Today Restricted View is mourning the death of tenor Jerry Hadley. I know shamefully little about opera, but Hadley made occasional forays into the world of musical theatre; I first heard him on the recording the 1992 Sondheim -- A Celebration at Carnegie Hall concert, singing "Johanna" and "With So Little to Be Sure Of," and he was Gaylord Ravenal in the 1988 studio recording of Show Boat. But I knew him best as the best of all possible Candides. The 1989 Bernstein-conducted Candide -- the "final revised version," as it is billed in the 1991 recording -- is notable for including all of Candide's meditations and laments, and Hadley's performance as the endlessly suffering title character goes straight to the heart. Now his "Nothing More Than This" will be freighted all the more with real-world sorrow.
(Incidentally, the fact that you can own this complete, two-disc Candide for only $15 means there is no excuse for not adding it to your collection. There is also a concert DVD, if you're the Netflix type.)
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