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vinyl LP front cover
photo of album cover by Styrous®
A hundred and twenty years ago today, the premier of Madama Butterfly, an opera in two acts by Italian composer, Giacomo Puccini, had its premiere on February 17, 1904 at La Scala in Milan.
vinyl LP back cover
photo of album cover by Styrous®
The libretto is by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa, based on the short story Madame Butterfly (1898) by John Luther Long,
which in turn was based on stories told to Long by his sister Jennie
Correll and on the semi-autobiographical 1887 French novel Madame Chrysanthème by Pierre Loti. Long's version was dramatized by David Belasco as the one-act play Madame Butterfly: A Tragedy of Japan, which, after premiering in New York in 1900, moved to London, where Puccini saw it in the summer of that year.
I have several copies of the opera but I chose this version as it was
the first copy of Butterfly I owned and became the one I listened to most of
the time. The reason: it featured Leontyne Price as Butterfly; I have a long story about my love for her since I was in my late teens and I saw her in Aida (link below). The Humming Chorus is beautifully performed by the RCA Italiana Opera Chorus & Orchestra conducted by Erich Leinsdorf. The Butterfly excerpts also feature opera greats Richard Tucker, Anna Moffo and Rosalind Elias.
Leontyne Price - Cio-Cio
San Richard Tucker - Pinkerton
Rosalind Elais - Suzuki
Philip Maero - Sharpless
Erich Leinsdorf - conductor
RCA Italiana Opera Orchestra
1962
San Richard Tucker - Pinkerton
Rosalind Elais - Suzuki
Philip Maero - Sharpless
Erich Leinsdorf - conductor
RCA Italiana Opera Orchestra
1962
In addition, Leontyne Price sings the beautiful aria from Gianni Schicchi, O Mio Babbino Caro and the intensely poignant Vissi D'arte from Tosca.
Both performed by her brilliantly on this recording! There is a video
of her at almost sixty years old singing the aria for the Feb 23, 1983, Grammy Awards and she is magnificent (links below)!
Tracklist:
Side 1:
Side 1:
Placido Domingo, Sherrill Milnes, London Symphony*, Anton Guadagno – La
Bohème - In Un Coupé?; O Mimì, Tu Più Non Torni - 4:26
Richard Tucker (2), Anna Moffo, Robert Merrill, Rome Opera Orchestra*, Erich Leinsdorf – La Bohème - O Soave Fanciulla - 3:32
Jussi Bjoerling*, Fernando Corena, Rome Opera Orchestra*, Erich Leinsdorf – Tosca - Recondita Armonia - 3:19
Leontyne Price, Rome Opera Orchestra*, Oliviero De Fabritiis – Tosca - Vissi D'arte 3:11
Jussi Bjoerling*, Rome Opera Orchestra*, Erich Leinsdorf – Tosca - E Lucevan Le Stelle - 3:40
Leontyne Price, London Symphony*, Edward Downes – Gianni Schicchi - O Mio Babbino Caro - 2:25
Richard Tucker (2), Anna Moffo, Robert Merrill, Rome Opera Orchestra*, Erich Leinsdorf – La Bohème - O Soave Fanciulla - 3:32
Jussi Bjoerling*, Fernando Corena, Rome Opera Orchestra*, Erich Leinsdorf – Tosca - Recondita Armonia - 3:19
Leontyne Price, Rome Opera Orchestra*, Oliviero De Fabritiis – Tosca - Vissi D'arte 3:11
Jussi Bjoerling*, Rome Opera Orchestra*, Erich Leinsdorf – Tosca - E Lucevan Le Stelle - 3:40
Leontyne Price, London Symphony*, Edward Downes – Gianni Schicchi - O Mio Babbino Caro - 2:25
Side 2:
Leontyne Price, Richard Tucker (2), Rosalind Elias, RCA Italiana Opera Orchestra, Erich Leinsdorf – Madama Butterfly - Love Duet: Viene La Sera - 14:58
Leontyne Price, RCA Italiana Opera Orchestra, Erich Leinsdorf – Madama Butterfly - Un Bel Dì - 4:19
RCA Italiana Opera Chorus & Orchestra*, Erich Leinsdorf – Madama Butterfly - Humming Chorus - 2:46
Jussi Bjoerling*, Rome Opera Orchestra* & Chorus*, Erich Leinsdorf – Turandot - Nessun Dorma - 3:21
Viewfinder links:
Net links:
YouTube links:
Giacomo Puccini ~
O Mio Babbino Caro (live 1981)
Vissi D'arte (live 1983)
Leontyne Price, Richard Tucker, Rosalind Elias ~ Love Duet
Jussi Bjoerling ~
