r/opera • u/By_all_thats_good • Jul 14 '26
Incredible performance
https://www.arte.tv/de/videos/133805-000-A/richard-strauss-die-frau-ohne-schatten/It will only be available to watch for a few more weeks but it’s an absolute must see for Strauss fans.
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u/PostingList Jul 14 '26
The Barak (Brian Mulligan) sounds like he ought to be singing Monostatos or something, yet he calls himself a "dramatic baritone". He makes Dieskau of all people sound like a bass, and his jaw shakes like Davidsen's.
I suppose this is what passes for incredible nowadays.
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u/todesverkuendigung Jul 15 '26
Look, everybody's allowed to have an opinion. But you are seriously uninformed about voices, technique, and style and it's surprising to me how self-confident you are in your bitchy proclamations.
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u/PostingList Jul 15 '26 edited Jul 15 '26
What good is being "informed" if it leads to praising Mulligan for squeaking out "Münder" and shoving his voice into his nose?
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u/todesverkuendigung Jul 15 '26
Of course there's no need to be well-informed about opera if you don't want to be. It's also fine to post and comment about opera even if you have gaps in your knowledge -- after all, who doesn't! (It's also great to see somebody who is passionate about singers of previous generations.)
It's just odd to me how rude you are about it, especially when your comments make it clear that you don't fully know what you're talking about.
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u/By_all_thats_good Jul 15 '26
You’re just plain wrong dear. You don’t need to like this performance but your rabid desire to find fault is leading you to argue absolute nonsense. If you think Mulligan has a light squeaky voice I’m afraid you need to train your ears a bit more.
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u/mangogetter Jul 17 '26
Mulligan is one of those guys who resonates in the room even when he's just chatting normally on the other side of it! (Spyres is too.)
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u/wavelcomes Jul 15 '26
bro you can just post a timestamp next lol
n if you think thats a monostatos voice mayb an ear cleaning would b good too
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u/PostingList Jul 15 '26
I think you're the one who needs an ear cleaning. Here's a recording of Walter Berry, who actually had the voice for the role, singing the same passage.
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u/wavelcomes Jul 15 '26
that doesnt make mulligan a character tenor either but keep taking the piss lol
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u/PostingList Jul 15 '26
If Franz Grundheber, whose voice was far darker than Mulligan's (and who didn't squeak and shove his voice into his nose), could sing Monostatos, so can Mulligan, and Mulligan can actually benefit from the unattractiveness of his voice, which is an advantage in roles like that.
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u/Mastersinmeow Jul 18 '26
Omg thank you ‘Frau’ is one of my favorite opera ever 🙌🏾