[vlad]

On Jul 6, 2:13 pm, Jenn wrote:



BTW, why considering you an elitist is an insult?

Because my dictionary defines "elitist" as:
1. A person who believes that a system or society should be ruled or
dominated by an elite
2. A person who believes that they belong to an elite.


Ironically, this definition describes you perfectly


Jenn, may be your viewing habits changed?

Not that I'm aware of.

Come on, Jenn. You are much older now. Of course you progressed in
your tastes.

Of course they have, but I haven't noticed changes in my viewing habbits.


Any competent shrink will explain to you your reason for this denial.


She was a lovely lady; a devoted wife and daughter, doting mother to two
handicapped children. Later in life she raised millions for the New
York City Opera, then Lincoln Center, then The Met.

You are absolutely right about that. But it did did not make her a
better singer,

I didn't say that it did.

just more popular.

And she was perhaps
the greatest singing actress we've yet seen.

Oh, give me a break. How about Maria Callas, Montserrat Caball?,
Renata Scotto?
Can you put her in the same league as Elisabeth Schwarzkopf?

I wasn't perfectly clear. Put in the context of my post about her
death, when I write "we've yet seen" I mean "that America has produced".
Actually, now that you mention it, I think that Sills was probably a
better actress than everyone you named other than Callas.

You are very good at twisting your own words, Jenn.

In my opinion she was rather mediocre singer.

Well, to each his own. Do you think that La Scalla, et al are in the
habit of giving multi-year contracts to mediocre singers?


May be she was cheap to hire. You never know what the real reasons
were.

Like you, I trust my own ears more then to anything else. And for my
money she does not come close as a singer to likes of Callas,
Schwartskopf, Caballe, Kiri Te Kanawa or Fleming. As you say "to each
his own". We are on RAO, remember?


BTW, if you are talking
about "America has produced", how about Renee Fleming? With all my
respect to Beverly Sills as a public personality she does not keep a
candle to Fleming as a singer.

I love Fleming, but I would say that she's about equal to Sills in
singing, but is a FAR inferior actress to Sills.

Here, against my wishes I have to agree with you. Fleming is a very
poor actress. I saw her in Met's "Don Giovanny" and she did not even
try to act. That is the pity. I saw her in few other productions - she
does not act well, but her singing is pure heaven. And that's what we
are paying money for, is not it?

Cool down, Jenn.

vlad