Cheap Maria Callas in Concert - Hamburg 1959 and 1962 (DVD) (Maria Callas) Price

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Customer Reviews of Maria Callas in Concert - Hamburg 1959 and 1962

Her "Pleurez mes yeux" aria is heartbreaking. She does what she was doing especially in her Traviatas. She gives the impression that she will not be able to finish the aria because of the anguish and the torment of the character she is interpretting. She then sings two arias from Carmen and gives us a small idea of how Carmen would be if she would perform the whole role. She transforms Carmen in a very hard person in the whole, very secure and carefree. The ultimate perfection of interpretation of the character. The aria from Ernani is not one of my favorites but she sings it with perfection. It's Verdi after all and it is easy for her....Then comes La Cenerentola which she also sings in a joyful style. I always watch twice the "non piu mesta" part. She fascinates me when she sings those scales and with much easiness... The last aria "O don fatale" comes from Don Carlo. In this aria one can see her acting skills in small periods. In the first part she is powerful, strong and angry while she curses her beauty. In the second part she is sad, asks for forgiveness and the voice is more passionate. And at last from a point of dreadful thoughts, comes joy!! Watch as her face from sad becomes happy and gives the phrase in full happiness..."Un di mi resta...lo salvero..." that finishes with quite a fantastic way that makes people go mad. Callas la Divina in action!!!

About the first review of mine I would ask the previous, friend reviewer to read carefully the booklet of the DVD that he bought. I know that you my friend did not find her singing bad, so it came across that she had not caught a cold, but in the booklet also is said that Maria had a cold during that tour. I will tell you to focus on several parts ' She was suffering from a cold at the beginning of this tour and the effects of it were still evident', 'Callas several times sends worried glances in the direction of the conductor, presumably indicating that she is not happy with the way her voice is behaving. ', ' ...the effects of the cold become apparent when a top C fails to sound properly....' . I would also go a step ahead and recommend you to listen to the Stuttgart concert four days after her Hamburg performance to whiteness a really exhausted by the symptoms of a cold Callas... As a Callas collector I own it of course. Thank you for your time.
I hope everyone enjoyed watching this DVD. It's like a legend coming alive in front of our eyes in a well preserved picture, thanks to EMI classics...:)

A model for performers
Watching and listening to Maria Callas through DVD technology was a very intense artistic experience for me, and a fulfillment of my expectations. Maria Callas gets completely into a character after a few notes by the orchestra. Sometimes she sings one word in a certain mood and then the second word in a very different mood. In this way the character becomes richer and more human. She shows us most of the conflicts and contradictions that pass through our mind, especially in heroic situations. There is complete unity and synchronization between all the components: music, words, acting movement, and the situation of the characters. I do not know any other opera singer who can do all this as successfully as Maria does. She has the talent and sensitivity but especially the right attitude to her work. Maria is a wonderful actor, and on DVD the experience is more complete, enabling us to choose the subtitles, or to listen to a particular phrase once more for a full comprehension. You can not do this at a live concert, and it is much more difficult in video. Although it is not a complete opera, with DVD that includes music, visual means and words, Maria succeeds in taking us to the right mood and concentration in order to communicate the composer's ideas. You can also see on Maria's face how she enters into the right mood at the beginning of a piece. It is also interesting to watch her after the end of a piece. To me, it looks as if it is not the same person. With such a DVD Maria with her noble personality, can live forever.

A Metamorphosis on DVD
Not being the consummate "opera queen," I'll spare you my thoughts on the technical aspects of Callas' voice. My primary exposure to opera is on record, and in that venue nobody in my opinion has come close to her. Listening to Callas is like being there, because she knew better than anyone how to "act" with her voice. In that sense, she's like a cheap date for the legions who can't afford real opera. To use a line from an old hippie song, a recording of Callas is like "a ticket to ride." What I find most remarkable about this double bill DVD is the striking metamorphosis in Callas when she shows up for the second concert in 1962. Bear in mind when you watch it that she had by now divorced her fatherly husband-mentor and become lovers with the Greek shipping tycoon, Aristotle Onassis. To say that she is a different woman would be an understatement. Suddenly the cold goddess of the woeful countenance has become a vivacious musical vixen. Sporting a stylish sixties haircut, and a sexy lowcut gown, she almost puts you in mind of Jacqueline Kennedy--but with more spirit. Woops! Did I inadvertantly mention her nemesis, who hijacked her boyfriend, thus ending one of the century's great romances, and sending La Callas' emotional life and career into a tailspin? Sorry. But for me, this may be the most compelling aspect of this remarkable video document. Watch it, and you will not only see a great artist in all her glory, you will witness history.