Callas Live

1958 Covent Garden Traviata. "Sempre libera". Maria Callas & Cesare Valetti.

Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• Callas
• Traviata

[diuscorvus]

wow, this might be even better than the lisbon traviata! callas sounds more full of breath, and though she has to wait longer before the high Eb, it comes out more fully. maybe it's the recording quality.

[garconfrancais01]

elle semble magnifique ici!

[colonia3059]

So many comments about the E flat at the end... surprises me. THE READING OF THE SCORE IS AMAZING, unique, beyond description; the Cs are driven, but full and LONG!, the D flats, in one breath are as strong and steady as ever, the diabolical speed of the cadenzas, the "piquées liées "towards the end are unique... Nobody except maybe Sutherland can come closer to such achievements...AND the words, the accents written by Verdi... everything is there, everything. GET A SCORE, you will enjoy more.

[Redboy4]

@sea1song In general, I think recordings do not do justice to operatic singing, compared to the live sound in the opera house, and in particular to sopranos. In the case of Callas, some who heard her live in the opera houses comment on the difference in sound quality between live and recorded performances. What that must have been like for those lucky enough to be there.

[philipc67]

I agree, the E flat is a scream, the rest is OK. She sang her last Violettas in 1958 (Met, Lisbon, ROH, Dallas) as she was just barely managing the role vocally. Her best Violetta by far is the legendary live 1955 Scala performance with Giulini and di Stefano. Her last fearless vocal performance was the 1958 Dallas MEDEA, coloratura-wise the 1957 Cologne SONNAMBULA, where she is stunning and sings a diminuendo high E in the final scene.

[sea1song]

Do you really think it sounded like a scream? I thought it sounded ok. I think any Eb at the end of an aria like Sempre Libera will have a bit of scream in it. That's what makes it exciting, after all, it was live and not in the studio. It must have been unbelievably thrilling, judging from the response coming from the public

[opera75frfr]

Bien sûr en 58 l'absolue sécurité n'est pas plus là, mais la voix est plus dense qu'à Lisbonne,et la virtuosité encore éblouissante. Et cet équilibre force/ fragilité qui est tout le personnage explose dès le premier acte. C'est inoubliable, et laisse de côté quelques efforts vocaux.

[kgarmaker123]

Many people comment about when the decline in Callas began..some say as early as 1954, etc.. I dont buy that at all, but I do think 1958 was a transitional year.. and after the Norma fiasco in Jan of that year...... she was like out to prove something to everyone, and the whole year, she pushed and sand too big, and I think .. in that year, damaged her voice...

[donziv]

So beautiful!

[kgarmaker123]

The E flat here, sounds like a scream, because she pushed so much sound out on the other high notes, she had nothing left but a scream for the E flat. I love her, but I could have killed her when she sang on her principal and not her interest.

[kgarmaker123]

Yes, sometimes she pushed too much.. and then it got screachy. however, the B'flats, and C's here are pretty easy in the Follia, etc.. part.

[Alleeexoscm]

Wooooww!!!

FANTáSTICA la Divina...

Absolutamente maravillosa. Que interpretación tan bella de Violetta, coincido creo que éste "Sempre libera" es aún mejor que el de Lisboa del 58'.

Precisa, soberbia en el uso de la coloratura y espectacular el gran sobreagudo final...