Callas: The Voice, The Story [Abridged, Audiobook] [Audio Cassette]

John Ardoin (Author), Michael Wager (Reader)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1, 1997

Even before her death in 1977, Maria Callas was the subject of controversy and never-ending fascination. Drawn from interviews with Callas, her life is told from her first public appearance to her years as a glamorous international diva. Commentaries and reminiscences by her contemporaries and with Callas herself are interspersed with excerpts from her most memorable live performances, presenting a remarkably frank and heartbreaking portrait of an extraordinary woman. 4 cassettes.

Editorial Reviews

Review

...Demanding, controversial, contradictory, here is Mary Ann Kalageropoulou [Maria Callas] as only an audiotape could present her. Buy it or borrow it, but don't miss it [brought to you by HighBridge Audio]. -- The Arizona Daily Star, Nov. 15, 1997

...HighBridge Audio gives us the work we've all been waiting for: Callas: The Voice The Story. Now we can hear Callas in her own words, recalling the experiences that shaped her voice and her life. Here, too, are the recollections of friends, acquaintances and even a few enemies....And then, there's the voice itself in many live and rarely heard recordings....Michael Wager keeps it all together with his narration of John Ardoin's finely-wrought script, and the result is altogether the finest biography of Callas I've run across, and the only one worth owning. I recommend it without reservation. -- Lou Santacroce, Sunday Brunch, WIBX Radio, Dec. 7, 1997

...[T]his audio biography is often involving: a much-expanded version of the 1988 radio documentary prepared by John Ardoin, the music critic of The Dallas Morning News, who was a close friend of Callas's. Mr. Ardoin's text, narrated by the mellow-voiced Michael Wager, weaves together some 50 musical excerpts....HighBridge's audio biography tells a remarkable tale, and a new wave of EMI CD's add many flourishes. -- The New York Times, Feb. 1, 1998

Is there anything left to say about Maria Callas? Perhaps not, but there's a lot to hear, which makes this audio biography stand out from all the Callas products. Anyone remotely interested in Callas simply must have this, because it promotes a much deeper understanding of the singer [brought to you by HighBridge Audio]. -- Opera News, Dec. 18, 1997

The [HighBridge] audiobook has a narration written by John Ardoin and Michael Wager, spoken by Wager, and illustrated with juicy examples of the diva's art, almost all of them from live performances. Callas herself is interviewed, and if she sometimes sounds paranoid or even demented, well, that's the truth....I thought this four-and-a-half hour show would be maudlin at best and boring at worst. It is neither. It goes like a whirlwind and it is all fascinating. -- FI Magazine, July 1998

Winner of the Listen Up Award - Best Packaging/Cover Art of 1997\

[brought to you by HighBridge Audio] -- Publishers Weekly, January 5, 1998

[I]t's a classy production through and through. The material contained includes a generous selection of live performance excerpts - in high fidelity - as well as archival interviews with family and friends, admirers and detractors. This is all strung together with polished commentary from narrator Wager, who also revised and expanded this material from its original incarnation as a 1988 public radio special. For fans, this unusual program will provide a treat [brought to you by HighBridge Audio]. -- Publishers Weekly, Nov. 3, 1997

About the Author

Maria Callas (December 2, 1923 – September 16, 1977) was an American-born Greek soprano and perhaps the most renowned opera singer of the 1950s. She combined an impressive bel canto technique with great dramatic gifts. An extremely versatile singer, her repertoire ranged from classical opera seria to the bel canto operas of Donizetti, Bellini, and Rossini, and further, to the works of Verdi and Puccini, and in her early career, the music dramas of Wagner. Her remarkable musical and dramatic talents led to her being hailed La Divina. Born in New York and raised by an overbearing mother, she received her musical education in Greece and established her career in Italy. Forced to deal with the exigencies of wartime poverty and with myopia that left her nearly blind on stage, she endured struggles and scandal over the course of her career. She turned herself from a heavy woman into a glamorous one after a mid-career weight loss, which might have contributed to her vocal decline and the premature end of her career. The press exulted in publicizing Callas's allegedly temperamental behavior, her supposed rivalry with Renata Tebaldi, and her love affair with Aristotle Onassis. Her dramatic life and personal tragedy have often overshadowed Callas the artist in the popular press. Her artistic achievements, however, were such that Leonard Bernstein called her "The Bible of opera", and her influence so enduring that, in 2006, Opera News wrote of her, "Nearly thirty years after her death, she's still the definition of the diva as artist—and still one of classical music's best-selling vocalists.

Product Details

• Audio Cassette
• Publisher: HighBridge Company; Abridged edition (November 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1565112245
• ISBN-13: 978-1565112247
• Product Dimensions: 7.2 x 4.5 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,705,258 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #28 in Books > Biographies & Memoirs > People, A-Z > ( C ) > Callas, Maria
  • #28 in Books > Books on Cassette > Biographies & Memoirs > Family & Children
  • #57 in Books > Books on Cassette > Children's Books > Music

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, March 4, 2000

By 

Leon M. Bodevin "Do right and fear no man" (Lemoore, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Callas: The Voice, The Story (Audio Cassette)

The best parts of this bio are the interviews with Callas: you get a feeling for her emotions about events as they unfolded in her life. This is especially true close to the end of her life where the grief from her failed relationship with Onassis is so evident in her voice. Generous samples of Callas's key performances are also woven into the bio. I had never heard Callas sing so these samples were welcome and helpful in understanding Callas. (Her antics on the stage and behind the curtain are how you get to know Callas best. Not to mention that the samples allow you to witness firsthand the fiery, brave voice that made her famous). Overall, this was a strong, unconventional bio on a tragic heroine of the stage. I enjoyed it in its entirety.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Callas Lives!!, November 24, 2009

By 

Jude Barnes "Jude Barnes" (Buffalo, NY USA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Callas: The Voice, The Story (Audio Cassette)

EXCELLENT purchase!! Top quality. Absolutely nothing wrong with the set. Just beautiful. It's in my car and I listent to it quite often. Just transports me. What an incredible creature! I still say that Callas was an ACTRESS who could sing. No one since the operatic stage to compare with her artistry. Just incredible!