A Traviata to Remember

On Monday we went to the San Francisco Opera production of La Traviata with Ruth Ann Swenson as Violeta, Rolando Villazon as Alfredo, and Dmitri Hvorostovski as Giorgio Germont. I have been to more productions of Traviata than I can remember but this stood above the rest for one reason: Ruth Ann Swenson.

She had vocal beauty of a Sutherland combined with the enunciation and the ability to convey emotion of a Callas. She had almost the training and vocal discipline of Tebaldi, but none of Tebaldi's shrillness. Swenson must be a natural. At times, her voice reminded me of a young Joan Baez. Shivers ran down my spine. The next day we played a La Traviata recording of Tebaldi in her golden years. It reinforced my opinion.

Swenson will be Mimi in La Boheme at the Metropolitan next year. That should be a perfect part for her.

By the way, once again I came to opposite conclusions than the review in the Chronicle. I could not disagree more.