[bauzace50]

One week ago I had the special opportunity of attending a recital by Kiri te Kanawa with piano accompaniment.

The repertory included many standard old Italian songs and other recital goodies.  Sorry for no Mozart, nor Schubert!

But Dame Kiri is still a stunningly beautiful woman, with a voice which is well past her prime, and was obviously nursing it carefully during the recital.  Most songs had long, slow phrases with limited dynamic range, staying within a comfortable middle of the voice tessitura.  The only bright moment came with her last encore, which was Puccini's "O mio Babbino caro".

Sorry to say, it was a forgettable musical evening, short of her great recorded moments.
May she retire soon, and enjoy the glow of her great recorded legacy.
bauzace50

[woodsyi]

I am sorry to hear that she was underwhelming on this given night.  She started out as a mezzo and worked herself into a great soprano.  Her tessitura at age 67 may be in the middle now.  In most of the memorable recordings, she is showcasing her gorgeous voice in the upper register, which as you say is tough for her to do now.  She may have to reinvent herself as a mezzo if she wants to continue singing in Operatic productions.  But would she be willing to play the second fiddle?  Most older sopranos resort to concert tours if they want to continue singing as singing in a production is too demanding.  The only exception I heard was Freni.  I heard her singing the title role in the Maid of Orleans in '05 at age 70.   Her voice was still in decent form although it was not like her singing of Mimi in the 60's.  It turned out to be her last role in an Opera production. 

But we have wonderful recordings and great systems to continue to enjoy their finest moments during their heydays!  This is the reason why I am in this hobby at all.

[Ericus Rex]

It sucks getting old.

I saw Isaac Stern in concert just a few months before he died.  Given his age and his physical degradation at the time I thought he played amazingly well (Bruch Concerto).  But it was clear he was cutting some corners and just couldn't play some of the 'licks' anymore.  He made up for that in beauty of melody and still had a great tone.  I learned from that concert that we have to expect less, technically speaking, from aging players.  When we accept that shortcoming we're usually rewarded with a great musical experience.  Age brings about maturity and familiarity with the pieces.

The other thing is she may just be tired of performing.  We all can get burned out.

[woodsyi]

I hear you.  My (golf) drives are not as long as they used to be.   I read that Jame Levine is curtailing his work with the Met due to back problems (and all the other ailments he has had).  There are exceptions to the rule when technical virtuosity coupled to years of experience and maturity produce great work even at old age.  My wife saw (I couldn't go on a weekday evening ) John Williams at a recital sponsored by the Baltimore Classical Guitar Society and thought he was amazing.  She said he was still doing amazing finger stretches and adroit plucking that belied the fact that he was playing a single instrument.  She was in awe of the harmony and the polyphony he got out of one guitar. 

[geezer]

We're blessed to have high quality recordings of many great artists. I would love to have heard Caruso in his prime.

[BobMajor]

Gunter Wand made his finest and very wonderful recording of Bruckner in his 80s.

[david12]

what a wonderful singer she was in her early career, particularly with Mozart and Strauss. I don't believe she sings much at all now, mainly teaches.
 Ironically, I saw an interview with her many years ago, when she bemoaned a certain Australian Soprano, who was still singing, beyond her prime!