Awake, Saturnia.. Hence, Iris, hence away.. (Marilyn Horne - mezzo-soprano, 02.06.1981)

Marilyn Horne - mezzo-soprano
Martin Katz - piano
Teatro alla Scala, Milan, 02 June 1981

[@PeterMaleitzke]

The pianist, Martin Katz, is equally amazing as the singer, Marilyn Horne. He seems particularly suited to this precise and passionate music.

[@ddehggial9932]

I saw him the other with David Daniels in London, he's still got it.

[@ddehggial9932]

the other day, I meant.

[@magicmonkichi]

Katz and Horne were a great combo!

[@blackmeetsred]

He's one of my professors at UM and he's still fantastic

[@user-wd4ut2pg9o]

Beautiful diction. Sumptuous coloratura voice!

[@frogmouth]

Excellent . Have just listened to some later singers but Horner with that strength in the lower register knocks their socks off

[@belcantospecialist]

My God the richness in that voice, gives me tingles up & down my spine. A truly gifted and smart opera singer. Probably the greatest mezzo ever.

[@DiomedesDioscuro]

There are many things you can say about Horne, but I don't think the richness of the voice is one of them.

[@paules3437]

I'd echo the comments about Martin Katz. Holy cow is he good. That Handel can't be easy. I think she started out this program with this showpiece, which in a lot of cases might have been put at the end. It sure sets the stage for impossibly high-level songs/arias!

[@topherv4229]

She seemed quite pleased to get that over! What a stunning performance!

[@baritonebynight]

Here she is at the height of her powers, there was nothing that she could not sing.

[@Dadacomero]

+baritonebynight she hhad also lost a good amount of weight those years and she looked beautiful

[@davidpayne697]

@@Dadacomero She's beautiful regardless of her weight.

[@piustwelfth]

This is a recital from La Scala. It's available on DVD.

[@udcmusicprogram4240]

Brava!! They raised this up a half step to f# minor. Interesting colors in that key.

[@tharold8730]

Marilyn the Magnificent! Best versions of Iris Hence Away

[@paules3437]

God, she really is peerless. I've seen this a thousand times and still find it thrilling. She began life as a soprano, and despite the uniqueness of her lower register, I wish there were more places in her repertoire where she could sing sustained high notes as she does a few places here. Solid as a rock.

[@user-wd4ut2pg9o]

Her father probably had more influence on that change from soprano to mezzo than anyone. He knew her tessatura was especially strong in the lower register, and wouldn't let her have training when she was young, for a while, bc he new a coach would try to make her into a soprano. I'm glad she ended up in the right place. I've loved her voice since I was 10 yo.

[@paules3437]

@@user-wd4ut2pg9o That's interesting. How did you find that out? I've read both her "auto bio's" but don't recall that. I have, tho, been to her museum in Bradford PA, a town that seems on the verge of economic collapse when I stopped by on the way to Chatauqua (sp?) (which is where Salmon Rushdie was attacked a couple of years ago, well after I was there). Her museum was supported in large part, if not solely, but the Univ of Pittsburgh (I think; I know it got money from one of the univs)

[@user-wd4ut2pg9o]

I discovered that info about her father's influence upon his daughter's foregoing voice training right here on YT. Wish I had saved the bio or could tell you the title of the documentary, but I can't. Sorry. But, yeah. Evidently, and my mom, also a mezzo, told me when I was a boy that trying to turn a mezzo into a soprano can ruin the mezzo's voice if done too early in life. My mom was not a coloratura, but MH's voice is the one who sounds most like my mom's. A slower vibrato, rich, lower-register tones. She is 94 now with dementia. I think she forgot how to play the piano, and didn't remember she had perfect pitch.

[@paules3437]

@@user-wd4ut2pg9o Sorry about your mom's condition. That's always rough. I've seen at least one documentary on YT, so maybe I saw the one you refer to. I do recall reading an article in which the author said about Horne's masterclass: "She's the kind of person who might recognize a mezzo trying to be a soprano and guide her to her true range--the kind of advice that can make or break a career." In about 1987 or 88, I escorted Ms Horne from the recital hall at Yale out to her car... in the rain... after waiting an hour to thank her for her recital. Nuthin' like actually meeting a person you admire...

[@ernlwjr2]

Brava!

[@miguelesotof]

Iris: exact!! sonorous!!! color of voice!!!! etc.

[@piustwelfth]

This song is perfectly suited to her voice. Lots of dark notes and rapid coloratura up & down the scale.

[@jessewarner7962]

BRAVA!

[@user-fm6bl3qx5k]

❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

[@anjezamarku597]

❤️

[@davidlucey543]

Who do you think would win a fight- Juno or the Queen of the night?

[@mscott3918]

David Lucey Probably a draw, although the Queen of the Night would most likely have a few nasty tricks up her sleeve.

[@manyagaver1946]

But you know Juno plays DIRTY!

[@mscott3918]

Manya Gaver Ah true. I forgot she has that imperial sceptre. She could do a lot of damage with that.

[@accensus]

Queen of the Night has only two arias in Die Zauberflötte. Compared to the last aria of Semele, the tricks of the Queen are just sparks.

[@baritonebynight]

As much as I love the Queen of the Night, she lost her powers and couldn't even save her own daughter from being kidnapped from that dirty old man Sarastro. She does manage to scare off Monastatos, but that's where her powers seem to end. Juno on the other hand is a powerful Goddess. With her cunning and magic, she makes sure Semele gets her just reward for having an affair with her husband and then gloats about it in her final aria "Above Measure is the Pleasure that my Revenge Supplies".

[@jmac3327]

Taken too quickly.

[@jessewarner7962]

It’s a speedy flight!

[@loicfremond3496]

Martin Katz as the pianist is excellent, as to be expected. However, I dislike Horne's performance, I find it too quick. It seems less an exercise in precision and more of trying to get all the notes out as quickly as possible in some parts. It's a shame, because her voice obviously has incredible range and texture. I much prefer the performance of Stephanie Blythe which is more of an emotional powerhouse than Horne.

[@baritonebynight]

Ms. Horne or bust!

[@paules3437]

Not me. Blythe, whose rich voice I admire and who I thought was excellent as Mrs Wotan in the LePage Met Valkyrie, doesn't have (or at least didn't show in the recordings I saw/listened to) the agility that Horne has. Ms Horne is peerless, in my book.

[@Yotam1703]

I believe the clip was sped up. It’s not in the original key (and Horne is more likely to transpose it down than up), and something is weird with the dampening of the piano and Horne’s vibrato.

[@markballard1365]

This version is a tad too quick in tempo. Here's a Horne recording that is at a better tempo. kzbin.info/www/bejne/gJPMqqyAd7mqa7s

[@nathaliesekatcheff834]

Elle a une envie pressante ou quoi ? 😂Désolée pour les fans mais pour moi c’est un Numero d’acrobatie de Mme Horne et non pas l’expression de Junon à Iris ou un extrait d air de Haendel….

[@DiomedesDioscuro]

Euh... Quoi?