A few wonderful excerpts from Stephen's great performance of Romeo last night!!! Enjoy!!

Tucker came late to Samson, performing it for the first time in Phila. in 1970, and then doing a run at the Met in 1971-2 with Bumbry. I found him thrilling in this role, and dramatically, it was one of his finest. Here the Jewish leader rallies his troops, in French, but as a great Cantor just the same!!

Here is an early (1949) recording of Richard Tucker, singing the gorgeous "Thine Alone" from the operetta "Eileen" by Victor Herbert. This is one of my 3 or 4 favorite Tucker recordings. He sings with such beauty and clarity, and makes the high tessitura sound easy, and, just for good measure, he transposes the second verse up a half tone, to make the high tessitura virtually impossible, but, again, Tucker makes it sound easy.

For me, this is as gorgeous as it gets!!

 

Ed

In my opinion these selections from Verdi's Ernani, as sung by the great Cornell MacNeil, defies description. Words cannot do it justice. Just listen and be amazed!! And no, we don't have any baritones who sing like this anymore. We only had big Mac!!

Here is every note that the great tenor, Giuseppe Di Stefano recorded in the studio of Boito's Mefistofele in the summer of 1959, along with Renata Tebaldi and Cesare Siepi, with Tullio Serafin conducting. Only the scene with Elena is not recorded, thereby preventing commercial release.

Amazing singing by both Petrella and Di Stefano. This is good, old "giving" Italian singing at its best. I just received this fine sounding copy, and wanted to share it with you, to further remember the great Pippo!!

Jose Carreras sang his first ever American recital in Carmel, California on October 14, 1975. I was there and he was wonderful. Here he sings a beautiful aria from Rossini's Pietra del Paragone, Tosti's Ideale, and Puccini's Nessun Dorma! Bravo, Jose!!

In one of his earliest performances, here is Giuseppe Di Stefano at the age of only 22, singing a beautiful Una furtiva lagrima from Elisir d'Amore. The sheer beauty is simply overwhelming.

 

Ed

Here is prime Di Stefano and de los Angeles in the famous and beautiful love duet from Puccini's Madama Butterfly. Ardently and beautifully sung by both artists, this is a treat for the ear.

 

Ed

This magnificent scene from Mascagn's rarely performed "Iris" contains some of the greatest singing that Di Stefano ever committed to disc. The music is of the greatest difficulity for the tenor. Nothing is above an A natural, but so much of the music is between F and A natural as to make it a virtually unsingable tessitura. However, Di Stefano conquers, and had a great triumph on this opera when it was revived in Italy in 1956, the same year as this recording. His voice is ravishing here, as well as melting. Carteri is a wonderful duet partner.

 

Ed

 

As requested, here is Giuseppe Di Stefano in his gorgeous rendtiion of "Non piangere Liu" from Puccini's Turandot.

Every Italian or Italianate tenor worth his salt sang "Core 'ngrato" but nobody sang it like Di Stefano. The gorgeous tone (just listen to the first two words, "Cateri, Cateri" and you will melt) combined with the passion and love of singing is unsurpassed by any tenor ever.

There are so many recordings to remember Di Stefano by, but I think this one particular recording of a beautiful Italian song says it all. Adddio a Pippo, e grazie per sempre!!

 

Ed

Here is the great Sleale scene from Verdi's La Forza del Destino. Richard Tucker and Robert Merrill sang together often in Forza, and this is a thrilling rendition of this scene.

Two great American artists, soprano Eleanor Steber and tenor Richard Tucker, bring us a beautiful rendition of the gorgeous final duet from Verdi's Don Carlo. Steber and Tucker also had the same voice teacher, tenor Paul Althouse!

Two all time greats of the Italian opera stage, mezzo Ebe Stignani and tenor Giuseppe Di Stefano join forces to sing this beatiful music from Donizetti's La Favorita. Stignani had already been singing for almost 30, but sounds fresh and youg, and Di Stefano really was a fresh voiced, young singer in 1952!!

Squillo to burn!! Not a gorgeous voice, but one of great excitement and squillo!!

In a rare RAI concert from January 30, 1960, soprano Rosana Carteri and tenor Carlo Bergonzi joing magnificent forces in this thrilling version of the geat love duet from Puccini's love duet, capped by a joint high C that is held forver, and ever!! Grande!!!