Joan Sutherland: The Authorized Biography [Englisch] [Taschenbuch]

Major makes a reasonable effort through most of the book to be fair and even-handed, not falling into the trap of being excessively partisan and uncritically laudatory (the gushing "fan" biography) but showing obvious sympathy for her subject. If anything, however, the balance is too strongly tilted to the sympathetic side, too eager to justify whatever Dame Joan did or didn't do, and in particular too eager to say kind things about her final performing years (when her voice was in decline), editing out negative review comments and quoting the favorable ones. (Like most prima donnas she sang too long and didn't retire until she was well over the hill at 64.) Sutherland's shortcomings as a singer (despite her excellence, she did have some) get minimal treatment, and one of them, the increasingly hooded, covered, hooty, or throaty quality of her midrange after the mid-1970s, is never mentioned at all.

The writing is for the most part utilitarian but undistinguished. There are too many small evidences of failure to edit/proofread carefully--carelessness for which the publisher is primarily to blame. The book has an index, although its usefulness is reduced because it indexes only proper names, the names of operas, and opera roles. In addition, it is arbitrary and unreliable (for example, the book does much quoting of reviews by critics, some of whom are indexed, while others are not). But the most substantial fault of the book, in my view, is the failure of the text of the biography to deal at all with a major component of Sutherland's life work: her very important and extensive recording career. This is a grave shortcoming, not to be glossed over, and for some it may be decisive. Given the book's subject, I find it inexplicable and inexcusable.

One example: the recording that announced to the world the arrival of a major new singer, Sutherland's groundbreaking, extraordinarily ambitious two-LP recital The Art of the Prima Donna (recorded in 1960), came as a revelation to opera buffs everywhere, who hadn't heard coloratura singing of this caliber since the days of Sembrich, Melba, Tetrazzini, and Galli-Curci (indeed, Sutherland proved to offer certain qualities that none of them could match). It would be hard to overemphasize its importance. It reached a far wider audience than Sutherland's live performances of the time, and aroused awareness of and interest in her throughout the operatic world. It is not even mentioned in the text.

A second example: in mid-career (1972) Sutherland took the unexpected, venturesome step of recording the Princess in Puccini's Turandot, a taxing, heavy dramatic soprano role, notorious for its demanding high tessitura, but far removed from the coloratura flights and bel canto roles Sutherland was noted for. Many found her assumption of it surprising, risky, even ill-advised. She confounded the naysayers, however, and opened a new chapter regarding her range and versatility by making a decided success of it. Although she never sang the role in the opera house, and had never professionally sung any other Puccini role up to that time, this success pointed the way to her taking on a dramatic soprano role like Leonora in Il Trovatore (as well as another Puccini role in Suor Angelica). This recording is also of particular interest in that, besides boasting a powerhouse cast including Pavarotti, Caballe, Ghiaurov, Krause, and Pears, it was the only recording Sutherland made since the early 1960s which husband Richard Bonynge did not conduct (the conductor was Zubin Mehta), and is regarded by many critics as the best Turandot ever recorded. There is no mention of any of this in the text.

These are but two examples. Her many other landmark recordings, her entire extensive, three-decade recording career (1958-1990) and enormous recorded output--so important in establishing an international audience for her, spreading her international reputation, and now comprising her living legacy--are either ignored or dismissed in cursory asides. Sutherland made a huge investment of time, energy, and dedication in her recordings. What were her recording sessions like? How did she and her colleagues feel about them and interact in them? Which ones went well and which ones didn't? How were her various recordings received by critics and public, and what impact did they have on her career? At first I thought that Major was saving this material for a separate chapter on Dame Joan's recordings, but alas, that chapter never arrives. Major is simply not interested in (or wasn't willing to research) this vital and enduring aspect of Sutherland's work; instead, her focus is unremittingly upon the live performances, and, to a lesser extent, the personal life. Even the discography is flawed, because it gives only year of release of recordings, not the much more important recording dates (which should have been readily available from Decca/London), and is therefore less useful than it ought to be.

So be forewarned, this biography has much useful information to offer, and will be of interest to anyone curious about Sutherland's career, but it is also seriously flawed and incomplete.

Norma Major also, towards the end of the book, painstakingly recounts the tensions between Richard and Joan, and the Australian Opera. Although it's been some time since I've read Prima Donna's Progress, it seems that Joan Sutherland glossed over this subject.

In short, Sutherland's legendary rise to fame and operatic glory is certainly worthy of at least two accounts. Futhermore, as Sutherland was not a great "interpreter" of her roles, she also was not that great at analyzing her own career. Major goes beyond a simple listing of the many Normas and Lucias sung.

Major makes a reasonable effort through most of the book to be fair and even-handed, not falling into the trap of being excessively partisan and uncritically laudatory (the gushing "fan" biography) but showing obvious sympathy for her subject. If anything, however, the balance is too strongly tilted to the sympathetic side, too eager to justify whatever Dame Joan did or didn't do, and in particular too eager to say kind things about her final performing years (when her voice was in decline), editing out negative review comments and quoting the favorable ones. (Like most prima donnas she sang too long and didn't retire until she was well over the hill at 64.) Sutherland's shortcomings as a singer (despite her excellence, she did have some) get minimal treatment, and one of them, the increasingly hooded, covered, hooty, or throaty quality of her midrange after the mid-1970s, is never mentioned at all.

The writing is for the most part utilitarian but undistinguished. There are too many small evidences of failure to edit/proofread carefully--carelessness for which the publisher is primarily to blame. The book has an index, although its usefulness is reduced because it indexes only proper names, the names of operas, and opera roles. In addition, it is arbitrary and unreliable (for example, the book does much quoting of reviews by critics, some of whom are indexed, while others are not). But the most substantial fault of the book, in my view, is the failure of the text of the biography to deal at all with a major component of Sutherland's life work: her very important and extensive recording career. This is a grave shortcoming, not to be glossed over, and for some it may be decisive. Given the book's subject, I find it inexplicable and inexcusable.

One example: the recording that announced to the world the arrival of a major new singer, Sutherland's groundbreaking, extraordinarily ambitious two-LP recital The Art of the Prima Donna (recorded in 1960), came as a revelation to opera buffs everywhere, who hadn't heard coloratura singing of this caliber since the days of Sembrich, Melba, Tetrazzini, and Galli-Curci (indeed, Sutherland proved to offer certain qualities that none of them could match). It would be hard to overemphasize its importance. It reached a far wider audience than Sutherland's live performances of the time, and aroused awareness of and interest in her throughout the operatic world. It is not even mentioned in the text.

A second example: in mid-career (1972) Sutherland took the unexpected, venturesome step of recording the Princess in Puccini's Turandot, a taxing, heavy dramatic soprano role, notorious for its demanding high tessitura, but far removed from the coloratura flights and bel canto roles Sutherland was noted for. Many found her assumption of it surprising, risky, even ill-advised. She confounded the naysayers, however, and opened a new chapter regarding her range and versatility by making a decided success of it. Although she never sang the role in the opera house, and had never professionally sung any other Puccini role up to that time, this success pointed the way to her taking on a dramatic soprano role like Leonora in Il Trovatore (as well as another Puccini role in Suor Angelica). This recording is also of particular interest in that, besides boasting a powerhouse cast including Pavarotti, Caballe, Ghiaurov, Krause, and Pears, it was the only recording Sutherland made since the early 1960s which husband Richard Bonynge did not conduct (the conductor was Zubin Mehta), and is regarded by many critics as the best Turandot ever recorded. There is no mention of any of this in the text.

These are but two examples. Her many other landmark recordings, her entire extensive, three-decade recording career (1958-1990) and enormous recorded output--so important in establishing an international audience for her, spreading her international reputation, and now comprising her living legacy--are either ignored or dismissed in cursory asides. Sutherland made a huge investment of time, energy, and dedication in her recordings. What were her recording sessions like? How did she and her colleagues feel about them and interact in them? Which ones went well and which ones didn't? How were her various recordings received by critics and public, and what impact did they have on her career? At first I thought that Major was saving this material for a separate chapter on Dame Joan's recordings, but alas, that chapter never arrives. Major is simply not interested in (or wasn't willing to research) this vital and enduring aspect of Sutherland's work; instead, her focus is unremittingly upon the live performances, and, to a lesser extent, the personal life. Even the discography is flawed, because it gives only year of release of recordings, not the much more important recording dates (which should have been readily available from Decca/London), and is therefore less useful than it ought to be.

So be forewarned, this biography has much useful information to offer, and will be of interest to anyone curious about Sutherland's career, but it is also seriously flawed and incomplete.