Which Of These Two Ways of Singing ‘Tosca’ Do You Prefer?

Here are two performances of the aria ‘Vissi d’arte’ from Giacomo Puccini’s opera ‘Tosca’ (1900).

The first is a performance from a thirty-nine year old Renata Tebaldi in 1962, and the second from Maria Callas at 41 in 1964.

The greatness of Tebaldi was the extraordinary beauty of her voice - Montserrat Caballé has said it was ‘the most perfect human voice we ever heard’.

Music critic Anthony Tommasini evaluated the Tebaldi voice, saying “Cooler heads could fault her for what often seemed incomplete technique, some strident full-voiced top notes when the vocal line took her above high B-flat, and occasional lapses in pitch. But most opera buffs and critics found it impossible to have a cool head when listening to Renata Tebaldi. She beguiled listeners with the sheer plummy richness of her voice, the melting legato phrases, the deeply expressive yet never maudlin emotional quality of her singing, the unearthly beauty of her floated pianissimo high notes and the temperament she could summon in moments of dramatic intensity.”

In contrast, the contribution of Maria Callas to modern day performance of opera was bringing the character vividly alive on stage through the singing.

The cultural commentator Matthew Gurewitsch said "Most mysterious among her many gifts, Callas had the genius to translate the minute particulars of a life into tone of voice.”

And vocal coach and music critic Ira Siff suggested "Callas was not, however, a realistic or verismo style actress: her physical acting was merely subsidiary to the heavy Kunst of developing the psychology of the roles under the supervision of the music, of singing the acting. Suffering, delight, humility, hubris, despair, rhapsody - all this was musically appointed, through her use of the voice flying the text upon the notes”.

Not just acting realistically on stage but more acting through the music and musical choices.

Sadly I had the opportunity to see/hear these two great sopranos only the one time each - curiously both occasions were in London in 1973. Tebaldi gave a concert at the Royal Albert Hall, and Callas the (disastrous) joint recital at the Royal Festival Hall with Giuseppe Di Stefano.

So are there two alternative equally to be valued ways approaching performance on stage, or is see one approach superior?

Enjoy and comment!