Search - The Art of Leontyne Price / Aida Act III, Bell Telephone Hour Arias, Concert with Charles Dutoit and Montreal Symphony Orchestra on DVD

Fascinating!

Impostazione | New York City Area | 04/05/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This DVD displays three distinct periods of La Price's development throughout her career: Aspiring to Greatness, Prima Donna Assoluta, and The Grand Diva of Divas in twilight. How fantastic to see this tremendous development in her talent over the wonderful years she gave her art selflessly.The young Leontyne Price delivers a rich account of Act III of Aida. First of all, she was a superb actress at that time. Like Oprah, with her grand success, Leontyne excelled herself and could not reconcile the woman and the diva by letting go like this in later years. The voice was not as great then; it was small with a flickering vibrato and a little want of color. It was entirely a heady and young voice, which would not make her a candidate for Aida these days. Radames and Aida share a wonderful chemistry and I have never seen her more compelling.Then almost twenty-five years later she has an ample voice and whereas she had no chest voice in 1958, in 1982 it had arrived, it was a low palatal "in the neck" sound with a rough and raspy chest emission. She gets off to a nervous and rocky start then conquers fully with "Pace mio dio" as only a great lady who had earned her stripes could do. The way she handles herself is admirable and should be emulated by all who want to succeed. She is focused, detached and responsible.The scenes from the sixties all display the most beautiful voice in the world, period!"

Leontyne Price - The evolution of an artist

A. Andre Cameron | Lisbon, Portugal | 10/27/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

""The Art of Leontyne Price" is a fascinating DVD showing a little known Leontyne(1958) as well as the grand diva she grew to be.
Madame Price was no novice to the stage when she recorded the Aida scene in 1958, but she was definitely not the polished artist that she was to become just a very short time later. New Yorkers knew her phenomenal voice in the early fifties and in 1955 she sang Tosca in a nationally televised performance. (I am anxiously waiting for that to come out on DVD.) The 1958 scene shows a fiery vixen that has yet to be tamed. The voice is young and fresh with that characteristic flutter vibrato in her high silky tessitura. Even with the sound quality from this old recording one hears the beginning of those lush sensual vocal colours which were to become her trademark all over the world.
The diction was better in those early years. On a down note, the acting left much to be desired. The "fiery vixen" did calm down, or should I say, controlled her stage presence in later years, but here there is only raw temperament and overly exagerated facial expressions. At times, I had the impression that she was doing a silent movie. The director should have worked out the flaws before taping. She seems to be more true to herself and to Aida when she is just singing and not "acting".
In the 1982 concert we see Leontyne the Great. A full, rich, voluptuous instrument and a truly grand dame of the stage. She begins with "Come scoglio" from Mozart's Cosi Fan Tutte. It was an exciting brave beginning but the aria no longer settled comfortably into her voice. As the evening progressed and she warmed up, we heard the true greatness of the magnificent lady. "My man's gone now" from Gershwin's Porgy and Bess was tragic, painful, and profound. Her famous vocal colours were all evident here and her rubati and "blue notes" all enhanced Gershwin's American jazz background which he so artfully orchestrates into a new exhilarating form of classical music-an American music! Madame Price also offers renditions of some of her most famous Italian arias including the Pace, pace, mio Dio. Once you have heard that you know why she was called the "Diva di tutte le dive!"
This DVD is a "must" for all Price fans and lovers of great singing."

Diva of Divas

Xavier | 05/28/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Acting was superb in the Aida Act III. Not overdone nor exagerated. Ms. Price and others acted according to the words sung and I thought was amazing. An actress and a great singer all rolled into one. What a combination!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm piggybacking another rater because I agree. It was great to see and hear her magnificent voice near the beginning, the middle and near the end. If only more videos were made of her earlier performances; for example, Aida with Grace Bumbry (I have the vinyl). Is there a video?

Yes the Cossi Fan Tutti was a little rough but one can still tell the voice was there. No one is in their best voice always on any song (no matter the age).

The reception she received was magnificent and I wished I could have been part of the French audience.

I wish her well!!!!!!!"

THREE PHASES OF LEONTYNE PRICE

Sung-chao Cheng | Taiwan | 03/17/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"'THE ART OF LEONTYNE PRICE' is a very interesting DVD. It showcases Price's three different stages of development in her artistic aspects. The 1958 telecast of Act III 'AIDA', here I have to say that is rather disappointing in two aspects: The make up of Price's facial appearance is simply awful, I presume that the Canadian television make up department was still in it's primitive stage, and her stage movement is more like an awkward African low class young girl than a princess. It's hard to believe that Radames would head over heels fall for a creature like that, nevertheless, her singing of 'O patria mia' and the rest of Act 3 is already of a great Verdian soprano. The Bonus Selections belongs to 'The Bell Telephone Hour' includes three arias from Il Trovatore, Aida, and La Forza del Destino taped from 1963 to 1967 during which Price was at her peak of artistic achievement. Here leaved it to the hands of the Hollywood make up men, Price had been transformed into a Hollywood glamorous movie queen, elegant movements, and gorgeous gowns. The two arias from Il trovatore are exquisitely sung, listening to her sing these arias it gives you a feeling that as if there is a magic crystal marble rolling in her throat that enables her to sing whatever and whichever way she like freely and beautifully; the gratification of watching and listening to it is so immense that I don't know how to describe it. The same level of artistic achievement is equally satisfying for the following two arias. I would like to note that in the Il trovatore section the gap in the middle of her upper teeth is still there but it dispears in the later two programs. The third part is Price in concert in part of Canada where French is spoken. Here is the mature Price still in the height of her power, but the agility is somewhat diminished especially in the two arias from Cosi fan tutte and Ernani.
I for one is a Price devoted fan and I suggest that no Price fan shoud miss this DVD."