Wednesday, February 27, 2008

That Laugh

Most people hear Wicked Witch of the West, but after watching the democratic debates tonight, I finally figured out what Hillary's laugh reminds me of (30-seconds):

Gaaaah! I may never be able to watch Amadeus again...

While I love Mozart, I don't really have much opera experience. Some years ago I attended a wonderful performance of the young Cecilia Bartoli, who is best known for her interpretations of Mozart and Rossini. Born in Rome 1966, she was just 30 when I saw her. She is a considered a coloratura mezzo-soprano with an unusual timbred voice. I was taken with the fullness of her voice, and also how much fun she had with the songs, how much life she put into her performance. The audience really responded to her lively, vivacious stage persona.

Here then is Chay-CHEEL-ya performing Agitata da due Venti, from Vivaldi's Griselda. It's a song about waves raging in a strong sea. See how the music and the notes flow through her like an electric current as she captures those big waves crashing (6-minutes):

Okay, that's better -- now I can get that horrible debate laugh out of my brain. ps, I would DIE to have Cecilia's hair!

6 comments:

pissed off patricia said...

I didn't see the debate last night but I have been seeing clips from it this morning on tv. I did hear the laugh and I gotta say, it was over done. She seemed to try to make it so loud or something. It really sounded like the kind of laugh some people do to cover up their own embarrassment. She needs to moderate it a lot.

Cartledge said...

I am fortunate indeed to have limited access to Hillary’s antics. I could of course go to youtube, but why would I? On the other hand Mozart seems to inflict himself on me at the oddest moments, and I’m no great fan of him either.
Operatic voice is fine, but selected arias as opposed to the full monty. My favourite aria, and favourite rendering is Bachianas Brasileiras (Villa-Lobos) using Joan Baez vocal chords. Alas I’m lacking a copy just now, but it is so easy to conjure in the memory.

D.K. Raed said...

PoP:
I would rather she didn't moderate her laugh. She is already scripted enough. I find it revealing that it sounds so insane, like a person with a fingernail grip on reality.

Cart:
That aria sounds intriguing. Let me know if you find a youtube of it. I have a hard time with most opera divas because they seem to take themselves so seriously. I enjoyed Cecilia because she has fun with it. Husband was entranced by her performance.

Cartledge said...

Red I can't find a Baez version, but there are others and it is a glorious piece.
I don't know if this URL will work, but it ain't half bad:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tp14jQae1ZI&feature=related

D.K. Raed said...

Nicely done, Cart, very haunting, thanks.

Cartledge said...

It is a half arsed version, too much vibrato for a start. But as a lifelong devotee of Joan I guess no one will ever meet the standard of clarity for me. Still, the cello tends to carry the day.