1968 London - Joan Sutherland in Les Huguenots

Act II - O beau pays de la Touraine!
London - January 7, 1968
From Sutherland's first live performance of Les Huguenots in the original French.
I tried to clean up the sound, but only a little bit of noise would come out without distorting the singing. The little glitches in the trio are in my original.

[@MrStpendouslvforjo]

Joan is the FLAGSTAD of coloraturas!!! Dont you all agree?

[@user-yb2wk8tt4u]

Remarkable, there will never be another Sutherland.

[@65attila]

The embellishments are somewhat different and just as glorious as any I have ever heard.

[@johnschmid2453]

She sang this when she was soloist in concert in 1970 w/ Indpls Symph. Thank-God I was there. The size of the voice alone was amazing- She also sang Non Mi Dir Aria from Haydn Orfeo Sonnambula aria. Went to MET to hear she and Horne do Norma in April of same year. Also Lucia -Semeramide-Chicago. Chorus Master- Indpls Opera

[@MrStpendouslvforjo]

John Schmid You are so lucky!

[@krrainey77]

It's even more amazing when you consider this wasn't the repertoire she started in. Thank heavens for Richard Bonygne. It goes to show the importance of the repetiteurs and coaches!

[@JoanSutherlandFan]

Huge voice! It's amazing what Joan can do! Thanks for sharing this :) Joan lover

[@davidallen3687]

Astounding power, flexibility, with a wonderful trill. Who can top this? Fabulous Dame Joan was in a class of her own!

[@jondavwal13]

The reason I don't bother spending money on live opera any longer. Just hard to believe anybody could sound like they were singing Isolde and Linda di Chamonix at the same time, and both better than anybody else could.

[@Richiesutherland]

Sadly, Joan never sang Huguenots in NYC, although she sang this aria (without the trio section) in a Met gala in 1968. I believe this is from the London concert performance in 1969. No matter, it is fantastic, and thank you for posting it.

[@bellini7verdi]

un sueño....su voz es simplemente un sueño.........UN SUEÑO ETERNO.........LA MARAVILLA DE UN SONIDO VOCAL.........QUE NADIE HA TENIDO JAMAS DE LOS JAMASES........UN VERDADERO MILAGRO VOCAL Y HUMANO QUE ENGRANDECE NUESTRA RAZA....NUESTRAS CIVILIZACION....Y NUESTRA CULTURA........LOS EGIPCIOS HICIERON LAS PIRAMIDES.......PERO ELLA.....CADA SONIDO ERA UN BLOQUE DE 20 TONELADAS.............OLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

[@georgesbouissou1295]

Une voix et une technique toujours exceptionnelles et toujours pas égalées...!

[@CaptFitzbattleaxe]

You're welcome. This might me my favorite performance of this piece.

[@bellini7verdi]

este sonido vocal es simplemente indescriptible..............una pasada de pasión vocalllllllllllllllllllll

[@michaelbrodsky1221]

Brava, bravissima. Infinite thanks for posting this.

[@brolobear]

Yes, this was a concert performance from London. Some years ago, I read an overview/reviews on all available recordings of the opera. (edited by Alan Blyth - "Opera on Record") In discussing the Sutherland commercial recording, he referenced this concert performance, how the tenor Vrenios must have had some sort of vocel breakdown after the concert performances (where his voice had more than matched Sutherland in amplitude and decibels) his voice was merely a shadow of what it had been only months before. Interesting story.

[@dendodd2]

Sutherland did Les Huguenots in the Royal Albert All in Jan. 1968.

[@MultiZahl]

Man sagt,die Koloraturen von Joan Sutherland sind wie glitzernde Tautropfen auf himmlischen Wiesen !!!!! Bravissima La Stupenda-

[@MrChrya]

Thank you sooooo much for this posting!

[@bellini7verdi]

ELLA ES LA PIRAMIDE MISTERIOSA DEL CANTO.......NADIE SABRA JAMAS COMO LO HIZO........PERO CANTO COMO LAS DIOSAS.......DEL UNIVERSO...........

[@brendanmccarthy6368]

9p

[@brendanmccarthy6368]

Beautiful singer...

[@Richiesutherland]

Thanks, I checked back after I wrote my post. I wish I had been at either performance!

[@bellini7verdi]

una pasada en directo...........................pues siempre se ha dicho que las grabaciones es mejor..........pero yo no estoy de acuerdo.............pues el directo por lo menos en el caso de Sutherland.............recalcaba......la grandeza aun mas todavía....................de una voz poderosísima de la que solo era poseedora ELLA y nadie mas que ELLA............

[@giudiciadanna4550]

C'e' la Madonna di Lourdes, c'e' la Madonna di Fatima e c'e' la Madonna di Sydney.

[@MadonnaImperia]

You are right about London, but this performance is from 1968. The concert performance that Sutherland did in 1969 with the London Opera Society was "Semiramide".

[@CaptFitzbattleaxe]

Sorry, It is London. Dunno why I remembered the venue as NYC.

[@Sutherland2]

What is the venue? Is this a concert performance?

[@Allanfearn]

I'm sorry - this is astonishing, but it seems to be taking place in St Pancras Station. The Albert Hall?