Robert Merrill & James McCracken - Sì, pel ciel [Otello] - 1964 

tenore8 the sung soap opera

remember voice of firestone in 50s great

And great opera at that.

@@xxsaruman82xx87 yeah what do have now? Yusif Eyvazov butchering Turandot? 🤣🤣

@@oliverdelica2289 Sad but very true...

@@xxsaruman82xx87 he's so bad that he doesn't have a wikipedia page. His info can be found in his website where he calls himself a "dramatic" tenor. 🤮

Those three were slightly different periods.

You have your time frame confused. Yes Pav and McCracken overlapped-but Botha is much later. Never thought of McCraken as fat-big chest, solid-but not obese like the other two In terms of vocal size Pav was a lyric

And then, a little more than 10 years after seeing that "Otello" at the old Met, you made YOUR debut at the new Met - as Chevalier des Grieux in "Manon Lescaut."

Yes, I assure you. McCracken was incredibly committed to this emotionally extravagant role. He truly tore the place apart

I did see him sing this role in the spring of 1967 in Minneapolis. I had just turned 16 years of age. Even from my seat high in the balcony, his voice had a clarion quality. Unforgettable performance.!

It was very,very exciting in the theatre !!! Covent Garden 1964 , McCracken and Gobbi.

True! Such a great yet somewhat underrated tenor! Way better than Domingo!

@@edwardamosbrandwein3583... Domingo had no right to walk on the same stage as McCracken.

@@photo161 You couldn't have said it better!

@@edwardamosbrandwein3583 OMG Yes!

@Jordan Reynolds Blackface would be more exaggerating, in order to degrade a person of color. In blackface, lips would be thick and red, skin would be really dark, etc. Make up is not the same. Just google and see for yourself.

@Jordan Reynolds Comparing movie and opera is wrong. Movie requires one to portray a character using everything, appearance included. Opera requires one to portray a character using voices. And voices come first. Everything else doesn't really matter, as long as they are appropriate. By your logic, MDM's legacy should be dismissed, as his Otello is "blackface", per your definition. So should be Callas' (Ethiopian princess Aida), Corelli's (Calaf), and other great singers. The color doesn't matter. What matter is the voice. We don't dismiss a singer just because their appearance doesn't fit the score.

No, I shouldn't be sitting here and debating the obvious with you, which is the fact that opera is about voice. Everything else is just a frame. You didn't counter a single point in my comment. Your arguments seem irrelevant. So my question stands: should we dismiss the legacy of great singers because they weren't appropriate for the character they portray on stage visually? Also, the production never calls for someone black or white or anything. They call for someone who can handle the music. If a singer can handle it, terrific. The color of their skin doesn't matter. Actually, let's reverse this a bit. Take Leontyne Price. Should she be banned from performing Il Trovatore, La Forza del destino because she wasn't white? After all, the heroines are white. Obviously no. She had the voice. And that's all. Also, I won't deny the racial tension and inequality in the U.S in every major area, opera included. To deny it would be stupid. But make up isn't blackface. It's simply a frame, nothing more. What matters is if the singers have the voice.

@Jordan Reynolds I would like to make another point. When I said "black makeup" was fine, I meant the makeup seen here with McCraken. I very much condemned the makeup that is obviously blackface and racist (Aldo Protti's makeup in his Tokyo Aida). Still, I firmly believe that in opera, voices come first, so this kind of makeup should be acceptable. In cinema, I stand against this kind of makeup. Again, I'll reiterate that I'm very much aware of the racial tension and I hope that I did not cause any offenses or being insensitive. If I did, I would like to offer my sincere apology.

@@kyleaustin7045 No. None of this is fine, blackface or not. Opera is about VOICE. You said it yourself. Therefore is no need for makeup.

He wasn't ready for this role at this point in his career.

@@johnwerner7142 He'd been singing "OTELLO" since 1960, which means he was already familiar with the role. Of course his interpretation, both vocally and dramatically, matured as his career progressed. But to say that "he was not ready for this role at that time??"

@@MaxdeSantana It may not have been the most beautiful one, I agree. But neither was Jon Vickers's

@@MaxdeSantana But both were great performers, vocal flaws notwithstanding

His singing here is just his typical avarage singing, nothing worse.

McCracken is anything but subtle, while Merrill is a glorious singer. Merrill has always great taste but unfortunately McCracken makes me squirm…..

McCracken was 50 times the Otello Domingo ever was. And Del Monaco is the best Otello.

Yes, he would have been great. He' did the love duet with Teresa Zylas-Gara for a Met gala when he was 50 or 51 and he was phenomenal. (It's on RU-vid.)

McCracken had a great voice!

you mean too old at that year? No supporting info,

Indeed; I uploaded this video in order to feature Merrill :)

@@trrill Merrill is amazing thanks!

Merrill has one of the most beautiful of all baritone voices.

McCracken is great?

XxSaruman82xX is your question rhetorical?