Norma Contest - Mira, o Norma - Netrbeko - Garanca

I am still calling these postings a contest, even though I don't think there is much interest in the videos for that reason. This is not judging singers against each other, rather it is putting down a score for the interpretation of those artists at that time. Anyway, one of my favorite "contests" was the Norma "Casta Diva" contest. So I naturally wanted to create some sort of compensation for those missing videos. I hope everyone enjoys. Scoring is 1-5 singing/characterization:

Montserrat Caballé
Fiorenza Cossotto (1978)

June Anderson
Mzia Nioradze (2006)

Elinor Ross
Giovanna Vighi (1967)

Ana Maria Sanchez
Dolora Zajick (2003)

Gilda Cruz-Romo
Bianca Berini (1984)

Joan Sutherland
Margreta Elkins (1961)

Maria Guleghina
Luciana D'Intino (2004)

Georgina Lukács (2004)

Edita Gruberova
Sonia Ganassi (2006)

Lucia Aliberti
Anna Caterina Antonacci (1990)

Ghena Dimitrova
Maria Dragoni (1987)

Montserrat Caballé
Marilyn Horne (1980)

Martile Rowland
Encarnacion Vanquez (1999)

Shirley Verrett
Susan Mentzer (1988)

Anait Mchitarian
Alexandr Tamazow(?) (2003)

Adelaida Negri
Myrna Moreno (1987)

Carol Vaness
Jennifer Larimore (1994)

Marina Mescheriakova
Anna Bonitatibus (1999)

Fiorenza Cedolins
Sonia Ganassi (2007)

Leontyne Price
Marilyn Horne (1982)

Joan Sutherland
Marilyn Horne (1979)

Anna Netrebko
Elina Garanca (2007)

Category:

Music

Tags:

• netrbeko
• opera
• bellini

[nycolas1712]

Excellent. 

[tsena6]

Gorgeous singing from both of them!

[bpicaud1]

In this case, you are wrong, Rattywotin. At the creation, Norma had a dark voice and Adalgisa a light voice; and Bellini wrote some of the phrases for Adalgisa over those for Norma. This kind of "mirror effect" is a is very important to understand the relation between the two characters. The tradition was later to give Adalgisa to a dark mezzo and it is an error; Adalgisa is not Amneris...

[Porolepis]

I think their singing is magnificent. I don't agree that if you don't like it you should go someplace else, and I do respect your opinions Astroflammante, but I think you and Rattywotin are both very very wrong.

As for understanding words, I could never understand anything Sutherland sang but that never stopped me from thinking she was truly el suprema...

[Rattywotin]

seems to me two sopranos trying for the high ground - cant tell the difference these days - lets go back when sops where sops and mezzos were mezzos

[BillH00d]

I agree with Astrofiammante: Netrebko sings Norma only because she thinks she's the reincarnation of Callas and Sutherland, which she isn't. Even here her voice is already coarse; and Academyci is also right that you can't understand a single word of the Italian. That's not because they're both Russian. It's because Netrebko is following the nonsensical idea that you sacrifice the consonants to the vowels, and the vowels to the sound.

[Astrofiammante]

Couldn't imagine that Netrebko would dare to sing Norma.

Despicable...

[Academyci]

Adalgisa and Norma are Love rivals. Norma wants to kill her childrens but after words of Adalgisa, she will let them with Adalgisa and Pollione.

Please, you find and follow the words and sinopsi. Opera isn't only sound, but it combine sound and soul-roles. More much more than "solfeggio cantato".Monotono.

I am italian and I don't undenstant one word and sounds don't respect what caracters feel...where are accenti that explain pathos? Monotonia.

[taf289]

@958960 Este es un gran aporte. La ópera, como todas las artes no pueden vivir por la nostalgia. Por supuesto, la Callas, caballe, Verret eran inmensos. Sin embargo, creo que Netrebko y Garranca puede montar los mismos objetivos. Taf289

[robertindic]

it is so wanderful to be alive to listen and feel such a art...

[taf289]

You're both great artists. When I hear your voices sing make me dream and I can imagine the finer things in life in a world that is not really that great. taf289

[operafan0anegnd]

I love it!

Hey, if you do not like something, go listen to what you do like!

rather than waste your own time, and everybody else's, bitching about

what you do not like.

I notice that it is very famous singers, who get the most criticism,

I suspect, by those who can only elevate their poor, insecure little egos

by trying to put down someone much greater than they are.

Your comments tell more about you than those you put down.

Grow up. Listen to what you like, avoid that which you do not.