Baritone Cage Match: Coloraturas And High

13 Baritones sing The Coloraturas And The High #F In The Counts Aria

[@divox9pqr]

A few wonderful “Counts” in evidence here. London for power, Wixell for accuracy and musically, Hampson a combination of those, Fischer-Dieskau for interesting unusual phrasing. Honestly, as someone who has performed the role often, each time was different because my body and circumstances on stage varied with staging elements. This little snippet of the aria does not give you much to go on. What is revealed is the singer’s performance at that place and time in the aria. I’d like to see a performance and hear the recitative that opens the scene before judging. The artists gets to show thought progression, motivation, and that all important subtext from a larger sample of the piece. Let’s hear more…let’s see more before a final judgment.

[@torlefborsting471]

It starts with Sir Thomas Allen for me. These are all great examples. Only one baritone missing and it is a big gap. Everyone who loves this show, this role, and this aria needs to hear Benjamin Luxon. His count with Ileana Contrubas, Kiri, and Frederica Von Stade was amazing!!!

[@theartstraveler]

Sir Thomas owned this role.

[@livrowland171]

L

[@livrowland171]

L

[@simonetalvela3292]

La coloratura di Gobbi! Splendida

[@peterkratzke952]

Nein, George London gebührt in diesem Falle nicht die Krone, trotz ausladender Stimmgebung: Herr Gilfry , sehr gerne von Gardiner besetzt, hat m.E.das passende Handwerksgepäck für den Schlussteil der Arie. Alle hier vorgestellten Sänger sind natürlich Weltklasse und man kann natürlich nicht von dem gewiss schwierigen Schluss der Arie auf die Bewältigung der Partie insgesamt schließen. Danke für diese interessante Dokumentation.

[@Sir.Larselot]

That was interesting. But after hearing all these famous baritone singers i have to notice, that i enjoyed Hampson the most for his elegance and dancing through the score with impressing technique- roles like that he was made for. Mozart demands this qualities. After that , as often, i really like the version of Thomas Allan very much for similar reasons and his market sign to sound in every tessitura with the same color combined with elegant power.

[@epochoirthehague]

Absolutely. Very intelligent interpretation, showing the weakness and foolishness of the aristocrat.

[@letsschubertiad1966]

Can we just talk about Rodney Gilfrys acting scills? ;)

[@maximilianbjorklund6544]

Agreed!

[@LeonoraBassisty104]

Would have love to hear Donald Adams in this, he was a bass-baritone but with an enormous range He is mostly known for his performance in Gilbert&Sullivan.

[@edwinkim6197]

I just love how Fisher-Dieskau takes the High F# slow and allows it to shine enough

[@maximilianbjorklund6544]

Could not agree more!!!

[@federico8ymedio966]

Mozart sempre gigantesco e gli interpreti monete d'oro puro. Chissà, forse London per la sua imponenza e Rodney Gilfry per la sua ironia. Otto minuti piacevolissimi, grazie.

[@maximilianbjorklund6544]

Grazie per la visione e l'ascolto!

[@krowapaulinka4351]

It really is THE most devilishly difficult aria for a baritone that Mozart ever wrote. These are amazing singers with solid techniques and yet I feel like, even though most of them do a rather good job, no one manages to sing exactly what Mozart wrote. Makes me wonder, if it is - and always has been - simply impossible for a baritone voice to do what Mozart, apparently quite foolishly, demands in this aria, or if the original singer for whom the role was written could actually sing it perfectly, with the coloratura passages, the high f AND the trill. If so, I really wish I could have heard it and applauded him!

[@operaanimelover369]

My personal favourites are John Forsell, Tito Gobbi, George London, Gabriel Bacquier, Hermann Prey, Ingvar Wixell, and Ruggero Raimondi because they have sufficient depth and virility in their voices and techniques.

[@RyanBede]

Wixell is 👍🏻

[@jamesmorse959]

Bastianini?

[@jamesmorse959]

Please ignore my reply, I don't think Bastianini sang this role!!

[@leoperarm]

Worth mentioning John Chest (not included in this list) manages to navigate this beautifully

[@evakiseleva8570]

Every wonderful in his own style. Then the question of tempo...

[@boskemakan5036]

Hiányolom a felvételek közül Dmitry Hvorostovsky 1995-ben Salzburgban rögzített előadását -szerintem - tökéletes.

[@anthonyehrenzweig1635]

I always liked George London especially for Wotan & here as well.

[@johankritzinger4206]

Lovely

[@paules3437]

Ouch. Who's the first guy? Painful. My favorite is Thomas Allen (with Te Kanawa, Popp et al (Solti 1982). I didn't listen to all this, so maybe he's on it.

[@sebthi7890]

for me as overtone listener Prey had the richest voice, effortless tone profiction. His coloratura was extra sluggish and the f# rather short. Would be interesting if there exists better recordings.

[@DCFunBud]

As much as I love George London, I think Wixell edged him out, followed by Simon Keenlyside for bronze.

[@radames5855]

Credo Dieskau sia uno dei migliori...naturalmente ce ne sono altri...grazie

[@luisjo1962]

The best barytone of all: Hermann Prey

[@sylviakreye]

A very interesting baritone match! However, I am missing Renato Bruson.

[@ErencanKaradi]

rodney and thomas hampson killed it🔥

[@facundodiaz7391]

Rod Gilfry

[@DCFunBud]

He was the most beautiful.

[@sebthi7890]

ah i didn't know that this is this a beauty a beauty competition 😮

[@Muttonchop_USA]

Would've been better without a shirt. I'm just saying...

[@aleksandarjankovski6542]

Thomas Hampson wins this one for me. (Naturally, this is all too subjective).

[@claudiusehrler1454]

great singers! but i miss bryn terfel, his high #f is incredible.

[@tonshaad1230]

No John Brownlee? Mario Ancona?

[@maximilianbjorklund6544]

Sorry, I should have added those in:(

[@johankritzinger4206]

Well Wixell maybe best

[@letsschubertiad1966]

7:29

[@letsschubertiad1966]

There was no bad singer.

[@salvoferraro6976]

London e basta!

[@vitalylesindorf640]

Здесь победил, мне кажется, Герман. А Херля это пел?

[@crimsonaurora7819]

London, Allen, Gobbi, Wixell, Keenlyside. A separate: Prey, Mattei, Hampson, because they have an interesting and not standart interpretation and tembro

[@maximilianbjorklund6544]

Which are your favorites? My top 5 are: 1. Fischer-Dieskau 2. Wixell 3. Gobbi 4. Keenlyside 5. Mattei

[@eugeniogentili1048]

London Gobbi Prey

[@kennethwayne6857]

Excellent choices! I've had great pleasure singing this myself, although I couldn't come near the artistry of any of these gentlemen. Such a thrill seeing my idols Prey and Allen here, though I also love Raimondi in this role because for one, he's a very rare Italian singing in his native tongue. All men are also excellent actors.

[@ColonelFredPuntridge]

I think the ten best are Tito Gobbi, Tito Gobbi, Tito Gobbi, Tito Gobbi, Tito Gobbi, Tito Gobbi, Tito Gobbi, Tito Gobbi, Tito Gobbi, and Tito Gobbi. John Brownlee is not bad. Not great, but not bad. George London is strange enough to be worth hearing a few times. All others are neither here nor there. Rolando Panerai might have been interesting, but as far as I know he only sang Figaro, not the Count. I would also love to hear what Franz Mazura would have done with it, but the only Mozart I've been able to find him singing on record is the Sprecher in Die Zauberflöte. Seriously, Tito Gobbi is the only one (IMHO) who seems to understand why the Count reacts so angrily to being turned away by Susanna. Other opera characters who like to chase girls don't get so angry - for instance, Don Giovanni, the Duke of Mantua, Baron Ochs, they all take it in pretty good humor when the girls resist or flee. Even Falstaff seems satisfied to express his resentment with words only. Why is the Count so murderously furious about it? (I take his attempt to marry Figaro to Marcellina as the comedic equivalent of attempted murder.) I think the answer is: the Count takes it so personally and responds so viciously because he is afraid, on some hidden subconscious level, that if he doesn't prove himself with everyone, his people will perceive weakenss, rise up, rebel, and kill him. And he can't admit to himself that he's so frightened, so he tries to cover up his feelings by blustering, to himself, about pride and his successful rival's servant-status. Somehow when Tito Gobbi sings, the Count's secret motivating-emotion - fear - seems clear to me. I haven't heard anyone else sing the role this way.

[@troonln]

Clearly Thomas Allen destroys the pack.

[@adamastorBassBar]

Agreed - not sure about the dead sheep he's wearing though!

[@maximilianbjorklund6544]

@@adamastorBassBar 😂😂😂

[@serge-etiennefreytag332]

CLEARLY George London DESTROYS the rest of the pack! Depth, power and intonation, perfect vibrato and he really sells the Schadenfreude!

[@Shahrdad]

Really none of them manage to sing what Mozart wrote. Almost everyone has sloppy coloratura singing, and some, worst of all Fischer-Dieskau sing Giuhubihilar, sticking an H all over the place where there should be none. Gilfrey does that a little too, but a bit more elegantly. There are two written trills, and none really manages to sing either trill, though Fische-Dieskau really appears to be trying. Gobbi's coloratura was surprisingly clean, though Hampson probably sings it the most elegantly, but I cannot hear either trill. The sound quality isn't great though.

[@beerokrata3286]

that is called improvisation or freedom of artist... it is alowed in music but not that often... if you were a singer you probably wouldnt say such precise critics because u would knew how hard those arias were...

[@Shahrdad]

@@beerokrata3286 I suppose whenever a singer or instrumentalist fails to sing or play what is written or sings or plays the wrong notes, we will just call it improvisation from now on. By your definition, Florence Foster Jenkins was the greatest improviser of them all.

[@ColonelFredPuntridge]

That may be because what Mozart wrote is so amazingly difficult to sing.

[@Shahrdad]

@@ColonelFredPuntridge it’s because most singers today never learn to trill.

[@vully70]

Der Fairness halber muss man sagen, dass es von allen Interpreten dieser Ausschnitte bessere Aufnahmen diese Arie gibt. Der einzige, der eigentlich alle Noten - Sowohl die Koloraturen als auch den Triller - korrekt singt (wenn auch sehr langsam, was am Dirigenten liegen dürfte -Harnoncourt?) ist Thomas Hampson. Ingwar Wixell, Thomas Allen und Simon Keenleyside vergessen nur den Triller (im Studio sangen sie ihn alle - und gut), alle anderen schluren sich irgendwie durch.

[@javierlameiro3539]

honestly, it resembles much more to a match for "the most horrendous costume" or "the most ridiculous wig" ... how despairingly ugly can it get!