‘The Art of 7 and 3’ contains the lives of artists who left behind beautiful music and outstanding paintings. 7 and 3 mean the 7th tone of doremifasolasi, the ‘three primary colors of light’: red, green and blue. All works that move and move people’s hearts are born from these 7 tones and 3 primary colors. Thinking regarding how to combine them and displaying the result is art.
If Season 1, which was serialized earlier, introduced the lives and philosophies of artists, Season 2 tells the story of various arts such as classic, fine art, and dance contained in movies under the subtitle ‘Cinematic Art’.
What exactly does the term ‘Prima Donna’ mean? It means ‘first lady’ in Italian, and refers to a person who plays the female lead in an opera. Most opera heroines are performed by sopranos, who have the highest vocal range among female singers. It is not an easy task as you have to sing the high notes well and have good acting skills as well.
When it comes to choosing the most outstanding and most loved prima donna in the world, I think I can say this person. This is Maria Callas (1923-1977), called the ‘legendary diva’. The word diva itself, which means ‘goddess’, also refers to the most popular soprano.
Aria from the opera ‘Tosca’ sung by Maria Callas, ‘I live by the song, I live by the love’./Warner Classic YouTube channel
Tom Wolf’s documentary ‘Maria Callas: The Diva of the Century’ (2019) is a work regarding Callas’ song and love story. It consists of a video of Callas’ opera performance, an interview video, and an unpublished memoir. You can enjoy the beautiful and pure high notes that Callas exudes, as well as feel his passionate attitude.
Callas’ life is often compared to the title of a song. It’s called ‘Live by the song, live by the love’. This is an aria from the opera ‘Tosca’ by Giacomo Puccini, which is considered Callas’ debut and representative work. Just like the title of this song, Callas’ life was all regarding songs and love.
Callas was born in New York, USA. Callas was born following her parents immigrated from Greece. Callas belonged to a middle-class family, but from an early age he had to suffer from his mother-in-law. It is said that his parents, who had hoped for a son, were greatly disappointed when Callas was born as their daughter.
Being fat since childhood, Callas was often the target of teasing. Even following he became an adult, he put on a lot of his weight for a while. He worked hard for acting and lost 30kg.
Callas suffered because of her extraordinary talent. His mother recognized Callas’ natural talent and made his musical education rigorous. It was too much of a process for young Callas to handle. Fortunately, however, Callas loved music. He healed and overcame his wounds by singing.
The aria ‘Oh, my beloved father’ from the opera ‘Gianni Schiki’ sung by Maria Callas./Medici TV YouTube channel
When he was 14, his parents divorced. This led Callas to follow his mother to Greece. It was here that Callas met soprano Elvira de Hidalgo and learned various singing techniques. Callas’ voice was rather low and thick for a soprano, but he gradually improved with the help of Hidalgo.
Callas’ relentless efforts also paid off. Callas was always by Hidalgo’s side even when he wasn’t taking lessons. He even grasped the points pointed out by other students and digested them as his own. Thanks to this, Callas has been known since his student days.
He made his debut as Tosca in ‘Tosca’ at the age of 19. When he was 24 years old, he went to Italy and gained a lot of popularity with ‘La Zoconda’.
My biggest opportunity came when I was 27. I entered the Teatro alla Scala, Italy’s leading opera house. At that time, La Scala theater star soprano Renata Tebaldi suddenly collapsed a few days before her appearance in the opera ‘Aida’. Callas was rushed in as a substitute for Tebaldi. Even though he didn’t have enough practice to perform, his stage captivated the audience. <노인과 바다> The novelist Ernest Hemingway, who wrote the back, praised it as “a typhoon with a golden voice.”
Since then, Callas has been active. He appeared in 46 operas, including ‘Madame Butterfly’ and ‘Carmen’. He even recorded all arias from 20 operas.
The aria ‘Pure Goddess’ from the opera ‘Norma’ sung by Maria Callas./Warner Classic YouTube Channel
But it wasn’t all good things. Crisis also came. When he turned 35, he took part in a performance of ‘Norma’ at the Rome Opera House. Numerous celebrities, including the President of Italy, came to see the performance.
However, right before the performance, he contracted bronchitis and his voice barely came out. He took medicine and managed to get on stage, but eventually stopped. Callas was heavily criticized for this. Fortunately, following recovering his health, Callas made a spectacular comeback in France, not Italy.
Even the seemingly beautiful love was fatal to Callas. When he was 26, he married Giovanni Battista Meneghini, a businessman 27 years his senior. At first, it appeared to be a smooth marriage. Meneghini took on the role of Callas’ manager and actively helped. But in fact, it is known that Callas siphoned off the money he earned.
Callas got divorced when she was 36 years old. The reason for her divorce is that at the age of 34 she met a man and she fell in love. Her opponent was Aristotle Onassis, who was called the ‘Ship King’ of Greece. Callas is infatuated with Onassis, who is rich, free-spirited and charming.
But this love was also tragic. Callas wanted her to marry Onassis, with whom she had been in a relationship for ten years. But one day, she suddenly heard that Onassis was marrying another woman. The woman was Jacqueline Kennedy, the wife of US President John F. Kennedy.
How did it feel to be thoroughly betrayed by a loved one? In ‘Tosca’, Tosca is deeply saddened by her suspicion that Cavaradossi, the painter she loves, is dating her other woman. Callas must have remembered her Tosca at that moment.
After the marriage, Onassis missed Callas once more and tried to divorce Jacqueline. But while she was preparing for her divorce, she passed away, and Callas was shocked by her unfulfilled love.
After that, he continued his sedentary life in Paris. He eventually suffered from depression and drug addiction, which led to his death from a heart attack at the age of 54. There were even rumors of suicide.
Callas, who sang more passionately than anyone else and loved passionately. Why don’t you listen to his song and fall into the whirlpool of passionate emotions? Callas said: “My memoirs are contained in my songs. It’s the only language I can speak.”
Reporter Kim Hee-kyung hkkim@hankyung.com
