I worked at the Met. When talking about artist La Nilsson was always remember for being able to reach to the top of the auditorium. Lots of love expressed for this artis always at the Met.
You have no idea. She is already in her sixties here. Imagine in her forties, filling the Metropolitan auditorium, and griping the entire house. One of the true greats.
no one else sings "rings um dein Grab" (7'30") with such a triumphant tone on that high B to join the trumpets in the following passage - astonishing that she just throws it out like this after a lifetime of singing like this
James Levine conducting. 1980 was near the beginning of Levine putting his stamp on the MET Orchestra. It lasted for 20 years and with the retirement of concertmaster Raymond Gniewek the orchestra gradually lost some of the greatness of its string playing. (Gniewek was a great help to Levine during the conductor's early years at the MET).
One of the great misfortunes of opera history that video recorrings came along too late to record one of those truly unique performances when she was in her prime. There was nothing ever like them and this is certainly not the Nilsson that sent audiences into Dionysian frenzies.
Words will never be able to convey just how grateful I am that this performance (and Tristan und Isolde) were recorded. Just to have an impression of what Nilsson brought to the stage is priceless.
@@emma41093 I won't argue with that. The Orange production is minimalist, and not in a way that's particularly thoughtful and enlightening. On the other hand, I'd take Vickers and Böhm over Boulez and Windgassen, so I enjoy both about equally
Thank-you so much for posting! Her voice is obviously past its prime; she would have been 61 or 62 here. Still, it's wonderful to hear the power of her voice and see the power of her acting, especially in one of her signature roles.
Hello! This was from 16 February 1980. Birgit's birthday was 17 May 1918 so she was three months short of 62 here. Still fantastic glorious voice... captured and preserved in this document. =)
No matter if the past prime and slightly pitchy aspect here abs there this is an incredibly telling performance and gave a glimpse of what she was about decades earlier in this repertoire.
The high notes are still there, but the voice sounds like it's trying to go off pitch constantly. Still amazing that she could pull this off at this age, but perhaps she should have done Klytemnestra instead.
On a scale 0 to 100 this rates 10 for what Nilsson was like in her prime. I will never watch this again--I still remember her live performances at the Met in the 60's and 70's. And that's the way I will remember her. One of the most exciting singers I ever heard.
Horrible performance! It is not worthy of the best Electra of all times. Listen to her recording instead; SIR GEORGE SOLTI / Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra Birgit Nilsson (Elektra); Marie Collier (Chrysothemis); Regina Resnik (Klytämnestra); Gerhard Stolze (Aegisth); Tom Krause (Orest) LONDON 417 345 (2 CDs) (recorded 1967) The meeting between Klytämnestra (Resnik) and Elektra (Nilsson) is unsurpassed!
You need to be present at the theater to really give a fair judgment, not based on documents like these, which are prone to be distorted by engineering and other limitations. Maybe if you heard the modern Elektras today...
@@savioalves1234 You need to be present at the theater to really give a fair judgment, not based on documents like these, which are prone to be distorted by engineering and other limitations. Maybe if you heard the modern Elektras today...
I worked at the Met. When talking about artist La Nilsson was always remember for being able to reach to the top of the auditorium. Lots of love expressed for this artis always at the Met.
You have no idea. She is already in her sixties here. Imagine in her forties, filling the Metropolitan auditorium, and griping the entire house. One of the true greats.
no one else sings "rings um dein Grab" (7'30") with such a triumphant tone on that high B to join the trumpets in the following passage - astonishing that she just throws it out like this after a lifetime of singing like this
I heard her do Elektra at the Met in 1970 with Rysanek and Bohm conducting. It was a terrifying and utterly unforgettable experience
I don't think ANYONE has ever mastered this role with such terrifying intensity as Nilsson. And WHAT orchestral playing!
James Levine conducting. 1980 was near the beginning of Levine putting his stamp on the MET Orchestra. It lasted for 20 years and with the retirement of concertmaster Raymond Gniewek the orchestra gradually lost some of the greatness of its string playing. (Gniewek was a great help to Levine during the conductor's early years at the MET).
@@robertmanno5749 Yeah, he was a real nice guy... 1:34... those chords... I almost crushed a disk watching this ;)
Nilsson is magnificent in this performance.
... I saw Birgit Nilsson as Elektra at Covent Garden in 1968 (?) ... this is still as good ... incomparable ...
One of the great misfortunes of opera history that video recorrings came along too late to record one of those truly unique performances when she was in her prime. There was nothing ever like them and this is certainly not the Nilsson that sent audiences into Dionysian frenzies.
Words will never be able to convey just how grateful I am that this performance (and Tristan und Isolde) were recorded. Just to have an impression of what Nilsson brought to the stage is priceless.
By Tristan und Isolde, do you mean the one from Orange or the one from Tokyo? If you've only seen one, definitely check out the other
@@rossmerchant8435 Thanks Ross; I have both, but for me Wieland's production takes the cake
@@emma41093 I won't argue with that. The Orange production is minimalist, and not in a way that's particularly thoughtful and enlightening. On the other hand, I'd take Vickers and Böhm over Boulez and Windgassen, so I enjoy both about equally
@@rossmerchant8435 Eh ... 3:58 ...
A great improvement in sound and picture quality over the commercial copy I own. Thank you so much.
Thank you Terry!
Je m'en souviens comme si c'était hier
Thank-you so much for posting! Her voice is obviously past its prime; she would have been 61 or 62 here. Still, it's wonderful to hear the power of her voice and see the power of her acting, especially in one of her signature roles.
Hello! This was from 16 February 1980. Birgit's birthday was 17 May 1918 so she was three months short of 62 here. Still fantastic glorious voice... captured and preserved in this document. =)
Mein Gott, das hat es in sich!
Elektra is Nilssons part! The sound of the orchestra is great, much better than in the later years under Levine.
No matter if the past prime and slightly pitchy aspect here abs there this is an incredibly telling performance and gave a glimpse of what she was about decades earlier in this repertoire.
Mise en scène Everding, direction Böhm. Inoubliable. Les productions actuelles peuvent aller se rhabiller.
Remarkable. Remarkable.
The high notes are still there, but the voice sounds like it's trying to go off pitch constantly. Still amazing that she could pull this off at this age, but perhaps she should have done Klytemnestra instead.
Klytemnestra was for a mezzo
On a scale 0 to 100 this rates 10 for what Nilsson was like in her prime. I will never watch this again--I still remember her live performances at the Met in the 60's and 70's. And that's the way I will remember her. One of the most exciting singers I ever heard.
Not only trying- it does, constantly.
Well, even La Nilsson, age 62, can't really compete with her earlier performances of this role.
maravillosa
this is very nice.
Ha, ha... yeah... one "very nice" daughter, that Elektra.
@@AndrewRudin Agamemnon might agree. But he wasn't the best father to all of his children...
This was from 16 February 1980
I can't bear to listening to this-a shadow of her voice 😢
Horrible performance! It is not worthy of the best Electra of all times. Listen to her recording instead; SIR GEORGE SOLTI / Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra
Birgit Nilsson (Elektra); Marie Collier (Chrysothemis); Regina Resnik (Klytämnestra); Gerhard Stolze (Aegisth); Tom Krause (Orest)
LONDON 417 345 (2 CDs) (recorded 1967) The meeting between Klytämnestra (Resnik) and Elektra (Nilsson) is unsurpassed!
Terrible and quite screechy..oh dear.. an off night perhaps?
She is quite past her prime here at age 62
She was running a high fever and wanted to cancel, but since it was a MET broadcast she was convinced to perform. I was there in the offstage chorus.
@golden-63 she was quite ill with a high fever but was convinced to perform.
Awful performance.
You need to be present at the theater to really give a fair judgment, not based on documents like these, which are prone to be distorted by engineering and other limitations. Maybe if you heard the modern Elektras today...
@@savioalves1234 You need to be present at the theater to really give a fair judgment, not based on documents like these, which are prone to be distorted by engineering and other limitations. Maybe if you heard the modern Elektras today...
troll
@@Amahl1971 She is indeed, go to her channel and have a listen. This trick is in no position to comment on anyone's singing.
Went you your channel and had a listen, honey hate to break it to you, you suck.