Vocally Gorgeous, most Sensitive Elena Souliotis decides NOT to kill her Children

[@greatmomentsofopera7170]

This orchestral introduction is one of the most beautiful things Bellini ever wrote.

[@LohengrinO]

this is why I included it

[@eberlinpascal2837]

C'est une des plus belles pages de Bellini ,très très émouvante ,et je l'associe toujours à Callas ,et puis aussi à l'essence profondément italienne de ce que cette musique fait naître comme émotion .C'est très particulier et cela me touche encore plus que le fameux Casta Diva .

[@TheVaughan5]

If you want to hear the finest conducting of this introduction there is only one choice. Serafin with the La Scala orchestra on the Callas early 60’s recording, absolutely sublime.

[@asterflamm]

A tutti quelli con la puzza sotto il naso che hanno tanto da ridire sulla voce della Suliotis (prima che si rovinasse definitivamente) voglio fare presente che la sua prima fan e grande ammiratrice era proprio Maria Callas, che riteneva avesse la Suliotis una voce molto più bella e affascinante della sua. Infatti se solo avesse avuto una tecnica più agguerrita e l'insegnante giusta sarebbe stata lei il più grande soprano drammatico del secolo. Da questo piccolo stralcio si intuisce cosa sarebbe potuta essere. Aveva lo squillo, la ricchezza di armonici, la possanza delle note gravi, gli acuti svettanti come saete. È vero è durata poco, ma nei momenti magici e quando era in voce ti fa accaponare la pelle, basta tutto questo per farla rientrare nella rosa di quei cantanti speciali che si elevano al di sopra degli altri.

[@fabriziogarzi9892]

Elena aveva una voce dal timbro meraviglioso, ammaliante.

[@alfredoihldausend4093]

Have to say this. She is fantastic, but also the orchestra and the director are sublime!

[@romearomeo]

Sublime! Voce fantastica!!! E queste erano ancora interpretazioni piene di emozioni! Che ti entravano nel cuore. Qui la lirica viveva ancora.

[@cesarp.6983]

Maravillosa cantante con una expresividad fuera de duda Para mi su Abigail es insuperable

[@fclpjg]

In my teens I adored the timbre of her voice and was wondering what was the ruckus experts were talking about how she was destroying her voice. In my ignorance, I enjoyed her Lady Macbeth, Abigaille and Anna Bolena... of cos now I understand what the fuss was about. But I still seek out her recordings.. guilty pleasure.... so thanks once Lohengrin O...

[@jasonhurd4379]

The first time I heard her Ben io t'invenni, I almost had a heart attack! Not since Callas had I heard the scena sung with such ferocity and reckless vocal abandon. Not the most 'finished' voice ever, but she certainly was exciting. It is easy to see why her Abigaille drove audiences into a frenzy.

[@pammyjones1151]

@@jasonhurd4379 my sentiments exactly.....a brief bright exciting flame!!....a shame x

[@1buosodonati]

Prode guerier 😉

[@mp010887]

La belleza del color de su voz, insuperable. Un verdadero talento innato. Es una pena que no haya podido continuarlo.

[@pbbanhara]

This is my favourite rendition of this wonderful aria. Brava, Suliotis!

[@Nacidodelmar]

She is one of my favourite Abigail s

[@manolis.799]

This is absolutely divine..... Regarding what happened to her I will only quote somebody who saw her live and during the performance said “that voice is a house of cards.... and it’s about to blow over.”

[@Sharplesss01]

Suliotis has her critics but I have always loved her voice - strong and powerful but also beautifully fragile and vulnerable. The perfect Abigaile. - I wish Verdi could have heard her Decca recording of Nabucco with Gobbi

[@avihuboneh723]

Maria Callas thought very highly of her. That's good enough for me to ignore those critics. Beautiful voice, great singing.

[@andrewdeakin7078]

Agreed, the Abigaille is spectacular. I wondered what happened to her - the comments on this post tell all. Getting booed for a Mira, O Norma - very sad.

[@jamesmiller6244]

Fabulous voice thank you

[@jamesmiller6244]

What a wonderful soprano voice

[@αικατερινημελισσαροπουλου]

Elena and orchestra perfect!

[@jamesmiller6244]

Fabulous just sublime

[@jasonhurd4379]

I've always been fascinated by this lady. I did not know she had recorded Norma (sounds like studio conditions here). She sounds more 'in control' than I have heard her elsewhere, and this clip has made me hungry to hear more. I will have to see if I can find the full set. Thank you Lohengrin!

[@aetion]

_"I've always been fascinated by this lady"_ So have been I. Pity that she didn't let her time to fully develop her most fascinating voice. _" I did not know she had recorded Norma (sounds like studio conditions here)"_ Here www.prestomusic.com/classical/products/8047689--bellini-norma

[@jasonhurd4379]

@@aetion She reminds me somewhat of Falcon, who burned out and lost her voice after less than ten years of tempestuous, undisciplined singing. At least we have Souliotis' recordings, but Falcon is still being discussed almost two hundred years later, with of course no recordings.

[@aetion]

@ Jason Hurd I fully agree with you.

[@LohengrinO]

@@jasonhurd4379...this is the most beautiful singing I have heard from her... she is Magnificent here... to me she sounds like a very talented soprano lyric abusing her voice to sing dramatically and succeeds... but the way her cords stretch in dramatic points brings me fear for her instrument even without knowing she lost her voice within 3-4 years of singing... nevertheless she is far superior to the other Callas Copycat who also got burned in 2 years Sylvia Sass

[@jasonhurd4379]

@@LohengrinO I never liked Sass: a thick, unresonant voice used with next to no imagination or style. The first Solti Don Giovanni is all but ruined by her po-faced cipher of a Donna Elvira. Souliotis certainly ran into trouble very early on, but I am not sure she lost her voice altogether. In the late 1980s she was the Zia Principessa in a Decca recording of Il Trittico. I have never heard the recording, though.

[@hildegerdhaugen7864]

You are on fire, these days! Souliotis was a force of nature when she had a good day. A wonderful Spinto.

[@LohengrinO]

I usually dislike copycats of any kind but here: 4:31 she is Divine

[@hildegerdhaugen7864]

@@LohengrinO She was

[@shayanmardanbeigi2697]

Absolutely marvelous, what could’ve been if her voice didn’t fail and her potential wasn’t wasted, we would’ve been talking about her as one of the greatest sopranos of the 20th century

[@pammyjones1151]

Such potential gone up in smoke.....a great shame.....thank you 😚

[@MarioJimenez-hk5sy]

emocionante su voz.

[@jmiller05]

Extremely gorgeous singing. She tried so hard to be Callas when she could have just been herself. Tragic, but we make our own choices in life.

[@arnoldamaral7406]

You said it. Arnold Bourbon Amaral

[@nathandavis3002]

Apparently during one of her normas, presumably as her voice was beginning to fail her, she was delivering an inconsistant performance, moments of wonderful singing interspersed with moments of not so wonderful singing. After singinga dismal mira o norma, and getting booed, Maria callas appeared backstage to comfort her. Though she is wonderful in this excerpt, she lacked the vocal discipline to sing a truly great norma.

[@Nacidodelmar]

Well!

[@FranciscoBernardoOficial]

linda

[@PABLOGARCIA-gb5ih]

Elena Souliotis tenía un gran patrimonio vocal!!! Lástima que se enfrentó a papeles demasiado pesados para ella tan pronto...

[@eberlinpascal2837]

Elle seule semblait pouvoir prétendre vraiment reprendre l'héritage de Callas .C'est vraiment incroyable de ressemblance .Dommage qu'elle se soit consumée si vite .C'était un talent exceptionnel . '.

[@victorberistain9536]

Yo siempre eh sentido que la voz de Souliotis era como la de Cristina Deutekom, una voz Spinto de gran alcance Sobreagudo y sensibilidad, claro, Deutekom era más Belcanto (a pesar de ser Spinto por alguna extraña razón fue la mejor en Bellini, Rossini, Donizetti y Verdi en su época), a Elena le hubiera venido bien afrontar Mozart primero, roles más líricos y luego empezar con los Dramáticos que siempre abordó como “Norma”, Abigaile de “Nabucco” y su insuperable Lady MacBeth del “MacBeth” Verdiano.

[@eduardocarrico6030]

Bellísima você lade Souliotis,e sopratutto come dramática.

[@eberlinpascal2837]

C'est magnifique ,mais elle a tellement dû écouter les disques de Callas ,qu'elle cherche trop à l'imiter.

[@asterflamm]

....ma anche basta con questa continua lagna di imitare la Callas, non se ne può più, imitano la Callas ma chi se ne frega. Anche la Callas imitava la de Hidalgo quando cantava il suo repertorio, mette la voce esattamente come la metteva lei, ha lo stesso tipo di fonazione e allora? Come mai non lo dite mai? La Gencer imitava l'Arangi Lombardi anche se non ne ha superato la maestria, come mai non lo dite? Avete annoiato con questa lagna.

[@eberlinpascal2837]

@@asterflamm on se calme 😄😄😄

[@asterflamm]

Mi calmerò quando non sentirò più quei noiosi che si lagnano perché imitava la Callas, ma chi se ne frega. Intanto nessuna cantante oggi potrebbe vantare le sue qualità vocali. Ha cantato per poco ha fatto poco, ma quel po' che ha fatto la mette nell'olimpo delle grandi voci. Quindi inutile cercare il pelo nell'uovo. Ce ne fossero ancora cantanti così che imitano la Callas, io ci metterei subito la firma, magari 👍

[@thesoubretteoftheopera7313]

I thought that was a photo of Calls and Scotto for a minute and almost fainted.

[@jasonhurd4379]

😂😂😂

[@MrQbenDanny]

If I came home drunk at 3:40 a.m., and with my usual habit turned on WQXR and listened to this, I would think it was MARIA, especially hearing those low notes. But, no matter how much whiskey I had in me, I ultimately would figure out, right before falling into bed, that it wasn't.

[@LohengrinO]

:D very beautiful here though: 4:31

[@MrQbenDanny]

@@LohengrinO Agree, stunning really. . But, I don't want to think about someone else when I'm listening to her. That's why I LOVE Teresa Stratas, she was unique in that she had the Callas perfume of style and commitment to the roles she sang, but NEVER copied her. I know, I saw her plenty at the Metropolitan. Stratas was magical and owned every square inch of the great cavernous space of the Metropolitan. It was her MAGIC that made the overproduced "The ghost of Versailles", watchable while singing that forgettable score one couldn't humm 6 bars from. Marilyn HORNE in her campy turn as a horny, fat, "Delilah", was also a welcome touch of needed drag queen humor. Teresa had a huge following. Too bad she was so troubled by life. She cancelled many times.

[@jasonhurd4379]

@@MrQbenDanny Stratas eventually acquired a reputation for canceling more performances than she sang. The one that particularly rankled, since I don't live in New York and was unable to see her live, was her cancellation of the Lulu telecast. She was born to sing that role, and to be deprived of seeing and hearing her in it was heartbreaking. In the event, Migenes was perfectly acceptable, but it was rather like having to settle for fried clams when one had been expecting lobster Thermidor: inoffensive, but not really what one wanted.

[@arnoldamaral7406]

@@MrQbenDanny Stratas was a great ARTIST even late in her career. 🙏😷🇫🇷🍷 Arnold Bourbon Amaral

[@Tenortalker]

There is much that is beautiful here and I prefer Souliotis in this rather than her Anna Bolena recording where I hear quite a few register breaks / gear changes, even if there is excitement too. This singing is more refined and just shows what a great gift she had. She does sound such a young Norma - you wonder why Pollione ever left her in the first place for a younger woman? In fact this is rather like an Adalgisa with some occasional fiery chest tones that have a touch of Callas imitation to them. How sad that things went wrong for her.

[@sgonz9475]

Me pregunto que hubiese sido de ella si en vez de afrontar los roles que tomó, hubiese ido a clases con Callas o con De Hidalgo, asi ella hubiese trabajado el soporte que no tuvo y que la llevó al declive. Sin duda, ella tenia casi todo para ser la sucesora de Callas.

[@elsaasta5164]

... Il potere della Musica è assai grande, tanto è vero che purtroppo malgrado un sostenuto mal di denti... non posso esimermi di curiosare sul mio Tablet se trovo una qualche novità del caro Lohengrin0... scusami tanto se quello che sto scrivendo non c'entra per nulla con il brano che hai caricato Lohengrin0... In questo momento critico nemmeno la Callas, Corelli e Bastianini mi potrebbero essere di sollievo!!! Come vedi scherzo sempre... e prendiamolo a riderci sopra!! Un caro saluto 😬😬😬😬😬😬Elsa

[@elisapradaorosa5210]

Fue una grandisima artista, dorada de una de las mejores voces de la historia, lastima que fuera tan efímera

[@ΙωαννηςΜπαβας-κ9θ]

Why Maria Callas voice how long did it last? More less than souliotis voice 8 years!

[@nathandavis3002]

Apparently after wrecking her voice in the 60s, she reinvented herself and made a comeback as a mezzo sopranoz singing secondary roles, and enjoyed a successful and fairly long career in this. Unfortunately I have not been able to find any recordings of this.

[@nathandavis3002]

70s not 60s sorry

[@jasonhurd4379]

She recorded the Zia Principessa in Suor Angelica for Decca in the late 1980s. This was part of a complete Trittico that starred Mirella Freni in the three lead soprano roles.

[@nathandavis3002]

I know. I havent been able to dig up a recording of this on youtube though

[@voicemad]

@@nathandavis3002 I heard her first in 1970 and she was brilliant. Two years later in Covent Garden, she was showing the signs of vocal strain. I'm afraid it was downhill all the way after that

[@papaki88]

Προσπάθησε να αποδώσει την Νόρμα όπως η Μαρία και όχι μόνο στο σύνολό της, αλλά σε κάθε της φράση ακούω την τεχνική της Μαρίας....κρίμα είχε ωραίο μέταλλο φωνής.

[@alioffe4321]

This is wonderful singing by any measure. But she misses the point. There are two important moments in Norma's character development. "Ah no! Son miei figli" here and later "Son io!" from the finale. Norma is not Medea. She cannot kill her children or murder Adalgisa. Souliotis just sings the notes here. I don't feel it at all. Listen to Callas' covent garden Dormono, and you'll see what i mean. She sings that part as if her heart is torn out of her chest

[@LohengrinO]

slightly disagree here: 4:31, exquisite lyricism

[@alioffe4321]

@@LohengrinO actually, i'm in love with that section! I can't stop replaying it, and i actually wonder if i should sit down and listen to her recording in its entirety. I wonder what else is there ;) thank you for this lovely post, by the way.

[@LohengrinO]

@@alioffe4321 exactly! I have replayed this piece several times for that section and Im in love with the sadness and lyricism... indeed the Ah no son mie figli is not good...

[@alioffe4321]

@@LohengrinO yess! She's actually pushing herself there, and is slightly out of breath. It makes you wonder what she could have done with her career if she had just let her technique settle first.

[@LohengrinO]

@@alioffe4321 or follow less dramatic repertoire or deliver more Lyrical versions of the dramatic operas instead of over-pushing... For years I was writing to Fleming to sing at least in studio a lyrical version of Norma... it would have been gorgeous ... Souliotis was blinded by ambition but I think she is far superior to Sass and Scotto :D

[@beachfanatic2010]

She sounds like a Spinto soprano. Not a dramatic voice by any means. She has more in common with Tebaldi in her sound than probably with any other singer. She was OK, I never got into her.

[@jasonhurd4379]

Tebaldi? Really? I don't hear it. Precisely what is it about her sound that you find reminiscent of Tebaldi?

[@beachfanatic2010]

The tone and also about the same size of voice although I still think Tebaldi had naturally a bigger voice.

[@jasonhurd4379]

@@beachfanatic2010 Again, I don't hear it. I think we must agree to disagree.

[@LohengrinO]

@@jasonhurd4379...nothing :p

[@jasonhurd4379]

@@LohengrinO 😜

[@kurtgarmaker3719]

I prefer Maria by light years.

[@LohengrinO]

absolutely no comparison between them, Souliotis didnt even belong the 1st class of sopranos...

[@asterflamm]

......se la Suliotis avesse avuto la preparazione tecnica della Callas sarebbe stata il miglior soprano drammatico del secolo. La sua voce era più bella e più ricca di armonici di quella della Callas e lei stessa lo riconosceva.

[@NLidar]

You're really on a roll - First Tebaldi, then Cossotto, and now Souliotis? Are you the Theo we know or has he been kidnapped?

[@LohengrinTheo]

Gorgeos singing... marvelous

[@arnoldamaral7406]

N. Lidar let's just enjoy these priceless 💎 my friend. I enjoy your intelectual since of humor etc. Sincerly Arnold. Bourbon Amaral 🌿😎

[@manolis.799]

Is that other Renata next?

[@NLidar]

@@manolis.799 Hopefully not!

[@victoriagrapsidou3474]

I hope dear Theo will grand us a Stratas extract of her supreme instrument!!!

[@kurtgarmaker3719]

Have you listened carefully to her casts diva ? Talk about non legato singing . She had some good performances, but even Maria's 1965 performances are better .

[@antonioaverna5269]

Suliotis