Tosca

Tosca

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Tosca at the Met 2006 • Tosca in Szeged April 2009 • Tosca at Large • Tosca in Vienna

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. The work, based on Victorien Sardou's 1887 French-language dramatic play, La Tosca, is a melodramatic piece set in Rome in June 1800, with the Kingdom of Naples's control of Rome threatened by Napoleon's invasion of Italy. It contains depictions of torture, murder and suicide, yet also includes some of Puccini's best-known lyrical arias, and has inspired memorable performances from many of opera's leading singers.

Puccini saw Sardou's play when it was touring Italy in 1889 and, after some vacillation, obtained the rights to turn the work into an opera in 1895. Turning the wordy French play into a succinct Italian opera took four years, during which the composer repeatedly argued with his librettists and publisher. Tosca premiered at a time of unrest in Rome, and its first performance was delayed for a day for fear of disturbances. Despite indifferent reviews from the critics, the opera was an immediate success with the public.

Musically, Tosca is structured as a through-composed work, with arias, recitative, choruses and other elements musically woven into a seamless whole. Puccini used Wagnerian leitmotifs (short musical statements) to identify characters, objects and ideas. While critics have frequently dismissed the opera as a facile melodrama with confusions of plot—musicologist Joseph Kerman famously called it a "shabby little shocker"—the power of its score and the inventiveness of its orchestration have been widely acknowledged. The dramatic force of Tosca and its characters continues to fascinate both performers and audiences, and the work remains one of the most frequently performed operas. Many recordings of the work have been issued, both of studio and live performances.

Art from Ryoko - José Cura as Mario Cavaradossi

Tosca Reviews

José Cura as Mario Cavaradossi

Tosca, London 1996: 'José Cura, the Argentinian tenor, has been taking on new roles and new composers for the ROH at an exceptional rate. Puccini's Cavaradossi is the latest and he sings the painter with strong, burnished tones now expected of him.... Cura manages very well the gentle phrases of memories and hopes in Act III. But the victory cries of the middle act suggest that the heroic repertory will be his forte, in all senses of the word.'    John Higgins, The Times

Tosca, London, 1996: ‘The young Argentinean super-tenor-to-be has already made two immensely impressive Covent Garden role debuts this season, first as Ipanov in the gripping revival of Fedora and more recently as Samson in Saint-Saëns’ opera. Cura’s performances are always profoundly moving, expertly paced, and vividly acted, his Cavaradossi is no exception.’ Evening Standard, April 1996

Tosca, Japan, 2002: ‘Brutally questioned, bleeding, languishing in jail, dragged to the shooting-ground, "Beau" Cura rendered his role with the utmost refinement, both vocally and in his acting, thus reaping a most deserved acclaim -- to say nothing of the repeated "bravos" at such climactic moments as "E lucean le stelle," with its sobbing finale...the most enjoyable Tosca to be heard or seen during the last decade.’ Carlo Vitali, Classics Today, June 2002

Tosca, Japan, 2002: 'The Teatro Comunale di Bologna presenting Tosca on tour in Tokyo. An intoxicating production conveying all the flair of Rome's Baroque monuments, but as if in a gray Neo-Classical nightmare. Inés Salazar as Tosca provided a particular blend of Latino glamour, passion and innocence, with Ruggero Raimondi a most attractive villain, José Cura bravely overcoming a transient ailment and Daniele Gatti treating Puccini as the major orchestral composer he actually is.'    Carlo Vitale, remembering one of his best musical moments from 2002, for Andante.

Tosca, Metropolitan Opera, October 2006: "Making his debut in the role of Cavaradossi was Argentinian tenor Jose Cura. When I heard him two years ago as Samson in the Saint-Saens, I was disturbed by his bellowing, but this evening he was actually quite good — he maintained a smooth lyrical line while intoning at an impressively high volume level. And he was a natural partner for Ms. Guleghina, who is also a champion projector. Their "Non la sospiri la nostra casetta" has to be one of the loudest ever, but neither sacrificed any intonation for this house-filling sound. Mr. Cura's "E lucevan le stelle," his character's last big number and one of Puccini's most poignant compositions, was really very moving." New York Sun, Fred Kirshnit, 30 Oct 2006

Tosca, Palermo, January 2007: Wanted and yet neglected, it was seen in a format that succeeded in the end because of the providential arrival of José Cura, who found a day off between performances for this single night debut--the tenor arrived in the afternoon and stepped onto the stage without having rehearsed and will depart this morning. Cura stimulated the souls of the spectators who honored the tenor with its warmest applause. Giornale di Sicilia, January 2007

Tosca, Karlruh, April 2008: José Cura, one of the few who have proven to be a world star since the collapse of the classical record market, performed for the second time in the local production, and it would be difficult to find a more convincing Cavaradossi today in his baritonal timbre, the moving piani of ‘O dolci mani’ and his creative power of interpretation of the role. Manfred Kraft, Badische Neueste Nachrichten, 22 Apr 2008

Tosca, Vienna, Dec 08: 'José Cura does not necessarily belong among my personal favorites but, however, if one becomes accustomed to his freestyle singing, one must express a compliment for his achievement. Not only was he persuasive in the ‘forte’ parts, he also showed places – the beginning of ‘E lucevan le stelle’ -- that he was also able to pull himself inward to phrase beautifully and produce the colors for which one usually waits in vain. His Cavaradossi was the performance was the most convincing that I have heard from him.' Kurt Vlach, Der Opernfreund, 2 Dec 2008

Tosca, Wiesbaden, Feb 09: Hessisches Staatstheater: Puccini's Tosca with José Cura and Hui He: ‘José Cura, the Argentine-born tenor whose star could not rise high enough for some fans a few years ago has recently been specializing in Gala performances like this one in Wiesbaden. In vocal terms, Cura proved to be a nearly perfect Puccini singer whose voice in piano suggests iridescent colors; in forte, a metal sound may be present. His aria in the third act (E lucevan le stelle) was a trace reserved, his vocal union with Mario de Rose, guest director of the Hessischen Staatsorchester, flawless.’ Axel Zibulski, Main-Rheiner, 23 Feb 09



Tosca, Vienna, Mar 09: 'Three artists with extraordinary stage instincts shaped this noble thriller in the 525^th performance of this production. José Cura is the extraordinary man familiar in illustration and from the beginning he scores points as the revolutionary and the lover, especially when facing the firing squad at the execution command, recognizing it as the consequence of the perfidy of Scarpia he had understood for a long time. The fact he proved, in defiance of his critics, that his is a still a serious singer positively rounded off his achievement of the evening. With almost sinewy stretched phrases, concentration, and brilliance in the high notes, he sang the aria and the duet in the first act with the requisite fervor, with convincing despair in the dungeon scene and hurled an ardent Vittoria at the police chief.' Peter Skorepa, Der Neue Merker, 5 March 2009

Public enthusiastic with José Cura who appeared on stage for just the premiere

Massimo, applause and disapproval for a Tosca with an unusual end

José Cura was rewarded by the warmest applause which was not threatened by spicy signs of resentment evidently pointed toward Deflo. Cura created confidence with his presence, in spite of undertaking his task at the last moment and just for one evening. His is an impressive Cavaradossi, especially in the intensity of his “E lucevan le stelle” with its expressive fullness.

The long awaited Tosca on stage

The public rewarded Cura

A desperate Tosca. A minimalist Tosca. A Tosca who relies on a gun rather than on the famous jump from Castel Sant´Angelo. The audience of the Teatro Massimo, though they applauded for a long time the long awaited Puccini's opera yesterday night, didn’t much like the directional choices of Gilbert Deflo.

Wanted and yet neglected, it was seen in a format that succeeded in the end because of the providential arrival of José Cura, who found a day off between performances for this single night debut--the tenor arrived in the afternoon and stepped onto the stage without having rehearsed and will depart this morning. Cura stimulated the souls of the spectators who honored the tenor with its warmest applause.

Tosca, Wiesbaden, January 2012: ‘…As the diva of this opera gala, Chiara Taigi was admittedly free to shine vocally; she was more sensitive, more focused than is sometimes the case with opera guests that are flown in. The singer, a native of Rome, convinced with a darkened, in-character soprano which was sustaining in the piano, always elegant, refined, and seductive in every way. …Scarpia's methods are those of physical and especially psychological torture, as baritone Tito You in this most showcased role was rather restrained in indicating. Here he stood in the shadow of the Argentine Jose Cura, who some years ago was marketed at high price as the hoped-for tenor. In his appearance as Cavaradossi, Cura offered much in bright and lively stage presence, as well as ample vocal (tenoral) stability and soundness- in spite of one or two high notes shifted to falsetto, in spite of forced notes here and there- to really come to be on par with Chiara Taigi's wonderful Tosca….’ Alex Zibulski, Wiesbadener-Tagblatt, 16 January 2012

Tosca, Vienna, March 2012: 'Equally strong, the vocally muscular Cavaradossi of José Cura. He paced himself well; he sang "E lucevan le stelle" without sentimentality, short-phrased and aggressive.' Rainer Elstner, Weiner Zeitung, 20 March 2012

Tosca, Vienna, March 2012: 'What amazes time and again, especially after an evening of Wagner: how much Puccini's music lives in the moment, how compact and varied these moments are, and how sensuously they are described by him. Puccini's music makes one think it's possible to drink it, to bathe in it. Wagner describes ideas, Puccini describes human beings. […] With verve, "vivacissimo con violenza", Welser-Möst plunged into the descending g-minor motive and focused in the course of the first two acts primarily on tension. Surprising that José Cura nonetheless succeeded more than once in overtaking the music director and the State Opera orchestra: The Argentine, all pride and vigor as always, offered the fastest Cavaradossi ever. The high piano places of the first act are glossed over swiftly; just as fast but more impressive and solid: the "E lucevan le stelle" in the final act; thrilling: the moments of attack such as the 'Vittoria' shouts in the second act.' Der Standard, 21 March 2012



This year
The Baalbeck International Festival
is celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Opera
"Tosca"
two performances will be held
in the temple of Jupiter
on the 4th and 5th of August 2000
with the
Tenor José Cura

Interpreters

José Cura as Mario Cavaradossi
Tiziana Fabbricini as Floria Tosca
Michele Porcelli as Barone Scarpia
Paolo Pecchioli as Conte Angelotti
Alfredo Mariotti as Sacrestano
Walter Barbaria as Spoletta
Mario Lupi as Sciarrone

Orchestra

Philharmonic Orchestra of Italy
Conductor : Maestro Piergiorgio Morandi

Choir

Choir Ambrosiano of Milan

Direction
Mario Corradi

Setup
Alfredo Troisi

Costumes
Theatre La Scala of Milano

JOSE CURA

4th and 5th of August 2000
(temple of Jupiter)

Singer, composer and conductor, José Cura is considered as one of the most complete artists of the new generation.

His Lebanese origin : his great-grand father, Chalita El Khouri was born in Knet (north Lebanon) in 1874 and his great grand mother, Teresa Bou Saada was born in Zgharta in 1881. They arrived in Argentina in 1900.

Since his debut in the role of Jan in Bibalo’s Fraulein Julie, his career has taken him to the highest spheres of the international operatic circuit and to the acclaim from critics all over the world.

José Cura was born in Rosario, Santa Fe, Argentina on December 5, 1962. He began his musical formation as a guitarist under the guidance of maestro Juan di Lorenzo. At the age of 15 he debuted as a choral conductor. At 16, still in Rosario, he began studying composition with maestro Carlos Castro and piano with Zulma Cabrera.

In 1982 José Cura entered the School of Arts of the National University of Rosario in order to develop his knowledge of orchestra conducting and composition. The following year, Cura became the assistant to the choir master of the National University of the Rosario Choir. It was the choir master, who was also the head of the conservatory, who convinced Cura to begin studying vocal technique.

While still singing in choirs in the mid-eighties, he devoted himself to composing and conducting. In 1988, he met maestro Horacio Amauri who gave him the definitive basis of his singing technique. José Cura left his native country for Europe in 1991. He lived in Verona Italy for three years and then in January 1995, he moved to Paris where he now resides together with his wife and three children.

In 1992 in Milan, he met tenor Vittorio Terranova, who has been his teacher since then and who helped him to master Italian operatic style. His first professional appearance took place in an open air concert in Genoa in 1991. In February 1992, Cura made his stage debut in Verona as the Father in Henze’s Pollicino . He subsequently appeared in Genoa as Remendado in Carmen and Capitano dei Ballestrieri in Simon Boccanegra. These are the only two "comprimario" roles of his career so far. Jan in Faulein Julie in March 1993 in Trieste, was his first major role. In December 1993 he came to special attention in Turin in Janacek’s Makropulos Case. Ismaele in Nabucco in Genoa in January 1994, was his first role in a standard repertoire opera. After La Forza del Destino in Turin in February 1994, he sang Ruggero in the world première of the third version of Puccini’s La Rondine and in the summer of the same year sang in Martina Franca in Le Villi, Puccini’s first, rarely performed opera.

In September 1994 José Cura won the International Operalia Competition. Soon after, he made his United States debut in Chicago singing Loris Ipanoff in Giordano’s Fedora. After a Gala Concert in the Teatro Colon of Buenos Aires, December 1994, he returned to Italy to sing Paolo il Bello in Zandonai’s Fancesca da Rimini in Palermo and Fedora in Trieste. In June 1995, he made his London debut singing the title role in Stiffelio for the opening night of the Verdi Festival at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. In July 1995, he sang his first Cavaradossi in Tosca at the Puccini Festival of Torre del Lago and in September of the same year he made his debut at the Opera Bastille, singing Ismaele in a new production of Nabucco. After Fedora in London and Mascagni’s very rarely performed Iris for the opening night of the season at the Rome Opera in January 1996. On the 30^th of the same month he sang for the first time the role of Samson in Samson et Dalila at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. For his Los Angeles and San Francisco debuts in 1996, he added two new roles to his repertory, Pollione in Norma and Don José in Carmen.

Following Il Corsaro in Turin and Tosca in London in May 1996, he performed in Melbourne and Sydney the show "The Puccini Spectacular": 250 artists on stage for three hours of music, theatre and fireworks comprising excerpts from the most popular operas of the Italian composer and specially created for his debut in Australia. In December 1996, he recorded the BBC documentary "Great Composers" co-starring Julia Migenes and Leontina Vaduva. The first episode, devoted to Giacomo Puccini, was transmitted in December 1997. On December 22^nd, 1996 the Italian TV RAI transmitted Liliana Cavani’s stage production of Cavalleria Rusticana starring Waltraud Meier and José Cura and conducted by Riccardo Muti. The production was recorded during his debut in the role of Turiddu at the 1996 Ravenna Festival. Three days later his debut in I Pagliacci was transmitted on Eurovision live from Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw. José Cura made his debut at the Teatro Alla Scala di Milano with Ponchielli’s La Gioconda, in January 1997. Following his debut in the title of Otello with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra under Claudio Abbado in May 1997, the important national newspaper La Nazione headlined "José Cura : a new Otello is born" and with this probably best summarized the unanimous praise for the Argentinian tenor’s assumption of this most testing role. In June 1997, José Cura received the Italian Music Critics’ Abbiati award in Italy in the Category of male singer for his performances in Iris in Rome, Cavalleria Rusticana in Ravenna, and Il Corsaro in Turin.

After an enormously successful Gala Concert in Dublin for approximately 5000 people he sang Fedora in Lecce for the 50^th anniversary of Umberto Giordano’s death. On the 22^nd of April 1998 he sang Radames in Aida for the official re-opening of the legendary Teatro Massimo di Palermo .

Recent debuts are : Opera de Marseille with Don Alvaro in La Forza del Destino and Des Grieux in Manon Lascaut at La Scala di Milano.

During his last German tour in July, he did not only sang but, for the first time in the history of modern opera, he also conducted while singing. His recent appearance in Amsterdam’s Prinsengracht Concert in-front of 20.000 people has also been a big TV event with an audience of more than 800.000 following-broadcast the last 22^nd of August.
In coincidence with the release of his recording of Saint-Saens’ Samson et Dalila, he has done his debut in Washington on the 10^th of November 1998 singing the title role of that opera and on the 25^th of December he sang Luigi in Il Tabarro in a TV and radio live broadcast from Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw. After La Forza del Destino, Milano Teatro alla Scala, February 1999 and his first Andrea Chenier Zurich, March 1999, he did his home debut in Buenos Aires, Teatro Colon, with Otello and his Metropolitan Opera House debut with Cavalleria Rusticana for the Last Opening Night of the Century on the 27^th of September.

Last summer, he opened the Arena di Verona Festival with a new production of Aida which was live broadcasted on world TV and, for the first time in the history of opera and transmitted on Internet.

Last October he sang Otello for his first time ever in Spain. In December 99, he opened Palermo’s season, also with Otello. In March 2000, a great event is marking his career : Placido Domingo, the last of the greatest Otello, is conducting him in this Verdi opera in Washington.

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Last Updated: Saturday, April 07, 2012

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