tenorl78 (August 5, 2008 at 9:29 pm)

It probably sounds flat because Freni sounds sharp...

TheInquisitive4Ever (July 30, 2008 at 8:35 pm)

Yeah..I realized I made a mistake in the date. But the substance of the matter stay the same :)

Mooorhe (July 30, 2008 at 8:27 pm)

Luciano gave this performance of 'La Boheme' in San Francisco in 1988.

OettingerCroat (July 26, 2008 at 11:44 pm)

see, we are in complete agreement on these issues, regarding Pav's vocal prowess. Amongst the singers of his era, he was the best. You will never hear me say otherwise. :-) And I must admit that I am very fond of Pav's interpretations of Tosca and La Bohème...

TheInquisitive4Ever (July 26, 2008 at 6:26 am)

Croat-The 1990 has a special meaning actually (besides the 3 Tenors concert which is secondary to me). 1990 is the year in which the 55 yo Pava shut his critics up. He gave a superb performance of La Boheme in SF, then he brought down the house in Rome with Tosca, and then he again brought the audience to his knees with Balo in Maschera...all in one year. I have seen 2 of the 3, all 3 were seen by my parents.

TheInquisitive4Ever (July 26, 2008 at 6:24 am)

Croat- I am glad to see that you're a rational man. I am not saying this because we agree on this point. But your analysis is factually correct and carries a core honesty. I will add that his interpretive skills were just as developed. As an example, I will give his 1990 rendition of Tosca in Rome.

OettingerCroat (July 26, 2008 at 5:35 am)

since you haven't attacked me as viciously as you have attacked others, lets try to establish some common ground: Pavarotti had without the slightest doubt the best vocal instrument, certainly of his colleagues and perhaps of all time. I never in any way humored the possibility that Domingo or Carreras were more vocally capable than him. I am not quite the tone-deaf sheep you might have assumed I am. that aside, i am very pleasantly thrilled that Pavarotti sang the C here aged 55!

TheInquisitive4Ever (July 25, 2008 at 6:11 am)

I actually understand the importance of the legato line and phrasing/phonation very well. It's something Pava has perfected in his technique very well. What you do not understand is that your lack of first hand experience with any major opera GREATS makes your biased/distorted textbook knowledge even more useless.

TheInquisitive4Ever (July 25, 2008 at 6:07 am)

OettingerCroat-As a Domingo/Carreras lover I can understand your feeble efforts to down play the importance of high notes. But you seem to forget that those glorious high notes are the do-or-die moments which makes the tenor voice so exciting. If that were not the case one could get by with baritones as most top baritones reach the tenor B, and we wouldn't need tenors at all.

TheInquisitive4Ever (July 25, 2008 at 6:01 am)

OettingerCroat-Opera is NOT theater. Operatic acting is spastic as compared to theatrical. The acting is done through the voice, especially in the Italian repertoire, and the so-called acting is to enhance the vocal artistry. Acting will always play second fiddle in top notch opera.