Part II - Your Favorites: CESARE SIEPI

THIS PART IS FOR YOUR FAVORITES! Please discuss this artist with your comments!

Cesare Siepi, Bass (sometimes reffered to as Bass-Baritone) (1923-2010)

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Le Nozze di Figaro
Se vuol ballare, Signor contino...
Conducted by Erich Kleiber
(Recorded 1954/55)

My personal opinion: It´s always the same old story: For some opera-lovers their personal idol is "The Greatest of them all", a spirit disposition we know with the "Claque" around Callas, Corelli, del Monaco and in present time Flórez and other usual suspects. If one decide to create a project like "100 Singers", first one have to put aside all subjective exuberances and blind admirations. For the first part I decided, to compare different singers with one another. And so, I took Ezio Pinza and left Cesare Siepi out. The reasons are evident: Pinza was the more precise and accurate singer. For instance: Méphistophélès "Le veau d´or" from Gounod´s "Faust". Of course, Siepi´s voice was more dramatic, darker, sinister and diabolic, but Pinza always was more musical, surer in staccato eight notes. Maybe Siepi gave more effect with his masculine power, Pinza was the better musican, the better "singer" in the true sense of the word. And so it´s up to an admirers heart to decide... Siepi, born 1923 in Milan, was an autodidact and began singing as a member of a madrigal group. In 1941 he gave his debut as Sparafucile. The war interrupted his early operatic career, but after he earned success at Teatro La Fenice in Venice (Zaccaria in "Nabucco"), an engagement at La Scala followed - and Verdi became his favorite composer. Even in the great Verdi-parts, Siepis sound never was sonorous as Pinza`s was, in King Philipp´s great monolog "the tone wasn´t rich and flickers with long notes (Kesting)". John Steane wrote: "Siepi possessed a giant voice and he was a good actor. But even on his 78rpm-recordings he sounded choppy and without grace." A different review: "His Don Giovanni" is one of the most outstanding music-theatre events of the 20th century!". "On stage, his tall, striking presence and his great elegance of phrasing made him a natural Don Giovanni" wrote Wikipedia. Actually in most of his "Giovanni-recordings" (1953 Furtwängler, 1954 again with Furtwängler live from Salzburg, 1955 with Josef Krips, 1956 live with Mitropoulos from Vienna, 1957 with Böhm live from the Met, 1959 with Leinsdorf in a studio-performance) he´s in a good form: After a critic´s word "excellent in the cantabile of the serenade, full of verve in the champagne-song, agile and fiery in the recitatives!" It seems, Mozart was his true domain. Likewise his Figaro is a special showpiece for Siepis exuberant art and fine refinement of phrasing. In his first aria "Se vuol ballare signor contino" Figaro explained the audience, he is not in a joking mood and his master, the Count better consider it. Siepi gave the standard for the Mozart-Figaro: A rebel, cunning and certainly not inactive... Here is the wonderful short scene (and by the way: Obviously it´s the pattern for Hermann Prey´s interpretation of Figaro) from the famous 1955-recording with Erich Kleiber. IMO Cesare Siepi never was more convincing on records! 62 votings and a great position 9 for this remarkable singer. And a last note: OK, the picture is "Don Giovanni", but I don´t want to add again another Siepi-scene from this opera...
Cesare Siepi died on July 5th 2010 at age 87.

THE COMPLETE OVERVIEW: GO TO ALL SINGERS IN THIS LIST
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fBsScnQWVlU

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Cesare
• Siepi
• Bass-Baritone
• Ezio
• Pinza
• Mozart
• Verdi
• Figaro
• Phillipp
• Faust
• Mephisto
• Gounod

[Scala977]

Welcome back, Mike. Meanwhile, as far as I could find out, Siepi did not sing Figaro at Salzburg in 1953. As a matter of fact, the production of Figaro during that year under Furtwangler was performed in German instead of the original Italian, with Erich Kunz, rather than Siepi, in the title role. The role that Siepi really did sing under Furtwangler in 1953 was Don Giovanni.

[100Singers]

Actually Siepi didn´t sing Figaro 1953 in Salzburg with Furtwängler - I´ve made a mistake. You´re absolutely right, it was Erich Kunz and the live-recording was dated August 11th 1953. Sorry for this, immediately I will correct my fault in the sidebar. Thanks a lot, Mike

[meltzerboy]

For a long time, I considered Siepi a Pinza wannabe, a mere copy of the grand master basso cantante. (Both were largely self-taught.) Only in recent months have I come to discover that Siepi can very well stand on his own merits as a great singer and artist who excelled in a wide variety of roles from the operas of Verdi, Puccini, Rossini, Donizetti, Bellini, Boito, Mussorgsky, Mozart, and other composers. Excellent choice by listeners. Welcome back, Mike!

[BorisGodunov]

I have a hard time preferring Pinza's Mephistopheles to Siepi because of diction. Siepi's French is almost flawless, but Pinza's is almost a caricature of an Italian pronouncing French words: "Eh SayTAN conduit lay BAL!"

In terms of voice, Siepi had the darker, more velvety sound, while Pinza was a bit more bass-baritone. Pinza also tended to croon a lot, something Siepi never did.

I love both, but think Siepi edges out Pinza in terms of the sheer natural quality of his instrument.

[EbtaTsot]

absolutely elegant..

[leoniemikele6]

How could anyone consider this unmusical? I think it's ravishing.

[Vincenzo2010an]

@CharlotteinWeimar you lucky! i "hate you for this! did you take any of him from that performance or video,can you post me something of that performance, i have not seen it, please! how was he dressed during the famous "finch' han dal vino"? can you say me his acting during this aria?(i have only a cd of this performance)

[CharlotteinWeimar]

Saw and heard Siepi as Don Giovanni in the gorgeous early Zeffirelli staging at Covent Garden. It was a dream cast with Sena Jurinac as Donna Elvira, Mirella Freni as Zerlina, Geraint Evans as Leporello, Richard Lewis as Don Ottavio. Siepi was utterly convincing, dressed in brown suede jerkin & boots & white collar & cuffs in the first scene & later on all in gold. Splendid singer, perfect Don.

[operafool875]

the master of elegant singing

[silvrlady1]

I have the recording of Mefistofele by Boito with him in the title role, I saw him sing several times in Los Angeles. Magnifico! If not the greatest, definitely one on a very short list. My personal favorite. Damn, but he looked good in tights! Poor Jan Pierce as the hero in Don Giovanni. A great cast: Siepi as the Don, de los Angeles, Schwartzkopf, Pierce. And me hanging off the 1st row of the balcony, mezzanine loge, in the Shrine Auditorium.

[PEAinSwe]

I love his voice. Especially in Ella giammai m'amo. I get goosebumps when listening to it...

[Operafiend22]

RIP

[minnie888444]

R.I.P.

Thanks for letting us know, Mike. Very sad news, but his art lives on.

[Musikcamp]

This voice reminds a bit of Herman Prey's, perhaps a little more metallic timbre.