Dear Angela. Please ignore your haters. You have done an admirable job in this difficult role and I enjoyed it.As I always say, no singer is perfect and maybe you are not my favourite soprano but you know what ? You delivered the goods and unless your critics can do better let them hush.
Heard Angela Meade in Ermione 2 years ago in Paris : she is nothing short of AMAZING ! Recordings do not justice to the voice, which can sound shrill and with excessive wooble. Hearing her live is completely different. People forget that there is a huge difference between a broadcast and hearing singers in an opera house ! Just look at her performance at the last Tucker Gala... That girl can sing !!!
I SIMPLY CAN T BELIEVE WHAT I M READING BELOW! are you kidding me? this is not what you call a wobble. this is a vibrato. ANGELA MEADE is one the the finest singers out there! A REAL operatic voice. AND... this is not Handel. SORRY! That said, I m sure she s been happier with other performances. For those nasty queens, never satisfied with today's singers and stuck in the past... GET A LIFE! So sick of it!
miuzefreak do you even know what a wobble is dear? This is a classic example of a vibrato that fluctuates too much off the center of the fundamental pitch. It isn’t subjective. It’s objectively a wobble
I'd still pay to watch her rather than Netrebko. She sounds heavenly. We will never have another callas nor Sutherland. We do however still have the likes of Angela.
If they want to bring Semiramide back why not also bring the TRUE Semiramide, June Anderson back too? She was so underrated and under-appreciated. She would still do a better job in singing the coloratura than Angela. I don't need high notes, a smooth, well executed coloratura is enough.
I happen to like Angela Meade, she has a big voice with a wide vibrato which is maybe more prominent in the higher range and is not something that is commonly heard. However, I have attended one of these performances of Semiramide and Mrs. Meade was an incredible force to behold on the stage and has tremendous control over the power of her voice and the agility of her runs; I find her voice to refreshingly beautiful in an age where more musicians seem to shy away from the intensity and power required to perform in front of audiences that number in the thousands. I very much enjoyed her performance as did several others that were in attendance. It is one thing to have an opinion on whether or not you like the particular style in which an opera star sings, it is another to be outright distasteful and post a video bashing someone because of some insecurity that you feel like taking out on someone else. My suggestion to you would be to find a performance that you can enjoy and focus on that rather than on a performance that you can not associate with and anytime you post a video with malicious intent, have the decency to at least upload a video of you performing this piece in a fashion you perceive to be better so that at least you will have some credibility to your name. This upload is very embarrassing for you and I hope that at some point humiliation will help you realize what you have done here and at least rename the title and change the description.
This is my favourite type of comment. "sing it yourself". Isn't this too much to ask from the audience? They pay tickets, they applaud, they spend 2-3 hours in the theatre, sometimes for a mediocre performance like the one above and if they are unsatisfied, in your opinion, they have to sing the piece? That's nonsense. In every other job, if the employee does so many mistakes as Meade did only in those excerpts, it would definitely get a salary revision or even get fired. With these stars, nothing happens, except some comments from people who still understand music, yes the ones you insult there. The problem with little Angela is NOT only the uncontrolled, disturbing vibrato. First of all, there is the way she handles the coloratura run; those are NOT the written notes; it's all messy, slowed down, some aspirate h etc. Another issue is the lack of an homogeneous sound; when she attempts to sing in forte, she sounds shrill and strained, as if someone else was taking over from backstage. The lousy legato; it works well in slow passages, but when she has to sing fast coloratura, it gets messy. Finally, it's NOT my malicious intent, I think it's rather the Met's malicious intent to sell this as a bel canto piece. Because no matter what you say, this is not bel canto.
While in other fields of work, mistakes leading to a dock in pay may be a very real situation, seldom does that happen in the field of classical music, especially at the top. If a singer is so bad that people refuse to come to their performances, they simply will not be asked back. As far as musicians go, especially the ones with tenure, their salaries are very rarely, if at all, influenced by bad reviews. In fact, I know specific cases where a musician has practically lost their ability to play and still gets paid their regular salary. As far as sopranos go, there are several famous go-to sopranos (like Callas) who's scales weren't quite as defined as maybe Damrau's or Sutherland's. Of course my favorite of all time was Horne, but not everyone can have that clear articulation in their runs as I have personally learned from recordings dating back to the beginning of recording history. In most situations, having both a big enough voice and clear enough runs is a fantasy; usually it comes down to either or. With piano, yes, the accuracy of the scales would be most important. With orchestra... in an enormous hall... the lead requires a bigger voice and when you're pushing that much air, it is more difficult to articulate each note of the scale. From what I could hear up in the first row of the dress circle, the runs were very accurate and the voice was very rounded while still being able to rise above the orchestra at forte. Not every run had the grace of Cabelle's performance, but Meade is another singer entirely. By and large the accuracy of the runs isn't going to matter if they're ultimately overcome by the strength of an orchestra. For Bel Canto, I think the real stars were intended for the Castrato roles, like Arsace, where the role tends to be a bit more technically oriented and virtuosic. Fortunately and unfortunately, the practice no longer exists, but the legendary power of those voices is somewhat lost in the mezzo substitute. So I agree it would be nicer to have that perfect harmony of big voice and accurate runs, however in practicality, it's either or and in my personal opinion, I prefer the big voice in the star soprano roles. I want to hear her do the runs AND rise above the orchestra live from the audience. Maybe if they were to record this without an audience and therefore not have the need for her to produce a big voice, the runs would be more accurate, but for now, I am satisfied with what she's giving. My problem with your upload and post is not your opinion, but rather the very public way you're expressing it. The MET has several productions in which you may choose from and if you do not happen to like this production and/or cast, then maybe go for another or go to another company or just find a recording that satisfies you so that you don't feel the need to so publicly put down your fellow person. Basically, if you're going to post the video, let people come to their own conclusions. I appreciate your description change, but I still think the title is unnecessarily malicious. These are my opinions however, so it is what it is, but still... not everyone can like every performance and it's finding those performances that you feel simpatico with that make life a little easier.
Thanks for your answer. A pleasure to read. I have many problems with this performance. I refer to the opening night, because I have not watched the video yet. 1. Meade's voice is non-homogeneous, she has a hard time in singing coloraturas and the variations are tasteless. The aria is strange because she does not go for the low mezzo version, nor the high one. It's a combination, which stylistically, sounds strange to me. I would have preferred a better execution of canto fiorito and without the high E. This is neither Colbran nor Patti version, it's just strange. 2. De Shong: I would normally say that H-aspirate coloratura is not ideal (well, Horne, Scalchi and Caballe used to do it occasionally). But then, she uses H also in legato...which to my ears, sounds too bad. Her fioritura passages are also simplified; they only do dacapo in the second aria, to avoid difficulties. She cannot trill either. 3. The duets....in the second duet, at giorno d'orror....their voices are meant to blend together perfectly, as if it was only one voice.....but that does not happen and they cut a lot.... 4. I also prefer a more dramatic soprano voice or a mezzo (Karine Deshayes has recently debuted the role); but what Meade does is beyond inaccurate or approximate coloratura singing. 5. Ildar Abdrazakov's Assur is weak, sounds vocally passed his prime and it's not a strong basso presence. Like all the others, he slows down in difficult passages. 6. Javier Camarena is the only one who knows how to sing Rossini, although I heard he was not so good in the HD (I will listen later). 7. My upload is not necessarily malicious. How are the reviewers who compare Meade with legends like Sutherland or Caballe and so on? It's two extremes....If my title was "Meade sings a wonderful, perfect Semiramide better than Sutherland", not too many people would have a problem with that but it would be wrong. Whereas, technically, this is a disaster...the written notes are rarely sung and most of the difficult parts are avoided. 8. I love this opera, I have seen many productions and listened to all the available live recordings. I simply feel that they have ruined it with these singers, this conductor and so many cuts. The same happened in 2010 when they staged Armida for late Fleming. That was equally bad or worse. And yes, no matter how hard we try, not everyone can like our favourite singers. 9. Arsace is a contralto role....Daniela Barcellona used to be very convincing (her debut in 1998 was AMAZING) and I also love Ewa Podles. Now of course, there are hardly any real mezzos around or contraltos, but I think that singers like Teresa Iervolino would be more suitable. The castrato art is gone, and countertenors cannot do justice (Faggioli was horrible last year) 10. I have nothing against Meade; although I never liked her voice/style, I used to ignore her. But this is just too much. She has sung so many belcanto roles in a very anti-belcanto way. I am not a fan of leggeros, never been. I even dislike high endings in arias, especially in Rossini where usually, the roles are not very high. The dark voice trained for canto fiorito to sing the ideal Semiramide is yet to appear. There were some great ones along the history though, some lighter, some heavier, but they had something to say in the role and this is why they became sort of references. I don't think it's ever been any perfect Semiramide, but in this performance, I hardly find anything redeeming; boring at its best.
Just using your response to reply as there's a bit to reply to and to go back and forth would take too much time. Thanks for your answer. A pleasure to read. [Absolutely, your response was a pleasure as well.] I have many problems with this performance. I refer to the opening night, because I have not watched the video yet. [I have not yet watched last Saturday's broadcast either if this is the video you refer to.] 1. Meade's voice is non-homogeneous, she has a hard time in singing coloraturas and the variations are tasteless. The aria is strange because she does not go for the low mezzo version, nor the high one. It's a combination, which stylistically, sounds strange to me. I would have preferred a better execution of canto fiorito and without the high E. [With this I do agree, the E seems a bit high for her range, I think taking the B would have been much better for a stronger finish. As far as the fioritura goes, I'm not sure Meade posses the breathing technique to execute that in the style I would've heard out of "the big three" (Sutherland, Pavarotti, Horne). Meade seems to used forced air while "the big three" seemed to use a controlled release approach. I could be wrong in this, however forced air fioritura will simply not be as smooth or possess the varied color pallet as a controlled release of air would.] This is neither Colbran nor Patti version, it's just strange. [Quite possibly could be a unique version she worked out with her vocal coach(es) to best fit her voice.] 2. De Shong: I would normally say that H-aspirate coloratura is not ideal (well, Horne, Scalchi and Caballe used to do it occasionally) [I actually prefer H in coloratura as, in my opinion, it better defines the notes of the scales/arps and I find this very exciting]. But then, she uses H also in legato...which to my ears, sounds too bad. [Agreed, I prefer smooth uninterrupted air in legato.] Her fioritura passages are also simplified [This may be credited to Maestro Benini, he is notorious for his cuts. There were some cuts I was disappointed by as well]; they only do dacapo in the second aria, to avoid difficulties. She cannot trill either. [I agree. Watching DiDonato's masterclass certainly changed my perspective that voice trilling was not simply just wide vibrato...] 3. The duets....in the second duet, at giorno d'orror....their voices are meant to blend together perfectly, as if it was only one voice.....but that does not happen and they cut a lot.... [De Shong has an unusually dark voice for a mezzo and Meade's is it a bit brighter, I'm afraid this pairing wasn't mean to blend all that much, although the oddly tutti last note did blend well. (Oddly as I would prefer the mezzo take the lower harmonic to balance the top Soprano.)] 4. I also prefer a more dramatic soprano voice or a mezzo (Karine Deshayes has recently debuted the role); but what Meade does is beyond inaccurate or approximate coloratura singing. 5. Ildar Abdrazakov's Assur is weak, sounds vocally passed his prime and it's not a strong basso presence. Like all the others, he slows down in difficult passages. [I too was underwhelmed by his performance on 3/3. I would have preferred Green in this role as his voice had a much better presence in the hall. Overall Oroe's few moments on the stage were far preferred to Assar's. Green's voice was more powerful than Abdrazakov's, which consequently was overcome by the power of the orchestra during "Que' Numi furenti, Quell' ombre fremente"]. 6. Javier Camarena is the only one who knows how to sing Rossini, although I heard he was not so good in the HD (I will listen later). [Again, have not watched the HD, but Camarena practically stole the show on 3/3. I only wish that he sold his high note at the end of "E se ancor libero" a bit better, but it was still quite strong and impressive.] 7. My upload is not necessarily malicious. How are the reviewers who compare Meade with legends like Sutherland or Caballe and so on? It's two extremes....If my title was "Meade sings a wonderful, perfect Semiramide better than Sutherland" [What about Meade as Semiramide 2018, straight to the point, not as dramatic, probably as vanilla as it probably could be], not too many people would have a problem with that but it would be wrong. Whereas, technically, this is a disaster...the written notes are rarely sung and most of the difficult parts are avoided [
Ernie Rouque I agree with you. A small subset of opera fans (you know who I mean) take a perverse delight in denigrating singers they don’t like. But OMG, if you say anything critical about Callas, they’re suicidal. I like Meade (no, she’s not the new Sutherland), and I liked Deborah Voigt, another target of gay rage. Who cares. The vast majority of the opera going public, including me, feel like we’re getting a worthwhile performance.
a disaster? this a disaster? you don't have the slightest idea of opera, buddies! this is a soprano drammatico d'agilità singing Semiramide as it was originally conceived, with the real voice the role demands! of course is no Sutherland or Sills! those were lighter sopranos, coloratura sopranos, but Meade is a voice worth listening and enjoying! is a big voice, being used in a really inteligent way, introducing variations in the cabalettas, always on tune... Need more practise, pals, this ain't a disaster or a shame. some of your comments really are!
the sound is not full, most low notes are literally non-existent, and that wobble, my dead, it gets worse and worse as it climbs up the scale😵😵the high note nearly cracked at the end of bel raggio.
The most bizarre part of this performance is the audience reaction. One guy seemed to yell "brava" four times after a cringe worthy “Bel raggio lusinghier”. Well either the house was packed with Meade's extended family or the MET audience needs to turn their hearing aids up next time, because 20 years ago this performance would have been greeted with shock and contempt. It needs to be said, the world of opera is in serious decline if this is really considered good, or even average singing. Rossini singing in general lately has been rather depressing. Who are the great Rossini divas now? There are few great sopranos, but mostly we are seeing the likes of Meade, Jicia, Peretyatko, Remigio, Machaidze and Yende taking on Rossini's dramatic roles... oh what a mess!
There's a lot of bad singing coming out of the Met these days. What has happened to singers like Price, Sutherland, Tucker, Merill, etc. Maybe I'm stuck in a time warp but I just don't hear artistry from this house that compels me to want to listen. Perhaps the biggest joke however is selling Klaus Florian Vogt as a helden/dramatic tenor. I'd like to meet his agent.
What has happened to the Met? A few decades ago this woman wouldn't even be singing comprimaria roles! I heard Sutherland sing this aria in 1963. 'Nuff said! I had to turn off the recent Parsifal broadcast. The tenor sounded like an 18yr old who might have managed Pedrillo in Mozart's 'Abduction'!!!
I like Angela Meade but maybe her voice is not for Rossini, I feel that her voice is more for Verdi or even Wagner but not Rossini, anyway I will go to see Semiramide in the Live in HD transmissions, and I will have a better perception about her role in this opera
The voice is not huge in the theatre, she is a lyric. The problem is that she is pushing too much, and it sounds edgy....regardless of the repertoire. It's not a voice ideal for Rossini, but she could do it well with a proper training.
This is what I was saying. This woman is not even a Spinto soprano. She is a lyric soprano with a light voice. They confuse her physical size with the size of the voice. She is a light lyric soprano. She really is, I’m not hating not kidding.
The Met did the same thing with Gary Lakes 20 odd years ago...I don't think she is as awful as some make her out to be but this music does not suit her talents just like singing Wagner did not suit Gary Lakes.
I have attended live operatic performances for 35 years and have heard hundreds and hundreds of un-amplified singers. Angela Meade is not a light lyric soprano. She has the lush, voluminous sound of a spinto.
Angela was wonderful in Ernani., and I heard her sing Pace, Pace at the Tucker gala 5 years ago. She was wonderful then.Someone is pushing her to sing in a higher tessitura than is natural for her. She needs to solidify her middle register as a dramatic soprano before she attempts these coloratura roles.
.............." i want tell you the truth about Rossini, she heard a very artist singing barbiere an she sang like you....... He said oh, wonderful display but who's the composer????".............(here there isn't a wonderful display)............who said this Phrase??????
Haters gonna hate comme on dit Le live HD était magnifique, encore plus l'était le live, j'y étais. Alors effectivement cette grosse dame a un GROS vibrato et une ENORME caisse de raisonnance qu'elle use et re use. ON aime , on aime pas. Moultes différences avec les enregistrements de anderson et autre sutherland. Il en reste une virtuosité et un talent decoiffant Le met parie fort sur elle car son chant est virtuose, maîtrisé, et puissant a vous arracher les tympans! Elle impose sur scene et c'est ca quon veut!! Alors on peut continuer a faire son vieux bougon lyricomane a attendre la perfection a chaque représentation. Ou bien on peut juste admettre que la perfection n'existe pas, que les légendes meurent, d'autres naissent, et la plupart des chanteurs n'entrerons tout simplement pas dans lhistoire. Et on sen fout royalement. Ce qui compte cest le partage et l'instant présent En dénigrant autant tout ce qui est fait actuellement vous partissipez tout simplement a la mort de lopera
I am sorry I was not as impressed by this performance as by Cuberli or Anderson who premiered this production in 1990. Needless to say, Sutherland's before that.
vocally she sounds fine to me...nowhere close to your description of disaster at all...the execution of the coloratura is not bad either, as heavier voices tend to have problems when singing Rossini, not as clean as Anderson's, neither is it messy. Meade's is a powerful voice, and with Rossini's sometimes heavy orchestration, it can easily be heard and soar above the orchestra. Her voice is idea for Mathilde in Guillaume Tell, although I'd prefer that she sing it in French.
Another reason why I live in San Francisco instead of New York. Our opera crowd would not tolerate this. We may hardly ever "boo", but we know bad when we hear it. The Met has been digging itself deeper and deeper into the rabbit hole, and now with the James Levine controversy, and continued allowance for singing like this, I can't imagine the company will last much longer unless it takes on a major artistic transformation.
I don't really think that this is a disaster per se. I think the bigger issue is not having a clue what fach you should be singing. Thus insistence on selling Meade as a bel cantista is ridiculous. She has an ordinary voice but lots of singers gave really great performances with ordinary voices, elevating them through style and artistry. She has neither. Never has, never will.
agreed. Dramatically she expresses nothing here - for which I would blame the conductor as well. She seems very concerned with getting the colortura right, in which case the conductor should slow things down and allow her some space so she can deliver a flowing phrase. The choir is anemic. Generally speaking, I hear a lack of focus from all concerned.
Wobble queen for sure. But the problem is far worse than the wobbles. And the problem is that these student singers they are calling stars: 1. have little to no culture, musical or otherwise; and 2. have NO CLASS AND NO PEDIGREE. I suppose class or something close to it can be learned over a long long time, if you are lucky and capable, but class can't be bought. But really, class is something you either have or you don't. How does the absence of class manifests itself? Look no further than these singers' stage deportment and body language. All too often there is NONE. They have NO CHARISMA, not vocal, not interpretive, not corporeal. NOTHING. They do not know how to use their eyes and hands to underline the music they are singing. Which brings me to #3.: THEY DON'T KNOW WHAT THEY SING ABOUT. It's only notes to them, and hardly that. Currently the desperate marketing departments at the Metropolitan Opera and elsewhere are busy trying hard to sell us these mediocrities as "stars". But they won't/can't fool me. Names must be named: Angela Meade, Heidi Melton, Amber Wagner, Tamara Wilson, Latonia Moore, Jennifer Wilson, Jennifer Rowley, et.al. And yes, some of the others you have been profiling. It is a sad state of affairs for opera and classical singing and getting worse by the day.
I agree with all what you've said....no study, no class, no character, no style. It's getting much worse every year and I am surprised that nobody does anything...I don't know all those singers you have mentioned (that's probably good for me), but some of them have good voices, yet they are mediocre singers. We are far from a golden age of singing and the future of the operatic singing is pretty obscure. This star system has become exhausting.....they have been promoted till they've made it. Many people would buy them.....As Mrs. Peretyatko said once..."if you don't like me, go and buy Lady Gaga". Well, it's a good alternative.
I don't remember where exactly...on youtube somewhere at a video of hers...I am not sure if someone has replied to her...but if you find it, you can always reply to her haha. That was a few years ago, anyways.
also Lady Gaga always knows and means what she sings. And has stage presence. And sings in a fach (heh) she can handle. (I actually don't necessary direct this at Peretyatko per se, since I have not heard her sing, I'm saying this in the general vein of the original post).
You all are some bitter queens. Hell bent on referencing yourselves it seems when discussing mediocrity in the newer generations of singers. We get it, you really love Joan Sutherland - she's not singing anymore. If you actually approve of Monserrat Caballé's singing, I really can't trust your opinion.
What a mess. The MET would not do this for Sutherland.Horne forced them to do it so she could sing Arsace there w/ June Anderson. Ok I saw it ! But this.!! Mein Gott.
WHAT SCORE IS SHE SCREAMING??? AND THOSE RUNS ... ARE DIARRHEA RUNS AND THE EXCELENT CRACK ON THE HIGH E ! AND THE AMAZING CHICKEN COLORATURA IN THE DUETS AHAHAHAH - ROSSINI IN THE ZOO AHAHAHAHAH
Whay happened? I hate being to critical but is this woman serious??????????? She does have a voice - why doesn’t she use it differently? Opera is not for her.
Can someone please tell me the name of the last aria? The melody at the ending is quite explosive!! And if you also want to recomend a decent interpretation... 😅 Thanks
Rossini has made some changes in the score for Adelina Patti, it was not exactly Sutherland who's invented the high notes tradition in Rossini. Of course, they are often unsuitable and disturbing, especially in Colbran roles.
You are cruel and for some of you rude with this artist. I never understood why bel canto turns people so crazy and unobjective. If you have the whole recording, I look it for ;-)
Many singers are being rude to the composers. All singers can get far too desperate and get totally out there. It's a treacherous business. But people have to pay their bills and opera houses will do anything to put anything across these days as the entire art form has lost a huge audience over the last 20 years Anything to get success across. Even if it is not there. #themperorsnewclothes
This is an absolutely absurd post. The production is a truly excellent, exquisite one. Meade is glorious and is highly polished. Such crap is being posted here. This is a must-see production. So many specious, idiotic comments here, but those who must have tin ears. You might also want to read the review from the New York Times. www.nytimes.com/2018/02/20/arts/music/met-opera-semiramide-review.html
Sooo Many HATERS!! Let’s hear those of you who don’t like it, sing it. Try singing it! Give her a break, please . She’s amazing and I’m sure none of you NONE have the career or life he has. Support her please .
Au secours ! Mes oreilles !!!! io son disparato ... il bel canto e il canto rossiniano son morti !!!! Vite à nos CD ... Sutherland Anderson sauvez nous !!!!!!!
I think you are wrong (was going to say crazy, etc., but wanted to be polite to a hearing-impaired person). Please feel free to post more Angela “fails.”
why in god's name does the met miscast singers - she should not be singing Rossini or any bel canto reperatoire ughhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh the wobbling is awful
Unfortunately for the Met, they never got to hear the best Semiramide ever, even though they did get to hear Sutherland. The Met (in its infinite wisdom) never heard a single Rossini or Donizetti title by Caballé Caballé and Horne performed Semiramide together all over the place, but never at the Met = Your Loss Lucky Horne, she got to sing this with both Sutherland and Caballé (the voice blends and trills even better with the latter) To sample what you missed try this: ua-cam.com/video/3l2272AwM10/v-deo.html
I'm listening to the Saturday broadcast of this opera, and I don't fault the singers. It's the conductor at fault. HIs whole language is forte and agitato, no touch whatever for bel canto. I wouldn't trust him to conduct the Star Spangled Banner. Though we all miss June Anderson and company, Meade is fine here, as I see it; but none of the singers have much of a chance with this conductor.
Quelle catastrophe! Aucun sens du bel canto. La dernière note aiguë de la première partie de l'air est hors de propos. Et ce vibrato insupportable. C'est réellement poussif. Où sont Caballe, Anderson et Sutherland?
paminan yes, I Know that Caballe and Anderson are still alive! Thanks God! About bel canto, Didonato for example, us one I admire thé most! (Sorry for my English!)
Caballe était autrement "poussive" : elle était incapable de chanter des vocalises à pleine voix et à l'époque de Semiramide (que j'ai vue) on n'entendait qu'une note sur deux dans les colorature. Ne parlons pas des paroles... Meade est infiniment plus rossinienne que Caballe, et plus encore dans Ermione (où la pauvre Caballe se fit siffler) que dans Semiramide. Quant à Sutherland, elle n'a jamais été capable de chanter "Dolce pensiero" dans la tonalité originale en public.
Dear Angela. Please ignore your haters.
You have done an admirable job in this difficult role and I enjoyed it.As I always say, no singer is perfect and maybe you are not my favourite soprano but you know what ?
You delivered the goods and unless your critics can do better let them hush.
Heard Angela Meade in Ermione 2 years ago in Paris : she is nothing short of AMAZING ! Recordings do not justice to the voice, which can sound shrill and with excessive wooble. Hearing her live is completely different. People forget that there is a huge difference between a broadcast and hearing singers in an opera house ! Just look at her performance at the last Tucker Gala... That girl can sing !!!
she has an interesting voice. Its exciting to hear high notes sung with so much brute strength.
I SIMPLY CAN T BELIEVE WHAT I M READING BELOW! are you kidding me? this is not what you call a wobble. this is a vibrato.
ANGELA MEADE is one the the finest singers out there! A REAL operatic voice. AND... this is not Handel. SORRY! That said, I m sure she s been happier with other performances.
For those nasty queens, never satisfied with today's singers and stuck in the past... GET A LIFE! So sick of it!
miuzefreak do you even know what a wobble is dear? This is a classic example of a vibrato that fluctuates too much off the center of the fundamental pitch. It isn’t subjective. It’s objectively a wobble
this can get into a textbook for teaching what wobble is😂 a result of placing the voice backward instead of pushing forward. Not opera I'm afraid
I'd still pay to watch her rather than Netrebko. She sounds heavenly. We will never have another callas nor Sutherland. We do however still have the likes of Angela.
Well, I couldn't sing it . . .
Sounds fine to me. I hear a distinctive vibrato, not a wobble. Big difference. Have been a Meade fan since she was at AVA.
Imagine singers in their mid 20s giving masterclasses! Masterclasses?!
If they want to bring Semiramide back why not also bring the TRUE Semiramide, June Anderson back too? She was so underrated and under-appreciated. She would still do a better job in singing the coloratura than Angela. I don't need high notes, a smooth, well executed coloratura is enough.
I saw June Anderson as Semiramide at the Met and she was terrible! She was way past her prime.
Nolan Go I saw June Anderson as Semiramide, and she was marvelous! Better than Sutherland in this role. But she is pretty much retired now.
I've heard a lot worse!....
I happen to like Angela Meade, she has a big voice with a wide vibrato which is maybe more prominent in the higher range and is not something that is commonly heard. However, I have attended one of these performances of Semiramide and Mrs. Meade was an incredible force to behold on the stage and has tremendous control over the power of her voice and the agility of her runs; I find her voice to refreshingly beautiful in an age where more musicians seem to shy away from the intensity and power required to perform in front of audiences that number in the thousands. I very much enjoyed her performance as did several others that were in attendance. It is one thing to have an opinion on whether or not you like the particular style in which an opera star sings, it is another to be outright distasteful and post a video bashing someone because of some insecurity that you feel like taking out on someone else. My suggestion to you would be to find a performance that you can enjoy and focus on that rather than on a performance that you can not associate with and anytime you post a video with malicious intent, have the decency to at least upload a video of you performing this piece in a fashion you perceive to be better so that at least you will have some credibility to your name. This upload is very embarrassing for you and I hope that at some point humiliation will help you realize what you have done here and at least rename the title and change the description.
This is my favourite type of comment. "sing it yourself". Isn't this too much to ask from the audience? They pay tickets, they applaud, they spend 2-3 hours in the theatre, sometimes for a mediocre performance like the one above and if they are unsatisfied, in your opinion, they have to sing the piece? That's nonsense. In every other job, if the employee does so many mistakes as Meade did only in those excerpts, it would definitely get a salary revision or even get fired. With these stars, nothing happens, except some comments from people who still understand music, yes the ones you insult there.
The problem with little Angela is NOT only the uncontrolled, disturbing vibrato. First of all, there is the way she handles the coloratura run; those are NOT the written notes; it's all messy, slowed down, some aspirate h etc. Another issue is the lack of an homogeneous sound; when she attempts to sing in forte, she sounds shrill and strained, as if someone else was taking over from backstage. The lousy legato; it works well in slow passages, but when she has to sing fast coloratura, it gets messy.
Finally, it's NOT my malicious intent, I think it's rather the Met's malicious intent to sell this as a bel canto piece. Because no matter what you say, this is not bel canto.
While in other fields of work, mistakes leading to a dock in pay may be a very real situation, seldom does that happen in the field of classical music, especially at the top. If a singer is so bad that people refuse to come to their performances, they simply will not be asked back. As far as musicians go, especially the ones with tenure, their salaries are very rarely, if at all, influenced by bad reviews. In fact, I know specific cases where a musician has practically lost their ability to play and still gets paid their regular salary.
As far as sopranos go, there are several famous go-to sopranos (like Callas) who's scales weren't quite as defined as maybe Damrau's or Sutherland's. Of course my favorite of all time was Horne, but not everyone can have that clear articulation in their runs as I have personally learned from recordings dating back to the beginning of recording history. In most situations, having both a big enough voice and clear enough runs is a fantasy; usually it comes down to either or. With piano, yes, the accuracy of the scales would be most important. With orchestra... in an enormous hall... the lead requires a bigger voice and when you're pushing that much air, it is more difficult to articulate each note of the scale. From what I could hear up in the first row of the dress circle, the runs were very accurate and the voice was very rounded while still being able to rise above the orchestra at forte. Not every run had the grace of Cabelle's performance, but Meade is another singer entirely. By and large the accuracy of the runs isn't going to matter if they're ultimately overcome by the strength of an orchestra.
For Bel Canto, I think the real stars were intended for the Castrato roles, like Arsace, where the role tends to be a bit more technically oriented and virtuosic. Fortunately and unfortunately, the practice no longer exists, but the legendary power of those voices is somewhat lost in the mezzo substitute. So I agree it would be nicer to have that perfect harmony of big voice and accurate runs, however in practicality, it's either or and in my personal opinion, I prefer the big voice in the star soprano roles. I want to hear her do the runs AND rise above the orchestra live from the audience. Maybe if they were to record this without an audience and therefore not have the need for her to produce a big voice, the runs would be more accurate, but for now, I am satisfied with what she's giving.
My problem with your upload and post is not your opinion, but rather the very public way you're expressing it. The MET has several productions in which you may choose from and if you do not happen to like this production and/or cast, then maybe go for another or go to another company or just find a recording that satisfies you so that you don't feel the need to so publicly put down your fellow person. Basically, if you're going to post the video, let people come to their own conclusions. I appreciate your description change, but I still think the title is unnecessarily malicious. These are my opinions however, so it is what it is, but still... not everyone can like every performance and it's finding those performances that you feel simpatico with that make life a little easier.
Thanks for your answer. A pleasure to read. I have many problems with this performance. I refer to the opening night, because I have not watched the video yet.
1. Meade's voice is non-homogeneous, she has a hard time in singing coloraturas and the variations are tasteless. The aria is strange because she does not go for the low mezzo version, nor the high one. It's a combination, which stylistically, sounds strange to me. I would have preferred a better execution of canto fiorito and without the high E. This is neither Colbran nor Patti version, it's just strange.
2. De Shong: I would normally say that H-aspirate coloratura is not ideal (well, Horne, Scalchi and Caballe used to do it occasionally). But then, she uses H also in legato...which to my ears, sounds too bad. Her fioritura passages are also simplified; they only do dacapo in the second aria, to avoid difficulties. She cannot trill either.
3. The duets....in the second duet, at giorno d'orror....their voices are meant to blend together perfectly, as if it was only one voice.....but that does not happen and they cut a lot....
4. I also prefer a more dramatic soprano voice or a mezzo (Karine Deshayes has recently debuted the role); but what Meade does is beyond inaccurate or approximate coloratura singing.
5. Ildar Abdrazakov's Assur is weak, sounds vocally passed his prime and it's not a strong basso presence. Like all the others, he slows down in difficult passages.
6. Javier Camarena is the only one who knows how to sing Rossini, although I heard he was not so good in the HD (I will listen later).
7. My upload is not necessarily malicious. How are the reviewers who compare Meade with legends like Sutherland or Caballe and so on? It's two extremes....If my title was "Meade sings a wonderful, perfect Semiramide better than Sutherland", not too many people would have a problem with that but it would be wrong. Whereas, technically, this is a disaster...the written notes are rarely sung and most of the difficult parts are avoided.
8. I love this opera, I have seen many productions and listened to all the available live recordings. I simply feel that they have ruined it with these singers, this conductor and so many cuts. The same happened in 2010 when they staged Armida for late Fleming. That was equally bad or worse. And yes, no matter how hard we try, not everyone can like our favourite singers.
9. Arsace is a contralto role....Daniela Barcellona used to be very convincing (her debut in 1998 was AMAZING) and I also love Ewa Podles. Now of course, there are hardly any real mezzos around or contraltos, but I think that singers like Teresa Iervolino would be more suitable. The castrato art is gone, and countertenors cannot do justice (Faggioli was horrible last year)
10. I have nothing against Meade; although I never liked her voice/style, I used to ignore her. But this is just too much. She has sung so many belcanto roles in a very anti-belcanto way. I am not a fan of leggeros, never been. I even dislike high endings in arias, especially in Rossini where usually, the roles are not very high. The dark voice trained for canto fiorito to sing the ideal Semiramide is yet to appear. There were some great ones along the history though, some lighter, some heavier, but they had something to say in the role and this is why they became sort of references. I don't think it's ever been any perfect Semiramide, but in this performance, I hardly find anything redeeming; boring at its best.
Just using your response to reply as there's a bit to reply to and to go back and forth would take too much time.
Thanks for your answer. A pleasure to read. [Absolutely, your response was a pleasure as well.] I have many problems with this performance. I refer to the opening night, because I have not watched the video yet. [I have not yet watched last Saturday's broadcast either if this is the video you refer to.]
1. Meade's voice is non-homogeneous, she has a hard time in singing coloraturas and the variations are tasteless. The aria is strange because she does not go for the low mezzo version, nor the high one. It's a combination, which stylistically, sounds strange to me. I would have preferred a better execution of canto fiorito and without the high E. [With this I do agree, the E seems a bit high for her range, I think taking the B would have been much better for a stronger finish. As far as the fioritura goes, I'm not sure Meade posses the breathing technique to execute that in the style I would've heard out of "the big three" (Sutherland, Pavarotti, Horne). Meade seems to used forced air while "the big three" seemed to use a controlled release approach. I could be wrong in this, however forced air fioritura will simply not be as smooth or possess the varied color pallet as a controlled release of air would.] This is neither Colbran nor Patti version, it's just strange. [Quite possibly could be a unique version she worked out with her vocal coach(es) to best fit her voice.]
2. De Shong: I would normally say that H-aspirate coloratura is not ideal (well, Horne, Scalchi and Caballe used to do it occasionally) [I actually prefer H in coloratura as, in my opinion, it better defines the notes of the scales/arps and I find this very exciting]. But then, she uses H also in legato...which to my ears, sounds too bad. [Agreed, I prefer smooth uninterrupted air in legato.] Her fioritura passages are also simplified [This may be credited to Maestro Benini, he is notorious for his cuts. There were some cuts I was disappointed by as well]; they only do dacapo in the second aria, to avoid difficulties. She cannot trill either. [I agree. Watching DiDonato's masterclass certainly changed my perspective that voice trilling was not simply just wide vibrato...]
3. The duets....in the second duet, at giorno d'orror....their voices are meant to blend together perfectly, as if it was only one voice.....but that does not happen and they cut a lot.... [De Shong has an unusually dark voice for a mezzo and Meade's is it a bit brighter, I'm afraid this pairing wasn't mean to blend all that much, although the oddly tutti last note did blend well. (Oddly as I would prefer the mezzo take the lower harmonic to balance the top Soprano.)]
4. I also prefer a more dramatic soprano voice or a mezzo (Karine Deshayes has recently debuted the role); but what Meade does is beyond inaccurate or approximate coloratura singing.
5. Ildar Abdrazakov's Assur is weak, sounds vocally passed his prime and it's not a strong basso presence. Like all the others, he slows down in difficult passages. [I too was underwhelmed by his performance on 3/3. I would have preferred Green in this role as his voice had a much better presence in the hall. Overall Oroe's few moments on the stage were far preferred to Assar's. Green's voice was more powerful than Abdrazakov's, which consequently was overcome by the power of the orchestra during "Que' Numi furenti, Quell' ombre fremente"].
6. Javier Camarena is the only one who knows how to sing Rossini, although I heard he was not so good in the HD (I will listen later). [Again, have not watched the HD, but Camarena practically stole the show on 3/3. I only wish that he sold his high note at the end of "E se ancor libero" a bit better, but it was still quite strong and impressive.]
7. My upload is not necessarily malicious. How are the reviewers who compare Meade with legends like Sutherland or Caballe and so on? It's two extremes....If my title was "Meade sings a wonderful, perfect Semiramide better than Sutherland" [What about Meade as Semiramide 2018, straight to the point, not as dramatic, probably as vanilla as it probably could be], not too many people would have a problem with that but it would be wrong. Whereas, technically, this is a disaster...the written notes are rarely sung and most of the difficult parts are avoided [
Ernie Rouque I agree with you. A small subset of opera fans (you know who I mean) take a perverse delight in denigrating singers they don’t like. But OMG, if you say anything critical about Callas, they’re suicidal. I like Meade (no, she’s not the new Sutherland), and I liked Deborah Voigt, another target of gay rage. Who cares. The vast majority of the opera going public, including me, feel like we’re getting a worthwhile performance.
a disaster? this a disaster? you don't have the slightest idea of opera, buddies! this is a soprano drammatico d'agilità singing Semiramide as it was originally conceived, with the real voice the role demands! of course is no Sutherland or Sills! those were lighter sopranos, coloratura sopranos, but Meade is a voice worth listening and enjoying! is a big voice, being used in a really inteligent way, introducing variations in the cabalettas, always on tune... Need more practise, pals, this ain't a disaster or a shame. some of your comments really are!
the sound is not full, most low notes are literally non-existent, and that wobble, my dead, it gets worse and worse as it climbs up the scale😵😵the high note nearly cracked at the end of bel raggio.
I confess I've heard more attractive police sirens.
i just heard her in HD and it was fabulous. haters gonna hate, but i love Angela Meade and her coloratura soprano is flawless.
Uno strazio dell’anima, con quelle agilità cavalline e quegli strilli inverecondi spacciati per acuti
The most bizarre part of this performance is the audience reaction. One guy seemed to yell "brava" four times after a cringe worthy “Bel raggio lusinghier”. Well either the house was packed with Meade's extended family or the MET audience needs to turn their hearing aids up next time, because 20 years ago this performance would have been greeted with shock and contempt. It needs to be said, the world of opera is in serious decline if this is really considered good, or even average singing. Rossini singing in general lately has been rather depressing. Who are the great Rossini divas now? There are few great sopranos, but mostly we are seeing the likes of Meade, Jicia, Peretyatko, Remigio, Machaidze and Yende taking on Rossini's dramatic roles... oh what a mess!
I prefer Bartolli with this aria.
in your opinion, who counts as a Rossini diva yet? Would like to know :)
I agree with almost everything... But I would take Yende out of that list. In my opinion, she is the one great hope we have for the future.
Marika B-H she is even worse
edita gruberova even thou the MET puts out the best productions, the audience is known to clap for.. anything...
There's a lot of bad singing coming out of the Met these days. What has happened to singers like Price, Sutherland, Tucker, Merill, etc. Maybe I'm stuck in a time warp but I just don't hear artistry from this house that compels me to want to listen. Perhaps the biggest joke however is selling Klaus Florian Vogt as a helden/dramatic tenor. I'd like to meet his agent.
have you heard Nadine Sierra? :)
All opera houses in the world incl Bayreuth sell Vogt as the top Heldentenor. The MET is just one of many
Murder on the High C's methinks
What has happened to the Met? A few decades ago this woman wouldn't even be singing comprimaria roles! I heard Sutherland sing this aria in 1963. 'Nuff said! I had to turn off the recent Parsifal broadcast. The tenor sounded like an 18yr old who might have managed Pedrillo in Mozart's 'Abduction'!!!
Joan sutherland jamás será superada en este aria, ni cuando ya era una soprano más madura.
The final acute is awful.At the edge of an "accident"
I like Angela Meade but maybe her voice is not for Rossini, I feel that her voice is more for Verdi or even Wagner but not Rossini, anyway I will go to see Semiramide in the Live in HD transmissions, and I will have a better perception about her role in this opera
The voice is not huge in the theatre, she is a lyric. The problem is that she is pushing too much, and it sounds edgy....regardless of the repertoire. It's not a voice ideal for Rossini, but she could do it well with a proper training.
This is what I was saying. This woman is not even a Spinto soprano. She is a lyric soprano with a light voice. They confuse her physical size with the size of the voice. She is a light lyric soprano. She really is, I’m not hating not kidding.
The Met did the same thing with Gary Lakes 20 odd years ago...I don't think she is as awful as some make her out to be but this music does not suit her talents just like singing Wagner did not suit Gary Lakes.
I have attended live operatic performances for 35 years and have heard hundreds and hundreds of un-amplified singers. Angela Meade is not a light lyric soprano. She has the lush, voluminous sound of a spinto.
Angela was wonderful in Ernani., and I heard her sing Pace, Pace at the Tucker gala 5 years ago. She was wonderful then.Someone is pushing her to sing in a higher tessitura than is natural for her. She needs to solidify her middle register as a dramatic soprano before she attempts these coloratura roles.
she sounds like a theremin at times.
.............." i want tell you the truth about Rossini, she heard a very artist singing barbiere an she sang like you....... He said oh, wonderful display but who's the composer????".............(here there isn't a wonderful display)............who said this Phrase??????
Haters gonna hate comme on dit
Le live HD était magnifique, encore plus l'était le live, j'y étais.
Alors effectivement cette grosse dame a un GROS vibrato et une ENORME caisse de raisonnance qu'elle use et re use. ON aime , on aime pas.
Moultes différences avec les enregistrements de anderson et autre sutherland. Il en reste une virtuosité et un talent decoiffant
Le met parie fort sur elle car son chant est virtuose, maîtrisé, et puissant a vous arracher les tympans! Elle impose sur scene et c'est ca quon veut!!
Alors on peut continuer a faire son vieux bougon lyricomane a attendre la perfection a chaque représentation. Ou bien on peut juste admettre que la perfection n'existe pas, que les légendes meurent, d'autres naissent, et la plupart des chanteurs n'entrerons tout simplement pas dans lhistoire. Et on sen fout royalement. Ce qui compte cest le partage et l'instant présent
En dénigrant autant tout ce qui est fait actuellement vous partissipez tout simplement a la mort de lopera
Viene ingaggiata....il pubblico applaude...vuol dire che piace con tutti i suoi pregi e diffetti vocali....
So Awful!!! I wonder how they can applaude? The pubblic is paying or being paid to upplaude??
I am sorry I was not as impressed by this performance as by Cuberli or Anderson who premiered this production in 1990. Needless to say, Sutherland's before that.
Horne and Anderson slayed this production. This is well...It is what it is.
vocally she sounds fine to me...nowhere close to your description of disaster at all...the execution of the coloratura is not bad either, as heavier voices tend to have problems when singing Rossini, not as clean as Anderson's, neither is it messy. Meade's is a powerful voice, and with Rossini's sometimes heavy orchestration, it can easily be heard and soar above the orchestra. Her voice is idea for Mathilde in Guillaume Tell, although I'd prefer that she sing it in French.
Another reason why I live in San Francisco instead of New York. Our opera crowd would not tolerate this. We may hardly ever "boo", but we know bad when we hear it. The Met has been digging itself deeper and deeper into the rabbit hole, and now with the James Levine controversy, and continued allowance for singing like this, I can't imagine the company will last much longer unless it takes on a major artistic transformation.
I don't really think that this is a disaster per se. I think the bigger issue is not having a clue what fach you should be singing. Thus insistence on selling Meade as a bel cantista is ridiculous. She has an ordinary voice but lots of singers gave really great performances with ordinary voices, elevating them through style and artistry. She has neither. Never has, never will.
agreed. Dramatically she expresses nothing here - for which I would blame the conductor as well. She seems very concerned with getting the colortura right, in which case the conductor should slow things down and allow her some space so she can deliver a flowing phrase. The choir is anemic. Generally speaking, I hear a lack of focus from all concerned.
Wobble queen for sure. But the problem is far worse than the wobbles. And the problem is that these student singers they are calling stars: 1. have little to no culture, musical or otherwise; and 2. have NO CLASS AND NO PEDIGREE. I suppose class or something close to it can be learned over a long long time, if you are lucky and capable, but class can't be bought. But really, class is something you either have or you don't. How does the absence of class manifests itself? Look no further than these singers' stage deportment and body language. All too often there is NONE. They have NO CHARISMA, not vocal, not interpretive, not corporeal. NOTHING. They do not know how to use their eyes and hands to underline the music they are singing. Which brings me to #3.: THEY DON'T KNOW WHAT THEY SING ABOUT. It's only notes to them, and hardly that. Currently the desperate marketing departments at the Metropolitan Opera and elsewhere are busy trying hard to sell us these mediocrities as "stars". But they won't/can't fool me. Names must be named: Angela Meade, Heidi Melton, Amber Wagner, Tamara Wilson, Latonia Moore, Jennifer Wilson, Jennifer Rowley, et.al. And yes, some of the others you have been profiling. It is a sad state of affairs for opera and classical singing and getting worse by the day.
I agree with all what you've said....no study, no class, no character, no style. It's getting much worse every year and I am surprised that nobody does anything...I don't know all those singers you have mentioned (that's probably good for me), but some of them have good voices, yet they are mediocre singers. We are far from a golden age of singing and the future of the operatic singing is pretty obscure. This star system has become exhausting.....they have been promoted till they've made it. Many people would buy them.....As Mrs. Peretyatko said once..."if you don't like me, go and buy Lady Gaga". Well, it's a good alternative.
I don't remember where exactly...on youtube somewhere at a video of hers...I am not sure if someone has replied to her...but if you find it, you can always reply to her haha. That was a few years ago, anyways.
also Lady Gaga always knows and means what she sings. And has stage presence. And sings in a fach (heh) she can handle. (I actually don't necessary direct this at Peretyatko per se, since I have not heard her sing, I'm saying this in the general vein of the original post).
You all are some bitter queens. Hell bent on referencing yourselves it seems when discussing mediocrity in the newer generations of singers. We get it, you really love Joan Sutherland - she's not singing anymore. If you actually approve of Monserrat Caballé's singing, I really can't trust your opinion.
For me, not too much Meade. Honey, water and yeast, YES!
It sounds ok but she does not use the uneveness in the voice to express the character.
I´M FEELING LIKE AN EXTRA CRAZY COW NOW... MY HEAD IS WOBBLING ...TERRIBLEEEEE
CRAZY COW i
Oh my god! Poor girl! She is just starting are there no mentors out there for her?
phénomène vocal:merveilleux
In short: do you sing? If not your opinion doesn't matter. 😚
What a mess. The MET would not do this for Sutherland.Horne forced them to do it so she could sing Arsace there w/ June Anderson. Ok I saw it !
But this.!! Mein Gott.
WHAT SCORE IS SHE SCREAMING??? AND THOSE RUNS ... ARE DIARRHEA RUNS AND THE EXCELENT CRACK ON THE HIGH E ! AND THE AMAZING CHICKEN COLORATURA IN THE DUETS AHAHAHAH - ROSSINI IN THE ZOO AHAHAHAHAH
Whay happened? I hate being to critical but is this woman serious??????????? She does have a voice - why doesn’t she use it differently? Opera is not for her.
She is an amazing dramatic soprano,but Coloratura NO,and this proves it.BTW some people will shout "brava" just to show off.
She ist not dramatic soprano-she is an not finished student of singing.No legato, no appoggio, just pushing the voice...open hint notes.Amateur.
Can someone please tell me the name of the last aria? The melody at the ending is quite explosive!! And if you also want to recomend a decent interpretation... 😅 Thanks
This Isin`t Rossini. Not even an attempt.
carlos sandoval 7i
Good voice, but not for this!!!!
Joyce DiDonato nails it !
Rossini has made some changes in the score for Adelina Patti, it was not exactly Sutherland who's invented the high notes tradition in Rossini. Of course, they are often unsuitable and disturbing, especially in Colbran roles.
that and JDD is simply a better singer.
Yes, I also saw di Donato in the part and she was incredible; she's also a fine actress
You are cruel and for some of you rude with this artist. I never understood why bel canto turns people so crazy and unobjective. If you have the whole recording, I look it for ;-)
I think she's rude and disrespectful towards the composer. Has he written those messy coloratura runs? I doubt, really.
Many singers are being rude to the composers. All singers can get far too desperate and get totally out there. It's a treacherous business. But people have to pay their bills and opera houses will do anything to put anything across these days as the entire art form has lost a huge audience over the last 20 years Anything to get success across. Even if it is not there. #themperorsnewclothes
This is an absolutely absurd post. The production is a truly excellent, exquisite one. Meade is glorious and is highly polished. Such crap is being posted here. This is a must-see production. So many specious, idiotic comments here, but those who must have tin ears. You might also want to read the review from the New York Times. www.nytimes.com/2018/02/20/arts/music/met-opera-semiramide-review.html
Let's do what New York Times says. Don't think, it's too hard for you.
Sooo Many HATERS!! Let’s hear those of you who don’t like it, sing it. Try singing it! Give her a break, please . She’s amazing and I’m sure none of you NONE have the career or life he has. Support her please .
With some doughnuts yeah :P
Au secours ! Mes oreilles !!!! io son disparato ... il bel canto e il canto rossiniano son morti !!!! Vite à nos CD ... Sutherland Anderson sauvez nous !!!!!!!
Damn!!! That is God AWFUL.
Monstruos!
I am DIZZY....
Aweful just aweful
I am confused. Is it awesome or awful?
the trouble with hiring up to 5 years ahead!
I think you are wrong (was going to say crazy, etc., but wanted to be polite to a hearing-impaired person). Please feel free to post more Angela “fails.”
I am also going to be polite and tell you that you have a great imagination if you consider this as being good singing.
What a disappointment. Malcanto assoluto.
Ehhh? That's real what I'm listening? All is exaggerated in this interpretation and of course the bel canto is death.
Enrique Rivera i
Meglio fora se avesse taciuto
why in god's name does the met miscast singers - she should not be singing Rossini or any bel canto reperatoire ughhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh the wobbling is awful
I think her voice is too big for this role and she shouldn't this type of role. I like her voice, but I don't think Rossini is in her fach.
Unfortunately for the Met, they never got to hear the best Semiramide ever, even though they did get to hear Sutherland.
The Met (in its infinite wisdom) never heard a single Rossini or Donizetti title by Caballé
Caballé and Horne performed Semiramide together all over the place, but never at the Met = Your Loss
Lucky Horne, she got to sing this with both Sutherland and Caballé (the voice blends and trills even better with the latter)
To sample what you missed try this:
ua-cam.com/video/3l2272AwM10/v-deo.html
LISTEN to ELIZABETH RETHBERG, HINA SPANI, ELEANOR STEBER. This PERFORMER has A WOBBLE.
OMG - this is so bad (especially the last notes), it could qualify for comedy. Shudder!
I'm listening to the Saturday broadcast of this opera, and I don't fault the singers. It's the conductor at fault. HIs whole language is forte and agitato, no touch whatever for bel canto. I wouldn't trust him to conduct the Star Spangled Banner. Though we all miss June Anderson and company, Meade is fine here, as I see it; but none of the singers have much of a chance with this conductor.
Angela should stick to Wagnerian roles-- coloratura singing is definitely not her strong suit!
Quelle catastrophe! Aucun sens du bel canto. La dernière note aiguë de la première partie de l'air est hors de propos. Et ce vibrato insupportable. C'est réellement poussif. Où sont Caballe, Anderson et Sutherland?
Well, obviously at least two of them are dead -- I don't know about Anderson.
No. There are still some good voices around, they just don't sing at the Met. PS: Only Sutherland has passed away.
Reid Condit only one, thanks God! Joan Sutherland, but Caballe and Anderson are still alive.
paminan yes, I Know that Caballe and Anderson are still alive! Thanks God!
About bel canto, Didonato for example, us one I admire thé most! (Sorry for my English!)
Caballe était autrement "poussive" : elle était incapable de chanter des vocalises à pleine voix et à l'époque de Semiramide (que j'ai vue) on n'entendait qu'une note sur deux dans les colorature. Ne parlons pas des paroles... Meade est infiniment plus rossinienne que Caballe, et plus encore dans Ermione (où la pauvre Caballe se fit siffler) que dans Semiramide. Quant à Sutherland, elle n'a jamais été capable de chanter "Dolce pensiero" dans la tonalité originale en public.
Ooouch