The final scene of Verdi’s DON CARLO, performed in concert at the Musikvereinsaal in Vienna in 1988. The soloists are soprano Mara Zampieri, tenor Giacomo Aragall, and bass Kurt Rydl. Mr. Rydl sings the lines of Philip II, the Grand Inquisitor, and the Ghost of Charles V. Very sporting of him!
Watch and listen here.
Basso Cesare Siepi (above) made his Metropolitan Opera debut in 1950 as Philip II in DON CARLO, the opening production of the Bing Era. From that day until his final Met performance in 1973, Siepi sang nearly 500 performances with the Company in New York City and on tour.
I was fortunate to see Siepi many times, as Don Giovanni, Philip II, Alvise Badoero in LA GIOCONDA, Ramfis, Mozart’s Figaro, and Mephistopheles in FAUST.
On 1960, Siepi sang Zaccaria in The Met’s first-ever performance of Verdi’s NABUCCO. Here he is in two scenes from that opera:
Cesare Siepi – Sperate O figli! ~ NABUCCO – Met 1960
Cesare Siepi – Tu sul labbro ~ NABUCCO – Met 1960
Siepi continued to perform into the 1980s; he passed away in 2010.
Oberon's Glade 