La Gioconda: Two Performances [LIVE]

Franco Corelli (Artist), Mary Curtis-Verna (Artist), Renata Tebaldi (Artist), Amilcare Ponchielli (Composer), Anton Guadagno (Conductor), Mignon Dunn (Performer), Cesare Bardelli (Performer), Bonaldo Giaiotti (Performer), Lili Chookasian (Performer), Anselmo Colzani (Performer)

Product Details

• Performer: Mignon Dunn, Cesare Bardelli, Bonaldo Giaiotti, Lili Chookasian, Anselmo Colzani
• Conductor: Anton Guadagno
• Composer: Amilcare Ponchielli
• Audio CD (November 5, 2002)
• SPARS Code: A-D
• Number of Discs: 3
• Format: Live
• Label: Bel Canto Society
• ASIN: B00006YXAK
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #355,926 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Track Listings

Disc: 1

1. Prelude - Anton Guadagno

2. Feste! - Anton Guadagno

3. E Cantan Su Lor Tombe! - Cesare Bardelli

4. L'ora Non Giunse Ancor - Anton Guadagno

5. Suo Covo E Tugurio - Anton Guadagno

6. Assassini! - Anton Guadagno

See all 28 tracks on this disc

Disc: 2

1. E Un Anatema - Mignon Dunn

2. L'amo Come Il Fulgor Del Creato! - Mignon Dunn

3. Il Mio Braccio T'afferra! - Mary Curtis-Verna

4. Maledizion! - Cesare Bardelli

5. Laura, Laura, Ove Sei? - Franco Corelli

6. Taci! Taci! - Anton Guadagno

See all 33 tracks on this disc

Disc: 3

1. Cielo E Mar - Franco Corelli

2. Ma Chi Vien? - Franco Corelli

3. Deh! Non Turbar - Franco Corelli

4. Deh! Non Tremar - Franco Corelli

5. Laggiu Nelle Nebbie Remote - Franco Corelli

6. E Il Tuo Nocchier Or La Fuga T'Appresta - Franco Corelli

See all 38 tracks on this disc

Editorial Reviews

Dr. Doug Fox, host, "Evening at the Opera," WMNR-FM, Monroe, CT

Stefan, you have outdone yourself with this restoration. We all had tapes of these Giocondas, in poor sound--what great performances.

Product Description

Two Performances: (Philadelphia, Feb. 18, 1964; complete performance). Corelli, Curtis-Verna, M. Dunn, Bardelli, Giaiotti; Guadagno, cond.; Philadelphia Lyric Opera. Plus: La Gioconda (October 18, 1966; 71 mins. of highlights). Corelli, Tebaldi, M. Dunn, Chookasian, Colzani, Hecht; Guadagno, cond.; Philadelphia Lyric Opera . Booklet includes synopsis, biographies and an article by Steve Cohen about The Philadelphia Lyric Opera. (3 CDs)

Corelli sang Gioconda many times with the Met but never elsewhere%Gâ€Â"%@apart from these two Philadelphia performances. These are his only available Enzos, and this is their first-ever release. The CDs were made from tapes supplied by Steve Cohen, the official recording engineer for The Philadelphia Lyric Opera.

Corelli uses a mechanistic vocal method involving manipulating the position of the larynx. In dramatic passages he sings with his larynx lowered to the bottom of his neck, to give his voice maximum heft, core and brilliance. In lyric passages he repositions his larynx somewhat upward.

He sings caressingly in the love scenes with Dunn and with anguish in the third act ensemble. In both performances he is in wonderful voice and even interpolates a high C in Act I and another in Act IV. Above all, as in no other role, he expresses blind fury, in his confrontations with Curtis-Verna and Tebaldi.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Blast From The Past: Corelli And Tebaldi in Gioconda, July 30, 2005

By	Rudy Avila "Saint Seiya" (Lennox, Ca United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Where was this recording all my life ? Two of the most renowned soprano and tenor pair of the 50's, Renata Tebaldi and Franco Corelli sing their hearts out in full-blooded, passionate, fiery Italian in this powerful performance of La Gioconda. Ponchielli's La Gioconda is perhaps the most fiery, intense Italian opera in the repertoire.

I'm not much of a music expert per se, but this opera is, to me, a blend of verisimo opera (the vogue of the late 19th century and early 1900's) and Romantic Puccini-esque opera. Tebaldi and Corelli do justice to the lead roles and live up to their own hype. Further to singing with dramatic musicianship, they provide the work with beautiful tone, with the greatest example of how to sing in true Italian form- with deep sultry richness and vocal bravura. Very few tenors truly sing in the Italian manner, and the ones who did were old school- Mario Del Monaco, Franco Corelli and Giuseppe Di Stefano. Even fewer sopranos sang with Italian fire. Not even Callas had it. Rosa Ponselle and Leontyne Price had it and of course Renata Tebaldi. In this old recording, the sound is not perfect but has been digitally remastered from the old tapes and sounds fair and fresh. This is a rare recording in that it offers the same opera in two different performances. Both have Corelli singing the tenor lead, but the first has a no-name soprano in the lead soprano role. While she lacks the strength of La Tebaldi, that performance is blessed with mezzo-soprano Mignon Dunn. Mignon Dunn was one of the more illustrious sopranos of the Golden Age of the Met, and her voice is velvety, deep and dramatic as well. In addition, she was a very attractive woman herself. She immerses herself in her role with dramatic flair. Mignon Dunn should be in everyone operaphile's top mezzo soprano list. Whenever you can, look for other recordings of Mignon Dunn.

The second performance is that of Renata Tebaldi in the soprano role. She interprets the character with more vocal splendor and musical artistry. Callas sang La Gioconda and her "Suicidio!" is far more dramatic but Tebaldi holds her own because she is in fine vocal shape, with none of the whoops and wobble that Callas often used in her singing. Hers is a pure, clean, smooth, creamy, Italian sound. The fact that Tebaldi sang the same roles at the same time (the 50's) as Callas is what lead to the rumored rivalry between them. I frankly believe that there was no rivalry between them. Both artists were simply different in their approach on singing opera- Callas was ever the actress, willing to sound ugly and harsh for the purely dramatic effect in the textual passages of the arias while Tebaldi would rather sacrifice credibility in character in order to sound gorgeous. This same beauty vs dramatic effect was present in the "other" famous rivalry - Joan Sutherland and Beverly Sills and in the tenor side Placido Domingo and Luciano Pavoratti. This performance is a must have if you're a Tebaldi fan. Tebaldi died around a year or two ago, and she is fondly remembered as a great soprano of the 20th century and her legacy lives on her recordings. Tebaldi and Corelli were on fire on stage, and they had really great chemistry - watch the filmed performance on DVD or VHS of their La Forza Del Destino of the 50's in order to see what I mean, or hear their recordings in which they sang together, among these a glorious Adrianna Lecrouvreur and Andrea Chenier. This is a terrific recording that ought to be more critically acclaimed.