Cornell MacNeil - Nemico della patria [Andrea Chenier] - Live 1983

[@RONOPERA]

I will never forget the first time I saw MacNeil at the old Met. It was in Ernani and I wasn't familiar with the entire opera but it had Corelli and Price so I got a ticket. Corelli cancelled and the replacement was awful. I was miserable until the 3rd act aria. MacNeil alone on the stage sang his aria and I knew this was special. Then he ended it with the largest high note I had ever heard and the place erupted with minutes of applause. That aria performance is, to this day, one of my top 5 memories of going to live opera for the past 60 years!

[@armandogabba2769]

I was there.the volume was unbelievable

[@TrueConnoisseur]

I'm extremely jealous! I always figured Mac's voice must've been huge live.

[@jairosantanafigueroa4139]

I heard from my teacher’s wife that MacNeil’s was the biggest voice she ever heard.

[@MoodooVanSpoon]

Hi. Do you know how tall he was please? I have heard him referred to as 'Big Mac' and wonder if his stature was as great as his voice. I have tried to find out but no luck yet. I would be very interested to know as a big fan. Best wishes.

[@trrill]

​@@MoodooVanSpoon I don't think he was particularly tall. Judging from photos of him with other singers, I'd say around 5'10"?

[@MoodooVanSpoon]

@@trrill Thank you very much for your reply. I hope you have a pleasant day. Best wishes. M. 🙂

[@TrueConnoisseur]

MacNeil was such a singular talent. The no-nonsense approach of his technique and style is such an interesting contrast to his grandiose dramatic baritone counterparts in London, Ruffo, Taddei, et al.

[@trrill]

Thank you for being here. Love your handle and userpic!!!

[@TrueConnoisseur]

@@trrill Thank you, for the magnificent documents you post. I've been a fan for years - cheers!

[@Chris-wm4th]

I’ve heard a lot of people talk about his terrible decline vocally. Every time I hear him he sounds pretty good. The vibrato cycle perhaps a little wide, but still a very capable voice. Can someone point to when the voice was in bad shape

[@joshuafurtado-mendes9327]

By this point he had been singing for over 30 years and still sounds incredible. People age, voices change and even past his prime here he kicks a lot of the interpretations of this aria out the water.

[@mayitojl]

Every single singer or try of singer think having the true.. and the true belongs to those who have sung for many years and keep singing well

[@luisnorbertogomez7058]

La voz más impresionante de barítono que escuché en mi vida

[@lewashcliffe]

Such a great aria sung with tremendous beauty and dramatic force by one of the last great baritones. Marvelous!

[@lucabernard489]

Amazing document especially to observe the throat opening mechanism!

[@stuartkale1435]

Truly stupendous. Ìf only I had heard him in the flesh. He may be past his prime here but who today can come close to this.

[@deadwalke9588]

I know from whence this comes from, ha, but man this is an AWESOME piece of recorded footage demonstrating everything RIGHT about the pharyngeal production. Cornell MacNeil, just 61-years-old here, sings this aria with aplomb and a vocal security that not too many 30-40-year-olds can do and does it well; infusing pathos and a logos to the character and demonstrating sound vocal production and technique. It carried him very well for many years and its within the same year that he would tackle probably his most daring role of Giovanni in Zandonai's "Francesca da Rimini", singing judiciously above the passaggio (Es, Fs, F#s, and Gs). Beautiful footage!

[@tenorschofield]

MARVELOUS!!! 🤗✌️🎶

[@depressedlarynx]

Documents like this are so valuable. I'm sure everyone else is carefully watching his tongue too. There is so much to be learned from close-up videos of great singers like this.

[@lucianobresciani1034]

Fantastico, !!! Grazie Mille.

[@juliovicsilvaaray]

Such an interesting document. Thank you very much, worthy of both study and applause.

[@BrianJosephMorgan]

Bravo! Tremendous.

[@MARTAuuikMUNOZ]

si mi coronel

[@PBXVIILY]

Fantastic!

[@lesterarbusto3535]

He pronounces "Dumouriez" perfectly! Bravissimo!

[@jordipanadesribera6890]

👏👏👏👏

[@iubanne]

Perfect italian.

[@memyselfandi150]

There is maybe some disorder round c# and d and e... But he is singing so flowless and easy. And the f# is glorious. And he is not in his prime. I mean: such a great singer!

[@TrueConnoisseur]

MacNeil never seemed to like covering, and sometimes he could go a little flat or have some light cracks around secondo passaggio. It seemed to work quite well for him, over all, though - his top notes were easy and clarion as could be, and the voice cut throughout his entire range.

[@ronpearl]

@@TrueConnoisseur he "covered" every time he sang. that's why his high notes were so miraculous. without covering, no top. macneil had a singularly huge, cavernous voice unlike other huge, cavernous voices. so his covering sounds different from granforte's

[@TrueConnoisseur]

@@ronpearl that’s not really what covering means. Covering refers to closing the vowel position in secondo passaggio. McNeil‘s voice “turned over“ beautifully into the top, but he almost never employed cover in the Passaggio.