No surprises here. It’s a stunner. Her voice NEVER fell apart. Maybe she lost a little shimmer on Bb and B, but not here however, and sometimes she took a FRACTION of a second to find the center of the vibrancy after age 55. John Steane compared it to the same acoustic phenomenon as a big organ pipe. But she never got a hint of a wobble. People forget she wasn’t even near finished singing in 1953. signed a recording contract with Decca 3 years after this performance and made some of her most memorable recordings IN STEREO. She nails a titanic Bb at age 63 in her January 1959 recording of Harald Lie’s Skinnvengbrev, her last session. She was quite simply one of the greatest singers in history. Anyone who doesn’t “get” her can just move on. Thanks for posting this genuine treasure!
It's my pleasure. Thank you for the comment, and especially for bringing up the Skinnvengbrev recording, which I haven't heard in a while, gonna give it a listen now!
You’re right. And Sutherland said in many interviews that her earliest goal was to become a Wagner singer; that is, until she heard Flagstad and discovered what a real Wagner voice sounded like.
@omarsomehow69 Is there a specific late "Halle" recording for Nilsson. Not as familiar with Nilsson as you, but I think Nilsson had an easier time with 'attacking' top notes vs 'upwards motion' into them. It seems this is different for everyone, but most dramatics tend to have a harder time with the attack.
I’m too young to have seen Flagstad onstage, so I can only comment on her recordings. But I did see Nilsson many times. Yes, Birgit had a far easier top, but she didn’t have that organ-like column of sound or the solid intonation of Flagstad. As one of the other commenters said, she could often be shrill, although I can say with my own ears that Nilsson sounded far better onstage than on recordings. The fans who never saw her in the theater rely on those dreadful Culshaw shows, where she sounds steely and strident. In the theater, it was almost a shock to hear the warmth of her voice. But, to me, Flagstad still remains the touchstone.
To be fair to Nilsson, singing high B's and C's in the middle of Elektra is much more difficult than singing a high B at the end of a 3 minute aria. Nilsson lost the depth of her sound (maybe we can call it the scuro) beginning in the early 1970s. I think that's why she sometimes sounded shrill and thin (albeit certainly still penetrating) towards the end. She never sounded shrill before then -- just extremely focused like a laser beam.
@@wotan10950 I don't hear Nilsson sounding strident at all. Can you show me examples of Nilsson sounding strident please? And shrill? That was common in some era of her singing. I hear Nilsson being effortless and free in all the vast majority of her notes
Hers is the most beautiful of voices, and I don’t think she ever sounded matronly as some critics were prone to say. She had a brilliant edge to her voice and I agree to a point that 2:55 she may have been a little short on top, but I’d say that characteristic came towards the end of her career. Flagstad claimed she really didn’t understand where her vocal abilities came from or how her voice originated. This tells me she was gifted with a naturally placed voice and technique to match. Yes she worked hard to develop as an artist, but she had a great start. She really knew how to sing - no matter how many technically great voices came before or after, hers was incomparable in this respect. And yes the timbre was that of a great organ. And it was the most natural sounding - it was organic in every sense of the word.
The audience was so infatuated with her at this concert event that they couldn’t even hold their cheers until the orchestra finished. The same happens in the performance of Brunnhild’s war cry too. Some conductors might have taken offense…
@@wotan10950 Gwyneth is a far cry from Flagstad in terms of vocalism (compare recordings from both at the later stages of their career and this is clear), but I doubt either of them have the voice Wagner imagined for Elisabeth.
Catastrophically bad noise reduction. Please post the original. This isn't her best recording of that piece. Listen to the 1941 Tannhäuser with Melchior if you want to hear Flagstad as Elisabeth in her prime - having said that, it's basically almost as good!! Her voice and her technique were just ... unbelievably solid
No surprises here. It’s a stunner. Her voice NEVER fell apart. Maybe she lost a little shimmer on Bb and B, but not here however, and sometimes she took a FRACTION of a second to find the center of the vibrancy after age 55. John Steane compared it to the same acoustic phenomenon as a big organ pipe. But she never got a hint of a wobble. People forget she wasn’t even near finished singing in 1953. signed a recording contract with Decca 3 years after this performance and made some of her most memorable recordings IN STEREO. She nails a titanic Bb at age 63 in her January 1959 recording of Harald Lie’s Skinnvengbrev, her last session. She was quite simply one of the greatest singers in history. Anyone who doesn’t “get” her can just move on. Thanks for posting this genuine treasure!
It's my pleasure. Thank you for the comment, and especially for bringing up the Skinnvengbrev recording, which I haven't heard in a while, gonna give it a listen now!
You’re right. And Sutherland said in many interviews that her earliest goal was to become a Wagner singer; that is, until she heard Flagstad and discovered what a real Wagner voice sounded like.
There is Flagstad, and then there is everyone else. Even the greatest Wagner sopranos - Nilsson, Varnay, Jones, et al - cannot touch her.
She is 58 years old here, still with a very solid top B (2:33)!
Didn't Nilsson sing Elektra in her early 60s? Or you mean the specific B in this piece? @omarsomehow69
@omarsomehow69 Is there a specific late "Halle" recording for Nilsson. Not as familiar with Nilsson as you, but I think Nilsson had an easier time with 'attacking' top notes vs 'upwards motion' into them. It seems this is different for everyone, but most dramatics tend to have a harder time with the attack.
I’m too young to have seen Flagstad onstage, so I can only comment on her recordings. But I did see Nilsson many times. Yes, Birgit had a far easier top, but she didn’t have that organ-like column of sound or the solid intonation of Flagstad. As one of the other commenters said, she could often be shrill, although I can say with my own ears that Nilsson sounded far better onstage than on recordings. The fans who never saw her in the theater rely on those dreadful Culshaw shows, where she sounds steely and strident. In the theater, it was almost a shock to hear the warmth of her voice. But, to me, Flagstad still remains the touchstone.
To be fair to Nilsson, singing high B's and C's in the middle of Elektra is much more difficult than singing a high B at the end of a 3 minute aria. Nilsson lost the depth of her sound (maybe we can call it the scuro) beginning in the early 1970s. I think that's why she sometimes sounded shrill and thin (albeit certainly still penetrating) towards the end. She never sounded shrill before then -- just extremely focused like a laser beam.
@@wotan10950 I don't hear Nilsson sounding strident at all. Can you show me examples of Nilsson sounding strident please? And shrill? That was common in some era of her singing. I hear Nilsson being effortless and free in all the vast majority of her notes
It sounds like she is almost belting the E5s at 2:28 and 2:37, incredible middle voice.
Hers is the most beautiful of voices, and I don’t think she ever sounded matronly as some critics were prone to say. She had a brilliant edge to her voice and I agree to a point that 2:55 she may have been a little short on top, but I’d say that characteristic came towards the end of her career. Flagstad claimed she really didn’t understand where her vocal abilities came from or how her voice originated. This tells me she was gifted with a naturally placed voice and technique to match. Yes she worked hard to develop as an artist, but she had a great start. She really knew how to sing - no matter how many technically great voices came before or after, hers was incomparable in this respect. And yes the timbre was that of a great organ. And it was the most natural sounding - it was organic in every sense of the word.
I never got the claim that Flagstad’s tone became matronly. I think ripened is a better adjective.
The audience was so infatuated with her at this concert event that they couldn’t even hold their cheers until the orchestra finished. The same happens in the performance of Brunnhild’s war cry too. Some conductors might have taken offense…
Dame Gwyneth Jones is the best in this Wagner rolê!
I ADORE Gwyneth, but perhaps if you also consider her extraordinary acting talents. Voice alone, no, she was not at the level of Flagstad.
@@wotan10950 Gwyneth Jone, she's acutes notes stupend!
@@wotan10950 Gwyneth is a far cry from Flagstad in terms of vocalism (compare recordings from both at the later stages of their career and this is clear), but I doubt either of them have the voice Wagner imagined for Elisabeth.
hush. the grown ups are speaking.
Yes, the best if you want wobbly tones and nebulous pitch! Flagstad was the greatest!!! ❤
Catastrophically bad noise reduction. Please post the original. This isn't her best recording of that piece. Listen to the 1941 Tannhäuser with Melchior if you want to hear Flagstad as Elisabeth in her prime - having said that, it's basically almost as good!! Her voice and her technique were just ... unbelievably solid
She was 58 years old here! What other dramatic soprano sounded as good at this age? NONE!!!