Juan Diego Florez - I Puritani - Credeasi Misera

Juan Diego Florez in a scene from Bellini's I Puritani. No high F from him.
With Mariola Cantarero.
Las Palmas, 2004.
For a free English translation please see the following:
operainenglish....

[@mariexenaide1224]

Quelle voix magnifique et quelle prouesse. Bravo Juan Diego Flores !

[@raythespian]

Juan Diego doesn't need the F. The way he built to the Db was climactic enough. Even without coloratura fireworks, he generates electricity like no other. Obviously, I'm an adoring fan.

[@musicdrew24]

Perfection, this is perfect for his voice

[@baritonoguapo]

Susejf, thank you very much for adding your wisdom and charm to this conversation. I think I speak for everyone by saying that you have really enriched our lives with your vast knowledge of not only tenors, but indeed the human condition as well.

[@DavidBrowningBYD]

I don't know how to link this comment to the threads about JDF's high notes, but remember that in 1835, when I Puritani was premiered, tenors did not sing D-flats and Fs in the same way they do now. Anyone who thinks JDF's D-flat is not up to par can speak to me, and he'll no doubt soon feel the rough edge of my tongue!

[@MrSwifts31]

I have been watching opera (live & ond DVD etc) since I was 14,which is now 50 years. All this time I am amazed,saddened and curious as to why a singer should be marked down for not getting/attempting high notes? To me opera is about the whole package not just high notes.It also consists of staging,costumes,directing;and in the case of singers acting as well as the voice. Therer is much more to opera than just a voice(and high notes),but I am in the minority it would seem?

[@lantis323f]

bravissimo, senza ombra di dubbio! ma niente fa!!

[@algotrading6263]

Mondiale!!!

[@lauritahs]

Belleza de voz, belleza de tecnica, es una hermoza escena, y la voz de Florez, como siempre Hermoza, thanks

[@vivomusique]

Great performance. I saw him, here in Miami,Fl!! What a voice and personality. He is my favorite, young tenor today, but I must say Lawrence Brownlee is coming up very quickly (he actually sings the high "F") in this aria.

[@elegiamara]

in my opinion is a great performance. i've heard many version of this opera and florez is a good arturo... this role is really difficult and few singers are able to perform it.

[@zzzut]

I have heard many productions of I Puritani, I have even been part of the chorus and I have never heard any tenor actually sing that deadly high F on stage. I think JDF was wise to avoid it.

[@tenorandrewowens]

I'm glad you also have a favorable opinion of DiGiuseppe. I must admit, mine is a bit biased because he was my former teacher. I loved him as if he were my own grandfather and idolized him as a singer. I recently sang this aria and modeled it after him as best I could!!

[@alexo250]

JUAN DIEGO FLOREZ AND IMAC SUMAC TWO OF THE UNIQUE AND GREATEST VOICES IN THE WORLD! THEY BOTH WHERE BORN IN PERU!

[@incredulousG3]

@zzzut Oh, I understand where you're coming from. JDF is absolutely amazing, his tone is amazing and his upper register is flawlessly blended. Basically, a tenor either has an F5 or they don't. Florez made the executive decision to not sing it. He's an amazing singer, an amazing actor, an amazing performer. Better than 95 percent of tenors ever to grace the stage in my opinion.

[@ulrikemorollo6872]

Bravissimo!!!! Benissimo!!!!!

[@serenaluce]

Though for me the best Arturo ever is Gedda with his incredible high notes, but this is very beautiful too in his own way! Bravo!

[@monchihoshi]

thank you Gabba02!! this is just gorgeous! he is my favourite singer if without high F. his high notes, i really don't care if he sings with falsetto or voce di finte. but i'm sure this high D is not falsetto. however, i reallly want to hear his trained falsetto. i've never heard it, but then his performance would be greater than that without falsetto, i think.

[@charmeueueur]

It is better to sing a beautiful D flat rather that a awful F. Bravo Florez!

[@AndyMcIntyre]

Voice training was different back then, go to wikipedia's page for "I puritani" then click the link to the baltimore opera, there's stuff about it there.

[@mradaChris]

Thanks!

[@leblon2]

Last night Juan Diego was not on top form in the performance of I Puritani in Madrid. He missed quite a few notes and he did not even attempt to sing the high F. He was even very cautios in the A te o cara!!! I hope that his voice is not feeling the strain of a stressful international career. Here is more relaxed and enjoyable.

[@renerivero1882]

It's not that every tenor is expected to hit a high f. Rather, that this aria requires it from a musical perspective not a character perspective.

[@GWEBITYALA]

@clog726 Sorry to be pedantic, but Credeasi misera is in D flat, so the high note Florez sings is a D flat, which is not what is written, as Bellini in fact wrote a high F - twice, because the phrase going up to the F repeats. In this production, one of the repeats was cut and Florez substituted the written F with a D flat. The C# comes earlier in the opera, in A te o cara.

[@amballa]

Carreras does a high E in Lucia di Lammermoor. And very nicely indeed.

[@angelovocci]

Wow! I loved that suported High note!!! The appogio was there! Moving ending... Why is there such hatred on this page--and homophobia? You guys-it's a forum, not a boxing ring.

[@pipineza]

he has a very clear fa.There is nothing better than him

[@MisterSoprano]

JDF, great as allways!

[@Mooorhe]

He had already performed Manrico as well. And the opening night of the Met I Puritani was the 25th of February *1976*.

[@johneunson]

why the comparisons? florez has a unique instrument and if he is not to your taste move on. we have a great talent here, not perfect, but great nevertheless. i was unsure when i saw he was singing this role......but he works his magic again. is this available on cd yet? thank you for posting this and the other gems on your site.

[@saagua1953]

Nobody today can do the high F and be sure to do it well. It is a gamble at best and I suspect Florez, who likes to be as perfect as possible, thinks it wise to side step it. He has said E flat is the highest he can go with security.

[@Merryjest]

Do not forget that Tenori Leggieri have an upper extension above the Ab that is NOT falsetto, but which engages the thin edge of the vocal folds.

[@viv3147]

the F probably has nothin to do with juan diego. He sings high D's and F's on one of his newer Cds. It was probably the conductors decision.

[@mradaChris]

I was curious about what you said. I had never heard the term before and so you are suggesting the A flat below female high C? If so that is pretty high. Most men aren't required to get that high normally in Opera but it is interesting. I use to hit Female High C when I was in my 20's. I don't remember if it was falsetto or head voice/whistle voice. I have been at the A below this note recently but it takes a lot of work to hit those notes. chris

[@baritonoguapo]

Yes, it says that I'm a baritone and that I know a bit of Spanish. What do you think your comments say about you?

[@MScJorgePoveda]

Excelente interpretacion.Mantiene la voz todo el tiempo,sin concesiones a la diicultad del aria y a las notas altas..aunque no hay una F , da una C singular.

[@mradaChris]

Viv, I don't know if you were responding to me or amballa, however head and falsetto aren't the same amballa. Falsetto is light and airy, head voice is not. Ddepends on vocal control of the sound. I think it is cool that viv can sing well beyond high f in falsetto. For me my falsetto range and head range are the same, the only difference is the amplitude of sound. So for me, high F is it. When I was a younger fellow I could go to Female High C. I can't get there now.

[@GWEBITYALA]

@TheRockStar2be123 D flat and C sharp are in fact enharmonic on the tempered scale, which means they are theoretically same note written differently. But it is incorrect to refer to it as C sharp if your tonality is D flat. I don't need to check on the keyboard as I have the score, thank you.

[@jws2718]

Has Florez ever sung a high F? I know Morino and Kunde can sing that high, but there aren't too many other tenors I know of who can hit that F.

[@KennyStockard]

I thought he was gonna go for the F! Great job tho. Both of them

[@GWEBITYALA]

@saagua1953 There's video on KZbin of Lawrence Brownlee singing the high F in Credeasi misera live and I think it is pretty convincing! I am told he does it without fail in live performance. Other than him, I'd agree with you, I'm not aware of any current tenor who can do it. Even past ones were not convincing with that F - not Pav, not Gedda, perhaps Matteuzzi, but then the rest of the voice was not great.

[@LobsngDmchoi]

The high C at the end of "Di quella pira", as usually performed, has one big liability: it places an awkward emphasis on a weak syllable: a-lar-MI. Composers sometimes do this kind of thing, but it seems hardly appropriate here. "Credeasi misera" is a different case: F in alt is written, it follows logically from the preceding phrase, and is mirrored in the orchestra. I'm no P. Gossett, but just becase there's no critical edition, it doesn't follow that we don't have a reasonably accurate text.

[@baritonoguapo]

Strange, it seems to me that you misplaced your comment. Perhaps you missed the obvious fact that this board is a bulletin on opera. How odd that you have seemed to mistake it for a bulletin discussing what Etnalleb does with his spare time. Get off of KZbin!

[@jcattapan]

Since there is no critical edition of I Puritani, yet, all this discussion as to whether it is written or not is not very serious. I would recommend P. Gossett's Divas and Scholars to begin to understand the complexity of the transmission bel canto operas (do people who populate You Tube still read books too???). He makes a good point about the high C at end of Da quella pira too... If any body reads the book (or is already familiar with it), I would appreciate your opinion too.

[@zzzut]

JDF is a great tenor and he should not be judged because he had enough good taste not to sing that ridiculous high F. Even Pavarotti whom I adored sounded like a counter-tenor when he sang it. IMHO, no tenor should be requested to sing higher than high C (or in some rare cases, high Db or D). Above that, everything sounds like falsetto.

[@MrAndredekock]

At least Florez knows his capabilities and limits.

[@josephcold]

what a freakin voice

[@Mooorhe]

True, Pavarotti only sang it with the Ds in his studio recording. It didn't bother me though, it is such a demanding role, and Pavarotti's vocal cords just didn't allow him to sing high Ds regularly I guess.

[@antidinosaur]

Is there anybody can tell me how many version for this aria? It is clear enough for me that at the end of this aria, Pavarotti, and Kunde sang it different ways from Florez. Let along the factor of singer, I choose Kunde's version.

[@TheAleph74]

WHy do you say that whoever says otherwise is prejudiced? Everybody has different tastes and preferences in music/vlices that don't have anything to do with race. I like JDF better thatn Lawrence Brownlee, does that make me predjudiced?

[@flaze3]

His is my favourite out of them all. Florez could probably manage it, but he's probably scared to damage his 'international tenor' voice :p

[@bodiloto]

stonato il tuo Florez e canta con una vocalità dilettantesca degna della scuola media.

[@mradaChris]

I have found in my training that falsetto and head voice are almost physiologically the same in the vocal chords. The only really difference is the airiness that comes from falsetto. Probably from not having the control over the chords. If you can sing a High F for a male and with real volume you really couldn't do it in falsetto. You'd run out of breath for one and you couldn't get that much amplitude, easily. Just my opinion. chris

[@zzzut]

@incredulousG3 Of course Osborn does hit the note spot-on which is no small accomplishment but is it that pleasant to hear really? Well, it's a matter of taste I guess. I still think that a tenor can be a great singer and not be able to sing such a high note. Go check Mado Robin's extreme high notes on KZbin (e.g. the mad scene from Lucia). It most certainly is impressive but no other soprano is expected to do that. Why should we expect all tenors to sing that high F.

[@mradaChris]

Sorry I guess I wasn't clear. For me, maybe I'll start with that, when I sing a High F in Falsetto I run out of breath easily as I use more air. With head voice I can be obnoxious for a good 20 seconds! :-) I was pointing to the amplitude of sound basically.

[@viv3147]

i was agreeing with you as far as them ebing different but i dnt understand what u mean by this If you can sing a High F for a male and with real volume you really couldn't do it in falsetto. You'd run out of breath for one and you couldn't get that much amplitude, easily. What if i just did it with a new breathe?

[@tehen162]

As far as I know, F is written.

[@viv3147]

ahhhh so muhc better now thanks hahah sorry if i offended

[@zzzut]

@incredulousG3 I totally agree! :)

[@amballa]

F is written. And there's not way you could do the f-falseto and be heard through...

[@amballa]

head and falseto is the same thing. Just the name is different. Humans only have two registers: chest and falseto. How we call them is another thing.

[@incredulousG3]

@zzzut wrong. Go look up John Osborn. Sings the F5 beautifully.

[@Mooorhe]

But Pavarotti sang it in 1968, before any heavier roles... He transposes it down half a tone there, the C#s are mind blowing... But he must have not felt confident doing Ds.

[@tehen162]

In 1830 they hit those notes falsetto.

[@ancamg]

Nice performance, but there are no high F's in it. It could barely be considered a D, althouh it sounds more like C, but it is in between (a semitone). The whole aria seems to be sung a little lower. Anyway, I love Bellini.

[@clement2780]

Who is the elvira, and baritone, bass walton?

[@thatoperaguy]

so what note did he sing?

[@Republicrat74]

I'n not a fan of high F's from Tenors, but the best I've ever heard actually "sung" was by Nicolai Gedda....available at this site in "Credeasi misera". This version is done quite well also, but too many are shrieked rather than sung.

[@Merryjest]

No, Ab at male level. Go to voiceteacher dot com and look up the article "Characteristics of the Leggiero Tenor"

[@clemcamby]

I do not think that pavarotti be the best for the high F but he still the best for all other things! for that matters i don't like "high F" for tenors in general ! they are not alti or mezzi!

[@goofyguy1987]

it is a Db. i have my piano next to me right now

[@FitnessVocalCarlosVinsac]

Perdona pero te equivocas. La cantidad de tenores ligeros que lo tienen natural, no de falsete.. POR DIOS! de hecho, cualquier tenor lírico vocalizando lo da, yo soy spinto y lo doy vocalizando, y por supuesto debe ser a voz natural, falsete ni siquiera me sale, por lo menos con el mismo volumen.

[@kirrinchas]

bien, pero hace falta el fa sobreagudo para poder decir que es el mejor tenor lirico-ligero de todos tiempos, me pregunto si alguna vez a cantado ese fa o si lo posee y lo puede dar?

[@largomalmsteen]

los conosco, a todos,mira, tengo 30 años, soy fonoaudiologo y profesor de canto, cualquier nota que pase el MI 5, o en algunos casos el Fa, pero todavia se estudia ya que es una frecuencia de Resonancia en la cabeza, asi ni siquiera el Fa es sabido si es de pecho o de cabeza, esta nota es un Fa # sostenido, (no en este video por que lo canta en Do #, el verdadero tono de esta obra es en Re , osea que la nota mas aguda seria el Fa#, podes ver en el video de Materuzzi, que no lo hace de pecho.

[@ColinMudd]

On the contrary...in Bellini's day most tenors did indeed use a combination of head voice but I am not convinced they used falsetto.... this is the great debate amongst bel canto tenors....how are those rare stratospheric notes produces...Gilbert Louise Duprez sang at that time and he was the first to introduce full chest tones above the stave lifting the soft palate. Rossini however loathed this manner of voice production.

[@viv3147]

dude what in gods name are you saying. Head voice is when you resonate in your mask (face nose head-hence the name) chest is when you resonate in your chest cavity, and falsetto is when you only use the tips or edges of your vocal chords. Right now I can sing way beyond a high f in falsetto with ease. What does that have to do with the breath i need to sing it full, there is no connection your not making sense.

[@tenorandrewowens]

the nicest high F has got to be Matteuzzi's, but the voice in general is not my favorite. I heard Kunde sing Arturo at the MET this December, it was pretty rough, but he still sang the F at the end. One of the greatest interpreters I ever heard was Enrico Di Giuseppe at NYCO in the 70s, no F but WOW!!!!

[@amballa]

he also does not sing the d-flat before...

[@jcattapan]

Now, like everybody else in here, I do have an opinion about the high F. Regardless of the technique, some sound plain horrible to me, and they detract from the performance. I am not judging the singers (I couldn't do it any better), but since I do enjoy listening to opera, I found some of those F's disturbing and foreign. However, by contemporary accounts, that what Rossini and other thought about the first high C's in full voice that they heard ...

[@eucantoopera]

cade o Fa nao acredito um tenor desse tipo de voz nao ter essa nota =[

[@GWEBITYALA]

@masettoallegro Yeah, just checked him out. Not bad at all! So many good tenors around, and not all of them famous... yet

[@Mooorhe]

LOL, someone obviously does not like to be correct ;P... I hope you have a good life too.

[@tenorbass100]

High F ist geschrieben!

[@lizaar19]

To more accurately with piano beside the note issue juan diego florez corresponds to a through c #

[@angelovocci]

Both have such head resonance but need more appogio, chest resonance in their tones. very lyric but a bit more dramatic tone is needed.

[@Mooorhe]

corrected*

[@largomalmsteen]

it was a chest High c#

[@louvet66]

N'y a-t-il que des british pour commenter You Tube? Ou sont les Français? On sait bien qu'on n'est pas un peuple de musiciens, mais quand même...

[@voltape]

Please - - leave high F's to sopranos!!!

[@MicahandModesta]

It did look strangely tough. I havn't seen JDF look that uncomfortable when singing a high note. Perhaps an off night or he forgot to support properly and realised.

[@egymagyar1111111]

you and I love the opera I see and it is good, thanks, really and truly to remind me it must be kept alive as an unsurpassed artform, I remember again Astrid Varnay alive no mics at all and sounded over the Tristan's orchestra as Victoria Falls smooth and sound we forgot to applaud at the last scene, this Florez is a good singer should he give heart to that and reach out for that high tone over the C it is an f but just show he really feels it... or he has not that?

[@Mooorhe]

Okay, well I was merely correcting you. Hate me if you will, good day.

[@GWEBITYALA]

@TheRockStar2be123 No worries mate

[@AulicExclusiva]

I couldn't care less if he sings the F or not. It is never an agreeable note, no matter who does it. Flórez has a very nice, clear voice, and beautiful enunciation. The phrasing is good, but he sings everything at the same dynamic level: LOUD. He does not caress the phrases, or sing mezza-voce. Listen to Giacomo Lauri Volpi's A te, o cara for real romantic tenderness in this music-and a TERRIFIC high C-sharp.

[@largomalmsteen]

nunca dije falsete..perdoname pero te equivocas...lo daras con registro de cabeza...NO DE PECHO...ESO ES IMPOSIBLE...estos tenores de arriba que son los mejores del mundo, lo hacen con REGISTRO DE CABEZA...NUNCA lo hacen de pecho...NUNCA dije falsete

[@TheAleph74]

Si no tiene el Fa sobreadugo en voz natural, seria de mal gusto que lo dieran en falsete como lo hizo Pavarotti por ejemplo.

[@acitipo]

Me parece honesto de su parte que no haga el Fa sobreagudo, y haga un re, porque hacerlo de cabeza o falseto suena feo, el prefiere hacer un re natural potente de pecho, si se puede decir correctamente, porque es muy fuerte y bien colocado. Yo no he escuchado ni a Kraus en los años 70 no a ningun otro ligero famoso hacer el fa sobre agudo.

[@largomalmsteen]

nadie lo tiene en voz natural, el fa sobreagudo es una nota que se hace con Registro de Cabeza, nunca se hizo de pecho.

[@angalafan]

Osborn does a better job in this aria according to the fact that he included the vocal performance inside the staging acting, and his voice suit much more better with the score! But I 'm not speaking about the F5 wich is not necessary according to me.

[@Mooorhe]

He was better in the French repertoire, Gedda and Kraus are probably the greatest tenors to sing the French repertoire... You just have to listen to either of the to perform in Werther or Faust to hear it! And it's only my opinion that Pavarotti was the better Arturo of course, and no amount of arguing will change either of our opinions. I guess we just have to agree to disagree.

[@largomalmsteen]

ademas Juan Diego Florez lo hace mucho mas complicado que los otros tenores..por que el esta haciendo un Do# de pecho...en cxambio los otros tenores lo hacen con Registro de cabeza...que es menos costoso que el Registro de Pecho