Sherrill Milnes

Milnes was, for decades a leading baritone at the Metropolitan Opera and someone I watched dozens of times as he helped define many, many of the great roles in opera.
As a huge opera fan, I was eager for lots of behind the scenes stories. He does recount many and there are some genuinely “laugh out loud” moments (which is particularly awkward on a bus or subway!). The most personal and moving chapter is the “Decade of Panic” in which he describes the chronic throat ailment that ultimately derailed his Met career.
That said, the book was disappointing. In many ways it’s just a catalog of events in his life and career with no real analysis. He glosses over the major events (both personal and professional), not so much describing them, but listing them. Several of the stories he recounts are done so in a fairly blatantly self-serving way. For example, he clearly has an ax to grind with some of the folks at the Met and those stories and people are presented with a very obvious bias. I also would have liked to read a bit more of his thoughts on music, opera and his roles. Still, it was a fun read.
P.S. If anyone was an "Odd Couple" fan, you might be interested to know that, gleaning from the book, I'm guessing that Milnes was the baritone originally cast for the "Rigoletto" episode - the one in which Richard Fredricks starred.… (more)