A couple of people here asked, "Where's Di Stefano?", and I agree, although for the main reason that his interpretation of the whole aria was so great. I've never heard anyone spin out that melody so beautifully. Such feeling!
Son highc est instable..en dessous comme PLACIDO..UN UT DE POITRINE EST DEPLACE ICI ET SEULS CARUSO ET THILL LE DONNENT FALSETTO COMME INDIQUÉ ELUZALYRICS DJOUILLE
My name is Frank. I could not agree more. Di Stefano is superb in this aria. Taking the C, decrescendoing it to an exquisite pianissimo, holding it for eleven seconds.
@@anistargameplay4276 Correct, most people cannot tell the B from the C in the opera house seated there but at home with a piano or pitch pipe, then you can and the Jussi Bjorling here like Tucker and some others is very surely high B and both are good, Jussi sang Boheme complete in 1948 at the Met. and the brdcst also then was high B, in Che Gelida, which I have on a pirate CD. Jussi sometimes live did transpose as most do at sometime or another, Domingo and Tucker also--- but PD only basically in his 20's had the C and even then not always.
Full C: --Gedda free C. --Kraus free C --Volpi Nice! --Aragall (in Italian: "Fanciulla"; it's a U vowel) --Gigli (Italian version) --Leech Glorious C! --Alagna nice --Beczala Nice.
Lighter Cs (Reinforced falsetto): --Caruso (a C#! lighter one) --Thill ( a "ragged moment," characteristic of reinforced falsetto) B (Top four 1st place, Tucker 2nd): --Bjorling (glorious B). --Peerce (Excellent B). --Domingo (Exclnt B) --Shicoff (Exclnt B) --Tucker (Arrives at B).
A very interesting analysis. I agree with your result (although I’m not an expert). I must say, that Gedda’s voice in the high C (or B) sounds like an instrument (beautiful musical instrument). Thank you. And I must subcrive too. Beautiful voices.
For me - Jussi Bjørling, with his top note, here is in a class of his own when it comes to freedom of sound, ease in production and shine. In addition you have the SPECIAL Bjørling sound. Exactly how it should be! As the Italian record company Myto once wrote: In the French repertory, especially as Romeo, Bjørling is the most perfect vocal exponent in recorded history. JUSSI PER SEMPRE! :-)
Note also that Maestro Kraus doesn't breath between the Eb and D, mantaining the legato - right before the words "la présence" - and thus not interrupting the wonderful and extremely romantic musical phrase. His high C comes from the very same breath he takes in the beginning (before "Où se devine..."), and yet it is sustained beautifully! Incredible!
My name is Frank. TH-cam just put another video with another Faust High C comparison. This time they got it right. The second tenor featured? Giuseppe Di Stefano, San Francisco 1950. Ten to eleven seconds and the most exquisite diminuendo to a more exquisite pianissimo.
Nobody seems to have noticed that Kraus is the only one who, besides singing an astounding high C, sings the phrase "où se devine la présEnce" with only one breath, "legato", as it is written, without stopping to breathe just after "où se devine...". For me, this is one of those details that makes of a good performance a historical one.
Avez - vous bien écouté THILL? J’EN DOUTE CAR L’UT EST PARFAIT ET L’UT DE POITRINE QU’IL AURAIT PU DONNER AVEC UN VOLUME 2 FOIS SUPERIEUR A LA PLUPART DES TENORS PRESENTS AURAIT ETÉ PLUS BEAU ..MAIS INADAPTE THILL RESPECTE L’OEUVRE ..ET CELA GÈNE LES AMATEURS DE BRUIT Eluzalyrics
Madame, ne me dites pas ça! J'adore Thill, j'ai TOUS ses enregistrements en vinyl et je le considère le meilleur ténor français depuis 1900. Ma remarque ne portait que sur la prise de souffle avant le contre-ut. Je vais réécouter la' demeure' de Thill, mais vous serez d'accord avec moi que Kraus est l'un des plus grands Faust de toujours. Aimer Kraus et ne pas apprécier Thill serait, pour qui aime le chant, chose folle. Y a-t-il des fous parmi nous mélomanes?;-)
No mention of Giuseppe Di Stefano? In his Metropolitan Opera radio broadcast debut in Faust, he attacked the high C forte and then softened to a pianissimo. Sir Rudolf Bing said in his memoirs that this was the most beautiful sound he had heard come out of a human throat during his many years as general manager of the Metropolitan Opera.
Thank you so much for taking the time and trouble to upload all these clips. The only ones who come close to Bjorling's instant attack on the high C are Peerce and Shicoff. If you listen carefully, and perhaps repeatedly, all of the others get to it in steps, albeit small steps, and sadly, therefore, are just not in Jussi's class. The clips serve to demonstrate Bjorling's superiority, and to show why he is the world's greatest ever tenor.
I prefer Gedda as I did see him do this at the Met. Also Bjorling, Kraus and Leech were excellent. Please note, Kraus was the only one NOT to take a breath before the high C!
For me, Bjorling has always reigned supreme in this aria (his singing is of unearthly beauty, quite simply put); to the earlier commenter who mentioned pitch, there are other recordings of him singing this (I have come across at least two other renditions on TH-cam, one of which is a video; highly enlightening to watch him work). However, even only listening to a short clip of his work here I've found George Thill's singing to be quite something as well. Why have I never heard of this guy...?
Even through those old crackly recordings, Caruso's unequalled beauty and power shines through. Bjorling's is the only one that gives us some idea of what Caruso would have sounded like had he recorded under modern conditions. I love all the others as well.
Amazing! Remember to take into account modern recording technology that capture much more or a singer's sound. Beczala has an impeccable technique and lovely tone, perfect for this repertory - probably the best living lyric tenor, in my opinion. Do yourself the favour of listening to Corelli's recording and Di Stefano's as well; both singers frame Piotr nicely, Franco being more dramatic and Giuseppe more elegant. Now imagine if we had modern recording devices to capture those voices...
I go back to the old Met on 39th St, so I was there to hear about half these great tenors live. I once heard Corelli sing Gounod’s Faust, and couldn’t believe how the heck the notes reached me so purely way up in the Family Circle. I once heard a young Domingo sing Rodolfo at the NY State Theatre and told my girlfriend, “He’ll make it to the Met some day.” He wound up singing more roles than anybody. But the greatest of all, from the beauty of the voice, had to be Jussi Bjorling.
Very well done, thanks for sharing this with us. My favorites are Domingo, Gigli (who didn't have a birth born high C either but worked for it), Lanza and Corelli. But high C's do not a tenor make, but grace.
Best of these are Lauri-Volpi and Thill (very beautiful). But the best is missing - Pavarotti, on a 1974 recording (if memory serves correctly). Like Kraus, he takes the whole phrase ascending to the top C in one breath, without the ungainly break in the line; then the top C itself (which is a genuine top C, unlike many of these) is miraculous - quite the most beautiful I've ever heard, hanging there for what seems like an eternity, with a wonderful silvery sheen on it like a polished gemstone. Literally unbelievable.
The only one, Kraus, arrives at C, without breathing before 6:00... bravo. There are other tenors sing a B, not a C. It is not fair, also depends on the diapason of the orchestra.
Unfortunate that we couldn't capture Caruso's voice with more modern technology... He died in 1921. So young. More better recording technology popped up in 1925 and Nessun Dorma aria by Turandot premiered in 1922 (I think?). It's such a big shame...
Beczala did it in Chicago without taking a breath and using a asthmaspray as you can hear on youtube under Beczala and Faust and he did it also in Bilbao last week. that was sinply perfect singing and he is the best arround just now, IMHO
As many others have noted, several of these are pitched incorrectly--perhaps most notably Caruso's, which was recorded "one half-tone low to score," as were his "Che gelida manina" and "Di quella pira" during that same session at Victor on February 11, 1906, thereby making the note a B-natural, according to Aida Favia-Artsay, William R. Moran, and John R. Bolig.
A great selection of fine voices, but to me Jussi hits the top 'C; like an arrow hitting the target. Straight in, no messing, but oh what a wonderful ringing tone he has to capture any singers heart and admiration. R.i.P.
1. Nicolai Gedda 2. Jussi Björling 3. Richard Leech 4. Piotr Beczala 5. Giacomo Lauri-Volpe I certainly think that Corelli should be on there too, and he'd be my number 3, and then the others would shift down from there accordingly.
Bjoerling was my winner of these recorded aria section. I alway like to hear multiple recordings of each artist to find a consistency in technique and tonal quality because I am a snob and pompous ass.
Domingo has done recordings of this aria in the original key. Namely his '77 studio recording with Freni, Ghiaurov and Allen comes to mind. He couldn't hold a C for more than a second and a half but he did sing it. My personal favorites amongst this group are Lauri Volpi and Shicoff. Love that hook Shicoff incorporates. Of course the 1950 Di Stefano recording at the Met with the diminuendo far exceeds these C's in terms of greatness.
Bjoerling and Shicoff both gave me goosebumps. I was looking only at the letters while listening, then matched them to the names. They are all wonderful, though.
He seemed to get more emotional in the live performances and while singing in his own language. It could have been a full understanding of the idiomatic expression of the Italian language, but who knows. He was still a great tenor.
@@sugarbist Bjoerling here gets the most votes with so many saying his high C is best-- but on this one from 1959 brdcst. met. opera (I know because I taped it then on reel to reel ) it is high B, not high C but a good one, JB did transpose at times by then. you can hear the aria also on you tube posted by "Topic Bjorling" 9/15/14 1959 live Faust brdcst
Please watch the same aria at Giuseppe di Stefano's voice. Search for "Giuseppe di Stefano. Salut, demeure chaste et pure. Faust." (video from tenorisimo1975). That was recorded live in San Francisco, 1950. The "smorzando" at the high C is just the most beautiful High C someone ever sung in this planet...
SHICOFF1 It's all in his Book "Mein Leben - Meine Kunst": So: His real father was Nikolaj Gädda. The older sister of this Nikolaj adopted Harry Gustaf Nicolai (the real name of the singer) with his husband Mischa Ustinoff. The name of his real mother ist not findable in the book. The singer learned the russian language actually from his stepfather. (But: Also his real grandmother (a Gädda) was Russian, but with a swedish Passport.) It's a little bit complicated and in the book it is hard to find. And: the original name is not Gedda but Gädda. Nicolais real name as Schoolboy: Harry Gustaf Nicolai Ustinoff.
SHICOFF1 Ok, biologically it's possible, cause his grandparents were with a russian background but swedish with swedish passports. All is in his book. (By the way: He was also my singing teacher for years... but actually we did not talk a lot about that). The problem is, its not at one point in the book, you have to read all... like a puzzle (again). In my opinion its no that important. But the russian language he learned from his stepfather.
Nicolai Gedda IMHO the greatest lyric tenor of all -time. Nicolai now sings with the angels and i venture to say above the Angels. The was no tenor who hit those C's and even D's with such clarity and ease as Nicolai Gedda.
Desolé mais hurler un high c de poitrine ..est contraire à la partition ..ce n’est pas un opéra vériste ...GEDDA ET SCHICOFF ..UT DE POITRINE INUTILE,,BJORLING ..VOIX INSTABLE ET UT LIMITE DE POITRINE .. LE RESPECT DES PARTITIONS DOIT L’EMPORTER SUR LE NARCICISME DE CERTAINS INTERPRETES ...CELA FAIT PARTIE DU BEAU CHANT..PAS EUX , DESOLE DJOUILLE ELUZALYRICS
Oh this was fun! I've watched this video before, but its the type of comparison you enjoy going back too. I would also like to place a write-in vote for Giuseppe di Stefano, Bjorling's love on the high B is like watching nature unfold, as Jerome Hines said about capturing the sound of him, "like three Carusos." Thill, was my favorite the first time I heard this, and I still adore it. I like pianissimo Cs, he is the angel singing, not a man anymore. I had thought I would make a top three list out of those after hearing it again, but now after reading the comments recommending that Sabbatini also be heard, I just came back from his concert aria... crying, honestly! Now I don't know what to do, I have four superb gentlemen who I think have an equal claim to being crowned the Faust king. I must say however, the last four were my least favorites easily. I don't normally dwell on who I didn't like in a comparison with lots of good things in it, but since some of these guys went down as great favorites, I think it could be useful to circulate differences of opinion. Bezcala I would have given passing marks to on everything until his high note, I need a richer color in the top register, he sounds as strident as knife. I think he wound have benefited from taking it in sotto voce like some of our earlier artists more like Caruso. I know from his comments about Richard Tauber that he studies them. Big highs like Bjorling can be breathtaking, but Bezcala's didn't sound like a natural, full emission of sound, it sounded like the volume was being manufactured with a microphone, which doesn't have the same weight and warmth. However, I still preferred it to Leech, Leech's second "Salut" sounds like he's just narrowly escaping a wobble or crack. His whole phrasing was really uncomfortable, the light and shade just falls dead, no real indulgence in a particuarly word and sentiment. Alagna was the worse, but a lot of people have acknowledged it wasn't his night, so lets move on.
+rexeterna carissimo, come titolo del suo video Lei ha scritto cito: Faust high C - 15 tenors per la sua informazione Enrico Caruso canta il re bemolle acuto ... 5 tenori /fra loro Domingo/ cantano il si naturale acuto ... soltanto 9 tenori cantano il do naturale acuto. 1Björling,Lauri-Volpi, Gigli,Thill, Aragall etc....
Alagna is sensational in 2008 DVD from Covent Garden. It is jaw-dropping to see and hear him singing this aria with high C with such an ease and control and it was a live performance, not a recording. Otherwise many here are extraordinary, specifically Gedda, Aragall, Beczala and then Bjorling, with Corelly and Di Stefano missing.
As for how brilliant cast. Clear as a bell. Thank you for the collection .. Was wie für geniale Stimmen. Klar wie eine Glocke. Vielen Dank für die Kollektion..
I like nearly all of them. Thrill was effortless. Although Bjorling's recording appears acoustically poor, his rendition was both sweet and delivered with a wonderful range. My favourite. The Caruso recording is merely a shadow of how he would be sounded but there is certainly quality there.
@pupulique yes!!! i absolutely LOVE di stefano. when I first heard him I didn't like his timbre, but the more i listened the more i loved it!!! have you heard his Lamento di Federico? that's got to be one of the most beautiful pieces of singing ever!
Tough call...lots of really good ones! I think Bjorling wins. Runners up: Lauri-Volpi, Gigli, Gedda, Aragall, and Shicoff. I will say that even though Caruso, Thill, and Domingo approached it from a more falsetto-based production, I think it still worked very well! As others have said, di Stefano's C in this aria is legendary, and Corelli's is good as well.
#1 Gedda. #2 (Really #1.5) Kraus (no break before the high C). #3 A tie here, for sheer beauty, and control, going into and out of the C... between Björling and Thill.
There's a better Bjoerling recording labled here as Jussi Bjoerling Tenor High C. It's sung in Swedish, but at least it's not transposed. His attack of the high C is one thing, but the way he releases it must be heard to be believed.
For all those on this thread who keep saying "Di Stefano..Di Stefano...!", I have to agree. And not because of his high "C", per-se, but really, because of his tender and soulful interpretation of the whole aria. In fact, on my very favorite recording that he did of "Salut" (a later "stereo" version), he was already getting a bit older, and his "C" wasn't quite what it once was. Nevertheless, he made that aria come alive in a way that no one else had done before, or since, to my ears.
I probably have that same recording. It was a recording Giuseppe Di Stefano did for Decca. On the second side he sang the Werther aria, one from Manon, the Flower Song from Carmen and the Salut aria was the fourth aria. What many people talk about is a much earlier performance where not so much he hits the high C. He holds it for eleven seconds and decrescendos it to about an exquisite pianissimo you could want to hear. Di Stefano is easily my favorite tenor ever but I gained a whole new respect for his ability when I heard that note for the first time.
Frank Maiorana Yes, I've heard that recording, and it's pretty amazing. If it wasn't for the more modern one on Decca (you were right about that), I'd probably pick that earlier one as my favorite. But that said, the stereo version is just soooo very soulful, and expansive and, and... let's just say that Di Stefano had that many more years to live with that aria, and then by the time he did that last recording of it, it became the one that really truly got to me like few other opera aria recordings ever. On top of all that, as you might already know, he was an absolutely charming and infectious character, with a great sense of humor and a real love of life. All the interviews I've seen with him have been just terrific!
He did have that charming and infectious character. I actually belong to a page on Facebook called 'In Memoria Di Giuseppe Di Stefano.' It is run by his daughter Floria.
Eliseo Barjau No he leído hasta ahora una definición tan acertada de todo lo contrario a la voz de Kraus. Puede gustarle o no pero el adjetivo de carismático se vuelve objetivo con semejante lección de canto.
@peaceblossom8 Caruso actually sings a C# on this! It may be the recording, but he sings it a little softer, sweeter--almost seems like a reinforced falsetto (which some actually claim is how all C's are produced anyway).
It is definitely the recording. Caruso is the only one among these tenors who sang this in a single take and with oldest technology. It is a great disadvantage. But the greatness of his voice must be recognized.
Great compilation..but where is Corelli??? Maybe I missed his name... Favorites- 1-Caruso-Yes, his voice was very baritonal. So? 2-Jaime Aragall 3-Bjoerling 4-Kraus-This surprises me. I never cared for his voice. 5-Gedda 6-Richard Leech-New to me. 7-Beczala-Wow!
Kraus is my favorite, although his voice borders "nasal" I feel that he has a very secure high range. Almost like the note just shoots right out of his body
@@Jacob-ry3lu in house Shicoff had a good strong mid sized tenor, not small at all. I saw his Faust in Chicago as I was at several performances he gave, in house you can really tell voice size, Tucker had a bigger voice then Jussi or Peerce and bigger by far, but here you really cannot tell that.
Giuseppe di Stefano in his Metropolitan Opera radio broadcast debut in Faust, he attacked the high C forte and then softened to a pianissimo. Sir Rudolf Bing said in his memoirs, "The most spectacular single moment in my observation year had come when I heard his diminuendo on the high C in "Salut! demeure" in Faust: I shall never as long as I live forget the beauty of that sound".
otro Soto!! gracias por esta agradable sorpresa!! mi primera audición en el Premier certamen lírico en Venezuela la acabarían de Fausto u de allí hasta el presente me llamaron " 3l pequeño bjorlinng "!@9 quede con mucha honrar u sorpresa!!! gracias a Google!!!
its also a matter of recording quality, we can't hear the exact timbre of the old singers' voices as well as we hear the newer ones, and they all sing it with pristine technique
Oh come on!! Most ot them sing a high B!! (Tucker, Peerce, Bjoerling (one of my favourites tenor of all times), Domingo, Shicof). My favourites 1- Krauss (the King) 2- Leech (another king) 3- Alagna (beautiful)
I'm grouping four tenors here: Björling, Gedda, Krauss and Beczala. Beczala seems to be the one tenor in the post 2001 period to be, in my very humble opinion, a worthy successor to Björling and Gedda as the "owner of the high C".
Alfredo Kraus siempre elegante punzante y con muy buena técnica, pero se nota el armado de cada frase y la puesta para el agudo. Thill en su idioma hace notar la diferencia, pero en verdad los dos que más me gustan y en ese orden son los suecos Bjorling y Gedda. Aunque si me dieran a elegir escuchar el aria entera por musicalidad fraseo color de voz y precisión elijo escuchar a Jussi Bjorling.
Caruso sings a "D flat" here (it could be due to the wrong recording speed) and in "falsetto" (the same as Thill). Tucker, Peerce, Björling, Domingo and Schicoff are singing a "B".
Eccodandini, I concede to your point about a live performance v.s. a studio recording, but since many of the great ones here are no longer with us, all we have are the recordings. I'm not sure which one of these tenors would consider Faust to be their signature role, but if I had the choice of hearing just one of these singers live in their prime singing this aria, I'd pick Franco Corelli.
It is wonderful, that we, in 2011, all these beautiful singers can hear. I have some other 30 tenors with this beautiful aria. all of them have their specific treasure ! Hans NL
Actually Pav. never sang the role, his only French role was Daughter of the Reg. He may have recorded the aria I never investigated that, I'm not a big fan of Pavarotti, but enjoy his Boheme which I saw him do when he was in his 30's.
![GOUNOD : Faust - "Salut ! Demeure Chaste Et Pure" by Benjamin Bernheim - Live [HD]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/rRV3FyROa8U/mqdefault.jpg)
A couple of people here asked, "Where's Di Stefano?", and I agree, although for the main reason that his interpretation of the whole aria was so great. I've never heard anyone spin out that melody so beautifully. Such feeling!
Some are not in correct key
Why Di Stefano and Corelli are not here surprised me
The column of sound from Bjorling is magnificent in my opinion
Jussi for me Every time.
Son highc est instable..en dessous comme PLACIDO..UN UT DE POITRINE EST DEPLACE ICI ET SEULS CARUSO ET THILL LE DONNENT FALSETTO COMME INDIQUÉ
ELUZALYRICS
DJOUILLE
Beczala............que color de voz tan brillante y hermosa...........
This aria is Di Stefano's. The diminuendo on the high C is unbelievable
Yes! Almost superhuman.
Yes. His should be here!
Cierto, el mejor.
My name is Frank. I could not agree more. Di Stefano is superb in this aria. Taking the C, decrescendoing it to an exquisite pianissimo, holding it for eleven seconds.
nickpug it was never written to be diminuendo , unless you disagree with the way Gounod wrote the aria .
You left out the most precious one. Giuseppe di Stefano's extraordinary high C with big diminuendo to pianissimo!!!
The bjoerling man is the only one that made my ears vibrate (for real), the sound was ringing so much
But he sang B
@@anistargameplay4276 Correct, most people cannot tell the B from the C in the opera house seated there but at home with a piano or pitch pipe, then you can and the Jussi Bjorling here like Tucker and some others is very surely high B and both are good, Jussi sang Boheme complete in 1948 at the Met. and the brdcst also then was high B, in Che Gelida, which I have on a pirate CD. Jussi sometimes live did transpose as most do at sometime or another, Domingo and Tucker also--- but PD only basically in his 20's had the C and even then not always.
There are tenors, good ones....and there is Jussy Bjorling. Best of the best
Full C:
--Gedda free C.
--Kraus free C
--Volpi Nice!
--Aragall (in Italian: "Fanciulla"; it's a U vowel)
--Gigli (Italian version)
--Leech Glorious C!
--Alagna nice
--Beczala Nice.
Lighter Cs (Reinforced falsetto):
--Caruso (a C#! lighter one)
--Thill ( a "ragged moment," characteristic of reinforced falsetto)
B (Top four 1st place, Tucker 2nd):
--Bjorling (glorious B).
--Peerce (Excellent B).
--Domingo (Exclnt B)
--Shicoff (Exclnt B)
--Tucker (Arrives at B).
A very interesting analysis. I agree with your result (although I’m not an expert). I must say, that Gedda’s voice in the high C (or B) sounds like an instrument (beautiful musical instrument). Thank you. And I must subcrive too. Beautiful voices.
So indeed Caruso and Thill are falsetto here! I could hear it.
Thanks for posting this great 'noise'.
I keep returning to it many times.
Yes, Byorling for me.
JB EST MEDIOCRE EST IRRESPECTUEUX
DJOUILLE
For me - Jussi Bjørling, with his top note, here is in a class of his own when it comes to freedom of sound, ease in production and shine. In addition you have the SPECIAL Bjørling sound. Exactly how it should be! As the Italian record company Myto once wrote: In the French repertory, especially as Romeo, Bjørling is the most perfect vocal exponent in recorded history. JUSSI PER SEMPRE! :-)
guthorbj 100 PER CENT RIGHT !!!!!
+guthorbj Björling* The crossed over one is danish or norwegian. Björling was from Sweden ;)
Of course - Jussi was from Sweden - born in Magasinsgatan in Borlänge, February 5 1911. :-)
Excellent, just remember the ö :)
Jeg vet - den helvetes ö på svensk. På norsk skriver vi ø. :-)
Note also that Maestro Kraus doesn't breath between the Eb and D, mantaining the legato - right before the words "la présence" - and thus not interrupting the wonderful and extremely romantic musical phrase.
His high C comes from the very same breath he takes in the beginning (before "Où se devine..."), and yet it is sustained beautifully!
Incredible!
My name is Frank. TH-cam just put another video with another Faust High C comparison. This time they got it right. The second tenor featured? Giuseppe Di Stefano, San Francisco 1950. Ten to eleven seconds and the most exquisite diminuendo to a more exquisite pianissimo.
Nobody seems to have noticed that Kraus is the only one who, besides singing an astounding high C, sings the phrase "où se devine la présEnce" with only one breath, "legato", as it is written, without stopping to breathe just after "où se devine...". For me, this is one of those details that makes of a good performance a historical one.
Avez - vous bien écouté THILL?
J’EN DOUTE CAR L’UT EST PARFAIT ET L’UT DE POITRINE QU’IL AURAIT PU DONNER AVEC UN VOLUME 2 FOIS SUPERIEUR A LA PLUPART DES TENORS PRESENTS AURAIT ETÉ PLUS BEAU ..MAIS INADAPTE
THILL RESPECTE L’OEUVRE ..ET CELA GÈNE LES AMATEURS DE BRUIT
Eluzalyrics
Madame, ne me dites pas ça! J'adore Thill, j'ai TOUS ses enregistrements en vinyl et je le considère le meilleur ténor français depuis 1900. Ma remarque ne portait que sur la prise de souffle avant le contre-ut. Je vais réécouter la' demeure' de Thill, mais vous serez d'accord avec moi que Kraus est l'un des plus grands Faust de toujours. Aimer Kraus et ne pas apprécier Thill serait, pour qui aime le chant, chose folle. Y a-t-il des fous parmi nous mélomanes?;-)
Of course he was.
At first I thought Kraus was just a normal tenor. Now I know being "normal" is one of the hardest things.
By far the best!!!
Di Stefano, live recording in San Francisco 1950 is the best one, he makes a filado during the high C!!! Amazing!!!!.
The two Swedes, Björling and Gedda take this. and for the record there are far too many who didn't make the Faust High C and i Believe Gedda hits D#4
Gedda's is high C, Bjoerling's is transposed, it's high B .
Björling, magnificent as he sounds, even here, is singing a B natural in a key 1/2 step down from the Faust score.
Jussi...you're the man!!
Bjorling's was soooo amazing!
No mention of Giuseppe Di Stefano? In his Metropolitan Opera radio broadcast debut in Faust, he attacked the high C forte and then softened to a pianissimo. Sir Rudolf Bing said in his memoirs that this was the most beautiful sound he had heard come out of a human throat during his many years as general manager of the Metropolitan Opera.
Thank you so much for taking the time and trouble to upload all these clips. The only ones who come close to Bjorling's instant attack on the high C are Peerce and Shicoff. If you listen carefully, and perhaps repeatedly, all of the others get to it in steps, albeit small steps, and sadly, therefore, are just not in Jussi's class. The clips serve to demonstrate Bjorling's superiority, and to show why he is the world's greatest ever tenor.
Bjorling, Peerce and Shicoff here are B's.
And others, but so what most folks here didn't know it.
I like Beczala here very much, saw him do it in 2009 in Chicago with a great gleaming high C, his voice now is darker then in 2009 of course.
7/07/2014
Fantastics High C......great tenors......but I think Jussi Bjoerling was the tenor of tenor's.......what a potent voice.
Angel Riguero agreed!
Yes very great though here he does sing it as B not the C.
I prefer Gedda as I did see him do this at the Met. Also Bjorling, Kraus and Leech were excellent. Please note, Kraus was the only one NOT to take a breath before the high C!
For me, Bjorling has always reigned supreme in this aria (his singing is of unearthly beauty, quite simply put); to the earlier commenter who mentioned pitch, there are other recordings of him singing this (I have come across at least two other renditions on TH-cam, one of which is a video; highly enlightening to watch him work).
However, even only listening to a short clip of his work here I've found George Thill's singing to be quite something as well. Why have I never heard of this guy...?
I was impressed by Thill, someone of whom I've never heard.
(1897-1986) Arguably the greatest French tenor of the 20th Century.
Even through those old crackly recordings, Caruso's unequalled beauty and power shines through. Bjorling's is the only one that gives us some idea of what Caruso would have sounded like had he recorded under modern conditions. I love all the others as well.
Caruso sounds falsetto here. Bjorling is extraordinary.
Amazing!
Remember to take into account modern recording technology that capture much more or a singer's sound. Beczala has an impeccable technique and lovely tone, perfect for this repertory - probably the best living lyric tenor, in my opinion.
Do yourself the favour of listening to Corelli's recording and Di Stefano's as well; both singers frame Piotr nicely, Franco being more dramatic and Giuseppe more elegant. Now imagine if we had modern recording devices to capture those voices...
Thill hits that C with unmatched smoothness. My personal favorite.
I go back to the old Met on 39th St, so I was there to hear about half these great tenors live. I once heard Corelli sing Gounod’s Faust, and couldn’t believe how the heck the notes reached me so purely way up in the Family Circle. I once heard a young Domingo sing Rodolfo at the NY State Theatre and told my girlfriend, “He’ll make it to the Met some day.”
He wound up singing more roles than anybody.
But the greatest of all, from the beauty of the voice, had to be Jussi Bjorling.
Very good all of them….I most like Bjoerling end Gedda !!
Very well done, thanks for sharing this with us. My favorites are Domingo, Gigli (who didn't have a birth born high C either but worked for it), Lanza and Corelli. But high C's do not a tenor make, but grace.
Best of these are Lauri-Volpi and Thill (very beautiful). But the best is missing - Pavarotti, on a 1974 recording (if memory serves correctly). Like Kraus, he takes the whole phrase ascending to the top C in one breath, without the ungainly break in the line; then the top C itself (which is a genuine top C, unlike many of these) is miraculous - quite the most beautiful I've ever heard, hanging there for what seems like an eternity, with a wonderful silvery sheen on it like a polished gemstone. Literally unbelievable.
Luciano is Divo in sempiternum
Once again, Kraus makes it sound easy. Unbelievable how effortless he makes the most difficult music.
Iin quest'aria Di Stefano ha prodotto il più bel diminuendo della storia del disco... prodezza mai riuscita ad altri, e non é presente...
Amazing collection - but how could you omit Di Stefano??? His high C with the diminuendo is legendary and beyond any others capacity.
Jussi Bjorling is such a bright beautiful tenor ❤️
The only one, Kraus, arrives at C, without breathing before 6:00... bravo. There are other tenors sing a B, not a C. It is not fair, also depends on the diapason of the orchestra.
Correct, but Kraus didn’t sing the correct “e” in the first “presence.”
Yea, but only Caruso sings a C# 😉
Came across Piotra Beczala here. A worthy successorn to Jussi.
What a lovely way to spend to spend 9 odd minutes!
How fortunate we are - and how spoiled - that technology has captured and preserved these marvelous voices, most of them in their prime!
Unfortunate that we couldn't capture Caruso's voice with more modern technology... He died in 1921. So young. More better recording technology popped up in 1925 and Nessun Dorma aria by Turandot premiered in 1922 (I think?). It's such a big shame...
Beczala did it in Chicago without taking a breath and using a asthmaspray as you can hear on youtube under Beczala and Faust and he did it also in Bilbao last week.
that was sinply perfect singing and he is the best arround just now, IMHO
The correct answer for a connoisseur is of course Björling. But i like Gedda.
Bjorling transposes down a half step! So, a B, not a C!
Bjorling struggled with the high c, great singer though
Nope Di Stefano: th-cam.com/video/j6rfvfw8M_M/w-d-xo.html
@@andreaholliday6845 Correct.
@@markjenkins1072 He sang high B here, this time in 1959 , it's not high C, but most folks would not know it, here or in the opera house.
As many others have noted, several of these are pitched incorrectly--perhaps most notably Caruso's, which was recorded "one half-tone low to score," as were his "Che gelida manina" and "Di quella pira" during that same session at Victor on February 11, 1906, thereby making the note a B-natural, according to Aida Favia-Artsay, William R. Moran, and John R. Bolig.
A great selection of fine voices, but to me Jussi hits the top 'C; like an arrow hitting the target. Straight in, no messing, but oh what a wonderful ringing tone he has to capture any singers heart and admiration. R.i.P.
How great to have this singer pop up on TH-cam. I remember him on the BBC when I was a girl. Stunningly beautiful.
1. Nicolai Gedda
2. Jussi Björling
3. Richard Leech
4. Piotr Beczala
5. Giacomo Lauri-Volpe
I certainly think that Corelli should be on there too, and he'd be my number 3, and then the others would shift down from there accordingly.
Jussi Bjoerling had probably the purest voice, the best diction of them all.
Bjoerling was my winner of these recorded aria section. I alway like to hear multiple recordings of each artist to find a consistency in technique and tonal quality because I am a snob and pompous ass.
Check out Giuseppe Sabatini, also does an impressive diminuendo on the high C.
BJOERLING ! It couldn’t possibly be anyone else.
Also check out early Di Stefano, it's not here sadly.
Domingo has done recordings of this aria in the original key. Namely his '77 studio recording with Freni, Ghiaurov and Allen comes to mind. He couldn't hold a C for more than a second and a half but he did sing it. My personal favorites amongst this group are Lauri Volpi and Shicoff. Love that hook Shicoff incorporates. Of course the 1950 Di Stefano recording at the Met with the diminuendo far exceeds these C's in terms of greatness.
Bjoerling and Shicoff both gave me goosebumps. I was looking only at the letters while listening, then matched them to the names. They are all wonderful, though.
.... devo aggiungere che con la sua voce baritonale Caruso ha fatto un vero miracolo in questa interpretazione. Ammirevole Thill ...
Jussi just pips it. Something about his voice makes my spine tingle.
Is it the Chill of the north?
He seemed to get more emotional in the live performances and while singing in his own language. It could have been a full understanding of the idiomatic expression of the Italian language, but who knows. He was still a great tenor.
Sorry A LACK OF A FULL UNDERSTANDING OF THE IDIOMATIC EXPRESSIONS
sugarbist z
@@sugarbist Bjoerling here gets the most votes with so many saying his high C is best-- but on this one from 1959 brdcst. met. opera (I know because I taped it then on reel to reel ) it is high B, not high C but a good one, JB did transpose at times by then. you can hear the aria also on you tube posted by "Topic Bjorling" 9/15/14 1959 live Faust brdcst
Please watch the same aria at Giuseppe di Stefano's voice.
Search for "Giuseppe di Stefano. Salut, demeure chaste et pure. Faust." (video from tenorisimo1975). That was recorded live in San Francisco, 1950. The "smorzando" at the high C is just the most beautiful High C someone ever sung in this planet...
Nicholai gedda and Jussi Bjoeling get my vote here, both Swwedish.
SHICOFF1 Sorry, not true. His STEPfather was Russian, he is 100% Swedish, he was adopted by his aunt (Gädda) and his uncle (Ustinoff).
SHICOFF1 It's all in his Book "Mein Leben - Meine Kunst": So: His real father was Nikolaj Gädda. The older sister of this Nikolaj adopted Harry Gustaf Nicolai (the real name of the singer) with his husband Mischa Ustinoff. The name of his real mother ist not findable in the book. The singer learned the russian language actually from his stepfather. (But: Also his real grandmother (a Gädda) was Russian, but with a swedish Passport.) It's a little bit complicated and in the book it is hard to find. And: the original name is not Gedda but Gädda. Nicolais real name as Schoolboy: Harry Gustaf Nicolai Ustinoff.
SHICOFF1 Ok, biologically it's possible, cause his grandparents were with a russian background but swedish with swedish passports. All is in his book. (By the way: He was also my singing teacher for years... but actually we did not talk a lot about that). The problem is, its not at one point in the book, you have to read all... like a puzzle (again). In my opinion its no that important. But the russian language he learned from his stepfather.
Nicolai Gedda IMHO the greatest lyric tenor of all -time. Nicolai now sings with the angels and i venture to say above the Angels. The was no tenor who hit those C's and even D's with such clarity and ease as Nicolai Gedda.
Desolé mais hurler un high c de poitrine ..est contraire à la partition ..ce n’est pas un opéra vériste ...GEDDA ET SCHICOFF ..UT DE POITRINE INUTILE,,BJORLING ..VOIX INSTABLE ET UT LIMITE DE POITRINE ..
LE RESPECT DES PARTITIONS DOIT L’EMPORTER SUR LE NARCICISME DE CERTAINS INTERPRETES ...CELA FAIT PARTIE DU BEAU CHANT..PAS EUX , DESOLE
DJOUILLE
ELUZALYRICS
Oh this was fun! I've watched this video before, but its the type of comparison you enjoy going back too. I would also
like to place a write-in vote for Giuseppe di Stefano, Bjorling's love on the high B is like watching nature unfold, as
Jerome Hines said about capturing the sound of him, "like three Carusos." Thill, was my favorite the first time I heard this, and I still adore it. I like pianissimo Cs, he is the angel singing, not a man anymore. I had thought I would make a top three list out of those after hearing it again, but now after reading the comments recommending that Sabbatini also be heard, I just came back from his concert aria... crying, honestly! Now I don't know what to do, I have four superb gentlemen who I think have an equal claim to being crowned the Faust king.
I must say however, the last four were my least favorites easily. I don't normally dwell on who I didn't like in a comparison with lots of good things in it, but since some of these guys went down as great favorites, I think it could be useful to circulate differences of opinion. Bezcala I would have given passing marks to on everything until his high note, I need a richer color in the top register, he sounds as strident as knife. I think he wound have benefited from taking it in sotto voce like some of our earlier artists more like Caruso. I know from his comments about Richard Tauber that he studies them. Big highs like Bjorling can be breathtaking, but Bezcala's didn't sound like a natural, full emission of sound, it sounded like the volume was being manufactured with a microphone, which doesn't have the same weight and warmth. However, I still preferred it to Leech, Leech's second "Salut" sounds like he's just narrowly escaping a wobble or crack. His whole phrasing was really uncomfortable, the light and shade just falls dead, no real indulgence in a particuarly word and sentiment. Alagna was the worse, but a lot of people have acknowledged it wasn't his night, so lets move on.
George Thill (1:09) has my favorite high note...such a clear sweet tone.
Cracking voice
+rexeterna
carissimo,
come titolo del suo video Lei ha scritto cito:
Faust high C - 15 tenors
per la sua informazione Enrico Caruso canta il re bemolle acuto ...
5 tenori /fra loro Domingo/ cantano il si naturale acuto ...
soltanto 9 tenori cantano il do naturale acuto.
1Björling,Lauri-Volpi, Gigli,Thill, Aragall etc....
The first 78 I bought of Jussi was Salut demeure. I still think he is the best on this aria.
Henry Webb
Alagna is sensational in 2008 DVD from Covent Garden. It is jaw-dropping to see and hear him singing this aria with high C with such an ease and control and it was a live performance, not a recording.
Otherwise many here are extraordinary, specifically Gedda, Aragall, Beczala and then Bjorling, with Corelly and Di Stefano missing.
Alfredo Kraus for the win!! :) He's incomparable in Faust. Beautiful voice, best C. G. x
As for how brilliant cast. Clear as a bell. Thank you for the collection ..
Was wie für geniale Stimmen. Klar wie eine Glocke. Vielen Dank für die Kollektion..
Thanks for posting. It's fun to hear the contrast in vocal quality in these amazing tenors. That being said, I still prefer Franco Corelli.
Wow all are great!!!!, bravo what a good selection for this wonderful aria finale!!!BRAVII!!!
I like nearly all of them. Thrill was effortless. Although Bjorling's recording appears acoustically poor, his rendition was both sweet and delivered with a wonderful range. My favourite. The Caruso recording is merely a shadow of how he would be sounded but there is certainly quality there.
@pupulique yes!!! i absolutely LOVE di stefano. when I first heard him I didn't like his timbre, but the more i listened the more i loved it!!!
have you heard his Lamento di Federico? that's got to be one of the most beautiful pieces of singing ever!
Tough call...lots of really good ones!
I think Bjorling wins. Runners up: Lauri-Volpi, Gigli, Gedda, Aragall, and Shicoff. I will say that even though Caruso, Thill, and Domingo approached it from a more falsetto-based production, I think it still worked very well! As others have said, di Stefano's C in this aria is legendary, and Corelli's is good as well.
Thank you for putting this collection together! I love it!
#1 Gedda. #2 (Really #1.5) Kraus (no break before the high C). #3 A tie here, for sheer beauty, and control, going into and out of the C... between Björling and Thill.
Thill I believe is the C , but Bjoerling's is transposed, singing B so in your opinion Thill wins as he sings the C.
There's a better Bjoerling recording labled here as Jussi Bjoerling Tenor High C. It's sung in Swedish, but at least it's not transposed. His attack of the high C is one thing, but the way he releases it must be heard to be believed.
Bjorling is the best by far IMO. Di Stefano is a great candidate with his early recording with a long diminuendo on top C not featured here.
Bjorling is great, but it's a high B h sings here, not C.
For all those on this thread who keep saying "Di Stefano..Di Stefano...!", I have to agree. And not because of his high "C", per-se, but really, because of his tender and soulful interpretation of the whole aria. In fact, on my very favorite recording that he did of "Salut" (a later "stereo" version), he was already getting a bit older, and his "C" wasn't quite what it once was. Nevertheless, he made that aria come alive in a way that no one else had done before, or since, to my ears.
I probably have that same recording. It was a recording Giuseppe Di Stefano did for Decca. On the second side he sang the Werther aria, one from Manon, the Flower Song from Carmen and the Salut aria was the fourth aria. What many people talk about is a much earlier performance where not so much he hits the high C. He holds it for eleven seconds and decrescendos it to about an exquisite pianissimo you could want to hear. Di Stefano is easily my favorite tenor ever but I gained a whole new respect for his ability when I heard that note for the first time.
Frank Maiorana Yes, I've heard that recording, and it's pretty amazing. If it wasn't for the more modern one on Decca (you were right about that), I'd probably pick that earlier one as my favorite. But that said, the stereo version is just soooo very soulful, and expansive and, and... let's just say that Di Stefano had that many more years to live with that aria, and then by the time he did that last recording of it, it became the one that really truly got to me like few other opera aria recordings ever.
On top of all that, as you might already know, he was an absolutely charming and infectious character, with a great sense of humor and a real love of life. All the interviews I've seen with him have been just terrific!
He did have that charming and infectious character. I actually belong to a page on Facebook called 'In Memoria Di Giuseppe Di Stefano.' It is run by his daughter Floria.
Para mi indiscutiblemente Kraus increíble dominio de la voz y rutilante do agudo espectacular. En 2 lugar Gedda.
DOMINGO NE DONNE PAS UN UT ET LE CHANTEUR EST LIMITE DANS LES AIGUS ALORS QUE SUR SCENE ..ÇA PASSE
ELUZALYRICS
No me agrada la voz de Kraus...
Eliseo Barjau No he leído hasta ahora una definición tan acertada de todo lo contrario a la voz de Kraus. Puede gustarle o no pero el adjetivo de carismático se vuelve objetivo con semejante lección de canto.
@@EliseoBarjauorfeo qué disparates dice Ud de Kraus!!!
@peaceblossom8
Caruso actually sings a C# on this! It may be the recording, but he sings it a little softer, sweeter--almost seems like a reinforced falsetto (which some actually claim is how all C's are produced anyway).
It is definitely the recording. Caruso is the only one among these tenors who sang this in a single take and with oldest technology. It is a great disadvantage. But the greatness of his voice must be recognized.
Fantastic, Dominic. Each one has given his own contribution to the universe of bel canto. Thank you, and my favourite is Piotr Beczala.
Jussi is my one
The best in recording history - and not only because of the high C - Jussi Björling!
JB's here is high B
La diction de Gedda magnifique que j'ai eu le privilège d'écouter à Garnier dans ce rôle.
The timbre of Bjorling in my opinion is best
Great compilation..but where is Corelli??? Maybe I missed his name...
Favorites-
1-Caruso-Yes, his voice was very baritonal. So?
2-Jaime Aragall
3-Bjoerling
4-Kraus-This surprises me. I never cared for his voice.
5-Gedda
6-Richard Leech-New to me.
7-Beczala-Wow!
Kraus is my favorite, although his voice borders "nasal" I feel that he has a very secure high range. Almost like the note just shoots right out of his body
+SHICOFF1 his voice is small but secure and focused. I agree
jacob lahr
SHICOFF1 Yes. Del Monaco also sounds kind of nasel and metallic on records, but in house, he was actually nowhere near nasel.
@@Jacob-ry3lu in house Shicoff had a good strong mid sized tenor, not small at all. I saw his Faust in Chicago as I was at several performances he gave, in house you can really tell voice size, Tucker had a bigger voice then Jussi or Peerce and bigger by far, but here you really cannot tell that.
@@이준혁-c4s Right 100%
Giuseppe di Stefano in his Metropolitan Opera radio broadcast debut in Faust, he attacked the high C forte and then softened to a pianissimo. Sir Rudolf Bing said in his memoirs, "The most spectacular single moment in my observation year had come when I heard his diminuendo on the high C in "Salut! demeure" in Faust: I shall never as long as I live forget the beauty of that sound".
Jussi is king!! Such lovely technique and his voice has the same quality right up to the glorious C.
High B here from Jussi.
otro Soto!! gracias por esta agradable sorpresa!! mi primera audición en el Premier certamen lírico en Venezuela la acabarían de Fausto u de allí hasta el presente me llamaron " 3l pequeño bjorlinng "!@9 quede con mucha honrar u sorpresa!!! gracias a Google!!!
Jussi Björling on top of course. The rest are just runners up.
its also a matter of recording quality, we can't hear the exact timbre of the old singers' voices as well as we hear the newer ones, and they all sing it with pristine technique
Bjoerling and Thill for me, and so grateful to Caruso for making a recording too. Has Corelli never sung this? Because if he had...
Yes FC has.
only the recording never on stage-don't think of it as a FC role-despite the astouding C
Oh come on!! Most ot them sing a high B!! (Tucker, Peerce, Bjoerling (one of my favourites tenor of all times), Domingo, Shicof).
My favourites
1- Krauss (the King)
2- Leech (another king)
3- Alagna (beautiful)
I'm grouping four tenors here: Björling, Gedda, Krauss and Beczala. Beczala seems to be the one tenor in the post 2001 period to be, in my very humble opinion, a worthy successor to Björling and Gedda as the "owner of the high C".
Agree but this is not complete without Franco Corelli
Marvellous Kraus!
Alfredo Kraus siempre elegante punzante y con muy buena técnica, pero se nota el armado de cada frase y la puesta para el agudo. Thill en su idioma hace notar la diferencia, pero en verdad los dos que más me gustan y en ese orden son los suecos Bjorling y Gedda. Aunque si me dieran a elegir escuchar el aria entera por musicalidad fraseo color de voz y precisión elijo escuchar a Jussi Bjorling.
Caruso sings a "D flat" here (it could be due to the wrong recording speed) and in "falsetto" (the same as Thill). Tucker, Peerce, Björling, Domingo and Schicoff are singing a "B".
Bjorling. He did not 'scoop' up to it and sustained it astonishingly.
some really are not singing but screaming
The best with high, Thill and Bjorling. Very Good Alagna
What a Job, thanks
Di Stefano´s version is sublime.....the ohter two I Love are GEDDA and BJOERLIG....perfect singers....
Eccodandini, I concede to your point about a live performance v.s. a studio recording, but since many of the great ones here are no longer with us, all we have are the recordings. I'm not sure which one of these tenors would consider Faust to be their signature role, but if I had the choice of hearing just one of these singers live in their prime singing this aria, I'd pick Franco Corelli.
Gedda, good balance! Aragall good chest on it. KRAUS, so comfortable.
It is wonderful, that we, in 2011, all these beautiful singers can hear. I have some other 30 tenors with this beautiful aria. all of them have their specific treasure !
Hans NL
Where is Pavarotti ? He killed it in his version :) (here of course Jussi wins by a mile)
Yes a very good high B, which still was excellent without being high C.
Actually Pav. never sang the role, his only French role was Daughter of the Reg. He may have recorded the aria I never investigated that, I'm not a big fan of Pavarotti, but enjoy his Boheme which I saw him do when he was in his 30's.
Yes I see he did record this aria.
Maravillosos tenores ¡Què pena que no haya buenas grabaciones de Caruso
Falta Pippo 1949, 1950, maravilloso. El mejor Thill.
Bjorling. Gorgeous.