MUSIC OF LATIN AMERICA AND SPAIN

Martin Fett, Juan Pablo Horcasitas, and Carla López-Speziale

Perhaps all of the events of the Latin American Cultural Week were wonderful but, lured by the promise of hearing songs of Spain and Latin America, the only program we attended was the one last night held at the lovely performance space of The Diller-Quaile School of Music in Carnegie Hill.

The program was devised for piano, cello, and voice. The pianist was Juan Pablo Horcasitas; the cellist was Martin Fett, and the voice belonged to the lovely mezzo-soprano Carla López-Speziale.  Interestingly, they all came out of Manhattan School of Music, whose students we are constantly reviewing.

Mr. Horcasitas "plays well with others" and teaches at the Diller-Quaile School of Music as well as performing worldwide as a soloist and collaborative pianist and as a conductor. He also released his first solo CD called "Among Songs and Dances". In this case he was the backbone of an interesting and varied program.

Since art song in Spanish is high on our list of favorite musical delights, let us focus on this part of the program. The Mexican born Ms. López-Speziale has an understandable affinity for this music and it shows in her vivid interpretations. There was no shortage of brilliance in the upper register and a great depth and security in the lower register. Moreover, she has a delightful stage presence, engaging the audience with her descriptions of the songs before she sang them.

As many times as we have heard Manuel de Falla's Siete Canciones Populares Españolas, we never tire of them due to their variety of moods and rhythms. Perhaps our favorite is the mournful "Asturianas" but we also love the gentle lullaby "Nana" and the bitter "Polo" in which Mr. Horcasita's forceful playing drove the sentiment right to the gut.

The Argentinean Carlos Guastavino belonged to the 20th c. but never ignored the value of melody. "Milonga de dos hermanos" is a tragic tale of fraternal rivalry pushed to extremes.  Our favorite song of the group was "La rosa y el sauce", a lament for love lost. The text of "Se equivocó la paloma" lost us in its symbolism, but we enjoyed the lively "Mi viña de Chapanay" in which Mr. Horcasita's piano emphasized the lively story related by the singer in both voice and gesture.

Like De Falla, Xavier Montsalvatge came from Spain but belonged to a later generation. His Cinco canciones negras are about Cuba and paint a most interesting picture, not all of it happy.  The angry "Cuba dentro de un piano" was given a strong introduction by Mr. Horcasitas who sustained the vigorous rhythm throughout.  The music reflected the nostalgia found in the text.

"Punto de habanera" was filled with charm but "Chévere" was brutal. "Canción de cuna para dormir a un negrito" is almost always our favorite of the cycle but "Canto negro" was filled with high spirits.

Mr. Horcasitas and Mr. Fett performed the "Intermezzo" from Enrique Granados' Goyescas and De Falla's rhythmic "Danza ritual del fuego" from El amor brujo. We've never heard these pieces arranged for piano and cello but we did say that Mr. Horcasita "plays well with others"!

As far as Astor Piazzolla's "Le grand tango", we know that the work has been adapted for several combinations of instruments but we found this particular adaptation more "interesting" than enjoyable.

As far as the contemporary song cycle by S. Zyman, who was in attendance, entitled Solamente sola, we found little for our ears to embrace. The text was as obscure in English as it was in Spanish and dealt with various forms of solitude.

As encore the three artists gave a stirring performance of "Besame mucho", the popular song composed in 1940 by the Mexican composer Consuelo Velázquez.  Having endured for nearly 80 years, it can be considered a classic!

We have a quibble that has nothing to do with the excellent performances. There was no note in the program advising the audience to hold their applause between songs and no announcement made either.  This led to constant applause interrupting each song cycle--an interruption we would have been happy to eliminate.

(c) meche kroop

LATIN AMERICAN ART SONG

José Meléndez and Maya Hoover in an ASPS recital at Manhattan School of Music

This has been the week in which Manhattan School of Music hosts The Art Song Preservation Society, a week of master classes and recitals, culminating in The Mary Trueman Vocal Competition Finals taking place today at 1:00.

Regular readers will recall our affection for Spanish music. We are always glad when a recitalist includes a Spanish language set on his or her program, but it is always the same few offerings.  Imagine an entire recital given over to the songs of Latin America! Heretofore, only Steven Blier and his New York Festival of Song has "dared" to make much of Latin American art songs.

Last night, as part of this exciting week of art song, we enjoyed a program comprising art songs from all over Latin America. In case you are wondering what the attraction is for us, it is partly the beauty of the language with its pure vowels, and partly because the composers in Latin America managed to escape from the dictates of 20th c. academia that have crippled North American music with atonality and absence of melody.

We strongly believe that it is melody that involves our hearts. It tickles our ears, enters our brains, makes us want to hum or sing or whistle. That is why Carmen and Barber of Seville are such popular operas.  People take something home with them. From modern music, all we take home is irritability!

Now we will step down from our soapbox and tell you how wonderful it was to hear songs from Argentina, Bolivia, and Cuba (the ABC's of Latin America), not to leave out Mexico and Brazil and Puerto Rico.

Mezzo-soprano Maya Hoover and her collaborative pianist José Meléndez have been performing together for twenty years and have that trust and comfort with one another so necessary for a successful performance. Ms. Hoover has written the book on this art form!  It is called Guide to the Latin American Art Song Repertoire: An Annotated Catalog of Twentieth-Century Art Songs for Voice and Piano. So of course the songs on the program were well curated.

The songs we heard melded influences of European, African, and Indigenous peoples. We believe to truly appreciate this music, one should know about the history of each country. We are just beginners and not yet able to discriminate one nation's style from another. But that didn't prevent us from enjoying the melodic music.

We particularly enjoyed the piano parts, since Mr. Meléndez gave voice to so many colorful elements. In Argentina's Carlos Guastavino's "Cita", we could hear the chirping of crickets! (Europe mas have their nightingales, but Latin America has crickets, LOL).

In Cuba's Gisela Hernández' "Mi corazón lo trajo el mar", we heard the strumming of a guitar. At other times, we heard interesting arpeggi, simple chordal accompaniment, or repeated folk motifs. 

The vocal lines were invariably lovely and Ms. Hoover is a gifted storyteller. Some texts were puzzling or surreal, but for the most part they were direct and accessible. Guastavino's "Balada" was a familiar tale of lost love. 

From Bolivia, we heard "Brisas del lago" by Emilio Guttiérez Illanes, which had the character of a folk dance. The tenderness of Eduardo Caba's "Kapuri"  was followed by "Kori Killa", his frisky paean to a sweetheart. Here, Quechua terms were included and reminded us of a trip to Cuetzalan in Mexico where the priest adopted Nahuatl attire and had a Nahuatl woman leading the Mass in that language.

Narciso Figueroa of Puerto Rico gave us the romantic "Madrugada" and the mournful "Muerta" and our favorite song of the evening--"Vida criolla", a simple song about a simple life, told with strong rhythmic accents. 

The Brazilian composer Alberto Nepomuceno studied voice to achieve a better understanding of how to write for it. We just wrote two days ago how we wished more composers would do just that! His "Corração triste" showed evidence of this study and was one of our favorites. 

Hernández' "Romancillo", a setting of text by Federico Garcia Lorca was another favorite of ours. The text was simple and to the point and the piano writing was spare and effective.

Mexican composers included in the program were Agustín Lara and the famous María Grever. Lara's song "Arráncame la vida" taught us a new word!  We believe that "arrabal" is equivalent to our "bridge and tunnel people". 

We loved Grever's "Te quiero dijiste", of which the lyricism belies the sadness underneath.

The program ended with "La comparsa" by the famous Cuban composer Ernesto Lecuona in which Ms. Hoover accompanied her singing with claves. The rhythmic complexity of the piano was only enhanced!

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OPERA NEW YORK-- WITH HEART

Michael Pilafian, Elena Heimur, Edgar Jaramillo, Judith Fredricks, Veronica Loiacono, and Roberto Borgatti

Judith Fredricks continues to bring Opera New York, her small but very artistic company, to new venues. To the Sacred Heart Church in the heart of Hell's Kitchen, she has brought plenty of heart to a new audience that thronged the church for an evening of Latin American song and French opera.

The capstone of the evening was a performance of all the memorable arias and duets written by Georges Bizet for Carmen, his 1875 masterpiece, which debuted at the Opera Comique.  All the spoken dialogue of the original was omitted and Judith Fredricks herself narrated the story with Spanish translation provided by a charming bilingual young woman -- all for the advantage of the Spanish speaking members of the congregation.

This was a fine idea, keeping the evening to a length and intensity that would draw in people who were unfamiliar with the opera but would have recognized the major numbers. The other fine idea was to have the singers costume themselves in a fashion that was suggestive of the time and place and to act out their roles.  "Park and bark" never won any converts!

Ms. Fredricks has assembled a core group of singers that have dramatic chops as well as vocal artistry. Soprano Veronica Loiacono has all the right stuff for Carmen and showed the gypsy's seductive, manipulative, and defiantly headstrong character.  This wouldn't be the first time we heard a soprano tackle this role, usually consigned to a mezzo-soprano. She was missing nothing in the "Habanera" and the "Seguidilla". She was able to show different aspects of her personality when she beguiled Don Jose and when she related to Escamillo.

As Micaela, the gentle country girl Don Jose is supposed to marry, soprano Elena Heimur left nothing to be desired. Her duet with Don Jose was tender and moving. The way she steeled her character in the mountain scene "Je dis que rien ne m'epouvante" was impressive.

We loved seeing how tenor Edgar Jaramillo has expanded his emotional range beyond Mr.Nice Guy and he handled Don Jose's outburst of rage toward Escamillo in a violent confrontation that had us holding our breath. Similarly we felt right along with him as he pleaded with Carmen in the final scene and then stabbed her, cradling her body and showing his remorse. His vocal colors have expanded in tandem with his emotional range. He demonstrated just how besotted he'd become toward Carmen in the aria "La fleur que tu m'avais jetee".

As Escamillo, baritone Roberto Borgatti has also shown a great deal of vocal growth and did justice to the "Toreador Song" which had the audience enthralled. It must be difficult for such a modest artist to don the mantle (in this case, a cape) of arrogance but that's what good acting is all about.

We suspect that Ms. Fredricks herself was responsible for directing and staging, although there was no printed program. Michael Pilafian accompanied on the piano and played the score brilliantly and powerfully.

As an added bonus there was a seasoned flamenco dancer twirling his cape and performing the vibrant footwork that let us know that we were indeed in Seville.

There was also a lovely parade of songs in Spanish which seemed just right for Cinco de Mayo and the mostly Latin American audience. Mr. Borgatti gave a full throated rendition of "Amapola", a popular song from a century ago. He also joined Ms. Loiacono for an Argentine tango--Carlos Gardel's "El dia que me quieras". 

Ms. Loiacono hails from Argentina herself; she was just as fine in her duet with Mr. Jaramillo--"El Gato Montes" from the 1916 zarzuela by Manuel Moreno Penella.  The work achieved great popularity in Spain and also in el Nuevo Mundo. The harmonies were lovely and there was passion to spare.

She also had a lovely solo in Maria Grever's "Jurame".  So many lovely songs have come from Mexico!

Ms. Heimur offered the lovely "Estrellita" which was written by Manuel Ponce a century ago; it is often considered a folk song perhaps because Mr. Ponce failed to copyright it. In any case, this lovelorn lady wishing upon a star is charming in both text and melody.

We particularly enjoyed "La rosa y el sauce", the sad tale of a willow who loved a rose which was picked by a girl, leaving the willow to weep. The song was written by Argentinian composer Carlos Guastavino and beautifully sung by Ms. Heimur.

The final song in this group was the bitter "No puede ser" from Pablo Sorozabal's wonderful 1936 zarzuela La Taberna del Puerto. Mr. Jaramillo once again expanded his vocal artistry and dramatic reach.

It was wonderful to witness a new audience come to a church on a Friday night and have such a fine time. The response was enthusiastic.  This is not the only company to do outreach in neighborhoods but we always appreciate the creation of new audiences. The Sacred Heart Church provides a fine home for Opera New York with its beautiful cavernous space and lively acoustics. We suspect this audience will return for more.

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VOCALIS CONSORT

Martin Neron, Sonya Headlam, Sahoko Sato Timpone, Christopher Sierra, and Sean McCarther

The Vocalis Consort is new to us but the pianist is not. We have heard him before at Opera America and the prospect of hearing him perform Spanish (and Spanish influenced) music was a tempting one. We wished that the concert might have been better attended since the offerings were most fulfilling.

The first half of the program comprised music by Spanish composers. Tenor Cristopher Sierra has a nice unforced sound and sings with sazon. We enjoyed a pair of songs by Fernando Obradors, a self taught Catalan composer who arranged his country's folk songs.  Folk songs are always appealing due to their memorable melodies; his are no exception. We have always loved the beautiful sentiment of "Del cabello mas sutil" and Mr. Sierra sang it as beautifully as it was written, with both passion and tenderness in equal measure. Mr. Neron's rippling piano accompaniment was lovely.

Soprano Sonya Headlam has a lovely voice but was unfortunately "on the book" for her selections from Joaquin Nin-Culmell's Sephardic songs. There was no audience contact and we felt shut out. But we did enjoy the piano accompaniment in "La rosa enflorece".

Argentinian composer Carlos Guastavino is a favorite of ours and baritone Sean McCarther sang the violent "Milonga de Dos Hermanos" with pleasing tone but a deficiency of passion.

Guastavino's melancholy "La rosa y el sauce" was given a nice interpretation by mezzo-soprano Sahoko Sato Timpone. The brightness of her tone brought "Jota" to life--one of a pair of songs from Manuel de Falla's Siete canciones populares espanolas. Mr. Neron's piano provided the rhythmic thrust. The gentle lullaby "Nana" was lovely.

Ms. Sato Timpone surely captured the humor of Obradors' "El Vito".

The second half of the program comprised Robert Schumann's Spanisches Liederspiel op 74.  Schumann was not the only composer to set German translations of Spanish folksongs. We have often heard Hugo Wolf's "Spanisches Liederbuch" but this was our first hearing of the Schumann. All four singers took the stage and joined forces in various combinations and with gorgeous harmonies. We were reminded of Brahms' Liebeslieder Walzer, and that's a good thing!

The actor Igor Correa was on hand to weave the songs into a story. Perhaps Schumann's Dichterliebe can have a story imposed upon it but it was a mighty stretch to form a story out of his Spanisches Liederspiel. Nonetheless, Mr. Correa narrated it well.

Ms. Headlam and Ms. Sato Timpone harmonized beautifully in the charming "Erste Begegnung". The men took over with equivalent success for "Intermezzo". Come to think of it, however one paired the voices, they sounded swell together. We particularly enjoyed the two numbers in which all four members of the ensemble sang together--"Es ist verrathen" and "Ich bin geliebt". 

In a work of this sort, being "on the book" makes sense and would seem necessary. We do have one suggestion however. We would have liked the texts in the original language, as well as the English translations.

We were delighted to be introduced to such a superb song cycle and equally delighted to see a new group on the music scene of New York City.  We look forward to future performances and to Vocalis Consort reaching a wider audience.

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AMOR LATINO

Max Lifchitz, Celia Castro, Celeste Mann, and Anna Tonna

It's almost Valentine's Day and we were in the mood for love. "Songs of love and longing by composers from Spain and the Americas", a program, presented by North/South Consonance at the National Opera Center, sounded just about right. Readers will recall how fond we are of Spanish songs and this was an opportunity to hear new music--not "new music" but music new to our ears.

It is interesting how some of the academic "innovations" that have toxified American song have completely bypassed Latin America. There probably is some music that would fail to fulfill our melodic requirements but we haven't heard much of it. Most of the music we are hearing from Spanish speaking countries provides singable melodies that delight the ear.

Maestro Max Lifchitz bookended yesterday's program with his own compositions, settings of text by the famous nun Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz. The program opened with "Rosa Divina", a sonnet about the evanescence of beauty. Soprano Celia Castro, dramatically dressed in black with a black mantilla, poured her heart and beautiful voice into the work and made the best impression when she stepped away from the music stand. (Oh, loathed music stand!)

The piano part was highly varied, at times spare to highlight the lovely vocal line, at other times staccato, at still other times employing blocked chords and arpeggiated runs. Ms. Castro was lovely in the Moorish-inflected melismatic passages.

The program ended with a duet for contralto Celeste Mann and mezzo-soprano Anna Tonna entitled "Me acerco y me retiro" which provided the opportunity for some gorgeous harmonizing.

There were two other compositions by M. Lifchitz--His Three Concerted Madrigals, based on 16th c. Italian texts, were introduced as parodies but we found them more charming than humorous. Ms. Tonna is always a highly engaging presence onstage and uses her instrument well to convey the text.  We particularly enjoyed the spirited "Non Rumor di Tamburi"  which dealt with an amorous "assault". Her personality made it particularly charming.

Ms. Tonna also performed the world premiere of a cycle of songs by Miquel Ortega entitled Pascua Florida, based on poetry by Maria Lejarraga, written when she was on a trip with Manuel de Falla. "Noche estrellada mirando a Gibraltar" ended with a gorgeous vocalise, but the text we liked best was the sad "Nana del amor perdido".

"Eres tu" was composed by M. Lifchitz to his own text and given full expression by Ms. Mann who has a voice like rich expresso, lightened with some foamy milk. Of Ms. Mann's performance of Cancoes de amor by Claudio Santoro, we were quite taken with "Acalanto da rosa", a tender lullaby for a sleeping lover.

We were moved by Ms. Mann's performance of "Lua branca" by the Brazilian composer Francisca "Chiquinja" Gonzaga who composed at the turn of the 20th c.  Clotilde Arias of Peru composed "Huiracocha", a song of spiritual despair in which Mr. Lifchitz' playing sounded like the Peruvian flute it referenced.

Of Ms. Castro's performance of Tres Sonetos by Joaquin Turina, we favored the least romantic one "Vade retro!" in which a man makes fun of a woman who has been around the block too many times.  Her personality truly brought it alive.

As encore we heard Ms. Castro and Ms. Mann in a duet by a Brazilian composer and then Ms. Tonna joined them for a song by the prolific 20th c. Argentinean composer Carlos Guastavino. There is something so special about hearing beautiful voices in perfect harmony!

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LETTERS FROM SPAIN

Theo Lebow, Michael Barrett, Corinne Winters and Alexey Lavrov with Steven Blier at the piano

We have just spent a couple hours reading Steven Blier's program notes from last night's New York Festival of Song recital Letters from Spain: A World of Song in Spanish Poetry. Mr. Blier's talents go way beyond playing the piano, arranging, translating, curating and coaching young singers.  He is also an educator and has generously shared the fruits of his research. We learned a great deal about Europe's fascination with Iberian poetry and the many composers who set diverse works to music, from the simplest folk melodies to the most elaborate compositional efforts.

We have simple taste and favor folk melodies that tickle the ear and stick in the brain. That being said, the entire program was worthwhile and the three singers, while not Spanish, did a superlative job of transmitting the Spanish flavor. It is not only Russian music that delves into suffering; they have plenty of competition from Spain in its cante jondo.

One of the most fascinating items on the program was the opening song "Todos duermen, corazón" which Robert Schumann set to music in its German translation--known as "In der Nacht". But Mr. Blier observed that the scansion of the original Spanish worked equally well with the music and that is what we heard; and that was what charmed us. Soprano Corinne Winters and tenor Theo Lebow joined voices in gorgeous harmony which alternated with overlapping melodies. Schumann's piano writing here sounded strangely baroque. We loved it!

Baritone Alexey Lavrov poured his passion into another Schumann song, this one in the German of Emanuel von Geibel--"Geständnis". Mr. Lavrov does passion very well as we learned in Tchaikovsky's "Don Juan's Serenade", a setting of text by Tolstoy. One can't go wrong with Tolstoy! Lest one conclude that Mr. Lavrov only sings passionate songs, a charming Shostakovich song "Little Stars" was given every ounce of humor called for, in what began life as a folk song.

This was by far our favorite Shostakovich song since the following ones struck us as a bit ponderous or filled with suffering. Nonetheless, the melismatic singing in "Farewell Granada!" was absolutely amazing.

Ms. Winters's singing was captivating. Her delivery is slightly on the side of restraint and we found her very much in tune with Hugo Wolf whose "Geh', Geliebter, geh' jetzt", is yet another adaptation of Spanish poetry by von Geibel. The singer in the song is bidding a reluctant farewell to her lover at dawn in order to avoid scandal. 

We also thrilled to her delivery of "Se equivocó la paloma" one of several songs by the Argentinian Carlos Guastavino, of whom we cannot hear enough. This song is a setting of text by the Spanish writer Rafael Alberti who fled Spain for Argentina. Mr. Blier, always wonderful at shedding light on the songs he curates, introduced the song by explaining that the dove in the song was not romantically deceived but politically deceived. 

Her performance of the next two Guastavino songs was no less wonderful--the austere "La palomita" and "Elegía" with its heraldic sound in the piano. Perhaps it was our imagination but we thought Ms. Winters sang it with an Argentinian accent! There was no mistaking the Catalonian dialect of "Elegía eterna" by the beloved Enrique Granados. In this song, every element of nature is in love with another element that favors yet another.  No love is requited. Ms. Winters sang it with deep feeling.

Mr. Lebow gave alternating delicacy and passion to Hugo Wolf's "Qué producirá mi Dios" evincing astute dynamic control. He also sang a set of songs drawn from William Bolcom's Canciones de Lorca. The dense piano writing required two pianos and four hands in "Alba" with Michael Barrett joining Mr. Blier. The piano writing in "Soneta de la dulce queja" was contrastingly spare. Mr. Lebow adapted his voice readily. We enjoyed the dance rhythm of "El poeta llega a la Habana".

"Zorongo", another poem by Garcia Lorca was set by Anton Garcia Abril, a 20th c. composer. Mr. Lavrov did justice to the passion and the tenderness as Lorca wrote of his love for a man--quite a risky situation in his time and place.

The Renaissance chant "Ay, trista vida corporal!" was sung a capella by Mr. Lebow to stunning effect. The melismatic parts revealed an Arabic influence.

The ensemble joined for the lighthearted tonadilla "El tripili" from an 18th c. zarzuela and for the beautiful encore "Anhelo", Guastavino's setting of a text by Domingo Zerpa. It was a simple folky tune and just our cup of ....sangria!

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JUILLIARD VOCAL ARTS HONORS RECITAL

William Kelley, Juliana Han, Eric Jurenas, and Theo Hoffman

We confess to greediness where pleasure is concerned. Last night's Vocal Arts Honors Recital at Juilliard could easily have gone on for another hour.  It left us wanting more--not in any way unsatisfied, just wanting more goodies from the four gifted artists who graced the stage at Alice Tully Hall.

The two singers were nominated by their voice teachers for a competitive audition and then selected by distinguished judges.  Each chose his own program and that lent a degree of excitement to the evening--learning a bit about how they experience their own particular talent.  The two pianists were chosen from the Collaborative Piano Department.

The first half of the evening was performed by counter-tenor Eric Jurenas accompanied by the lovely Juliana Han. If you read our review of Anthony Roth Costanzo last week, you may recall how fond we are of this special fach.  If you are a regular reader, you may recall that we do not prefer singing in English. We are now back-pedalling since Mr. Jurenas' superb English diction and Henry Purcell's lavish melodies ensured that this was our favorite part of his offerings.

Mr. Jurenas has a finely focused instrument that is brilliant in the upper register and manages to bring an amazing roundness of tone in the lower register.  Although no one knows what the castrati sounded like, we were imagining that was the sound. We are glad, however, that Mr. Jurenas was never called upon to make the necessary sacrifice.  Hard work is sacrifice enough!

The Purcell songs were the perfect choice for his instrument and he brought the text to life with dramatic expressiveness, dynamic variety and thoughtful word coloring.  "Music for a While" from Oedipus has rarely fallen on our ears with such delight.  In "Sweeter than Roses" from Pausanias, we loved the melismatic singing on the word "victorious"; what Mr. Jurenas did with the word "freeze" made us shiver!

He showed some fine French style in Ravel's Épigrammes de Clément Marot which gave Ms. Han an opportunity to shine.  He evinced equal skill with German in a selection of songs by Alexander Zemlinsky and Gustav Mahler. We have always enjoyed "Lob des hohen Verstandes" from Des Knaben Wunderhorn--a metaphor for ignorant audience members (the donkey) who can't tell good music (the nightingale) from bad (the cuckoo).  Of course that doesn't apply to New York audiences! Mr. Jurenas sang it with great style and humor.

Another text from Des Knaben Wunderhorn--"Das irdische Leben" was given all the tragic interpretation Mahler wrote into it, a real heartbreaker. No one can do tragedy like Mahler!

The second half of the program belonged to baritone Theo Hoffman and collaborative pianist William Kelley. Mr. Hoffman has impressed us since his very beginnings at Juilliard and he just keeps getting better. His many awards and multiple castings indicate that we are not alone in being impressed.

He sang three Tchaikovsky songs that were wildly romantic. We do not speak Russian but they sounded very authentic to our ears.  More importantly,  the words came across as if they tasted delicious in his mouth. His dynamic range is huge; he began at barely a whisper and opened up to an astonishing crescendo of passion.

The concluding song of the set, "Whether day dawns", gave Mr. Kelley a chance to tear into the passionate postlude.  The set of songs were so powerful and so dramatically sung that the next set of songs by Carlos Guastavino allowed the temperature in the hall to cool slightly while still upholding artistic intensity.

Guastavino composed in the early 20th c. when poetry still scanned and rhymed.  The vocal lines are lovely and Mr. Hoffman's Spanish was perfect, according to our native Spanish speaking companion. In "Ya me voy a retirar" the pain of the poet's loss is converted into beauty.

Our favorite of the set was "La rosa y el sauce", a plaintive song that ended in a dazzling vocalise.

Mr. Hoffman's program ended with the New York premiere of Three Tennyson Songs by Jonathan Dove, a contemporary composer who manages to write melodically. Perhaps choosing a "good" poet like Alfred Lord Tennyson brings out the best in a composer. Mr. Kelley had a great time with the prelude to "O Swallow, Swallow" and played some interesting octaves in "Dark House" while Mr. Hoffman employed vivid word coloring.

We longed for some encores but there were none.  We comfort ourselves knowing that there will be many more opportunities to hear these artists in the future. They have been winning prizes hand over fist and are already much in demand.

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PORTS OF CALL

Annie Rosen, Olivia Betzen, Theo Hoffman, Miles Mykkanen, Steven Blier

It's been a scant three weeks since we enjoyed New York Festival of Song's delightful evening "Itinerary of Song" at the National Opera Center.  So why would we brave the nasty April weather to see it again?  Because we were over the moon the first time and yearned to hear those wonderful singers and songs once more.  (To read the original review, please insert "The Singer and the Song" in the search bar.)  The sensational singers from Juilliard tend to graduate or get their advanced degrees and move on, so each performance they give must be treasured.

Since many of these songs are cabaret songs, it was fun to hear the program in the lively and casual atmosphere of Henry's Restaurant on the Upper West Side.  The welcome is warm, the food is delicious and the service unobtrusive, so the audience can feel free to relax and laugh at the humorous lyrics--and laugh they did!

Tenor Miles Mykkanen opened the program with "Sing for Your Supper" from the 1938 Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart 1938 musical The Boys from Syracuse.  As a matter of fact, the title of this entire series at Henry's is "Sing for Your Supper--NYFOS After Hours".  We admit to some concern about who could ever sing this charming ditty when Mr. M. is engaged elsewhere.  He just oozes personality and good humor from every pore and evokes every nuance from the clever lyrics.

The staging of our other favorite number, Cole Porter's "The Kling-Kling Bird" had the two lovely women in the cast playing the part of the birds admonishing the traveler to stay away from the ladies of foreign lands, one of whom was a cannibal. The traveler at risk was, of course, Mr. M.  We were grinning from ear to ear.

Mr. M. is no less affecting when he is serious; Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov's "Song of the Indian Merchant" was sung in beautiful Russian.

Baritone Theo Hoffman had his turn at humor as well and the audience responded with peals of laughter to his delightful delivery of Noël Coward's "Uncle Harry"; he described in a charming British accent the adventures of Uncle Harry the missionary which led to his departure from an unnamed third world country.  Just a tad naughty.  Wheeee!  In perfect Spanish he showed his serious side in Carlos Guastavino's "Pampamapa".

Mezzo-soprano Annie Rosen gave a moving account of Kurt Weill's "J'attends un navire".  Soprano Olivia Betzen was the perfect choice to sing Ernesto Nazareth's "Nenê" by virtue of being beautiful and scintillating as the song requires.  These two lovely ladies were joined by the men for the hilarious tale of a newly widowed British mum who goes wild in "A Bar on the Piccola Marina" by Noël Coward.

And they also raised their voices together in gorgeous harmony for Wilhelm Stenhammar's song about Turkey "I Seraillets Have".

As is customary, Maestro Steven Blier accompanied on the piano and narrated the evening in his charming style.  Quel raconteur!  Although a few songs from the prior performance were omitted we did not feel cheated.  The joy of the audience was palpable as they surrounded and congratulated the artists.  We walked out into the nasty April weather, now oblivious to it, feeling only the contentment of an hour well spent.

As attached as we have become to these impressive young artists we have confidence that Mr. Blier will come up with other engaging evenings of song.

© meche kroop

THE SINGER AND THE SONG

Theo Hoffman, Annie Rosen, Olivia Betzen, Miles Mykkanen

Sometimes the singer "makes" the song; he or she puts an interesting new spin on a song we never liked much or have grown tired of.  Sometimes the song "makes" the singer; it is so well written that it brings out the best in the one who sings it.  And sometimes both singer and song are perfectly matched.  Such is the case when recital wizard Steven Blier creates an evening of song for the New York Festival of Song, of which he is Artistic Director.  He always has an unusual theme in mind and always curates just the right songs and finds the right singers to bring them to life.

The theme of last night's recital was travel.  Composers who used texts describing adventures in other more exotic lands were given a hearing, for example Anton Rubinstein's setting of a text by Friedrich Martin von Bodenstedt "Gelb rollt mir zu Füssen" based on an Azerbaijani text describing Persia.  Now that's rather international in scope!

The recital was a culmination of a weeklong professional training residency at the Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts and the five rising stars on the program appeared to have had a great deal of fun along with their prodigious efforts.  The joy they felt in singing was contagious; we comprised a happy audience.

Coming out on top of the collection of songs were those by Cole Porter and Noël Coward; the English language lends itself so well to humor!  The remarkable tenor Miles Mykkanen, who has acting chops to match his matchless voice, gave a performance of "The Kling-Kling Bird on the Divi-Divi Tree" that is unlikely to be equalled.  It beggars description.  You will just have to attend tonight's repeat performance at 7:00 and you will likely write us a thank you note for the recommendation.

The marvelous baritone Theo Hoffman, not to be outdone, gave an hilarious performance of Coward's "Uncle Harry", not missing a single opportunity to draw giggles from the audience.  Both of these versatile artists joined forces for Hoagy Carmichael's "Hong Kong Blues", while Mr. Blier accompanied them with some very jazzy riffs on the piano.

Mr. Hoffman showed his serious side in Carlos Guastavino's "Pampamapa, aire de Huella" which expresses the pain of exile.  He sang it in perfect Argentinian dialect with some admirable melismatic singing.  It was heartbreaking.

Soprano Olivia Betzen is new to us but we will be very happy to hear more of her.  Her performance of Georges Bizet's "Adieux de l'hôtesse arabe" (one of the few songs on the program with which we are familiar) was delivered with sensuality and a fine trill.  We also enjoyed her performance of Enrique Granados' "Callejeo"; we are always delighted with zarzuela and tonadillas.

Mezzo-soprano Annie Rosen, also new to us, was delightful in William Bolcom's "To My Old Addresses" in which Leann Osterkamp (who shared accompanying with Mr. Blier) got an opportunity to show off her skill at the piano.  Ms. Rosen was heart-wrenching in the desperate "J'attends un navire" by Kurt Weill.

The four singers and Ms. Osterkamp worked very well as an ensemble.  We particularly enjoyed Coward's "In a bar on the Piccolo Marina" for its raunchy English music hall humor.  In Wilhelm Stenhammar's "I seraillets have" their harmonies teased the ear with pleasure, as they also did in the encore, Frank Loesser's "Slow Boat to China".

In an all-too-brief 90 minutes we were transported to South America and Europe, Scandinavia, India, Asia and the Middle-East--all without fighting for space in an overhead compartment.  Viva NYFOS, and ....thanks for the memories.

© meche kroop

JUICY APPLEBY

Paul Appleby

Natalia Katyukova

With delightful symmetry, tenor Paul Appleby and collaborative pianist Natalia Katyukova joined forces for a thoroughly satisfying recital with a theme--an exploration of the concept of sehnsucht in the German Romantic tradition.  It seemed fitting that we rushed from a recital by current Lindemann artists to one by artists who have used their training with the Lindemann Young Artist Development Program to establish remarkable careers.

We have been following Mr. Appleby's career for some years now and are thrilled to be witness to his artistic growth.  But we recall many of his illustrious qualities that were there from the beginning.  The rarest quality is that of making audience members feel  completely involved.  He so loves the music and the poetry and so wants to share it with us that the emotional involvement is beyond intense.  It is a rare ineffable quality and adds another layer to his fine vocal technique and gorgeous instrument.

He is completely at ease onstage and without affectation, readily sharing his views on each song with the audience.  We feel a part of his experience.  Just look at what he did with the four opening Schubert songs, settings of verses by three different poets.  "Im Frühling" is a melancholy lament for lost love and we feel the pain deep within.  Likewise we feel the joyful memory of a fisherman as he describes a rendezvous with his beloved in "Des Fischers Liebesglück".

Mr. Appleby, well coached by Ms. Katyukova, made a foray into the Russian literature and could not have chosen better than Tchaikovsky.  Ms. Katyukova's wildness in "Don Juan's Serenade" and her passionate power in "Does the day reign?" bookended the gentle "Amid the din of the ball".  Each one was a gem.

Hearing Fauré's La Bonne Chanson twice in one night was an interesting experience.  Mr. Appleby sang the entire cycle of nine songs.  His interpretation and vocal quality were so different from Ms. Xu's that we barely recognized the work.  We see this as testament to each artist's individuality and originality.

We loved the Argentinean songs in the final set.  The sad and charming "Canción al árbol del olvido" in milonga rhythm won our heart.  Ms. Katyukova deftly imitated the sound of the cicadas in Carlos Guastavino's "Cita".

Also on the program were four songs by Frank Bridge who taught composition to Benjamin Britten, notable for some rather adventurous piano harmonies.  Two encores were given, songs by Paul Bowles.  The closing lullabye "Baby, Baby" was delicately rendered and ultimately touching.

© meche kroop