WITCHES, HELLIONS, AND DIVAS

Juan Lázaro, Manya Steinkoler, Anna Viemeister, Rosario Armas, Sasha Gutiérrez,
and Emma Lavandier

The upcoming International Women's Day was honored last night by Vocal Productions NYC by presenting five women singers in an interesting concert celebrating female opera heroines. Of course, the women were accompanied by a man!  One of our favorite young pianists, Juan Lázaro, managed to keep up with all five!

We love hearing young singers and are aware of how much talent there is in our local conservatories. Gracing the stage of St. John's in the Village were two students from Manhattan School of Music. We remember mezzo-soprano Rosario Armas from her performance last year as Lazuli in Chabrier's L'Etoile, presented by Catherine Malfitano's Junior Opera Theater.

Manuel de Falla's Siete canciones populares españolas was another feather in her MSM cap.  Last night she dazzled us with a deeply felt "O ma lyre immortelle" from Gounod's Sapho, and showed herself to be an accomplished artist comfortable in the French language.

She also sang a cabaret song by Britten entitled "Johnny", demonstrating clear diction and dynamic variety.

Sasha Gutierrez, another student from MSM, performed "Stridono lassú" from Leoncavallo's I Pagliacci, presenting not just splendid vocalism but a true immersion in the character of Nedda. Through Nedda's eyes we could see the birds flying overhead and feel her envy of their freedom. This dramatic intention adds immeasurably to a performance. Of course, Mr. Lázaro's piano helped to bring the birds to life!

The incredibly difficult "Come scoglio" from Mozart's Cosi fan tutte was made to seem like a piece of cake with easeful leaps up and down the register. Was Mozart commenting on Fiordiligi's character or just making things difficult for a soprano he didn't like???

Mezzo-soprano Anna Viemeister has caught our attention in the past by the versatility she has demonstrated, taking on a great variety of roles and doing all of them justice. Last night she gave a stunning performance of "Re dell'abisso", Ulrica's aria from Verdi's Ballo in Maschera. There was an admirable consistency throughout the register and the low notes surely belong in the contralto fach. The "Silencio!" was just as gripping as it should be. 

Ms. Viemeister is an expert at inhabiting a character. She did just as well creating a memorable Princesse de Bouillion in the impassioned "Acerba volutta" from Cilea's Adriana Lecouvreur. Léonor's aria "O mio Fernando" from Donizetti's La Favorita allowed her to show off the upper register and her duet "Mira o Norma" showed her ability to achieve harmony and balance.

The Norma to her Adalgisa was sung by soprano Manya Steinkoler who also gave us Lady Macbeth at her most bloodthirsty in "Vieni t'affretta", introducing the aria with a dramatic recitation and following it with a stunning cabaletta.

The oft-reviewed Emma Lavandier was also on hand portraying Hoffman's muse in Offenbach's Les contes d'Hoffman; there is nothing like hearing this from a native speaker of French! The same could be said for her "Seguidilla" from Bizet's Carmen, although we would have wished for a bit more seduction.

We enjoyed the evening immensely and left with only one doubt. Why was Adriana Lecouvreur put in the category of "Witches"? We always saw her as a benevolent character and a victim. Likewise for Nedda. Somehow on the program they wandered from "Diva" into "Witches", leaving us with a little laugh. We might have moved Carmen from "Hellions" to "Witches". We guess it's just how one looks at it.

© meche kroop

LOVERS, SWINDLERS, AND CLOWNS

Asher Denburg, Jeremy Griffin, Anna Viemeister, and Valentin Peytchinov

We love new experiences; we love being introduced to new singers; and we love getting more evidence for our strongly held beliefs. The belief in question has to do with American opera and its definition. The academic music world insists on presenting the public with works which we see out of curiosity, works which very few people ever wish to see again.

Meanwhile, there are writers of "Broadway Musical Theater" who entertain us in the same way as Mozart, Rossini, Donizetti, Bellini, Verdi, and Puccini did in previous centuries. These works hold our interest and endure mainly because of one feature. They have melody. The melodies stay with us and we want to hear them again and again.

Of course, looking at 20th c. musical theater, there was a lot of trash, but there were also forgettable operas in the 19th c. So, dear reader, last night found us back at St. John's in the Village, the Rector of which is a true music lover. The occasion was a celebration of the centennial of Prohibition and celebrate we did with a compelling concert of music theater and cabaret, performed unamplified (YAY!) by a trio of splendid singers, accompanied on the piano by Asher Denburg, a pianist new to us but one we look forward to hearing again.

The singer who was new to us is Jeremy Griffin whose baritone voice readily encompasses the lower register. Whatever he sang was given the full force of his personality; he has plenty of presence and uses his entire body to get a song across. And he enunciates English clearly so that every word is understood.

Our favorite number of the evening was William Bolcom's "The Song of Black Max"--in our opinion the best song Bolcom ever wrote. We were introduced to this song by none other than cabaret artist Kim David Smith and we fell in love with it on the spot. We have heard it several times over the past few years with feelings of disappointment because the other singers failed to paint the picture. 

Mr. Griffin succeeded where others failed. He virtually created the character of Black Max but also created the characters of the "lady organ-grinder", not to mention "all the sons behind her", as well as the "little girls with little curls in little dollhouse jails".

He was very funny in "You Won't Succeed on Broadway" from Eric Idle's Spamalot, adding in some appropriate dance moves. 

He conveyed different facets of fatherhood from the silly to the serious. The father in "The Baby Song" from I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change by Roberts and DiPietro is dealing with the challenge of a new baby, whereas the father-to-be in the "Soliloquy" from Rodgers and Hammerstein's Carousel is dealing with his fantasies of fatherhood. The father in "I Confess" from Snow and Pitchford's Footloose is dealing with far more serious issues, as a preacher laments the son he lost.

In an entirely different mood was "Epiphany" from Sondheim's Sweeney Todd in which Mr. Griffin created a scarily believable angry and vengeful character. And how about that relaxed and confident singer of Paul Anka's "My Way" who's nearing the end of a fulfilling life! So many different characters and all so well realized!

Although Mr. Griffin did the heavy lifting for the evening, mezzo-soprano Anna Viemeister created the hilarious character of Prince Orlofsky from Johann Strauss' Die Fledermaus, singing in heavily accented English his famous aria "Chacun a son goût" in a pretty clever English translation. She also made a superlative emcee for the evening.

To cap things off, Bulgarian bass Valentin Peytchinov lent his venerable instrument and larger than life personality to create the character of French planter Emile de Becque lamenting the loss of his love in "This Nearly Was Mine" from Rodgers and Hammerstein's South Pacific.

What a treat to hear such wonderful music unamplified in an intimate environment and sung by such terrific talent! We celebrated Prohibition at a post-concert reception with bubbly toasts and a sing-a-long with Francisco Mirando at the piano.

© meche kroop

DIVINE DIDO AND ARDENT AENEAS

Maestro Francisco Miranda and Anna Viemeister in Purcell's Dido and Aeneas
Vocal Productions NYC

Henry Purcell wrote this operatic masterpiece in the 1680's for a girl's school, utilizing a concise libretto by Nahum Tate. We have lost track of how many times we have heard it, enjoyed it, and written about it. Yesterday we sat in the beautifully landscaped gardens of St. John's in the Village and enjoyed it to the maximum, just as up close and personal as we would wish.

In the space of just one hour, Tate's libretto gets right to the point without any padding and Purcell's music delights the ear with memorable melodies. It is believed that the story of Queen Dido of Carthage abandoned by the Trojan hero Aeneas is a metaphor for the British people being abandoned by James II, under the spell of the Catholic church, represented in the opera by a sorcerer. But no one can say for sure so let's focus on the music making.

Anna Viemeister inhabited the role as if she were born to play it. Over the past few years we have reviewed her performances many times and have admired her delivery of arias by Verdi and Wagner. We have never quite decided whether to think of her as a dramatic soprano or a mezzo with great high notes. But we never thought of her as a Baroque singer. What a revelation!

She could charm the birds from the trees and actually did so as they joined in from time to time. Outdoor performances do have their special delights. 

We always love a believable performance and this one was so special that we could feel every emotion along with her. How sweet are the delights of succumbing to Cupid's dart and how painful is the loss of love. And we understood how a woman could let her pride prevent her from forgiving a man who dares to even think of leaving her, even if he subsequently changes his mind.

As Aeneas we heard tenor John Ramseyer whom we heard in the role a few years ago when we thought he sang well but needed more dramatic investment. We are happy to report that he has grown in the role and made it his own. He evinced the character's ambivalence about leaving and sang with a gentle pianissimo. We have heard him sing a variety of roles and notice that he always vanishes right after curtain, depriving us of the opportunity to congratulate him in person!

New to New York is countertenor Rodolfo Girón who delivered a marvelous performance of the Sorcerer. We love that fach and see a great deal of promise by way of fine phrasing and an interesting instrument. His two accomplices were well played by Justyna Giermola and Anna Marie Wood who harmonized beautifully and made great use of malevolent facial expressions.

Countertenor Jonathan Goldsmith portrayed the faux Mercury (without any accoutrements) and also the sailor who sings a funny ditty.

Dido's two handmaidens were portrayed by Juliet Morris and Meghan Wilmott whose piping voice sounded just like that of a boy soprano. Her portrayal of the role of Belinda requires more clarity of diction and greater dramatic investment than just imitating the gestures of comforting .

Aside from that, diction was clear and perhaps this was the first time we got almost every word, the better to appreciate the story.

Maestro Francisco Miranda conducted from the piano and had a firm command of the strings--all six of them. The chorus contributed their comments on the action in fine harmony.

Our two favorite vocal numbers were the duet for Dido and Aeneas in which he offers to violate the supposed order of the gods and to stay with Dido whilst she, on her high horse, rejects the offer. Our heart was breaking along with hers. And of course the concluding "When I Am Laid to Rest" -- the one aria everyone would think of if one mentions this opera.

We do not know who staged and directed the piece but it worked well, utilizing whatever existed in the garden of the church-- a garden for all since the 1980's.

The costuming was of the shoestring variety and perhaps was left up to each artist. Mr. Girón's black garments were enhanced by a spectacular feathered mask and showed evidence of a fashion/design background. Ms. Viemeister accessorized her black dress with jewelry indicative of ancient times. We wanted the faux Mercury to have wings on his shoes or a helmet but he did not.

All told, we were completely drawn into the production and recommend it highly. To accommodate the many who were turned away, there will be an additional performance at 3:00 on Sunday August 4th.

(c) meche kroop

JUAN JOSÉ LAZARO--MASTER OF COLLABORATIVE PIANO

Juan José Lázaro, Rosario Hernandez, Sonya Argiro, Anna Viemeister, and Valentin Peytchinov

We have heard Juan José Lázaro performing on the piano at Manhattan School of Music, most often with Maestro Thomas Muraco conducting the Opera Repertoire Ensemble. There was no way we were going to miss his Master of Music recital! Collaborative piano is an art form into and of itself. The collaborative pianist must not only be an exceptional technician and artist, but he must also learn the art of collaborating with other musicians.

Because of our passion for vocal music, most of our knowledge comes from listening to voice/piano collaborations. Not mentioning any names, but we have heard one who is very famous who drowns out his vocal partner. There are others who provide inadequate support. The best of this art form know when to "keep it down" and when to "let out all the stops". The art of coaching is yet another aspect of this art form. Many singers have their favorite coaches and prefer to take the stage with ones they know they can count on to make them sound their very best.

We consider Mr. Lázaro to be one of the top collaborative pianists of his generation. Yesterday he collaborated with four very different singers, each with his/her own repertory. Certain choices seemed designed to show off versatility.

The pianism could not be faulted. Mr. Lázaro's technique is flawless and he indulges in just enough expressiveness to credit the composer and the singer, without indulging in theatrics or grandstanding.

In the first set he accompanied soprano Sonya Argiro in some deeply felt Russian music that went right to the gut. "Lisa's aria" from Pique Dame was sung by Sonya Argiro with great intensity. Mr. Lázaro created the mood right from the start and emphasized the repetitive descending figures.

Two songs by Sergei Rachmaninoff provided an entirely different experience with gentle coloration in "How Fair this Spot" and, in "Do Not Sing to Me", sufficient emphasis of the "Oriental" mode to convey painful nostalgia.

As far as Ms. Argiro, she poured plenty of feeling into the song and delivered some gorgeous melismatic passages, but interrupted her connection with the audience by being on the book, as did all of the other singers, to our dismay.

Anna Viemeister used her pleasing mezzo-soprano with lots of variety of coloration, matched by Mr. Lázaro, in Barber's Hermit Songs. Their joint artistry moved us along the path toward liking this cycle. We particularly enjoyed the delicate colors of the brief "Church Bell at Night". Although it is not our favorite song, the duo conveyed the delusional quality of "St. Ita's Vision". We always like the irreverent "The Heavenly Banquet" and the sweetly personal "The Monk and His Cat", all given the appropriate colors.

Manuel de Falla's Canciones Populares Españolas is a favorite cycle of ours, with its varying moods, rhythms, and tempi. The fingerwork in "Seguidilla Murciana" is challenging but one would never know that because Mr. Lázaro dispatched the challenge with ease. We also liked the rubato in "Jota" and the anguish of "Polo".

Mezzo-soprano Rosario Hernandez performed the songs in perfect Castilian and the texture of her instrument was perfectly suited to them. She actually surmounted the presence of the music stand, although we hope to hear her perform this cycle again without the score.

We know bass Valentin Peytchinov primarily as an impresario and pedagogue, a nurturer of young talent. We came to opera too late to hear his onstage performances so it was a special treat to hear him yesterday in the Mussorgsky cycle Songs and Dances of Death. In these songs, Death is conceived as a female figure who comes gently to take a suffering infant, an ailing maiden, an elderly drunk, and soldiers in battle.

In spite of holding the score, Mr. Peytchinov astonished us with the depth of his interpretation and the resonance of his sound.

It was a valuable experience for us. Usually we focus on the singer but yesterday we got to focus on the piano and left with a better awareness of the art of collaboration.

(c) meche kroop

VERY VERY VERDI

Anna Viemeister, Manya Steinkoler, Francisco Miranda, Julianna Milin, Katrin Bulke, Lindell Carter, and Hyung Joo Eom

It isn't every day that we get to hear Verdi arias. Thanks to Vocal Productions NYC and Father Graeme Napier, who warmly welcomed us opera lovers to the gorgeous space of St. John's in the Village, we are replete.  As a matter of fact we have been humming Verdi's memorable tunes all night.

Il Trovatore is a most difficult opera with a near-inscrutable plot and some treacherous pitfalls in the vocal lines. How brave of VPNYC's group of singers to tackle it! If their success was not total we can certainly understand. 

Soprano Julianna Milin did well in lending expressiveness to Leonora's aria of anticipation "Tacea la notte...Di tale amor". We liked the overtones of her voice resounding through the church and the pace of the cabaletta. A little work on the trill should put the finishing touch on her performance.

Mezzo-soprano Anna Viemeister sang "Stride la vampa" and her stylish appearance worked against her.  We were trying to picture her in an ugly wig and makeup but failed. Our biggest complaint was that the notes in the lower register were not in line with the rest of the voice but sounded as if they came from someone else. 

She performed the duet "Non son tuo figlio...Mal reggendo all'aspro" with tenor Lindell Carter. Mr. Carter has improved dramatically since the last time we heard him sing, with much less distracting mugging. But we didn't feel him connecting with the character of Manrico nor was there any mother-son chemistry between the two of them. We would like to see Mr. Carter loosen up onstage since his gestures seem stilted.

Baritone Hyung Joo Eom has a pleasing instrument that is most pleasing at the lower end of the register. He performed "Il balen del suo sorriso" with a nice reduction of volume as the aria itself began. We would like to have heard even more dynamic variety; this was true for every performance in the Il Trovatore part of the program, which mostly suffered from sameness.

Watching a singer trying to emote while turning pages on a music stand gives us no pleasure whatsoever so we decided to withhold judgment of soprano Manya Steinkoler's abilities for later in the evening. Yes, we know "D'amor sull'ali rosee...Miserere...Tu vendrai" is a helluva challenge and, as we understand, this was Ms. Steinkoler's performing debut.

We were glad we waited because we truly enjoyed Lady Macbeth's aria "Una macchia e qui tuttora" which Ms. Steinkoler performed off the book and without glasses, permitting a far better connection with the audience. We liked her Italian, the legato, and the dynamic variety which we so missed in the first half of the program.

We also got another opportunity to hear Ms. Viemeister who put impressive dramatic intensity into Lady Macbeth's "Vieni t'affretta", following Verdi's interesting chord progression played by accompanist Francisco Miranda. We also liked the dramatic commitment in "O don fatale...O mia Regina" from Don Carlo. But we still felt uncomfortable with the disconnection of the low notes from the rest of the vocal register.

Her performance of "Dido's Lament" from the Purcell opera was filled with feeling and performed with crisp English diction, a skill we never take for granted.  We understood every word.

We also enjoyed Mr. Carter's delivery of "Dio, mi potevi" from Verdi's Otello, in which the tenor seemed to connect more with the character in a convincing manner.  He seemed to know what he was singing about, exactly what was lacking in the duet from Il Trovatore. Perhaps he likes being a powerful general more than being a bandit!

He was even better in Mac Duff's aria from Macbeth . "Ah la paterna mano" in which his vibrato served to underscore the character's grief.

He also performed a duet with Mr. Eom "Dio che nell'alma infondere" from Verdi's Don Carlo, which our narrator (substituting for titles) called a "bromance". The presence of the detestable music stand prevented their connecting but the voices did harmonize nicely.

Soprano Katrin Bulke did not tackle any Verdi and we were glad of it. She seems to know what her voice is suited for and gave a lovely performance of "Regnava nel silenzio" from Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor, a performance invested with lovely legato, flexibility in the fioritura, and dynamic variety. We would like to see a bit more fragility in the character, to foreshadow her decompensation later in this tragic tale.

We loved the bit of "fluff" she brought in, both singing and dancing in the delightful "Heia Heia in den Bergen" from Imre Kalman's Die Csárdásfürstin. We are always ready for some Hungarian fun!

Watch Vocal Productions NYC's Facebook page for some upcoming concerts which you are sure to enjoy.

(c) meche kroop

THE TRIUMPH OF MUSIC

Fanyong Du, Anna Viemeister, Ricardo Rivera, Richard Owen, Megan Nielsen, Riad Ymeri, and Andrew Cummings in Camerata New York Gala

How well we remember last year's star-studded Camerata New York Gala! This year's version was equally thrilling. The theme was "The Triumph of Music" and the same successful formula that packed St. Jean Baptiste Church last year was again put into play. Favorite arias and duets from well known operas were performed by a cast of international opera stars; each piece was introduced by Maestro Richard Owen who gave the audience just a brief synopsis.

Once again, we had the notion that the audience was partly opera devotés and partly newcomers attracted by the stellar cast, the popularity of the pieces, and a modest ticket price--less than one would pay for a balcony seat at the Met. There were no titles and we didn't see many people reading the translations.  We got the impression that people were truly listening and feeling entertained.  And that's what opera is all about, isn't it?

Readers will recall how much we love duets and the program opened with a solo performed by two tenors!  After the wonderful Camerata New York Orchestra treated us to the Easter Morning Prelude to Pietro Mascagni's Cavalleria Rusticana, not neglecting the underlying menace in this familiar melody, the "Siciliana" was sung by Fanyong Du and Riad Ymeri, both sounding tenorrific. Pardon our neologism!

Mr. Du appeared again with baritone Ricardo Rivera in the Act IV duet from Puccini's La Bohème in which the two Bohemians chat about their lost loves with seeming carefree nonchalance. Puccini's music gives the lie to their jolly chatter. Mr. Du's sweet tenor balanced beautifully with Mr. Rivera's substantial baritonal colors.

These two singers make a fine pair, as manifested in their "Au fond du temple saint" from Bizet's Pêcheur de Perles, in which their love/lust for the temple priestess Leïla threatens their friendship. By the end of the duet, they are affirming their amity.  But we know better that one of them is going to break that vow of friendship!

Yet another sensational duet was the final scene from Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin in which Tatiana, still in love with Onegin, dismisses him partly out of duty to her husband Prince Gremin, and partly out of suspicion that Onegin is only interested in her because she has a high position in society. The lovely soprano Megan Nielson made a fine ambivalent Tatiana and baritone Andrew Cummings excelled as the importuning Onegin who just won't take "nyet" for an answer.

The final duet on the program was the Act I finale of Puccini's Madama Butterfly in which Butterfly was performed by Ms.  Nielson with Mr. Ymeri as Pinkerton. Mr. Ymeri's voice is so sweet we could scarcely believe that he is such a heel who will abandon this Butterfly with whom he is so taken. Their two voices soared as they invoked nature and he distracted her from the rejection she suffered at the hands of her family. It was a lovely way to end this very special evening.

But we are not ending our review here because we have yet to mention the marvelous arias we heard. Mr. Ymeri got a huge round of bravos for his portrayal of the troubled Riccardo, Governor of Boston, in Verdi's Ballo in Maschera. He must send away his aide Renato because of his love for Amelia, Renato's wife. Mr. Ymeri gave this aria "Forse la solia" an emotional reading without any hint of tightness.

Renato's rage, as he believes Amelia to have been unfaithful, permeated Mr. Cummings' affecting performance of "Eri tu".

Mezzo-soprano Anna Viemeister did her best with Ulrica's aria "Re dell'abisso" but did not always penetrate the dense orchestration with the very low-lying tessitura. 

We enjoyed her much more in "Senta's Ballade" from Wagner's Der Fliegende Holländer, which is a soprano role.  Go figure! But she had the power and the top notes and the touch of madness needed to show us that Senta was a bit off-kilter. It was a splendid performance with the intervals of descending fourths particularly affecting.

We heard two popular arias from Gounod's Faust. Mr. Rivera's performance of Valentin's "Avant de quitter ces lieux" was particularly well handled with the prayerful part colored with tenderness and the patriotic part with resolve. Mr. Du did equally well with Faust's serenade of Marguerite "Salut! Demeure chaste et pure" which was filled with romantic longing, fine French phrasing, and a lovely messa di voce. 

Although opera was the major focus of the evening, the Camerata New York Orchestra was given their opportunity to shine, not only in the Easter morning prelude to Cavalleria Rusticana, but also in the "Polonaise" from Eugene Onegin. The lively ballet from Faust had a lovely lyrical central section. Similarly, the Prelude to the Madama Butterfly duet was filled with tenderness. Maestro Owen has wonderful command of his orchestral forces.

We found the harp accompaniment (Hannah Murphy) to the Mascagni particularly lovely and also heard a lovely flute solo in the Verdi.

The only downside to the evening was the overly resonant acoustics of the gorgeous St. Jean Baptiste church. This tended to smear the sound, but what can we do? Placing the orchestra at audience level with the singers behind is not a great solution but there seems to be no alternative. There are no suitable midsize theaters with an orchestra pit in Manhattan, although there are dozens of small opera companies that need one. To coin a phrase..."If you build it, they will come".

Let us call the evening "The Triumph of Music Over Acoustics"!

(c) meche kroop

LAND OF THE MOON

Anna Viemeister, Christine Moore Vassallo, Chantal Balestri, Nardo Poy, Juan Jose Lazaro, and Jeffrey Swann at the National Opera Center

Has it always been this popular for young opera singers to study abroad? We have noticed so many programs offering summer instruction; last night we were introduced to a new one with the romantic name of Lunigiana International Music Festival which will offer a new program of lessons, master classes, competitions, and concerts in the Tuscan town of Fivizzano from June 18th through June 28th.

By way of introduction Co-Founder and Artistic Director Chantal Balestri organized a concert to present the faculty for this festival, in which students and faculty will lodge and dine at the same hotel. The plan is to keep the all-in costs to a minimum.

Students of all ages will be accepted; voice, piano, and string instruments will be taught. Some unusual venues for performances have been planned. Some of the faculty members performed last night for an audience that included several luminaries in the field.

The program opened and closed with music by Chopin, sensitively performed by Jeffrey Swann. The opener was the lovely Nocturne op. 15 n.2 in F-Sharp Major to which Mr. Swann applied just the right rubato, dynamic variation, and a light touch for the embellishments of the line which, in vocal music, would be called fioritura. Would it be fair to call Chopin a bel canto composer?

The closing piece was the elaborate Ballade op.23 n.1 in G Minor, in which we heard a succession of diverse themes in different moods. Mr. Swann explained how the Ballade tells a story and, we opine, each listener can apply his or her own story.

As far as the vocal music which comprised most of the program, we were riveted by mezzo-soprano Anna Viemeister's performance of Eboli's aria "O Don Fatale" from Verdi's Don Carlo, one of our favorite operas. In this barn-burner, the Princess Eboli is filled with remorse for getting her beloved Queen in trouble. She blames her beauty. Ms. Viemeister was convincing both vocally and dramatically, with some wonderful sounds at the bottom of her register.

We can say the same about the equally passionate "Voi lo sapete", from Mascagni's verismo masterpiece Cavalleria Rusticana. We have not heard this role sung by a mezzo but the high notes were tossed off easily and we enjoyed the shifts in color as Santuzza reflects on her original happiness and eventual shame.

Soprano Christine Moore Vassallo played to her vocal strengths in the upper register in "Vissi d'arte" from Puccini's Tosca. We were happy to hear her in opera because both women used the loathed music stand for their lieder selections.

We were very interested in the two settings of the same text written in the Baroque period by one Lope Felix de Vega Carpio. Eduard Toldrá set it in 1940 and entitled it "Cantarcillo", part of his Seis canciones Castellanas  It is a lullaby for the baby Jesus sung by his mother, in this case, Ms. Vassallo.

We might never have recognized it as the same text Brahms used for his "Geistliches Wiegenlied" in 1884, for which Emmanuel Geibel adapted Carpio's text. Brahms scored it for alto, piano, and viola. Ms. Vassallo sang, Nardo Poy played the viola, and Juan Jose Lazaro gave us the same high quality piano we enjoyed as accompaniment for all the singing. The only disappointment was the presence of the music stand.

We also enjoyed Ms. Viemeister's performance of "Gestillte Sehnsucht", another work Brahms scored for piano, viola and alto. We will add that the German diction was excellent.

With talent such as we heard last night, the students accepted into this summer program will be fortunate indeed. We wish Lunigiana great success in their inaugural season and hope the success will be "over the moon". Co-Founder Andrea Rossi was not present last night but shared the dream of Ms. Balestri who did a fine job of describing the program.

(c) meche kroop

A DAY OF GIVING

Emerging artists of Vocal Productions New York City

A benefit to celebrate Giving Tuesday was held last night at the Church of the Holy Apostles where renowned Bulgarian bass Valentin Peytchinov assembled a group of talented up-and-comers to provide an evening of favorite arias. Some of these emerging artists are well-known to us and some were new discoveries whose careers we plan to follow.

It is no secret that VPNYC is presenting Il Barbiere di Siviglia at the Baruch Performing Arts Center from December 12th through the 17th, with Mr. Peytchinov himself singing the role of Don Basilio on the 16th. It was fitting that members of the cast presented excerpts from Rossini's comic masterpiece and we heard just enough to know that it is a "must-see".

Mezzo-soprano Madison Marie McIntosh has been on our radar for a few years and we have witnessed her transition from soprano to mezzo; we are delighted to report that every time we hear her we hear more expansion at the bottom of the register, with absolutely no loss of ping in the upper extension.  She has also contributed some really interesting ornamentation to Rosina's famous "Una voce poco fa" (with some help from Will Crutchfield) that served to maintain interest in this oft heard aria. There is nothing like an original cadenza to grab our attention.

As the scolding Dr. Bartolo we heard newcomer Keith Milkie who overcame youthful good looks by means of his resonant low voice and fine acting to convince us in the role. We have heard handsome young basses and bass-baritones accomplish this feat with appropriate makeup and costuming completing the illusion. We will be alert to this when we attend the performance!

Another singer we have been following is bass-baritone Lawson Anderson who performed Prince Igor's aria from the Borodin opera of the same name. He performed it with such passionate intensity and such fluent Russian that we were absolutely riveted. The texture of his voice is perfectly suited to this aria and we would very much like to hear him perform the opera someday. We heard it three years ago at the Met with Ildar Abdrazakov in a reconstructed version.

Perhaps it was because we had a moment of silence in memory of our beloved Dmitri Hvorostovsky or maybe Mr. Anderson was just that good --but perhaps he will fill those sadly empty shoes.

Dramatic soprano Anna Viemeister stunned us with "Vieni t'affretta" from Verdi's Macbeth. Not only was her instrument compelling in its intensity but she convinced us of the qualities of the power hungry character--powerful but seductive and manipulative. Her fioritura shone in the cabaletta.

Emma Lavandier is new to us and we heartily enjoyed her performance of Siébel's aria "Faites-lui mes aveux" from Gounod's Faust. She has a bright crystalline sound and an affecting delivery. But most important, she is a Francophone and it was a distinct pleasure to hear the language sung the way it should be sung.

Charlotte's aria "Je vous écris de ma petite chambre", from Massenet's Werther, was given a lovely performance by Viktoriya Koreneva, one which was notable for its excellent French but also for a convincing portrayal of the varying moods of a woman torn between duty and romantic longing she is trying to suppress.

Highlights from Verdi's Il Trovatore ended the program and both singers were superb and new to us. Dramatic Soprano Julianna Milin exhibited a fine rich tone and dramatic import in "Tacea la notte placida" in which she tells her companion how she came to fall in love with Manrico. In the cabaletta we were impressed by the neatness of the skips, runs, and staccati.

Mezzo-soprano Lorna Case grew in power as she delivered "Condotta ell'era in ceppi", the aria in which the gypsy Azucena relates the terrible story of her mother's gruesome death, burning at the stake. The horror of throwing her baby into the fire can be conveyed even though the story defies rationall belief. Ms. Case brought the tale to a dramatic conclusion.

This review is growing longer than the concert but let us mention the ardent performance of the serenade "Ecco ridente in cielo" by tenor Raymond Storms, baritone Yun Kwan Yiu's effective "Largo al factotum", and bass-baritone Claudio Mascharenas' creation of the nasty character of Don Basilio in "La Calunnia". You will be able to catch these performances at the December run described above.

Perhaps a Faust is in the works as well.  We got to hear baritone Jeremy Griffin sing "Avant de quitter ces lieux" and Charles Gray sing the devilish "Vous qui faites l'endormie".

The evening ended with the Act II Finale from Il Barbiere di Siviglia with soprano Sangying Li singing Rosina, Mr. Yiu taking the role of Figaro, and Samuel Varhan singing Count Almaviva. The renowned Francisco Miranda was accompanist for the evening and matched the glorious singing with some impressive piano playing.

We hope that the artistic generosity of the singers will be matched by the financial generosity of the audience. It is organizations like VPNYC that provide opportunities for emerging artists to learn new roles and gain performance experience.

(c) meche kroop