Baritones and Basses
- Episode aired Jul 19, 2015
YOUR RATING
Photos
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Featured review
Survey of the Great Basses and Baritones in Musical History
This was perhaps the best episode in Antonio Pappano's informative four-part history, simply because many of the singers profiled and interviewed had such memorable voices.
From Tito Gobbi to John Tomlinson, Dietrich Fischer Dieskau to Bryn Terfel, the program showed how different voices were suitable for different pieces of music: Fischer Dieskau made his name with Schubert Lieder, while Terfel and Tomlinson's rich tones were perfectly suited to Wagner. This did not mean that any one singer was less or more talented than another - each particular individual just shone in one particular type of music.
The program ended with a look at perhaps the greatest bass of all, in terms of contributions to music and politics - Paul Robeson. Not only did he make certain roles his own, notably in SHOW BOAT (1927), but his activism helped him prove how music could have a political as well as a cultural role to play in societies. Some of the archive footage of him singing as well as speaking was quite fascinating, a living reminder of just what a great artiste he was.
From Tito Gobbi to John Tomlinson, Dietrich Fischer Dieskau to Bryn Terfel, the program showed how different voices were suitable for different pieces of music: Fischer Dieskau made his name with Schubert Lieder, while Terfel and Tomlinson's rich tones were perfectly suited to Wagner. This did not mean that any one singer was less or more talented than another - each particular individual just shone in one particular type of music.
The program ended with a look at perhaps the greatest bass of all, in terms of contributions to music and politics - Paul Robeson. Not only did he make certain roles his own, notably in SHOW BOAT (1927), but his activism helped him prove how music could have a political as well as a cultural role to play in societies. Some of the archive footage of him singing as well as speaking was quite fascinating, a living reminder of just what a great artiste he was.
helpful•00
- l_rawjalaurence
- May 16, 2016
Details
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content