GIULIO GARI FOUNDATION HONORS A MAJOR STAR AND SOME RISING ONES

 

Aprile Millo

The presence of esteemed and legendary soprano Aprile Millo must have been an inspiration for the young artists who entertained us Sunday at the annual Winner's Concert of the Giulio Gari Foundation. What a superb legacy of the late tenor! Awarding young singers is a not only a source of funding but an encouragement in a world that offers lots of heavy work for slim rewards.

Sunday's concert gave us the opportunity to acquaint ourself further with the gifts of seven young artists, all of whom  we have heard before and enjoyed. The splendid Mary Pinto accompanied them with flourish.

Let's do "ladies first"! We have reviewed Soprano Luna Seongeun Park a half dozen times recently, her having won awards from all of the award giving foundations in New York. What impressed us is her tackling so many different arias in different languages and styles and excelling at all of them. On Sunday, she commanded rapt attention from the audience as she created the character of Musetta who commands attention from the crowd at Café Momus in Puccini's La Bohême. 

Concluding the program was a duet with Son Jin Kim, in which she created a not-so-unwilling Zerlina who holds out for a credit card before exiting with the Don Giovanni of Mr. Kim, about whom more later. It was a clever wrinkle in Mozart's opera and the audience enjoyed it immensely. This gifted young soprano has many more roles ahead of her.

Mezzo-soprano Ruijia Dong employed a pleasing legato as she interpreted "O ma lyre immortale" from Gounod's lesser known opera Sappho. There was a divine depth and fine facility in French that pleased the ear. This was quite a change from our recollection of her weirdly costumed Ruggiero in Händel's Alcina at Mannes College for Music. As you may have guessed we prefer to focus on the voices than on trying to figure out some director's self important concept.

We really enjoyed Ms. Dong's performance of Angelina's final aria from Rossini's Cenerentola "Non più mesta". This is the test of any mezzo's mettle what with its rapid fire fioritura and large leaps. Our singer passed with flying colors and managed to also create a sympathetic character leaving us with pleasure at her "happy ever after" condition.

This was our second time hearing soprano Anna Thompson in a month, since she just won an award from The Gerda Lissner Foundation. She really got into the role of Rosalinde pranking her husband in Johann Strauss' Die Fledermaus. Both slow and fast sections were compelling and the German was on point.

As for the men, the afore mentioned bass Son Jin Kim made a fine impression in this generally late maturing fach. He showed a real flair for comedy in Don Basilio's comic aria "La calunnia" from Rossini's Il barbiere di Siviglia. His technical assurance permitted a gradual buildup of excitement and his well thought out gestures contributed to the success of the performance.

This very extroverted aria was finely contrasted with the more introspective "Cavatina" from Rachmaninoff's Aleko in which Mr. Kim sustained the sad mood of loss--loss of youth and loss of love,  since his fickle Zemfira has abandoned him for a young lover. There was an effective contrast between his melancholy first section and the second section in which he remembers a happier time.

We had one more opportunity to take the measure of Mr. Kim's talent when he took the role of Don Giovanni seducing Zerlina in Mozart's eponymous opera. So this marvelous  bass gave us a dose of fun, a dose of melancholy and one of manipulation, all within an hour!

We also got to hear two fine tenors. We first reviewed Ben Reisinger when he was a baritone and noted his superb upper register in "O vin, dissippe la tristesse"  from Thomas' Hamlet. Then we heard him at a master class when he was struggling with the transition. We are pleased to report that the transition is now a complete success. He completely captured Lensky's pathos in "Kuda, kuda" from Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin. An appropriate vibrato lent just the right color to his voice and his command of dynamics was best appreciated in a delicate and moving diminuendo. Furthermore he handled the linguistics well, not allowing the difficult consonants to cheat the vowels.

The other tenor Alec Carlson performed "O tu che in seno agli'angeli" from one of our favorite Verdi operas La Forza del Destino. We observed a fine Italianate embouchure, beautiful legato phrasing, and a reassuring lack of tension at the top of the register. The long held "money note" was lovely. We have reviewed Mr. Carlson a number of times, at competitions and at Santa Fe Opera. We are impressed that he has such a diverse repertoire.

We also heard a fine baritone who delighted the audience with "Some Enchanted Evening" from Rodgers and Hammerstein's South Pacific. We have no problem appreciating this as an aria from an American opera; but in spite of a worthy performance there was something missing, something cultural. The character of Emile de Becque is a specific one. He is French and he has his secrets. Falling in love with an American Army nurse was unexpected and the singer needs to convey the wonder of it all. Very few singers nowadays study the character and the situation, so performances tend to come across as generic and imitative. I hope that Yoonsoo Jang will put in a bit more work towards making the aria his own. We heard him recently creating the character of Dr. Malatesta in Donizetti's Don Pasquale so we know he is up to the challenge.

It was a fine evening and a wonderful opportunity to catch up with citizens of Planet Opera and to hear young artists who will carry the torch into the future. All we need is a small opera house in Manhattan so we can put them all to work!

© meche kroop

LONDON FINALS

 Finalists at the George and Nora London Foundation Competition

(photo by Joan Greenberg)

For as long as we can remember we have considered this competition a highlight of the musical season. Not only are the finalists some of the very best young singers in the country, but we in the audience get to share the excitement with them after their respective performances whilst the judges perform the nigh impossible task of deliberating. Unlike some other competitions which we will not mention, the group is not divided cruelly in half. Of course five of them will get cash awards that are significantly higher than the other seven but no one is left feeling like a loser.

As usual, we would like to address the smooth running of the competition, held at The Morgan Library. There was no excessive fanfare nor lengthy speeches. The overall quality of the performances indicates marvelous futures for these young artists. Please do not count on us to tell you how much each singer won or who was "the best". That information is probably available on the Foundation's website, if you care about such things. The judges are all luminaries in the opera world and must have had a most difficult time.

 Gracing the piano bench was a dear friend of ours, the renowned Lachlan Glen who managed to switch gears from one singer to the next and to give each one the necessary support. That aspect alone lent a very special quality to the fast moving display of artistry.

Readers will recall that we lack affection for contemporary opera and for the English language. We all have our preferences and it is most rewarding when we hear a performance of something we did not expect to like and find ourself relating to it and wanting to learn more about the opera. Since all of the voices were beyond excellent, we would like to focus on audience engagement and dramatic presentation.

Take, for example, the riveting performance of "A Dream Wasted" from an opera completely unknown to us--Highway One, USA by W.G. Still, performed by bass-baritone Joseph Parrish. Mr. Parrish has been on our radar for quite some time; no surprise that he was selected by Young Concert Artists after making quite a splash as a Santa Fe Opera Apprentice. His performance was so intense and seemed spontaneous; we got a real sense of the character and intend to learn something about the opera. We might add that alone among the singers who sang in English, Mr. Parrish made every word comprehensible.

Another dramatically riveting performance was that of another bass-baritone Evan Lazdowski, well remembered from his time at Juilliard, who performed Bottom's aria from Britten's A Midsummer Night's Dream. This was a highly physical performance that showed off his dramatic skills. There was Bottom crawling around the stage and hiding under the piano. Even if you didn't know the Shakespearean plot, you would have marveled at the convincing nature of the characterization and the humor. 

And whilst we are talking about convincing male performances, bass-baritone Sam Dhobhany made a fine Figaro in "Non più andrai" from Mozart's  Le nozze di Figaro. Similarly, baritone Korin Thomas-Smith enacted a perfectly arrogant and perfectly clueless Count Almaviva in "Hai già vinta la causa". We could have cast Mozart's masterpiece right then and there.

Bass Alan Williams utilized his splendid instrument to limn the nastiness of Claggart in Britten's Billy Budd. Tenor Alec Carlson did equal justice to Peter Grimes' mad scene from the eponymous Britten opera. Both men awakened us to Britten's skill at writing music specific to unlovable characters.

Let us move on to the women on the program. We were particularly excited to learn that soprano Shelen Hughes would perform an aria from the very same role that we heard her sing at Manhattan School of Music some years ago. Rimsky-Korsakov's Snegurechka (The Snow Maiden) is so rarely performed and it is truly a gem of a fairy tale, allowing the singer an opportunity to reveal a variety of emotions. We loved it back then and we loved it even more last night as Ms. Hughes has grown in her artistry. We might add that her Russian sounded fine to our ear, although it is not one of our languages.

Soprano, Magdalena Kuźma, is another singer we have admired and she also sang in a language that is not one of ours. We have always enjoyed the music of Moniuszko and his opera Halka is one we yearn to see, especially after hearing Ms. Kuźma's portrayal of the romantically betrayed village girl.

Happily French is a language we do understand and especially enjoyed mezzo-soprano Ruby Dibble's portrayal of Carmen, the heroine of Bizet's beloved opera. Carmen is anything but a stock character and we love to hear a singer who can make the role her own. Ms. Dibble's Carmen was a clever one, and a woman of mercurial emotions, confident of her power over men.

Mozart seemed to be a favored choice among the women as well as the men. Soprano Dalia Medovnikov as Pamina in Die Zauberflöte presented just the type of heroine we want to see, full of innocence but fearful of the loss of her love. 

Soprano Emily Damasco brought some fine singing to her portrayal of Fiordiligi in Mozart's Cosi fan tutte. In "Come scoglio", Fiordiligi emphatically declares her steadfast faithfulness but the audience can see that she will soon lose her resolve.

Closing the program was a puzzling selection from Jonathan Dove's children's opera The Enchanted Pig. Soprano Rachel Kobernick threw herself into the role of Adelaide but, truth to tell, we had to look up the opera to get an idea what it was about. Apparently Adelaide is a witch's daughter who wants to marry a King who is destined for someone else. Had Ms. Kobernick's English diction been clearer we might have gotten some inkling of the story but we did not. She sang with a lot of "personality" but our ignorance of the situation and inability to understand the text added up to disappointment.

On the whole, we were sufficiently impressed by the dozen finalists (selected from 175 applicants), that we considered the afternoon a complete success. We don't believe in heaven, but if we did, we would think of George and Nora London looking down with pride and pleasure.

© meche kroop

OPERA INDEX RECITAL

Lindsey Reynolds, Ashley Marie Robillard, Alec Carlson, Jane Shaulis, Ariana Wehr, Gloria Kim, and Jianan Huang

Last night was the night.  It was THE night. It was the night when the membership of Opera Index gathers for an annual celebration involving food and wine, fellowship and music. The food was provided by the members (many of whom are excellent cooks) and the entertainment was provided by five of the winners of Opera Index's 2019 Vocal Competition.

Like most competitions there is a lot of winnowing to be done, starting with a huge group of applicants. There are generous prizes to be awarded and a lot of satisfaction following the careers of the award winners as their stars ascend. The list of past winners looks like a "Who's Who" of the opera world.

President Jane Shaulis gave a warm welcome and introduced five of the winners, pictured above with the excellent accompanist Gloria Kim. We particularly enjoyed the plan of the recital in which each singer performed an aria and then all five returned to sing something lighter.

We heard five splendid singers but only one that we've been following for a long time. Tenor Alec Carlson first came to our attention about five years ago as one of the singers chosen by Steven Blier for one of his New York Festival of Song evenings. We gained a better appreciation of his artistic gifts last summer at the Santa Fe Opera. We reviewed his performances at recitals presented by the Gerda Lissner Foundation and Career Bridges, both of which granted him awards. David and Barbara Bender of Career Bridges were in attendance to cheer him on.

Last night he brought the arrogant Duke to life. Verdi gave this reprehensible character in his Rigoletto the most gorgeous aria. Every tenor would love to sing "Questa o quella" and Mr. Carlson filled it out with his generous sound and the requisite arrogant attitude. The Italianate phrasing left nothing to be desired.

Later, he performed "Freunde, das Leben ist lebenswert!" from Franz Lehar's light opera Giuditta. His German was excellent and the delivery completely stageworthy. It made us want to see the opera. The only aria with which we are familiar from the work is the famous "Meine Lippen sie kussen so heiss".

We enjoyed three special sopranos, each one special in a different way. Lindsey Reynolds performed "Je suis encore tout étourdie" from Massenet's Manon in a manner that was totally convincing. We just love performances that bring a character to life and her Manon was a sweet and innocent girl who bubbled over with excitement over her first trip. The only hint she gave of her doomed future was her naiveté. Ms. Reynolds' lovely voice was put into the service of the character. And her French was just fine.

Later, she sang "Love is where you find it" from the 1947 musical film The Kissing Bandit. (Nacio Herb Brown wrote the music and Earl K Brent wrote the lyrics.) Ms. Reynolds' voice expands magnificently in the upper register and we were waiting for some crystal to break!

Ariana Wehr gave a lovely performance of Micaëla's aria "Je dis que rien ne m'epouvante" from Bizet's Carmen. What made it so special was that she captured the complexity of the character--faith mixed with resolve but tinged by the very fear that the lyrics denied. French diction and phrasing were both admirable. We liked the fine vibrato and the intense central section.

In the second part, she gave a spirited performance of "I Could Have Danced All Night" from Lerner and Loew's My Fair Lady, demonstrating her flexibility as an artist.

Ashley Marie Robillard captured the character of Susana from Mozart's Le Nozze di Figaro in her Act IV aria "Deh vieni, non tardar". Starting from the recitativo, we could see and hear that she was teasing her Figaro; she didn't need to paint it in broad strokes and we appreciated the subtlety. We were dazzled by the embellishments to the line, most of which were new to us; the arching phrase at the end was the cherry on top.

Later she sang Gershwin's "Someone to Watch Over Me" with heartfelt sentiment, reaffirming our belief in the value of hearing American theater and cabaret music unamplified.

Baritone Jianan Huang sang Don Giovanni's tender serenade from Mozart's eponymous opera--"Deh vieni alla finestra". Verdi was not the only composer to put sweet music into the mouth of a reprehensible character! And Mr. Huang sang it sweetly indeed with lovely phrasing and fine Italian. 

However, it was his second entry that really enchanted us. Readers know how much we love folk music and Mr. Huang sang the most exquisite Chinese folk song, the translation of which was "Father Prairie, Mother River". There was a fine delicacy to it and a deeply felt sentiment that really got to us.

Just in case you didn't read our prior reviews of Opera Index, let us encourage you to join this fine organization which exists to support young singers and to provide an opportunity for opera lovers to get together. We were pleased to see some new faces in the audience and we'd like to see yours. The cost of membership is modest and the benefits are great.

© meche kroop

GERDA LISSNER WINNERS CONCERT

Collaborative Pianist Arlene Shrut and winners of the Gerda Lissner Foundation Lieder/Song Competition

Young singers need all the help they can get in building their careers and the Gerda Lissner Foundation is unmatched in this role. There are yearly competitions for both opera and for song, with generous awards for the winners. Being present to hear these young artists in concert after the competitions is a special treat. It's an even tastier treat to witness their development as they achieve the fame they deserve. When we have time to read bios of successful singers we cannot fail to notice how many of them have begun their success by winning these competitions.

Friday's recital of 2019 winners presented ten young singers of great promise, all accompanied by the legendary collaborative pianist Arlene Shrut who matches her accompaniment to the special skills of each young artist and also takes into account the great variety of material they choose to present. Every singer was superb, each in a different way.

Tenor Eric Finbarr Carey had us trembling in our seat with a searing performance of Schubert's "Der Erlkönig". Goethe's text is tragic and dramatic; in contrast with so much contemporary poetry, it does beg to be set to music. What we look for in an effective performance is good storytelling. This means that the singer must play the part of the narrator with neutral coloring. When the story quotes the father, he must darken and age the coloration; when he quotes the child, he must lighten and whiten the color; and when he voices the titular Erlkönig he must begin seductively and end horrifically. Mr. Carey held us spellbound, sustaining the tension throughout a pause before the final grim "tod"!

Baritone Jonathan McCullough struck us as a complete artist with a mature round sound that conveyed everything one could possibly say about a man watching his beloved marry someone else. Mahler based this song (the first lied of his cycle Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen) on Des Knaben Wunderhorn, a collection of folk poetry. Beginning in the mournful key of D-minor, it makes a brief excursion into a verse in the major mode as the poet witnesses the joys of nature. Then it sinks back into minor, since his grief blocks his appreciation of these joys. Mr. McCullough illuminated every nuance.

Soprano Monica Dewey injected Rachmaninoff's "Noch'yu v sadu u menya" with an anguished coloration that was deeply affecting. With brilliant tone she sang of a weeping willow and a sad girl. It was the last song Rachmaninoff wrote before leaving Russia and perhaps that it why he chose that sad story.

Coloratura soprano Alexia Mate selected a French song that was well chosen to show off her bright tone, her lovely French, and her flexibility. Dell'Acqua's "Villanelle" offers a lovely legato passage and some challenging staccato passages with trills and arpeggi, all successfully negotiated. There were also some melismatic passages. Mentally, we cast Ms. Mate as Queen of the Night! Sometimes,we just cannot keep from extrapolating from a sole performance to a singer's future.

With the kind of German diction one only hears from a native born German singer, Dennis Chmelensky gave a perfect performance of Schubert's "Willkommen und Abschied", the setting of a text by Goethe. Schubert's music and Mr. Chmelensky's singing gave us all the anticipation and fulfillment and also the pain of parting. He made good use of variation of tempo and dynamics to tell the tale. We sincerely believe that any singer who wants to sing lieder should master a few of Schubert's prodigious output of over 600 songs.

Tenor Alec Carlson has a sizable voice with the right weight and intensity to convey the despair of "Der Atlas", one of Schubert's more morose songs. This one is a setting of a text by Heinrich Heine and, although it is not among our favorite Schubert songs, Mr. Carlson's dramatic delivery put us right in the middle of Atlas' burdensome task.

Baritone Dongwei Shen made a daring choice of singing a Chinese song by Zaiyi Lu called "Overlooking my Homeland". Most Americans lack a frame of reference for an appreciation of this eminently singable language and the Chinese penchant for the retention of melody. No 12-tone serialism for them, thank goodness! The song offered opportunities for emotional connection which Mr. Chen conveyed successfully by means of vocal color, gesture, and dynamics. 

There was no translation but as we listened we felt pain and longing in our heart for something we were about to lose. After the concert, we asked Mr. Shen about the meaning of the song and it is about life passing by us. What a mark of success for a singer to convey such meaning in another language. Incidentally, we had a similar experience once in Bhutan of knowing what a song was about. Oh, the miracle of music!

Another baritone, Sung Shin, chose to sing Tosti's "L'ultima canzone", another song about a man losing his sweetheart. It's our favorite Tosti song because we love the alternation of moods and melodies in the verses; this feature gave Mr. Shin an opportunity to show off his impressive artistry. His instrument has an appealing tweedy texture and his Italianate vowels were scented with garlic. He shaped his phrases with great artistry, making use of occasional rubato. There was also some nice melismatic singing on "ah". We loved it!

Mezzo-soprano Erin Wagner's selection was the final one of Barber's Hermit Songs--"The Desire for Hermitage". The cycle is a setting of songs from Irish monasteries written down between the 8th and 13th c. We confess that these are not our favorite songs, although we do like the tranquil "The Monk and His Cat", the slightly irreverent "The Heavenly Banquet", and the short but bawdy "Promiscuity". But Ms. Wagner's choice was of a more ascetic bent, although we picked up a subtext of spiritual fervor. She sang it well and had a beautiful ringing top. Still, we would like to hear her sing in a different language.

Mezzo-soprano Anastasiia Sidorova, whom we just heard at a concert of winners of the Premiere Opera Foundation Competition, sang a beautiful song by Rimsky-Korsakov called "The Clouds Begin to Scatter", the setting of text by Pushkin. Ms. Sidorova, as we noted in our review a couple days ago, has a lovely instrument that she knows how to use. If only she could loosen up and use her body! We hoped that singing in her own language would work to her advantage but were a bit disappointed. We wanted more connection with the audience as well as more connection with the song. We hope that someone at her conservatory will work with her on this; it's like a pot on the stove with all good ingredients that just needs some heat to release the aromas and flavors! Tap into your Russian passion Anastasiia! Go for it!

Host for the evening was the engaging Midge Woolsey who introduced each singer and told us the theme of the song after it was sung. We would have preferred the description before it was sung.

The concert was produced in association with the Liederkranz Foundation.

© meche kroop

THE STARS AT NIGHT ARE BIG AND BRIGHT

Sylvia d'Eramo, Cory McGee, Gina Perregrino, Alec Carlson, Elizabeth Sarian, and Santa Fe Apprentices

The stars this night were big and bright and dazzling, and we are not even in Texas! We are at the Santa Fe Opera and it is the night we have been waiting for, the night when the Santa Fe Apprentices get to take starring roles in eight scenes. Usually the eight scenes comprise seven winners and one dud, the dud  being related to a poor choice of scene. 

Last night there was no disappointment. Each scene was well cast and well directed and our fussy ears were gratified by some exemplary singing, some by singers we have reviewed and enjoyed before, and some by singers new to us whom we look forward to hearing in the future.

As far as the direction, we noticed that one of our favorite directors, Mary Birnbaum, is now directing a cast of singers we know and love in La Bohême, an event we are looking forward to and will be reviewing this week. We were happy to witness the directing artistry of David Paul (new to Santa Fe, we believe), Katherine M. Carter who is new to us, Paul Curran, and Kathleen Clawson, whose directing skills have always impressed us.

The scenes were well chosen to highlight the available talent as well as to delight the audience who, we are inclined to believe, love melody as much as we do. Certain operas thrill us no matter how many times we have seen them. Their melodies wind themselves around our brain in loving embrace.

Take, for example, the opening scene of Mozart's Le nozze di Figaro. Mr. Paul filled this prenuptial scene with warmth and joy, showing us a couple who can tease and bicker harmlessly as a prelude to a satisfying life together. We were reminded of the newly wed couple we saw in the Plaza yesterday and how touching is the promise of new beginnings. Bass Brent Michael Smith has the role of Figaro down pat and his Susanna, portrayed by soprano Cheyanne Coss, made a worthy counterpart, both vocally and dramatically. Their onstage chemistry was a delight to behold. 

Antonin Dvorák's Rusalka is best known for the title character's "Song to the Moon", a difficult aria which soprano Regina Ceragioli sang expressively. The Ježibaba of mezzo-soprano Kate Farrar was outstanding and we foresee a great future for her, given her textured instrument and stage presence. Significantly adding to the scene were Will Elphingstone's watery lighting and Hannah Schatzle's gorgeous costumes: a blue-green gown with a train trailing the width of the stage, used by Ms. Carter's direction to indicate the water from which this water nymph must free herself; and Ježibaba's costume with a huge cape which Ms. Farrar swirled around with malicious glee.

Everyone loves Rossini's Il barbiere di Siviglia and the Act II quintet is so brilliantly written that we never tire of hearing it. Along with Ms. Carter's astute direction, we had some excellent costuming by Maria Laura Sandoval and Harley Haberman's gorgeous wig for mezzo-soprano Katherine Beck who made a fine Rosina. Bass-baritone Alan Higgs, costumed in an elegant red robe, nearly stole the scene with some impressive acting and singing as Dr. Bartolo.

Baritone Jarrett Logan Porter made a splendid Figaro with tenor Angel Romero as the determined Almaviva and bass-baritone Seungyun Kim as the silly Don Basilio whom the others cannot seem to get rid of. "Buona sera mio signore" has been dancing around our brain all night!

In the Act I duet from Donizetti's La favorita, we were wowed by the vocal gifts of mezzo-soprano Katherine De Young in the title role and of tenor Anthony Ciaramitaro as her Fernando who, like Don Basilio just will not leave. Both artists impressed us with the size and color of their instruments and the artistry with which they employed them. Mr. Ciaramitaro sang with the most perfect Italian and we understood every single word. 

We confess to being dismayed by the huge disparity in their heights, making their embrace an awkward affair. But that is a minor quibble. The maid Inès had but few lines but we want to hear more of mezzo-soprano Ruby Dibble who sounded excellent. Naomi Beetlestone Detre's costumes were appropriate to the early 19th c.

On a simple set of boxes of graduated heights, mezzo-soprano Leia Lensing's Orfeo tried to lead a reluctant Euridice out of the underworld in Gluck's most famous opera. Who doesn't love "Che faro senza Euridice", known to every beginning vocal student! How wonderful to hear it sung by the excellent Ms. Lensing who gave each return of the verse a different set of ornamentation. It was all very tasteful in true Classical style, doing away with some of the excesses of the Baroque Era. Grace Kahl was convincing as the newly deceased Euridice who does not want to leave the peace of the Underworld. Becca Updyke's costumes were simple and right on the mark.

Of Wagner's entire Ring Cycle, our very favorite scene is the opening one of Die Walküre in which the woeful and weary warrior takes refuge in a hut in which he discovers a loveless woman who just so happens to be his beloved and long lost sister. Listening to Wagner's glorious music and poetic description of the discovery of a soulmate is unequalled in our book. 

As Sieglinde we were thrilled to hear the splendid soprano Mary-Hollis Hundley who seemed to have been made to sing Wagner. At this stage in her development, this is the perfect role for her; with her sizable instrument, we predict lots of heavier Wagnerian roles in her future. As her hapless brother/lover we were impressed by tenor Robert Stanley who not only sang with power and sensitivity but grew in stature and color as he discovered his identity. The sword Nothung was buried in an onstage tree, a sword which could only be extracted by himself. He blossomed as Sieglinde gave him the name of Siegmund. We felt a blossoming in our very own heart!

The final two scenes were exquisitely directed by Mr. Curran. Our only tiny quibble of the evening was that we wished the hilarious scene from Puccini's Gianni Schicchi had ended the evening so that the audience might have left in a great mood. The direction of this scene was so astute as to highlight Rinuccio's aria about the glories of Firenze; in this role we thrilled to the voice and stage presence of the very young tenor Joseph Tancredi about whom we have often written when he was an undergraduate at Manhattan School of Music. 

Mr. Curran had choreographed the unappealing members of the squabbling Busoni family to move in unison, all disparaging Rinuccio's attempt to bring his sweetheart's father Gianni Schicchi onboard to solve the inheritance dilemma. The more they unanimously scorned him and the unaristocratic Schicchi family, the more he stood out and we heard more in that aria than ever before.

As his sweetheart Lauretta, the versatile Ms. Coss gave a sweet rendition of "O mio babbino caro" with a marvelous messa di voce. In a clever directorial twist, she was complicit with the plot. Baritone Will Hughes was excellent in the title role, completely convincing as the wily manipulator. Ms. Lensing made a nicely nasty Zia; bass William Meinert made a very funny Dr. Spinelloccio, another character who just won't leave. There was a very funny bit with a bedpan. The remainder of the family comprised Elliot Paige, Andrew Moore, Ian Burns, Ms. Dibble, and Grace Kahl.

The evening ended with the final scene from Bizet's Carmen in which mezzo-soprano Gina Perregrino filled out the role as successfully as she filled out the shocking pink ruffled flamenco gown with which she was costumed by John Polles. Mr. Curran's direction emphasized the violence of the relationship which was almost too convincing. Ms. Perregrino's superb singing was matched by excellent stage presence and chemistry with her discarded and vengeful lover Don Jose, performed with notable artistry by tenor Alec Carlson. Both of them sang with fine French diction.

For some reason, the action of the characters did not always match up with the dialogue. When Carmen most forcefully demands to be let go, she should be blocked or restrained by Don Jose.

Baritone Cory McGee portrayed Escamillo; soprano Sylvia D'Eramo sang the role of Frasquita and mezzo-soprano Elizabeth Sarian joined in as Mercedes. Strangely, they were costumed as mid-20th c. sorority girls and Carmen's gown was open in the front revealing what looked like a black leotard. Only Escamillo seemed appropriately costumed.

It was an evening that could not be duplicated for sheer entertainment value. Those new to opera were offered the most tempting delicacies to tease their palate whereas experienced opera goers were given fresh looks at old standards and the opportunity to hear the stars of tomorrow.

There will be a new and different set of scenes next Sunday and if you are anywhere near Santa Fe we urge you to come on by, although we admit that this was a tough act to follow!

(c) meche kroop

BEL CANTO/CAN BELTO

Paying tribute to Steve Blier are Shea Owens, Alec Carlson, Christopher Reynolds, Chelsea Morris and Julia Dawson

If you have yet to spend an evening in the company of Steven Blier you don't know what you are missing but we plan to let you in on the good news.  Song is alive and well in his hands; he curates an evening of music around a given theme, unearths an amazing selection of songs, shares tidbits of information about them with his audience, and shows equal respect for the old masters and the contemporary ones. He accomplishes all this while discovering young talent and bringing them to the attention of the song-loving public.

Founder and Artistic Director of New York Festival of Song, Mr. Blier has fingers in many pies as master teacher, mentor, coach, collaborative pianist, arranger, writer, and raconteur. Last night's recital at Merkin Hall was the culmination of a weeklong training residency at the Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts--the Terrance W. Schwab Vocal Rising Stars program.  And what rising stars we heard!

To begin with the encore, soprano Chelsea Morris, mezzo-soprano Julia Dawson, tenor Alec Carlson and baritone Shea Owens joined voices in a gorgeous arrangement (courtesy of Maestro Blier) of Henry Mancini's "Moon River" from the film Breakfast at Tiffany's.  If this didn't stir you, you must be made of wood.  It sent the audience out the door with happy faces and dancing feet.

Speaking of dancing feet, a NYFOS first was an ear-dazzling tap dance by.....  (get this!) Christopher Reynolds!  Mr. Reynolds is a talented collaborative pianist who took over Associate Artistic Director Michael Barrett's piano bench, sharing the accompanying duties with Mr. Blier. As if one major talent were not enough for one man! This amplified the pleasure of the quartet of singers joining voices for Harry Warren's "The Girlfriend of the Whirling Dervish" from Garden of the Moon.  The lyrics by Al Dubin and Johnny Mercer are highly politically incorrect and highly hilarious.

We have no idea how Mr. Blier finds these treasures but find them, he does.

The first half of the program comprised songs of the bel canto period by Italian masters while the second comprised 20th c. songs by Italian-American composers--a veritable treasure trove of gems.  Of course Bellini, Rossini and Donizetti were represented.  Bellini's long lyrical lines were given fine treatment by soprano Chelsea Morris in "La ricordanza", the music being recycled later for Elvira's mad scene in I Puritani.  Ms. Morris handled the fioritura with aplomb and precision.

Julia Dawson was equally excellent in one of Rossini's numerous settings of Pietro Metastasio's "Mi lagneró tacendo" with all of its broad skips and complex fioritura. The delightful duet "A consolarmi affrettisi" from Donizetti's Linda di Chamounix was performed by Ms. Morris and tenor Alec Carlson.  Once again we thrilled to the accuracy of the embellishments.

Mr. Carlson sounded just as fine in the opening number, a barcarolle by  Alfredo Catalani entitled "In riva al mare", with its simple lilting piano. In a clever piece of stagecraft, baritone Shea Owens burst onto the stage, interrupting their bows with a confident stage presence and terrific tone, performing Giuseppe Verdi's Brindisi with all the bibulous panache one could wish for.  We hasten to tell you that it was all acting since Mr. Owens does not imbibe.  Coulda fooled us!

Composers who came on the scene a bit later maintained the tradition of beautiful melody--well into the 20th c. verismo period.  Stefano Donaudy actually called his collection of songs Arie di Stile Antico. He composed his "Vaghissima sembianza" when only 13 years of age. Both text and music evince confounding maturity. Mr. Carlson sang it simply and sweetly.

Franco Alfano not only finished Puccini's Turandot but also composed songs; many were settings of poetry by Rabindranath Tagore. We loved Mr. Owens command of color as he transitioned from the quiet meditative verse to the passionate one in "Non nascondere il segreto".  

Ms. Morris impressed us with the vocally spare "I pastori" by Ildebrando Pizzetti with text by Gabriele d'Annunzio and Ms. Dawson with her singing of a charming piece in Hebrew by Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco "Ulai laze yihie li ometz", one of three works not in Italian. Another was "Wer hat das erste Lied erdacht" by Ferruccio Busoni, composed when he was 13 years old.  That made two adolescent composer honored on the program and Mr. Carlson again sang very sweetly.

The first part of the program ended with our favorite --"Sérénade napolitaine" a French song by Ruggero Leoncavallo in which Ms. Dawson's mezzo and Mr. Owens' baritone blended beautifully.

The second half of the program included many well known Italian-American composers, most of them friends of Mr. Blier.  Although we rarely find 20th c. American songs sufficiently melodic, the songs Mr. Blier chose were unanimously tuneful.  We heard Dominick Argento's "Spring" and Norman Dello Joio's "There is a lady sweet and kind".  We enjoyed the irony  of John Musto's "Penelope's Song" from his song cycle of the same name.  But we loved what the ensemble did with the irreverent "Some Last Words" from The Book of Uncommon Prayer.

Two selections from John Corigliano impressed.  Ms. Dawson sang the lovely "Irreverent Heart" (text by Yip Harburg) with great depth of feeling and the two lovely ladies performed a scene from his opera The Ghosts of Versailles.  With the two female voices and two pianos the texture was undeniably rich and thrilling.

"This Much is New" was written by Mark Adamo three years ago for Mr. Blier's wedding and this was the first time the piece (text by Mark Campbell) was performed in public.  A perfect marriage of melody and text, feelingly sung by Mr. Owens.

What a special evening!  We are already on board for the next entry on April 28th, Letters from Spain: A world of Song in Spanish Poetry.  Hope to see you there.

(c) meche kroop