DIY History | Transcribe | Campus Culture | Cecile Cooper newspaper clippings, 1966-1987 | ""Simon Estes, Iowa Baritone, Shows Talent""

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Cecile Cooper newspaper clippings, 1966-1987

""Simon Estes, Iowa Baritone, Shows Talent""

It was a pleasure to hear Simon Estes again Sunday afternoon when he appeared at North High School as featured soloist with the Des Moines Symphony Orchestra. 

The Iowa-born and educated bass-baritone, who has carved a considerable singing career in the country and abroad, indeed has a voice to be reckoned with. Only a few months ago this reviewer heard Estes in Chicago when he sang a supporting role in Verdi's opera "Macbeth."

Left Tentative, Limited Impression.
 Partially because it was  supporting role with only one big aria and partially because it's not easy to get acquainted on such limited, exposure, he left a rather limited and tentative impression.
 On the basis of the five important arias he sang with the Des Moines Symphony Sunday afternoon, the picture of Estes as a singer was fleshed out considerably and, we hasten to add, in a most pleasurable manner. 
His is a voice that is not large but absolutely true and he uses it with intelligence and discrimination. Because it is not a particularly large voice, one suspect it's best suited to smaller houses than, say, to the Metropolitan Opera or the Chicago Lyric. 
In the one aria he sang in Chicago this writer felt Estes was trying to fill a space too large for his voice. 

Natural, Effective use of His Voice. 
This was not the case North High School where Estes never had to force and could use his voice naturally and to great effect. 
His repertory was aired and calculated to display his voice at its most sombre and dramatic pitch as well as in sections where elasticity and nimble phrasing were all-important.
 In King Phillip's aria from Verdi's "Don Carlo" ("Ella Gamma M'Amo") and "In diesen heil'gen Hallen" from Mozart's "The Magic Flute" he displayed the dramatic qualities of his bass-briton timbre quite convincingly. 
The Mozart aria demands that the singer plumb the depths of the bass range and Estes showed he could do so without loss of resonance. 
In this and in the aria from "Done Carlo" he served notice that two among the most dramatic arias in the whole bass-baritone operatic repertory are well within his competence.

 Proved Versatility in Two Arias. 
Having done so, Estes went on to prove he is also an extremely versatile artist whose voice can be nimble and expressive as well as rich and resonant. 
He accomplished this by singing the famous Catalogue Aria from Mozart's "Don Giovanni" the "Non Piu Andrai" from that composer's "The Marriage of Figaro" and Mesphisto's serenade from Gounod's "Faust."
These all require dexterity, fine diction and all the ability to project expressively and convincingly the intent of the music and lyrics. We were particularly taken with the manner in which Estes rendered the aria Leoporello. He met all the requirements so the total effect was the proper mixture of humor and rapid-fire impudence.
 It should be added that Estes sang it in Italian and his mastery of this language, at least his mastery of that which he sings, is unusually good. 
Des Moines Symphony Played Kabalevsky.
 The Des Moines Symphony, Willis Pageconducting, was heard in Kabalevsky's overture to "Colas Breugnon," the Symphony No. 31 od Mozart, and, finally, in a rousing interpretation of Respighi's "Pines of Rome." 
Estes, who was born and reared in Des Moines and attended the University of Iowa at Iowa City, now makes his home in New York. 
He gained international recognition in 1966 when he won  third prize in the Tchaikovsky International Vocal Contest in Moscow, Russia, an has performed on opera and concert stages here and in Europe.

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It was a pleasure to hear Simon Estes again Sunday afternoon when he appeared at North High School as featured soloist with the Des Moines Symphony Orchestra. The Iowa-born and educated bass-baritone, who has carved a considerable singing career in the country and abroad, indeed has a voice to be reckoned with. Only a few months ago this reviewer heard Estes in Chicago when he sang a supporting role in Verdi's opera "Macbeth." Left Tentative, Limited Impression. Partially because it was supporting role with only one big aria and partially because it's not easy to get acquainted on such limited, exposure, he left a rather limited and tentative impression. On the basis of the five important arias he sang with the Des Moines Symphony Sunday afternoon, the picture of Estes as a singer was fleshed out considerably and, we hasten to add, in a most pleasurable manner. His is a voice that is not large but absolutely true and he uses it with intelligence and discrimination. Because it is not a particularly large voice, one suspect it's best suited to smaller houses than, say, to the Metropolitan Opera or the Chicago Lyric. In the one aria he sang in Chicago this writer felt Estes was trying to fill a space too large for his voice. Natural, Effective use of His Voice. This was not the case North High School where Estes never had to force and could use his voice naturally and to great effect. His repertory was aired and calculated to display his voice at its most sombre and dramatic pitch as well as in sections where elasticity and nimble phrasing were all-important. In King Phillip's aria from Verdi's "Don Carlo" ("Ella Gamma M'Amo") and "In diesen heil'gen Hallen" from Mozart's "The Magic Flute" he displayed the dramatic qualities of his bass-briton timbre quite convincingly. The Mozart aria demands that the singer plumb the depths of the bass range and Estes showed he could do so without loss of resonance. In this and in the aria from "Done Carlo" he served notice that two among the most dramatic arias in the whole bass-baritone operatic repertory are well within his competence. Proved Versatility in Two Arias. Having done so, Estes went on to prove he is also an extremely versatile artist whose voice can be nimble and expressive as well as rich and resonant. He accomplished this by singing the famous Catalogue Aria from Mozart's "Don Giovanni" the "Non Piu Andrai" from that composer's "The Marriage of Figaro" and Mesphisto's serenade from Gounod's "Faust." These all require dexterity, fine diction and all the ability to project expressively and convincingly the intent of the music and lyrics. We were particularly taken with the manner in which Estes rendered the aria Leoporello. He met all the requirements so the total effect was the proper mixture of humor and rapid-fire impudence. It should be added that Estes sang it in Italian and his mastery of this language, at least his mastery of that which he sings, is unusually good. Des Moines Symphony Played Kabalevsky. The Des Moines Symphony, Willis Pageconducting, was heard in Kabalevsky's overture to "Colas Breugnon," the Symphony No. 31 od Mozart, and, finally, in a rousing interpretation of Respighi's "Pines of Rome." Estes, who was born and reared in Des Moines and attended the University of Iowa at Iowa City, now makes his home in New York. He gained international recognition in 1966 when he won third prize in the Tchaikovsky International Vocal Contest in Moscow, Russia, an has performed on opera and concert stages here and in Europe.