Maria Callas: Sacred Monster by Stelios GalatopoulosReview by: Stephen WillierNotes, Second Series, Vol. 56, No. 3 (Mar., 2000), pp. 735-737Published by: Music Library AssociationStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/899690 .

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Book Reviews Book Reviews

experience. At the same time, the writing is very dense. It demands close attention, for the astute observations and analytical points that make it a superb scholarly docu- ment are deeply imbedded in the wealth of descriptive detail. I believe it is best de- scribed as a book for ethnomusicologists. Kisliuk notes that ethnographic researchers "have not been trained to distinguish be- tween self-indulgence and ethnographically relevant experience and have thereby im- paired themselves and their readers, either by avoiding reflexivity altogether or by get- ting bogged down in details that hamper the ethnographic narrative" (p. 14). She sets out in this book to tread what she feels is the right path in this kind of narrative, and she succeeds. Not only do we learn what challenges and solutions a researcher faces in the course of ethnographic work; we also learn along with her, since the mu- sic notations and descriptions of dance are presented throughout, rather than in iso- lated chapters organized around genres or styles. For decades, pygmy music has been a favorite topic for world-music courses; this book will enable instructors to present both the technical details and the social signifi- cance of the music more effectively. Selected chapters or portions of chapters will also make excellent assigned reading for students.

The few short music examples, which combine Western staff notation for the melody lines with graph-paper notation for the rhythmic parts, are models of clarity in presenting the polyphonic texture of pygmy music. It helps greatly that the recordings from which they were transcribed are in- cluded; the two accompanying compact discs contain a total of thirty-six selections of excellent quality, made with a Sony TC D5M cassette recorder. They include the fa- miliar sounds of massed vocal polyphony and more intimate recordings of two or three singers yodeling alone. They also in- clude drumming (not practiced by all pygmy groups) and segments of dances called "esime" (apparently omitted from earlier releases of pygmy music), in which the polyphonic singing gives way to an- tiphonal, shout-style singing accompanied by faster-paced drumming and dancing.

Unfortunately, the recordings are inade- quately cross-referenced to the text, and no timings are given. The selections are listed

experience. At the same time, the writing is very dense. It demands close attention, for the astute observations and analytical points that make it a superb scholarly docu- ment are deeply imbedded in the wealth of descriptive detail. I believe it is best de- scribed as a book for ethnomusicologists. Kisliuk notes that ethnographic researchers "have not been trained to distinguish be- tween self-indulgence and ethnographically relevant experience and have thereby im- paired themselves and their readers, either by avoiding reflexivity altogether or by get- ting bogged down in details that hamper the ethnographic narrative" (p. 14). She sets out in this book to tread what she feels is the right path in this kind of narrative, and she succeeds. Not only do we learn what challenges and solutions a researcher faces in the course of ethnographic work; we also learn along with her, since the mu- sic notations and descriptions of dance are presented throughout, rather than in iso- lated chapters organized around genres or styles. For decades, pygmy music has been a favorite topic for world-music courses; this book will enable instructors to present both the technical details and the social signifi- cance of the music more effectively. Selected chapters or portions of chapters will also make excellent assigned reading for students.

The few short music examples, which combine Western staff notation for the melody lines with graph-paper notation for the rhythmic parts, are models of clarity in presenting the polyphonic texture of pygmy music. It helps greatly that the recordings from which they were transcribed are in- cluded; the two accompanying compact discs contain a total of thirty-six selections of excellent quality, made with a Sony TC D5M cassette recorder. They include the fa- miliar sounds of massed vocal polyphony and more intimate recordings of two or three singers yodeling alone. They also in- clude drumming (not practiced by all pygmy groups) and segments of dances called "esime" (apparently omitted from earlier releases of pygmy music), in which the polyphonic singing gives way to an- tiphonal, shout-style singing accompanied by faster-paced drumming and dancing.

Unfortunately, the recordings are inade- quately cross-referenced to the text, and no timings are given. The selections are listed

at the end of the book in a section titled "Track Notes," but those that are tran- scribed in the text are referenced only by figure numbers, not page numbers. Selec- tions that are not transcribed have no refer- ence other than the chapter in which they are discussed. Because many readers will first listen to the compact discs and then go to the text for commentary, specific page numbers should have been included for every track.

But these are small details, only worthy of note for the sake of future publications. This book comes as close as possible to be- ing an insider's account of music in pygmy life. We learn that the repertory of dances and songs is in constant flux; new steps or rhythms come into fashion and others re- cede as people from one region learn of a new style in another and then create their own variations of it. We feel the tug of in- terpersonal relationships, sorcery, and mis- sionary activity, all pulling at the meaning of performances for the people actually in- volved. It is one thing to love the sound of pygmy music, and another to understand its role in the communities performing it. Kisliuk does an admirable job in getting us inside those communities to feel the hu- man side of the music.

RODERIC KNIGHT Oberlin College

Maria Callas: Sacred Monster. By Stelios Galatopoulos. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1998. [ix, 564 p. 0-684- 85985-8. $35.]

Over two decades after her death in 1977 at age fifty-three, Maria Callas continues to be a figure of extraordinary fascination. Remasterings of her recordings originally issued in the fifties and sixties, publication of "new" recordings discovered in the vaults, an internationally acclaimed play (Terrence McNally's Master Class), televi- sion documentaries, exhibitions of her cos- tumes and possessions, and a stream of new articles and books-all bespeak an un- abated interest in the life and art of this singer-actress.

The books are of several varieties. Some are lavish iconographical tomes that con- tain commentary and documentary materi- als of varying quality. Others are studies of

at the end of the book in a section titled "Track Notes," but those that are tran- scribed in the text are referenced only by figure numbers, not page numbers. Selec- tions that are not transcribed have no refer- ence other than the chapter in which they are discussed. Because many readers will first listen to the compact discs and then go to the text for commentary, specific page numbers should have been included for every track.

But these are small details, only worthy of note for the sake of future publications. This book comes as close as possible to be- ing an insider's account of music in pygmy life. We learn that the repertory of dances and songs is in constant flux; new steps or rhythms come into fashion and others re- cede as people from one region learn of a new style in another and then create their own variations of it. We feel the tug of in- terpersonal relationships, sorcery, and mis- sionary activity, all pulling at the meaning of performances for the people actually in- volved. It is one thing to love the sound of pygmy music, and another to understand its role in the communities performing it. Kisliuk does an admirable job in getting us inside those communities to feel the hu- man side of the music.

RODERIC KNIGHT Oberlin College

Maria Callas: Sacred Monster. By Stelios Galatopoulos. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1998. [ix, 564 p. 0-684- 85985-8. $35.]

Over two decades after her death in 1977 at age fifty-three, Maria Callas continues to be a figure of extraordinary fascination. Remasterings of her recordings originally issued in the fifties and sixties, publication of "new" recordings discovered in the vaults, an internationally acclaimed play (Terrence McNally's Master Class), televi- sion documentaries, exhibitions of her cos- tumes and possessions, and a stream of new articles and books-all bespeak an un- abated interest in the life and art of this singer-actress.

The books are of several varieties. Some are lavish iconographical tomes that con- tain commentary and documentary materi- als of varying quality. Others are studies of

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NOTES, March 2000

Callas's recorded legacy or accounts of her life and career, with music criticism super- imposed. A number of Callas's relatives, purported friends, and slight acquaintances have written books about her, claiming unique insight, and some books have been written by devoted fans. These publications range from the reverent to the scandal mongering, the most flagrant among the latter being David Bret's Maria Callas: The Tigress and the Lamb (London: Robson, 1997).

There is obviously enough interest in Callas on the part of the book-buying pub- lic to warrant all of this publishing activity. For many, though, it is not really interest so much as utter devotion and, one suspects, a need to live vicariously through her. What is the cause of this enthrallment? In The Divine Sarah: The Life of Sarah Berhardt (New York: Knopf, 1991), Arthur Gold and Robert Fizdale provide an explanation for the great Sarah Bernhardt's hold over her public, an explanation that provides insight into Callas's charisma as well:

The fascination of celebrated tragedi- ennes-from Rachel to Garbo, from Bernhardt to Callas-lies in the sugges- tive power, not only of their art, but of the lives they led. We wish to know the secrets of these hallucinatory creatures who play on our emotions, arouse our desires, and act out our fantasies. Inti- mates for an evening, they reach out and touch us with an immediacy that makes our lives seem drab in comparison. (p. 4)

Connected with this is the idea that a great tragedienne, through the medium of her role, is exposing herself personally--a courageous action that comes out of a pro- found, soul-baring honesty and leaves the artist tragically vulnerable. Because this kind of human communication-the artist letting the audience into her soul-is such a rarity, it is irresistible, and the level of self-identification with the artist is over- whelming. Thus, with the cult of Callas, there is the need to have every note she recorded and to know every detail of her life, from her musical interpretations and operatic struggles to her weight loss, ro- mantic life, concepts of fashion, and love of ice cream.

Maria Callas: Sacred Monster is a large, decorative book containing important addi- tions to Callas iconography. It is also an ac- count of the singer's life and career, with insightful music criticism. Written by some- one who was Callas's friend and confidante, particularly in the final months of her life, it is anything but scandal mongering. Although Stelios Galatopoulos discusses all of the controversies surrounding Callas and states that he has tried to present a balanced picture (pp. 8-9), his book is an apologia-against Giovanni Battista Mene- ghini, Renata Tebaldi, Rudolf Bing, Lu- chino Visconti, Evangelia Callas, Aristotle Onassis, or whoever is at issue. His presen- tation of Callas's life is mostly accurate and clear, and his musical comments are on a secure footing. His is astute, for example, about vocal and histrionic requirements for Callas's various roles and the manner in which Callas was able to fill them. His re- search has uncovered reviews, photo- graphs, and other documentation from Callas's early career in Greece. All of this adds to our understanding of the central issue in exploring and explaining the singer -the complex interrelationship between her life and art. A number of Callas's friends and colleagues believe that for her, life and art become a folie a deux that led to her downfall and death; they see her life as a perfect Greek tragedy. Galatopoulos has a different view.

The author's proclaimed friendship with Callas needs to be examined in some de- tail, for on it hangs the authority and value of this volume. Galatopoulos first met Callas in August 1947, when she was mak- ing her Italian debut as Gioconda in the Verona Arena. He dates his real friendship with her from 1957; after her separation from Meneghini, she began to confide more in Galatopoulos, although never about Onassis. With the publication of his book Callas: Prima Donna Assoluta (London: Allen, 1976), his friendship with her be- came "much closer" (p. 3). From January 1977, she began to phone him often, and the author began to visit her in Paris, where she was much more open about her per- sonal life. Galatopoulos states unequivo- cally that "The true facts about her relation- ship with her family, Meneghini and Onassis-and, more importantly, what led

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Book Reviews

this highly disciplined, intelligent and rather puritanical woman to break her own rules-are recorded for the first time in this book" (p. 4). In July 1977, Galatopoulos told her of his plans for another book about her, a picture documentary. She sub- sequently left the room and returned with a photograph of her April 1939 operatic de- but as Santuzza in Cavalleria rusticana and another from August 1942 showing her in the assassination scene from Tosca. These are included in the present volume; along with others from her early career (pp. 57- 74, one of several sets of photographs), they are great rarities, adding significantly to the importance of this book.

Soon after, on 16 September 1977, Callas died. At that point, Galatopoulos aban- doned the idea of a picture book. Instead, he began to work on a volume that would explore the singer's life and artistry and at- tempt to set the record straight on a central question: Did Callas the woman, in pursuit of Onassis, stop Callas the artist from singing, or was it her growing vocal prob- lems that curbed her artistic career? On this issue, Galatopoulos holds the minority opinion: "She would unhesitatingly have sacrificed all for the sake of her art" (p. 9). By 1977, two years after the death of Onassis and nearly two decades after he and Callas first met, the singer must have had a more rational perspective on him, but this should not have led Galatopoulos to believe that Onassis had been of only passing importance to her life and career. At the very least, he became the refuge for her when her voice abandoned her, al- though some go further and blame him for her vocal deterioration. But who really knows the truth?

One of the problems with Galatopoulos's claims of inside information is that the reader is meant to accept the accuracy of certain statements supposedly made to the author on occasions a number of years apart. For example, after a lengthy quota- tion from Callas about her childhood, Galatopoulos merely tells us that "These were Maria Callas's reflections in 1961 ... and ... 1977" (p. 12). But what is the source? Is it written or oral? Are we to believe everything the author puts into Callas's mouth because he claims to have spent so much time with her?

In speaking of the importance for her ca- reer of Michel Glotz, a producer for EMI in Paris, Galatopoulos writes that "It was his encouragement that led to a new spate of Callas on disc. She had already recorded for him with success two recitals of French arias and was later to follow with a third" (p. 351). Can this be correct? As of now, the world knows nothing of a third French recital. As to Callas's recordings, there is lit- tle in this book about the central role Walter Legge of EMI played in Callas's ca- reer, and none of Legge's writings on Callas are listed in the bibliography.

Galatopoulos's book is worthwhile above all for its attractiveness, the plethora of photographs (many published here for the first time), the readable narrative of her life and career, and the intelligent music com- mentary. It is controversial in its view of the place of certain men in Callas's life- notably Visconti and Onassis-and in the various personal insights that Callas pur- portedly related to the author during her last months. There is an annotated discog- raphy in which the author tells us (p. 512) that tapes exist of Callas in Tristan und Isolde from 1948 and Die Walkiire from 1949, but these have not been made avail- able. There is also a list of videorecordings, a list of recordings of live concerts, a chronology of performances, a bibliogra- phy, and an index.

The best discussions of Callas the musi- cian-for in the end, this is what she will remain to us-are Michael Scott's Maria Meneghini Callas (Boston: Northeastern University Press, 1992); John Ardoin's The Callas Legacy (rev. ed. [New York: Scribner, 1982]); the introduction to Ardoin and Gerald Fitzgerald's Callas (London: Thames and Hudson, 1974); and chapter 13, "Singing for the Imagination," in

Jirgen Kesting's Maria Callas (trans. John Hunt [Boston: Northeastern University Press, 1993]). Even more important than reading about Callas, however, is listening to her. As Scott notes at the conclusion of his book, "Her records survive, and that is enough" (Scott, 249).

STEPHEN WILLIER

Temple University

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