Lorraine Hunt Lieberson - Handel - Theodora - As with rosy

Lorraine Hunt Lieberson sings again... Recitative (Ah! Whither should we fly, or fly from whom?) and air (As with rosy steps the morn). Production by Peter Sellars for Glyndebourne.

[@fimetic]

I believe Lorraine to be the greatest soprano/mezzo-soprano that ever graced a Handel aria. There's a quality in her voice that can turn base metal into gold or reduce the stony-hearted to tears. You are so missed Lady.

[@XPRT10R]

I was there on stage with her in this right behind her. Everytime it was like the first. Made your heart ache

[@frogmouth]

What a privilege

[@angelicamonjetorrez6392]

💗

[@anthonyparker2869]

@@frogmouth the good yet novel Christian complex will be the death of us all.

[@ThomasBowles]

I was in the audience, was truly stunning. What a production.

[@vinemp]

🤯🙏🏽

[@PhilMartel]

This is one of the most beautiful things in the world.

[@alisondaniels4457]

It really is

[@gpeffer]

I must have listened to this 50 times.

[@jean-francoisdaignault9612]

Dur à battre en effet... ;-) (j’écoutais O Love Divine, qui m’a mené ici. Pis je vois ta tite face...)

[@pawdaw]

Completely agree. Lorraine Hunt was one of those singers who gave you everything she had. She transforms this aria.

[@hmc54321]

I've listened to is so many times and it just gets better and better.

[@deewick9049]

If I could travel in time and be at any one art event in the past, I would want to be in Glyndebourne and see this opera live. Lorraine's voice is pure beauty.

[@XPRT10R]

Being there and a part of it, right behind the heavenly Lorraine, litterally changed my life, both personal and artistic. We were blessed

[@ldmwinterlight]

I totally understand (and share) what you say. I went to see that production and later wrote a PhD dissertation very much inspired by what I saw on scene. She was unrepeatable...

[@mont3verdi]

@@ldmwinterlight Boy. She inspired, rather sparked my Master‘s thesis on Handel - with her powerful performance in Giulio Cesare (also staged by Sellars - Cleopatra by the pool, anyone??). 🤓

[@MrWatertrotter99]

This must indeed be one of the finest performance of Haendel ever. I have listened to it for a thousand times and every time it moves me. I have no words, just listen ....

[@christopherbaswell4415]

Yes yes.

[@hyazintheengelhardt9991]

so so right!

[@MattWeisherComposer]

I have crossed oceans to hear something as sublime as this. I studied Handel for my degree. As a singer with a specialty for baroque runs, I worked hard to know what I know. I completely agree. I knew this piece then, and I showed it to my unenthusiastic music friends. He, like each person I’ve showed this, was a believer by then. Thank you, Ms. Hunt. Thank you.

[@Josquinquin]

She is now in the place of endless light. R.I.P.

[@JJoeisCooking]

One of the most beautiful performances I have ever heard.

[@geraldmalone3915]

Hers is an extraordinary talent. Her depth of character is profound. And a blessedly alluring voice. Clarity and richness. What being a mezzo is all about. An enriching discovery for me.

[@doGreatartistsgrowontrees]

This is heart wrenching. And so powerfully staged and acted. Watching Upshaw grieve while Hunt Lieberson sings is utterly devastating. I once ran into Hunt Lieberson, unexpectedly, in Santa Monica, California. She looked radiant in a long flowing white dress, like an angel. To this day the moment feels to me like a ghostly apparition. And I treasure it even more because of it. If I had known that only a year or two later she would be dead I would have gone out of my way to acknowledge her. Very painful to express.

[@marcelmolenaar5684]

doGreatartistsgrowontrees? A

[@EmilyGloeggler7984]

Agreed. :)

[@piustwelfth]

I saw Miss Hunt in recital several times, and this piece from 'Theodora' was usually one of her encores. The feeling & depth of emotion with which she sang this aria was stunning. The response from the audience was ecstatic. As shown in this video, she was an amazingly gifted live performer. Her passing at such a young age is a huge loss for lovers of classical music.

[@Homoclassicus]

This is one of my favourite video moments in all of Opera videography. Hunt Lieberson turns the choreography into a very credible and not artificial at all means of expression. Her singing is so suave, steady and varied, just ideal to Händel's music. Her artistic persona has a charisma and spiritual quality that, allied to her naturally beautiful voice and near perfect technique, definitely allow us to consider her one of the best mezzos of all time. Brava!

[@tdmthomas]

This is absolutely one of the most moving arias I have ever heard, and Lorraine Hunt Lieberson contributes a great deal toward that. Her performance is so quietly moving that the role of Irene seems almost written for her!

[@BobbetLazarus]

Can't watch and hear this sublime singing without tearing up.

[@vladimirorivas7020]

Sublime! What a wonderful singer she was!

[@stocktn2malone]

R.I.P. Lorraine, thank you for all you did.

[@k8ibob8i315]

I think I could hear this every day for the rest of my life and never get tired of it.

[@mysticmouse7261]

Handel's sublimest aria in his sublimely oratorio. Lorraine is one of the few songbirds who can do it justice. Such vehicles of Beauty have granted immortality

[@erichodge567]

Hearing this performance was falling in love. I can only thank Handel, Lorraine Hunt Lieberson, and the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment for giving me music which I shall adore all the days of my life.

[@brookeggleston9314]

This entire opera is available on utube, if you've not yet discovered it. Interestingly, Lorraine recorded this opera a few years earlier, singing the role of Theodora!!

[@joaocampelo3725]

Amen

[@janevonmaltzahn2667]

Exactly my thought - like falling in love!

[@janevonmaltzahn2667]

@@brookeggleston9314 THANKS!

[@brookeggleston9314]

@@janevonmaltzahn2667 You're quite welcome!!

[@kevindillon66]

Peerless! the most rewarding 8 minutes you will ever spend. money back guarantee. God bless Lorraine.

[@brookeggleston9314]

For another 8+minutes, listen to Lorraine sing, *Lord, to Thee!* Even more heart wrenching than this, since Theodora and Didymus have been sentenced to death!!

[@victorroux493]

Agree. A channel of something bigger than herself

[@Thedand77]

It was this moment which made me love her for eternity. R.I.P.

[@capricorn39100]

Eine der schönsten Barockarien, die ich je gehört habe. Eine phantastische Lorraine Hunt.

[@stxa2594]

One of the most beautiful arias ever composed by a human being.

[@francescoluigitrivisano9316]

I cry every time I listen this piece. It is eternal beauty

[@Ozymandi_as]

She is her own exquisite memorial, the beauty of her song at once our loss, and our consolation. Transcendent. RIP Lorraine & Daniel.

[@donaldstraughan3819]

One of the very greats. Her Irene in "Theodora" at Glyndebourne UK was a triumph. Not just for the exquisite voice, but for her great stage presence and command. Tears filled the eyes then, and still do when she sings. RIP.

[@grahamfrost8312]

Gets me every time I hear this recording - thank you Lorraine RIP.

[@tjittemuizelaar]

This is really unbelievable beautiful.. I am 71 now , but I am totally "destroyed "by this woman..

[@TheMusicofKathleenVick]

The melody, the words, the voice, the intellect, the comprehension to sing the aria with such brilliance. A treasure to my heart. Glad to be able to play the video again after all these years.

[@tombristowe846]

She died so young. God rest her . Immortal.

[@mattlennoxcounter]

Such a moving performance, by one of the finest opera singers of her generation.

[@lightuptheroof]

I first heard Ms. Hunt Liberson during a music history class. It was Dido's Lament. We heard several other pieces that were not sung by here, and they were beautiful - but just not the same. Her voice is sublime, beautiful, and the emotion I hear in her voice resonates with me so strongly.

[@kevindillon66]

I never tire of watching this!

[@wmprokipchak]

beyond staggering...time stands absolutely still during this. If Vermeer could sing this would be it. AND not only is her singing beyond heavenly..her onstage performance and countenance are also so amazing. Can this be equalled? maybe.....surpassed? doubt it.

[@BAMMTim]

This is sublime - and so was Joyce diDonato last night at Covent Garden. So , yes Hansel’s genius can keep inspiring singers to transcendent performances !

[@planthi80]

An absolutely sublime interpretation with each golden note caressed and tenderly inflected with effortless phrasing unmatched by anyone else. You are so missed....

[@kevindillon66]

back for more tonight...I will have this sung at my funeral...undeserving as I may be.

[@christopherbaswell4415]

Every time, this fills my eyes with tears. Such glory, and in Hunt Liberson's too-brief life, such tragedy. Now, with a very dear friend dying of cancer, similarly gifted and similarly young, the aria makes me struggle between its beauty and its grief.

[@fimetic]

I thought I knew how marvellous Handel could be. I thought I heard perfection ....I was wrong!! This is just the most beautiful, transcendent Handel I've ever heard. Thank you Lorraine, perfection. Thank you gslanfranchi, I who you 

[@harrymawbey4115]

First time seeing this powerful lady sing. Bringing me to tears. Thank you so much.

[@morghandecosta-taylor2057]

I just can't stop listening to this. Flawless.

[@gpeffer]

Morghan DeCosta-Taylor I’ve been listening to it over and over.

[@smrr5624]

I can't overstate the impact that this aria had on my life when this came out on DVD. Thanks for sharing this.

[@user-ol1ib1ss2b]

A perfect performance and a profound demonstration of the power of music. I'm grateful for experiencing it.

[@jeronimomassanet526]

The best version of this magnificient piece!

[@Mamselle100]

It's the most beautiful music I've ever heard. Thank you Lorraine Hunt Lieberson - you will never be forgotten & you live on through your sublime music. RIP Parisa

[@subberfischer]

Can't stop watching this ever since I found it.

[@robertjschroff6307]

same here

[@christineannemarsden]

This is so beautiful it made me cry How sad I could not see her singing live

[@sheilabloom6735]

Brought tears to my eyes. Gone much too soon.

[@operade]

Lorraine Hunt hat eine wundervolle,göttliche Stimme.Ich bin richtig süchtig!Gerne hätte ich Lorraine Hunt auf der Bühne erlebt und bravo geruft!!

[@nolonium]

Always in my heart, nobody will sing this aria into the same way like you, It sounds special, different, I don´t have words to discribe what I feel when I listen to her, life´s so hard, Opera´s world will miss you forever.

[@janevonmaltzahn2667]

If only Handel could have heard his music performed this well! We give thanks for he and mourn her loss still.

[@CC54]

Exquisite! Have only just discovered this masterful singer, a wonderful talent, and taken far too soon.

[@Beatrice.Buiron]

Probably watched and listened to this for the 50th time, just can't get enough of it! Thank you !

[@gpeffer]

Sarah Walker 20 times and counting.

[@gpeffer]

I’ve watched it about 25 times. Find something new every time I hear it.

[@brookeggleston9314]

I've lost count, and I'm still watching! Lorraine, like Arleen Auger before her, is a once in a lifetime performer. Fortunately, they sang in.two different vocal ranges, so I can say the same of both. Would that God had permitted these two great singer/actors to perform together!!! 🔥💜🔥

[@arsamoris444]

If Lorraine Hunt had never sung any else but this one aria, she would still have to go down in history as one of the greatest singers ever. And if Handel had written only this one aria, well, what can you say. There's just nothing better ever. I am glad I lived to hear and see this performance, including this wonderful production and the use of movement in the performers.

[@jesusmariagarciaarejula9032]

It has always been for me a mystery how the people on the scene could refrain from tears when hearing her. After so many times, it keeps on moving me to them...

[@JRZGRL55]

I have walked many times in the morning listening to this aria on my iPod. It is really wonderful to see her perform it. I'm very sad that I did not get to see her perform in person. She was a fabulous artist who strove for excellence in everything she did. We miss you Lorraine!! If you have not heard "Recital at Ravinia" please buy it!! There is a song at the end of the album from "Baghdad Cafe" that will tear your heart out.

[@brookeggleston9314]

*Calling you!* Yes, it *is* phenomenal, but anything Lorraine sang became more than ordinary. *Far* more than ordinary!! 🔥💜🔥

[@lindsaydenman]

This is just utterly sublime-Handel's genius has never seemed more soulful and approachable, conveyed with such passion by this rarest of talents, sadly no longer with us. It is so haunting and lovely, so rich, so sad.

[@victorroux493]

I think if great Handel see this he would cry and think its perfect

[@bodeaalex1142]

We have no idea how they liked it back them.

[@patshaw51]

Glorious, glorious Handel singing!

[@EmilyGloeggler7984]

Absolutely beautiful, such a gentle and floating rendition.

[@OperaBuff1935]

Thank you for posting this and other great arias by the late great Lorraine Hunt Lieberson. Ironic that she died of that horrible breast cancer about the time her good friend Dawn Upshaw was diagnosed with the disease, also Sylvia McNair and another renowned soprano whose name escapes me right now. Heart wrenching! RIP, Lorraine.

[@susangraham9702]

Ruth Ann Swenson.

[@lulumaude]

What joy to be able to see her singing. Miss her still.

[@bmon3518]

Extraordinarily beautiful. As a fellow singer I can see that she doesn't push the voice at all, at any point, even the most vocally emphatic/dramatic, and by not doing that she finds the emotional integrity of the performance. Exceptional skill and vocal restraint on display.

[@erichodge567]

This woman was placed on this Earth to sing this aria. These are eight perfect minutes of existence.

[@EffulgenceDiva]

This is the most amazing singing I've ever seen. She is so connected, so gentle. It truly is like she's ushering us into Heaven. Thank you for posting.

[@SteveL2012]

Heart-rending beauty in every aspect. ❤❤❤❤❤

[@XPRT10R]

Thank you gslanfranchi for these postings. You bring back wonderful memories and emotions. Doing those performances was magic everytime!

[@bohobo]

Absolutely heart wrenching, and in the very best and most soul soothing way. The end is so delicate and ridiculously difficult yet she never shows it for a moment. I could watch this a thousand times and it would never fail to move me... thanks for posting

[@bolderiks]

My god she has wires to my heart. This must be perfection.

[@andrewparker8891]

The cadenza at the very end is so magical it makes me cry every time.

[@virabyy6240]

taking my breath away - sheer beauty of singing and music

[@wolfyohare568]

All the superlatives have been said - all that remains for me to say is - thank you. This is something I shall never forget.

[@finalwordoftruth]

Proof there are and were always angels here on earth.......moving to say the least!

[@Ruffiello]

Endlessly moving.

[@TheJamesalden]

What a voice; how sad to hear that she's no longer with us. God bless you, Lorraine, and thank you for posting this....

[@svkorban]

слушать это можно бесконечно....

[@christineannemarsden]

Yes, each time I hear this from her, the same feelings. XX

[@ladyeoin]

Wowowow. Absolutely incredible.

[@Currabell]

Simply incredible. Breathtaking.

[@thomasciul8932]

I hope that she and Handel are enjoying this in paradise right now❤

[@greatmomentsofopera7170]

The greatest Mezzo since Janet Baker. At the pinnacle of the art.

[@wallymarcel1]

Sublime.

[@matteopigato992]

The best "As with Rosy" ever.

[@user-xe8ri2cd7k]

Very beautiful voice!! Wonderful actress!! Thank you for a new name for me!! Thank you from Russia)

[@Orfeo68]

this is so beautiful, I am crying like a baby...

[@redbrian3655]

Did ever such passion, artistry and sincerity ever inhabit another? Lorraine is the only singer with whom I relaxed and marveled. God, I miss her. What a lovely human to have graced this planet. BRIAN

[@shnimmuc]

Handel is devine. Truly one of apex composes. Her singing is other worldly..

[@OscarGraumusico]

Maravillosa, de un arte inmenso... que pena que nos dejase tan pronto.

[@rodwarner]

Absolutely beautiful...

[@JRZGRL55]

What a great experience for you to have been so close to this amazing artist - thanks for sharing. I am grateful that so much of her brilliance is available on CD and on video.There is so much to learn from Lorraine.

[@panayotisioannidis]

Act I, Scene 4 - [Irene]: RECITATIVE Ah! Whither should we fly, or fly from whom? The Lord is still the same, today, for ever, And his protection here, and everywhere. [...] Still shall thy servants wait on Thee, O Lord, And in thy saving mercy put their trust. AIR As with rosy steps the morn, Advancing, drives the shades of night, So from virtuous toil well-borne, Raise Thou our hopes of endless light. Triumphant saviour, Lord of day, Thou art the life, the light, the way! [As with rosy steps. . . - da capo]

[@sasha42196]

Oh my! Such beauty!

[@LollyWalesATL]

Beautiful xx

[@BaritoneRicardo]

Beautiful!!

[@cbrown6660]

The epitome of gorgeous!

[@cbrown6660]

That was so beautiful.

[@baward]

Marvellous, spine tingling.

[@balestraitalo]

Una bella voce...; aria cantata con molta espressione. Mi piace. Brava. Grazie.

[@viverito]

I listen to Lorraine Hunt Lieberson all the time. I play her CD's at home, I listen to her in my car. One of my biggest regrets is that I missed seeing her at the MET when she last performed there.

[@CEOOMKENS1947]

Lorraine lets us feel heaven and soul. Thank you dear dear Lorraine !

[@AllGrowing]

Utterly sublime! It is good to be taken so high and be reminded.