Montserrat Caballé sings Granados, Donizetti, and Bellini

Between 1963 and 1971, the program Prestige de la musique celebrated classical music on French television, with the greatest performers taking to the Salle Pleyel alongside the ORTF Orchestra, now known as the Radio France Philharmonic Orchestra. This archive from 1966 honors one of the greatest singers of the twentieth century, Montserrat Caballé.

Nicknamed “the queen of bel canto” or “la Superba”, Caballé rose to prominence thanks to her astonishing vocal technique, which swiftly secured her place among the finest singers of her generation. Her career reached a turning point in 1965 when she stepped in at the last minute to replace mezzo-soprano Marilyn Horne in the title role of Donizetti’s Lucrezia Borgia at Carnegie Hall. The opera world discovered a supple, agile, and highly expressive voice, ideally suited to the nuances of bel canto. In this recital, she performs an excerpt from Goyescas by her compatriot Granados, as well as several essential pieces from the Italian repertoire: Roberto Devereux (“Vivi ingrato a lei d'accanto”) and Anna Bolena (“Piangete voi”) by Donizetti; Il Pirata ("Oh s'io potessi... Col sorriso d’innocenza ”) by Bellini.