THE CRITICS: Dalademokraten: "Few artists have been this much documented on recordings for such a long period of time. (--) The CD becomes a biography and for a singer this is exactly right - Singers are to be heard, not described. Here you can hear how it was sounding at a certain stage at a certain time. The coloratura Stina-Britta Melander gives the listener an experience that cannot be graded. Recordings of this type stand beyond all trivial marks systems." MusicWeb-International: "Stina-Britta Melander, born in 1924, has been blessed with an unusually long career, especially for a high lyrical soprano. (---) The present well-filled set casts its net wider and roughly covers her activities in Sweden. Its starting point is her first test record for His Master’s Voice back in 1938 where, with a voice that of course has no operatic dimensions but has a lightness and freshness that she preserved all through her career, the 14-year-old girl asks “Varför skall man tvinga mig att sjunga?” (“Why are they forcing me to sing?”). (---) At the age of 70 she returned to the opera stage for a few performances of Eugene Onegin (---) an utterly charming Madame Triquet. I saw one of the performances and enjoyed it greatly. Here was an old stager who knew all the tricks how to steal the show, both visually and aurally. I believe that is possible to hear all this on this recording, even without the experience of having seen her. It is true that the voice has begun to thin out – but remarkably little. What is even more remarkable to hear is her “reprise” of 14 år tror jag visst att jag var, recorded at her 80-years-concert a year ago. It’s a frail voice but it still retains its girlish timbre and there is very little trace of a widening of the vibrato – she even has her coloratura in fine fettle. (---) For newcomers to Stina-Britta Melander it may be advisable to buy her earlier double-CD first and hear her in all her glory at the height of her powers, mainly, in the 1960s. For a more all-embracing portrait this second album is also a treasure-trove. " OV-Revyn: "I am fascinated by the voice control and beauty of sound, and the repertory is still more interesting (---) I wonder why the international fame didn´t become even bigger, and especially why the Swedish musical life did not find a place for Melander when she returned to Sweden in 1973. Her voice was in perfect shape long after that!" Östersundsposten: "This is a part of Swedish vocal musical history covering the almost unbelievable singing time of 66 years. (---) After many hours listening to this great coloratura I must say I fancy her operetta primadonna material the most, as separate opera arias cannot give the whole picture of a singer." Skånska Dagbladet: "Impressive! This CD is a fine documentary over the rich and successful life of a Swedish singer who did not get the appreciation in her homeland that her voice deserves." CONTENTS:   CD 1 durata 72´20   1938 1 Lindblad: Varför skall man tvinga mig att sjunga 2´45 1942 2 Trad: 14 år tror jag visst att jag var 2´37 1944 3 F Grothe: Illusion 3´10 1946 ur G Verdis Maskeradbalen     4:1 Oscars kuplett: Ni ville veta 0´51   4:2 Kvartett: Till maskeradbal utan like 1´43 1947 ur W A Mozarts Trollflöjten     5 Papagena, duett 2´21   6 Nattens drottnings 1:a aria 4´16   7 Nattens drottnings 2:a aria 2´37 1956 Franska operettmelodier     8:1 E Audran: Mina pullor små, ur Lyckoflickan 1´38   8:2 A Messager: Åsneduetten, ur Véronique 1´51   8:3 C Lecocq: Madame Angot 1´09   9 A Messager: Gungduetten, ur Véronique 4´28 1957 10 F von Suppe: Duett, ur Sköna Galathea 4´21 1959 11 G Donizetti: Norinas aria, ur Don Pasquale 6´05 1959 12 J Offenbach: Duett med Sven-Erik Vikström, ur Orfeus i underjorden 5´02 1960 13 G Verdi: Traviatas aria, ur La Traviata 7´52 1961 Ur F Berwalds operett ”Jag går i kloster”     14:1 Jag står vid klostrets dystra murar 1´13   14:2 Sköna blomma 3´30   15 Låt mig vara ifred, duett med Erik Saedén 5´12 1961 Ur H Rosenbergs ”Lycksalighetens ö”     16 Den blyga aftonvinden, Zephyrs aria 3´02   17 Allt övervinns av tiden, slutscenen 6´30         CD 2 durata 77´01   1963 1 Trad: Paper of pins, duett med William Clauson 3´17 1963 2 G Puccini: Man nennt mich nur Mimi, ur Boheme 4´34 1968 J Canteloube: Två sånger ur Chants D Auvergne:     3:1 L´aio de rotso 1´03   3:2 Malurous qu´o uno fenno 1´20 1975 4 J Leifs: Mariuljod 2´00 1979 5 W A Mozart: Paminas aria ur Trollflöjten 4´44 1980 6:1 M Reger: Du meines Herzens Krönelein 2´10 1980 6:2 M Reger: Wenn die Linde bluht 1´19 1980 7:1 F Mendelssohn: Andres Maienlied 2´28 1980 7:2 J Marx: Und gestern hat er mir Rosen gebracht 2´23 1982 8 R Strauss: Amor 2´38 1982 9:1 F Arlberg: Förgäves uppå stigen 1´19 1982 9:2 I Dannström: Långt bort i fjärran 2´28 1983 10:1 C Debussy: Pantomime 2´09 1983 10:2 C Debussy: Claire de lune 2´48 1987 11 F Mendelssohn: Lyssna Israel, ur oratoriet Elias 7´15 1994 12 P Tjajkovskij: Triquets aria, ur Eugen Onegin 3´00 1994 13 G Rossini: Una voce poco fa, ur Barberaren i Sevilla 5´26 1994 14 G Puccini: Un bel di vedremo, ur Madame Butterfly 4´05 1994 15 W A Mozart: Cherubins aria, ur Figaros bröllop 3´18 2004 16 Trad: 14 år tror jag visst att jag var 1´54 1959 17-24 BONUSPROGRAM 25 aug 1959 15´07 8 Bergeretter ur radioprogrammet Herdar, herdinnor, löjen och lek Franska 1700-talsbilder med Joseph Pascheks ensemble | cd catalogue | to GASON site | artists | composers | about nosag records | Order CDs directly from nosag: Our Full Catalogue Listen to all nosag CDs on the air: Check also all nosag Web Casting Stations on the air 24h at www.nosag.org Legal Notice: All recordings made available on these pages are done so with permission from STIM (The Swedish Performance Rights Society) and NCB (Nordic Copyright Bureau). 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