Opera singer knew the dramatic touch
By Bill Rea

Maria Callas’s career was short, as was her life, but she made a lasting impact on the world of opera with her versatile voice and skills as a performer.

King City resident Prof. Igor Babchine outlined the story of her talent and career recently, delivering one of the lectures in Arts Festival King.

Calles, who lived from 1923 until 1977, is remembered as the best soprano of the 20th century, although Babchine indicated her range was broader than that might suggest.

One Italian critic once referred to her as “a star that wandered into a solar system not of her own.”

Calles was born in New York City in December 1923, although her exact birth date isn’t known, and no one can say for sure why that is. She celebrated her birthday Dec. 2, her mother said it was Dec. 4 and her passport said it was Dec. 3. Babchine thought it had something to do with the fact she had an older brother who died in Greece before she was born. He said her parents were hoping for another son, and it was such a “huge disappointment” when she turned out to be a girl that her mother probably neglected to register the birth.

Babchine said Maria’s father had been a successful owner of a pharmacy in Greece, while her mother was from a wealthy family. Her mother had been one of seven children, very energetic and charismatic, who like to be on stage.

Callas took music lessons from about 1930 until 1937, while the impacts of the Depression were being felt by the family. Her father was forced to sell his pharmacy and become a travelling salesman. As well, her parents’ marriage hit the rocks, as there were disputes about money.

Her mother took her two daughters back to Greece, and tried to find training for Maria. Maria Trivella, of the Greek National Conservatoire, was so impressed that she agreed to train her without charge.

Babchine said young Maria didn’t always make the most positive impressions in those days. He said she was about five feet eight, and a little clumsy, dressed poorly and bit her nails. But when she sang, she put forth raw emotion and drama.

Callas was stuck in Athens during the Second World War, but she still continued to study under Trivella, who became a lifelong mentor for her. Despite the war, she still received vocal training, and managed to extend her range, which had been limited when she started. “This progressed at a rate that was incredible,” Babchine commented.

Callas graduated from the school in 1945, and Trivella advised her to leave Greece, telling her it was a place to end a career, not start one. Callas opted for New York, although she learned her fame in Greece didn’t travel well across the Atlantic.

Babchine said she wasn’t able to secure her first engagement until 1947, and it was another five months before her second. But her talent slowly became well known, as Babchine pointed to her ability to give “all the right profile to the characters.”

Although she was naturally a soprano, she was able to colour her voice to contralto, depending on her part, but the listeners always knew it was her.

“She was always finding those specific colours that she thought would be best,” Babchine said, adding her practice included studying the music to determine how best to colour her voice. Her range always allowed her to master the technical and artistic demands.

She also benefitted from a great memory, meaning she was able to take on roles sometimes with five days notice and one dress rehearsal. Yet she also had anxieties. Babchine said Callas couldn’t enjoy what she had accomplished because she was constantly thinking back to her performance and realizing all she could have done to make it better.

Callas’s voice was a huge controversy from the start of her career, Babchine observed, because it broke a lot of traditions.

“That was the voice she was born with,” he said, “and that she could not change.”

He added she put a lot of effort into perfecting what she could, including her technique, and working with her artistic intuitions, which never really failed her, and dramatic ability.

“The voice of the century, she was justly called.”