Coloratura Comparison! 15 Sopranos end "Caro Nome" on a High E6 (+ one hidden F#)

With Valentine’s day around the corner, I thought it was a good time to look at a true soprano love song: “Caro nome,” Gilda’s aria from Verdi’s "Rigoletto." I’m posting some individual full versions of the aria, but here is a curated compilation of 15 sopranos who sing it -- with an added high E at the end! They are presented in alphabetical order:
1. Bess Arlene
2. Valerie Bak (1919 - 2005)
3. Aleksandra Buczek
4. Mimi Coertse
5. Deborah Cook (1938 - 2019)
6. Lydia Cortese
7. Elizabeth Futral
8. Ilse Hollweg (1922-1990)
9. Petia Ivanova {Петя Иванова) [from the 1960s, not the soprano singing today, also spelled Petya Ivanova]
10. Lani Misenas (1955 - 2015)
11. Hjördis Schymberg (1909 - 2008)
12. Stanislava Souçkova (1923 - 1997)
13. Jeanine Thames
14. Teresa Tirelli (1907 - 1989) [this is the actress who famously stomped in the grape vats with Lucy on "I Love Lucy"]
15. Elizabeth Vidal
The written score for "Caro nome" tops out at a High C# in the short cadenza, but it has become standard practice for sopranos to upgrade the cadenza with a staccato volley that includes a High D#. The full scene concludes with a long coda where Gilda dreamily repeats phrases of its main theme while the courtiers stealthily approach in the dark to abduct her, and then softly diminishes on a long trill held over two and a half measures. This coda is usually altered in recitals: it may be cut entirely or sung without the underlying men's interjections since there is no men’s chorus … and sometimes the final trill is altered into a rising phrase that peaks on a held pianissimo High E6. That is the case with these 15 sopranos! This variation is mostly frowned upon these days - because the long trill that fades away is so perfect for the moment. However, if a soprano is going to dare to do it, she needs to execute it flawlessly within that same dream-like spirit Verdi intended. A tough task! Purists be warned: I don’t usually like to edit within an individual singer’s clip, but in the interest of time I have spliced out most of the long coda and jumped right from end of the aria proper to the final cadence with the High E.
I propose a little game with in this compilation! All of the singers add the final E, but in the cadenza, one of these sopranos doesn’t add the expected D#, and another soprano actually adds a High F#! I’m not going to tell you who they are since I know many of you will just skip to the high notes. (Right?!) So you’ll need to listen through the video to find them - if you do locate those two sopranos, comment below!
As always with my coloratura comparisons, it’s not a roster of superstar sopranos that we know and love because all of those who added a High E to their "Caro nome" recordings or performances are already available on KZbin and most are commercial recordings that have copyright issues. I like to post only new, unique material to YT, while highlighting singers who are less well-known.
Enjoy, and happy Valentines Day!
ADDENDUM
Additional sopranos I'm aware of who sing the High E that are posted to other KZbin channels. I’m sure there are others on YT I don’t know about, so I'm happy to add any names to this list if you let me know in the comments.
Amelia Benvenuti
Gwen Catley
Laura Claycomb
America Crespo
Gianna d’Angelo
Niza de Castro Tank
Luz del Alba
Zdzislawa Donat
Mina Foley
Hilde Gueden
Eglise Gutierrez
Ingeborg Hallstein
Elizabeth Harwood
Edith Helena
Frieda Hempel
Hedda Heusser
Erika Köth
Daniela Lojarro
Mady Mesplé
Anna Moffo
Graziella Pareto
Roberta Peters
Lily Pons
Leontyne Price
Ruth-Margret Pütz
Ghyslaine Raphanel
Mado Robin
Bela Rudenko
Erna Sack (High A)
Jasna Sajnovic
Luciana Serra
Rita Streich
Elisabeth Verlooy

[@julielawson5876]

I took private voice lessons from Bess Arlene for 3 years and she was amazing and people always told me I could sing from before I was even in school but after I took lessons I grew so much as a singer and she really changed my life and showed me really what was even possible.

[@oliviero.m750]

Fascinating! Thank you for sharing. I knew some and discovered new ones (including the one who adds the staccato high-F# in the cadenza). Some sopranos sing the High-E Forte which I think is not musical (but I guess it’s hard to sing softly in the stratosphere). The one I love the most in this selection is Deborah Cook, even if the voice was tiny and maybe not entirely suited for the role of Gilda. Out of this selection Roberta Peters is the one who impressed me the most. She sustained a soft, floating sweet High-E for ever and even adds a diminuedo.

[@jimbuxton2187]

Mady Mesple also floated the high E

[@oliviero.m750]

@@jimbuxton2187 agreed. I adore Mady Mesplé!!!

[@jimbuxton2187]

@@oliviero.m750 Mesple had the most amazing voice but it only showed its true amazing glory in very special repertoire. I wish I could get a cd of her Strauss waltzes. Totally Amazing! Her Hamlet mad scene and her Doll song are totally singularity unsurpassed .

[@ronsdivas]

Beverly Hoch also added the high E in her performance as Gilda at Arizona Opera. Thrilling!!

[@songbirdwatcher]

Good to know. I don't have that or see it on KZbin yet.

[@ronsdivas]

@@songbirdwatcher Gianna Rolandi also took the high E in her first professional job upon graduating from Curtis.

[@jimbuxton2187]

@@ronsdivas I loved Gianna Rolandi. Rip.

[@ronsdivas]

@@jimbuxton2187 A great lady and friend...and an amazing coloratura!! May she rest in peace...never to be forgotten.

[@Bacchusmbt]

Your voice is so soothing!

[@songbirdwatcher]

Thanks. I did a few corporate voice overs years ago, so I can turn on my "radio/DJ" voice when I do narration. LOL

[@Leanrosso]

Love it. Thanks for sharing these fabulous sopranos.

[@jimbuxton2187]

Bess Arlene and Valerie Bak totality amazed me!

[@christophecesar4761]

The Co(e)rtese didn't like the pitch 😂 Thank you for this very interesting video. I have the chance to hear Vidal and Claycomb doing this on stage. The high E was the best note of the evening for Vidal and Claycomb had a strange infra-vibrato but hearing this was a big joy 😁

[@songbirdwatcher]

Your welcome -- I'm curious about your term "Infra-vibrato" for Claycomb -- very interesting image. I've never heard her live (darn!) but I think I sense what you are saying -- a rapid vibrato that also has some additional overtones to it on high. Is that right?

[@ronsdivas]

The Bess Arlene clip is from my first ever taped recording of an opera It was from Tampa, FL and Vern Shinall and Jerome Lo Monaco were the other leads. As you know..."Caro Nome" was often transposed down to the key of Eb (Bidu Sayao in the Met b'cast...Nadine Connor in Mexico)..and so did Maria Callas in Mexico. She sings a high Eb at the end of the aria; if she sings an "E"...then the recording is pitched wrong. Thanks for this wonderful compliation and Happy Valentine's Day.

[@songbirdwatcher]

Hi Ron -- I got Arlene in trade about 20 years ago from our mutual friend. The notes say "Nov 1, 1969, San Carlo Opera, St. Petersburg." with the other cast members you mentioned. I'm just going to assume any "bootlegs" I have from Florida were probably recorded by you and will thank you now for this one, and all the others! I've never heard of Caro nome being transposed down, though now that you mention it I can hear it in the Callas performance. Why -- just so she can take the high note at the end? I do have Nadine Conner doing it in the original key, I just checked (I don't know the source) and there is a Sayao on YT from 1945 that seems to be the correct key, although the cadenza seems to be quite flat. Honestly my ears and pitch pipe are getting a little overworked!

[@ronsdivas]

@@songbirdwatcher The date and name of the opera company are correct; however, it took place at McKay Auditorium in Tampa, FL. It is well documented that Callas sang the aria in Eb. It's in the program notes from the old BJR records. Listen again to the Met b'dcst with Warren/Bjoerling/Sayao. Transposition (very easy) comes right after "Addio" which is in Db...so the key change is hardly noticeable. Also the Sarah Coburn Lakme Bell Song is mine too. I was actively taping in FL from 1969 thru 1978 (when I moved to NYC). I got Ms Hoch's and Ms Rolandi's "Caro Nome" recordings from the divas themselves.

[@jimbuxton2187]

@@ronsdivas .... you are amazing!

[@MisterSoprano]

Nice colletion, tnx. Futral and Vidal are known, and Vidal is great here.

[@clefnoteproductions6695]

I understand your position on posting things that aren't on KZbin or non famous singers, yes the one I'm about to suggest is a studio recording, but the artist never sang Gilda on stage and was associated full lyric soprano, spinto and dramatic soprano repertoire, not to mention that was in her 50s when it was recorded and the was Leontyne Price!

[@songbirdwatcher]

Yes. I remember how far my jaw dropped when I first heard Price take that high E - so unexpected!

[@songbirdwatcher]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/pKuYg2SDYrN2d6c

[@carlosporridge]

You can also find Ghyslaine Raphanel on YT with that high E

[@songbirdwatcher]

I will add her to the addendum!

[@cadej95]

Found them! (But don't want to spoil it for others 😉) My personal favorite in this aria has to be Laura Claycomb.

[@songbirdwatcher]

Good job on the scavenger hunt. And yes, I agree on Claycomb, she is exquisite in this piece with a final E that just seems to slowly evaporate into the ether. (And when she does the cadenza lying down on her back, it's not only an impressive feat but integrates the cadenza into the story, almost like a subtle sexual awakening). I saw a production recently in Seattle with Madison Leonard doing a superb job as Gilda -- it was an updated production and the director staged Caro nome with her going into her bedroom and hugging the pillow on her bed, like a high school girl swooning over a new crush. It was so good.

[@cadej95]

@@songbirdwatcher I've seen excerpts from that production on YT! Madison Leonard is wonderful!

[@cadej95]

@@songbirdwatcher I also quite enjoy Mady Mesplé's version sung in French with high E: kzbin.info/www/bejne/ppympKCuedWUm6s&ab_channel=ioSonoCallas

[@petesoebekti2022]

maria callas added one high e in mexico city and leontyne price too :)

[@songbirdwatcher]

Apparently, Callas' last note there is an E-flat as she transposed the aria down a half-step. I just checked it on KZbin. I will say I was so surprised that Price took that high E, when she is not even a coloratura and at the later stage in her career. Quite fun!

[@petesoebekti2022]

@@songbirdwatcher leontyne price added a high e in the end of caro nome :)

[@ioSonoCallas]

@@songbirdwatcher The 440 Hz tuning fork was recommended as early as 1949 and standardized at the London International Conference in 1953. Many theaters used it well before 1949. However, all theaters changed the tuning fork (432/435 Hz before 1949) only little by little. It was sometimes modified more lower in agreement with the maestro when the soloists requested it. Callas (she wasn't the only one) often resorted to a lower tuning fork, especially at the end of her career.

[@songbirdwatcher]

Thanks for the broader information on tuning which is great to keep in mind. I assume from your channel title you are a Callas expert, which is good because I definitely am not! I want to be sure I understand what I think you are saying here: are you proposing that Callas did not transpose this aria down, but that the entire work was performed tuned to a lower pitch standard (perhaps even lower than 432 in this case, as a semi-tone lower would make it closer to 415 Hz)? I guess listening to other selections from the performance would reveal that, and possibly other performances from this venue/orchestra in this period?

[@Tosycyzkiewicy]

Ilse Hollweg puts the top E in the most appropriate place in the whole aria.

[@NoMoreMrNiceGuyNYC]

Thanks for this. So much fun, and an introduction to many singers I'd never listened to. Technically, Futral is nearly flawless, but my favorite is Cook, although there's something appealing about Bak's more aggressive approach. And I love Tirelli's wild ride. There are a few who make dreadful musical choices, but it's almost more fun to listen to those. My awards: Pitchiest overall (thought so many have trouble with that E): Tie: Bess Arlene (which is too bad, because her interpretation is beautiful) and Lani Misenas, who loses more than a quarter-step at one point Most likely to be used as a Bugs Bunny or Marx Brothers soundtrack: Lydia Cortese And award for best hat goes to Mimi Coertse

[@songbirdwatcher]

Yeah, there are some pitch issues. And Cortese and Tirelli are from old "private" recital discs, definitely more aspirational than professional. Coertse's hat is a fashion statement -- did you notice she is standing next to a statue bust of herself? I'd say it's at best a rough likeness, and has quite the bust for a bust!

[@NoMoreMrNiceGuyNYC]

@@songbirdwatcher I did not see the bust. A+ for art direction. Except to me it looks like Mercedes McCambridge in Johnny Guitar. With large breasts.

[@jimbuxton2187]

​@@songbirdwatcher😅

[@russki1978]

I guess this settles the discussion on whether "Caro nome" is a true coloratura aria or not.

[@mortenhjelt823]

How do you think?

[@russki1978]

@@mortenhjelt823 Well, it is nearly always sung by a coloratura soprano, it has become standard repertoire for coloraturas, and many interpolate high Es. So I think it is a true coloratura aria.

[@Leanrosso]

One more addition: Niza de Castro Tank.

[@Emanuel9991000]

Excellent compilation, but Petia Ivanova, Hjordis Schymberg, Stanislava Sorckova, Teresa Tirelli and Elizabeth Vidal were better.

[@MrKONEWKO]

I haven't finished listening to them all so far yet, but why are these sopranos torturing themselves? Lol. Quite a few of them cannot stay in tune on that sustained E. And thats not at all to dimish their talents! It is stupidly difficult and vibrato up there can easily morph the pitch. Glad that its not a popular choice these days-- good riddance!

[@songbirdwatcher]

Such a good point! I suppose sometimes a singer's perceptions of their abilities "in extremis" is not aligned with reality. The only justification to take the High E variant is if it can be floated and diminished (seemingly effortlessly) in the same spirit of Verdi's "dim." and "morendo" markings over the long trill. Which very very few sopranos can do. But, that said, I hope it's sort of fun to hear some of them try, eh?

[@MrKONEWKO]

@@songbirdwatcher Yes! I still love to hear all of the different voices and some less common interpolations. Now that I've listened to them all, I can say that some certainly pull it off quite beautifully. Its one of those things though where when its bad... its really bad. Which is so unfortunate to hear considering the "bad" ones are still otherwise lovely performances! So tragic to spoil things though when that high E doesnt work out. Love these explorations into coloratura rep though. Definitely my fav opera channel! 🥰