Search - Donizetti, Sutherland, Pavarotti :: Lucia di Lammermoor

Sutherland's 1959 Lucia...the marvel of the 20th century!

08/29/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Without question, this Lucia is the best there is. Yes, Sutherland's two studio recordings are quite good, but can't touch this LIVE recording. Please take my word for it, this is true bravado singing in the highest magnitude. Sutherland's sumptuous voice here is just super human, every trill, staccato, and arppegio, breath-takingly accurate. The high E's are staggering, fantastic, amazing. Dame Joan singing is moving, and full of pathos. It just doesn't get any better than this. La Stupenda deserves the supreme title of....Prima Donna Assoluta."

La Stupenda!

05/19/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is a live recording of Lucia. And in my opinion, Sutherland excels in live performances. From beginning to end, not a single note out of place, and we all know how many notes there are in this extremely difficult Donizetti opera! One can almost visualize Dame Joan darting back and force in that blood stained white nightgown. And I couldn't help but yelled BRAVA, DIVA after she sang her last high E-flat."

I was privileged to hear Sutherland perform this in person

David E. Levine | Peekskill , NY USA | 11/30/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"In the early 1980s, I believe around 1983, Joan Sutherland returned to the Metropolitan Opera after a ten year hiatus. I was privileged to be there when she made her great return. After the mad scene, she received an extended standing ovation, right in the middle of the act. This was deja vu .. she received such an incredible reception many years earlier in her debut at the Met. Her performance in this CD captures this brilliant, bel canto artistry. In contratst to Maria Callas, who portrayed a dark, ominous side to Lucia, Sutherland's performanc is replete with coloratura trills and flutters. Rather than being dark and brooding in the mad scene, as was Callas, Sutherland is beautifully pitiful. I recommend this recording of one of the great Lucias of the 20th century and I recommend also getting one by Callas, another great, as an interesting contrast."