Queen Leontyne Thrills Her Subjects

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Leontyne Price in recital, with pianist Neal Goren, in Seattle Symphony Distinguished Artist series; Opera House, last night.

Those who say America is a country without royalty obviously were not in the Seattle Opera House last night, when Queen Leontyne Price presided over a crowd of enraptured subjects.

The House of Windsor might vainly pray for the kind of approval ratings Price racked up last night, too, in a recital that spanned several centuries and four languages. Striding out onto the stage in a beaded white gown - and, after intermission, in a beaded gown of brilliant fuchsia - Price displayed a face, a form and (most of all) a voice that have virtually defied age.

At 68, most former opera stars are fondly turning the pages in their scrapbooks, entertaining respectful students, perhaps occasionally tossing darts at photos of their old rival divas. At 68, Price is still knocking 'em dead on the stage. She makes no concessions to age, asks no quarter, takes no shortcuts. Those arias fans heard last night were all in their original keys with their original high notes; not for Price the gradual downward transpositions as the top voice fails.

No, she does not sound quite as great as she sounded in her prime. There are inevitable signs of age in her voice production and "scooping" vocal mannerisms - but darned few of them. There's still a whole lot of voice left, in size and amplitude and control. Who would have dreamed that a soprano of this age can still float that high B in "Summertime," much less the other lofty challenges of arias from "La Forza del Destino" and "Adriana Lecouvreur"?

Always a great beauty, Price actually looks better than her photographs, and she has trimmed down since her last appearance here. Few who saw her on the stage would guess her age.

It took courage for Price to reschedule this concert shortly after the untimely death of her regular accompanist, David Garvey, who was the diva's pianist for four decades. Pianist Neal Goren, who accompanied the diva last night, was not an equally inspired partner. Surely he must have had to learn some of the program at short notice, but this was no excuse for overpedaling arias by Handel (from "Giulio Cesare") and Mozart (from "Idomeneo").

Nonetheless, Price appeared at ease with Goren and the program, which also included five songs of Joseph Marx, a French set (Poulenc's "C" and "Violon", Duparc's "Le Manoir de Rosemonde," Hahn's "Le printemps"), two Lee Hoiby songs, Margaret Bond's "Minstrel Man" and Celius Dougherty's "Everyone Sang." Price wound up the regular program with her inimitable take on the spiritual "Ride On, King Jesus," and went on to three encores (arias from "Madame Butterfly," "Porgy and Bess" and "Adriana Lecouvreur").

Out poured that amazing voice, and on went the ovations. Reveling in the applause, basking in the cheers, Price flashed that thousand-watt smile, blew kisses, gestured her gratitude and beamed out queenly rays in every direction. It was enough to make you re-think the terms of our Constitution: don't we really need a queen? Wouldn't she do at least as well as the current administration?