Studio recordings
For a singer of his stature, Corelli’s work in the recording studio was relatively limited. For the Italian label Cetra between the years 1956 and 1959, he recorded a number of arias, excerpts from La forza del destino and Carmen (in Italian) and a complete Aïda. For EMI, between 1960 and 1968, he recorded eight complete operas, including his signature roles in Il Trovatore, Andrea Chenier, Turandot, Roméo et Juliette, Pagliacci, and Cavalleria rusticana (as well as the previously mentioned Aïda and Norma) and four recital discs.
For RCA, he recorded two versions of Carmen, each with a less-than-ideal Carmen (Leontyne Price in 1964 and Anna Moffo in 1970, his last complete studio recording). For London/Decca he recorded Faust with Joan Sutherland (a role he never sang onstage), Tosca with Birgit Nilsson and a 1973 duet album with Renata Tebaldi, when both were past their primes.
The Very Best of Franco Corelli (EMI 7243 5 85084 2 0, two discs, recorded 1960-1968). Probably the best overall compilation of Corelli’s studio recordings, this collection includes arias and duets from each of the complete operas Corelli recorded for EMI-Angel, plus the bulk of his supreme 1961 aria recording. That recital (and the cuts used on this recording) included excerpts, both from operas he sang onstage (Les Huguenots, La Gioconda, Adriana Lecouvreur, Tosca) and those he did not (La favorita, I puritani, Manon Lescaut). This collection also includes a few miscellaneous highlights from albums of Neopolitan songs and sacred arias. Some personal favorites: “A te o cara” from Puritani (probably the most virile performance of this aria ever), “Celeste Aïda” (with that amazing diminuendo at the end), “Nessun dorma” from Turandot (the way it’s supposed to sound!), the tomb scene from Roméo (a cathartic performance, French diction aside), a “Donna non vidi mai” that makes one regret that he never sang a complete Manon Lescaut, an anachronistic “Largo” from Handel’s Serse that thrills in spite of itself, and a no-holds-barred, definitive recording of the Neopolitan song “Core ’ngrato.”
The Unknown Recordings (EMI 7243 5 562699 2 7, recorded 1964 and 1967). A batch of never-before-issued performances, released with Corelli’s approval just before his death. Most of the selections are the unfinished portion of a second album of operatic arias, with the exception of two arias (from Ballo in maschera and Trovatore) that were recorded over a pre-existing orchestral track. The collection includes selections from his stage repertoire (La forza del destino, Macbeth (the last new role Corelli took on), Ernani, Roméo, and most touchingly, a fragment of “Che gelida manina” from La bohème), concert repertoire (“La donna è mobile” from Rigoletto and a stunning “O souverain, ô juge, ô père” from Le Cid), as well as arias he appears never to have otherwise sung (“Nel verde maggio” from Catalani’s Loreley and a flawless “Quando le sere al placido” from Luisa Miller). Not the place to start a Corelli collection, but definitely a valuable supplement.
Puccini: Turandot (EMI 0777 769327 2 9, two discs, with Birgit Nilsson, Renata Scotto, Bonaldo Giaiotti, the Orchestra e Coro del Teatro dell’Opera di Roma conducted by Francesco Molinari-Pradelli, recorded 1965). Perhaps the greatest of Corelli’s studio recordings, it pits the two powerhouses (Nilsson and Corelli) against each other with mind-blowing results. Though Corelli sings the “Nessun dorma” better on his 1961 EMI aria recital, his performance here is still breathtaking and the supporting cast, particularly Scotto, is excellent. The Riddle Scene in Act Two captures a good deal of the crackling excitement of their live performances.
Verdi: Aïda(EMI 0777 763229 2 6, two discs, with Birgit Nilsson, Grace Bumbry, Mario Sereni and Bonaldo Giaiotti, the Orchestra d Coro del Teatro dell’Opera di Roma conducted by Zubin Mehta, recorded 1966). Nilsson is heard to slightly less congenial advantage as Aïda than as Turandot, but Corelli covers himself with glory as Radamès and Grace Bumbry is a stellar Amneris. Their Fourth Act confrontation is a highlight of the set. A disc of highlights (74133) is available on EMI’s budget Seraphim label.
Puccini: Tosca (Decca 460753, two discs, with Birgit Nilsson and Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, the Orchestra e Coro dell’Accademia di Santa Cecilia, Roma conducted by Lorin Maazel, recorded 1966). Corelli is in great voice as Cavaradossi, one of his most frequent assumptions. His stentorian Act Two outburst on “Vittoria” is in marked contrast to his sensitively-phrased “E lucevan le stelle” in the Third Act, crowned with a breathtaking diminuendo on a high A. Birgit Nilsson is unidiomatic but exciting as Tosca, though Fischer-Dieskau nearly ruins the recording, with a bizarrely artsy-fartsy Scarpia.
Live recordings
Corelli’s most thrilling recordings are emphatically his live ones. Having to contend with scrappy ensemble, boxy sound and audience noise is a small price to pay for what one gets in return: Corelli (and some highly distinguished, often under-recorded, colleagues) in thunderously good voice, wringing every last ounce of expression from the music. Many of the best live recordings are of Met performances, which are unfortunately barred from release in this country, but which can be obtained from various European and Canadian sources, many of them online. The recordings referenced here are all legally available in the United States.
Puccini: La fanciulla del West (Opera d’Oro 1318, two discs, with Gigliola Frazzoni, Tito Gobbi, Nicola Zaccaria and Enzo Sordello, the Orchestra e Coro del Teatro alla Scala di Milano conducted by Antonino Votto, recorded April 4, 1956). One of the most rip-roaring performances ever of this “spaghetti Western” opera. Corelli’s “Or son sei mesi” in the Second Act is superhuman in its power. Gigliola Frazzoni is a kamikaze Minnie; her hysterics at the end of Act Two are positively hair-raising, while Tito Gobbi creates a more multi-faceted Rance than usual. Ensemble is substandard, as is the recorded sound, but the performance itself is extraordinary. This recording almost compensates for the lack of live Scala recordings of Fedora with Corelli and Callas the following month or the 1958 Callas-Corelli Pirata, one of his greatest successes.
Puccini: Tosca (Opera d’Oro 1349, two discs, with Zinka Milanov, Giangiacomo Guelfi and Forbes Robinson, the Orchestra and Chorus of the Royal Opera, Covent Garden conducted by Alexander Gibson, recorded July 1, 1957). Corelli and Milanov’s paths crossed very few times, perhaps because the sun was setting on her career as his was gaining momentum. The occasion of this recording is Corelli’s Covent Garden debut, where both singers appeared but rarely; they are both in stunning voice here. All the characteristics of a great Corelli performance are here, and presented in a more than slightly over-the-top manner that seems to excite even the staid British public. The performance includes one of his most exquisitely-turned performances of the Third Act aria “E lucevan le stelle.”
Bellini: Norma (Living Stage LS 40351124, two discs, with Anita Cerquetti, Miriam Pirazzini and Giulio Neri, the Orchestra e Coro del Teatro dell’Opera di Roma conducted by Gabriele Santini, recorded January 4, 1958). This is the performance of Norma that followed the infamous Callas “Rome walkout.” Corelli is in thrilling voice, blazing forth particularly at the end of Act One. He finds a memorable partner in the under-recorded Anita Cerquetti, who is a Norma of nobility and substance. Pirazzini is a mediocre Adalgisa, but this performance belongs to Cerquetti and Corelli.
Cilea: Adriana Lecouvreur (Hardy HCA 6007-2, two discs, with Magda Olivero, Giulietta Simionato and Ettore Bastianini, the Orchestra e Coro del Teatro di San Carlo Napoli conducted by Mario Rossi, recorded Nov. 28, 1959.) Probably the greatest-ever performance of this minor opera, which, in the hands of these singers, sounds like great lyric tragedy. Magda Olivero, herself recovering from major surgery, jumped in at the last minute to replace an ailing Renata Tebaldi, and is the Adriana of one’s dreams. Her death scene is unique in the history of recorded opera. Corelli is in refulgent, generous voice and his scenes with Olivero blaze with passion that grips the listener. Simionato and Bastianini brilliantly round out this matchless cast.
Meyerbeer: Les Huguenots (Gli Ugonotti) (Gala 100.604, three discs, with Joan Sutherland, Giulietta Simionato, Wladimiro Ganzarolli, Giorgio Tozzi, Nicolai Ghiaurov and Fiorenza Cossotto, the Orchestra e Coro del Teatro alla Scala di Milano conducted by Gianandrea Gavazzeni, recorded May 28, 1962). Meyerbeer’s historical importance has never been in doubt, but actual performances of his operas are few and far between. These performances constituted the first major Meyerbeer revival in decades, but those anticipating a dull evening in the theater were more than pleasantly surprised. Corelli has gone on the record stating that this was the most difficult role of his career. The risk paid off, however: this may well be the greatest singing of his entire career. The Fourth Act duet with Simionato is one of the most exciting examples of full-throttle singing ever recorded. The rest of the cast is magnificent as well, but it is Corelli and Simionato as Raoul and Valentine who cover themselves in glory.
Verdi: Il trovatore (Gala 100.505, three discs, with Leontyne Price, Giulietta Simionato, Ettore Bastianini and Nicola Zaccaria, the Chor der Wiener Staatsoper and the Wiener Philharmoniker conducted by Herbert von Karajan, recorded July 31, 1962). This recording captures Price and Corelli a year and a half after their joint Met debuts, with a superior Azucena (Simionato), di Luna (Bastianini) and conductor than on that occasion. Corelli excels in a role some consider his greatest, veering effortlessly between the tender lyricism of “Ah, sì, ben mio” and the clarion trumpeting of “Di quella pira.” It was Karajan who described Corelli’s Manrico as “a voice of heroic power, yet with great beauty of tone; darkly sensuous, mysteriously melancholic… but above all, a voice of thunder and lightning, fire and blood.”
Mascagni: Cavalleria rusticana (Myto MCD 031.274, with Giulietta Simionato, Giangiacomo Guelfi and Gabriella Carturan, the Orchestra e Coro del Teatro alla Scala di Milano conducted by Gianandrea Gavazzeni, recorded Dec. 7, 1963). A white-hot intensity pervades this recording that must be heard to be believed. Simionato is heart-rending as Santuzza and Corelli matches her decibel for fiery decibel in their central duet. Corelli was much more of a Turiddo than a Canio, and this recording shows him at his best in this role, far superior to his EMI studio effort with a (here) pallid Victoria de los Angeles, miscast as Santuzza.
Ponchielli: La Gioconda (Bel Canto Society 5015, three discs, with Mary Curtis Verna/Renata Tebaldi, Mignon Dunn, Cesare Bardelli/Anselmo Colzani and Bonaldo Giaiotti, the Orchestra and Chorus of the Philadelphia Lyric Opera conducted by Anton Guadagno, recorded Feb. 18, 1964 and Oct. 18, 1966). These two performances (the first complete, the second in substantial excerpts) show what a magnificent Enzo Corelli was. For once, this opera is about more than just the soprano. Corelli’s two performances of “Cielo e mar” are ardently compelling, even better than his live 1962 Met performances with Eileen Farrell and his confrontations with two contrasting Giocondas make for powerful theater.
Puccini: Turandot (Myto MCD 982.181, two discs, with Birgit Nilsson, Galina Vishnevskaya and Nicola Zaccaria, with the Orchestra e Coro del Teatro alla Scala di Milano conducted by Gianandrea Gavazzeni, recorded Dec. 7, 1964). This recording accurately and thrillingly captures the onstage fireworks generated by Nilsson and Corelli in so many live performances of this opera. Galina Vishnevskaya is an unidiomatic but fascinating Liù. Some technical blemishes mar the actual recording, but the battle of the high C’s in the Riddle Scene of Act Two must be heard to be believed and “Nessun dorma” thrills beyond words.
Verdi: Don Carlo (Opera d’Oro 1131, three discs, with Gundula Janowitz, Shirley Verrett, Eberhard Wächter, Nicolai Ghiaurov and Martti Talvela, the Chor der Wiener Staatsoper and the Wiener Philharmoniker conducted by Horst Stein, recorded Oct. 25, 1970). Don Carlo was one of Corelli’s more interesting dramatic portrayals, and his performance here is matched by the rest of the cast, in particular Shirley Verrett, who nearly walks away with the performance. Corelli presented Don Carlo as a Hamlet-like personage, and the character emerges with much more profile and virility than is normally the case with this role.
Franco Corelli in Parma, Volumes 1 and 2 (Myto 924.64 and 944.108, recorded in Parma, Jan. 1, 1961 (Trovatore), Jan. 21, 1967 (Tosca), Dec. 26, 1967 (Forza) and Dec. 29, 1971 (Norma)). Corelli often quoted Tito Gobbi as saying that singing was like playing a sport. While Gobbi was referring to the physical demands of singing, these excerpts from live performances from Parma have the feel of the sports arena to them. Corelli’s cry of “Vittoria” in Act Two of Tosca lasts for more than 15 seconds, and the crowd goes wild. The other principals here are mostly provincial, but it’s Corelli’s show, and he is at his most visceral and animalistic here. Though these recordings are no longer easy to find, they are not only a great deal of fun, they also give some indication of the wild response that Corelli elicited drew from his public.
Video recordings
Seeing Corelli in action, either in front of a television camera, a soundstage or filmed live onstage, is vital to appreciating his artistry. There are videos of Corelli in performance on American TV variety shows (such as The Ed Sullivan Show or The Voice of Firestone), in filmed stage performances (a 1958 Forza del destino, from Naples, for example), on film (a 1956 theatrical-release of Tosca with Franca Duval lip-synching to the singing of Maria Caniglia) and in made-for-television versions of signature roles (a 1955 Tosca, a 1958 Turandot and a surprisingly effective 1973 Andrea Chenier, among others). Though the technical quality of these videos varies greatly, all of them are worth watching, particularly the Chenier and the Turandot.
The Bel Canto Society (www.belcantosociety.org) and Premiere Opera Ltd. (www.premiereopera.com) offer the widest selection of videos as well as a smattering of live audio recordings. The Bel Canto Society also offers online streaming audio re-broadcasts of Corelli, as interviewed by Stefan Zucker on his late, lamented Opera Fanatic radio program. These can be rather heavy-going, but there are fascinating tidbits scattered throughout these rambling conversations.
