OperaNow! #99: To All You Young Singers Out There...

After a wonderfully cheap opening bit and Doug's long explanation of The Met Council auditions, Peter Gelb brings back Don Volpe to "talk" to The Met unions...the Baltimore Opera chorus makes a comeback (for one night of Carmen)...embezzlement and suicide rock Salzburg...classical record charts are easier to get on then Courtney Love...Marcelo Alvarez sounds off on Domingo...Angela cancels Carmen (for the third time)...Vilar goes directly to jail...Berliner begins to build opera house in Africa (Africans claim they didn't ask for it.)

Plus Happy Birthday Cesare Siepi!

This week we feature The OC, Doug Dodson, and oh yeah...ME!

Comments

[Craig]

Oh my. Post it up on iTunes! I want to hear it now! (Pretty please.)

[Michael]

It is in iTunes

[Craig]

Hmm. I keep refreshing but nuttin's hap'nin'. I'll check back in a bit. Thanks!

[Craig]

FYI: 5 min later, it's now downloading. I'm just 2 impatient, I guess.

[Craig]

Who the hell gives the OC grief about lieder? If he thinks he knows so much, he can make his own damn podcast! (I don't mean you, Oliver. Stay on OperaNow! please.)

[Your Blue Friend]

Congrats to Doug on the Met Council regionals. I always wanted to go watch those in Boston, but forget to put it on my calendar. When are the semi-finals?

[zach]

I'm listening now. But I had to stop at the part where Oliver plays the second Turandot, Cristina Deutekom. He said that she died of a heart attack! Deutekom had a heart attack years ago, but she is very much ALIVE.

[Craig]

Cristina Deutekom: a special future guest for Oliver's Corner?

[The OC]

thank god she is alive. thanks Zach. you saved her from the Guess Who Died of my imagination.

Re: Other Turandots of note
find on You Tube the riddle scenes of Monsterrat Caballe and Dame Gwyneth Jones.

[jeanniebeannie]

i was so over carmen until i saw the met hd broadcast a few weeks ago...i felt like i was hearing the opera for the first time, and i was super inspired. i no longer think that it is overrated, just that it is not done justice the majority of the time. i loved that production and the performances of garanca, alagna and frittoli. curious if any of you saw it or heard it and what your opinions were of that particular performance.

[Craig]

jeanniebeannie, not sure if "any of you" refers only to the OperaNow! crew or any of us listeners, too. I did hear & see it, but will hold my opinions until you respond.

[The OC]

I listened, but didn't watch the HD broadcast. I'll wait until it shows up on PBS. Garanca sang well: a very masculine sound, not very idiomatically french, but ravishing use of chest register and thrilling high notes. for somebody who used to sing a lot of baroque and bel canto, her serenade to don Jose in the 2nd act was a little sloppy. Alagna brings it and deploys his voice without abandon. I appreciated his attempt for the diminuendo at the end of the flower song, though he did fall off. Frittoli was luscious and italianate in this french opera.

[mindofsummer]

I had a chance to see Carmen last week at the Met, but with Brandon Jovanovich and Olga Borodina in the main roles. Having this second look at the opera really opened my eyes and ears. The music is so well known that it has almost become a cliche, but the music is so beautifully orchestrated throughout the entire opera and is truly magnificent. It was sung beautifully, and the new production is stunning, fresh, and sexy. I am definitely a fan.

[zach]

I have long thought Carmen overrated. But I gave into the hype and went to see the HD simulcast. Unfortunately for me, by the time I got there it had sold out so I didn't actually get to see it at all. I have heard parts of the broadcast but not all. It will be down on PBS in a few weeks no doubt.

[jeanniebeannie]

criag--"any of you" meant anyone following the blog--sorry for being unclear :). let your opinions fly, i am curious!

[Floyd]

Who was the discussion about at the end of the podcast. I didn't quite catch the name of the guy Doug met in the bar? The name wasn't familiar enough to me that I could look this guy up. Thanks.

[Doug D.]

Oh, sorry Floyd. It was Philippe Jaroussky.

[zach]

Oh, that guy! What kind of bar was it Doug? :D

[Alicia]

Wonderful show this week! The Oliver's Corner was amazing this week, your dedication to educating the audience is astounding, and your knowledge of the repertoire is fantastic. Congratulations Doug!

[Lannes314]

I second that. Congratulations, Doug! To bring it back to CARMEN for a moment, I also saw it a few weeks ago at the Met. Garanca, while great, will probably have better outings in the years to come when she will likely own the role (although the card scene rocked). I thought Alagna was outstanding. He faltered slightly in the first act, but by the end there was something painfully real about his interpretation. I attended with my sister, and she commented that he was "really going through it" re: Carmen's destruction of Jose in relation to the end of his marriage. I think he's well rid of Gheorghiu (and of course she cancelled). Awesone end to the podcast. It's always the haters who think they know better. Can't wait for #100!

[John]

Great podcast as usual, boys! Michael, the Elisabetta in the Met Don Carlo with Siepi and Bjoerling wasn't Amara, though, it was Delia Rigal. Amara DID sing, but she sang the Heavenly Voice.

Oliver, your corner was particularly interesting this week, and I hope you DO do Carmen one of these days......er, you know what I mean......see if you can find the live excerpts from Covent Garden in the '30s; Eva Turner's Turandot has got to be heard to be believed. Her voice is as large as Nilsson's, but with more warmth. She and Martinelli are INCREDIBLE in the Riddle Scene!

And I found this review of Rolando's new recording and thought you might want to discuss this at some point....it does NOT bode well for our tenor friend!

http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/music/cd_reviews/article7023716.ece

Keep on truckin', guys, and good luck with episode 100!

[John in DC]

Doug, all kinds of congratulations. Great show this week all around. Momentum building for the centennial! My favorite line of the whole podcast:

I just wanted to do a radio show.

DYI inspiration for everyone out there. This is a great show for a million reasons, but primarily because it's an example for people to get off your a** and make something that you're passionate about. What else are you supposed to do with your time on the planet?

Oi!

[Michael Rice]

John...thanks for the correction. I realized it after we recorded,, but didn't think it warranted a complete redo. :)

And other John...thanks for your kind words. I'm glad people out there appreciate what we are trying to do!