American contralto Claramae Turner studied at San Francisco, making her debut there in 1942 as the voice of a boy in L’amore dei tre re. In 1946, after further study in New York, she created Baba (Madame Flora) in The Medium at Columbia University and made her Metropolitan debut as Marthe (Faust), returning as La Frugola (Il tabarro), Zita (Gianni Schicchi), the Princess (Suor Angelica) and Amneris. At New York City Opera she sang Baba (1952) and took part in the premiere of Copland’s The Tender Land (1954). Her roles at Chicago (1955-57) included the Matron from Milwaukee (Banfield’s Lord Byron’s Love Letter), Fricka, Azucena and Ulrica. She sang Madame de Croissy in Dialogues des Carmelites at San Francisco (1957) and Baroness Grunwiesel in Der junge Lord at San Diego (1967), both American premieres, and created Diana Orsini in Bomarzo at Washington, DC (1967). Her repertory included Delilah, Herodias (Salome), Mistress Quickly and Little Buttercup (HMS Pinafore). She was Shirley Jones’ aunt (Cousin Nettie - shown in photo) in the 1956 film version of Carousel. Another interesting tidbit: The popular singer Tony Bennett said his most popular song, “I left my heart in San Francisco”, was actually written for Claramae Turner. She confirms that the song was a sure-fire encore she used for years, but never recorded.
With an opulent voice, fine musicianship and an impressive stage presence, she was equally effective in 19th- and 20th-century operas. (Elizabeth Forbes)
This recording is from the 1954 NBC radio broadcast under the direction of Toscanini. In this scene, the sorceress/fortune teller Ulrica summons the “king of the abyss”.