Tributes pour in for lamented Renata Scotto
OperaSocial media are swelling with memories of the diva, whose death was announced today:
Placido Domingo:
Heartbroken by the passing of Renata Scotto, one of the greatest opera singers of all times, a dedicated teacher to young singers, and to me personally, one of my most frequent partners on stage with well over 100 performances together throughout our careers, and above anything else, a Dearest Friend. Renata now has joined her devoted husband Lorenzo in Heaven. Rest in peace, carissima Renata.
Aprile Millo:
If what I am hearing from my friends in Italy is true, the world has lost an unbelievably charismatic indispensable, magnificent, towering artist in Renata Scotto. A dear and wonderful friend, and an example for all those who seek to blend magic and beauty into their performances. May you rest in a beautiful peace that you richly deserve for the magic you gave here on earth, and for the example you set. What a fabulous woman.
Sonya Yoncheva:
The passing of Renata Scotto is devastating news. One of the greatest sopranos of all times has left us, and she will be greatly missed. For me Renata Scotto has been a role model from very early on in my career. How not to admire her Lucia, Gilda, Desdemona, Mimì and Violetta, and how she developed her career and repertoire towards roles like Luisa Miller, Elisabetta in “Don Carlo”, Norma and Tosca, Manon Lescaut or Fedora? Impossible to mention all of her great roles, but these and more are characters she has left such a great impact on, not only thanks to her magnificent voice, but also with her deep and moving interpretations. Rest in peace.
Jessica Pratt:
Renata believed in me when no one else did, she single-handedly created my first opportunities to perform onstage and I will be forever thankful for that and more. She was tough, demanding and incredibly intelligent. She taught me to respect the score, about the colours we could make with our voices, not just the notes. She demonstrated the cupo sound in lessons to our shock and awe. She was ever the glamorous Diva, I remember one day of lessons where she insisted on wearing heals even with a twisted ankle. She held us to the high standard she held herself and always told us what she thought, good or bad. She was also caring, a lot of fun and had a great sense of humour. She gave so much to this art form in so many ways, as a singer, stage director, mentor and teacher. She touched so many lives and will be missed by us all.
Sherill Milnes:
We lost one of the greatest sopranos and colleagues of all time time. Maria and I mourn the loss of our dearest Renata and celebrate her legacy of great singing. She was truly a singing actor, incredible voice, amazing director and educator. To say she left an impact on the operatic world is an understatement. I will miss you, my dearest friend, and treasure all the impactful and historical moments I spent with you on the stage.
Robert Lombardo:
Waking this morning to the news of the sudden passing of the great Renata Scotto has certainly touched me deeply. I find it difficult to digest this news in my heart. I am feeling quite empty and sad. We had over forty years of friendship and collaboration. Renata was a great teacher and along with Lorenzo was a great inspiration to me. My debt to them both is incalculable.
James Harp:
For many years I coordinated the Baltimore Opera Vocal Competition, which in its heyday was second in size only to the Metropolitan Opera competition. We were always able to secure top-echelon people to be judges, and my diva/divo worship was always in overdrive, especially in a year when we were able to have legends such as Licia Albanese and Renata Scotto, both now gone to glory.
I fell in love with Mme. Scotto, as did the rest of the world, at the Met telecast of Bohème in 1977. She was mesmerizing and supremely engaging, a quality that inhabited every role she undertook. I devoured her recordings, and am relatively sure I wore out the grooves of her “Tanto amore segreto” from Turandot from listening to it so much. In her later years she came to Baltimore for an unforgettable Klytämnestra in Elektra, and I’ll never forget being backstage and watching her transform herself into the monstrous gorgon during her prelude music.
It was my honor at the competition to introduce the judges and at the semi-finals I gushed about Mme. Scotto’s Butterfly, um, forgetting that Mme. Albanese was also known for the geisha. Later that evening Mme. Albanese took me aside and gave me quite an earful of what was wrong with Mme. Scotto’s interpretation and what was right with hers. So the next evening at the finals, I gushed about Mme. Albanese’s Butterfly, and happened to look at Mme. Scotto. It was a look for sure. Those were the days.
How lucky we are to have these personages and memories of a golden age of opera!
Howard R Hart:
This is one of the saddest days of my life.
Michelle DeYoung:
R.I.P. to the great Renata Scotto. One of the greatest singers of all time. Thank you for your graciousness, class, wealth of information and laughter. I am honored to have known and worked with you. ❤️
Kristine Opolais :
RIP Queen! 👑💔
My personal favourite Violetta of all times!
Rest In Peace.
Does anyone know the background to why she disliked Pavarotti?
Not really the occasion for gossip.
Take a moment to listen to one of Miss Scotto’s recordings to celebrate her life.
RIP…and thank you, Renata.
If the facts are correct it concerns Gioconda in SF (available in poor video quality). She was asked to come to a rehearsal in his hotel room only to find out he didn’t really knew his role and it was sort of getting him to learn it. She describes it in lengh in her autobiography without names of course but it corredponds the time and events.
https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1985-03-22-ca-29961-story.html
You bring this up now?
Yes, I do.
It came to a boil with a 1979 San Francisco Opera production of „La Gioconda“ which was taped by PBS and shown over the course of several nights, one act per evening as a “behind the scenes” mini-series in which cameras followed participants backstage.
Apparently, it had been agreed that, while there would be ensemble bows after each act, there would be no solo bows until the end of the performance.
Pavarotti was Enzo Grimaldo, whose big aria, „Cielo e mar“, comes shortly after the beginning of act two.
Unsurprisingly, after the cast took their ensemble bow at the end of the act, Luciano ran back onstage for a solo call to bask in some much-needed adoration.
Scotto was, to put it mildly, livid. The camera followed her through the wings back to her dressing room as she cursed up a storm, and most famously was caught referring to „these gente di merda“ – „these shit people“.
They never shared the stage again, at least at the Met where they performed together in four operas between 1970 and 1977, the last being the now-legendary first „Live from the Met“ telecast of „La bohème“.
A nasty little postscript: There was, in the 1970s, a rabid and extremely vocal Callas fan who was in the Met’s Family Circle standing room almost every night. There is a long story behind this, but in the first documentary on Callas after her death, Scotto makes some disparaging remarks about how she was treated by La Divina („an I say Maria: why yoo do dees to meeee?“). The Callas fan screeched something at almost every Scotto performance, most notably the disastrous 1980 Met opening night „Norma“ when, before she even opened her mouth, he shook the house with a scream of „TU sei la merda, Scotto, TU sei la merda“!
He was one of several people escorted out of the opera house by New York’s Finest during the first act, which descended into total chaos onstage and in the house.
Thanks for sharing, James.
It’s unfortunate that a rift developed between them, particularly since Pavarotti managed to maintain good relations over several decades with other divas such as Sutherland and Freni.
When they would perform, after the performance there were usually social gatherings with food. He would cut in front of her and wolf everything down leaving nothing for her.
She also didn’t like performing in his shadow but EVERYONE, due to his size, was in his shadow.
Does it really matter now? This should be a remembrance to her talent and skill as a singer, performer and person, instead of circulating gossip.
RENATA SCOTTO IS IMMORTAL.
I first had the opportunity to experience Mme Scotto on stage at the Metropolitan , many many years ago as Butterfly, one of the many roles on which she left a indelible mark, as she did with so many others. Her expressive gifts were on the
highest level and in my view far beyond even the best of her colleagues. . I will always remember a gesture she made in the last scene of Don Carlo, one gesture which summed everything up.
I will never forget her, neither will the legions of music lovers all over the world for all time. We can be grateful that we have many recordings and videos of this great artist.
In the generation of Freni and Caballe, Scotto was a class C soprano, sorry. May she RIP
your indeed have every right to be ignorant, but at least please have some sense of decency
Dramatically, Freni and Caballe could not shine Scotto’s shoes. I have stood in close proximity to all three. Scotto never once had her eyes fixed in the conductor as the other two were inclined to do. She was too busy embodying the character. Scotto lived a life a verismo, on and off the stage.
From a petty person with a capital “P”, you are an a** to trash her. She unstintingly gave herself to the MET, sometimes to her own disadvantage, in New York and especially on tour. She was no “C” soprano but one who projected her own skills and interpretations.
I really liked the comments by James Hart.
http://www.bruceduffie.com/scotto.html
Lovely interview come in by Bruce Duffie, former WNIB presenter in Chicago.
Will we ever see another stellar soprano so closely associated with one House? RIP
Every moment spent in the company or vicinity of Signora Scotto was a life affirming experience.
Whether accompanying rehearsals, prompting, watching her on stage or driving the great lady and artist back to her hotel after a day of rehearsals…. one always came away with better energy as well as more curiosity as to how to improve one’s own strengths.
R. I. P. cara signora.