Listening to lieder (ctnd from insomnia below ;-))

King's Place Photo and here more details about the design :-)

I left things half way through the last week and now I am running behind again! (ie both Cosi fan tutte and Konigskinder have happened since then… but first things first as I am determined to try and capture everything in the right order! Besides, there is no chance I could forget any of these two anytime soon, so no worries there.

I mentioned that I had been to two evenings of song during the same week, years and years and years apart : from pieces written mostly between the two world wars to canzone written some 300 years ago.

In song in general I am on a very “hungry” discovery route, trying out many things that come my way. In a way if well done they are easier to relate to and allow instant focus and intimate connection at the same time. In an opera all your senses are called upon and you have to take in so many elements at the same time! It’s not exactly hard work to sit and listen, but it does require a lot of energy, which sometimes you physically just don’t have. In those cases I find it’s easier to seek refuge in song, it’s more delicate and in a way more generous, it gives more than it asks of you. In a way it creates that kind of a personal space and dialogue that you can find nowhere else in music. It is like reading a good book, like looking at a painting, or a photograph on your own, like speaking to a good friend.

In an opera you can choose what to listen to or what to look at or on which level to get involved. There is not much of a choice when only one person and one instrument are singing to you, you either listen or you go away. And I personally love to listen to stories, thoughts and feelings put to rime (or not) and music. I’ll always disagree with those who think this is an occasion to explore how exquisite a certain note can be sung , If that is all what it is, then I would rather watch and listen to a singer warm up their voice, its bound to reveal more interesting things about vocal technique.;-) Personally, I’d rather see the song as an occasion to discover a story , “hand in hand” with the singer. I’d like them to tell us what the poem means to them and see if I can follow along the same path. The times I liked it most, it was so vivid that i could almost see the images appearing in my mind.

Weimar VoicesDate: Wednesday 27 January
Time: 19:30

Part of From Vienna to Weimar

Christian Immler baritone
Helmut Deutsch piano

Programme

Schreker
Das feurige Männlein
Und wie mag die Liebe

Gál - Five Songs op.33
Vergängliches
Der Wiesenbach
Vöglein Schwermut
Drei Prinzessinen
Abend auf dem Fluss

Goldschmidt - Two Morgenstern Songs op.27
Ein Rosenzweig
Nebelweben

Eisler - from Galgenlieder (Gallows Songs)
Die zwei Wurzeln
Die beiden Trichter
Philanthropisch

Korngold - Songs of the Clown op.29
Come away death
O Mistress Mine
Adieu, Good Man Devil
Hey Robin
For the rain, it raineth every day

Krenek - from Reisebuch aus den oesterreichischen Alpen
(Travelbook from the Austrian Alps) op.62
Motiv
Regentag
Unser Wein

Zemlinsky - from Twelve Songs op.27
Der Wind des Herbstes
Regenzeit
Gib ein Lied mir wieder
Afrikanischer Tanz

Eisler - from Book of Ballades op.18
Ballade von der Krüppelgarde
Ballade vom Nigger Jim

Grosz - from Bänkel und Balladen op.31
Die Ballade vom Sammy Lee

http://www.auroraorchestra.com/

The evening with Christian Immler and Helmut Deutsch at King’s Place had a totally novelty effect. The hall, which I am guessing is one of the smaller ones in the centre, is beautiful and provided with its set up hat extra “pleasing” bit. It must be quite new and not too frequently used, for the wood that covers all surfaces still had that freshly cut smell. Not the chemical cover smell, but the natural one of logs that have just been split from the tree. Just like the perfume of new paper of an unopened book, it’s instantly recognisable and comforting. The lighting was almost seductive in a shady tone of violet and it obscured us the public almost completely while focusing the light on the stage. Probably a bit unusual for a liederabend as I guess it totally obscured us to the singer and pianist. Adding I guess an extra element of discomfort, above the fact that there were barely 20 of us in the hall, none of us having heard any of the pieces before and both artist and pianist never having performed any of the songs before. Add to that the fact that most texts were in German; we were provided with a nicely printed translation in quality paper, that unfortunately proved a pain to flick and made quite some noise. Looked like quite a challenge in terms of text, which I guess only made some members of the audience more suspicious about the musical “delights” on offer. I expect with all their curiosity, most expected their ears to be put through at least some discomfort ;-)

The evening started and things settled very quickly from weary attention to relaxed enjoyment! It became evident that the artists had done quite a bit of homework and were more than up to the challenge. From the very first piece the harmony between the two was natural and the interpretation refined enough to easily cross the language barrier. I have to say I haven’t read the translation and with Immler’s diction being very good I quickly put away the chunky papers myself. But it must have been a good translation, as smiles, puffs and other reactions came spot on at the right times during the whole evening. The songs themselves carried nothing of the suspected dangers of atonality or aggression in their notes. On the contrary, they were playful and flowed elegantly, texts were engaging and the dialogue between the lyrics and notes, more vivid than in classical repertoire. Where the music was recognisably romantic, the text broke down the known framework by mocking he notes and vice-versa. Throughout the program lyrics and score, singer and pianist engaged in ironic play and often very alert bickering.

Here are for you some highlights of the evening, showing in abundance I think why it was so worth experiencing!!
Eisler:


Korngold:


It just proved that songs can be enjoyed a bit less reverently and that we are allowed to have fun with it as well. And what pleasure to discover Helmut Deutsch accompanying not only with delicacy and empathy as always, but also with impressive pizhaz!

Dankeschon to both!! And when can we do this again????

..................

Two days later it was back to the more familiar grounds of the Wigmore Hall for an evening of canzone d’amore with an equally well matched musical “couple”. Joyce DiDonato and David Zobel gift us time and time again with wonderful recitals at he Wigmore and I hope they will keep coming to visit. Whether you are familiar with the repertory or not (more likely to be my case with Joyce’s picks ;-)) you will always leave there amazed at DiDonato’s and Zobel’s commitment to what they do. You just know beyond a shadow of a doubt that each note, each word has been thought of, worked on and will be delivered to the highest of their abilities.

Thursday 28 January 2010 - 7:30 PM
Performers

Joyce DiDonato mezzo-soprano
David Zobel piano

Programme

Durante Danza, danza, fanciulla gentile
Pergolesi Se tu m'ami
Caccini Amarilli mia bella
Rossi Mio ben, teco il tormento
Paisiello Nel cor piu non mi sento
Rontani Or ch'io non sequo più

Beethoven
Hoffnung Op. 82 No. 1
Liebes-Klage Op. 82 No. 2
L’amante impatiente Op. 82 No. 3
L’amante impatiente Op. 82 No. 4
La partenza WoO124

Rossini Willow Song from 'Otello'

Encore Rossini , Maometto Secondo, “Giusto ciel”

Santoliquido
L'assiolo canta
Alba di luna sul bosco
Tristezza crepuscolare
L'incontro

Pizzetti Ocsuro è il ciel
Toselli Serentata
Donaudy O del mio amato bene

Castelnuovo-Tedesco
La Pastorella
Ballatella

Buzzi-Peccia Lolita, Serenata Spagnola
Leoncavallo Serenata Francese
Giuranna Canto Arabo
Di Chiara La Spagnola

Encore:
Mozart, Nozze, “Voi che sapete”
Rossini, La donna del lago, “Tanti affetti”

Even if you will not become an big fan of the night’s songs you will always be awed by what she can do. Or at least I’d love to hear her, even if she was singing the phone book up and down! And even I will admit that “Amarilli mia bella” or the Beethoven are much better choices;-))) Actually, I really liked the little Beethoven cycle. But deep down I am more of an 18t- century-onwards kind of girl, so it is rather a good thing I didn’t live in the times these little pieces were used to serenade the ladies….. Few of these would have managed to wake me and entice me onto a balcony and further on I’m afraid ;-)) Overall I liked Furore more I think (God, I am actually saying I like Handel… somebody pinch me!! Fast!!!!)… or more accurately, I like Joyce’s Handel more. But Joyce is an amazingly generous artist! It will never be a 6-8 piece night with her and often her encores are even better than the rest of the program. And if I like her Handel, her Rossini and Mozart I am undyingly in love with!!! As you can see 3 altogether, one more beautiful than the other! Just listen to La donna del lago:

La donna del lago:


What I like about her encores is that they are always so characteristic of who she is as an artist and come alive like they do with few other singers singing the same pieces. So this night, like the last one when I heard her sing made me look forward to the next and the one after that and so on…. And also made me hope that one day I’ll be lucky enough to hear her sing again the one piece that will always remind me of the first time I heard her live , a song that was so “Joyce” .. “The man I love” :-)

I'll sleep when i'm dead!

Merci beaucoup Esti pour cette extraordinaire video!!!

Reading the title you will either have a tune bouncing around your ears….or you’ll be clueless and then I guess you’ll just have to read this boring post till the end to find out what that is all about :-)

Last week ended last night and the title should be reversed, if I don’t get some proper sleep soon I might as well be dead!

I couldn’t resist temptation and I have started this post predictably with yet more Werther! No I don’t feel guilty about it and if you feel you’ve overdosed, then look away... I dare you! (But you should know that the above video is the “Pourquoi me reveiller” from the 29th, filmed from the side of the stage itself by Esti and it was so far the best performance of the run according to people present live :-)… )

Ok, so the reason why there wasn’t much going on around here this week is not because I have drowned my sorrow in absinth, whisky or tea (not even chocolate!) but… my venom of choice was .. music :-) Loads and loads of it. Seeing as I was unexpectedly bound to London this week, much more than initially planned as gaps were filled by the generosity of a friend who shifted onto me a number of Barenboim tickets. So proceedings went something like this:

Monday … my body craving sleep, my heart still in Paris, my mind hard at work, basically preparing for Tuesday;
Tuesday – battling with internet connection for smudges of sound of Werther broadcast (we shall not speak about the work bit from here on as the week only ended on a zero balance due to induction of high positive doses of music)
Wednesday – visit to new place – King’s Place in fact, Weimar Voices, Helmut Deutsch and Christian Immler- as I will explain in a bit more detail a most fulfilling, entertaining and puzzling evening of song, brilliant! Outside the Werther by far the best bit of the week!
Thursday – Wigmore, Joyce DiDonato, David Zobel and canzone d’amore – I’m finding myself more and more often drawn to the Wigmore for the gems they have on offer
Friday – Royal Festival Hall, Barenboim and Berlin Staatskapelle first take and the most amazing almost full moon over the Thames at Southbank!
Saturday – ROH, yay.. let the new year finally begin! I swear I had a trickle of emotion going for the first time this year through those revolving doors…. That was until I stopped in shock at the display window of the ROH shop! Ah by the way, the piece was Rake’s Progress.
Sunday- take two on Barenboim, Berlin Staatskapelle, Beethoven and Schoenberg. And an amazing full moon over the bridge which is becoming kind of a theme, it was full moon when I was there last and I keep having these moments on that bridge where I just have to stop, breath in the wind, wonder at the clear night and feel lucky because it isn’t raining and because I am in London!! Strange déjà vu, but of the very pleasant kind; I’ve promised myself that I will go back during the summer and just sit on the Southbank terrace with music and a book and enjoy the place properly rather than steeling a moment of the night.

Was it all worth it? Definitely and I would do it again. Because it is not often that I get to be in London to enjoy a lot of what is on offer. So, even if I have to catch up on sleep during weeks to come, there is a lot I learned this week and thus a lot to be thankful for:-)

Less and less surprisingly to myself I really like 20th century music. I know I can’t throw everything in a pot, but I like the structure in destructuring, the wittiness and irony that runs through much of it, the surprise element that keeps you on your toes and challenges you to listen carefully and unlock the riddles. A bit like solving math problems back in school, as crazy as this may sound. I’m not sure it is the kind of music I would listen to again and again and again in my own time, because it doesn’t really provide the escapist element one sometimes craves when delving into music, but live it can provide a much more inspiring evening than quite a few better known tunes. I think what I am trying to say is that I need and enjoy both, I need my Massenet, Verdi, Wagner, etc but I also need Stravinsky, Korngold, Messiaen, Schonberg, etc. I find they kind of make each others qualities and uniqueness stand out more and you return to the others with a refreshed ear and mind :-) Because I listen to all, each time I come back to one of them I fall in love all over again.

Let’s start by the end, the Barenboim concerts:

Royal Festival Hall
Daniel Barenboim with Berlin Staatskapelle
Friday 29 January 2010
Ludwig Van Beethoven: Piano Concerto No.1
Arnold Schoenberg: Pelléas et Mélisande
Sunday 31 January 2010
Arnold Schoenberg: Verklärte Nacht
Ludwig van Beethoven: Piano Concerto No.5 (Emperor)

Hands down for me on both nights Schoenberg wins over Beethoven, at least in this interpretation. It’s where I think the true colours of the Staatskapelle shined though as well as Barenboim’s talents as a conductor. The two Schoenberg pieces could not more different, one powerful and overwhelming (Pelléas et Mélisande) and the other almost delicate. And still in both excellent and very effective play with dynamics was obvious. In fact the ebbs and explosions in Pelléas et Mélisande reminded very much of recent vocal performances I had heard…. It’s a pity on the second night they decided to install cameras in several places in the Hall and I had the unfortunate “pleasure” of sitting high up in the hall and having one fanning at my back, quite loudly. Probably this concert will figure on a future documentary, but I think they should have checked the noise level before installing them there. There were moments where the fans were literally louder than the orchestra sound!

The Beethoven concertos very enjoyable and quite original in interpretation, but I wouldn't really say they were memorable. It simply does work better in terms of harmony when conductor and pianist are not the same, especially because a conductor not busy playing the piano might have accommodated the inspiration of the pianist even better :-) I am really glad I went because the Schoenberg is a rare treat, especially treated with such care and attention. But I am left wondering about the general reaction of the public: how much reflected the impact of what was heard on the night and how much did the “fame” element come into play? Do people applaud the Beethoven concerto no5 because it is a well know, exquisite piece of music or because they like this particular version they have just heard? In some respect the reaction of the audience on Friday when Schoenberg ended the concert on a high seemed to be more tuned into the performance than the once on Sunday. It’s also true that the Beethoven played with a downsized orchestra would have been maybe more enjoyable from closer to the stage, whereas the Schoenberg , even the delicate pieces flowed freely and expanded into the hall :-)

In any case you will be able to enjoy them yourself and make up your own minds as BBC3 will air the concerts this week. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00qxx51

Saturday, in between the Barenboim concerts I went to the ROH –
The Rake's Progress
Saturday, 30 January 2010
Composer Igor Stravinsky
Director Robert Lepage
Revival Director Sybille Wilson

Set Designer Carl Fillion
Costume designs Francois Barbeau
Lighting Designer Etienne Boucher
Video Boris Firquet
Choreography Michael Keegan Dolan
Performers
Conductor Ingo Metzmacher
Trulove Jeremy White
Anne Trulove Rosemary Joshua
Tom Rakewell Toby Spence
Nick Shadow Kyle Ketelsen
Mother Goose Frances McCafferty
Baba the Turk Patricia Bardon
Sellem Graham Clark

This is a wonderfully constructed opera, with perfectly timed tension and I am grateful as a first time listener to have had the Insight lend a hand in additional understanding :-) Best thing by far on the night the witty and lively sound that came from the pit by the hands of Ingo Metzmacher! The score is so interesting and catching that I think I could easily listen to it without the singing, or at least on this night it felt a bit like it. I wish I had heard the cast to years ago to have some kind of comparison… I was almost tempted to say that judging by the other night English is a particularly difficult language to sing opera in… BUT, I would be wrong, as I have heard opera in English before and never had this impression. And also during the Insight evening I heard the same arias delivered with panache, total security and spot on articulation! Whereas on the night I was forced to glance to the surtitles many more times that I would have wished. This sounds to me like a highly entertaining but also highly difficult piece vocally and this case some lack of power in the voices was not helped by the production. Fun to look at sometimes, whoever the gags were not the brightest I thought and placing the singers mostly in the second back half of a deep stage did not help a bit, but rather made singing and especially hearing in the hall a challenge at times. (If I compare to the Tristan and Isolde, with more powerful voices by far and they were always brought towards the front and never left with a gaping empty space behind them for long…)

I understand about the desire of director to create visually flashy productions and make a statement, but I don’t like the feeling I am getting with Lepage that no matter how ingenious and gimmicky the production, it doesn’t really mould well over the music. And it favours big picture over character definition in my opinion too much, It did in this case by caricaturising a bit too much and in the Damnation from the Met I saw in the cinema there was no character definition to speak about (loads of visual effects with singers being tied to a two dimensional balcony/grid). I’m not saying the public did not enjoy it, but how many times can you see this production and enjoy it as much and what will distinguish one viewing from another? I like to remember revivals of productions also by the impact individual singers and their personalities left on the whole and I am not sure this is happening here. Anyway, matter of taste I guess.

Having said that the cast themselves got better during the evening and in the second half singing really started to come together with a unusual high point in the moralising quartet at the end (déjà vu Mozart anyone? ;-))))

Basically I really really liked the music and Anne’s I go to him! Is among my very favourite bits! I’d loooove to listen t this again, preferably not in this production, but it will do as well if no choice.

My return “home” to the ROH came with the obligatory detour by the shop and I did manage to come out empty-handed … but stopped dead at the sight of this in the display window!!! Now, I don’t care or mind which opera singers CD they display and definitely encourage the happy expectation of Rolando’s come back to the stage, hopefully to the ROH one as well.. BUT… what is the other thing doing there????? (and even with Rolando they could have displayed the latest CD…. Not that they are in the habit of doing that always… during the Don Carlo several of the singers had just had CD issued, but none where displayed there until much much later…. )

The issue I have is with singers being advertised there who have never sung on the ROH stage a whole role( or anywhere else as a matter of fact)…and with the combination having an air of publicity for a certain TV show which has nothing to do with this institution. I am disappointed to be honest… I may understand the monetary reasons, but one of the reasons why I myself support with my own money the ROH is because I admire and respect the high standards of the institution and it’s elegancy and style in public dealings with its own image. Having this in the display window is in my opinion not congruent with my expectations.

If that artist is worthy being advertised there I would expect to see the artist as part of future ROH schedules, and I have a suspicion this will not be the case anytime soon. And until this artist has an operatic career at the standards usually displayed by this institution I do not expect to see them advertised again within the building. As a friend of the ROH I do not support the decision to have this kind of publicity within it’s shop, money matters aside. Because at the ROH standards do matter, I still hope so.

So far for today, to be continued with more on the wonderful recitals (I’ve left the best for last :-))

Until then I will not keep the…”suspense” any longer about the title.. here they go:



Well, yes of course it is BON JOVI! And yes, i own almost all their CDs, it's not an isolated incident at all :-)

To a much too beautiful start...

What a wonderful beginning to my musical year!!!

After what I have seen and heard in the last weeks of the old year I would say it is exactly what the “soul” doctor ordered!

At my parents home we are lucky to get all things artsy/musical like 3sat, arte, mezzo, etc so I was all to happy to indulge in the “Operafest” 3sat and ZDF had prepared around the 10 most popular operas, according to viewers’ choice. A brilliant idea and I wouldn’t question the choice of productions that was broadcasted because if we all start saying what our favourite production of a certain opera is and try to decide on one it will all end up in blood and tears ;-) However, when you indulge in such a density of them over a short period of time you realise a lot of things about your own tastes and preferences in music and opera productions.

And you are allowed to frown and laugh at the fact that I scheduled my family and friends visits at holiday time around the opera-broadcast schedule. I basically ended up dragging people along to see these :-) or making sure I was back home to watch. Thank God most of them were pretty late at night due to time difference so everyone is still talking to me ;-) Although my parents did complain about the overdose of opera in German with no subtitles…

So there was: Lohengrin, Rosenkavalier, Don Giovanni, Tosca, Aida, Fidelio, Boheme and Zauberflote. Unfortunately I wasn’t home any more for the Carmen and Traviata. But I had seen both recently and we watched the Carmen from the Scala together. Of course I did vote as well and before you ask, yes I votes for the winner too, Traviata :-) My favourites change these days frequently, but because I was home and we were going down memory lane opera wise anyway, I just couldn’t deny all those 40 or more Traviatas seen :-) You can google all the details yourself, I’ll just resume which they were: Lohengrin Munich June 2009 (Jones, JK, Harteros, etc), Rosenkavalier (BadenBaden2009, Fleming, etc), Don Giovanni (Salzburg, Kusej 2006, Hampson, Schafer, etc), Tosca (Bregenz, Himmelmann2009, Michael, Saks, etc), Aida(Bregenz, Vick2009), Fidelio (Valencia, Valencia 2006 (Mehta,´Alli; Meier, Seiffert, Salminen), Boheme (2009 movie, Villazon Netrebko), Zauberflote (Zurich 2007, Kusej, Strehl, Mosuc, etc).

Tell you what, by the end of it I was sure I need I break from Regietheater for at least half a year! I don’t mind it, in fact I like to see modern twists on long known operas every now and then but I realised that I could not live in a world where that is all I would see of opera. Of the above Fidelio and Rosenkavalier were sort of traditional and Boheme was the movie. However the latter 2 operas are far from being any of my favourites, in fact they are the two I like least of the above list (and yes I mean Rosenkavalier and Boheme). Fidelio was an interesting set and well worked costumes, but other than that it was rather the reverse extreme, stand still singing all along. And I don’t like feeling like in a costume museum with back-round music being played. As for the others, however good the singing was, I ended up being slightly frustrated by the constant distraction from the music, the guessing game as to what was supposed to happen next and all the elements that had little to do with the story or what the text was saying at that particular moment in time. I knew all the operas and could in the end filter out the disturbing elements and try to find my way back to the music. But as the days went by I tried to think of somebody who had never seen opera before, didn’t know the pieces, but say had the curiosity to sit through all of these productions. I honestly wonder what they would have understood? It seemed like a video mix of a news channel with current images of crime and normal life tossed together with a back ground of classical music. The stories just blurred into each other, distinctions lost. Kusej’s Giovanni and Zauberflote stood out a bit , but they were in many ways similar as visual treatment, for two operas which are not. Also all of these productions seemed to favour harsh light, bizarre dressing taste (or lack thereof) and many also considerable stage mechanics. Of course I am exaggerating, as the experiment in itself is exaggerated. But compiled like this I felt struck by how much of the identity of the pieces was lost and how similar the visual interpretation became.

And it is particularly sad because some of them were absolutely brilliantly sung, like the Lohengrin and the Don Giovanni! Well, the Tosca and the Aida where double disappointments, not much to salvage besides Saks’ Scarpia. I love Aida, but the blue giant feet, the splashing about in the water and the Aida as a cleaning lady on top of the mediocre singing was too much to take. Never mind about Mario singing dolci mani with Tosca nowhere in sight (well she was somewhere on top of the eye, fluffing about with the pink frock..) The eye movements were interesting, but out of context I felt and I any case if I want to see really cool engineering tricks I go to the cinema and watch the Matrix… or James Bond ;-) Now those are tricks! And there is a place and time for everything, directors just have to get it right. And there are plenty opera directors out there who get it right and who find ways of interpreting and telling the same old story anew, without clashing with the music or disconnecting the visuals from the actual plot. Why many believe that “modern” directing in opera means inserting a completely new story into the old I don’t know. Some clearly believe that the old one can be chucked away easily, but they are wrong, it just cannot disappear, it is right there in the music and the text. Piling sets on top of it and alien gestures does not delete it, just hides it under the rubble, still visible, making it just an unsatisfying and confusing experience. But there are those like Carsen, McVicar, etc who love the music and the story and use their imagination in telli the story in a fresh way, basically bringing it alive in front of me, while maintaining its magic, the illusion of the show. It doesn’t need to become reality to feel real.

In any case, not all was bad, even these had their moments, like the beginning of Act 3 in Lohengrin which has much more intimacy than many traditional productions, who bring too much of the “hero from another world” into the relationship between Elsa and Lohengrin (if only building that house would not take 2 acts of .. well.. rubble!) (And I haven’t forgotten I still owe you all the story of “my” Lohengrin..) And the bikini-clad ladies in the Giovanni had something appropriately chilling to them, giving the performance a darker tone.

As to the singing and the music, well, there is the only reason why I watched all in the end, in spite of the productions. I could never get enough of hearing Anja’s Elsa and Jonas’ Lohengrin, I rediscovered Christine Schafer as Donna Anna and found as always, that she is one of the most touching singers I’ve ever seen, it was good to see Ildebrando as Leporello (something he is really good at, and to forget this stiff Escamillo), the Rosenkavalier had a great cast ( which I could listen to for hours (just not singing that particular opera…nice arias but to me it just doesn’t glue together and there are far too many ladies singing too much of the opera), Waltraud Meier is a wonderful Leonore, but Peter Seiffert is I’m afraid past his Florestans (and it is true what they say about Valencia opera – absolutely amazing orchestra and chorus!!). Boheme is a movie, so it all sounded good and looked good, I watched it, did the crying, but am still left with the same feeling as before: I never have the actual impulse to go and see it, I don’t long after it. I will trod along for a good reason, but somehow the end of it never leaves me wanting to book the next performance again. Which doesn’t stop me from really liking Musetta and having a favourite out of it: “vecchia zimarra”. I just don’t like it, that’s it. (or maybe I’m just waiting for Mr Tony Pappano to conduct it and do the “unlocking” for me.. after all it worked wonders with Tosca! )

On top of this we watched the Carmen from the Scala and listened on New Year’s Eve to the Met broadcast of the Carmen premiere… I know it’s hideous to compare, but at such short distance from each other impossible not to do :-) Obviously can’t compare the productions, but I can say some things about the on from Scala: I can’t understand all the uproar and the fuss. It wasn’t mindblowing in any way. not bad, not good, not too out there, not too anything if you ask me. I don’t think this is a production to stand out in any way. The was gratuitous flesh in a production that was supposed to be about feminine values, there were loads of priests and crosses which didn’t add, but luckily didn’t disturb much. Costumes were ok, but I have seen better pants and more flattering frocks for the ladies. The lighting was really good, but overall it felt as though the detailed work had gone into filling the space around the main singers, into putting movement, action around the set constantly. I liked Micaela transforming into Jose’s mother, but that is about it. I don’t know how it came across live, but to me the focus was everywhere else, but on the main characters. Such details on chorus and dancers, etc (how much this added is debatable) and such lack of it for Jose, Carmen, even Escamillo. That was a topical Escamillo if I’ve ever seen one (I’ll not go into details about the bull picture and all the rest, as this, for anyone who knows a bit about Spain had nothing much to do with what corridas are all about and all to do with preconceptions and stereotypes). The interaction between the characters lacked something and there were details which spoiled the atmosphere a couple of times (at least on close up via TV): Carmen wears lycra pantyhose all the time!! (Carmen, the gypsy.. lycra pantyhose.. who thought that was a good idea!) , Jose looks in the last act as if he just came from the tailors, nice suit jacket, pressed, crease-free shirt, make up all in place. And the big scare, the rape scene is … well, not scary enough and rather funny at times (one hand leaning on Carmen, one hand fumblig pants… at least they stopped there because imagine Jose singing the end of Carmen with his pants around his ankles… no giggles!). I’m not saying it couldn’t have been… possibly yes. Does it add anything to the end? No, the killing is quite enough violence. Or if you do go with the idea, it must be convincing, this wasn’t.

The singing was of course a different thing, as the French have said it these days as Jose, Jonas Kaufmann reigns supreme, and I would have loooved to hear him live in this role! Anita R has indeed a wonderful voice and she will be a very interesting singer to follow, but she has yet to go a while before becoming Carmen other than vocally :-) Barenboim made interesting choices for the music, but I have to say retrospectively I liked Pappano more and also Yannick Nézet-Séguin in the Carmen from the Met, maybe a more expressive, passionate Carmen is more my thing.

Talking about the one from the Met, I was curious to hear it as I saw the same Jose and Carmen (Algana and Garanca) sing it in ROH and wasn’t all that blow away. Live the production I hadn’t seen before was not as good as on DVD, it’s nice all right,and for me personally works better than the Scala one. Still I would definitely be a buyer of a more modern Carmen (eg the one in Zurich which had it’s moments and it’s interesting images). But at that point I wasn’t convinced Garanga is the thing. But hearing her now from the Met I liked her more and I think I will end up linking her as Carmen, that is if she puts the reigns on the overacting in ROH. I think she still slaps the men-eater a bit to thickly on. Vocally however she sounds like Carmen, at least from the Met she did and she can really sing! As far as Ecsamillo go…. My favourite is definitely… Kyle Ketelsen. Ildebrando is scared of the horse and can’t really scare Jose. Mariusz Kwiecien is not quite there vocally and I think Schrott didn’t have his best day at the Scala premiere when the video was made. But at least he looks and acts very convincingly like his character. I would like to hear him live with this as well. But I have seen Kyle Ketelsen sing it and he hits the right spot of vocal comfort with the score and convincing, underplayed self-assuredness. Algna I am sure is a wonderful Jose… on the day he doesn’t confuse it with Turridu. He can sing the role well, and it is audible, but at some point the acting, or rather overacting takes over and music goes out the window… and that happened at least when I heard from both the ROH and the Met, before the end of the last act, and I can’t say I like it.

So, once again, I end up hugging the ROH Carmen DVD close to my heart and brood over not having seen it live. It still is the one I think about whenever I think of listening to Carmen.

But, all of these more or less satisfying productions, and especially the 3sat Regietheaterfest left me longing for a bit of illusion, a bit of romanticism and to just find back to the simple, pure pleasure of music. Which is exactly what I got with Werther! And I am lucky enough to continue this mood with 3 lieder recitals, the first one being right his very evening:

Click on the joint picture for more details of the Simon Keenlyside recital at the Wigmore tonight. It will be repeated on Monday, for anyone wanting to go. I was hoping for Dichterliebe… but no such luck :-) Still I like the program and am greatly looking forward to hearing Simon again! Back in London after a highly praised Macbeth in Wien and a Posa in Munich, where he sang it even better than in London a few months ago! Which I thing is unfair of him!!! ;-))) But it is probably the consequence of careful voice development at the hands of Verdi :-) I’m happy for Mr Keenlyside and will continue to cross my fingers for his debut later in the year in his well loved Rigoletto :-)

The will me more lieder next week from Christian Immler and Helmut Deutsch (thanks Intermezzo for the tip!) and again click on HD’s picture for details. These will be more modern works that I have not heard before, so greatly looking forward to the encounter!

And then the week will end with Joyce DiDonato’s canzone d’amore :-) At the Wigmore again, details in the picture:

Oh, yes and there was this Werther in Paris during the weekend… the question being of course, to be or not to be across the channel … with the Eurostar.

Maybe all this will just be too much beauty to take in!

Linda and Marguerite, operas in concert

Photo Sheila Rock

Opera in concert… a different kind of animal and used for pieces where either the plot is a bit too weak to be interesting for staging, such as Linda di Chamounix or where it is too complicated to stage, such being the case of the Damnation de Faust.

I’ve enjoyed both pieces a lot and they couldn’t be more different from each other.
Among the darkness and seriousness of the Don Carlo the Linda was like a breath of fresh air and necessary smiles.

Linda di Chamounix, ROH, 14/09/09
Gaetano Donizetti
Conductor Mark Elder
Maddalena Loustolot Elizabeth Sikora
Antonio Loustolot Ludovic Tezier
Marquis of Boisfleury Alessandro Corbelli
Intendant Luciano Botelho
Linda Eglise Gutierrez
Pierotto Marianna Pizzolato
Carlo Stephen Costello
The Prefect Balint Szabo

I like belcanto and I like Donizetti and this was indeed a good occasion to indulge in just the beauty of voices and melody. This music sounds light and is thoroughly enjoyable but must rely on steely technique to be delivered with the necessary panache.

No better example of such proficiency than Alessandro Corbelli. As in he Barber earlier in the year he is a wonderful example of how you can run don exhilarating scales with a firm whip on diction :-) Eglise Gutierrez meets almost all expectations made of such a promising young artist. However I have to say the “glass breaking” edge on her high notes thrills me much less than her smooth mezza voce. She can do the coloratura, but I think she will be more enjoyable to hear in many more role than that :-)

I don’t understand the hissing that was supposed to have happened in the first performance, I saw the second. However in the one that I saw singers seemed to be more at easy in any case and although still preoccupied with the technicalities of their roles, more emotion came through. Stephen Costello easily engaged the audience and I was actually touched by how naturally he managed to transmit the innocence and love in his character. It’s not his fault that the eternal tones of Lindaaaa! Lindaa!! Lindaaaa!!! put some smiles on our faces ;-) (remember there is a reason why this is not staged that often ;-))))
Both Ludovic Tezier and Elizabeth Sikora rounded up the cast nicely, putting their warm voices to the belcanto lines in wonderful fashion. One thing I wonder with Tezier is how come his totally charming off stage persona doesn’t transmit more on stage? It’s really a pity..

Nevertheless he was the second half in my favourite duo of the night, together with Balint Szabo ( a piece that reminded me of a similar one in Puritani)..belcanto at it’s best, scrumptious!!)

Marianna Pizzolato was a real discovery for me, what a warm voice, accompanied by a fresh and engaging personality, somebody you would want to listen to for much longer! She seems to be born to sing belcanto and i hope this will not be her only visit to the ROH!

Mark Elder energetically conducted the ROH orchestra along the beautiful melodies. An orchestra which I have to say deserves all the Bravos it can get for mastering in a matter of two weeks most beautiful renditions of Donizetti, Wagner and Verdi :-)

Hector Berlioz, La Damnation de Faust
Barbican, 22/09/2009
Joyce DiDonato, Marguerite
Michael Schade, Faust
Willard White , Mepistopheles
Florian Boesch, Brander
Valery Gergiev
London Symphony Orchestra, London Symphony Chorus


La Damnation on the other hand is a piece of passions and extremes…oh and how I love it! Interestingly enough, last year when I saw this in a direct broadcast from the Met I had some reservations about the staging. But incidentally the music brought those images right back into my mind at the exactly right spots, so it must have been better than I thought!

The orchestra and the chorus were very very good, but… it’s wasn’t Levine’s take on the score which blew me away last year. Good as Gergiev mastered orchestra and chorus with iron discipline, but maybe missing some of the fantasy, not going aaaaaall the way maybe.

The opera in itself is a bit strange maybe because the first two acts are rather slow and most of the action happens in the latter two. So you have to have a Faust able to carry the weight of the first part on his shoulders… unfortunately not the case here. I am sure Michael Schade is a respectable Mozart tenor… but Berlioz isn’t his friend. He was too preoccupied with the French, the notes to be able to really engage with the character. And he was the only one of the singers who really treated this is a concert, rather than an opera. A pity, I hardly recognised the big aria in the second part…

Willard White was a last minute replacement for Thomas Quastoff , but what a show!!! Not only did he have the alluring deep voice of the devil within ;-))) but also the presence, full of irony and intent. A real treat and I liked the sparkling, less dark take on the role, fitted the fantasy much better.

Trying to remember who was the blond girl?... Um… that American whatshername??? Oh yes, Joyce something! … juuuuust joking ;-))) DiDonato is back on her two feet and looking gorgeous in a long roman-type dress. And singing like an angel!!! I know at least half the audience was there for her and it was electrifying. My neighbour tortured me all throughout the opera with his jaw-moving sounds while yawning and even he held his breath during her arias! (thank God for small miracles!!!). She was properly innocent and enchanted and how she produces those notes only she knows....they definitely sound out of this world! I really liked her first Marguerite and it has opened a new wish of maybe, one day, hearing her sing this part alongside another tenor….

Although absolutely knackered on the day I am glad I went, I really love this piece and I hope to see it staged someday live, for the singers and the music and that amazing chorus towards the end and their earth shattering Haas! Hass! Hass! Ahh, nothing like a powerful chorus piece to lift you from the dead :-)

End of season – Italian style

This summer break seems incredibly short and long at the same time…. Work is keeping me away from London, so I haven’t been to a live performance in what seems like too long already.. Withdrawal never used to be so bad ;-) And looking at the calendar I lulled my conscience with the idea that it will be long enough for me to catch up with the last of the season before the new one starts… I’m no longer sure that will be possible, but sometimes one needs to concentrate on producing the budget that will then be madly spent over the next 10-11 months ;-)

I realised that since the last “real” post I have seen some 10 shows, which makes tying all those loose ends a bit of a headache… I could so take the easy route and just talk about what so perfectly ended my musical year on a high note, but I have decided to exercise discipline for once because I have taken that route way too many times this year. Looking back on the blog over the last 12 months I realised that I have missed out quite a number of things I have seen and heard and that a reader might get a very skewed view of what music is to me. I’ll come back to this in the next post and I don’t want to anticipate too much, but I want to capture for myself as well all that has left an imprint on me, not just some of the steps. After all, trying to hold on to all the millions of seconds of joy and flashes of feelings and insights that I come across in every performance was the reason I started this blog in the first place and I feel I am not really living up to my own expectations.

Enough said about that …on to the ROH Italian season :-)

Rossini, Verdi, Puccini. Il Barbiere, Traviata, Tosca is mostly likely my list of most seen, longest known works. All 3 i am at the sing-along-stage ;-))) I don’t even need to tell you that I overdosed on the Tosca in the last year and got close to doing it in Traviata as well, which is why in the booking i skipped both. Instead I went for a double dose of Ballo, which is one of the few Verdis which I previously knew only from recordings and videos. And of course I fought to get a double package of Barbiere. This is my favourite from childhood and I can honestly say I have a full body soft spot for it!

The two also had at the time of the booking the most attractive casting for me: I could hear Ramon Vargas finally in a full length role and initially the velvet voiced Carlos Alvarez as Renato and then the one in a lifetime all star cast in Barbiere!

But things are never quite as you plan them. First the ROH lost Carlos Alvarez ( who I hope has fully recovered by now) and shortly before the actual kick off of all these performances mayhem hit the ROH casts: firstly Simon Keenlyside had to go off and rest his voice then Deborah Voigt was unwell for Tosca and the flu threatened a number of the ones still standing…. While others unfortunately were soon to be sitting rather than standing.

It surely was exciting in more ways than one! I don’t think the casting team in ROH would want to repeat the experience, but I’d say that given all the last minute crisis music came out as glorious as ever and we got to see some good and some really amazing shows.

photos by Bill Cooper at playbillarts.com

Il Barbiere…

I think had everyone’s expectations riding on it and it was one of those very happy cases of expectations being exceeded. Juandi is Juandi and he is the prince of the Barber ;-) Elegant, funny, charming, riding the coloratura up and down as if it would a fun slide over waves, utterly infectious! Somebody who can put a cheeky smile on your face while doing this is sheer recipe for happiness. He was the desperate count all the way, intelligently riding the edge between endearingly funny and OTT with a firm foot planted on the right side. I don’t know anyone else who can transform excellence into normality with such ease :-)

So how do you make an impression as Rosina when your big entrance happens already well into the show? Easy-peasy! You just call yourself Joyce! DiDonato that is ;-))) And you dish out the coloratura with just as much panache as Juandi and look cute as a button on stage! I’ve seen the Met Barber on video and was looking forward to this, but she is soooo much much better live! I have never heard such colours and such shades and richness of feeling in a Rossini lady ever! I apologise to mine and my friend’s neighbours in the amphitheatre ..we probable left them deaf in a matter of seconds after herUna voce… It was just spontaneous, irrepressible shouting and clapping! I couldn’t and wouldn’t have wanted to stop myself if my life depended on it. I still feel my throat closing in with emotion when I remember that moment! That is how sheer bliss feels like, you just burst with joy from every cell! And as far as I could tell from the overwhelming roar in my ears some 2000 people there felt pretty much the same.

The others were just as good! Corbelli should be knighted for his singing praise of the Italian language, there just aren’t any many singers where the joy of music and text compliment each other so well. Spagnoli was so much more than a replacement, his Figaro was natural and intelligent and all round secure and his interaction with his colleagues placed him firmly at the centre of the action, probably much more so than most people would have expected.

Pietro Spagnoli and Juan Diego Flórez photos by Bill Cooper at playbillarts.com

And I will never ever look at Maestro Furlanetto in the same way again!!! There is no way I can reconcile in my mind the image of the utterly mad Don Basilio with that of the regal and powerful kind Filip! So extremely different and yet so amazing … the only thing they have in common is that giant of a voice, warm and dangerous and enveloping at the same time. But I would have never thought he could let himself be so crazy … he didn’t just give it a try he went aaaaaall the way! And produced the creepiest and funniest Basilio I have ever seen :-) I have a completely new level of respect for the artist Ferrucio Furlanetto and am now looking forward even more to his Filip and his Fiesco, surely unmissable!

My only doubt before seeing the show was if Pappano and Rossini were two flavours that went well together? Well, it was like chocolate and orange, strawberries and cream..juuuuuuuuust delicious!!!! Turns out delicate, witty and playful Rossini is exactly the thing for Pappano, he was incredibly at home in the music and so obviously enjoyed it… just as much as the singers did singing it, the orchestra playing it and us listening to it :-)

Jennifer Rhys-Davies, Juan Diego Flórez and Joyce DiDonato photos by Bill Cooper at playbillarts.com

Of course there was the unfortunate broken leg and I’m afraid we will be also be left without the DVD recording of this performance…. Sadly so… and if that really were the case all I can say is that as far as I can see there is no real reason why it shouldn’t be a DVD! In fact, it would probable make for a best seller :-) It was definitely the kind of performance you would tell you grandchildren about….

Angela Marambio as Amelia and Ramón Vargas as Riccardo Photo from http://www.operatoday.com/

Un ballo…

The first time round was the very next afternoon after the Barbiere first night. In many ways a bad idea… that kind of buzz cannot be repeated easily, it was a lazy Sunday afternoon and poor Ramon Vargas was off sick; Roberto Aronica had a bad allergic reaction and the orchestra had a bit of a tired day, maybe the aftermath of the Barbiere. All in all more one of those “better miss it” performances.

Luckily, the second time things improved significantly in spite of an even earlier matinee. Main plus point: Senor Vargas was back on, sounding very well, in spite of lingering cold and he was also looking sharp and surprisingly younger than at the start of the season in Don Giovanni. He delivered exactly what he promised in an earlier interview in musicalcriticism I wish we heard more of him at the ROH, because he is one of those who know what they sing and why they choose a role and who sing at the kind of level where you can appreciate all the details the composer built into the music. If I were to think of an adjective to associate to his voice and style of singing it would probably be elegance :-) He definitely energised the stage in an otherwise pretty dull production. The ball and it’s audience reflecting mirror is definitely the best of it, with some beautiful period costumes otherwise gracing the stage and little else.

Dalibor Jenis portrayed Renato convincingly both physically and vocally, in the first evening I saw him he definitely provided one of the better moments of the performance. His “Eri tu” got well deserved applause each time, it was well delivered and managed to touch the listener. Angela Marambio has a strong and nicely coloured voice, but I fear that the part might be a little heavy for the voice at times as high notes turned harsh too often. The early hours of the second performance also didn’t favour most of the singers.

The other significant upside of the second round was the orchestra and Maurizo Benini himself. No sleepiness in sight and they delivered Verdi with elegance and precision. I’ve heard Benini recently again conducting L’Elisir in Glyndebourne and I liked and appreciated the same things about him: it might not be the most exhilarating and creative sound, but it is smooth and balanced, with all the right shades in all the right places. It may sound funny, but for my ears he simply made Verdi sound like Verdi and Donizetti like Donizetti , which is highly enjoyable and more than can be said about many conductors and orchestra’s. I would always trust him with a true Italianate sound.

Bryn Terfel and Angela Gheorghiu photo from www.classicalsource.com

Tosca …

Drama, drama, drama…. No more comments ;-))) Now, Tosca i have seen enough times this year and this will be no means be for me a memorable one, nor among my favourites this year. It was curiosity that got the better of me on the opening night. I really wanted to hear Bryn Terfel again and singing Scarpia and was curious about Mrs Gheorghiu’s Tosca, since I had missed it a couple of years back.

The backpain induced by my amphitheatre chair might have been partly at fault. But I didn’t come out floating.. Then again in the Barbiere I never noticed the same backpain…. Don’t get me wrong, it was a good performance, well sung, well conducted, but it took a while to really get rolling and didn’t reach some chords within at the expected level of intensity. Angela sounded good and I get why Tosca can be more on the feminine side, but it was a bit of an undecided portrayal, missing oomph in parts and displaying them in others. Until the last act, when Scarpia was no more, there was definitely more stage chemistry between her Tosca and Bryn’s Scarpia then between her and Marcello Giordani, her Mario that night. I loved Bryn’s Hollander and I like him as an artist a lot, but that night something was not quite there, perhaps he was too charming???

Angela Gheorghiu as Tosca and Marcello Giordani as Cavaradossi photo C Ashmore at http://www.musicweb-international.com/

The whole thing did click where I expected it least, in the last act, and although I thought the “E lucevan” would not really get me because of my preference for intimate delivery here, that was not the case. Giordani managed to show what he hadn’t that much the rest of the night, ie that he can sing in softer tones, that he can be creative and that being an experienced artist can mean more than just correct delivery. Again, a case of well deserved applause for an aria that was something more than the usual thing.

Jacques Lacombe brought the passion in his Puccini conducting but at time I felt he run away with it and it all was too loud in many places, sometimes almost covering the artists, which should not have been the case.

The Tosca had it’s moments and I’m glad I went, but I wouldn’t have gone again.

Renée Fleming (Violetta) and Joseph Calleja (Alfredo) photo C Ashmore at http://www.musicweb-international.com/

Traviata…

This also never made my to do list for the season, in spite of being one of my favourites. I decided to see the one in Munich instead, but as some of you might remember, the Verdi in the pit there left me longing for the “real stuff”…

Then there had always been the temptation of Hampson doing Germont. It’s no secret that he is an artist I have favoured for some years now, I know his voice is not to everyone’s likening but in both lieder and on stage I find him compelling and interesting. And who better to give me the “real Verdi” than Pappano ;-)))

Weak heart as I am, I ended up seeing this Traviata not once, but twice! Standing! And this is one choice I don’t regret.

I’m sorry to say the Diva of the night, Mrs Fleming has never been my cup of tea and sadly my opinion after two Traviatas has not changed significantly. Too much distortion in the sound for my taste, not enough emotional connection. It might be just my personal reaction, but it is what it is. Around the same time I saw and heard Ermonela Jaho sing Violetta from Lyon … now that was a Traviata where I cried buckets! Always a good sign with such a well known opera I think :-)))))

Calleja on the other hand I heard live for the first time in a full length opera and I was more than pleasantly surprised! Quite a development from when I have heard him in a TV documentary a number of years ago. More please! I will be looking forward to catching the Met broadcast of his Hoffmann… which is sure to be a challenge in his repertory.

He was energetic and daring enough to outshine the Diva in the middle of her big first act aria with his high note ;-))) He made for an Alfredo who’s energy on stage seemed sometimes barely contained. It did seam at times however that he was almost too thrilled to be singing on this stage to concentrate more on portraying Alfredo’s struggle with his feelings for Violetta. The pleasure in hearing him sing however outweighed the sometimes lack of chemistry with Renee’s Violetta.

No disconnect whatsoever in Hampson’s Germont! It is what I so admire about him, the ability to portray the character, to tell his story and get the public to engage with it to the point where you don’t notice the notes he is singing, but rather the emotions he transmits. Which doesn’t mean at all that you stop hearing the refinement of his singing! I am really glad we got an extra dose of Hampson in the concert with Pappano and although he is very busy with his projects in the US I hope he will be back at the ROH sometimes soon :-)

And I have to say a very big Thank you! to Tony Pappano for reconnecting me emotionally to the Traviata score… now that was Verdi! What a relief, I had thought I was slowly growing tired of it, but not a chance… now, with the right kind of sound in my ears, I’m actually looking forward to some Traviatas during the next season ;-))

And that was us, arrivederci from the ROH until September, when we kick off with some more Donizetti and Verdi :-)

She is amazing!! And her name is Joyce!!!!

Joyce DiDonato has just told us that she is feeling better and has an amazing cast ;-) and will be singing for us tomorrow night!!!


Here she shares all the details in her blog, with her wicked sense of humour!! Cast-a-diva she says :-)))

OMG can you believe her???????? Is there anyone like her??? I don't think so!

And i can bet tomorrow night will be amazing and i know it is all unfortunate and i hope in a couple of weeks she will be skipping about like new, but really i would give a fortune to be backstage tomorrow and see them all having fun! Imagine these artistic minds thinking about how to make the whole thing work... it must be crazy laughs :-))))

Br... on nooo, IN BOCCA AL LUPO to the entire cast for tomorrow night!!

And thanks!!!!!!!!!!!

PS i'm thinking what i could offer to get anyone to give me their ticket for tomorrow???? Anyone having to work, not feeling in the mood for Rossini? Anyone sick and tired of this cast? Anyone????? ;-))))))) (just kidding, promise i won't attack anyone in an attempt to get a ticket ;-))

Joyce di Donato, Joseph Calleja and Thomas Hampson tomorrow at the ROH with Antonio Pappano

WOW!!!!!


DMITRI HVOROSTOVSKY AND ANTONIO PAPPANO IN CONCERTWednesday 24 June at 7.30pm


I am very sorry to be sending you yet another email regarding our concert this Wednesday, 24 June. It seems only yesterday that I wrote to tell you about Rolando Villazón's unavoidable withdrawal due to a serious throat condition and of the wonderful Dmitri Hvorostovsky stepping into the breach. Unfortunately Dmitri Hvorostovsky is now also under doctors' orders to completely rest his voice and it is with great regret that he has had to cancel all his current engagements. We are, of course, very disappointed not to be hearing Dmitri and hope he will soon be fully recovered.

We have therefore turned to some of the wonderful singers that we have with us here at the moment and I am very pleased to be able to tell you that the dazzling American mezzo Joyce DiDonato (Rosina in Il barbiere di Siviglia), and the young and charismatic Maltese tenor Joseph Calleja and the celebrated American baritone Thomas Hampson, both appearing in La traviata - have agreed to join Antonio Pappano for what we anticipate to be a very exciting evening. Also participating will be the Concert Master of the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House, violinist Vasko Vassilev.


PS
I sure hope my two favourite baritones, Simon Keenlyside and Dmitri Hvorostovsky make a quick recovery!

Update: NOW Free Don Giovanni video on ROH web

Just visited the site and the videos are working perfectly! Well done ROH and thanks. It sounds and looks good and punctual as ever :-))



As previously announced, the ROH will generously share the Don Giovanni production which opened this season will all operalovers :-) Check out the site for details on how you can join in the fun from from October, the 5th!

http://www.roh.org.uk/discover/dongiovannifree.aspx

Everyone enjoy! But bare in mind before getting angry about possible technical mishaps, it will be there for a while, so you might want to give it a day or two for the first rush to pass,. otherwise the server will predictably fall over or get slow. Be patient, i am sure it will be worth it :-)

I will be looking forward to it!!

Thank you ROH!!!!! Don Giovanni, Free on the Web!!!!

Just read this in the New York Times!

"The Royal Opera House in London will present a full-length opera online for the first time beginning Oct. 5, when audiences will be able to log on to the company’s Web site and watch a performance of Mozart’s “Don Giovanni.” As part of the introduction of the site, www.roh.org.uk, the company will make it possible to view other complete operas and ballets online. The production of “Don Giovanni,” filmed on Sept. 8, will be available free of charge in its entirety and will feature subtitles, listening notes and a podcast with the director Francesca Zambello. The site also features archival material, a photo library and first-night cast lists dating to 1946."

Wooowwww!!!! I am blown away! And sooooo happy!!!

By the way, in case you were wondering how special the last performance of the 1st cast felt Joyce DiDonato has shared her thoughts with us, as well as some great pics! And we also get a sneak preview of Furore :-)

5-a-day post (Jonas & Caecilie, DiDonato, artists & fans)

I'm travelling and it is always hard to go from an overflow of live music which I love to death, to nothing or to something as sterile as music played on ones work laptop. So I compensate by digging through the internet or replaying memories in my ear.

Today somebody found this on Itunes: You know Jonas Kaufmann CD Romantic Arias? Well click in the pic and have a 2nd look at the track list! Yes, it is Caecilie!! And a version thereof of his, that i have not heard before. It is a full blown version with full orchestra backing.

Extremely interesting and very different from the Lieder CD. It is very powerful but in a very unique way. After i heard it a couple of times i found that this one and Martha probably best represent Jonas energy in live singing. I like the rest as well, but these come the closest to the empowering emotions of hearing the voice live. And you can feel so much joy in the singing.
The orchestra sound is somewhat unexpected and reminds me of the American Song book, it has that type of almost dancing flow. The voice is warm and integrates well, although the singing remains in full Lied mode. Interesting combination, but a successful one i think. The range and colour of the voice are amazing and it reaches amazing depth in both the upper and the lower register. Watch out for the warm deep embrace of it in the beginning up to the flying highs towards the end. Wow!!!

Treat yourself to this Caecilie and let his voice take you on a soaring trip of sheer musical joy.


And talking about joys.... this is one Joyce i would have liked so much to hear today!! A lucky few are probably just now enjoying a nice chat with the charming DiDonato at the ROH.


I hope somebody will be kind enough to share the experience with the ones of us who couldn't be there. I wish i knew what music pieces Joyce chose for the conversation...


On artists and fans I am going to add some thoughts later today, in connection with ROH Don Giovanni :-) I did go again and i will not bore you with more drooling over the experience, but there are other thoughts i want to share which were triggered by this event.

Ctd'

Anyone here who has an artist’s autograph raise a hand. Anyone who has a picture of themselves with an artist raise the other hand. Thought so! I’m gonna put mine down so that I can make this confession :-)

Until not so long ago I used to think that people who gathered at stage doors where a little bit crazy and that the artists on the receiving end were either poor suffering lambs or egocentric divas. Glups, mea culpa! Of course neither is true, but you have to live the phenomenon to understand what it is all about, and it is neither crazy nor does it have anything to do with the size of one’s ego.

Most of the times as an operagoer you are content with having watched and heard a good performance and having shown your appreciation by a reasonable amount of clapping. Then it is off to the tube and your own bed, chapter closed.

And then one day, a night comes along when everything changes. You don’t just like it, you live it! The music, the singing, the acting is something you have never experienced before. You can’t take your eyes off the stage, your heart is racing, your ears are tingling, your palms are sweating. The curtain falls and somebody or something suddenly possesses you! You jump up and start shouting Bravooo (the neighbours ears be damned!)), you clap like mad and 10 minutes later your palms are red, your voice is hoarse, but you feel you could just float away and jump up to the moon from so much adrenaline. You grab your stuff and, in a blink of an eye, dash out of the door and with steps as accelerated as your heart beat, suddenly find yourself amidst a crowd of people in front of a door that reads: Stage door.
There is excited chatter, there is a lot of ooohhing and ahhhhhing and wowwwing, there are grinning faces and sparkling eyes. And suddenly the artists step through the glass doors, slightly more tired than a few hours ago, but with smiles on their faces as well. There is a bit of a stampede, but at the end of it you emerge through the doors, retracing the artists steps, floating above ground, clutching the program which now boasts the illegible signatures of the heroes of the night :-)

So what happens in those precious few moments in between? And why the sudden change of heart, why join in the stampede?

Fans probably can't really provide validation to artists, either confirm or inform quality. But i hope seeing somebody's radiant face and hearing their voice still trembling from the emotions felt during the performance, does prove that the artist has touched their heart.

To me at least, that’s what the crowds at stage door are all about. Sometimes clapping just isn’t enough, you feel you owe the artists a bit more than that, or you just need to share the happiness they have brought about with them personally. Yes, they may read critics and they will know if they have done well. But this particular form of art is about interaction, it is about putting yourself out there on stage, with only your body and your voice, about taking huge risks in front of 2000 people and more. Something can always go wrong, or it can be the best night of your life. And the critics will rarely say anything about the emotions, the vibrations transmitted and shared. But fans can do that and that is why I believe that artists are not really bothered by the greeting crowds. If they are in a hurry or simply can’t attend, for whatever reason, there is always a way of avoiding it ;-).

So maybe more of us should bring up the courage to go and say how fabulous we found it, and which bit specifically made us explode with excitement. And who wouldn’t like to be told that today their hard work has made at least one person really happy? And aren’t autographs just our way of trying to capture the moment and the memories? To show them off for years to come and say, remember that night we heard X in Y??? The best version of Y I have ever heard or seen!

I fear sometimes the sharing of this joy is lost in the wordless pushing about of papers and signing and especially in the endless flashing of cameras. This not the moment to share life stories with the artists, but it definitely is the right moment to remember what our mommies have told us about “may I?“, ”please” and “thank you”. No amount of excitement should excuse the lack of manners!

But why not say why you want the autograph, what it means to you, how you liked the performance, rather than just pushing a piece of paper into somebody’s face, for whom you definitely have more admiration and respect than that silent gesture implies? You have received during 3 hours or more of performance the truest and most open form of communication an artist is able to give, why not communicate something back? Aren’t we there to give some caring and admiration back? So why make it into a gesture which only implies taking?

And you might find that the experience is greatly improved by it: you might get a personalised smile, you might see joy in the eyes of the artist, you might even get the occasional booming laugh or if you are really really lucky, even that earth-shattering hug! ;-)

With that in mind, I myself will make a promise not to step on anyone’s feet, breath down anyone’s neck, stick my elbows into anyone’s ribs, permanently blind anyone with my flash! ...and I am hoping at least some people will reciprocate :-)

It is fair to advise though, that I have no control over the drooling, swooning or my vocabulary being reduced to fabulous, fantastic, exciting and other synonyms ;-)))


Thanks to everyone who shared their thoughts about the subject with me prior to this entry being written, to those who joined me at the door and gave me courage to go there ;-) And also thanks to my very patient friend, who I am afraid will never join the crowd, but who always lets himself be dragged there to be the “stuff” holder (pens, camera, handbag, coat, umbrella, programs, etc he juggles everything while taking the most amazing pictures!).

And a very special thanks to Joyce DiDonato, Simon Keenlyside, Kyle Ketelsen, Ramon Vargas, Miah Persson and Sir Charles Mackerras who patiently, kindly, friendly and with loads of humour attended us all on Friday night! You are not only great artists, you are special people as well!

Deh vieni all'opera (Wednesday Don Giovanni at ROH)

Last nights I went to see the Don Giovanni at the ROH. No, don’t say again ;-) Wait with the again until Friday, then I will allow it :-)

I was lucky to get a last minute seat while I was only checking if it was sold out. Good seat to hear the orchestra but … forget you ever had feet, back or a good sitting position. I am still sitting in a strange twisted semi yoga position I acquired during last night’s performance. But they say one has to suffer a bit for art. I would willingly let myself be twisted like that again, if it was to see this performance again.

And I gained a new respect for the artists! All I am doing this week is follow them around the opera and sit there listening to them act, sing, live the performance. And I felt completely drained last night, Joyce DiDonato mentioned taking vitamins in her blog. Well, I already need them, and the week isn’t over yet. I don’t know how they do it! And they seem to have so much fun doing it! I just realised that all my ideas about what they do, need to be thrown out of the window. I can’t even begin to imagine the effort that goes into such a performance, or any performance for that matter. Joyce gave a wonderful recount of her work ethic during the preparations for this performance and it gives you an idea about just how tough the singers work to produce such magic on stage!

The combination between the cinema the other day and the live last night was perfect. Musically of course last night was much better, nothing beats the live sound! And you rarely hear Mozart played so crisp and lively and you even more rarely have a cast that can keep up the speedy pace.

I’d like to mention Kyle Ketelsen here :-)



pic from MundoClassico

There has been much praise in the press for his interpretation of the role and he is a brilliant actor. He and Leporello are one! Your could follow the story just by watching his face or his gestures. The audience also never has enough and he is the main trigger for the endless giggles. And it never is overacted or exaggerated, it always keeps just on the right side of the believable. But what I enjoyed very very very much yesterday was his singing! You know how this role is so well known for… Madamina, il catalogo e questo… ? Yes it was as good as it gets, but there was so much more!

The catalogo didn’t feel like it was the central focus of his singing, it was perfectly integrated and also well balanced. He told the facts without overdoing it, which happens many times. It is what it is and it is all written there and he is the man who has seen it all happen. In like his relationship with the Don as well, he is his employee but I like it that he doesn’t overdo the fear and the humble servant routine. The range of colours he puts in every “padron mio”! is fascinating! There is just that good amount of spite in it to spice things up a bit and I never got the feeling that the Don could do without him. I mean he could leave him and look for another master, but there is just that much amount of fascination with the adventure and the risk and the absurdity of the Don’s endless shenanigans to keep him put :-)


The advantage of all the experience Kyle brings to Leporello is that he can diversify the character while at the same time keeping the singing brilliant and effortless. It is so good it becomes normality and you become so engrossed in the character you end up taking the singing for granted. And we really shouldn’t, because it is of amazing quality and beauty of sound. It is smooth and rounded and the diction is superb. He is actually the one on stage which you can understand best! He is one of those few singers where the voice is in perfect harmony with the music, both compliment each other and none outdoes the other and it takes a very good singer to have the confidence to do that. I liked him being a musical constant in the show, steady there, reminding you always of the quality of the score Mozart has given him. Thank you Kyle for reminding everyone that Leporello is not just the one who scribbles down the catalogo :-) And I hope to hear you sing the Don part sometimes, or anything else you might decide to take on :-)



pic from Metro

I have said before just how much I enjoyed Joyce DiDonato’s singing! It was better live than the other day on screen :-) I think it is really hard for any recording to capture all the colour of a voice as it lives when it is live. There is just something special about the way a voice ripples through a theatre and not all can do it; hers does, it has a richness to it that makes it flow, vibrate with the audience and pull you in. The Ah, chi mi dice mai was just as strong a statement as I felt it on Monday, but had a touch more sweetness to the vindication, we not only smiled with Elvira, we also felt for her from the very first moment. And the In quali eccessi…ahhhhhhh, every time I hear it I love it more. It is my favourite one from Elvira! It is so complex and so touching! And to anyone who couldn’t hear her tonight, Joyce absolutely mesmerised the 2200 strong audience!! They wouldn’t stop giggling and laughing for a minute during the performance, except for this aria (and for Deh vieni alla finestra)!!! Hardly a breath was heard, and the applause at the end said it all!!!

In know Anna and Elvira are very different characters, but musically in many performances I have heard before, I didn’t really feel or hear the difference, sometimes these beautiful story telling arias just seem a struggle for breath or for the next coloratura and one is happy when it is completed. I like the sound of it, but at lengths have trouble connecting with it or distinguishing the characters when it is just an exercise of excellence in sound. With Joyce I can admire the ripples, the frills and thrills of the music while at the same time feeling the story!! Maybe I am just musically inept when it comes to this kind of thing, but I have always always loved Don Giovanni, so maybe I am not incapable of connecting to the coloraturas. At least I hope I am not and in all the love of this score, I have to say it is the first time I am truly falling in love with the particular arias mentioned. I hope Joyce loved the role as well, because I can’t bear to think that Friday is the last time for a long time that I will hear her sing In quali eccessi!




I also know which is the bit of the DVD that will also definitely be scratched from too much playing… it is that unbelievable Deh vieni alla finestra!! And to think Simon Keenlyside is hanging from the wall while singing it! I like the vivacity of the score and his many fiery inputs into it, but it is in this particular aria that I get to enjoy best about Simon’s artful singing, those long phrases that leave you breathless with their warmth and sheer beauty. It is where his voice is at its best and both nights, and I am guessing every night he ever sang it, the arias feels much too short, you wish he would sing much much more of that… Whenever I hear him singing it I can’t help but think:

“Tu ch'hai la bocca dolce più del miele,Tu che il zucchero porti in mezzo al core” Indeed!! That kind of singing can only come from a voice as sweet as honey and a heart as sweet as sugar :-)

I know it has been mentioned before, but I also enjoy his recitatives, fabulous diction and his indulgent “Leporeeelloooo” and impatient“finiscila! ” are so much fun! And has anyone noticed how, when he takes Leporello’s clothes and talks to Mazzeto as if he were his servant, as the score requires, his voice goes incredibly deep? It is a register in his voice you don’t get to hear very often in this score (that’s why we have Leporello, to bring the darker, lower undertones musically speaking :-)), but it is sooo beautifulll. The first time I heard it on Monday I went ohhhhhhh, can we have more of that please???

So for all these reasons and many more I am going again on Friday for yet another shot of Mozart and the Don, his servant and his beaus :

Sadly it will be the last but I have had the time of my life this week!

But I will always cherish the memories of my one week spent with “Don Giovanni”!!!

Don Giovanni
Wednesday, 10 September 2008
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Director Francesca Zambello
Designs Maria Björnson
Conductor Charles Mackerras
Don Giovanni Simon Keenlyside
Donna Anna Marina Poplavskaya
Don Ottavio Ramón Vargas
Donna Elvira Joyce DiDonato
Leporello Kyle Ketelsen
Masetto Robert Gleadow
Zerlina Miah Persson
Commendatore Eric Halfvarson

More reviews:
TheClassicalSource
TheTTCritic on Wednesday's performance
Telegraph
Guardian
Unione Sarda
Intermezzo
Between castles blog
Boulezian blog
Camden New Journal
Runnicles blog
GLT blog
Dognoah blog
La Verbena blog
TheSocialist Worker
TaminoKlassikforum
TheSpectator