Overture
Maria Callas has not only pivotally shaped the way opera is performed nowadays, but also firmly established the definition of a diva outside the stage for the next generations to come. Even though she was celebrated as a coloratura soprano, her dramatic range and versatility made it impossible for her to fit into typical categorizations. Uncoincidentally, her personality benefited from a multifaceted view : while some called her temperamental and difficult to collaborate with ,others saw in her passion in its purest form. Consequently, when it comes to the equivocal “Callas sound” , one should know it’s not just referring to vocal qualities ,but defining a lifestyle.
Act 1
Maria Callas was born on the 2nd of December 1923 ,in New York City, to Greek immigrant parents .She spent the early years of her childhood in New York, before moving back to Greece with her mother and sister in 1937.After moving to Athens, Maria Callas studied at the Athens Conservatory, where she began her formal vocal training, this being just the beginning of a life long journey of trying to reach perfection in vocal interpretation :” I was not born with a voice. I had to work at it”. She made her first professional debut at the Athens Opera House at the age of 18 as Santuzza in Cavaleria Rusticanna by Pietro Mascagni. However, Callas’s early performances were not without challenges. Critics initially described her voice as being overly thick, and her dramatic talents were not yet fully formed. In the mid-1940s she moved to Italy and after further study in Florence with Giovanni Inghillieri ,Maria began to truly refine her technique and vocal abilities. In 1947 at Teatro alla Scala di Milano , the major breakthrough of her career took place ,performing the role of Elvira in Puritani by Vicenzio Bellini. Consequently, the sublime power in her voice was immediately acknowledged by the worldwide public, following numerous interpretations which gained her the undeniable title of one of the greatest operatic sopranos of the 20th century.
Act 2
Maria Callas revolutionized modern opera by blending technical mastery with intense emotional depth, transforming the way singers approach dramatic expression. When it comes to what Maria Callas has left behind, this extends far beyond her extraordinary vocal and dramatic achievements .Of course, her legacy is shaped accordingly to the values she followed during her life. To illustrate, due to her generous nature and great concern for education of young talents in the field of opera and classical music several scholarships were instituted: Maria Callas Scholarship Fund (Greece) and Callas Foundation Scholarships (both in Europe and in the US).In addition, institutions such as the Juilliard School in New York or the Royal Conservatory of Music in London have had programs that honour Callas through scholarships for opera students.
Act 3
There are multiple museums(Maria Callas Museum in Athens), exhibitions(Maria Callas: The Voice of the Century-held in Paris ,London ,Tokyo etc. ) and cultural sites (Arena di Verona) that honour her memory all around the world. All these are trying to capture the manner in which she looked at the world and maintain this vision alive . What is truly fascinating, however, is that after exploring any of these glimpses into her life, you’ll discover that Maria Callas’s taste in art, fashion, and even men, feels more contemporary than ever.
Finale
Finally , a key element to complete the profile of Maria Callas as an artist not only in opera, but in life is the fact that she suffered from a mysterious loss of voice , leading to a premature end of her career. Being a perfectionist and a true adept of the interdependency between music and soul -“I do not have a voice. I have a soul”- she had great difficulties in dealing with this impediment. Thus, she spent the last years of her life in complete isolation in Paris, dying at the age of 53 from a heart attack. Some believe the cause of her vocal illness were the challenging pieces she performed during her early career ,while other blame it on the unfortunate ending of her love story with Aristotle Onasis. However , what is certain is that no matter what the cause was, the consequences were clear from the beginning : “I have lived my life for opera and will die for it. When I’m gone, I will have no regrets”.
Sara Ana Popescu
