In addition to her opulent voice and onstage elegance, Arroyo is known for her quick wit and self-deprecating style. There is no trace of a wobble, her voice is fully integrated from chest register to gleaming high notes, and there is plenty of that steely spinto strength in its core, which adds to the connotation of evil.Īrroyo is well matched in the production by the great American Verdi baritone Sherrill Milnes in one of his signature roles, with Ruggero Raimondi as Banquo and Franco Tagliavini as Macduff. Verdi famously wrote: “I would like Lady Macbeth to be ugly and evil… to have a harsh, stifled, and hollow voice.” If Arroyo’s glamorous timbre seems at odds with Verdi’s diabolical ideal, it’s a joy to hear this music sung in the broadcast with such technical security. Martina Arroyo as Lady Macbeth, in a 1973 production by The Metropolitan Opera. Hers is a big, velvety, commanding voice, backed by a solid technique (the trills in the Brindisi were something few contemporary dramatic sopranos attempt), and used in an expressive manner.” Schonberg opined that Arroyo’s performance as Lady Macbeth was “never less than warm and exciting. When the production was remounted in 1973, Arroyo made headlines as the ambitious and conspiratorial Lady (as she’s called in the score). Verdi’s Macbeth received its Met premiere in 1959, with a bit of attendant drama, as Austrian soprano Leonie Rysanek was called in to replace Maria Callas.
With his operas, she secured her legendary status as Aida, Leonora ( La Forza del Destino and Il Trovatore), Amelia ( Un Ballo in Maschera) and others - including Lady Macbeth. But what makes Arroyo’s voice so special is its voluptuousness on the outside, with a steely core at the center she is a true spinto soprano ideal for the music of Giuseppe Verdi. She was the first Black singer anywhere to perform the role of Elsa in Wagner’s Lohengrin. No more comprimario roles for her, Arroyo demonstrated her versatility in repertoire including Mozart, verismo heroines, Strauss, and newer works. Arroyo’s triumphant performance announced the arrival of a major Verdi soprano at The Met its general manager, Rudolf Bing, promptly offered her a contract to join the company’s roster of principals. The Metropolitan Opera Archives Martina Arroyo as Aida at The Met, in 1965.īorn and raised in Harlem to Black and Puerto Rican parents, Arroyo finally got the chance to make a splash in her hometown in 1965, when she was a last-minute replacement for an indisposed Birgit Nilsson in the title role of Aida. This was the case for Arroyo after she debuted at the Zurich Opera in the title role in Aida, Europe’s major opera houses opened their doors to her, and The Met followed suit. For many American singers, trying their luck in Europe in bigger roles allowed them to break out of comprimario roles at The Met. She was an ensemble member, singing a steady diet of that role sprinkled in with Ring Cycle Rheinmaidens, Valkyries, Forrest Birds, and Norns. Anderson, and laying a foundation for Black excellence at the Met.Īrroyo made her Met debut in 1959, in the offstage role of the Celestial Voice in Verdi’s Don Carlo. Arroyo joined a historic generation of opera stars - including Leontyne Price, almost exactly a decade her senior -in pursuing the path forged by Ms. (Photo by Paul Morigi/WireImage)Ī generation of important American singers of color arrived at The Metropolitan Opera at midcentury, after the legendary Philadelphia contralto Marian Anderson became the first Black singer to perform a major role there in 1955. WireImage WASHINGTON, DC - DECEMBER 08: 2013 Kennedy Center Honoree Martina Arroyo attends the The 36th Kennedy Center Honors gala at The Kennedy Center on Decemin Washington, DC.
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