What opera have you been listening to, lately?

[MAuer]

Another fine recording of Fanciulla with Domingo and Milnes (which I’d purchased before the Met video became available) – and another Cincinnati Opera alumna, Carol Neblett, as Minnie. She sang several leading roles, including Puccini’s Manon Lescaut and Tosca, with the CO in the ‘70s and ‘80s.

There's another Cincinnati Opera veteran on Adrian's recording of Mefistofele in Norman Treigle, who often sang with the company from 1959-1974, including the title role in Mefistofele -- with Julius Rudel on the podium of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra!

[Florestan]

[MAuer]

One of my favorite recordings of Fidelio, in spite of Knappertsbusch’s snail-paced choice of tempos, thanks to Jurinac’s Leonore. Jan Peerce’s German pronunciation could stand some improvement, but otherwise, he’s an agreeably lyrical Florestan. He’s also another Cincinnati Opera alumnus, as is his brother-in-law, Richard Tucker. Peerce sang with the CO in 1939/early 1940s, and then again in 1963, always in the roles of Verdi’s Duca di Mantova and Alfredo Germont. Tucker, who appeared with the company in the late ‘40s/early ‘50s, had a somewhat more varied repertoire, singing the Duca and Alfredo, but also Manrico and Puccini’s Rodolfo and Cavaradossi. He returned to Cincinnati in 1972 for a Verdi Gala along with Gabriella Tucci and Louis Quillico.
Prior to making this recording, Peerce sang Florestan in a radio broadcast of Fidelio with Toscanini on the podium. The Leonore was Rose Bampton, who appeared in leading roles with the Cincinnati Opera in 1938 and during the 1940s.

[Adrian]

Starting like now, no idea about this but now it's the time.

[Florestan]

- - - Updated - - -

This is one (and a rare one) case where the sung-in-English translation is very good. In fact, I like it better than the original language version.

[MAuer]

This was the first recording of the Fidelio Urfassung of 1805 that I purchased, and discovered Reiner Goldberg (he sings the First Prisoner). The Florestan, Richard Cassilly, is yet another Cincinnati Opera alumnus and appeared with the company beginning in 1959 as Sam Polk in Carlisle Floyd’s Susannah. Up until 1982 he made several more appearances, including Don José, the title role in Peter Grimes, Manrico, and Verdi’s Otello.

[Ann Lander (sospiro)]

and another Cincinnati Opera alumna, Carol Neblett, as Minnie. She sang several leading roles, including Puccini’s Manon Lescaut and Tosca, with the CO in the ‘70s and ‘80s.

There's another Cincinnati Opera veteran on Adrian's recording of Mefistofele in Norman Treigle, who often sang with the company from 1959-1974, including the title role in Mefistofele -- with Julius Rudel on the podium of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra!

He’s also another Cincinnati Opera alumnus, as is his brother-in-law, Richard Tucker. Peerce sang with the CO in 1939/early 1940s, and then again in 1963, always in the roles of Verdi’s Duca di Mantova and Alfredo Germont. Tucker, who appeared with the company in the late ‘40s/early ‘50s, had a somewhat more varied repertoire, singing the Duca and Alfredo, but also Manrico and Puccini’s Rodolfo and Cavaradossi. He returned to Cincinnati in 1972 for a Verdi Gala along with Gabriella Tucci and Louis Quillico.
Prior to making this recording, Peerce sang Florestan in a radio broadcast of Fidelio with Toscanini on the podium. The Leonore was Rose Bampton, who appeared in leading roles with the Cincinnati Opera in 1938 and during the 1940s.

The Florestan, Richard Cassilly, is yet another Cincinnati Opera alumnus and appeared with the company beginning in 1959 as Sam Polk in Carlisle Floyd’s Susannah. Up until 1982 he made several more appearances, including Don José, the title role in Peter Grimes, Manrico, and Verdi’s Otello.

Cincinnati certainly know how to produce good singers!

[Florestan]

[MAuer]

Cincinnati certainly know how to produce good singers!

The company benefited from conditions during World War II, when many singers couldn't travel to Europe and had fewer performing opportunities. Also, Cincinnati's season has been restricted to the summer months except for several years in the '80s when a year-round schedule was attempted. Before the proliferation of summer opera festivals that began in the late 20th century, Cincinnati was also one of the few places singers could perform during the "off-season."

[MAuer]

Yesterday being Siegfried Jerusalem’s 80th birthday, I had to listen to the Fidelio recording with his Florestan. And there’s a Cincinnati Opera connection (though regrettably he never sang here): his Leonore, Jeannine Altmeyer, appeared as Sieglinde in the CO’s 1978 production of Die Walküre. One year later, she sang the role in the Boulez-Chereau Ring cycle at Bayreuth. With Cincinnati being a small company, singers sometimes like to "try out" a new role here before taking it to the world's major houses.
There is a roundabout connection between Jerusalem’s Florestan and the Cincinnati Opera. When he sang the role with the New Orleans Opera in 1981, the Crescent City company was renting Cincinnati’s sets from the CO’s 1980 production. The Rocco in New Orleans, William Wilderman, also sang the jailer in the CO’s Fidelio. Wilderman appeared frequently in Cincinnati in a time span extending from 1950-1983.

[Florestan]

[MAuer]

I never realized how many recordings I have with artists connected to the Cincinnati Opera. Here the “alumni” are Milnes and Martina Arroyo, as well as conductor Thomas Schippers. The soprano made a number of appearances with the company from 1964 until 1988, singing Aida, Leonora (Il Trovatore), Santuzza, Amelia (Un Ballo in Maschera), and Turandot. Maestro Schippers, the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra’s Music Director from 1970 until his early death from lung cancer in 1977, was also on the podium in 1974 for a production of Manon Lescaut that had been imported to the Cincinnati Opera from the 1973 Spoleto (Italy) Festival. The staging by Luchino Visconti was well received at the Festival, and it likely wouldn’t raise any eyebrows today. But the Regisseur turned Manon into a worldly-wise “woman of the town,” as the Victorians would have said, and that didn’t sit at all well with the locals here 46 years ago.
Schippers had succeeded Max Rudolf as the CSO’s Music Director, and Rudolf himself conducted four Cincinnati Opera productions over a period beginning in 1948 and ending in 1976.

[Florestan]

Only $8 USD for digital download at Presto. Way better than the digital download price of $19.99 at Amazon!

[Florestan]

[Florestan]