Episode 286. Julia Varady Revisited
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This week, the sublime Julia Varady celebrated her 83rd birthday, and here at Countermelody that is an occasion well worth commemorating and celebrating. I’m newly home in Berlin, but with a huge pile of “welcome home” stuff that I have to attend to, so this episode consists of bonus content that I published a year ago while I was (once again) in transit between my extended visit to the US and my return home to Berlin. It was a doozy of a trip (and not in a good way!) but this is a doozy of an episode in the best way possible. That Julia Varady could sing! And this episode presents numerous extended operatic excerpts, from Otello, Lear, Feuersnot, Pique-Dame, and Forza del destino, plus songs by Bartók, Zemlinsky, and Kodály, the latter of which in particular, an arrangement of a Hungarian folk song which offers a feminist spin on the Bluebeard story, will knock you on your ear!
RECORDINGS HEARD IN THIS EPISODE
Giuseppe Verdi, Arrigo Boito [after William Shakespeare]: Mio superbo guerrier (Otello). Julia Varady, Carlo Cossutta, Carlos Kleiber, Orchester der Bayerischen Staatsoper [live München 31.VII.77]
Alexander von Zemlinsky, Rabindranath Tagore, Hans Effenberger (German translation): Mutter, der junge Prinz muß an unserer Türe vorbeikommen (Lyrische Symphonie, Op. 18/2). Julia Varady, Lorin Maazel, Berliner Philharmoniker [1982]
Béla Bartók, Wanda Gleiman: A vágyak éjjele [Night of Desire] (Öt dal [Five Songs]), Op. 15/3. Julia Varady, Aribert Reimann [1975]
Aribert Reimann, Claus H. Henneberg [after William Shakespeare]: Scene 7: Der König und Cordelia gefangen (Lear). Julia Varady, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Gerd Albrecht, Bayerischer Staatsorchester [world premiere, München 09.VII.78]
Richard Strauss, Ernst von Wolzogen: Mittsommer Nacht! Wehvolle Wacht! (Feuersnot). Julia Varady, Bernd Weikl, Heinz Fricke, Münchener Rundfunkorchester, Tölzer Knabenchor [1984]
Zoltán Kodály, Hungarian folk text: Mónár Anna [Beautiful Anna] (Magyar Népzene I/1 [Hungarian Folk Music I/1]). Julia Varady, Aribert Reimann [1975]
Pyotr Il’yich Tchaikovsky, Modest Tchaikovsky [after Alexander Pushkin]: А если мне в ответ часы пробьют… О да миновали страданья [And if the midnight chimes answer… Oh, yes, my agony is over] (Pique-Dame). Julia Varady, Vladimir Atlantov, Algis Zhuraitis, Bayerisches Staatsorchester [live München 24.XI.84]
Giuseppe Verdi, Francesco Maria Piave, Antonio Ghislanzoni [after Ángel de Saavedra]: Or siam soli (La forza del destino). Julia Varady, Kurt Moll, Giuseppe Sinopoli, Bayerisches Staatsorchester [live München 27.IV.86]