PERLE BIANCHE Underrated singers of the 1980s and 1990s Vol. 3

[@donggihan2156]

What a performance from VASILE MOLDOVEANU!! Phenomenal!

[@BillyBoy442]

Yes, one of the better ones.

[@BillyBoy442]

Neil Shicoff had a lousy voice and arrogant to boot. I don’t think he’s such a much.

[@BillyBoy442]

Castro-Alberto, saw her once at the Met - Amelia in Ballo In Maschera. She’s a large lady but wardrobe at Met made her sing in a white dress. Bad idea. I see she’s improved quite a lot.

[@tristanberger8500]

Wow !! What great tenor is Vasile Moldoveanu !!! Love it.

[@rowley555]

so thrilling

[@xxsaruman82xx87]

Moldovenau is simply thrilling!

[@davidmolina7543]

Without a doubt!

[@carmelaapollonio8041]

Bellissima qualità vocale della Maliponte. Fantastico Moldoveanu ricorda Corelli.

[@diogo2505]

Great selection. I cannot bring myself to understand why Moldoveanu was so underrated.

[@Agorante]

Maybe in the theater Moldoveanu would be OK but I saw him on TV and he looks like a vampire. People prefer the handsome Domingo, the pretty Carreras or the jolly Pavarotti. Also the voice itself is not very attractive.

[@baoanhnguyen9186]

@@Agorante Well, he is a Romanian after all ;)...

[@Yves_Ka]

@@Agorante what utter nonsense - he was an extremely good looking man.

[@emailvonsour]

Thin voice. White on top. Scoops.

[@SilfredoSerrano]

Adriana Maliponte sounds fabulous in this clip!!!

[@AfroPoli]

Silfredo Serrano I adore Maliponte. She was indeed fabulous.

[@eduardobraivein8496]

AfroPoli Whatever happened to her!

[@tamerlano]

Can you tell she and Scotto had the same teacher?

[@tjhiemursiddjiwatman2732]

Yes, she's amazing....

[@quequitoAR]

Adriana Maliponte sang Antonia from Tales of Hoffmann in Teatro Colón, Buenos Aires, my home town. The clips are on KZbin. PLEASE HEAR IT!!! The death scene is unbelievable!!!

[@thomastmwc]

The Casta Diva is sublime

[@Altonahh10]

I disagree. It´s lifeless and not belcantistic.

[@道-p2e]

Each every one of them badly needed today! Thank you for promoting real voices!

[@Caruso_is_king]

I sang in the chorus of the Baltimore Opera in the late 1980’s when Moldoveanu sang a stunning Calaf. Beautiful voice!

[@Altonahh10]

It was all gone in the 90´s unfortunately. And that´s when I heard him many times.

[@Caruso_is_king]

@@Altonahh10 that is sad to hear.

[@rowley555]

thank you for this. i was always a big fan on Neil Schicoff who I had the great fortune of hearing live in Vienna on many occassions.

[@hrh2842]

Heard Maliponte sing Michaela at the Met. Third Act aria was magnificent; audience went wild afterwards.

[@jameslevister9081]

The Met Man on Lescaut with Maliponte and Modoveanaux is one of the most moving and beautiful of all performances I ever attended at the Met. Thanks for these selections. I also attended a superb Butterfly with Maliponte in Newark, NJ.

[@karilamminpaa8987]

Modoveanaux ? Never heard of a singer by this name. Mayhap thou speakest of a grande tenore Moldoveanu. I may off coarse be totally wrong.

[@luigicorvi1661]

I NEVER HEARD TEBALDI LIVE....BUT I HEARD ADRIANNA MALEPONTE.......SHE WAS MY FIRST EVER MIMI.....AT TORRE DEL LAGO CIRCA 1970 WITH BENI PRIOR......BOTH VOICES WERE HUGE...THE CLIMAXES OVER THE ORCHESTRA SENT SHIVERS DOWN MY SPINE AND CHANGED MY LIFE....I WAS ONLY 13 YEARS OLD...MALEPONTES VOICE IN THE THEATRE WAS A PRECIOUS JEWEL...THAT WAS SWEET AND POWERFUL AT THE SAME TIME...AND AS MIMI SHE BROKE ALL OUR HEARTS FOREVER.....I ALWAYS HAVE ROOM IN MY HEART FIR THIS GLORIOUS ARTIST.

[@hrh2842]

Why are you shouting?

[@luigicorvi1661]

@@hrh2842 SORRY....WHAT DID YOU SAY......PLEASE SPEAK UP....I CANT SEE YOU!

[@matteogritani1635]

Vasile Moldoveanu è forse il più grande tenore della Romania. Adriana Maliponte... CHE VOCE!

[@eugeniogentili1048]

Anche Fanateanu Piso, Stavru Spiess, e Ion Buzea kzbin.info/www/bejne/npyzd6ydYrN3Zs0

[@greatmomentsofopera7170]

Absolutely wonderful! How on Earth did you find them all. Thank you very much!

[@mao1878]

Thank you for adding my fellow compatriot Vasile Moldoveanu

[@SilfredoSerrano]

Sounds fabulous!

[@Xerxes89]

Thanks for introducing me to these great singers.

[@AemiliaJacobus]

It always excites me when I see you've uploaded a video featuring unsung (no pun intended) opera singers. Thank you for sharing this.

[@AfroPoli]

Always nice to see a returning viewer! :)

[@arnoldamaral7406]

AfroPoli I will be a regular as well my friend. Arnold Bourbon Amaral 👱👴🌍🌏🌎🌿🌹🎼🎵🎶

[@30290Hagen]

J’ai e la chance de mettre en scène Lagrange, Moldoveanu, Castro Alberti : de VRAIES grandes et belles voix : il n’y en a plus.

[@nickwellings9433]

Always loved Shicoff ❤️

[@jamesmiller6244]

Wonderful voice thank you for posting this

[@quequitoAR]

I've been fortunate to hear almost all of these singers live. Very good memories of them all. The fact that other high profile names are worshipped beyond reason makes me very angry.

[@Holderlin]

This video, all your videos are a treasure. What a delicate, wonderful Norma you bring here...!

[@sebthi7890]

i often heard and saw Moldeveanu in Deutche Oper Berlin in the 80/90s. He was one of the few singers who impressed me in this opera house. Far better than the Italian tenors of these days.

[@Altonahh10]

Er hat aber schnell abgebaut. Ich hatte ihn auch ein paar Mal und reihte ihn in die "Tenöre mit M" ein (Mauro, Murgu, Moldoveanu)

[@Erlendsander]

Thank you for this most interesting video @afro poli!

[@Radharani-gz5ot]

I watch Vasile over and over...pure masculine power and beauty!

[@romearomeo]

Grazie per questo bellissimo video. Avessimo ancora oggi queste voci....

[@xxsaruman82xx87]

The Boheme - I'm getting that for Christmas! Wonderful Marcello in the young Thomas Allen, and one of the most tender Mimi's in Ileana Cotrubas.

[@nornsnornsnorns]

they were indeed thrilling in the theatre!

[@arnoldamaral7406]

XxSaruman82xX ROH loved Cotrubas & She performed there on a regular basis as well as Vienna & Paris. They truly understood greatness. When N.S. SANG BOHEME Cotrubas had asked to have him sing Rodolfo because she too knew what a passionate voice he had. That certainly help him launch his career to the next level.I have the Video & DVD and it's a great addition to anyone's OPERA collection, Arnold Bourbon Amaral

[@spevoljub]

Michele Lagrange - what s treasure.

[@edwardarckless3112]

Just go to see that if you do not have the contact you can bé the best . in the world.but if not thank you a lot of very very good singers have been Lost becouse of this so thank you for bringing them back. Edward Arckless

[@demadesgomes76]

Thank you very much for Sharing.

[@tjhiemursiddjiwatman2732]

I have seen shicoff la boheme full recording. Yes He is one of the best Rodolfo. 👍👍

[@deadwalke9588]

Mr. Vasile Moldoveanu is also seen singing with Sherrill Milnes in 1979/1980 in the Met production of Don Carlo I believe. The whole opera is on here I believe still and he sounds good in the duet with Milnes.

[@arnoldamaral7406]

deadwalke Thank you for that information my friend. Arnold Bourbon Amaral P.S. We heard Milnes in concert around 1978. He is much better live my friend.

[@settembre2938]

deadwalke

[@vcntbm]

deadwalke Simon Boccanegra too.

[@theoperatripleaxel5417]

This tenor is so much better than Scotto singing and acting that is shocking to see then side by side... Really really gifted and handsome men.

[@BillyBoy442]

Adriana Maliponte sang a wonderful Pamina at the Met.

[@mikeziemann]

Grazie AfroPoli del nuovo video. Vasile Moldoveanu (non sapevo questo cantante) sembra di avere una voce bellissima e potente. Purtroppo la sua tecnica a volte gli tradisce un po'. Tuttavia comunque e' migliore degli stronzi che cantano oggi. Un caro saluto!

[@AfroPoli]

Michele Z Hai ben ragione ;) Moldoveanu aveva una voce un po’ leggera per questo repertorio. Quindi... gli acuti sono un po’ deboli. Però era musicale, aveva una bellissima voce (secondo me) e una bella presenza. Ha registrato un disco con delle canzoni napoletane che è bellissimo. Ciao 👋

[@eugeniogentili1048]

Moldoveanu grande tenore rumeno come Piso Stavru Buzea Fanateanu e Spiess.

[@eugeniogentili1048]

Buzea kzbin.info/www/bejne/npyzd6ydYrN3Zs0

[@adrianavasiliev8781]

@@AfroPoli thank you very much for this rendition… I have his CD with Neapolitan songs, but I can find just a few number of DVD’ s with him ( Vasile Moldoveanu, the same with Ion Buzea), and I am from Romania. Can you tell me please, from where is it possible to buy the whole performance Il tabarro, with Vasile Moldoveanu? Thank you very much!

[@AfroPoli]

@@adrianavasiliev8781 Hello Adriana, try this: www.metoperashop.org/shop/il-trittico-2-dvd-levine-scotto-met-opera-4104

[@Wolfcrag85]

Adriana Maliponte is a treasure.

[@fernandorivas7419]

Thanks you very much for sharing and uploading this gorgeous video. Warm greetings from Santiago,Chile. I do not agree the comment of Mr. Denis Otello because he does not give argument for ofennses against others singers.. Dr. Fernando Rivas-Burattini.

[@arnoldamaral7406]

Fernando Rivas Lets not make comparisons my friends. These post are about these very talented singers. And our MAYA👑 does not need to be defended 💗💙👱l. PHILA TO all. Arnold Bourbon Amaral 🌿🌹🌏🌎🌍🎶🎵🎼👱👴 OPERA WITHOUT BOUNDARIES para siempre

[@ESilva-gw9ig]

They are all wonderful singers, head and shoulders above the stars of opera we have these days. Shame on this midiatic market opera has been transformed.

[@davidalbro2009]

Fabulous Thomas Allen is Marcello in La Bohème.

[@cliffgaither]

_why did he ( thomas allen ) wait so long in his career to finally sing OUT w / such richness & depth ?! he was so uninteresting all of those times i heard him._

[@JosephD1986]

@@cliffgaither In that clip he's about 38, and has another 35 years ahead of him singing on big stages

[@cliffgaither]

@@JosephD1986 :: 35 Years !! That means he was just "a baby" in this clip. I was totally un-aware of the timeline ! Thanks !

[@JosephD1986]

@@cliffgaither Well, I guess he was at his peak in some ways... I think he sang different repertoire with difference approaches, but you can't deny he's smashing Marcello here. And I heard him in Il Turco at ROH in 2015 - he was 70, and his voice had no trouble filling the theatre

[@cliffgaither]

@@JosephD1986 Well ... I have a bad habit of not always listening to a singer in different operas. Once I hear them in a role & their singing doesn't interest me, I over-look them in other operas ( roles ). I never liked James McCracken until I heard him in Le Prophete. I couldn't believe he was the same singer I had heard in other operas. You're right, though. Singers take different approaches to different roles. I'll go back & check-out Allen in other operas. I obviously missed something in his voice. Yes ! He does "smash" Marcello ! What an incredibly long career --- singing at 70 ! His technique must have been awesome AND seeing & hearing him in a live performance ! What luck ! Thanks again !

[@denisotello6474]

Thanks for more this Afro Poli video, as it perfectly demonstrates how the mainstream opera is dominated by fools who understand nothing about music, and represented by mediocre singers like: kauffman, netrebko, cura, vargas, yusif, alagna ...

[@denisotello6474]

@immeralles besserwisser yes and no, because normal people don't realize the difference between the real opera and the popera and end up being influenced by the mainstream media to believe that these screaming goats represent the real opera, it started with the three tenors and intensified with the As Time goes by, and it represents such a truth that when you take an ordinary person and sequence the voice of a singer like Kauffman and a singer like Mario del Monaco, what do you think will be the result? It will only be restored when people know the true opera.

[@greatmomentsofopera7170]

ian1856 this is true.

[@brendant19]

@@denisotello6474 There are of course some popular singers with terrible technique. But this "true opera" stuff usually amounts to "I like X so everything should sound like X". Maybe that's not how you mean it, but I am skeptical. There is lots of different repertoire and different voices to sing it. What's important is that it's beautifully sung with good technique and that the right voices are singing the right repertoire. There is no single broad ideal or single interpretation of repertoire.

[@marcelloschiavi9680]

Grandissima la Maliponte

[@resnonverba]

sehr interessant

[@gustavmonger]

Two thumbs up for Neil Shicoff who sang the best Lensky's Aria I have ever heard.

[@philbiol]

Shicoff did a great job as Lensky but have you heard Lemeshev? At least in Russia he is considered to be the golden standard for interpretations of Lensky: kzbin.info/www/bejne/h2HUZ2yAq7Gkl8k

[@jimmychoo1857]

And a fantastic basso from the same performance!

[@Holderlin]

The 70's and 80's were the final decades of great names as Callas, Gencer, Olivero, Nilsson, De los Angeles, Caballé, Scotto... Should I keep on? So difficult to bright on those times... Besides that, on the 80's started the managers' maffias (Carlos Caballé the very "best") that until today have ruined opera, using it as an absolute money maker. Opera was usually done at the maxim level with relatively modest budgets. Look now at the budgets: huge and not all of them for the singers, 5he truly stars, but for a bunch of "directors", scenic ones very included, who literally have "stolen" the show.

[@barahona68]

How about adding Bruna Baglioni (often second cast to Fiorenza Cossotto)?

[@theoperatripleaxel5417]

Try IDA MICCOLIS singing Fosca by Carlos Gomes! She was the biggest brazilian soprano! I dare to say she was in the same leag as Tebaldi vocally.

[@williamparsons8535]

In the 80s and 90s even the not so famous singers were good. These days you don’t need to sing well, you just need to look good. Such a shame. It’s made opera go down hill.

[@operalover3966]

Can you do one of 2000s, if there are any?

[@AfroPoli]

Opera Lover I’ll think about that! :)

[@operalover3966]

AfroPoli thanks, really good content as always.

[@sarastro5055]

@@operalover3966 there's only... Saioa Hernandez!

[@operalover3966]

hrhth etheteh i know her but i was hoping afro poli knows some more

[@Tkimba2]

@@sarastro5055 no

[@cliffgaither]

_Michele Lagrange ????_ _how does something like this happen ?_ _who makes these decisions that cheat people of these great singers w / great voices, especially when people can't stop talking about " Norma " & to find someone who not only sings " Casta Diva ", sings it flawlessly -- surpassing the many famous interpreters !_ _Where else has she performed ?_ _Thank you ! Afropoli !_

[@xxsaruman82xx87]

Well, no one surpasses Callas. Sorry to burst your bubble.

[@cliffgaither]

@@xxsaruman82xx87 *_::_* _this singer, lagrange, is the one who burst my bubble ; callas usually burst eardrums AND not in a good-sounding way._

[@xxsaruman82xx87]

@@cliffgaither I think this singer's wonderful. But Callas IS Norma.

[@cliffgaither]

@@xxsaruman82xx87 _::_ _ok ! maybe it's not fair to judge just on one aria ; callas had performed the entire role a number of times ; there is more to 'norma' than 'casta diva'._

[@xxsaruman82xx87]

@@cliffgaither Your absolutely right.

[@SilfredoSerrano]

Michele Lagrange is also beautiful!

[@Holderlin]

Almost perfection.

[@DanMontesTenor]

I wouldn't necessarily add Neil Shicoff as underrated. He was quite popular during his prime. Great tenor, and sang at every major opera house. I saw him at the Wien StaatsOper in 1999 in his debut of Eliezar in La Juive. Made quite a showing.

[@eduardobraivein8496]

Danny Montes Think the sane

[@brunopicaude3092]

Were those wonderful singers really underrated ? They had a beautiful career, of course, not so mediatized as others with smaller talent... that's show business. Alas !

[@XPRT10R]

That "Castro Alberty" is a very very off white pearl. Positively dark grey, even. 😉😊

[@AfroPoli]

You think she belongs to that other series of videos? :D

[@XPRT10R]

@@AfroPoli it's not my video, so it's not up to me, but she does suffer from comparison with the others

[@cliffgaither]

_Margarita Castro Alberty ?!_ _l.p. is one of my favorite singers ... but alberty just doesn't make sense. MAN ! what a radiantly beautiful sound._ _( God forgive me ... lucky for l.p. she was born first. )_ _these singers aren't just underrated -- it's tragic to have this gift & not reach many, many more people on earth._

[@ransomcoates546]

Maliponte sang in Chicago several seasons beginning in the 60's, but people still remembered Tebaldi and it was hard to make an impression.

[@luigicorvi1661]

TEBALDI WAS BEGINNING TO STOP SINGING....INDEED AFTER 1970 SHE ONLY SANG ABOUT 5 MORE DESDEMONAS AND 7 ALICE FORDS! IN MY FAMILY WE LOVE AND VENERATE TEBALDI....BUT IT DOESNT STOP US REMEMBERING THE FABULOUS MALIPONTE AT ...TORRE DEL LAGO....AS MIMI...AND LIU....CIRCA1970..71 SHE IS A TREASURE TO ALL WHO HEARD HER!

[@tjhiemursiddjiwatman2732]

Moldoveanu's voice remind me to Carlo Bergonzi. Wooowww........👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏

[@blueredsam]

One of the most important reasons is that the current star operatic singers cannot deliver what they are supposed to.

[@anstasia189]

It would be great if you make a video on the Soviet Union singers from different republics that couldn't be known all over the world because the Russian government didn't want them go out of the country. Only several of them from Bolshoi Theatre were let go out, but there were plenty of wonderful singers all over 15 countries. As for example Gizela Cipola and Anatoliy Solovianenko who had to record "Cavaleria Rusticana" with Karajan but never did it because of government. Or Maria Bieshu - the first winner of Cio-Cio-San contest and many others...

[@thomasdahlen8533]

Casta Diva is absolutely better than Gruberova and others who tryed. This Norma can be compared to Caballe.

[@Holderlin]

Adelaida Negri. Her Normas, Lucias, Nabuccos, Macbeths...

[@jimmychoo1857]

You also had to include this gorgeous bariton from La Boheme:Best Marcello!

[@hrh2842]

I'd forgotten how handsome Thomas Allen was. Yummy.

[@paololucca1495]

Do you mean Thomas Allen or the other guy?

[@alejandrotm]

Neil Shicoff could have been better rated if he hadn't let his insecurities get the best of him. The extract from Werther you took is from 1979 by the way. I know for sure he sang Don Carlos in San Francisco in 1986 with Pilar Lorengar as Elisabeth de Valois, a good example of his 1980s performance.

[@davidalbro2009]

I would suggest the incredible Susan Dunn. She made sounds on many recordings live and otherwise I've yet to hear matched.

[@hrh2842]

She sang a Saturday matinee broadcast "Aida" that was so beautiful.

[@ecampana08]

Hi Afro I think both Maliponte and Shicoff are very famous indeed and dont belong in the underrated category, as does Moldoveanu who sang a lot at the Met and he is featured in various telecasts.

[@Sutherland2]

Well, in honesty, both Mliponte and Shicoff had perfectly substantial careers in major opera houses. He recorded, too. The rest might have been underrated and overlooked because they aren't very interesting singers. Hitting all the notes is not what makes a singer interesting.

[@mariofilippeschi4855]

Neil Schicoff has quality of Franco Corelli

[@MOV1983]

Neil Schiff was not underrated.

[@ivancervi1825]

Ma che sottovalutati?..molti di loro hanno avuto una stupenda carriera!

[@juliogonzalezcampayo3201]

Certo

[@צבילביא-י5נ]

Moldoveanu performed successfully at the Met and Shicoff was a Mega star ' filmed and recorded all over the world.They certainly weren't underrated.

[@arnoldamaral7406]

I triend to reply my friend, I think your comment needs to be reposted. Arnold Bourbon Amaral

[@gabryc.3004]

Per me M. Lagrange MEGLIO della Callas più dolce e più soave nel ruolo....

[@brunopicaude3092]

Era anche una grande Lady Macbeth !

[@peteradaniel]

Neil Shicoff underrated?!?! Talk about overrated. A shame the last soprano can't sing in tune.

[@chortkiv1]

Don't know about his being overrated but underrated, Shicoff surely was not. He sang over 200 times at the Met in NYC in many roles.

[@AfroPoli]

chortkiv1 That is true but by underrated I mean that these people are virtually unknown to most who did not go to the opera in those years. Out of the bunch in this video, Shicoff surely is the most famous singer, but there aren’t too many records and he never got the publicity many others got.

[@chortkiv1]

@@AfroPoli very true.

[@peteradaniel]

AfroPoli I love Maliponte though. How about Florence Quivar, Maria Slatinaru and Nicola Martinucci in that underrated list?

[@peteradaniel]

chortkiv1 and throw in some Vladimir Chernov and Giorgio Zancanarro and I’m all with you.

[@jimmychoo1857]

Casta Diva has problem with intonation

[@jimmychoo1857]

Aida is not superb Who knows, how she Will sing "Ritorna"