Cecilia Bartoli
Encyclopedia
Cecilia Bartoli is an Italian coloratura mezzo-soprano opera
singer and recitalist. She is best-known for her interpretation of the music of Mozart
and Rossini, as well as for her performances of lesser-known Baroque
and classical music
. She is known for having the versatility to play both soprano
and mezzo roles, and is sometimes considered a soprano with a low tessitura
.
mezzo-soprano (Koloratur-Mezzosopran) with an unusual timbre
. She is one of the most popular (and one of the top-selling) opera singers of recent years. Bartoli is much liked by the concert-going public for her vivacious on-stage persona, while her lyric voice and investigations of Baroque music have given her considerable recognition even among the non-opera-going public.
. Bartoli later studied at the Conservatorio di Santa Cecilia in Rome.
In contrast to most opera singers, Bartoli came to prominence in her early twenties, unusual in a profession where vocal maturity is typically not achieved until the thirties. She made her professional opera début in 1987 at the Arena di Verona. The following year she undertook the role of Rosina in Rossini's The Barber of Seville
at the Cologne Opera
, the Schwetzingen Festival
and the Zurich Opera
earning rave reviews. She was soon invited by Herbert von Karajan
to sing at the Salzburg Festival
, and she worked with von Karajan on Bach
's Mass in B minor. At this time, she also came to Daniel Barenboim
's attention when he saw her performing on a French television tribute to Maria Callas
. Working with the conductors Daniel Barenboim and Nikolaus Harnoncourt
, Bartoli focused on Mozart roles, such as Zerlina in Don Giovanni
and Dorabella in Così fan tutte
, and from then on her career has developed internationally.
In 1990 she made her début at the Opéra Bastille
as Cherubino in Mozart's Le nozze di Figaro and her debut at the Hamburg State Opera
as Idamantes in Mozart's Idomeneo
. This was followed by her La Scala
début as Isolier in Le comte Ory
in 1991, a performance which solidified her reputation as one of the world's leading Rossini singers.
as Despina in Così fan tutte and returned the following year to sing the title role of La Cenerentola
. On this occasion, there was much speculation that she had been secretly miked to boost her volume (as the Met is one of the largest opera houses in the world), but such rumours were steadfastly denied by the Met management. As a result of her acclaimed performance, the role of Angelina has become somewhat associated with her name.
In 2000 she triumphed in another Mozart soprano role, Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni, at the Deutsche Oper Berlin
. In 2001 she made a long-awaited Royal Opera House
début, taking the roles of Euridice and the Genio in the London stage première of Haydn's L'anima del filosofo
.
, Vivaldi
, Haydn
and Salieri
. In early 2005, she sang Cleopatra in Handel
's Giulio Cesare
, a role written for a soprano, but which is in mezzo-soprano range. As her voice has matured it has gained the fullness and "largeness" it was earlier criticized for lacking. She often performs with the baroque Ensemble
Il Giardino Armonico
.
In 2007/08 Bartoli devoted her time to studying and recording the early 19th century repertoire – the era of Italian Romanticism and bel canto
– and especially the legendary singer Maria Malibran
, the 200th anniversary of whose birth was celebrated in March 2008. The album Maria was released in September 2007 and was number one in the Classical Billboard Charts in the U.S as well as achieving Gold status in Belgium and the Netherlands. In May 2008, Bartoli played the title role written for Malibran in a revival of Fromental Halévy
's 1828 opera Clari at the Zurich Opera. In June 2010 she sang the title role of Bellini's Norma
for the first time with conductor Thomas Hengelbrock
in a concert in the Konzerthaus Dortmund. In March 2011, Bartoli toured five Australian cities with two programs, drawn from Sacrificium and Maria.
in 1995 and received the Léonie Sonning Music Prize
in 2010. In 2011, she won the Grammy Award for Best Classical Vocal Performance
for Sacrificium.
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
singer and recitalist. She is best-known for her interpretation of the music of Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart , baptismal name Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart , was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical era. He composed over 600 works, many acknowledged as pinnacles of symphonic, concertante, chamber, piano, operatic, and choral music...
and Rossini, as well as for her performances of lesser-known Baroque
Baroque music
Baroque music describes a style of Western Classical music approximately extending from 1600 to 1760. This era follows the Renaissance and was followed in turn by the Classical era...
and classical music
Classical music
Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...
. She is known for having the versatility to play both soprano
Soprano
A soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately middle C to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody...
and mezzo roles, and is sometimes considered a soprano with a low tessitura
Tessitura
In music, the term tessitura generally describes the most musically acceptable and comfortable range for a given singer or, less frequently, musical instrument; the range in which a given type of voice presents its best-sounding texture or timbre...
.
Biography
Bartoli is considered a coloraturaColoratura
Coloratura has several meanings. The word is originally from Italian, literally meaning "coloring", and derives from the Latin word colorare . When used in English, the term specifically refers to elaborate melody, particularly in vocal music and especially in operatic singing of the 18th and...
mezzo-soprano (Koloratur-Mezzosopran) with an unusual timbre
Timbre
In music, timbre is the quality of a musical note or sound or tone that distinguishes different types of sound production, such as voices and musical instruments, such as string instruments, wind instruments, and percussion instruments. The physical characteristics of sound that determine the...
. She is one of the most popular (and one of the top-selling) opera singers of recent years. Bartoli is much liked by the concert-going public for her vivacious on-stage persona, while her lyric voice and investigations of Baroque music have given her considerable recognition even among the non-opera-going public.
Early career
Bartoli's parents, Silvana Bazzoni and Pietro Angelo Bartoli, were both professional singers and gave her her first music lessons. Her first public performance was at age eight as the shepherd boy in ToscaTosca
Tosca is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It premiered at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome on 14 January 1900...
. Bartoli later studied at the Conservatorio di Santa Cecilia in Rome.
In contrast to most opera singers, Bartoli came to prominence in her early twenties, unusual in a profession where vocal maturity is typically not achieved until the thirties. She made her professional opera début in 1987 at the Arena di Verona. The following year she undertook the role of Rosina in Rossini's The Barber of Seville
The Barber of Seville
The Barber of Seville, or The Futile Precaution is an opera buffa in two acts by Gioachino Rossini with a libretto by Cesare Sterbini. The libretto was based on Pierre Beaumarchais's comedy Le Barbier de Séville , which was originally an opéra comique, or a mixture of spoken play with music...
at the Cologne Opera
Cologne Opera
The Cologne Opera refers both to the main opera house in Cologne, Germany and to its resident opera company.-History of the company:...
, the Schwetzingen Festival
Schwetzingen Festival
The Schwetzingen Festival is an early summer festival of opera and other classical music presented each year from May to early June in Schwetzingen, Germany....
and the Zurich Opera
Zurich Opera
Oper Zürich is an opera company based in Zurich, Switzerland. The company gives performances in the Opernhaus Zürich which has been the company’s home for fifty years.-History:...
earning rave reviews. She was soon invited by Herbert von Karajan
Herbert von Karajan
Herbert von Karajan was an Austrian orchestra and opera conductor. To the wider world he was perhaps most famously associated with the Berlin Philharmonic, of which he was principal conductor for 35 years...
to sing at the Salzburg Festival
Salzburg Festival
The Salzburg Festival is a prominent festival of music and drama established in 1920. It is held each summer within the Austrian town of Salzburg, the birthplace of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart...
, and she worked with von Karajan on Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer, organist, harpsichordist, violist, and violinist whose sacred and secular works for choir, orchestra, and solo instruments drew together the strands of the Baroque period and brought it to its ultimate maturity...
's Mass in B minor. At this time, she also came to Daniel Barenboim
Daniel Barenboim
Daniel Barenboim, KBE is an Argentinian-Israeli pianist and conductor. He has served as music director of several major symphonic and operatic orchestras and made numerous recordings....
's attention when he saw her performing on a French television tribute to Maria Callas
Maria Callas
Maria Callas was an American-born Greek soprano and one of the most renowned opera singers of the 20th century. She combined an impressive bel canto technique, a wide-ranging voice and great dramatic gifts...
. Working with the conductors Daniel Barenboim and Nikolaus Harnoncourt
Nikolaus Harnoncourt
Nikolaus Harnoncourt is an Austrian conductor, particularly known for his historically informed performances of music from the Classical era and earlier. Starting out as a classical cellist, he founded his own period instrument ensemble in the 1950s, and became a pioneer of the Early Music movement...
, Bartoli focused on Mozart roles, such as Zerlina in Don Giovanni
Don Giovanni
Don Giovanni is an opera in two acts with music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and with an Italian libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte. It was premiered by the Prague Italian opera at the Teatro di Praga on October 29, 1787...
and Dorabella in Così fan tutte
Così fan tutte
Così fan tutte, ossia La scuola degli amanti K. 588, is an opera buffa by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart first performed in 1790. The libretto was written by Lorenzo Da Ponte....
, and from then on her career has developed internationally.
In 1990 she made her début at the Opéra Bastille
Opéra Bastille
L'Opéra Bastille ' is a modern opera house in Paris, France. It is the home base of the Opéra national de Paris and was designed to replace the Palais Garnier, which is nowadays mainly used for ballet performances....
as Cherubino in Mozart's Le nozze di Figaro and her debut at the Hamburg State Opera
Hamburg State Opera
The Hamburg State Opera is one of the leading opera companies in Germany.Opera in Hamburg dates back to 2 January 1678 when the "Opern-Theatrum" was inaugurated with a performance of a biblical Singspiel by Johann Theile...
as Idamantes in Mozart's Idomeneo
Idomeneo
Idomeneo, re di Creta ossia Ilia e Idamante is an Italian language opera by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The libretto was adapted by Giambattista Varesco from a French text by Antoine Danchet, which had been set to music by André Campra as Idoménée in 1712...
. This was followed by her La Scala
La Scala
La Scala , is a world renowned opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as the New Royal-Ducal Theatre at La Scala...
début as Isolier in Le comte Ory
Le comte Ory
Le comte Ory is an opéra written by Gioachino Rossini in 1828. Some of the music originates from his opera Il viaggio a Reims written three years earlier for the coronation of Charles X...
in 1991, a performance which solidified her reputation as one of the world's leading Rossini singers.
Broad success
In 1996, she made her debut at the Metropolitan OperaMetropolitan Opera
The Metropolitan Opera is an opera company, located in New York City. Originally founded in 1880, the company gave its first performance on October 22, 1883. The company is operated by the non-profit Metropolitan Opera Association, with Peter Gelb as general manager...
as Despina in Così fan tutte and returned the following year to sing the title role of La Cenerentola
La Cenerentola
La Cenerentola, ossia La bontà in trionfo is an operatic dramma giocoso in two acts by Gioachino Rossini. The libretto was written by Jacopo Ferretti, based on the fairy tale Cinderella...
. On this occasion, there was much speculation that she had been secretly miked to boost her volume (as the Met is one of the largest opera houses in the world), but such rumours were steadfastly denied by the Met management. As a result of her acclaimed performance, the role of Angelina has become somewhat associated with her name.
In 2000 she triumphed in another Mozart soprano role, Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni, at the Deutsche Oper Berlin
Deutsche Oper Berlin
The Deutsche Oper Berlin is an opera company located in the Charlottenburg district of Berlin, Germany. The resident building is also home to the Berlin State Ballet.-History:...
. In 2001 she made a long-awaited Royal Opera House
Royal Opera House
The Royal Opera House is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply "Covent Garden", after a previous use of the site of the opera house's original construction in 1732. It is the home of The Royal Opera, The...
début, taking the roles of Euridice and the Genio in the London stage première of Haydn's L'anima del filosofo
L'anima del filosofo
L'anima del filosofo, ossia Orfeo ed Euridice , Hob. 28/13, is an opera in Italian in four acts by Joseph Haydn, the last he ever wrote. The libretto, by Carlo Francesco Badini, is based on the myth of Orpheus and Euridice as told in Ovid's Metamorphoses...
.
Work in Baroque music
In addition to Mozart and Rossini, Bartoli has spent much of her time performing and recording baroque and early classical era music of such composers as GluckChristoph Willibald Gluck
Christoph Willibald Ritter von Gluck was an opera composer of the early classical period. After many years at the Habsburg court at Vienna, Gluck brought about the practical reform of opera's dramaturgical practices that many intellectuals had been campaigning for over the years...
, Vivaldi
Antonio Vivaldi
Antonio Lucio Vivaldi , nicknamed because of his red hair, was an Italian Baroque composer, priest, and virtuoso violinist, born in Venice. Vivaldi is recognized as one of the greatest Baroque composers, and his influence during his lifetime was widespread over Europe...
, Haydn
Joseph Haydn
Franz Joseph Haydn , known as Joseph Haydn , was an Austrian composer, one of the most prolific and prominent composers of the Classical period. He is often called the "Father of the Symphony" and "Father of the String Quartet" because of his important contributions to these forms...
and Salieri
Antonio Salieri
Antonio Salieri was a Venetian classical composer, conductor and teacher born in Legnago, south of Verona, in the Republic of Venice, but who spent his adult life and career as a faithful subject of the Habsburg monarchy....
. In early 2005, she sang Cleopatra in Handel
George Frideric Handel
George Frideric Handel was a German-British Baroque composer, famous for his operas, oratorios, anthems and organ concertos. Handel was born in 1685, in a family indifferent to music...
's Giulio Cesare
Giulio Cesare
Giulio Cesare in Egitto , commonly known simply as Giulio Cesare, is an Italian opera in three acts written for the Royal Academy of Music by George Frideric Handel in 1724...
, a role written for a soprano, but which is in mezzo-soprano range. As her voice has matured it has gained the fullness and "largeness" it was earlier criticized for lacking. She often performs with the baroque Ensemble
Musical ensemble
A musical ensemble is a group of people who perform instrumental or vocal music. In classical music, trios or quartets either blend the sounds of musical instrument families or group together instruments from the same instrument family, such as string ensembles or wind ensembles...
Il Giardino Armonico
Il Giardino Armonico
Il Giardino Armonico is a pioneering Italian early music ensemble founded in Milan in 1985 by Luca Pianca and Giovanni Antonini, primarily to play 17th- and 18th-century music on period instruments....
.
Work in bel canto
Bel canto
Bel canto , along with a number of similar constructions , is an Italian opera term...
– and especially the legendary singer Maria Malibran
Maria Malibran
The mezzo-soprano Maria Malibran , was one of the most famous opera singers of the 19th century. Malibran was known for her stormy personality and dramatic intensity, becoming a legendary figure after her death at age 28...
, the 200th anniversary of whose birth was celebrated in March 2008. The album Maria was released in September 2007 and was number one in the Classical Billboard Charts in the U.S as well as achieving Gold status in Belgium and the Netherlands. In May 2008, Bartoli played the title role written for Malibran in a revival of Fromental Halévy
Fromental Halévy
Jacques-François-Fromental-Élie Halévy, usually known as Fromental Halévy , was a French composer. He is known today largely for his opera La Juive.-Early career:...
's 1828 opera Clari at the Zurich Opera. In June 2010 she sang the title role of Bellini's Norma
Norma (opera)
Norma is a tragedia lirica or opera in two acts by Vincenzo Bellini with libretto by Felice Romani after Norma, ossia L'infanticidio by Alexandre Soumet. First produced at La Scala on December 26, 1831, it is generally regarded as an example of the supreme height of the bel canto tradition...
for the first time with conductor Thomas Hengelbrock
Thomas Hengelbrock
Thomas Hengelbrock is a German violinist, musicologist, stage director and conductor.- Biography :Thomas Hengelbrock studied the violin with Rainer Kussmaul and started his career in Würzburg and Freiburg im Breisgau...
in a concert in the Konzerthaus Dortmund. In March 2011, Bartoli toured five Australian cities with two programs, drawn from Sacrificium and Maria.
Awards
Generally considered one of the best mezzo-sopranos of the present day, Cecilia Bartoli was honored as a Chevalier of the Ordre des Arts et des LettresOrdre des Arts et des Lettres
The Ordre des Arts et des Lettres is an Order of France, established on 2 May 1957 by the Minister of Culture, and confirmed as part of the Ordre national du Mérite by President Charles de Gaulle in 1963...
in 1995 and received the Léonie Sonning Music Prize
Léonie Sonning Music Prize
The Léonie Sonning Music Prize, or Sonning Award, which is recognized as Denmark's highest musical honor, is given annually to an international composer or musician. It was first awarded in 1959 to composer Igor Stravinsky...
in 2010. In 2011, she won the Grammy Award for Best Classical Vocal Performance
Grammy Award for Best Classical Vocal Performance
The Grammy Award for Best Classical Vocal Solo has been awarded since 1959. There have been several minor changes to the name of the award over this time:...
for Sacrificium.
Opera
- Rossini: La scala di setaLa scala di setaLa scala di seta is an operatic farsa comica in one act by Gioachino Rossini to a libretto by Giuseppe Maria Foppa. It was first performed in Venice, Italy at the Teatro San Moisè on May 9, 1812...
(1988) - Rossini: Il Barbiere di Siviglia (1989)
- Mozart: Lucio Silla (1991)
- Rossini: La Cenerentola (1993)
- Puccini: Manon Lescaut (1993)
- Mozart: Le Nozze di Figaro (1994)
- Mozart: La Clemenza di Tito (1995)
- Haydn: Orfeo ed Euridice (1997)
- Rossini: Il Turco in Italia (1998)
- Mozart: Mitridate (1999)
- Haydn:Armida (2000)
- Handel: Rinaldo (2000)
- Mozart: Don Giovanni (2001)
- Bellini: La Sonnambula (2008)
- Halevy:Clari (2008)
Recitals with orchestra
- Rossini Arias (1989)
- Mozart Arias (1991)
- Rossini Heroines (1992)
- Mozart Portraits (1994)
- The Vivaldi Album (1999)
- Cecilia and Bryn (1999)
- Gluck Italian Arias (2001)
- The Salieri Album (2003)
- Opera Proibita (2005)
- Maria (A Tribute to Maria MalibranMaria MalibranThe mezzo-soprano Maria Malibran , was one of the most famous opera singers of the 19th century. Malibran was known for her stormy personality and dramatic intensity, becoming a legendary figure after her death at age 28...
) (2007) - Sacrificium (Arias written for castratiCastratoA castrato is a man with a singing voice equivalent to that of a soprano, mezzo-soprano, or contralto voice produced either by castration of the singer before puberty or one who, because of an endocrinological condition, never reaches sexual maturity.Castration before puberty prevents a boy's...
) (2009)
Recitals with piano
- Rossini Recital (1990)
- If You Love Me – "Se tu m'ami": Eighteenth-century Italian Songs (1992)
- Arie Antiche (1992)
- Italian Songs (1993)
- Chant D'Amour (1996)
- An Italian Songbook (1997)
- Live in Italy (1998)
Sacred
- Mozart: Requiem (1992)
- Scarlatti: Salve Regina
- Pergolesi: Stabat Mater, Salve Regina (2000)
Collections
- Cecilia Bartoli Rossini Heroines (1992)
- A Portrait (1995)
- The Art of Cecilia Bartoli (2002)
- Sospiri (2010)
Sources
- Blyth, AlanAlan BlythGeoffrey Alan Blyth was an English music critic, author, and musicologist who was particularly known for his writings within the field of opera. He graduated from the Rugby School before attending the University of Oxford where he studied with Jack Westrup...
: "Cecilia Bartoli", Grove Music Online ed. L. Macy (Accessed October 20, 2008), (subscription access) - Wroe, Nicholas, "Classic case of success", The GuardianThe GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
, 13 October 2001. Retrieved on 3 April 2009 - Swafford, Jan, Nature's Rejects, The music of the castrati., SlateSlate (magazine)Slate is a US-based English language online current affairs and culture magazine created in 1996 by former New Republic editor Michael Kinsley, initially under the ownership of Microsoft as part of MSN. On 21 December 2004 it was purchased by the Washington Post Company...
, 9 November 2009