Maria Callas - The 1958 Los Angeles Concert / Puccini, Rossini, et al [Live]

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
If you've been wondering why now, a quarter-century since she last sang a note in public, people are still obsessing over Maria Callas, this newly unearthed concert from Los Angeles in 1958 will answer your questions. No other soprano before or since would dare such a varied program, and this was her usual concert material. She sings first a prayer from Spontini's La Vestale, all great formality, regal tone, and utterance, and she caps it with a blazing high C--a bit uneven, but thrilling. We next meet her as the evil Lady Macbeth, the tone darker and nastier, with plunges into chest register that continue to surprise. Seemingly to shock us, she next sings Rosina's aria from Il barbiere di Siviglia, all air and light, with pinpoint coloratura and sassy attitude. Could this be the same singer? Only if it's Callas. "L'altra notte" from Boito's Mefistofele is next, and in it, the crazy heroine rants about her dead child. Callas embodies this poor soul, bearing no resemblance to any other heroine she's portrayed so far. Next, Musetta's Waltz--a role Callas never sang--is a nice bauble, but it's been sung better by dozens of other sopranos and so comes across as a sort of interlude. And the finale is the Mad Scene from Thomas's Hamlet, a 10-minute tour de force for high soprano in which Callas lightens her voice and sails through the difficulties as if possessed by Ophelia's spirit. The sound, with the recording obviously taken from within the audience, is not bad of its type; i.e., every note is audible and clear if not quite in balance with the orchestra. This concert is new to Callas lovers and is a must in any opera lover's collection. Buy it. --Robert Levine

Tracks:

La Vestale: Tu Che Invoco
Macbeth: Nel Di Della Vittoria...Vieni, T'affretta
Il Barbiere Di Siviglia: Una Voce Poco Fa
Mefistofele: L'altra Notte
La Boheme: Quando M'en Vo'
Hamlet: A Vos Jeux (Mad Scene)
Unknown

Amazon.com

If you've been wondering why now, a quarter-century since she last sang a note in public, people are still obsessing over Maria Callas, this newly unearthed concert from Los Angeles in 1958 will answer your questions. No other soprano before or since would dare such a varied program, and this was her usual concert material. She sings first a prayer from Spontini's La Vestale, all great formality, regal tone, and utterance, and she caps it with a blazing high C--a bit uneven, but thrilling. We next meet her as the evil Lady Macbeth, the tone darker and nastier, with plunges into chest register that continue to surprise. Seemingly to shock us, she next sings Rosina's aria from Il barbiere di Siviglia, all air and light, with pinpoint coloratura and sassy attitude. Could this be the same singer? Only if it's Callas. "L'altra notte" from Boito's Mefistofele is next, and in it, the crazy heroine rants about her dead child. Callas embodies this poor soul, bearing no resemblance to any other heroine she's portrayed so far. Next, Musetta's Waltz--a role Callas never sang--is a nice bauble, but it's been sung better by dozens of other sopranos and so comes across as a sort of interlude. And the finale is the Mad Scene from Thomas's Hamlet, a 10-minute tour de force for high soprano in which Callas lightens her voice and sails through the difficulties as if possessed by Ophelia's spirit. The sound, with the recording obviously taken from within the audience, is not bad of its type; i.e., every note is audible and clear if not quite in balance with the orchestra. This concert is new to Callas lovers and is a must in any opera lover's collection. Buy it. --Robert Levine

Customer Reviews:

A Revelation.......2007-05-31

This rare concert is a revelation. 1958 was an inervating year that started with the infamous Rome walkout during a performance of Norma in January and ended with her termination from the Metropolitan Opera House in November. She was now independent. Sol Hurok sponsored a series of concerts in the U.S. toward the end of 1958 thus giving audiences the opportunity to hear Callas display her versatility by singing arias from various opera's. Callas's confidence as an artist did not betray her despite these career setbacks judging by her vocal condition at this concert of November 29, 1958 at the Los Angeles Shrine Auditorium. Her voice is strong, rich and full and most of the top notes are steady. The sinuous tones she invests as Lady Macbeth to the diaphanous tones as Ophelia gives credence to her range and flexibility. The sound is not the best because I think someone in the hall tape recorded the concert on less than professional equipment. However, Callas's voice fills the hall with torrents of sound. Well recommended.

Timelessly beautiful..........2004-01-13

Yes, I think that her voice was beautiful... She makes me smile, makes me cry and gives me joy! No other soprano, be it Sutherland, Sills or anyone is capable of that!

Wonderful!.......2003-01-03

Amazing...Callas is astounding. Nice to hear the Hamlet in French before her voice went. You get a sense of what the voice sounded like in the hall, and why it was so unique. Naughty Rescigno...his conducting isn't stellar, but Callas is still amazing!

Yet more of the Callas legacy.......2001-09-28

A quarter century after her death, previously unavailable recorded material by Maria Callas continues to surface. The present recording, taken live from one of the concerts on her American tour of the late 1950s, duplicates material available elsewhere. For example, the first three items were also sung by Callas at her Hamburg concert of 1959, which was televised and which has been transferred to VHS and DVD. The Mad Scene from Thomas' "Hamlet" is on her 1959 EMI recording.

One year earlier than the above performances, Callas' voice is in good shape, with only a few of her trademark flaws. She tries a rather unsteady high C at the end of the Vestale aria that she wisely omitted in later performances. Musetta's Waltz is a chestnut that tends to expose her weaknesses, in particular a lack of ability to project light, flirtatious charm when it's not written into the music, as it is in the case of Rossini. The intensely sung Mefistofele aria is perhaps the gem of this collection. The sound on this issue is necessarily more primitive than a recording made under more controlled conditions.

On the whole, this concert is a worthy representation of Callas and it is good to have it available. On the other hand, because of the sound and the availability of duplicate performances of these particular numbers, it's probably not the best choice as an introduction to her art.

if yall like her tired sounding voice.......2000-06-10