Richard Tucker - Cielo e mar (Live)

Once again an enormous THANK YOU to pearlmuth3, who generously sent this recording to me and requested the upload. Until now this recording has never been posted anywhere on the Internet.

From a live Gioconda in 1959, Richard Tucker as Enzo sings the aria 'Cielo e mar'.

Note: 'Though his numerous recordings clearly reveal a great voice, they do not reproduce the visceral impact his voice had when heard live in the house. He was the opposite of his contemporary Jussi Björling. Björling sounds better on records than he did in performance -- his voice was not as big as seems on his recordings. Tucker was best experienced in person.' - grandi-tenori.com

Category:

Music

Tags:

• richard
• tucker
• cielo
• mar
• la
• gioconda
• enzo
• Amilcare
• Ponchielli
• american
• tenor
• opera
• live

[Lovelytenor1]

Yes, Tucker was damn close in some ways. My pick is Bjoerling as the closest to Caruso as he seemed to have a better command of the lyric line. However, there were some roles that RT simply did better because of his darker, more dramatic gift. I'm trying to think of a living tenor who approaches either of these guys but I cannot. Both men were wonderful in concert as well, true singing artists, not just opera singers.

[GermanOperaSinger]

Bjorling may be second to Caruso in terms of purity of the voice, vocal production, etc., but I still think Tucker was the 'heir apparent' to Caruso at least in context of the repertoire they sang. Bjorling could never dream of singing Pagliacci, Ballo, Chenier, Lescaut, Gioconda, Forza, Aida, Tosca, etc. like Caruso because his voice was simply too lyrical, and not very Italian. Tucker like Caruso had a rich powerful (yet beautiful) Italian sounding spinto voice (even though he was American).

[vurria123]

I can tell you this: if Tucker had sung this, like this, in a place like Teatro San Carlo a Napoli back in the 50's, it would have taken about 30 minutes to resume the rest of the opera. This is the greatest version of this. If you listen carefully to his final Bb, you can hear he is tempted to increase the volume of that note much more, but time ran out. But that final Bb is one of the all time greatest live Bb's ever heard in the verismo - tenor repertory.

[BJustinBrasfield]

This somehow shows the size, power, and passion of Richard Tucker's voice more than many other clips.

[sugarbist]

This is a beautiful rendition of a very difficult aria.

[bodiloto]

MAGNIFICO !

[SHICOFF1]

I have a concert with Jussi from 1951 San Francisco, with Sayo also. He sang this aria very well on that date but in no way close to This. This was a Tucker best from the first time in his debut doing it in 1945 till the last in 1974 in NJ.His Enzo was magnificent.

[countceprano]

An astounding voice perhaps the best version of this I've ever heard. And folks, stop comparing him to Jussi. Love Jussi's voice and I love Hermann Prey too. But I would never compare Prey with Warren. Neither would anyone who knows anything about voice.

[SHICOFF1]

What old fart heard was a studio recording of it, with JB, not live. Try Tucker on studio rec. than. This is live and he didn't strain, anyone can hear that. When he first sang it he got 19 curtain calls and here the house went wild. Bjorling would never ever touch this role, he was lyric, can't compare and from Tucker was the Enzo, not Jussi.

[SHICOFF1]

@gaytenor WHEN A SINGER IS TOO GOOD THEY ARE A THREAT BUTJB WAS NEVER A THREAT TO TUCKER, HE WAS A LYRIC WITH A BEAUTIFUL NORDIC VOICE BUT NOT THE RT POWER OR ITALIAN SOUND ITALIANS LOVE AND THEY LIKED TUCKER JB HAD BETTER LOW NOTES THEN GIGLI OR ANY LYRIC TENOR, HIS TOP WAS NOT ANY BETTER THEN KRAUS, SCHMIDT OR ROSWANGE CORELLI AMONG OTHERS AND EARLY DI STEF. HA! FEW EVER COULD OUT DO HIM FOR DIMINUENDO'S OR WARMTH AND ITALIAN SOUND. THIS GUY JUST DOES NOT KNOW A RASP FROM A WHISPER IT SEEMS

[gaytenor]

@SHICOFF1 Did you miss the main thrust of troll's message which is mainly that he does not listen to operas only arias. He may not be willing to take enough time away from the boob tube and his beloved Simpsons to listen to a complete opera. On another site this worthless troll flamed Georges Thill despite the fact that, unlike Jussi Bjorling, Thill was very well liked in Italy and Lauri-Volpi had praise for him. Do you think that troll even knows who Lauri-Volpi was?

[SHICOFF1]

Hi premiere opera-- was I nice enough to the fart man!