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Metropolitan Opera, The: Lucia Di Lammermoor (1982)
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As the ovation following her first aria faded away, a voice called out across the theater, "Welcome back!"After a four-year absence, Joan Sutherland had returned triumphantly to the Met in an undisputed gem of bel canto repertoire, Lucia di Lammermoor.It was the role that assured her international fame when she first sang it at Convent Garden in 1959 -- "a mad scene heard round the world"- and the one which introduced her to Met audiences in 1961 -- "Joan Sutherland came, sang, and conquered."
Now 21 years later,. Once again on the Met stage, Dame Joan gives a performance of astounding facility and musical sensitivity.Indeed, as one critic noted, "…the years have deepened Sutherland's own artistry and converted many from admiration to adulation."
In the role of Lucia's doomed lover, Alfredo Kraus matches her musicality note for note in a performance bearing the elegance and refinement that has become the veteran tenor's trademark.This performance is Kraus' first commercial recording of Edgardo, a role for which he has been acclaimed throughout the world.
Donizetti's tragic masterpiece is based on Sir Walter Scott's novel, The Bride Of Lammermoor, a brooding tale of love, murder, and vengeance set in seventeenth-century Scotland.With its famous "Mad Scene," Lucia di Lammermoor has long been regarded as a showcase for the soprano; however, the tenor has music of equal difficulty and impact, and the Sextet in Act Two is one of the finest examples of ensemble writing in Italian opera.
This history-making performance, with optional English Subtitles, was taped live in its entirety during the November 13, 1982 performance at the Metropolitan Opera House.No material was taken from rehearsals, other performances, or remake recording sessions.
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