SOPRANO DUET SONGBIRDS:
Jeanette Scovotti was born in New York in 1936. Her international operatic career started her with debut in 1960 at the New York City Opera as Monica in "The Medium". She sang 86 performances with The Met in the 1960s (in order: Adele, Echo, Lisa in "Sonnambula," Oscar, Xenia, Pousette, Rosina, Zerlina, Papagena, Zerbinetta, Nannetta, Olympia, Lucy in "The Telephone," Fiakermilli, Adina, and Gilda). She was frequently heard at other leading opera houses in the U.S. and in Europe and appeared in several commercial recordings in the 1970s and 1980s.
British soprano Pauline Tinsley (1928 - 2021) studied with Joan Cross and Dame Eva Turner among others and made her debut in 1961 as Desdemona in Rossini's "Otello" with a small company in London. She joined the Welsh National Opera in 1962 and the English National Opera in 1963 and sang with each for several seasons. In 1965 she became a member of Covent Garden, where she appeared as Elektra, Santuzza, Mother Marie, and Lady Billows. She sang a wide variety of lyric, dramatic, and cross-over roles, including Queen Elisabetta opposite Beverly Sills's Maria Stuarda with New York City Opera. Tinsley appeared in Hamburg, Zűrich, Vancouver, Houston, and Santa Fe.
THE MUSIC: Mozart composed "Lucio Silla" K.132 when he was 16 years old; it premiered in Milan in December 1772 to moderate success. Johann Christian Bach (1735 - 1782) was the 18th child of J.S. Bach and a prominent composer in the classical era and a slightly older contemporary to Mozart. He also composed an opera to the same libretto of "Lucio Silla" in 1776 when he was 41 years old. The duet "D'elisio in sen m'attendi" features the characters Giunia and Cecilio, both soprano roles. I encourage you to listen to JC Bach's version of the same material using the link at the end of the video.