STELLAR SOPRANOS Empresses and princesses, goddesses and priestesses, stately noblewomen and pert serving maids, seductive shepherdesses and fragile, innocent young maidens: sopranos play them all. And be they Queen of Egypt or Ethiopian slave girl, their beauty leaves a trail of eager suitors, desperate to win their favour. Perhaps it s only fair that the soprano should hold such sway. The very word soprano comes from the Latin superior: highest, greatest or simply, on top. Historically, the soprano voice was literally on top of the other voices, the highest-pitched vocal line in a choir of mixed voice types, singing the sacred music of the Christian church. Those first sopranos, though, were male: women were not allowed to raise their voices in church, in speech or in song, so the soprano line was sung by young boys. Sometimes, if their voice was particularly beautiful, boys would be gelded, to prevent their voices from breaking, and the best of these castrati achieved great fame and greater wealth. In the theatre, though, there was no such ban on women although the stage was generally considered an unsuitable career for a woman of virtue! Nevertheless, female singers quickly established a place for themselves, and after a century or so of competing with castrati, women emerged triumphant as the true sopranos. These days, the soprano voice has evolved into a range of different types or styles. Coloratura sopranos dazzle with their vocal agility and flexibility, tossing off virtuosic runs and leaps at breathtaking speed. Lyric sopranos ravish with the warmth of their sound, both bright and full; dramatic sopranos impress with the strength and expressive passion of their voice. For all sopranos, though, it s the ability to soar above the rest of the pack which brings the applause, the admiration and sometimes the gasps of astonishment! The Queen of the Night aria from Mozart s opera The Magic Flute is the most famous example, requiring several top Fs (four notes beyond what s usually considered the top of a soprano s range); in his concert aria Popoli di Tessaglia! Mozart goes one better even than that, asking for top Gs an extraordinary sound which has to be heard to be believed! But whether shooting up into the stratosphere and beyond, or just frolicking among the clouds, the magic of the soprano voice has a unique power to lift our spirits and touch our hearts. 2
VICTOR MASSÉ 1822-1884 1 Carnaval de Venise (Venetian carnival) from La Reine topaze (The Topaz Queen) 6 27 Words by Joseph-Philippe Simon ( Lockroy ) 1803-1891 and Léon Battu 1829-1857. Sumi Jo soprano, English Chamber Orchestra, Richard Bonynge conductor JACQUES OFFENBACH 1819-1880 2 Doll Song: Les oiseaux dans la charmille (The birds in the bower) from Les contes d Hoffmann (The Tales of Hoffmann) 5 30 Words by Jules Barbier 1825-1901. Emma Matthews soprano, Orchestre Philharmonique de Monte-Carlo, Brad Cohen conductor GEORGE FRIDERIC HANDEL 1685-1759 3 Piangerò la sorte mia (I shall weep at my fate) from Giulio Cesare in Egitto (Julius Caesar in Egypt) 5 37 Words by Nicola Francesco Haym 1678-1729. Yvonne Kenny soprano, Australian Brandenburg Orchestra, Paul Dyer director WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART 1756-1791 4 Queen of the Night Aria: Der Hölle Rache kocht in meinem Herzen (Hell s vengeance boils in my heart) from Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute) 2 55 Words by Emanuel Schikaneder 1751-1812. Luciana Serra soprano, Staatskapelle Dresden, Sir Colin Davis conductor GIUSEPPE VERDI 1813-1901 5 Ritorna vincitor! (Return victorious!) from Aida 6 51 Words by Antonio Ghislanzoni 1824-1893 Birgit Nilsson soprano, Orchestra of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, Sir John Pritchard conductor 3
HEINRICH PROCH 1809-1878 arr. Richard Bonynge b. 1930 Deh! torna, mio bene (Ah, come back, my love) [6 21] 6 Theme 1 09 7 Variation I 1 25 8 Variation II 1 38 9 Variation III 2 09 Words: Anonymous. Emma Matthews soprano, Orchestre Philharmonique de Monte-Carlo, Brad Cohen conductor WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART 1756-1791 0 Ah! fuggi il traditor (Ah! The traitor flees) from Don Giovanni 1 18 Words by Lorenzo da Ponte 1749-1838. Leontyne Price soprano, Wiener Philharmoniker, Erich Leinsdorf conductor RICHARD WAGNER 1813-1883! Liebestod: Mild und leise (Love-Death: How gently, how softly) from Tristan und Isolde 6 40 Words by Richard Wagner. Elizabeth Connell soprano, The Queensland Orchestra, Muhai Tang conductor @ JOSEPH HAYDN 1732-1809 Al tuo seno fortunato (You shall embrace your beloved again) from L anima del filosofo, o sia Orfeo ed Euridice (The Philosopher s Soul, or Orpheus and Eurydice) 6 17 Words by Carlo Francesco Badini c. 1710-c.1800. Sara Macliver soprano, Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra, Ola Rudner conductor GIUSEPPE VERDI 1813-1901 Santo di patria Allor che i forti corrono (The holy love of our country While your strong men rush into battle) from Attila 5 44 Words by Temistocle Solera 1815-1878. Dame Joan Sutherland soprano, London Symphony Chorus & Orchestra, Richard Bonynge conductor 4
WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART 1756-1791 $ Ach, ich fühl s (Alas, I feel it) from Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute) 4 12 Words by Emanuel Schikaneder. Sara Macliver soprano, Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra, Sebastian Lang-Lessing conductor JACQUES OFFENBACH 1819-1880 % Valse tyrolienne (Tyrolean waltz) from Un mari à la porte (A Husband at the Door) 3 46 Words by Alfred Charlemagne Lartigue 1815-1883 and Léon Morand. Sumi Jo soprano, English Chamber Orchestra, Richard Bonynge conductor ^ WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART 1756-1791 Io non chiedi, eterni Dei (Eternal gods, I do not ask) from Popoli di Tessaglia! (People of Thessaly!), KV316 7 07 Words by Ranieri de Calzabigi 1714-1795. Edita Gruberova soprano, Mozarteum Orchestra Salzburg, Leopold Hager conductor WILLIAM SHIELD 1748-1829 & Light as Thistledown from Rosina 1 41 Words by Frances Brooke 1724-1789. Dame Joan Sutherland soprano, New Symphony Orchestra of London, Richard Bonynge conductor JOHANN STRAUSS II 1825-1899 * Frühlingsstimmen (Voices of Spring), Op. 410 7 07 Words by Richard Genée 1823-1895. Rita Streich soprano, Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra, Kurt Gaebel conductor Total Playing Time 77 38 5
Executive Producers Martin Buzacott, Robert Patterson Mastering Mike Roberts (Spectrum Audio Mastering) Editorial and Production Manager Hilary Shrubb Publications Editor Natalie Shea Booklet Design Imagecorp Pty Ltd ABC Classics thanks Cyrus Meher-Homji and Bec Gavin (Universal Music Australia), Laura Bell, Jonathan Villanueva and Virginia Read. www.abcclassics.com 1, 4, 5, 0,, %-* licensed courtesy of Universal Music Australia Pty Limited www.getmusic.com.au. 1960 0; 1963 5; 1964, &; 1994 1, % Decca Music Group Limited. 1958 * 1983 ^ Deutsche Grammophon GmbH, Hamburg. 1984 4 Universal International Music B.V. 2009 2, 6-9 Australian Broadcasting Corporation /Universal Music Australia Pty Limited. 2002 @; 2007 $; 2008!; 2009 3 Australian Broadcasting Corporation. This compilation was first published in 2011 and any and all copyright in this compilation is owned by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 2011 Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Distributed in Australia and New Zealand by Universal Music Group, under exclusive licence. Made in Australia. All rights of the owner of copyright reserved. Any copying, renting, lending, diffusion, public performance or broadcast of this record without the authority of the copyright owner is prohibited. 6
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