Maria Callas: The Final Production of Medea / Schippers (1961)

Cherubini (Artist), Callas (Artist), Vickers (Artist), Simionato (Artist) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (December 16, 1997)
• Label: Ombra / Di Pui
• ASIN: B000005DIO
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,048,842 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Médée (Medea), opera in 3 acts: Overture

2. Médée (Medea), opera in 3 acts: Act 1. The sorceress Medea enters King Creons' court

3. Médée (Medea), opera in 3 acts: Act 1. Medea seeks to rekindle their lost love with reminders of all that she has sacrificed for hi

4. Médée (Medea), opera in 3 acts: Act 2. In front of the temple Medeas's maidservant

5. Médée (Medea), opera in 3 acts: Act 2. Left alone Medea begins to plot her terrible revenge

6. Médée (Medea), opera in 3 acts: Act 2. The wedding ceremony begins in the temple

7. Médée (Medea), opera in 3 acts: Act 3 (Complete). Medea now calls on the Dark Deities to fill her with super human strength and all

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Callas a genius but problems with recording, November 22, 2011

By 

RES (Boston, MA, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Maria Callas: The Final Production of Medea / Schippers (1961) (Audio CD)

By 1961, Callas' voice was well beyond its zenith. Nevertheless, the musicality and drama she brings to this particular role have never been equaled. One should listen to earlier recorded performances of Callas as MEDEA (especially at La Scala in December 1953 with Bernstein conducting) for the real effect. However, this series of 1961-2 MEDEAs was Callas' last appearance in the role and at La Scala, so it is of historical significance. As indicated, Callas' voice is here unsteady and opaque. The rest of the cast is fine, and Schippers conducts with a certain flair, given that this version is, as always, only about 60% Cherubini, with anachronistic recitatives by Franz Lachner added in the 1850s to replace the original spoken dialog, and many cuts of the original 1797 music; the edition Callas and her conductors used were always a mess. The problem with every published version of this recording is that it starts roughly at correct pitch and imperceptibly drops for the first forty minutes, so that by the time Callas enters, it is a big semi-tone flat for the rest of the opera, making an already wobbly Callas sound even worse. This is true of the original tape: apparently whoever recorded it off the air had a tape recorder that sped up as it warmed up, so played on accurate equipment, it gets very flat. That no one has noticed this from the time of its first official LP issuance on Fonit-Cetra, is astounding beyond words, and makes for a useless distortion of an important document.

4.0 out of 5 stars Callas was more astonishing than ever..., July 4, 2009

By 

P. Byrne - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Maria Callas: The Final Production of Medea / Schippers (1961) (Audio CD)

"An interpretation which is probably one of the most astounding achievements ever in the field of operatic performance. Callas was more astonishing than ever" French critic, Jaques Bourgeois