Zinka Milanov - thrilling LIVE moments.
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- Опубліковано 5 жов 2024
- What others say about Zinka:
Arturo Toscanini: “Our Verdi would have loved this voice.…I have rarely heard such a soprano for Verdi.…If I would conduct again the complete Rigoletto, she would be my Gilda.”
Rosa Ponselle: “I will say emphatically that her Leonora in Trovatore, among other roles she sang splendidly, was the peer of any soprano's in my experience. (Yes, my own included.) .…Milanov's was an amazingly beautiful voice.…In the end, she earned a place in operatic history and it was an Olympian one.”
Maria Callas: “I was afraid she could see straight through me. If you have any false part, as an artist or a person, she will see it. She cannot be fooled. She was gracious, but still I was quite intimidated.”
Giulietta Simionato: “…I positively aver that if she had performed with regularity in Italy, she would have been adored by this most discerning and fanatical of publics.…In her presence, certain other sopranos would not have been ranked supreme in the Italian theaters. This I emphatically assure you.”
Joan Sutherland and Richard Bonynge: (She) "What so impressed us about her Desdemona was how clear the voice was, and how instantly available to the ear at every dynamic level. There was no hesitation [in phonation], no noise or buzz in the tone. The sound would hover in the hall after she had ceased to produce it. And the beauty! She could still make indescribably beautiful tone and sculpt terribly moving phrases. We always went to hear her when we could, and her vocal way in Otello is a bright memory. Yes, I indeed thought of her when I returned to Desdemona myself in late career." (He) “Zinka Milanov was a great influence on both of us. Her luscious, creamy voice is one of the greatest sounds we ever heard, and we count ourselves very lucky to have been able to hear her many times. She is an adorable lady for whom we have the greatest respect and love.”
Giuseppe Di Stefano: “There was not a greater soprano or singer. To say there was, I tell you it is not correct. She had rivals, not superiors. If she was trouble, it is because she wanted everything to be beautiful, that she is afraid someone betrays [doesn’t sing on] her level.…I can say that I am very happy that I have two beautiful recordings with Zinka, this has always given me great pleasure. Also, she is a model of the style in each opera [Forza and Gioconda]. She is not Italian, but she understands everything. Everything!”
Robert Merrill: “The most glorious dramatic soprano I ever sang with!”
Regina Resnik: “That great voice would resound around the Metropolitan Opera House long after she halted the note. Forte or piano, it didn’t matter-either one. I don’t have to put on a record to hear her voice when I want to, either. I can call that sound to mind any time I want just in my head. That’s what being unforgettable means.”
Franco Corelli: “She was a wonderful singer. I admired her beauty. I also admired her style and technique. She had a voice that was both free and beautiful. I loved to sing with her.”
Leontyne Price (telegram): “I salute as a fellow traveler the legend of you, the majesty of your career, the greatness of your artistry, and I thank you for the inspiration you have given me. Love and profound admiration, Leontyne”
Christa Ludwig: “Zinka Milanov-this voice is really the voice of our century and not surpassed by other wonderful artists. Her recording of ‘Pace, pace’ is my heart’s inspiration.…”
If I heard ONE note like these from any contemporary singer I would be back at the Met every night.
Some of the comments here questioning her greatness are totally off base. Milanov was _unquestionably_ one of the greatest singers of the 20th century. Full stop. Her voice was charismatic, and her technique allowed her to sing heavy and demanding repertory at a very high level for over 30 years. Her ‘limited’ repertory was not a deficiency, but rather a sign that she knew what she excelled at. And as some have noted, she sang many roles that were not recorded. Her career trajectory is pretty much the gold standard, and one that professional singers should emulate. Certainly, she had a ‘prime,’ but she never had a vocal crisis, and she stopped exactly at the right time.
Compare that with Callas and Tebaldi, whom some have mentioned. I love both more than Milanov, and Callas is my favourite. But both had major vocal crises in their mid-late 30s from which they never fully recovered, and essentially ended their careers with their voices in tatters. (Yes, Tebaldi too.) Callas’s repertory was wide-ranging, but that breadth displayed _both_ her strengths and her weaknesses, and likely contributed to her vocal decline. All that “a soprano should be able to sing everything” stuff she said was just post hoc justification of unwise repertory choices.
Note too that Milanov was a member of the previous generation of singers. She was a young contemporary of Ponselle. When Callas and Tebaldi were encountering vocal crises in their late 30s, Milanov was still singing very respectably in her mid 50s. And her prime was in the 1930s and 1940s. So most of her recorded legacy, which originates from the 1950s when LPs proliferated and when radio broadcast quality improved, actually documents the latter half of her career.
This is not to say that she was perfect. She wasn’t. But please, let’s give the woman the respect she deserves.
Perfectly said, thank you
You can have all the subjective opinions you want, but that doesn’t make them factual.
@@BookofNote We’re talking about art. It’s all “subjective.” But we can say that professionals are probably better than amateurs even if there is no “objective” measure. It’s about whether one provides reasons to back up one’s positions as fairly as one can.
Saying that Tebaldi ended with her voice in tatters is the opinion of someone who doesn't want her. In the same way I could say the same about Milanov, who ended up with a voice as old as it smelled like moths, moth-eaten, that's how she sounds in her Ballos in maschera from the 50s and in her Forzas y Cheniers from the 50s.
Tebaldi ended up with her timbre intact, Milanov always had an old woman's voice and the fact that in the 40s there was another Milanov is a lie, she was always erratic musically and it's better not to even talk about her interpretations that are not a reference.
There is a reason Tebaldi is one of the great sopranos in the history of opera, along with Sutherland, Ponselle, Nilsson and Callas too (although I don't like her), all international artists, while Milanov was only the housewife soprano of the Metropolitan , a singer who only sang in one theater and was never an international artist and is never considered among the greats of history, who can be Flagstad, Ponselle, Callas, Nilsson, Tebaldi, Price and even Mirella Freni is more in the history of the opera that Zinka Milanov who, in addition to always having an old woman's voice, sounds like a chicken when she sings.
ER1CwC: Rodolfo Celletti thought Zinka Milanov was half a bleff he said she was a soprano overrated in her time but she was not a great soprano but a soprano with a mistaken verista style in the way she sang Verdi like Cavalleria Rusticana, and vocally imprecise and without a complete mastery of legato and musically objectionable too. Do you beleive you have more credit than Rodoldo Celletti ERICwC ?
I really think that Milanov was the greatest soprano of the last century. Her instrument was unique in its beauty, far away from all other ones, with huge pathos and the famous abilities to sing bearing pianissimi. And that is for a voice with this long career, volume and dramatic power a rare gift.
Milanov said her voice was not very big, (said this by Milanov herself)
@@MorenoCassals70 . And now you are expecting for sure, that i have to change my opinion about her 😅
In her prime, Milanov was just legendary. Unsurpassable. Definitely one of the greatest.
Milanov could be erratic, and when she was, it was infuriating, like a blemish on a masterpiece. When at her absolute best, she was truly a soprano of grandeur, tremendous authority, and she had a voice, which in HER repertoire, was second to none. She was one of the greats and the Met audiences worshiped her. She sang from 1928 until 1966.
The LOST ART of SINGING. The Metropolitan today has NO SINGERS, ALAS, who of THIS QUALITY,
Does any Opera co ? No. The opera industry better get their act together real fast before they become laughing stocks. It might be to late.
I heard Milanov in the early 50's. After all these years- hearing, Price, Callas, Steber, etc. NEVER have I heard an Aida, Forza, Gioconda, Trovatore, etc. to rival hers. You can not judge unless you were there. When she was "on" -that sound was fanfukintastic!!! Fortunately I heard her in the early 50's which (for me) was the Milanov I loved the best.
And was there ever a better Leonora in "Trovatore"???????
@@norris3107 of course not
@@norris3107 ,she was and is Leonora.
@@norris3107 Callas live in 1950, 1951 and 1953. (Definitely not in studio!)
I’d add her live Ballo among the best as well.
Her golden, luscious voice seemed to be so easily, effortlessly produced. A miracle! Unique! Grande!
I adore her just from her recordings. I love her instrument, her timbre. She touches me personally like a best friend--who's also a goddess.
I think I was initially put off by Milanov when in my teens I bought an LP of her recorded when she was well past her best. This post has been a revelation and many thanks for it.
She was divine when she “on” as she usually was! She was The Prima Donna of the Met for years!
Amazing thank you so much,love everything about Zinka. ❤❤❤
NATASADJIKANOVIC YOU ARE SO BEAUTIFUL ADORABLE SEDUCTIVE RAVISHING SENSUAL SEXY CAPTIVATING AND PASSIONATE ❤
One and only the best of the best.Thank Zinka you vere a real primadonna
Apart from her great technique, she had that special, beautiful silver in the sound.
''beautiful silver in the sound''...I think that is one of the best descriptions of her voice! Thank you
Glorious! Thank you
GREAT JOB PUTTING THIS TOGETHER. LOVE IT.
my first operatic disc was her aria selections LP. i loved it then but didn't understand how truly brilliant she was until i had heard and learned much more. she's a dazzling artist of the highest merit possible.
LOVE, LOVE, LOVE her portamenti!!!
A revelation! Every except here reveals the great Milanov's singing live at a level vastly superior to anything found on her commercial studio recordings.
"...excerpt", sorry...
So true. With big dramatic voices LIVE is the only way to go. Studio is fine for smaller, pretty, sweet, homogenous voices.
@@hrvoje14 Sorry , I can’t agree ; both Leontyne Price and Dame Joan Sutherland recorded superbly.
@@davidallen508 but neither was a dramatic soprano.
@@davidallen508
Price had a medium sized voice
I played in her studio for years when I was beginning as a vocal coach. I have tons of stories! 😁
let's have 'em.
yes plsssss
GREAT MILANOV ! FANTASTIC !
DIVINA!!!!
Although sometimes uneven in her singing especially in live performances after 1956, there were some remarkable moments thereafter particularly on her studio recordings. These were where I first came to love her voice & later on when more live recordings became available I noticed the occasional inconsistencies in her performances. Still to sing as long as she did her actual technique must have been remarkably solid. Were nerves the cause of some of her lesser vocal moments? Who knows? Even on some of her recorded recitals in the year she left the MET she still impresses after having sung in public for some 40 years. Few if any sopranos can match this. Even the greatest singers have their lesser moments & dear Zinka was among them here but on the whole I feel that she was one of the 2 or 3 greatest sopranos in her repertoire from the post-Ponselle era. The second MET broadcast of NORMA at the end of 1944 is Zinka at her best. Some great moments on this compilation although the famous “Milanov moment” in LA GIOCONDA is given here twice & the second one might have been left out. It is does not enhance her formidable reputation. What DOES add to it is unfortunately not heard on this compilation & definitely should be: her studio recording of the recitative prior to the act 4 TROVATORE aria. This is one example I would play for someone who was hearing her voice for the first time.
Caballe & a young Gwyneth Jones are Milanov’s only competition in this particular moment, I feel.
Just WOW!!!
She still has few rivals. Perfect tecnique and the most shimmering and beautiful timbre. Such grandeur and legato! Huge voice too, you can hear that she drowns the others she sings together with.
After Our Maya my Dads favorite Soprano of that era. Arnold
Once again, you are wrong. She didn’t always have perfect technique. Go learn something about real opera singing from This is Opera.
The 'This is Opera' folks were, in my view, more often right than not. And they did have an audience on UA-cam willing to listen to what they had to say. Yet they got run out of this virtual community because they believed themselves to be "objective," and everyone else who dissented ever so slightly, to be subjective or inferior. They were, in short, condescending and assholic. And this latest comment follows in that lineage.
I find Milanov's Verdi singing as total in its mastery of the low and the highs, of full voice and the pianissimo, of intricate/agile and sustained, of vehemence and angelic, as it is possible to be -- for the roughly ten years from the later 1940s to the early 1950s. Outside of those years, the voice itself is frequently thrilling, but levels of musicality and poise can vary: an enthralling Nile Scene in 1943, an inelegant Norma in 1944, a peerless Gioconda in 1946, no entirely satisfying Requiem (Verdi) yet found, etc. I am wholly in agreement with Ponselle's quoted rave for her Trovatore. But note her studio Trovatore is the same year as her greatest Forza broadcast, 1952. At that time, no one could touch her in that rep. And the two or three who have equalled her since have not surpassed the standard of early '50s Milanov to this day (in my view).
I am very grateful for this video, of course, but I would still love some montage of Milanov that would restrict itself to 1946 - 1954. That would be breathtaking!
Non plus ultra! Zinka Zinka Zinka
Milanov leggendaria soprano
❤
la registrazione del 1939 e' migliore....
divina
Qual voce!
Is Martinelli the Rhadames?Sounds like his bottled up sound.
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WHat are the arias she's singing? Can anyone please tell?
I know this comment is from 3 years ago, but if you want, here is what I know from the list:
0:00 La Gioconda, Act I: Enzo Adorato
0:38 Don Giovanni, Act I: Don Ottavio, son morta!
1:18 La Forza del Destino, Act IV: Pace, pace mio Dio!
1:36 (?)
1:49 Il Trovatore, Act I: Tacea la notte placida
2:40 (?)
2:52 Norma, Act II: In mia man alfin tu sei
3:10 La Forza del Destino, Act IV: Pace, pace mio Dio! (ending)
3:40 Aida, Act III: Tu non m'ami... Va!
4:25 Aida, Act III: Fuggiam gli ardori inospiti
4:54 Il Trovatore, Act I: D'amor sull' ali rosee
5:30 Un Ballo in Maschera, Act II: Teco io sto
5:52 Un Ballo in Maschera, Act II: Teco io sto (3-4 minutes after the excerpt at 5:30)
6:32 Norma, Act II: Deh! Con te, con te li prendi…
7:16 La Gioconda, Act IV Scene 2: Suicido!
7:37 Aida, Act I: Ritorna Vincitor
7:53 Norma, Act I: Oh, non tremare, o perfido
8:32 Il Trovatore, Act I: Trio
9:22 La Forza del Destino, Act IV: Pace, pace mio Dio! (ending)
9:43 La Forza del Destino, Act IV: Pace, pace mio Dio! (ending)
10:02 Un Ballo in Maschera, Act II: Teco io sto
10:22 Un Ballo in Maschera, Act II: Teco io sto (ending)
10:47 Aida, Act IV: O terra addio! (ending)
11:03 Un Ballo in Maschera, Act III (?)
11:49 Un Ballo in Maschera, Act II: Ecco l'orrido campo...
12:00 Un Ballo in Maschera, Act II: Ecco l'orrido campo... (about 4 minutes after the excerpt at 11:49)
12:27 Un Ballo in Maschera, Act II: Ma dall'arido stelo divulsa
13:08 Un Ballo in Maschera, Act II: Ma dall'arido stelo divulsa (again)
13:19 La Gioconda, Act I: Enzo Adorato
Edit: I've finished the list (or at least everything I could finish), yay! Hopefully someone will one day fill in the details or help correct me if I'm wrong. :)
@@aceofspades8634 Thank you so much !🤩
@@aceofspades8634 wow great
And 13:20? Mighty GOD! What is this aria?
Aria Enzo adorato, opera Gioconda
Equinox thank you!!!!!
Please!!!!! Someone, ANYONE!!!! What is the aria at 7:17 on this video?
Aria Suicidio, opera Gioconda.
Equinox 🙏🏾
Suicidio from La Gioconda
Milanov fue una gran soprano. Tenía una voz amplia, agudos brillantes, era capaz de hacer unos pianísimos impresionantes. Me gustó mucho cuando descubrí sus grabaciones, compré muchas de ellas tanto en estudio como en directo. Para mí sigue siendo una Leonora de Il Trovatore, de referencia. Sin embargo con el paso de los años me he ido dado cuenta de que una voz como esa tenía un gran defecto: ¡era monótona!; cuando más la escuchaba más me aburría, acabé por dejar de oirla. Ahora de vez en cuando, a través de UA-cam oigo algunas grabaciones que no conocía, esperando volver a redescubrirla, pero detras de esa gran voz, sigo encontrando monotonía.
you must be kidding .....
The tenor in the Nile scene was quite horrendous!
Sounds like Kurt Baum
I want to love her, but the portamento!
@PolishViking But it's much worse coming down than going up, which is what I would call scooping. To be sure Flagstad and others of that era sang with more portamento than would be called acceptable today. But Zinka's descent from that famous 't'amo' in 'Gioconda' is very much 'sui generis'.
Way past portamento, IMHO. The descending scoops are well into the glissando category.
Was it a stylistic choice? She didn't scoop down from the high Bb in the 1939 recording (shown here at 13:28).
The quotes from other people about her made me laugh... So pryce, bonynge, Sutherland, Ludwig praised her voice as if it was just about opening the mouth and let it go as if milanov hadn't had to practice and work and make a huge effort to develop and perfect her technique (let's remember that her teacher put her back in training after her debut because she thought she was not prepared enough) and yet, all those singers/concuctor devoted their lives and their careers to follow a path opposite the one milanov was adamant and to set new lower standards for sound and technique. That was their way to express their admiration. Not denying milanov talent. It's huge but her struggle and hard work was even greater.
What a stupid comment! The praise by those great artists was for the impact, the finished artistry. Of course they donee she didn’t get their “naturally.”
@@liedersanger1 dear mr
Perkins, I never employed rude nor demeaning terms when expressing my opinion so I don't know why you have to in yours. I reread the descriptions just in case my stupidity prevented me to grasp its meaning fully but still I have this feeling that when they talk about their colleagues artistry it implies something about gifted, born with genius (I'm not denying that, just saying it's not the main part of it) As a pianist that works daily with singers and young pianists as well I see that everyday. When someone has a natural clear voice, then this person is talented although the talent is nothing else than this intuition to use their instruments correctly "naturally" "oh, she sounds so natural" "so much ease" and on the other hand the blunt harsh dismissing comments he doesn't have a voice, she is not talented enough but whether used consciously or not the question here is about craft and technique things that are not considered important anymore and that doesn't get as much attention as it needs nor in interviews or quotes. Let's get nilsson's example. She said her voice was big and powerful (naturally, so she was gifted in some way) but it's was wooden, full of air. Therefore she had to work hard to get the voice that we all love and praise. So when people say about her singing she was like an angel sent from God or a force of nature I think they minimize the struggle and hard work put in this "otherworldly" voices. Also, to praise a singer for their voices and then ignore completely the tradition in which they sing and doing and teaching the exact opposite is a little bit hipocrytical and very harmful for the voice and the art in general. I hope I managed to explain myself better. Take care!
@@ferminsalaberri You are not thinking clearly. Reread your initial comment and you will see that you characterize the praise of Milanov by the great artists you name as being “laughable” because they focus on her “natural” qualities and it her artistry. I don’t believe that any of them used the word natural. And they know, as well as Milanov herself, that no great singer is a purely natural phenomenon. You also sideswipe them for going in what you say is the “opposite direction” from Milanov’s in their artistic or stylistic choices. That is a strange point and begs many questions- but not as wrong as your main point, about mistaking her “naturalness.”
Legendary but not the of the highest category of sopranos. Many before , during and after her career have far surpassed her. A long and illustrious does not mean supremacy.
I totally agree with you. I only would say that she was great in her very well chosen few roles. If you compare, for instance, her Requiem (Verdi) with Caballé's, she does not fare that well.
luiz g
Yet, Toscanini hired her for the part.
Operacrazed
I must disagree on this. “Many” and “far surpassed” si particularly puzzling. In operatic history, Milanov is regarded as one of the greatest soprano of the 20th century. There are only a few others that were objectively better, but not by far. Milanov’s repertoire was considerably wider than the one She is most know for.
@@equinox6651 Let me quantify. She had a legendary career and was one of he greatest sopranos of the 20th century .But even as hailed Queen of the Met she and others had limited and restricted vocal and dramatic powers that other sopranos surpassed.
Well, then if "legendary" or "long and illustrious" does not put one in the "highest category", what does?