Marilyn Horne
Marilyn Horne was one of the most admired singers of her generation, and was a major factor in the bel canto revival of the 1960s. While she was especially associated with the works of Rossini and Handel (she persuaded the Metropolitan Opera to mount Rinaldo for her in 1984, making it the first time the house had ever performed a Handel opera), she was no less adept in Vivaldi and Bellini operas, lieder (especially Mahler), French roles such as Fidès in Meyerbeer's Le Prophete and the title role of Thomas' Mignon; she even took on some Verdi roles, but public reception for those was mixed. Her highly flexible and powerful voice had a certain metallic quality that was especially effective in trouser roles, particularly the martial ones, such as Rinaldo and Tancredi -- earning her the sometime nickname of "General Horne." She possessed an extraordinary range, and in concert even performed Brünnhilde's Immolation Scene.
Horne's father was an amateur singer and her first teacher. Her professional debut was at the age of four -- at a picnic rally for Franklin Delano Roosevelt's presidential re-election, where she sang "Believe me, if all those endearing young charms," and received a can of soda as her salary!. As her vocal potential became clearer still, she began studies with Edna Luce, whom she credits for the extraordinary breathing technique formed the foundation of her bel canto excellence. In 1951, she was awarded a scholarship to the University of Southern California, Long Beach, sang part-time in the noted Roger Wagner Chorale, and also participated in Lotte Lehmann's master classes. In 1954, she made her opera debut as Hata in The Bartered Bride with the Guild Opera Company, and came to national fame by providing the singing voice for Dorothy Dandridge in the film Carmen Jones.
In 1956, she went to Europe to continue her studies and, in 1957, joined the opera company at Gehenkirchen, Germany, as a soprano. There she sang such lyric soprano roles as Mimi in La Bohème, Amelia in Simon Boccanegra, and Tatiana in Eugene Onegin. She returned to the United States in 1960, and made her San Francisco debut as Marie in Alban Berg's Wozzeck. The next year, she made her New York debut at the American Opera Society, singing a concert performance of Bellini's Beatrice di Tenda in a cast featuring another singer making her New York debut, Joan Sutherland. The two of them became the soprano/mezzo pairing for bel canto operas such as Norma, Semiramide, and Anna Bolena. In 1969, she made her La Scala debut as Neocles in Rossini's The Siege of Corinth, and her Met debut as Adalgisa in Norma followed in 1970. In 1982, the Rossini Foundation awarded her its first Golden Plaque, acclaiming her as "the greatest Rossini singer in the world." In 1999, she announced her retirement from classical music. From 1960 to 1976, Horne was married to the African American conductor Henry Lewis (They met while in college; he was in the orchestra for The Bartered Bride, and upon hearing her powerful low register emerge from the chorus, he leaned over to ask a friend "who's that tenor?").
© TiVo
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Bernstein: West Side Story
Kiri Te Kanawa, José Carreras, Tatiana Troyanos, Kurt Ollmann, Marilyn Horne, Leonard Bernstein
Classical - Released by Deutsche Grammophon (DG) on 1 Jan 1985
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Rossini: L'italiana in Algeri
Marilyn Horne, I Solisti Veneti, Claudio Scimone
Classical - Released by Warner Classics on 1 Jan 1981
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Verdi: Requiem / 4 Sacred Pieces
Dame Joan Sutherland, Marilyn Horne, Luciano Pavarotti, Martti Talvela, Wiener Philharmonic Orchestra, Sir Georg Solti
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 5 Feb 2001
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Bellini: Norma
Dame Joan Sutherland, Marilyn Horne, John Alexander, London Symphony Orchestra, Richard Bonynge
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 1 Jan 1965
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Rossini: Semiramide
Dame Joan Sutherland, Marilyn Horne, Joseph Rouleau, London Symphony Orchestra, Richard Bonynge
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 1 Jan 1966
The Qobuz Essential Discography16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mahler: Symphony No.2 "Resurrection"
Kiri Te Kanawa, Marilyn Horne, Tanglewood Festival Chorus, Boston Symphony Orchestra, Seiji Ozawa
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 1 Jan 1987
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Marilyn Horne Sings Carmen
Marilyn Horne, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Henry Lewis
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 20 Apr 2015
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Brahms: Alto Rhapsody, Op. 53 & Other Works
Robert Shaw, Marilyn Horne, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra & Chorus
Classical - Released by Telarc on 1 Jan 1988
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Gesualdo: Madrigals and Sacred Music (Mono Version)
Marilyn Horne, Paul Salamunovich, Robert Craft
Miscellaneous - Released by BNF Collection on 1 Jan 1958
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Mahler: Symphony No. 2 in C Minor "Resurrection" (Live)
Festspielorchester des Gustav Mahler Fest Kassel, Marilyn Horne, Ibolya Verebics, Ádám Fischer, Rundfunkchor Berlin
Classical - Released by Ars Produktion on 18 Sep 2020
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
Flower Duet - The World's Most Beautiful Duets
Dame Joan Sutherland, Brigitte Fassbaender, Renata Tebaldi, Marilyn Horne
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 4 Aug 2009
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Coloratura Spectacular
Sumi Jo, Dame Joan Sutherland, Marilyn Horne
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 1 Jan 1998
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Live at the Sydney Opera House (Live from Concert Hall of the Sydney Opera House, 1983)
Dame Joan Sutherland, Luciano Pavarotti, Marilyn Horne
Opera - Released by ABC Classic on 1 Jan 1999
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Souvenir of a Golden Era
Marilyn Horne, Ernest Ansermet, Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, Henry Lewis
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 1 Jan 1966
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Gluck: Orfeo ed Euridice
Marilyn Horne, Chorus of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, Royal Opera House Orchestra, Sir Georg Solti
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 1 Jan 1970
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Donizetti: Lucrezia Borgia
Dame Joan Sutherland, Marilyn Horne, Giacomo Aragall, National Philharmonic Orchestra, Richard Bonynge
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 1 Jan 1978
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Marilyn Horne sings Bach & Handel
Marilyn Horne, Vienna Cantata Orchestra, Henry Lewis
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 18 Jul 1969
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Age of Bel Canto
Dame Joan Sutherland, Marilyn Horne, Richard Conrad, London Symphony Orchestra, The New Symphony Orchestra of London, Richard Bonynge
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 18 Jun 1964
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Marilyn Horne : Classic Recital
Marilyn Horne, Royal Opera House Orchestra, Henry Lewis
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 1 Jan 1965
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Live From Lincoln Center
Dame Joan Sutherland, Marilyn Horne, Luciano Pavarotti, New York City Opera Orchestra, Richard Bonynge
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 11 May 1987
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo