RIP Anneliese Rothenberger

Dear Anneliese Rothenberger left us this week. She was just the sort of mid-century singer this blog is meant to highlight, it is to my shame that I must admit I haven't featured her before. [Pause while I hang my head in shame.] Here are a few videos, some of which have been featured by other bloggers in their own memorial posts. Most of my fellow bloggers have included clips of the famed, amazing Der Rosenkavalier with Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, so I will not include any of those. I urge you to look for those yourselves if you haven't seen them!

A televised Enführung aus dem Serial in 1963. Amazing singing, poor video quality (it was 1963, people--theaters were lit by candlelight!):


A televised Arabella (or possibly a clip from her TV show, Anneliese Rothenberger stellt vor), date not given by the YouTube poster, but you can guess the period by the makeup, the hair, and the age of Hermann Prey.


This clip does come from her TV show, according to the YouTube poster. About 1978, with Jose Carreras:

I need to find out whether those TV shows are available on DVD, the same way Bell Telephone Hour and similar early TV shows from the US are.

Another charming clip from her TV show:

I'll bet you thought he only did opera and Lieder!

Fritz Wunderlich singing the two arias from Bach's St. Matthew Passion! Quite beautifully, of course. (Alas, not videos, but rather audio recordings with pretty pictures.)

Ulrica sing-off!

Martha Mödl, whom I've featured here before, 1965, German TV, auf deutsch:


The under-appreciated Florence Quivar, 1990, the Met:


Marlene Lichtenberg--posted to YouTube just yesterday, but date and location of performance aren't given:


Ida Kirilovaof, Slovak National Theater, ca. 1990:


The amazing Mariana Pentcheva and the twins, La Scala, 2001.

RIP Giulietta Simionato

The great Giulietta Simionato left this world for the next today yesterday. Some clips:


(Singing several excerpts--Aida, Cavalleria, Trovatore)


("O don fatale" from Don Carlo, apparently a TV movie from 1962)



(Singing an excerpt from Anna Bolena with Maria Callas)


(Norma with Maria Callas)