Dame Kiri Te Kanawa is a master at handling pushy questions. I thoroughly enjoyed watching her putting this interviewer in his place. She is all class. The interviewer is as common as soot.
The interviewer is well-respected, and was in fact IMO gentle and polite (as was Kiri) compared to what is normal for this rogramme; I was somewhat surprised when I saw this interview listed, as the programme usually has fairly despicable people on it (and you shuold hear him interviewing them). The name of the programme shuold give you some idea of what it normally is about: as I said, I wouldn't have thought KTK a valid subject, as she's not done anything as bad as most of its subjects, but is in general a nice person.
After such a distinguished career, she is still so humble and unassuming. I love Kiri te Kenawa and have never forgotten the enormous privilege of hearing her singing live at Sun City in 1995.
Dame Kiri is simply an amazing super human talent. Her singing has changed very little over the years. She still sings much of her original repertoire as well or better as she did thirty or so years ago. She is an intelligent singer who has carefully chosen her repertoire and roles and knows how to take care of her instrument. How many other Sopranos sing as well as she does into her 70s? Brava Dame Kiri!
I remember seeing her in Chicago at the Auditorium Theater years ago. Someone in the audience was coughing lightly in the middle of her aria. She suddenly stopped and asked him to silence it or leave. The ultimate "Wanna get away?" moment. Regardless I have so much admiration for her. Her recital of Richard Strauss's "Four Last Songs" is the most hauntingly beautiful interpretation I have ever heard.
Une incontestable grande artiste. Une des plus grandes sopranos. J'ai eu la chance de l'écouter sur scène, et c'est un privilège, de grands souvenirs. Merci Madame.
She is so charming and articulate. But the interviewer uses every trick to bait her into criticizing colleagues and other performers. At any rate, I saw her several times in New York in Rosenkavalier/Traviata, a few others. She was occasionally an unconvincing actress, but nonetheless had possibly the most beautiful sound I’ve ever heard, before or since.
It is a pity that Kiri has forgotten all about a very influential teacher who made her into a soprano and then they fell out with each other but she gave her a basis of a very strong technique and her name was Florence Norberg
I like the way she deflects when he mentions things she does not want to answer. You cannot compare the singers he brought up with a classically trained Kiri apples to oranges.
Dame Edith Sitwell would have called Stephen Sackur, and perfectly correctly too, "Impertinent." Gutter journalism in the guise of in-depth searching. Dame Kiri knew from the off exactly what his aim was and handled things with her usual charm, grace and patience.
I don't think being overweight is necessary to produce a large sound. It should be natural and depend on the person's resonance cavities. A singer should be healthy and strong, but there's no need to be overweight.
