Soprano Montserrat Caballé celebrates the 50th anniversary of her debut at Barcelona’s Liceu

Barcelona (ACN).- On Tuesday evening, the Liceu Theatre paid tribute to Montserrat Caballé who celebrated her 50 year relationship with the emblematic Barcelona opera house. Tuesday was an emotional day for the internationally renowned Catalan soprano singer who made her debut in 1962 in the Gran Teatre del Liceu: in the morning she unveiled an exhibition on her artistic career at Barcelona’s opera house, and in the evening she performed in a very special concert. ‘Una altra nit de Montserrat Caballé’ – ‘Another night of Montserrat Caballé’ - was Caballé’s 219^th concert at Barcelona’s Gran Teatre del Liceu, located on Les Rambles. It was also one of the most emotional performances, in which friends, colleagues, and pupils accompanied the soprano on stage.

On January 7^th 1962, a then 28-year-old Montserrat Caballé made her debut at the Gran Teatre del Liceu with ‘Arabella’ by Richard Strauss. Since that day, the bond between Barcelona’s opera temple and the Catalan soprano has never faded and has even been strengthened by the diva’s involvement during times of difficulty for the institution. Last night’s performance was 78 year old Caballé’s 219^th at the Liceu.

The new recital the soprano offered on Tuesday (‘Another night of Montserrat Caballé’) was the perfect end to a very special day. In the morning, the bel canto diva from Barcelona unveiled a commemorative exhibition on her career at the Liceu, an exhibition located in the same venue, in the Liceu’s foyer. A triple CD with her historic recordings has also been released, including her best arias sung at the Liceu from 1964 to 2002.

Sheltered by friends, colleagues, and pupils

The concert included an unusual repertory: a succession of arias and operatic fragments characteristic of the history of bel canto and also those important for the artistic trajectory of Caballé. The soprano dressed in red and leaning on a black walking stick, did not sing much and preferred to give the leading role to her ‘guests’ of the night.

Caballé introduced the guests between each piece, recalling personal and artistic moments and leaving the way clear for her diverse collaborators. Among them, the public enjoyed the performances of her daughter and soprano, Montserrat Martí, tenor Josep Carreras, soprano Maria Gallego or baritones Carlos Álvarez and Joan Pons, as well as pieces sung by some of her disciples in the “technique of the architecture of sound”, as she herself defines it.

Caballé sung Carmen’s habanera for the first time at the Liceu

The evening started with Caballé singing the famous habanera from the opera ‘Carmen’ by Bizet, a piece that the diva had never performed at the Liceu, which she pointed out (it is composed for a mezzo-soprano and not a soprano). Caballé joked with the smiling audience when she said she hoped the musical piece “did not go wrong”.

Gratitude from the Catalan Minister for Culture

Prior to the concert, the Catalan Minister for Culture, Ferran Mascarell, gave a heartfelt speech where he did not hide the friendship he shares with Montserrat Caballé. The Catalan Minister’s gratitude was reinforced by the appearance of the soprano next to Mascarell, who held his hand, listened and appeared emotional.

Mascarell praised the Catalan diva. “It is a great honour to express on behalf of everybody the gratitude for what you have achieved and for what you mean to all of us. Thank you for the enormous amount of beauty that you have built with your voice and for the tremendous amount of happiness that you have been able to create and give us”.

The Catalan Minister described Caballé as an “irreplaceable figure in the opera world” who has made Catalonia “singular but also more universal than ever”. “Thank you for having lifted the name of our country, of our city and of the Gran Teatre del Liceu”, Mascarell added.

Caballé thanked the audience for its support over the years and said that “in her heart” she knows she does not deserve as much recognition as the public.