leskendal's channel

Absolutely magnificent - such balance between beauty power and passion - this could only be achieved through superb technique and immense musicianship. Such a pity that he did not receive greater recognition during his life... one of the true greats

Superb artistry - fantastic technique. I saw him as Nabucco, dramatically he was absolutely riveting, and quite overwhelming vocally.. grazie ancora Nicoletta

@stroega I may well have been at those performances - I saw him in Dublin many times.....I am so delighted that you have managed to post so many of these performances - I think he was a much underrated artist

Lovely legato singing - thanks for this and all of the other posts to remind us of a very great singer. The in-house microphone does not really do justice to the voice which was very beautiful. I saw him in performance several times in Dublin during and he was wonderful...

the first opera I saw was Don Carlo with Francesconi as Carlo - he had a very exciting voice and was great in the big dramatic scenes... delighted to see this on youtube... thanks for posting

A new name to me...gorgeous singing, beautiful unforced production, yet totally involved in the drama.... difficult to imagine mystified why this wonderful singer was not more widely acclaimed. Many thanks for posting so many clips this great performance

Beautiful soulful singing, used completely at the service of the composer.... a truly great singer... gorgeous illustrations too... thanks for posting

So very beautiful and such a heartfelt performance from both of you..... thanks so much for this and all your wonderful music... wishing you a very Happy New Year

She has said Strauss is her favourite composer.... certainly this song fits her voice perfectly.... it is difficult to imagine a more beautiful or perfect performance....

@gustopheles reaction from those who were at the performance seems to have been very positive... and her reputation as a dramatic interpreter has grown considerably since she took on Tosca.... also in-house recordings tend not to capture the range of vocal colours in a big voice like this... the ...

Thanks Coloraturafan for posting some of what may well be a historic occasion - Sondra Radvanovsky's first Norma - Dolora Zajick and Aquiles Machaao and pretty fabulous also. So wonderful to hear Bellini so well sung and with real dramatic passion - it does not happen that often... hopefully Radv...

I did not know this tenor at all.... interesting to hear what I assume was a German voice in Italian verismo... I like his clear tone although he is a little too measured in places for my liking... an interesting comparison with Kauffmann today..