Kathleen Ferrier.WHAT IS LIFE?LIVE OPERA PERFORMANCE.AMSTERDAM. Orfeo.Che faro. In Italian.1951.
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 11 มิ.ย. 2011
- The only live recorded performance of this much loved British contralto singing Gluck's opera, Orfeo ed Euridice.
The full recording is a unique and precious find, discovered in Netherland's Radio Archives many years following Kath's death in October 1953 age 41 years
Her performance sung here in Italian, during the Holland Festival in Amsterdam Opera House January 1951 was only three months before undergoing radical surgery in London.
During the five Amsterdam Orfeo rehearsals/performances she repeatedly confided in her diary of feeling tired, and going to bed in the afternoons.
Che Faro is preceded by 'Che ho fatto,ohime'.
IN MY TH-cam VIDEOS IS A RADIO RECORDING OF KATH'S SISTER WINIFRED SPEAKING ABOUT THE DISCOVERY OF THESE PRECIOUS RECORDINGS:
Titled:. "KATHLEEN FERRIER.SISTER WINIFRED FERRIER LISTENS TO THE LOST ORFEO & EURIDICE RECORDING.What is Life"
Full opera recording is available. - เพลง
Kathleen Ferrier, who died not long after I was born, still has the power to move one to tears. Her voice is magnificent.
The timbre of her voice is unique and once heard is never forgotten. Thankyou for commenting.
Katherine Ferrier is unique. Loveliness is captured in every note. Since I was a child she moved me; she still does, for her voice has the mystical beauty of a life that never dies.
A light went out in the civilised world when this true 'Angel of the North left us'. I have listened to Che faro.... for 60 years and I still tremble inside at the sound. I am even known to shed a tear or two. Timeless and divine
Wow just wow
I was 10 when she died. When I was told, I cried all day. It was the first thing I lost.
Beautiful words
I am sure that the WHOLE AUDIENCE was in tears that night.
So beautiful, hard to hold back the tears. - James Aschmann
She was wonderful. An artist and vocal type we will never see again.
I first heard of Kathleen Ferrier when I was 12 years old and saw a documentary about her on BBC. The haunting Che Faro made me an instant fan . That was 54 years ago and her voice still moves me like no other.
Il n'y a pas de mot pour exprimer la beauté vocale de cette artiste! C'est du velours en musique!
What a beautiful 💓 voice.
Only one word describes Kathleen Ferrier - "Unsurpassable"
Peter
The finest contralto who ever lived. Thank you so much for sharing this treasure.
This must be the most wonderful singing contralto voice ever encountered and her passion moves many to tears. God bless you Kath
+Brian Reardon i agree with you, and far over any countries, we must be many people to adore this gentle woman, and remember her singing, hearing her marvelous voice, full of dignity and grace. When i was young and dicover her, through Bach arias, i considered her as a great mother image, when i grew up i thought she was a perfect woman, a nice, kind, gifted and clever person; and now, i am older than her while she died, and i realise how much she was a so young treasure. Yes, we are all moved to tears, and there is not only a single day without thinking of her. Above the current fashion, i give to my young son, the awareness of such a great lady, and marvelous female singer.
From France
YES!
A beautiful contralto voice and by most accounts a lovely lively woman. My infant school teacher, Miss Woods, introduced me and the class to Kathleen Ferrier's voice when I was just 5 years old. I have never forgotten those times, Miss Woods played Kathleen to the class using a wind up gramophone. Now I listen with the current technology, we have moved on but her voice is a constant joy
+fabulous teeth How lucky you are, so blessed to have known such a marvelous school teacher, and while you were young, been well teached....
it should be like this evey time, but it remains unusual....especially in that case, out of Great Britain for lack of knowledge.
I know and appreciate english cultural heritage, and particularly several contralto voices, then first i adore Kathleen in a real artistic and sensitive kinship. In my opinion, by this time , singers sang in a real honesty and with much more dignity. Even though Kathleen loved jokes and pleasantries, because of her clever natural identity, she was full of grace, and blessed above all. She was a real human treasure, and we would surely all have been glad to meet her or live along beside her.
In my little life, i knew such a major teacher, about fine arts, she was the only one to take care of me, to give me kindness, and showed me paintings about Monet....so i became afterwards and through much difficulties, a well known glass engraver, and after forties...a copist painter, able to reproduce a Flamish primitive painting. Every child needs to be welcome in its own particular way, and respected as it should be ! giving the best to our children means to be an adult in the awareness of childhood.....then, i had a child of my own, and i currently share with him the best of humanity; Music , arts and crafts, history and sciences...it is my duty. As you can see, my english is not so easy...but since a few month, i have been translating "the life of Kathleen Ferrier" by Winnifred her sister, and finishing my work, we discover the intimate, inner life of this extraordinary woman.....Kathleen Ferrier was a real Dame Ferrier.
We owe so much to english people.
+lochness11 Best regards and thanks a lot for posting one of the most important recordings of the world. I also believe that such a blessed person never die, in a somewhere....because of heart and masterpieces . she deserves to live in a high lawn in paradise.
While she died, she brought us to life, as a shepherd.
All comments in relation to your post are very interesting, this is a mark of great respect .
Sublime is not good enough; spine-tingling, who could not love this???
*_Ethereal beyond any human language could ever express ..._*
I suggest anybody interested should listen to her only known (?) live recording singing Gluck in Amsterdam in 1951. The stuff of legends. In her prime by then but still a tad restricted with what she was told to sing ( some lighter Italian would have promoted her into the Pavirotti type fame). Magnificent. A very talented Pianist with a sound musical background. One who could actually read music !!!
My paternal grandmother absolutely adored Kathleen Ferrier's voice. She particularly loved her singing of What is Life as well as Ombra mai fu.
Yes Debbie. Blow the Wind Southerly is also remarkable----unaccompanied. :)
On TH-cam.
This live recording captures the serious punch, power and verve of her sublime voice. You don't normally hear this on the recordings where she sounds more restrained.
So true! A live audience can transcend studio recordings. The transfer of emotion?
Never heard this before.
It beats the English language recorded version by a country mile.
Absolutely beautiful.Thank you lochness 11.
Thank you Lochness . Oh we really are so very lucky to have people like you to give us the great pleasure of listening to Kathleen's beautiful voice. The site with Winifred talking took me a while to find but as I am 87 years old I expected that to happen !!! I am in a care home and think it would be nice if I could make a compilation of some of Kathleen's recordings for the other residents to enjoy. I will have a go at it when I feel brave enough. Only one or two other people here use a computer - so sad - they are missing listening to the natural beauty of the human voice in perfection. Thank you again dear . Kindest regards Ida.
Hello Ida. Thankyou for your comments regarding the glorious voice of Kathleen Ferrier. You may be interested in this one hour BBC Documentary on TH-cam, 'A Reluctant Diva' [Kathleen Ferrier] transmitted in 2003 on the 50th anniversary of Kath's death. I watched it on BBC2 when it was first transmitted.. I do hope the link works: th-cam.com/video/Uvs3DLuHk6k/w-d-xo.html . Very best wishes to you Ida,and happy Surfing! lochness11
Absolutely. A unique voice. As alive today in her recordings as during her lifetime-----thank goodness.
Thank you for allowing us to hear this most beautiful of voices any time we want to. We are so lucky to have TH-cam and people who take the time and trouble to bring voices like Kathleen's into our homes. No singer moves me to tears as does Kathleen Ferrier. There can be no doubt that she had the most beautiful and moving contralto voice ever. The deep - lovely controlled voice is perfection which surely has never been heard before or after she was blessed with it. Thank you again. Ida
I agree with everything you have written Ida. Her voice,and as a person an absolute treasure. Thankyou for your comment.
ah, lochness . . . can we not not pity those who have never, and who may never, hear this divine sound?
So moving and dramatically involved. The great oratorio and recital contralto had developed into a fine opera singer and exceptional Orfeo in a just a few years. She remains a beloved artist through her wonderful recordings. It is amazing how much personality comes through her records. That is why even now people who had no chance of ever hearing Kathleen Ferrier in person fall under the spell of her singing.
perfection personified- wonderful Kath; a joy to the world.
Her music was always played in my childhood home .Answer to "" what is life " is it is better than the alternative .[Wonderful singer }
As a teenager one friend of mine's parents lived in the house in Silloth that she must have lived in during her brief marriage, while another adult friend had her piano. All I had, and still have, are a few old recordings of her singing, and a pride that I grew up knowing what a superb Contralto Voice she had.
Never compare singers..I regret I never heard Ferrier..She really was an angel..But I HEARD Aafje Heynis in the Passion of St. John..
Never forget what happened than..I wept like a child and not even felt ashamed
Thank you Aafje and Kathleen
Absolutely superb
Not sure which famous Conductor said her death in 1953 was a bigger loss than Mahler's. They probably all felt this way. It was an extraordinary voice and I have waited for nearly 60 years to hear another as good but have been disappointed,... but not surprised. This is clearly WORLD class. Tall at 5'10" and held herself well, not to mention she was easy on the eye. But the voice, OMG, OMG.
Brent, it was Bruno Walter who paid that moving tribute to Kath in the weeks following her death. Thankyou.
@@lochness11 Thank you. I am not sure if anyone today understands just what a compliment by Walter meant. It was huge, and very well deserved. I wish she had lived to explore some of the lighter italan stuff.
Spine-tingling performace - absolutely true! That's what I literally feel.
This is my favourite singer together with Kirsten Flagstad.
There has been no more spine-tingling performance of "Che farò..." than this. Such passion, such precision. I keep coming back to this recording. Ferrier was widely loved, and I remember still the sadness occasioned by her tragically early death.
Wonderful Kathleen.
One of the best artists. Thank you.
on hearing HER . . . you know exactly what LIFE is all about!
Indeed. Never again etc. as they say...
Beautiful deep voice quite different to counter tenor. Nathalie Stutzmann pointed out she would have been able to do Winterreise but the record companies of those times were not so imaginative.
La perfection absolue .
What a wonderful voice, love that deep contralto. I saw a programme about Kathleen last night on BBC4 May 18th, it told me quite a lot more about her life and career I wasn't aware of. By the way its good to see you're still with it on You
tube, Lockness11
INCOMPARABLE Voice! Simply most uique...We simply do not hear anything like this today! I wonder why?? Another similar voice is that of Dame Janet Baker....whose voice Ilove too! Where are those voices today? Thanks, You Tube! We'd never know such voices ever existed! BRAVA to YOU! Thanks!
The Great Contralto.
Deeply moving, as perfect as it gets, thank you:-)
What a legacy and we can only guess at what more there might have been.....Thank you for this.
A gorgeous and totally unique voice, the story of her life is as heartbreaking as the songs she sang so well. I do not listen often as her material is almost all too depressing. She died 6 years before I was born but I have been fascinated by her marvelous voice since childhood.
I agree. Unsurpassable. A privilege to listen to. You might hear some Contralto's as good, but you won't hear a bettter one.
MUCHAS GRACIAS
Thank you So much for this upload. A unique ARTIST in the epitome role. Can you upload the complete performance?
Thank you again for the beauty you share with us.
SUBLIME!
In answer to first sentence, I don't think so. Had she sang it today, it would have been interfered with by modern technology. What you are hearing is pure voice, as if you are listening to Kathleen Ferrier live. Rejoice in that knowledge.
What a pity she sang before recording reached it’s present standard.
If I could go back in time and listen to a great vocalist she would be the one.
I just wish there had been more cheerful upbeat music written for the contralto.
It is strange that she appeals to me so much as after 30 odd years of listening to female voices I now listen almost exclusively to Sumi Jo.
Apart from both having wonderful voices they have so little in common.
Such perfection deserved a longer time to flower
J - in the West- says hello back.! Lovely to hear from you again. More postings please.
Does anyone here know the story behind this song? It is an amazing love story and Kathleen Ferrier was the perfect person to bring to life with her amazing voice.
Sublime! Where are all the contraltos today!
Turned into mezzos : forced up by voice teachers and the desire for work. Plus the niche is filled largely with countertenors ..Sonia Prina Sara Mingardo Nathalie Stutzmann and Mariie-Nicole Lemieux all good. Stutzmann frustrated by limitations has moved into conducting mostly. Her voice is still good at 55 . Lowe voices last longer than sops and tenors
"What is life to me without thee? What is left if thou art dead?" On this occasion the English translation surpasses not just the the feeble French (which puts Euridice on a par with a pair of spectacles) but even the original Italian.
Jago Tremain this unique live recording is not to be compared with the English or the French.
There's a BBC podcast about her life available free
This unfailingly reduces me to tears but I am unclear as to why this is entitled 'What is Life?'. In Gluck's opera Orfeo has turned to look at Euridice, against the terms of his bringing her back from the underworld, so she dies (again). When Orfeo sings of his grief it is, in Italian: "Che farò senza Euridice?" ("What shall I do without Euridice?") or, in French: "J’ai perdu mon Eurydice" ("I have lost my Euridice"). Any ideas as to where "What is Life?" comes into this?
Alan Wells “what is life to me without you” means the same.
Change the language the vowels change and everything has to be re thought so the poetry rhymes.
The original language works best,,,,hopefully the composer is also fluent in other languages or has a multi-lingual librettist.
I am no fan of compression etc, however I do not feel I am listening to the wonderful lady here. The technology lacked the range and definition to truly present her voice as performed.