100Singers's video: 100 Singers - ILEANA COTRUBAS

Ileanas Cotrubas, Soprano (*1939) Bizet: CARMEN Micaëla's aria: "Je dis que rien ne m'épouvante" Conducted by Claudio Abbado / Recorded 1977 My personal opinion: Some singers I associate with a personal memory. In case of Romanian soprano Ileana Cotrubas, it's a particularly pleasant one. I still remember a live telecast of LA BOHÈME from La Scala Milano in the fall of 1979. Rodolfo was sung by Pavarotti, at that time still a serious opera singer and not an entertainment-clown. Marcello was portrayed by Italian baritone Lorenzo Saccomani and the lovely Lucia Popp (a bit past her prime) brought Musetta to life. The conductor was the unforgettable Carlos Kleiber. The great surprise of this legendary performance was Ileana Cotrubas. Her lyrically sung Mimi was full of warmth, charm and poetry and her sensitive acting perfect for the role. After her great aria, she received a minute-long ovation that rivaled those for Pavarotti's "Che gelida manina." Just as for Mirella Freni before, the part of the terminally ill seamstress Mimi also became for Ileana Cotrubas a signature role. She made her highly acclaimed debuts as Mimi at The Lyric Opera Chicago in 1973 and two years later at La Scala, in both cases with Pavarotti. When she came to the Met on March 23, 1977, her Rodolfo was José Carreras, seven years her junior. Cotrubas' domain were the young sensitive girls: Mimi, Debussy's Mélisande, Tchaikovsky's Tatyana in EUGENE ONEGIN or Verdi's Gilda in RIGOLETTO, which she also sang in the second telecast of the new series "Live From The Metropolitan Opera" (with Cornell MacNeil as the court jester and Plácido Domingo as the Duke). Referring the 1979 La Scala BOHÈME, she later said: "It was the performance of my life, a great evening when everything was perfect ..." Ileana Cotrubas was a serious and sincere artist. As sensitive as she appeared on stage, as strong in character and decisive she was in private. She had a political point of view, was resolut and tough on herself: "I will not sing until old age. I hope God will give me enough sense to allow me to say 'no' at the right moment and stop ..." Ileana Cotrubas was considered "difficult" by artistic directors and conductors. Sometimes she dropped out of rehearsals, disagreeing with the scenic concept or musical perception. After a 1987 LA TRAVIATA at the Zurich Opera House, she adressed the audience and asked for their indulgence for having had to perform in what she considered an unsatisfactory production. Nevertheless, the beauty of her voice, her multilingualism and her great acting skills were often praised. If my information is correct, Cotrubas said goodbye to the stage at the age of 51 with a last Mimi at the Vienna State Opera on November 26, 1990 (alongside underrated Argentine tenor Luis Lima). In doing so, she has fulfilled her promise to say 'no' the right moment ... Her voice? A soft but not small lyric soprano with a very feminine sound and a slightly wistful timbre. She wasn't a true spinto soprano, able to push her voice into more forceful singing without getting some damages - unlike Mirella Freni or Renata Scotto, Cotrubas was smart enough to avoid roles like Verdi's Leonora in IL TROVATORE, AIDA or Puccini's MADAMA BUTTERFLY. She gives Verdi's Gilda (in Giulini's sluggish conducted RIGOLETTO recording) a more womanly tone, but remains restrained in the coloraturas - a problem also in the first act of the famous LA TRAVIATA production under Carlos Kleiber (in which Plácido Domingos tight height was manipulated with the help of sound engineers). For the "Sempre libera", Cotrubas simply lacks the necessary brilliance and fire, although she sings very movingly in the second and third act. Even so, the grace of her voice does not make her credible to me as a courtesan. That's why I don't appreciate much the MANON recording (1982) with an already too old Alfredo Kraus as Chevalier Des Grieux, especially since conductor Michel Plasson trivialized the score as if it is fairground-music. Cotrubas just doesn't seem flirtatious and sly enough, to make me forget Beverly Sills. Far more convincing is Cotrubas as Charpentier's LOUISE, whose weak point is now Domingo as he sings the young Julien in Radamès voice (1975, Georges Prêtre). Just as for Puccini's Mimi, Ileana Cotrubas possessed the right vocal "physique du rôle" for Louise, Bizet's Micaëla in CARMEN or Offenbach's Antonia in LES CONTES D'HOFFMANN: Young girls in hapless love ... The Romanian soprano was an essential interpreter, knowing not only how to give her singing a beautiful tone, but also a face. Her portrayals reveal a clear examination with the character she embodied. The fact she ended her career prematurely speaks not against but rather for her: A critical self-reflection, given only to a few aging singers ...