Star soprano Dame Gwyneth Jones discusses her passion for Wagner and discovering new things every time she performs a role. She also describes how she learnt to ride horses for her role at Bayreuth. Find out more at www.roh.org.uk/...
She is my desert island singer, not because she was perfect (she could be variable), but because she always was exciting and offered new insights. One was never bored!
WONDERFUL!! She is so wise about the dramatic voices. No one wants to give big voices a chance and because they are so obsolete no one knows how to recognize them or how they develop.
I´ve seen her so many times and was always thrilled by her energy. Sometimes she was the best soprano in the world, three days later she lacked control of her enormous voice. There was always the problem with the lisp and sometimes intonation. But live she was always breathtaking. And the audience loved her, no matter what.
Truly awe inspring singer. I was lucky enough to see her as Brunnhilde, Turandot, Minnie (La Fanciulla) and in concert many times. It was a huge voice that never failed to thrill. It could also be delicate and touching too. But what you got from DGJ every single performance was total commitment, wonderful acting and a feeling that you were in the presence of a super star.
I saw her in several roles as well. Sometimes her voice was perfect, other times out of control. But she was always thrilling, as if you were seeing the opera for the first time, or even transported back to Ancient Greece.
Carit Bmouth I agree totally. A huge voice, and she never, ever held back. When I saw her as the Siegfried Brünnhilde, an announcement was made that she was suffering from flu, but had decided to go on with the performance. You would never know she was ill, so generous was she with her resources, and so committed was she to the role and to the music. I saw her as Elektra and the Färberin as well, and each time it was the same: huge voice practically drowning out the orchestra, and complete identification with each character she played.
Oh no! I wanted more!!! I could listen to her stories and what she thinks about this and that non stop. Fantastic and exciting woman, who lived a fantastic and exciting live i'm sure
In 2001 there was a panel discussion of Strauss roles in Garmisch. The panelists were Jones, Behrens, Borkh, Moedl. There's a tiny clip on RU-vid, but I'd love to see the whole thing or read a transcript. Can you imagine listening to those artists discuss their Strauss roles?!
I love Dame Gwyneth Jones,she was a treasurable artist.However I was interested to hear her advice to young singers to not sing heavy roles too early which is exactly what she did.! She fortunately survived but of course many young singers haven't.
A beautiful lady with a long stunning white hair.The voice like a flood and lighting.It has a cold sliver gloss.She is a diva in opera and a cute lady out stage.love her.
Gwynneth’s Countess was lovely. I saw her perform her Live at the Met. And meeting her backstage was such a treat. She really listens to the questions & never responds as she thinks she should or is expected of her, but only how she honestly feels.
mckavitt13 Do you mean the Marschallin in Der Rosenkavalier? I can’t recall an opera where Jones played a countess. But yes, I met her too and she was absolutely lovely.
mckavitt13 I wish she had concentrated on those lyric roles that needed her beautiful voice. Unfortunately, all the Brunnhilde’s/Isolde’s/Elektra’s gave her that fearsome wobble which ruined a lot of her performances. But in the right role, on the right night, she was beautiful inside and out.
@@wotan10950 I too. My comment was probably wishful thinking. Strange thing is she always wobbled... UNTIL she started singing Wagner... a grace period, if you will... until forcing brought the wobbles to a zenith. But what a beautiful voice & creature, all the same. Inside & out, I agree w you. A real darling. PS. Have you seen her in Everding's tv show Da Capo?
mckavitt13 I did indeed watch the interview - with my very limited German language skills! If you go back to very early Jones (the Verdi album; The Coronation of Poppea) there is minimal-to-no wobbling. It was worst around 1980 when I saw her onstage in Tristan. Terrible. But just a few years later, I saw her in the theater in Turandot/Elektra/Salome, and her voice had become much steadier. I always enjoyed her performances because they were never boring!!
This is really strange! I hear this interview of my beloved Dame Gwyneth Jones for the first time. But I’m wondering, why she has an almost German accent when she speaks English? Is it because she is Welsh? I met her many years on a flight to..... can’t remember, I guess London, unfortunately I had no time to talk with her. She was sooo tremendously charming. Must have been in the 90th! Shame that I never dared to adress her! Hope she is well and healthy. Love Uwe
She was fluent in German, and also lived most of her adult life in Switzerland. So her English is actually a bit stilted, despite being her native language. I met her backstage and had a lovely conversation. She was very soft-spoken and rather petite. As we left the theater, my wife said, “Was that lady the same one who just obliterated the entire chorus and orchestra?!”
She has a heavy welsh accent when you listen to her. It’s a mixture of that and the fact that she’s lived in German speaking countries for most of her adult life.
I heard both ladies live, and loved them both, but Jones' voice was larger by a country mile. Nilsson's top register hit you in the face like a bolt from a crossbow, but Jones' huge sound enveloped you like a giant comforter, and often drowned the orchestra, which Nilsson's never did.
@@jasonhurd4379 You’re quite right, although people who haven’t seen either of them in the theater will argue the point. Nilsson’s top register was very focused and precise, enabling her to hurl out those famous top notes that could be heard a mile away! Jones’s voice was remarkably similar in production, although Gwyneth’s voice was inherently more beautiful. The biggest soprano voice I ever heard in the theater was Eva Marton, and Nilsson was her onstage colleague that night, so you could make a direct comparison. It was a tidal wave of sound. But Marton very quickly developed a far worse wobble than Jones, and she couldn’t sing quietly anymore. It became tedious and painful.
Young singers should carefully listen to what DGJ says about TACKLING HEAVY, DRAMATIC ROLES TOO SOON! Young singers: learn how to be more modest. That's why there are no real and lasting dramatic soprani today. Also, if vocal categories were carefully kept, this would not happen. What a glorious career and fabulous Lady.
I wish she took her own advice. She was singing Wagner in her late 20s. It’s very easy to point the finger. Also what choice do you have when the character description calls for a kind (Brunnhilde, Eva, Senta) or a female without any sense of self worth or autonomy (Isolde, Elizabeth, Sieglinde, Elsa). Wagnerian female roles are written for women with the brain of a child.
