How doesWinthrop Sargeants newspaper review help us to understand the singing qualities of an operatic diva such as Callas?

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Assignment 3

Part 1 – The Diva

How does the newspaper review help us to understand the singing qualities of an operatic diva such as Callas?

Winthrop Sargeant’s review opens with a comparison to a performance by Callas the previous year in Norma.

“I had some reservations, however; it’s predominant reediness and its tendency to wobble slightly in its highest notes disturbed me a bit.”

– Sargeant, W; (6th February 1958), The New Yorker, from Open University Assignment Booklet, pp 24-25.

Winthrop criticises her high notes; a common flaw picked on by Winthrop throughout his review; as well as referring to Callas as “it”. This could show that prior to her 1958 performance of   “La Traviata” he wasn’t as much as a fan of hers as many other opera fans had become. Winthrop wants to let his readers know that although however brilliant her performance was and however brilliant people believed she was and is; she had her flaws most notably hitting the very high notes. Callas’ struggle with high notes is further mentioned by Robert Phillips in the AA100 Reputations book:

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“Callas sometimes struggle’s to control a rather aggressive wobble in her top register, particularly when she is singing loudly”

        -Phillips, R; (2009), AA100 Reputations, Milton Keynes, The Open University

An example of this is from the recording of the “Ah! Fors’e lui” aria at 1.29 we hear Callas hit very high notes and an example of the wobble in her voice can be heard here.

Winthrop Sargeant however was picking up on what was by now, a very common flaw in Maria Callas’s voice. It is clear you did not have to be an advanced opera reviewer to know this. ...

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