Boris Christoff, bass - Mussorgsky - Boris Godunov - 'Death Scene' (video -1956)

Thanks to whomever added this entire DVD & I hope that others will appreciate this 1956 performance. Sure some might take issue with this being a bit over the top by contemporary standards but remember that Boris, as a character, is indeed LARGER THAN LIFE & Christoff is not, in my view, off the mark here. I believe his actual voice was a better instrument than Chaliapin‘s & this is as representative of his art visually & vocally that I have yet to hear.

There are many Christoff admirers out there & I would be happy to hear from all of them. I am still looking through my own archives for the texts to all of the Mussorgsky songs that he recorded. What I recall now is there is no other bass in the 20th Century with the variety of vocal tone color which Christoff demonstrates on his recording of all these songs. A difficult man at times for sure but those of us who have heard him only on recordings have at least not to had to deal with the contretemps involving Callas, Gobbi. Corelli! & Ghiaurov. A special bonus are the recordings he made (I believe in the 1970‘s) of sacred music with the chorus from Sofia in Bulgaria.

Thanks

I so loved Boris Christof

Fuck that's so bad ass

Merci d'avoir publier ce trésor....

Straordinario! Che emozione!

Boris Godunov fue mi primera ópera. Tenía unos seis años cuando mis padres me llevaron al Teatro Colon de Buenos Aires, y Boris Godunov era Boris Christoff!!! No puedo olvidar la escena del reloj, y por sobre todo, la muerte de Boris, su caída desde el trono...me sorprendió que luego, vivo, saliera a saludar. Toda la atmósfera rusa. Yo, a pesar de mi edad, había escuchado en discos de 78 revoluciones a Feofor Chaliapine en varias escenas de Boris. Pero lo que viví en el Colón me marcó, y Boris Godunov es una ópera que amo y me conmueve profundamente. La tengo completa por Boris Christoff.
Y querría agregar, que al escuchar con el libreto la muerte por Christoff, le da Boris una expresión de ternura hacia su hijo, y profundidad de arrepentimiento, que uno desea que,a pesar de los horrores cometidos, Dios lo escuché y perdone. Eso no pasa con los otros cantantes que escuché.

I know that there is a recording in which Boris Christoff sang Boris but also Pimen and Waarlam

Il reste pour moi, l'unique et... l' incomparable Boris. À jamais !

christoff, in my opinion, one of the best bass voice of the XX century, at the top here as in the chagrin of another "czar" in Ella giammai m'amò

Damn, that falling has been practiced well, looked pretty genuine. The one at the end, where no one catches him.

Of all the miraculous singers I have seen and heard - Vickers, Margaret Price, D F-D, Lorraine H-L …. Christoff was perhaps the greatest at projecting his voice throughout the hall / opera house.

Heartbreaking! 💔

is this video about satan?

This gives me Anastasia's Rasputin vibes 💀