers not a great voice? This does seem a little like "damning with faint praise". I suggest a very great voice, always liable to technical difficulties, but capable of great subtelty, and absolutely huge. It could cut steel from six feet! All our opinions deoend entirely on how we hear things, of course.

[puppetoz]

What a ridiculous thing to say- Vickers is still today still considered one of the great tenors of the century.

[stevevandien]

Do you believe ANY Otellos had great voices? If so, please list them. I very much admire Vickers in this role. Nevertheless, am happy to hear your ideas. Debate and discussion about operatic singers, as long as they don't get personal, are an ENORMOUS pleasure for operaphiles like me:) ---

[johnhoie]

@stevevandien It's a matter of taste, certainly. I don't like the sound of a heldentenor, the category in which I place Vickers.

Del Monaco had a better tone, and apparently as much power as Vickers, so I'd list him as a great-voiced Otello. Dipping back, Martinelli. In my 1969 recording, McCracken was wonderful.

[stevevandien]

@johnhoie Fair enough. Heldentenors have become accepted as Otello over the last century, largely because there weren't many true Italian tenores de forza. For me, Vickers has the needed power and amplitude of tone -- even if his comfortable range and upper register aren't ideal -- AND his overwhelming stage presence compensates for anything he lacks. More later:) --

[stevevandien]

@johnhoie Del Monaco had a SPECTACULAR Otello voice, perhaps the greatest among those for whom we have recorded evidence. AND several videos establish beyond any doubt that MDM was a powerful actor. My only caveats are personal. MDM's unwillingness (inability?) to modulate his enormous, exciting voice makes him hard to hear for the long run. Can't tell how many characters I have remaining, so shall shut up -- more anon:)

[venise1946]

Pas convaincant! Voix "grises", interprétation emphatique!

[Agorante]

Macneil debuted at the Met and La Scala in 1959 at the age of 34. I heard him live in some of his best roles in the sixties. He was sensational then however the voice became unreliable as early as 1970. He continued to sing for almost another twenty years. He lost his recording contracts but as the head of AGMA (the singer's union) he seemed to have some power to continue to be cast. He was great for the first decade of his career and rather poor for the remaining two decades.

[bradleyjenks]

People are overly hard on MacNeil. He sang "open" higher later in his career because years of high Verdi made his voice a little higher. singing those notes open just became easier than closed. And he didn't lose the ability to sing in his passagio. Listen to 3:38, and he had rock star high notes till he retired. But that much balls-to-the-wall Verdi gradually made him sound tired and made occasional pitches suffer. I think he rocks. Others detractors would secretly kill to sing like this.

[RVP57]

You are so right. It gets easier to sing those high lighter notes 'open' the older you get. A minor quibble with a fine singer, capable of giving the ol' snarl to villains well into the 1980s. He remains my favourite Scarpia!

[fiveanddimer]

Bravo, RVP57! My sentiment exactly. MacNeil has a real flair for the dramatic. At times he might border on being a tad too dramatic, but he works for me. The combination of the voice and the stage presence give me goosebumps. This is what I go to the opera for.

[raycanto76]

Vicker gives me chillis...the interpretation..voice...He is otello...the baritone was mis-casted...

[stevevandien]

I remember watching this live on PBS back in '78 -- wonderful to see and hear it again. The greatest Otello of his generation and one of the best Verdi baritones --

[Pywacket2]

Verdi created these roles for Jon Vickers, one of the great Helden Tenors, and the amazing Cornell Macneil. Extraordinary.

[hermanzoon]

MacNeil must be ranked with the top (American) baritones of our time.

In no particular order:

Warren

Merrill

MacNeil

Thomas

Any others?

Milnes

[josiahgulden]

Tibbett dude... he established the legacy!

[sarado88]

Vickers é um dos timbres mais heróicos da história, porém lhe faltam os agudos pra ser um Otello ideal, como eram Del Monaco e Giacomini. Sua leitura de Otello é mais psicológica!!

[marokt]

Not bad. But Vickers looks like Azucena with this hair.

[CzarDodon]

Not bad! fucking fantastic!!! you a hairdresser or something?

[marokt]

Not hairdresser, but the illusion is importarnt for me. Vickers looks funny. It demages the dramatic power. for me.

Mc Niell is flat

[CzarDodon]

Mc Neil, is not always perfect the e natural at on Sogno is 'crooned' and slight flat, but it's a live performance, no technicians 'correcting' things. If you take the score in hand you will see that all in all they are both very attentive to the composers wishes, the hair is no great shakes it's true but I've seen a lot worse

[RemzofFrance]

It kind of has to be "crooned", the score says "sotto voce" if my recollection is correct, so a lil' crooning should be OK there. I am much more puzzled about the end of the scene : McNeil seems to be out of breath while Vickers has his fiatto in full power. The Dio vendicator is fairly short compared to other versions (Caruso/Ruffo, Vickrs/Gobbi)

[CzarDodon]

The score saus 'dolcissimo' a real mezzavoce would have been ideal , crooning is not exactly kosher, but it's a good solution, Gobbi and many other singers would do the same. But where do you hear Mc Niel out of breath?

[RemzofFrance]

It seems to me that prior to the final "diooo vendicator" he seems a lil' bit long to catch his breat. The end sounds abrupt to me but then I am used to much more prolonged notes, so I might mistake interpretation and capacity. Talking about Merryl, didn't he record that with Björling ? Björling does awfully good with that piece... in a studio, that is!

[CzarDodon]

Doesn't seem short to me :-) I don't know if Bjorling recorded this duet, but as a voice and a personality I'd imagine he would be too lyrical for this part. But of course if Pavarotti recorded the whole role, why shouldn't Bjorling give it a bash, he was a superb singer and the voice was made of gold.

[jws2718]

Bjoerling made a recording with Robert Merrill, but I doubt if he ever dreamed of singing Otello on stage.

[stevevandien]

He didn't, but Bjorling did say in an interview that he wanted to record "Otello." He and Merrill, according to Bjorling's bio (by his widow), "shook hands" about working together on that record -- too bad this great tenor didn't live to record it --

[Ivanhoe2]

If anyone thinks this is awful,,,he should seriously look to his sound equipment, his hearing and finally his taste. If he is satisfied with those,,,then he is entitled to his opinion, poor chap.

[IanRCMcPhail]

Magnificent singing - full of dramatic intensity. Opera as it should be sung!

[primobaritono]

WOW ! Thank you SO much for posting this !!!!

[vickersman]

epa300-why is this awful? I think it is far... far from that-this is live theatre,there are a few unbalanced, but acceptable spots.Vickers was my favourite Otello-Macneil is no slouch either!I just finished singing this opera, and it is a great one.

[epa300]

This is just awful. Two well-known singers, but...awful.

[MrCafiero]

Well, Milnes may have been a Verdi baritone, but it was short lived and his voice was not as big as MacNeil. Di Stefano and Carreras were great for far longer and even in their decline were still pretty good.

[kmillard]

Short-lived? Do you realize Milnes Met Career spanned 31 years up until he was 61 years old.

[Agorante]

It's funny you make these pronouncements about these singers. MacNeil did indeed have a bigger and richer voice than Milnes in the theater but MacNeil sang quiet badly on stage for many, many years after his great days were over. I heard him in Nabucco in the 1070s. He was just terrible in the first act. His voice was off pitch, spread and ugly. In the last act he was magnificent. The only singer I know of who sang so long after he should have retired was Di Stefano.

[MrCafiero]

OK. I agree that is probably true. After his decline, MacNeil was definitely not good. That seems evident with everyone who declined.

[hightenor123]

I think Sherill Milnes was great Verdi Baritone, although he also ran into issues, perhaps to early in his career to call him a true great... but we call Di Stefano and Carreras great who ran into early trouble. Carlos Alvarez has that sound in the house that heralds a great verdian baritone. And Leo Nucci has quitely for 30 years sang dramatically rich portrayals of the verdi baritone rep... i think for longevity and interpretation he is a great.

[MrCafiero]

I agree about early Milnes. He really was great. Alvarez is very good, but not of the size of voice of Milnes, MacNeil, Warren, Merrill and so on. Nucci was never on the level of a MacNeil in his prime in my opinion. So, for me, MacNeil was the last REAL deal because he combined power, darkness, range and a helden tenor top.

[MrCafiero]

MacNeil was the last great Verdi baritone. By this time he was really opening the passaggio, but what a great sound. Amazing duet. Thanks for posting it!