Dame Kiri Te Kanawa & Kathleen Battle - Duet - "Arabella"

Dame Kiri Te Kanawa (as Arabella) & Kathleen Battle (as Zdenka) sing the Sisters' Duet "Ich danke Fräulein...aber der Richtige" from the act I of the opera "Arabella" by Richard Strauss (1864-1949). From a Broadcast of Metropolitan Opera House, Erich Leinsdorf / conductor. New York, USA, 1983.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Erich
• Leinsdorf
• soprano
• opera
• aria
• classical
• diva
• oper
• Zdenka
• Konzert
• concert
• orchestra
• MET
• New
• York
• broadcast
• Strauss

[yesblanche]

I love Kathleen Battle! There are always tons of comments on all of her clips regarding her behavior....but I ask do any of us realize what it must have been like as an African-American woman in this world...do remember she was refered to as the 'UN' or 'uppity nigger' (mentioned in the NYT aricle about her dismissal) behind the scenes by MET staff....I think that speaks volumes of what she was up against. Gheorghiu is apparently just as difficult yet her career hasn't been curtailed.....

[Operaphile]

Kiri is divine!!! It was as if Strauss wrote the role of Arabella for her!!! Renee Fleming is a great Arabella too IMHO, but I think Kiri is just even more sublime and creamily divine :)

[paulwien65]

they told the story about the stageworkers at met after Battle was fired..Thes all wear a t-shirt I SURVIVED THE BATTLE.....

but the voice and her workon stage are brillant...

[16toulousse]

@bcom11 That is one thing you could never accuse me of being is ill informed!

[bcom11]

@judycadana I saw her too at that last Carnegie Hall recital. She was really wonderful. Schubert songs and spirituals mostly. I don't know how she would have sounded had she tried to do any of the fast coloratura stuff but the voice is definitely a bit more lyric-ky lol

[bcom11]

@pfhrsharp and you being African-American yourself does not affect how I responded.

[bcom11]

@pfhrsharp So it sounds like you're saying that the African-American singers before her were "good ole gals" and she should be one just as well. Step out of line and even begin to act like the countless other dramatic opera DIVAS of yesteryear AND today and she's this unique representation of bad behavior? Get over yourself and your under-the-skin racism that you probably don't even realize.

[bcom11]

@16toulousse don't you dare compare their two separate struggles as one in the same. that is careless, ill-informed and irresponsible.

[16toulousse]

@yesblanche Kiri has experienced racism herself being called half cast being part maorietc and doesn't behave like that so....

[pfhrsharp]

@yesblanche here's another fact, KB was thrown out of the MET!!! ok? Never allowed to come back!!! That's not just her being 'difficult', that's her being down right stupid!!! There's no reason ANYONE should have to act that way!! I've seen her in concert. And she did a few things that were completely unprofessional. So I know what I'm talking about.