How Does the Newspaper Review Help Us to Understand the Singing Qualities of an Operatic Diva Such as Callas?

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How does the newspaper review help us to understand the singing qualities of an operatic diva such as Callas? I believe the review to be informative when discussing Maria Callas’s singing qualities. The review gives us great insight into the way Callas approached a role and shows her to have natural and incomparable technique whilst delivering with great ease the complexities of feeling. Maria Callas showed strength, vulnerability and in the case of La Traviata immense marksmanship and feeling for musical emphasis which Sargeant writes in his review “Were as impeccable as usual”. It was a combination such as this, which in the glamorous and demanding world of opera, made Callas stand out and succeed. Maria Callas was part of that rare breed of artist, whose artistic talents whether up or down were undeniably outstanding. Callas was “ A special case, partly for musical reasons, and partly for reasons that go beyond music”(Philip, 2008, book 1 p 176). This of course is what made her different. In his review of Callas in La Traviata Winthrop Sargeant touches upon an earlier review he had given on Callas’s performance in Norma where he commented on her vocal ability by saying “Its tendency to wobble slightly in its highest notes disturbed me a bit”. This vocal wobble is also mentioned in Book 1 p 178 and is described as “Rather aggressive”. However, later in the La Traviata review Sargeant states that the wobble seemed to add “Intensity to her singing” once you had become accustomed to it. It’s amazing when this happens; an apparent flaw becomes an asset, “Hers is not a pure, innocent voice but a fiery conveyance for female passion”(Sargeant, in AA100 Assignment Booklet, 2008, p. 24). Winthrop Sargeant expresses in his review that Callas gives a “Highly personal interpretation of Violetta” this compounded by “An

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