Here they are, fresh from today's Independent. They may not be The Three together as yet - but they are the best.
We had a little flurry about this here on JDCMB not long ago, and it was all good clean fun. Trouble is, when their individual discs hit my desk recently - each in a snazzily designed shiny folder with video material, huge pics (very nice too) and all the rest - it seemed just a little too much of a coincidence. What exactly was Universal thinking of? It's not hard to guess.
This started off as speculation, plus a little wistful thinking - I'd love to hear my three top chaps sing side by side. What opera fan wouldn't? They're some of the loveliest voices on earth, and Florez and Kaufmann especially have provided some of my best-ever musical memories.
But what worries me now, after speaking to some guys from Universal yesterday, is that it may even be true.
When Domingo, Pavarotti and Carreras hit the trail, each of them was big enough and fulfilled enough artistically to withstand it. One critic I spoke to, who eventually didn't make it into the article, pointed out that certain singers (notably a soprano or two) don't care how long their voices last, but just want to do stadiums and make as much money as they can as quickly as possible. He felt that at least two of my three are much more serious artists than that and will want to be in the profession for the long haul.
But the long haul isn't the fashion. Squeeze 'em now and hang the consequences, that's the industry today. Instant gratification. And all that crap. We know this already, of course, and I think Florez and Kaufmann are strong enough, fine enough and sensible enough to plan otherwise; and hopefully it's not too late for Villazon.
I don't know about you, but I want to be at Covent Garden hearing Kaufmann sing Otello in 15 or 20 years' time. I want to watch Florez, as he gets middle-aged, grow into Rodolfo. I still want to be writing then, too, assuming I'm still alive. Long-term thinking should be what it's all about. Like a good marriage. Or sensible finance management that doesn't land the world in a credit crunch.
Today's hype-em-up, squeeze-em-dry, pay-em-trillions then chuck-em-out-into-landfill mentality totally misses the point of being on the planet. If it means we get rid faster of certain phony artists who shouldn't be there at all, then OK - but real beauty, real artistry, deep creativity, is a living entity that grows like a rose garden if you take care of it, and makes life worth living for everyone who comes into contact with it.
Blimey, guv. Time for a cold shower and a headache pill.
4 comments:
urlsjcHear, hear!! Have a cold shower and a headache pill for me too.
Thanks for many things! The article for one and the comment and blog for the other :-)
You speak from my heart as well, i love them all 3 and cherish the musical memories they give us and will continue to give us for quite some time i expect!
It will have been a spoiling year at ROH for me, Jonas as Mario, Rolando as Carlo and Hoffmann and Juandi in Mathile!
Yes, they are the 3... but maybe not the 3T as many expect them to be. They are by far definitely the best of their generation (or maybe just according to my personal taste, but so be it ;-)) And uderstandibly the tenor hungry audience and industry might want them to be come the 3T. The diversity in styles, nuances and repertoire would potentially prove even more complex and interesting than PDC. It would be something from any type of music and in any type of style one could wish to hear... but alas, i am quite sure it will not happen, not in the near future anyway.
Jonas, Rolando and Juandi live in different times, have a totally different approach to their art i think. They each want to be an artist in their own right and prefer not to be compared to any of PDC. Yes the industry pushes but all 3 of them are good enough and smart enough to withstand pressures. Rolando has maybe had to learn the lesson the hard way, but i believe it is well learned and his recent changes and explorations in repertoire are proof of that.
I'll not lie and say i wouldn't wish to hear them sing in a concert, they are charming, tremendously charismatic actors, gorgeous voices and incredible fun personalities. It would be heaven! But, they wouldn't enjoy the whole media fuss half as much as we would enjoy the performance. And i appreciate them each as artists way to much to wish for them to be remembered as the other 3 T. I very much prefer that when people say Jonas Kaufmann they think Cavaradossi, when they say Rolando they maybe think Nemorino, when they say Juan Diego Florez they think Almaviva :-) and not the 3T.
I will gladly give away my own little illusion for the far greater one of continuing to hear them all 3 during many more years creating as many stunning roles as they dare.
And i think that as hard as the industry may push, they may just find that these three have learned to say the most important words in the world of opera, NO!But thanks anyway ;-) And they also have the full backing of the adoring public; they were each discovered by the public before the industry made them stars and they love the stage more than they do the stadiums :-) Good for them and good for us!
Thanks again for the article and for speaking out load what we are all thinking about and for putting a smile on my face just by thinking of those 3 :-)
PS And would you agree that all 3 are much better live than on any of their CDs? There seems to be much more to them than a Cd can capture...
Let's hope they are more serious!
I used this in a blogpost. Hope you don't mind. Waves from Germany.
Thanks for the interesting post and article.
Like you I find the idea of these three, at this point in their careers, embarking on a "Three Tenors" tour somewhat unsettling. The thing which made the original Three Tenors special (and I think the first concert was) was the fact that it was three very accomplished singers, on the downward slope from their career heights. There were long years of rivalry between them and were joining together to celebrate the survival of one.
Kaufman, Florez, and Villazon are three very accomplished singers, but none of them have yet to achieve the kind of notoriety that the original trio had.
The comparison between Villazon and Carreras is very apt. You comment about the somewhat off-center repertoire in Villazon's debut solo album. Actually Carreras' first solo effort was made up of rare Verdi and Donizetti arias, intentionally off the beaten track as he said in interviews at the time. Given today's depressed market for classical recordings, choosing some less than popular arias may be a chance to differentiate himself from the pack. Atypically for a tenor of his type, his other recordings include Wagner and Monteverdi.
The other unfortunate truth is that people were worried about Carreras' vocal longevity long before the leukemia diagnosis. Audiences and critics were very concerned about his role choices and unfortunately it was beginning to show in his performances. I hope the same is not true about Villazon.
I haven't had the chance to hear Kaufmann live and hope to soon, but I have seen Florez and Villazon on a number of occasions and have no doubt that they are the real item. I hope that we all can enjoy them for a long time.
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