Talk:Anna Moffo

Death hoax
An anonymous user posted that Anna Moffo died March 9, 2006. Searching The New York Times archives, amongst others, shows no reference to Moffo having died. The only recent reference is a note of her appearance at a gala charity event at the St. Regis Ballroom on March 7, 2006. Thus, this appears to be a hoax. David Hoag 16:36, 10 March 2006 (UTC)
 * It hasn't hit the mainstage papers yet. It's my understanding an official announcement will be made later (by later, I'm not certain if that is today or later this week. In the case of Nilsson, it wasn't announced officially till much later than the event to give the family bareavement time). 38.117.182.130 19:20, 10 March 2006 (UTC)
 * If this has not been documented, then it's unsubstantiated gossip at this point and doesn't belong in an encyclopedia article. Wiki articles need to be sourced. If it is indeed true, the article can be amended once an announcement is made. David Hoag 19:42, 10 March 2006 (UTC)
 * Anonymous user(s), please do not continue to add this information; Wikipedia is a tertiary source. We are not "the first to get the news" (although we're often the first to synthesize the news into a coherent summary, in cases of active news stories a la Hurricane Katrina); we must wait until the news is published in another verifiable source.  Please respect our policies (not to mention the family's bereavement time), and you're welcome to add the date and expand the article as soon as other sources confirm your news.


 * If you continue to contradict our policy, this page will be protected. Thank you for your cooperation.  &mdash; Catherine\talk 02:14, 11 March 2006 (UTC)


 * http://www.metoperafamily.org/operanews/news/pressrelease.aspx?id=1132 and http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wire/newyork/ny-bc-ny--obit-moffo0310mar10,0,4150824.story?coll=ny-region-apnewyork It has been documented.216.254.64.199 02:52, 11 March 2006 (UTC)

Age is wrong in obits
Both obits have her age wrong. She was born in 1930, not 1933. I know this because she went to high school with one of my parents. IMDb has a different incorrect age. David Hoag 04:38, 11 March 2006 (UTC)


 * June 27, 1932 IS THE CORRECT BIRTHDATE!!!!!!!! This is what the NY Times Obit and every other obit says.  The biography of Anna Moffo "Anna Moffo Una Carriera Italo-Americana" by Mario G. Genesi on page 13 also gives June 27, 1932 as her date of birth.  This book was written with the assistance of her first husband BTW.  I could list dozens of other pre-death sources for her correct birth year.  I have a student concert program featuring Moffo from January 10, 1955.  It states that she is 22 years old and graduated from Radnor High in 1950.  That means she was born in 1932! If you want to rewrite history we need more proof than "My pa went to school with her therefore I know better than everyone else in the world." Please leave the editing of this article to people who know something about her!! Thank You. Feel free to email me if you like. moffofan@gmail.com


 * Please note that I did not state "therefore I know better than everyone else in the world." A number of sources cite Ms. Moffo's birthyear as 1930 -- including Halliwell's and Zaba -- and some also note she fudged her age. The only source that cites it as 1932 is the Grove Dictionary of Music, which was picked up and repeated by the various obit writers. Her New York State voter registation reports her birthyear as 1930, which Zaba uses as its source. As well, Ms. Moffo graduated from Radnor in 1947, not 1950. I have seen the Radnor High School 1947 Yearbook with her picture, so either she graduated from high school when she was fifteen or some fudging occured. Wiki is an encyclopedia and strives to be objective and factual; it is not a fanpage. When discrepencies occur, they are repoted. In a few months, now that she has died, her data will appear on Social Security records, and her date can be checked against that. Thank you, David Hoag 18:23, 11 March 2006 (UTC)


 * An article in the June 28, 2004, issue of the New York Daily News notes that "Soprano Anna Moffo celebrated her 74th birthday last evening with friends at the home of Metropolitan Opera general manager Joseph Volpe." David Hoag 18:46, 11 March 2006 (UTC)

Ok, I can wait to see what the Social Security death index has to say. At least the article now has the bday covered one way or another. I know there have been conflicting bdays reported. I have also seen 1927 (World Almanac, not sure if the new editions still say 1927), and 1935 (EMI La Bellissima CD) listed as year of birth. It is hard to believe that she was fudging as early as 1955. Incidentally, I have seen other government documentation that says 1932. Someone should check the microfilm of the Wayne area newspapers for her birth announcement. I don't want this article to be a fan page either, just as accurate as possible. If you're wrong you owe me a Coke. Sorry I was rude before, it's been a rough 24 hours. Thank You

What this wiki and NYT obituary do not say ...
... is that nearly everything Moffo recorded (before the problems with voice) is in a category per se, and is NEVER matched by other singers, either of her time or later (disregarding their 'celebrity status').

There was no media coverage (or shopping frenzy) following her death, as in the case of Callas, or some other singers, this is regrettable but ... huh... media, just like our momentary bothers, don't make the history. This may be regarded a 'fan posting', but i have a different point.

Allowing that 'pleasing to the ear' is very subjective measurement, Moffo's natural delivery can't be missed, especially in comparison with other (celebrated ) recordings. The beauty speaks for itself; of it doesn't, in the art of music, there are measurable things, such as accuracy (music, tempo...), diction, etc. Regarding the poor state of singing nowadays, in the world generally, I think, Anna Moffo should be made a much bigger role model for aspiring singers. Her singing technique, reasons for the loss of voice (especially if they come out of the technique), and  e v e r y t h i n g   related to her singing, should be (much, much!) closer studied. That way, the world would become a better place for heaving her!

Branko B. Sydney —Preceding unsigned comment added by 220.101.187.65 (talk) 12:42, 31 August 2008 (UTC)

Thais recording
BBC Radio 3 aired a programme a few months ago about poor-quality and poor-taste classical recordings. It cited La Moffo's RCA Thais as being notoriously disastrous, frequently off-key, underpowered and consequently very patched-together. The extracts played certainly bore this out. The programme suggested that its release was somehow the result of nepotism but that, ultimately, it did the diva no favours. Indeed, the impression conveyed was that it sullied her reputation and made her something of a laughing stock in the recording industry subsequently. I haven't been able to track down the programme yet and can't supply any supporting references, so I'm gossiping, I suspect, in Wiki terms here, but does anyone have any further information? Bhasi23 (talk) 12:08, 4 October 2008 (UTC)

Breakdown
So, she suffered an unrecoverable from breakdown in 1968? or 1974? Both dates are given.Gimelgort (talk) 18:34, 26 May 2015 (UTC)