Episode 284. Claudia Muzio Revisited
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Claudia Muzio was known as “the Duse of Song,” a title that might be lost somewhat in time, since it refers to the great stage actress Eleanora Duse, felt to rank among the greatest actresses of all time. She is one of a handful of singers that number among my most beloved vocal artists of all time and all genres. As such, Muzio is not only featured in the theme music to every single Countermelody episode, she was also the rightful star of Countermelody’s hundredth episode. In choosing the repertoire for that episode, I made a too-large selection of must-hear Muzio selections. These spilled over into a bonus episode which I am now releasing for all of my listeners. Among those recordings we hear: Muzio singing Handel; two recordings of Muzio singing Mimì, including her earliest recording, made in 1911; several unusual so-called verismo arias; Muzio as both classicist (Gluck) and bel cantista (Bellini); Muzio singing light classical parlor songs; and then two capstones of her recorded legacy: the “Dio ti giocondi” duet from Otello with the Italian dramatic tenor Francesco Merli; and the death scene from Licinio Refice’s Cecilia, a staged sacra rappresentazione written expressly for Muzio. These last two works were also heard in my recent Renata Scotto memorial tribute, and make for a fascinating comparison between these two great artists.
RECORDINGS HEARD IN THIS EPISODE
George Frideric Handel, Giacomo Rossi [after Torquato Tasso]: Lascia ch’io pianga (Rinaldo). Claudia Muzio [1922]
Giacomo Puccini, Giuseppe Giacosa, Luigi Illica [after Henri Murger]: Mi chiamano Mimì (La bohème). Claudia Muzio [1911, 1935 (second recording conducted by Lorenzo Molajoli)]
Composer Unknown: Torna, amore. Claudia Muzio [1924]
Giacomo Puccini, Giuseppe Giacosa, Luigi Illica [after David Belasco, John Luther Long]: Un bel dì vedremo (Madama Butterfly). Claudia Muzio [1918]
Umberto Giordano, Renato Simoni [after Victorien Sardou, Émile Moreau]: Che me ne faccio nel vostro castello? (Madame Sans-Gêne). Claudia Muzio [1922]
Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari, Enrico Golisciani: O gioia, la nube leggera (Il segreto di Susanna). Claudia Muzio [1917]
Pietro Mascagni, Giovanni Targioni-Tozzetti, Guido Menasci [after Giovanni Verga]: Voi lo sapete, o mamma (Cavalleria rusticana). Claudia Muzio, Orchestra conducted by Lorenzo Molajoli [1934]
Francesco Cilea, Leopoldo Marenco [after Alphonse Daudet): Esser madre è un inferno (L’Arlesiana). Claudia Muzio, Orchestra conducted by Lorenzo Molajoli [1935]
Christoph Willibald Gluck, Ranieri de’ Calzabigi: Spiagge amate (Paride ed Elena). Claudia Muzio [1923]
Léo Delibes, Alfred de Musset [unknown English translator]: Good Morning, Sue! [Bonjour, Suzon]. Claudia Muzio [1918]
Alfred Bachelet, Eugène Adénis-Colombeau: Chère nuit. Claudia Muzio [1920]
Vincenzo Bellini, Felice Romani, Domenico Gilardoni [after Carlo Roti]: Sorgi, o padre (Bianca e Fernando). Claudia Muzio [1922]
Antônio Carlos Gomes, Antonio Ghislanzoni [after Eugène de Mirecourt]: Mia piccirella (Salvator Rosa). Claudia Muzio [1920]
Giuseppe Verdi, Francesco Maria Piave [after Alexandre Dumas fils]: A chi scrivevi?… Amami, Alfredo (La traviata). Claudia Muzio, Gaetano Tommasini [1911]
Giuseppe Verdi, Arrigo Boito [after William Shakespeare]: Dio ti giocondi, o sposo (Otello). Claudia Muzio, Francesco Merli, Orchestra conducted by Lorenzo Molajoli [1935]
Licinio Refice, Emidio Mucci: Grazie, sorelle [Morte di Cecilia] (Cecilia). Claudia Muzio, Orchestra and women’s chorus conducted by Licinio Refice [1935]