Having spent most of my working life in regional South Australia I have never attended anywhere nearly as much live music as I would have liked. But 40 odd years ago in the days when Opera Australia were prepared to lower themselves and leave the comfortable Eastern Seaboard of Australia she performed her classic role of Lucia in Adelaide. It still remains a highlight in my ageing memories. Thanks for sharing this Dave.
The voice of the 20th century, and I’m not even a soprano fan. I heard her in 1972 with The Met on tour singing La Fille du Regiment with Pavarotti. They were both amazing. I heard her years later on her farewell tour, and it didn’t sound like she had lost a thing. Truly an awesome singer.
Thanks so much. I have a special Sutherland LP section and you’ve inspired me to spend an evening with her. I would love to have a CD set but unfortunately have to eat. Still I love the LPs … well not the scratches, I should say I love the recordings. Your RUclips reviews are almost a university course in themselves. I constantly learn about new things to listen for and think about. So many dimensions we never discussed in music degree courses. Thanks for bringing us encouragement and enthusiasm to keep refreshing our ears. My singing teacher held Joan up as the best model. Listening to her connects me back to a great lineage. So much of musicianship is about being silent and truly listening. Sincere thanks.
Yes Joan’s voice was really best appreciated live, I don’t really know how to express it but it had a sort of enveloping unearthly quality that needed to resound around a theatre, but I guess that’s true with a lot of those distinctive operatic voices. The recordings are of course treasures and I love returning to them but sadly if you never heard her in the theatre you will never quite know just how extraordinary that sound was. Great recitals, Art of the Prima remains a pinnacle of recorded singing.
I agree completely. I heard her a number of times in the theater, and enveloped is the word. Strangely enough, I think some of the mono live recordings do her more justice, like the 1963 Met Sonnambula. Her early Decca sets misreprent her impact like the 1961 Rigoletto where she and everybody else sound like they're down the street and around the corner. Ditto some of the sets with Tebaldi like the Boheme. Moreover, for me, the diction issue was never of any concern or interest live. (The joke was that not even the dragon's blood would help Siegfried to understand what her Waldvogel was telling him.) Dave, thank ms for calling bs on the Athalia critics. She's perfect for the part and a great contrast to wispy Kirkby.
My accompanist who lived in New York in the 60's saw her as Lucia at the MET and said her voice was absolutely amazing. He said her E-flats were like cannon shots! A fabulous lady!
I knew that she lived next door to Noel Coward but it was only when I read his diaries that I learnt that they were such great friends. They seem to have met on an ocean liner and so over the five days crossing he was charmed by her down to earth and sensible qualities.
Many have remarked on the size of her voice, but just as remarkable was her amazing agility. In a time when the ability sing a decent trill appeared to be something of a lost art, she had one of the best (if not THE best) trills in the business. Her recordings give ample evidence of the clarity and speed of her coloratura. If there has ever been such a combination of power and agility in one singer, I haven't heard of her... (I was told by someone who knew the Bonynges well that he discovered her Bel Canto potential when he overheard her goofing around at home).
I also heard Sutherland live several times in the two largest American houses. The voice simply reverberated throughout the house with such ease that one felt she could have sung louder without any trouble even when she was overwhelming everyone else on the stage. Although I think that recordings caught the beauty of her voice but certainly could not catch that enveloping sound.
Just so. Her voice was so omnipresent that it seemed to come at you from all directions at once--you couldn't even tell which person was singing sometimes. It was just "there," like an independent thing. Amazing.
This set is great. So much golden age singing. So wonderful! 2 notes: Joan Sutherland did have comedic gifts. I saw her twice in Daughter of the Regiment with Luciano Pavarotti and they were both very funny and he, surprising light on his feet at that time! Second - Fun fact: Richard Conrad was not a tenor, he was a baritone! I knew him and he told me Richard Bonynge talked him into this recording. He sings the entire Age of Bel Canto album in a sort of falsetto for which he was roundly criticized at the time though I'm sure he made money on the set; it has never been out of print. As for having the Voice for Wagner... the jury will remain out but what Bonynge heard in her resulted in a legendary Bel Canto career where she might have had an average one in Wagner at that time with the likes of Varnay, Modl, Nilsson etc. on the scene. What she had was an enormous voice with the lightness for coloratura but not the inner core for Wagner. Hers was a voice that will never come again!
I saw her in 17 operas In Sydney plus a concert with Marylin Horne. Sutherland had a lovely warm stage presence although she freely admitted that she was not the greatest of actors. However, she was certainly a fabulous singer and was great fun in lighter works.
I remember Pavarotti was a particular friend and admirer of Joan. Together the were stupendous. Nice to see you holding up and retarding the demise of the CD. I'm probably going to be buried with my collection.
I wonder if its a phenomena that whenever Marilyn Horne singing Iris Hence Away is mentioned its seems obligatory to start singing it...I also cannot help myself...its like a switch..though over the years I have changed the lyrics to suit a current mood.....Dear Joan often seems to be the victim of tall poppy syndrome..so many people seem to need to diminish her without acknowledging what a supernatural singer she was... when I hear or read someone saying "I dont like Sutherland" my first thought is...who cares...words will hardly cancel out how astounding she could be..there are some people like Sarah Vaughan who can be accused of loving the sound of their own voice and unfortunately for the detractors there are a few singers to whom it could be said they are entitled to...I saw Joan a few times towards the end of her career and the voice was still immense fortunately we dont need to dream of what it must have been like 30 years before that....thanks Dave, for being one of the very few who keep her name alive beyond the listeners who love her.
I share the visible excitement and appreciation. Keep the boxes and reviews coming, please. I remember an interview of Dame Margaret Price (Ay, caramba!), of all people, in which she said something like "the way Sutherland sang is OVER!". Well, yeah, sure, in a sense that not even she could do it - which is saying something. I remember Sutherland saying, "After all these years, I can`t believe I`m the one they fuss about." Deal with it, lady, I thought and still think. There are many versions, even on youtube, of Sutherland singing "Per la gloria d'adorarvi" by Bononcini, with orchestras/piano, with Bonynge or not. I find those astonishingly, yea, achingly beautifully sung. Not easy, I imagine, but sounds like it. And neither overly operatic nor emotionally withdrawn, just the way I like it. Also, the song not lost in ornamentation. Also, good taste. I also enjoy reading the gossip in the comment section by her fans. She seems to have been a rare creature in the art world: actually being nice to people. Also, apparently the British really, really liked her, as she is the only singer (think of all the endless Dames and Sirs) who has been awarded the Order of Merit. By the way, this box is sold, at least in Europe, by both Decca and Deutsche Grammophon(!) on their websites, Decca charging extra... Not cool.
would love to know where you read or heard that, as I am always interested in hearing singers talk about other great singers..particularly their insights on Joan
Her TURANDOT recording is my favorite Turandot of all time! Marvelous sonics, fabulous cast and magnificent conducting by Zubin Mehta. Of course Nilsson was THE Turandot of the 20th Century, but her recordings don't do her justice sonically
Always a pleasure to hear your reviews because after many years of reviewing you still convey enthusiasm as you hold a CD in your hands! Music is and should be a passion I think. As for the great Dame Joan, sadly I didn't get to hear her live , but the Bonynges did come to give some classes at my college not long after she retired from performing. She came across in conversation with great warmth. Of the recordings I am very fond of the operetta disc ' Long Live Forever' not the least because it has a version of The Nun's Chorus where her voice takes flight, you can feel the full dimension of that voice and a perhaps slightly hackneyed piece becomes spinetinglingly wonderful. She did seem to love comedy and lighter repertoire like La Fille Du Regiment , Die Fledermaus or The Merry Widow, a bit of a change from the doomed ladies she often had to portray in opera I suppose. I wonder if her versatility and willingness to tackle so many repertoires stemmed from the seven years or so of apprenticeship she served at Covent Garden before reaching fame, during which she sang all sorts of things? Apparently she did go on as Aida there, although she normally sang the offstage Priestess role, but also so much else : Poulenc's The Carmelites ( which she returned to decades later as the second Prioress) Jennifer in Tippett's The Midsummer Marriage, Agathe in Freischutz, Penelope Rich in Britten's Gloriana, Eva in Die Meistersinger. Where to start listening with such a huge discography? This Decca box seems a good starting point. Just imagining how many hours spent in the recording studio this represents and all those complete operas too. Extraordinary!
Saw her in Traviata. Her voice was large, full, and rock solid all the way up to top E flat! Recordings only hint at it. The visceral impact was never fully captured. Nor the solidity. Some of her recordings make her cantabile singing sound a bit lacking in “core”, they just couldn’t capture the fullness,roundness and solidity of the voice in the house. Unique voice, unique singer.
I heard Sutherland many times and the voice was definitely Huge! I heard her in San Diego in Die Fledermaus with Beverly Sills (no relation) and her high Ds were incredible! ❤ I won't discuss Beverly Sills' attempts at one high D...
You may wish to get several offers when buying. Decca charges 211,99 euros, DG 180 euros. I would say the price is not right. I dreamed I dwelt in marble halls, where the price was the same.
I don't want to be one of those people who say "The only good singers are the dead singers" but 60 years ago we had legendary sopranos like Sutherland, Price, Rysanek, Tebaldi, Nilsson, Caballe, Callas, and Scotto. Who are the Metropolitan Opera's prima donnas today? - Lisette Oropesa, Ailyn Perez, Angel Blue, etc .... none of them will go done in history as legends.
Hi Dave, I recently saw your review of the recently released orchestral works by Franco Alfano. I know you regard him as a second-(or even third-)rate composer. I tend to agree as far as his orchestral works go, but his craftsmanship really shines through in his chamber works. Especially his concerto for pianotrio, cello sonata and second string quartet are really masterpieces. They’re extremely carefully and masterfully written and in the words of Sam Magill (the cellist in an interview on the sonata): “It’s the emotional Mount Everest of its genre.”. I was curious if you ever gave them a listen, and if so, what your opinions on them are. On the other hand, I totally understand if you won’t bother talking about them. There’s plenty of other wonderful repertoire that deserves their spotlight. I’ll never stop admiring your hard and dedicated work, which I’m very grateful for.
I saw her many times from the mid 70s until she retired. I didn't always like her repertoire choices (or those decided for her by her husband) but there is no denying the size of the voice. Recordings don't really capture its full & enveloping quality in the theatre. I've heard older opera afficinada who'd heard both singers compare her large warm sound to Flagstad's.
I saw her in an aria recital with the Utah Symphony, many years ago. Anybody remember Fred Calland? He was the NPR classical guy back when. He reviewed a release of some of the old Voice of Firestone TV shows, and mentioned an appearance by Sutherland, singing with a baritone whose name I don't remember. It was a excerpt from "Tosca". He said the singing was fine, but it looked as if Tosca could have decked old Scarpia anytime she wanted to. End of problem!
I was amused at your comment that Handel didn't use countertenors and preferred female altos. Actually Handel wrote most of his male leads for castrati, though there's an extant letter in his handwriting that says, "If a castrato is not available, use a woman." That letter has been quoted by modern conductors as justification for using women in drag in Handel's castrato roles now that the castrati are (hopefully) permanently unavailable.
Like I said. Male altos (not countertenors) were used in church music, but Handel had no problem at all using women in male rules in operas and wherever a castrato would have appeared.
Having spent most of my working life in regional South Australia I have never attended anywhere nearly as much live music as I would have liked. But 40 odd years ago in the days when Opera Australia were prepared to lower themselves and leave the comfortable Eastern Seaboard of Australia she performed her classic role of Lucia in Adelaide. It still remains a highlight in my ageing memories. Thanks for sharing this Dave.
The voice of the 20th century, and I’m not even a soprano fan. I heard her in 1972 with The Met on tour singing La Fille du Regiment with Pavarotti. They were both amazing.
I heard her years later on her farewell tour, and it didn’t sound like she had lost a thing.
Truly an awesome singer.
Thanks so much. I have a special Sutherland LP section and you’ve inspired me to spend an evening with her. I would love to have a CD set but unfortunately have to eat. Still I love the LPs … well not the scratches, I should say I love the recordings. Your RUclips reviews are almost a university course in themselves. I constantly learn about new things to listen for and think about. So many dimensions we never discussed in music degree courses. Thanks for bringing us encouragement and enthusiasm to keep refreshing our ears. My singing teacher held Joan up as the best model. Listening to her connects me back to a great lineage. So much of musicianship is about being silent and truly listening. Sincere thanks.
Yes Joan’s voice was really best appreciated live, I don’t really know how to express it but it had a sort of enveloping unearthly quality that needed to resound around a theatre, but I guess that’s true with a lot of those distinctive operatic voices. The recordings are of course treasures and I love returning to them but sadly if you never heard her in the theatre you will never quite know just how extraordinary that sound was. Great recitals, Art of the Prima remains a pinnacle of recorded singing.
I agree completely. I heard her a number of times in the theater, and enveloped is the word. Strangely enough, I think some of the mono live recordings do her more justice, like the 1963 Met Sonnambula. Her early Decca sets misreprent her impact like the 1961 Rigoletto where she and everybody else sound like they're down the street and around the corner. Ditto some of the sets with Tebaldi like the Boheme.
Moreover, for me, the diction issue was never of any concern or interest live. (The joke was that not even the dragon's blood would help Siegfried to understand what her Waldvogel was telling him.)
Dave, thank ms for calling bs on the Athalia critics. She's perfect for the part and a great contrast to wispy Kirkby.
My accompanist who lived in New York in the 60's saw her as Lucia at the MET and said her voice was absolutely amazing. He said her E-flats were like cannon shots! A fabulous lady!
So glad this has come out! Love Joan!
I knew that she lived next door to Noel Coward but it was only when I read his diaries that I learnt that they were such great friends. They seem to have met on an ocean liner and so over the five days crossing he was charmed by her down to earth and sensible qualities.
Many have remarked on the size of her voice, but just as remarkable was her amazing agility. In a time when the ability sing a decent trill appeared to be something of a lost art, she had one of the best (if not THE best) trills in the business. Her recordings give ample evidence of the clarity and speed of her coloratura. If there has ever been such a combination of power and agility in one singer, I haven't heard of her... (I was told by someone who knew the Bonynges well that he discovered her Bel Canto potential when he overheard her goofing around at home).
I also heard Sutherland live several times in the two largest American houses. The voice simply reverberated throughout the house with such ease that one felt she could have sung louder without any trouble even when she was overwhelming everyone else on the stage. Although I think that recordings caught the beauty of her voice but certainly could not catch that enveloping sound.
Just so. Her voice was so omnipresent that it seemed to come at you from all directions at once--you couldn't even tell which person was singing sometimes. It was just "there," like an independent thing. Amazing.
This set is great. So much golden age singing. So wonderful!
2 notes:
Joan Sutherland did have comedic gifts. I saw her twice in Daughter of the Regiment with Luciano Pavarotti and they were both very funny and he, surprising light on his feet at that time!
Second - Fun fact: Richard Conrad was not a tenor, he was a baritone! I knew him and he told me Richard Bonynge talked him into this recording. He sings the entire Age of Bel Canto album in a sort of falsetto for which he was roundly criticized at the time though I'm sure he made money on the set; it has never been out of print.
As for having the Voice for Wagner... the jury will remain out but what Bonynge heard in her resulted in a legendary Bel Canto career where she might have had an average one in Wagner at that time with the likes of Varnay, Modl, Nilsson etc. on the scene. What she had was an enormous voice with the lightness for coloratura but not the inner core for Wagner. Hers was a voice that will never come again!
Thank you so much, Dave, for this great review of Joan. I love her to pieces and it's great that this box has come out. Wesley
I saw her in 17 operas In Sydney plus a concert with Marylin Horne. Sutherland had a lovely warm stage presence although she freely admitted that she was not the greatest of actors. However, she was certainly a fabulous singer and was great fun in lighter works.
I remember Pavarotti was a particular friend and admirer of Joan. Together the were stupendous. Nice to see you holding up and retarding the demise of the CD. I'm probably going to be buried with my collection.
Thanks for this very fine introduction.
The operas are coming in two boxes
Aha!
I wonder if its a phenomena that whenever Marilyn Horne singing Iris Hence Away is mentioned its seems obligatory to start singing it...I also cannot help myself...its like a switch..though over the years I have changed the lyrics to suit a current mood.....Dear Joan often seems to be the victim of tall poppy syndrome..so many people seem to need to diminish her without acknowledging what a supernatural singer she was... when I hear or read someone saying "I dont like Sutherland" my first thought is...who cares...words will hardly cancel out how astounding she could be..there are some people like Sarah Vaughan who can be accused of loving the sound of their own voice and unfortunately for the detractors there are a few singers to whom it could be said they are entitled to...I saw Joan a few times towards the end of her career and the voice was still immense fortunately we dont need to dream of what it must have been like 30 years before that....thanks Dave, for being one of the very few who keep her name alive beyond the listeners who love her.
I share the visible excitement and appreciation. Keep the boxes and reviews coming, please. I remember an interview of Dame Margaret Price (Ay, caramba!), of all people, in which she said something like "the way Sutherland sang is OVER!". Well, yeah, sure, in a sense that not even she could do it - which is saying something. I remember Sutherland saying, "After all these years, I can`t believe I`m the one they fuss about." Deal with it, lady, I thought and still think.
There are many versions, even on youtube, of Sutherland singing "Per la gloria d'adorarvi" by Bononcini, with orchestras/piano, with Bonynge or not. I find those astonishingly, yea, achingly beautifully sung. Not easy, I imagine, but sounds like it. And neither overly operatic nor emotionally withdrawn, just the way I like it. Also, the song not lost in ornamentation. Also, good taste.
I also enjoy reading the gossip in the comment section by her fans. She seems to have been a rare creature in the art world: actually being nice to people.
Also, apparently the British really, really liked her, as she is the only singer (think of all the endless Dames and Sirs) who has been awarded the Order of Merit.
By the way, this box is sold, at least in Europe, by both Decca and Deutsche Grammophon(!) on their websites, Decca charging extra... Not cool.
Jessye Norman loved her. Two statuesque women with huge voices.
would love to know where you read or heard that, as I am always interested in hearing singers talk about other great singers..particularly their insights on Joan
My favorites from her enormous legacy are two operas: Don Giovanni with Giulini and Turandot with Mehta. Great stuff.
Her TURANDOT recording is my favorite Turandot of all time! Marvelous sonics, fabulous cast and magnificent conducting by Zubin Mehta. Of course Nilsson was THE Turandot of the 20th Century, but her recordings don't do her justice sonically
Always a pleasure to hear your reviews because after many years of reviewing you still convey enthusiasm as you hold a CD in your hands! Music is and should be a passion I think.
As for the great Dame Joan, sadly I didn't get to hear her live , but the Bonynges did come to give some classes at my college not long after she retired from performing. She came across in conversation with great warmth.
Of the recordings I am very fond of the operetta disc ' Long Live Forever' not the least because it has a version of The Nun's Chorus where her voice takes flight, you can feel the full dimension of that voice and a perhaps slightly hackneyed piece becomes spinetinglingly wonderful. She did seem to love comedy and lighter repertoire like La Fille Du Regiment , Die Fledermaus or The Merry Widow, a bit of a change from the doomed ladies she often had to portray in opera I suppose.
I wonder if her versatility and willingness to tackle so many repertoires stemmed from the seven years or so of apprenticeship she served at Covent Garden before reaching fame, during which she sang all sorts of things? Apparently she did go on as Aida there, although she normally sang the offstage Priestess role, but also so much else : Poulenc's The Carmelites ( which she returned to decades later as the second Prioress) Jennifer in Tippett's The Midsummer Marriage, Agathe in Freischutz, Penelope Rich in Britten's Gloriana, Eva in Die Meistersinger.
Where to start listening with such a huge discography? This Decca box seems a good starting point. Just imagining how many hours spent in the recording studio this represents and all those complete operas too. Extraordinary!
Thanks for the Beethoven’s 9th recommendation. I had to purchase and it really is grand. That’s why I listen.
Saw her in Traviata. Her voice was large, full, and rock solid all the way up to top E flat! Recordings only hint at it. The visceral impact was never fully captured. Nor the solidity. Some of her recordings make her cantabile singing sound a bit lacking in “core”, they just couldn’t capture the fullness,roundness and solidity of the voice in the house. Unique voice, unique singer.
She always said Traviata Violetta was her favourite role.
I heard Sutherland many times and the voice was definitely Huge! I heard her in San Diego in Die Fledermaus with Beverly Sills (no relation) and her high Ds were incredible! ❤ I won't discuss Beverly Sills' attempts at one high D...
Wow! Marvelous box! and soo expensive.... I do hope Warner does one for NICOLAI GEDDA whose 100th Birthday will be in 2025 😀
You may wish to get several offers when buying. Decca charges 211,99 euros, DG 180 euros. I would say the price is not right. I dreamed I dwelt in marble halls, where the price was the same.
I don't want to be one of those people who say "The only good singers are the dead singers" but 60 years ago we had legendary sopranos like Sutherland, Price, Rysanek, Tebaldi, Nilsson, Caballe, Callas, and Scotto. Who are the Metropolitan Opera's prima donnas today? - Lisette Oropesa, Ailyn Perez, Angel Blue, etc .... none of them will go done in history as legends.
Hi Dave, I recently saw your review of the recently released orchestral works by Franco Alfano. I know you regard him as a second-(or even third-)rate composer. I tend to agree as far as his orchestral works go, but his craftsmanship really shines through in his chamber works. Especially his concerto for pianotrio, cello sonata and second string quartet are really masterpieces. They’re extremely carefully and masterfully written and in the words of Sam Magill (the cellist in an interview on the sonata): “It’s the emotional Mount Everest of its genre.”. I was curious if you ever gave them a listen, and if so, what your opinions on them are. On the other hand, I totally understand if you won’t bother talking about them. There’s plenty of other wonderful repertoire that deserves their spotlight. I’ll never stop admiring your hard and dedicated work, which I’m very grateful for.
I saw her many times from the mid 70s until she retired. I didn't always like her repertoire choices (or those decided for her by her husband) but there is no denying the size of the voice. Recordings don't really capture its full & enveloping quality in the theatre. I've heard older opera afficinada who'd heard both singers compare her large warm sound to Flagstad's.
This one appeals to me, the box is quite pricey though. Joan was absolutely on another level of vocal gymnastics from most.
I saw her in an aria recital with the Utah Symphony, many years ago. Anybody remember Fred Calland? He was the NPR classical guy back when. He reviewed a release of some of the old Voice of Firestone TV shows, and mentioned an appearance by Sutherland, singing with a baritone whose name I don't remember. It was a excerpt from "Tosca". He said the singing was fine, but it looked as if Tosca could have decked old Scarpia anytime she wanted to. End of problem!
Tito Gobbi was her partner. The video is available on RUclips.
Somehow i only have three of the disks in this box. Pretty tmepting.
I was amused at your comment that Handel didn't use countertenors and preferred female altos. Actually Handel wrote most of his male leads for castrati, though there's an extant letter in his handwriting that says, "If a castrato is not available, use a woman." That letter has been quoted by modern conductors as justification for using women in drag in Handel's castrato roles now that the castrati are (hopefully) permanently unavailable.
Like I said. Male altos (not countertenors) were used in church music, but Handel had no problem at all using women in male rules in operas and wherever a castrato would have appeared.
How is it that Australia had Dame Joan and NZ had Dame Kiri around the same time....southern hemisphere dominance...
Well, Scandinavia had Flagstad and Nilsson, and let's not forget the African American singers coming from the USA in the 50s and 60s.