Asmik Grigorian (Turandot) and Jonas Kaufmann (Calaf). Wiener Staatsoper, 2023. The English translation and subtitles were provided by Librettos in English.
This is the most beautiful Turandot, in presence & voice timbre, I’ve ever witnessed. She brings a new league, elegance and deep interpretation to this challenging piece!
i agree. She embodies, both literally in body and certainly in voice, a new breed of Turandot. Her Turandot is no longer a Wagnerian refugee (Marton, Stemme, Nillson, etc, etc.) Not that they were not excellent but i dig this new interpretation of Turandot as vocally and physically vulnerable from the start ...Asmik G. Turandot is a China Doll locked up too long in a doll house of her own devices and at her own will. These clips from this production made me re-listen to the Von Karajan/ Ricciarelli production disc where Von K attempted to present Turandot as a smaller voiced, yet emotionally vulnerable being and got nothing but disdain for it. He was right: in that this is as valid an interpretation as that long held onto one previously performed and enacted. Radvanovsky's Turandot is likewise smaller in scale yet equally impactful as that of Azmik G and Katia R. Brava!
I was at the hall. Probably the best produced voice I have heard in my life. Not only does it fill the house with ease, but remains musical at all times. A true singer. A true musician.
I was there on 19th. One of the best soprano performances I have ever heard live. (Liu was amazing, too.) Jonas is always Jonas, but the night belonged to the ladies.
Richard Strauss famously wanted “the highest and loudest soprano” for Elektra; Puccini set no such requirements for Turandot. No lyric soprano could ever sustain the tessitura of the role, but Grigorian sounds more than capable, especially with the help of a sympathetic conductor and supporting cast.
Oh I saw her in Salzburg as Angelica. Not enough tissues available for us all. Here we see a Turandot who is credible as a person not just a stand and deliver ice queen. She sounds very good. Kaufmann is no Franco Corelli that's for sure.
God, that was an incredible performance. I've not been able to listen to another Suor Angelica since. That was the moment I became an Asmik Grigorian Stan!
@@Porn05Mouth She's coming to the Met for Butterdly in April. Even though it's the Minghella production with the annoying puppet I am sure she will be fantastic
@@gerontius3I know!!! I already have my tickets and am counting down the days. I saw that production in Vienna with Yoncheva, and I really loved it-one of the most gorgeous things I’ve seen in stage. I even liked the puppet! 😂
@@Porn05Mouth Puppet is OK the first time you see it. After four or more performances I find it annoying. A real boy engenders much more genuine sympathy
@@gerontius3 I can understand that feeling. I think it was the Cio-Cio-San puppet in the dream ballet that really stuck with me. It’s the only time the youth of that character came through for me (since it’s always sung by a much older soprano with a more developed voice than a 15-year old girl could reasonably have.) But I hear your point. At any rate, I can’t wait for Asmik’s debut-puppet or no puppet! 😀
Fair point. I've read a lot of criticism from more 'staid' critics that this is not a work that should be a psychological analysis. And I couldn't disagree more with them. Essentially every story, written, sung, about human nature and experience boils down to what the character is/ has contended with. Every story dives into that 'why' and 'how' in its own way. Some may disagree, but trauma can Def be inherited. My family has a lot of bad marriages in it. I haven't married. That why is pretty easy to see. Turandot had a female relative who was abused/ raped/ killed. That's going to have an affect. When it boils down to it, her 'why' isn't unique. Billions of women have lived this on some level. (Obs how she deals with her why is a little fantastical, but staid critics don't even address that part...)
@@Culture_maven Great analysis. Life destroyed Turandot so she hates life-look at the way she treats her subjects. Pain can make you jaded or cruel or it can make you wise and compassionate and even sacrificial like Liu. The choice is yours.
I don’t think a regietheater or modern opera production is always a bad thing-but it has to be well done-without a bunch of doohickies to distract you from the singing-trying to figure out what means what.
@lukasmiller486 I think in the opera industry we're seeing growing pains. I mean Puccini didn't exactly understand China or try to. It was a piece written from a very white European point of view rife with stereotypes. I mean, Ping Pang and Pong? Face palm. I commend new gen for realizing there are a lot of eeeeeeps and trying to be true to score but reimagine. Just like movies, it works and sometimes it doesn't. Apocalypse Now... brilliant retell of Conrad. I admit I was bummed when I saw staged photos bc I wanted gongs dang it. But it really worked for me in person. I didn't find it a distraction. (Except for holy cow the entire chorus is in nongender confirming suits? And how did they even get those wigs on them? They looked really uncomfortable!!!)
The riddles are three but life is one.Tirandot wants to discourage the Prince because of the death of her ancestor.She even seems to have garded several bones of her.But Kalaf is obsessed with Turandot and will do anything to show his real love to her.I think it curious but at the same time beautiful.The maids that seem little souls around her serving her.The way they dispose the bones on top of her to relate her and her ancestor even more.I know there are people who hate this Turandot.But I think it makes all the sense.Specially for young new viewers...
Sinceramente creo que Asmik es la cantante actriz de nuestros días. Todas sus presentaciones dejan siempre algo nuevo y fresco. Realmente es una artista lirica muy completa. Quizás en este rol se escuche su voz "forzada", pero mucho mejor que Netrebko o Radvanoksky, se mantiene en la línea de canto, y aunque su voz no es grande, logra sortear la exigencia de la partitura. Opaca totalmente a Kauffman que cada vez está peor, con su voz, sin ningún tipo de color, seca y sin emoción. Gracias.
I've always thought Turandot should he sung in a beautiful, lyrical way. She proves it here. It's a different character, different opera really. What a revelation! Birgit Nilsson turned it into a Wagnerian ice princess. Great as it was, I this this warmer, more human approach just as valid, and more affecting. She has to work for it, but she doesn't blow it. She's right on the edge, giving everything she has, but not what she doesn't.
This video barely does her justice. She was SPECTACULARLY good in this role. The singing, of course, was exceptional - but Grigorian is one of the best stage actors I've ever seen on a stage ever. I was literally on the edge of my seat from the second act through the finale. (I'm pissed that the performance they videoed does do the complete Alfano ending unlike the one I saw live.)
Why on Earth every modern lyric soprano has decided that they can sing Turandot? They should stick to their repertoire. Pity Asmim, excellent as she is, went on this adventure.
Lucia sings Turandot = Sutherland (one of the best Turandot) - this is very much in that mould. I was at the dress role and her voice sailed over the orchestra easily. The top Bs and Cs were thrilling!
@@Yves_Ka Sutherland could never have been a great Turandot simply bc she never sang the role onstage; she didn't even sing any aria. You might also think that Ricciarelli is an extraordinary Turandot hahaha. I don't know what's with you guys, believing Grigorian and Radvanovsky are great singing this. The are wonderful voices that are venturing on a role that far surpasses their vocal capacities. Next chapter will be Netrebko is a great Abigaille and Petty Yende a great Brunnhilde.
Incredible voice from Grigorian, haven't heard a good Turandot for awhile. Terrible production, and also am I the only one that's not a fan of Kaufmann's voice? The one he did with Radvanovsky was equally unbearable, maybe he's just not suitable for Turandot
What a horrifically stupid production this is. No real sets, no sense of place, nothing that supports the story or the libretto visually. I guess that directors have become tired of screwing up opera and are now letting the stage designers do it for them. Grigorian does a reasonably good job of the aria except for some of her quite shrieky/shrinking high Cs.
@@justasceponis3931 I think Grigorian is a superb singer, but there a lot pushing and forcing the voice here, in all registers, Really unnecessary for her to tackle a role like Turandot; she is a fine Senta, Jenufa, Suor Angelica, roles like Turandot and Lady Macbeth might take a toll on the voice (unless you have the right voice for it, like Nilsson for Turandot or Verrett/Dimitrova for Macbeth).
I saw the whole opera on TV. I was so very impressed with everything, set, voices, the symbolism. Incredible
This is the most beautiful Turandot, in presence & voice timbre, I’ve ever witnessed. She brings a new league, elegance and deep interpretation to this challenging piece!
Nilsson is rolling in her grave.
@@user-wr4mg3me9x Yawn
Except that she doesn't look Chinese at all!
i agree. She embodies, both literally in body and certainly in voice, a new breed of Turandot. Her Turandot is no longer a Wagnerian refugee (Marton, Stemme, Nillson, etc, etc.) Not that they were not excellent but i dig this new interpretation of Turandot as vocally and physically vulnerable from the start ...Asmik G. Turandot is a China Doll locked up too long in a doll house of her own devices and at her own will. These clips from this production made me re-listen to the Von Karajan/ Ricciarelli production disc where Von K attempted to present Turandot as a smaller voiced, yet emotionally vulnerable being and got nothing but disdain for it. He was right: in that this is as valid an interpretation as that long held onto one previously performed and enacted. Radvanovsky's Turandot is likewise smaller in scale yet equally impactful as that of Azmik G and Katia R. Brava!
@@user-wr4mg3me9x Preccesly Nilsson is dead and We need new singers who sing Turandot for new listeners.
Hab es 2x gesehen, es war sooo grossartig.Alle waren wunderbar, auch die Inszenierung🎉🎉🎉🎉
I was at the hall. Probably the best produced voice I have heard in my life. Not only does it fill the house with ease, but remains musical at all times. A true singer. A true musician.
I was there on 19th. One of the best soprano performances I have ever heard live. (Liu was amazing, too.) Jonas is always Jonas, but the night belonged to the ladies.
Where was the show? It’s very modern not really my style but I liked it
@simonezhang100 It was at Vienna Opera. I was dubious about staging when photos came out, but it ended up working for me.
She’s wonderful. Her parents are both incredible artists too - only heard them on recordings but they were magnificent. Must be in the genes!!!
Same! I expected to hate it from the preview video, but it totally worked for me in person.@@Culture_maven
Beautiful singing. Usually I find Turandot hard to listen to . The tessitura is so high and so demanding. She brought warmth and strength
Brilliant way to save money in sets and costume for the grandest opera ever written...
No wonder opera attendance is down...
Richard Strauss famously wanted “the highest and loudest soprano” for Elektra; Puccini set no such requirements for Turandot. No lyric soprano could ever sustain the tessitura of the role, but Grigorian sounds more than capable, especially with the help of a sympathetic conductor and supporting cast.
QUEEN!
Oh I saw her in Salzburg as Angelica. Not enough tissues available for us all. Here we see a Turandot who is credible as a person not just a stand and deliver ice queen. She sounds very good. Kaufmann is no Franco Corelli that's for sure.
God, that was an incredible performance. I've not been able to listen to another Suor Angelica since. That was the moment I became an Asmik Grigorian Stan!
@@Porn05Mouth She's coming to the Met for Butterdly in April. Even though it's the Minghella production with the annoying puppet I am sure she will be fantastic
@@gerontius3I know!!! I already have my tickets and am counting down the days. I saw that production in Vienna with Yoncheva, and I really loved it-one of the most gorgeous things I’ve seen in stage. I even liked the puppet! 😂
@@Porn05Mouth Puppet is OK the first time you see it. After four or more performances I find it annoying. A real boy engenders much more genuine sympathy
@@gerontius3 I can understand that feeling. I think it was the Cio-Cio-San puppet in the dream ballet that really stuck with me. It’s the only time the youth of that character came through for me (since it’s always sung by a much older soprano with a more developed voice than a 15-year old girl could reasonably have.) But I hear your point.
At any rate, I can’t wait for Asmik’s debut-puppet or no puppet! 😀
Asmik Grigorian,Sondra Radvanovsky y Saioa Hernández son las mejores Turandot actuales.
That’s the most heavy handed symbolism I’ve ever seen for the reincarnation concept in the text of the aria.
Fair point. I've read a lot of criticism from more 'staid' critics that this is not a work that should be a psychological analysis. And I couldn't disagree more with them.
Essentially every story, written, sung, about human nature and experience boils down to what the character is/ has contended with. Every story dives into that 'why' and 'how' in its own way.
Some may disagree, but trauma can Def be inherited. My family has a lot of bad marriages in it. I haven't married. That why is pretty easy to see. Turandot had a female relative who was abused/ raped/ killed. That's going to have an affect. When it boils down to it, her 'why' isn't unique. Billions of women have lived this on some level. (Obs how she deals with her why is a little fantastical, but staid critics don't even address that part...)
@@Culture_maven Great analysis. Life destroyed Turandot so she hates life-look at the way she treats her subjects. Pain can make you jaded or cruel or it can make you wise and compassionate and even sacrificial like Liu. The choice is yours.
I don’t think a regietheater or modern opera production is always a bad thing-but it has to be well done-without a bunch of doohickies to distract you from the singing-trying to figure out what means what.
@lukasmiller486 I think in the opera industry we're seeing growing pains. I mean Puccini didn't exactly understand China or try to. It was a piece written from a very white European point of view rife with stereotypes. I mean, Ping Pang and Pong? Face palm.
I commend new gen for realizing there are a lot of eeeeeeps and trying to be true to score but reimagine. Just like movies, it works and sometimes it doesn't. Apocalypse Now... brilliant retell of Conrad.
I admit I was bummed when I saw staged photos bc I wanted gongs dang it. But it really worked for me in person. I didn't find it a distraction. (Except for holy cow the entire chorus is in nongender confirming suits? And how did they even get those wigs on them? They looked really uncomfortable!!!)
Just beautiful ❤
The riddles are three but life is one.Tirandot wants to discourage the Prince because of the death of her ancestor.She even seems to have garded several bones of her.But Kalaf is obsessed with Turandot and will do anything to show his real love to her.I think it curious but at the same time beautiful.The maids that seem little souls around her serving her.The way they dispose the bones on top of her to relate her and her ancestor even more.I know there are people who hate this Turandot.But I think it makes all the sense.Specially for young new viewers...
The soprano wins over Kaufmann on the unizon high C
Sinceramente creo que Asmik es la cantante actriz de nuestros días. Todas sus presentaciones dejan siempre algo nuevo y fresco. Realmente es una artista lirica muy completa. Quizás en este rol se escuche su voz "forzada", pero mucho mejor que Netrebko o Radvanoksky, se mantiene en la línea de canto, y aunque su voz no es grande, logra sortear la exigencia de la partitura. Opaca totalmente a Kauffman que cada vez está peor, con su voz, sin ningún tipo de color, seca y sin emoción. Gracias.
Gracias por decir lo de Kauffman.Es un escándalo.
En cuanto a Asmik,no soy muy forofa tampoco.Pero me encanta como Turandot y me apasiona el montaje.
Absolut
SUPER
Просто спела своим голосом,сколько есть
А голос какой! Хоть я и её фанатка,но не верилось,что голосом войдёт в формат.Но убедила,как всегда.Теперь это моя фаворитка в Турандот!
I've always thought Turandot should he sung in a beautiful, lyrical way. She proves it here. It's a different character, different opera really. What a revelation! Birgit Nilsson turned it into a Wagnerian ice princess. Great as it was, I this this warmer, more human approach just as valid, and more affecting. She has to work for it, but she doesn't blow it. She's right on the edge, giving everything she has, but not what she doesn't.
Kaufmann can't reach the C5 wtf, oh right he's a baritone
His voice is not for italian roles......never was.....
Ohhh, and not every tenor has a good C.....like Domingo...altough he was an italian voice.
Incredible performance
This video barely does her justice. She was SPECTACULARLY good in this role. The singing, of course, was exceptional - but Grigorian is one of the best stage actors I've ever seen on a stage ever. I was literally on the edge of my seat from the second act through the finale. (I'm pissed that the performance they videoed does do the complete Alfano ending unlike the one I saw live.)
It seems interesting! Where can we find the full version?
Прекрасная Асмик❤️
Why evryone wants to be a Turandot nowadays? Money wins?
Exactly
Why on Earth every modern lyric soprano has decided that they can sing Turandot? They should stick to their repertoire. Pity Asmim, excellent as she is, went on this adventure.
i fear she will wobble like Dame Gwyneth in a short time. Both great throats but.....
Totally agree, one can already hear the beginning of a wobble.
it reminds a bit of Nadja Michael: great actor but always to much in the limit. with 50 the voice was collapsed.
Poor Jk with a falsetto high C. WTF?
Schreckliches Falsett von JK beim hohen C 😢
😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
Terrible
Why is this audio recorded so horribly? It's sounds like she's in a practice room with no atmosphere, dead sound.
Fiordiligi sings Turandot.
Lucia sings Turandot = Sutherland (one of the best Turandot) - this is very much in that mould. I was at the dress role and her voice sailed over the orchestra easily. The top Bs and Cs were thrilling!
@@Yves_Ka Sutherland could never have been a great Turandot simply bc she never sang the role onstage; she didn't even sing any aria. You might also think that Ricciarelli is an extraordinary Turandot hahaha.
I don't know what's with you guys, believing Grigorian and Radvanovsky are great singing this. The are wonderful voices that are venturing on a role that far surpasses their vocal capacities.
Next chapter will be Netrebko is a great Abigaille and Petty Yende a great Brunnhilde.
@@Wotan123456789 you sound triggered - try Prozac!
@@Yves_Ka Ahaha, that's exactly how ignorant people react when they know they're wrong.
Go back to your Netrebko recordings, little troll
what a silly comment!
Incredible voice from Grigorian, haven't heard a good Turandot for awhile. Terrible production, and also am I the only one that's not a fan of Kaufmann's voice? The one he did with Radvanovsky was equally unbearable, maybe he's just not suitable for Turandot
he is not at all suited to it
I like the singer very much but Liu would have been the better role for her.
This production and kaufmann are a shame
What a horrifically stupid production this is. No real sets, no sense of place, nothing that supports the story or the libretto visually. I guess that directors have become tired of screwing up opera and are now letting the stage designers do it for them. Grigorian does a reasonably good job of the aria except for some of her quite shrieky/shrinking high Cs.
This is no Turandot, just a lyric pushing trying to be Dramatic…
doch es ist turandot, viele schlussfassungen konkurriiren, grigorian ist die zersplitterste, super
She might be not a dramatic soprano but for me she is the best Turandot I have ever heard. No force, no push, sang beautifully.
@@justasceponis3931 I think Grigorian is a superb singer, but there a lot pushing and forcing the voice here, in all registers,
Really unnecessary for her to tackle a role like Turandot; she is a fine Senta, Jenufa, Suor Angelica, roles like Turandot and Lady Macbeth might take a toll on the voice (unless you have the right voice for it, like Nilsson for Turandot or Verrett/Dimitrova for Macbeth).
She’s a TuranDONT.
germans nowdays don't have a taste@@herberteberhardscharfenber9474
What a horrific production