ALL ABOUT CARMEN

 Final tableau--Don José has murdered Carmen

Carmen is Bizet's most successful opera and also one of the most famous in the canon. There is no mystery to explain. The characters are compelling, the plot moves swiftly, and the tunes are eminently hummable.  France saw its birth in 1875, at which time it was known as an "opéra comique" due to the use of spoken dialogue instead of sung recitativo. 

The libretto was written by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée. The two librettists made essential changes to the original story, as you can see if you read his novella.

 The story is a tragic one but not equal to the tragedy of Bizet dying without knowing how beloved and enduring his final work would become.  Even folks who know nothing about opera will recognize the "Habanera" and "The Toreador Song".

Another tragedy is the contamination of the work we have witnessed so many times as self-serving directors have tampered with the time and place of the opera, the authenticity of which, we believe, is essential to the story. In its time it scandalized the public and broke ground for future verismo operas.

Last night we saw an authentic production, so authentic that we thought the trek to Brooklyn was worth every mile. Fortunately the good folks at Regina Opera have never succumbed to the fad of "making opera relevant". Opera is relevant because it shows us naked passions expressed through memorable melodies!

The three major figures of this dramatic triangle are a naîve soldier from the countryside, a gypsy who works in a tobacco factory with a side hustle as a smuggler, and a famous toreador. The non human character of the story is the belief in the occult. Probably in the 19th century, audiences would have believed in curses and fortune telling. We had no trouble putting ourself in their place!

The opera is called Carmen but it might as well have been called Don José since it is his tragedy as well. Unlike the Don José of the Merimée novella, this man is a simple country boy who has been enchanted by a bruja. Once Carmen has thrown a flower at him and cast her spell, the plot has been set in motion and his fate is sealed. Think of the "fate theme" expressed so eloquently in the overture, a brilliant overture we might add.

Carmen, often trivialized as a hedonistic "free spirit", is actually a narcissistic sociopath who uses one man after another with no regard for the damage she wreaks. Micaëla, on the other hand, is imbued with a genuine caring nature, venturing into the scary city of Sevilla to relay messages from Don José's mother. She is by no means a wimp because she manages to escape from a group of horny soldiers in Act I, and in Act III she screws her courage to the sticking post, as they say, and makes her way into the scary mountains.

Perhaps it was due to the superb performance of soprano Yujin Zeng that our strongest memory from last night was her aria "Je dis que rien ne m'épouvante".  She may be a shy country girl but she is spunky and loyal and will complete her mission come hell or high water. Her faith in God is as strong as Carmen's faith in her occult powers..

The rest of the cast was effective with the fine-voiced mezzo-soprano Melina Jaharis portraying Carmen in a manner that we found excessively and contemporaneously seductive. This  might be the intention of the director Helen Van Tine. Our perception of the character leans more to an intensity of will rather than overly obvious signaling of sexiness

Tenor Christopher Trapani did a fine job of conveying Don José's  

vulnerability to  Carmen's wiles and his desperation at the prospect of losing her. Veteran baritone Robert Garner (whom we have reviewed many times) portrayed Escamillo,  who is always portrayed as the equivalent of a modern day rock star; we see things differently. In Spain, killing the bull is seen as an art, almost a religious ritual, somehow tied to the martyrdom of Jesus. His casual manner when meeting his rival in Act III is confident but not arrogant and showy. He is a rather good natured chap who enjoys his success with women.

We enjoyed the scene with the smugglers and their accomplices, both musically and dramatically. Frasquita was played by soprano Veronica Mak and Mercedes was sung by mezzo-soprano Grace Verbic. Their card reading scene brought some lightness into the scene, contrasting with the death predicting reading of Carmen. The quintet involving Dancaïro (baritone Daniel Chu) and Remendado (tenor Ethan Ellis) was a musical highlight of the evening. The role of Zuniga was performed by Victor Jaquez and Warren B. Harding sang the role of Morales.

Maestro Scott Jackson Wiley conducted the orchestra with his usual fine hand and we particularly appreciated the wind section. The harp and flute accompaniment to Micaëla's aria was a highlight

We were not impressed with the sets. The stage is a shallow one and their bulk detracted from the playing area. Strangely, there were sets of steps that contributed nothing and looked out of place in every scene. We would have wished for better staging.

Let us close by saying that we attended the dress rehearsal and if the lighting was not perfect it will be by tomorrow. It appears that every performance has a different cast; so you, Dear Reader, will probably not experience the same performances as we did.  You will probably never miss the long parade of the costumed participants nor the cheering crowds of Act IV. This production is a more intimate one, focusing on the relationship between the principals; we do hope you will appreciate the traditional nature of the production as much as we did. And if your interpretation of the characters is different from ours, we hope you will comment below.

© meche kroop

A NEW CARMEN FOR THE AGES

 Micaela Aldridge with cast of Carmen

(Photo by Joan Greenberg)

Opera Theater Rutgers: Carmen

A New Carmen for the ages…

(Guest Review byJoan Greenberg)

The  promo reads…….:

“Carmen by Georges Bizet, scandalized audiences when it premiered in 1875 at Paris’ Opera Comique. Critics and opera-goers alike were taken aback by the opera’s unconventional heroine, who defied societal norms, with her independence, sensuality, and disregard for authority.

Presented by Rutgers Opera and performed by the Rutgers Symphony Orchestra, this new production, conducted by Kynan Johns and directed by Colm Summers, “aims to find fresh relevance in Bizet’s critique of patriarchy.”

 

Dear Reader, having attended last evening’s performance, this writer is here to say, they succeeded….

 

Full disclosure:

1-   We  have been a longtime fan of the female lead, so there was a concern that we could not be objective. Last evening’s audience put that concern to rest with their resounding applause…. and

 

2-   We are not a fan of the recent “new reimagined” updated and uprooted versions of Carmen such as the one recently performed at the Met.

 

However, while suspension of disbelief may be required …..  (with one exception*) we were not bothered with Rutgers taking Carmen through a Time Machine and changing Bizet’s bullfighter’s vocation from matador to rodeo competitor.

*[the exception being electronic distractions from a television and several overhead projections]

 

Our compliments to the very able (i)  orchestra conducted by Maestro Johns for not (with little exception) drowning out the arias; (ii) the wardrobe designer for creating provocative dress for Carmen, even as a  factory worker and cowgirl; and (iii) the performer and stage directors.

 

Now for the main course…..

One could not take their eyes or ears off the stunning (vocally and visually) Mezzo Micaela Aldridge when she was on stage. While her amazing voice was no surprise to this writer, her acting chops blew us away….. there was not an emotion that was not strikingly conveyed to the audience with her eyes, facial expressions, and body movements. No wonder Don Jose (the accomplished Lyric tenor Jeremy Blossey)  and the other characters (male and female) were captivated by her.

 

We will leave to another time our views about how, ( despite first impressions) Don Jose was no victim of a vixen. His cruelty and lack of morality to the blameless Micaela (beautifully performed by soprano Lu Huang) as well as his lack of concern for his mother or military duties, cannot be lain at the feet of Carmen…

 

There are two sets of leads, who split the four scheduled performances…….and if we could we would see their performances as well.   Hopefully, Rutgers will offer  another opportunity to enjoy them.

© meche kroop

 

 

 

 

 

MUSIC 10 --LOOKS 2

 Isabel Leonard and Michael Fabiano (photo by Curtis Brown for Santa Fe Opera)

Where are we? We are sitting in the Santa Fe Opera's lovely theater, wishing we were being transported to Seville in the 19th c., the world created by Georges Bizet and librettists Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy (originally created by novelist Prosper Mérimée)--a world of gypsies, smugglers, and bull fights. But no, that is not going to happen. We can't tell where we are from a confusing set and ugly costumes. We are in the world of a misguided director who wants to tell a different story.  Of our beloved Carmen, only the "romantic" obsession remains and the good girl/bad girl dichotomy.

We were inspired to do a search of our reviews of every Carmen we have ever written about.  And there are dozens. Significantly, the last Carmen done by Santa Fe Opera was similarly egregious. The most affecting one we ever saw was performed by a small (now defunct) company in New York City. The most original one was presented by a psychoanalytic colleague whose concept it was to be interviewing Don Jose in prison, after the stabbing. His character was explored by means of flashbacks to various scenes of the opera.  It was original and illuminating. If you are going to have a concept, it better be cohesive and show us something new about the characters. This production was about as interesting and as believable as Lucia in overalls in the rustbelt of the United States, as presented by the Metropolitan Opera.

If one closed ones eyes, which we frequently needed to do, one was treated to some superb singing and a glorious reading of the score by Maestro Harry Bicket. The music moved right along with big dramatic orchestrations, as in the overture, alternating with gentle pianissimo lyricism, as in the introduction to Act III.

Poor mezzo-soprano Isabel Leonard, drably dressed in jeans and dun colored top gave her all to make sense of the character. She possesses a magnificent instrument which she uses skillfully throughout the entire range. She clearly worked hard to fulfill the director's requirements and to tell us something new about the eponymous heroine. In the 19th c. there was something shocking and fascinating about a woman who marched to her own tune. Set in contemporary times, it's just old hat.

Tenor Michael Fabiano sounded just fine as Don Jose but was perhaps directed to be particularly awkward with his body movements, leading us to speculate that Don Jose had some rare ailment that contributed to his unbalanced mental state.  His violence did not evolve gradually but was present right from his ungracious shoving of Micaëla as she tried to give him a kiss from his mother. 

Soprano Sylvia D'Eramo scored vocally with her Act III aria. Dressed in overalls, backpack, and Keds, she looked nothing like an innocent country girl although she did her best to act the part, contrasting with Ms. Leonard's worldly wise mien.

Four apprentices delighted us with their performances, seemingly removed from the intensity of the main story. Soprano Magdalena Kużma's Frasquita and mezzo-soprano Kathleen Felty's Mercédès made a fine pair and we enjoyed their card reading duet. Tenor Anthony Léon's Remendado  and baritone Luke Sutliff's Dancaire brought Act II to vivid life. The quintet with Ms. Leonard resisting their blandishments was one of the vocal highlights of the evening.

Bass-baritone Michael Sumuel was put in the ambiguous position of portraying Escamillo as a bullfighter in authentic dress, and also some kind of entertainer in a saloon pretending to be a bullfighter. Nonetheless, we enjoyed his singing of the Toreador Song.

Bass-baritone David Crawford was effective as Zuniga; Apprentice David Lekeith Drone sang the role of Morales; Omen Thomas Sade took the non-singing role of the famed Lilias Pastia.

A terpsichoreally challenged female child was onstage so much, for no apparent reason, that we were not surprised at the muttering of the woman sitting next to me, muttering we choose not to repeat. These constant appearances were most resented when they occurred during the big arias. How unforgivably distracting! Perhaps she is the offspring of a big donor. Why was she holding her ears during the overture? Why was she prancing around stage making odd faux flamenco moves with her arms and swishing her skirt? Whatever the director had in mind was lost on every audience member we spoke with or overheard in the ladies room during intermission.

French director Mariame Clément obviously comes from the European régie theatre school.  Silly us to think that opera is about singing that enhances logical story telling! Whatever happened to authenticity and honoring the intentions of the composer and librettist? We would beg directors to stop trashing the classics. Modern touches added to comedies are just misdemeanors but to ruin a tragedy is a felony.

Julia Hansen's set and costumes for Act I were not awful.  Just a bunch of soldiers on one side and a fenced in area on the other side, enclosing a yard for the cigarette factory workers to take their breaks. But things got progressively worse.  In Act II, there was something like a nightclub with what appeared to be a drag show onstage; but then appeared to be Frasquita and Mercedes in hideous garish costumes. And another smaller stage was wheeled on with Escamillo in full toreador costume singing his big aria.

Act IV was completely incomprehensible.  At first, the chorus of onlookers were waving flags behind a wooden barrier. So, it's a bullfight and we had no problem using our imagination to recreate the parade of chulos, picadors, and toreros that were being sung about.  But then the set became a garish amusement park with a ticket office with a sign reading "CAJA"--Spanish for cashier or box office--and the only sign that the action is supposed to be taking place in Spain. A lone merry-go-round horse witnessed the violence perpetrated by Don Jose on the complacent but defiant Carmen.

Not only were the characterizations impossible to fathom but the stage business frequently belied the text. Please don't sing about a rope and then produce handcuffs to restrain Carmen.

We could go on and on about the directorial  misjudgment but we would prefer to use the space to once again applaud the excellent chorus of apprentices, directed by Susanne Sheston.  The chorus has been a winning element throughout the season.

© meche kroop

SAMANTHA HANKEY -- A MASTER OF VOICE

Chris Reynolds and Samantha Hankey

Half a recital is better than none at all.  It was "nip and tuck" whether we could squeeze in part of Samantha Hankey's Master of Music recital at Juilliard before getting to Carnegie Hall for a 7:00 event. That 40 mins. turned out to be a major highlight of our musical week and we wouldn't have missed it for the world. We had just seen Ms. Hankey perform the role of Varvara in Janacek's Katya Kabanova, creating a delightful character.  Previously we heard her as the scheming Agrippina in the Handel Opera, in which she created a not-so-delightful character.

The only piece on last night's program that was new to us was the Habanera from Bizet's Carmen with which she opened the program. She alternated seductiveness and menace to create a character one needed to watch out for.  There are not many mezzo-sopranos that young who are in such full control of their instrument and their technique that they can focus on characterization.  Ms. Hankey's vocal equipment is prodigious with gorgeous overtones that never desert her; the voice is centered throughout the register and achieves a special glory at the top. Language skills and phrasing are just about perfect.

The remainder of the program comprised repeats from our frequent hearings of her other recitals, one of which was a Vocal Arts Honors Recital last month. Revisiting songs we love is always a treat! With collaborative pianist Chris Reynolds, Ms. Hankey has forged a perfect partnership; he is one of the least self-serving accompanists we have heard and is marvelously supportive of the vocal line. He shone in two selections by Franz Liszt, playing delicately in "Freudvoll und leidvoll" but sharing Ms. Hankey's passion in "Der du von dem Himmel bist".

We also got a second hearing of some Schumann songs, settings of texts by Ruckert, a poet whose rhythms were so effectively matched by Schumann's writing for the piano, and whose meaning was so aptly conveyed by both singer and pianist. Ms. Hankey offered some interesting information before singing the set; Clara and Robert composed songs together in the romantic first year of their marriage. The ones Ms. Hankey chose for her recital happened to have been written for the tenor fach but that didn't make any difference in our appreciation.

Mr. Reynolds had some gorgeous arpeggios in "Aus den ostlichen Rosen". "Flugel! Flugel!" had incredible variety of coloration contributing to the abundant imagery. The two artists brought the lied to a magnificent climax.  But our favorite, as always, was "Widmung". What could be more romantic than that!

We were thrilled to have a re-hearing of Agrippina's anguished aria--"Pensieri, voi mi tormentate!" from Handel's opera of the same name. Just hearing it brought the entire splendid performance to mind.

What a pity to have to leave before the set of Strauss songs. We are sure they were as fine as our prior hearing but if any reader was in the audience and cares to leave a comment below to "finish off" our review, we would be grateful.

We are thinking back over the many many times we have reviewed Ms. Hankey since her undergraduate days--all the honors she received, all the awards she won, all the recitals in which she engaged us. We'd like to thank her for all that wonderful music and wish her well in future endeavors. We see major stardom in her future.

(c) meche kroop

APPLE OF OUR EYE (and ear)

Ken Noda, Sarah Mesko, and Paul Appleby

What gives us the greatest pleasure in life is witnessing the growth of young artists. We have thrilled to the performances of tenor Paul Appleby since we started writing--no, even before--from Juilliard to leading roles on the stages of the world's greatest opera houses. We have been there when he was showered with awards from all the leading foundations. And yesterday he appeared as the "senior" member of a duo at the George London Foundation recital series, having been awarded a half dozen years ago. His rapid ascent can be attributed to his impressive expressive qualities and commitment to whatever he sings.  Besides all that, he has a tonal quality that goes straight to the heart.

The final piece on yesterday's program at The Morgan Library (a very special series for those of us who adore the human voice) was a duet with the "junior" member of the team mezzo-soprano Sarah Mesko, who was honored by the foundation just two years ago. The duet was the final scene from Georges Bizet's Carmen, a scene which has always seemed to go on a bit too long for our taste causing us to inwardly mutter "Stab her already".  But not yesterday!  The performance was so intense that we had to restrain ourselves from leaping onstage to prevent Don Jose from stabbing Carmen.

This frightening reality was created without set or costumes. We have never seen/heard it performed better. When Don Jose cradled the dying Carmen in his arms we could not hold back the tears. Ms. Mesko has experience with the role and Mr. Appleby absolutely must add this to his already substantial repertoire. Don Jose is a complex character and Mr. Appleby's artistry captured all of it. Interestingly, the two artists appeared together at the Santa Fe Opera a few years back in Offenbach's La Grand Duchesse de Gerolstein, which we reviewed so enthusiastically.

With that bedazzlement out of the way, let us consider the remainder of the program. Ms. Mesko's voice has the quality of liquid caramel and felt so totally perfect for Brahms whose "Die Mainacht" was the standout of her first set. Accompanied by the fine violist Andrew Gonzalez, she also gave a beautiful interpretation of Brahms' Zwei Gesange, op.91. The artist filled "Gestillte Sehnsucht" with restless longing. "Geistliches Wiegenlied" is a lullaby to the Christ child that we have often heard. Mr. Gonzalez' line echoed the vocal line and the repetition of the phrase "stillet die Wipfel" will not quit our ear.

We might add that Ms. Mesko's German diction was superb and she filled Hugo Wolf's "Der Mond hat eine schwere Klag erhoben" with wonder. She also accomplished a rare feat by singing English with superb enunciation. As far as the French, we found Gabriel Faure's "Clair de lune" to be wanting more fluidity of line to bring out the sensuality achieved by Ken Noda's superb accompaniment.  We even had the curious thought that the English song preceding the "Clair de Lune" had set her up for a choppier delivery.

We liked the way Ms. Mesko addressed the audience and told about her choices. She related how Hector Berlioz added something to Virgil's account of Dido's death when he wrote the libretto for Les Troyens. When she sang "Ah! Je vais mourir" we got Dido's anger at the abandoning Aeneas...followed by Berlioz' addition of an adagio section in which she expresses her gratitude for the good things in her life. In this part, we heard the longer legato line that we wanted to hear in the earlier "Clair de lune".

Mr. Appleby, so passionately convincing in opera, revealed a different side of his artistry in a set of songs by Britten. He is a thinking man's artist and can only be admired for choosing material that resonates with him. That it doesn't resonate with us does not take away anything. His attention to text is impressive and he mines every song for meaning. When we read the title of the song cycle On This Island, all we could think about was Mr. Appleby's thrilling performance at the Met in Enchanted Island! But this set of songs, settings of text by W.H.Auden, although they did not enchant us, held our interest.

We enjoyed the embellishments in "Let the florid music praise!" and the Brecht/Weill flavor of "Now the leaves are falling fast". The dirge-like "Nocturne" appealed to us because the text rhymed and scanned. But the most affecting was the sardonic and bitter "As it is, plenty" which Mr. Appleby invested with great dramatic import.

We cannot say that the set of Poulenc songs held our attention. Tel jour, telle nuit was set to text by Paul Eluard which struck us as surreal and not worthy of setting.

We would have been happy to have left the recital all shook up by the Carmen but the generous artists supplied encores. Ms. Mesko gave a delightful delivery of "Everybody Says Don't" from Sondheim's 1864 Broadway show Anyone Can Whistle. The show did not do well but the song is a winner.

Mr. Appleby's encore was Ned Rorem's paean to "The Lordly Hudson". Well performed as one would expect, but we would prefer to see the river through the eyes of a painter of the Hudson River School!

The talented pair closed the program with Ralph Vaughan Williams' "Dirge for Fidele" also known as "Fear no more the heat o' the sun", text from Shakespeare's Cymbeline. The overlapping voices and peaceful harmonies were perfect.

But the most perfect performance of all was that of collaborative pianist Ken Noda who is as supportive of the artist as he is brilliant on the keys.

(c) meche kroop

BEST. CARMEN. EVER.

Avery Amereau and Victor Starsky

We realize that calling New York Opera Exchange's Carmen the best Carmen ever is quite an extravagant statement. But this is the first time we have been totally absorbed in a production from the opening note of the overture until Carmen dies in the arms of her lover and murderer Don José. We have seen and heard this opera dozens of time and are usually quite restless by Act IV and have been known to mutter sotto voce "Kill her already!"

Let us first give credit where credit is due. To begin with, the role of the eponymous heroine was brilliantly sung and acted. Mezzo-soprano Avery Amereau has a thrillingly dark instrument and employs it so effectively that one is never aware of the technique, only aware that she is completely in the moment and giving 110%. After the first couple minutes we forgot that her fine-featured face looks nothing like that of a gypsy. The way she used her body embodied the free-spirited and rebellious nature of the character in a way never before seen by us. It surely came from a deep inner place and was not, as with most Carmens, a case of "acting sexy".

Secondly, we credit the director Matt Dickson who, surprisingly, is new to the world of opera. He apparently applied everything he knew from the world of theater without interfering with the singers' ability to function vocally. There were countless examples of stage business that supported the interactions of the characters and also served to establish the cultural milieu in which the characters were interacting.

This was an authentic Carmen, true to time and place. (We loathed the Carmen set in the 1950's and had no use for the one set in Franco's Spain.) In this corner of Seville, in this particular production, there was tension between the townspeople and the military; they tolerated one another but there was the feeling that a simple confrontation could erupt at any moment into a conflagration. This atmosphere of tension reflected and contributed to the tension between the characters.

Thirdly, we credit the superlative conducting of Alden Gatt. The full-sized orchestra was placed in front of the audience and during the prelude we had a moment's concern about the volume but Maestro Gatt wisely balanced the sound so that it supported the singers and never drowned them out. The flute and oboe solos were particularly lovely.

Tenor Victor Starsky made a fine Don José who grew in dimension as the story progressed. He began as a rather buttoned-up fellow with his future already determined. As Carmen wove her spell upon him he became expressive, conflicted, passionate, and insanely jealous. By Act IV, he had completely decompensated--wild-eyed, wild-haired and desperate. His Act II aria "La fleur que tu m'avais jetée" was stellar.

The role of Micaëla, the sweet innocent girl whom Don José is supposed to marry, was winningly performed by soprano Kaley Lynn Soderquist whose bright lovely instrument was perfect for the role. Her Act III aria "Je dis que rien ne m'épouvante" was a convincing blend of terror, courage and faith.

Bass-baritone Kian Freitas sang the role of Escamillo and sang it well but could have used more arrogance in his voice and in his body language. We had the same observation of one of the last Escamillos we saw at the Met. We want to see a torero who struts around with shoulders back and head held high, signalling confidence.

As Carmen's two friends Frasquita and Mercedes, we were very pleased with the performances of NYOE favorite Nadia Petrella who has a fine bright soprano just right for the part of Frasquita and mezzo Kate Farrar who made an excellent Mercedes. For some reason, Costume Designer Taylor Mills, who did a splendid job on all the other costumes, dressed these two singers in hideous short satin skirts and street shoes, even as they trekked up the mountains. Give those girls some boots!

We further enjoyed tenor James Grandjean as Le Remendado and baritone Andrew Luzania as Le Dancairo. The Act II ensemble when these smugglers are making their plans with the women "Nous avons en tête une affaire" was excellently harmonized.

Bass Costas Tsourakis made a suitably repellent Zuniga with a nice booming sound and baritone Jonathan Christopher was fine as Morales.

The chorus of townspeople contributed to the proceedings and managed to distinguish themselves as individuals, thanks to the good stage direction. The children's chorus had only one young man and it was a bit strange to see a group of female children imitating soldiers.

The set by Gabriel Firestone was simple but effective and was lit by Kimberlee Hurley.

Georges Bizet composed Carmen in 1875 with a libretto by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy for the Opéra Comique in Paris. It had spoken dialogue and was presented as music theater. It was considered scandalous because of the sexuality and violence. It later came to be considered grand opera with the addition of accompanied recitativi by Ernest Guiraud. It has been a favorite in the canon ever since.

It was brave of NYOE to tackle such a work but we were thrilled with the intimacy and never missed the parade of picadors in Act IV or the mountains in Act III. With acting and singing this good, the imagination supplies the rest.  We have watched NYOE grow over the past few years; the quality keeps improving. We have seen the future of opera in New York City and it's looking great.

(c) meche kroop

WHO IS SILVIE?

Nathaniel LaNasa and Silvie Jensen

Silvie Jensen is a versatile mezzo-soprano who has made quite a name for herself in many genres: opera, lieder, oratorio, and commissioned new works.  We were fortunate to be invited to enjoy her artistry in a private recital at Norton Hall--up close and intimate as lieder recitals are best enjoyed (and should always be, were it not for financial considerations).

The first half of the program was devoted to Schubert, and if there was ever a better composer of lieder we cannot think of one.  His setting of Franz Schober's "An die Musik", which opened the program, is the perfect tribute to the musical arts and an expression of the poet's gratitude.  Ms. Jensen sang it with consummate depth of feeling and communicative skills such that we were reminded of our own gratitude.

We are accustomed to hearing Die Winterreise sung by men and rarely hear it performed by a woman although there is a recording of it sung by Christa Ludwig.  Last night we heard Ms. Jensen sing several selections from it and pushed aside any judgments and just listened to the music.  Her artistry was such that we completely forgot the risk she was taking. Accompanied by the fine piano partner Nathaniel LaNasa, we were swept away to the lonely wintry landscape through which the poet plods, trying to escape from the despair of a broken heart.

Count on Schubert to limn a dozen shades of grief.  In "Gute Nacht", we hear the poet's disappointment as he sets out on his journey.  The song is strophic but our two artists made each verse sound new.  In "Der Lindenbaum" the gentle opening yields to the forceful pianistic and vocal depiction of "die kalten Winde" which chilled us, even in the warm room.

Both artists are experts at coloring the words.  The self-pity of "Wasserflut", the nostalgia of "Auf dem Flüsse", the false cheer of the dreamer in "Frühlingstraum", the menace of "Die Krähe", the morbidity of "Das Wirtshaus", and the mysterious resolve of "Der Leiermann" were all communicated.  Even in the repeated notes of "Der Wegweiser", there was not a hint of tedium.

We must add that Ms. Jensen's German diction was flawless and permitted us to pay full attention to the performance and none whatsoever to the translations.  Her French was just as fine in a cycle of songs by Poulenc entitled La Fraicheur et le Feu.

Although we do not understand Czech, we loved the sound of it and the delightful folk melodies of Bohuslav Martinu who wrote in the same time period as Poulenc.  We particularly enjoyed the charming "Touha" with its frisky piano part, as well as the lament "Smutny Mily".  We would love a second hearing of these songs.

Finally, Ms. Jensen and Mr. LaNasa performed selections from Britten's settings of folk songs.  We always love hearing the tale of "The Brisk Young Widow" and "The Salley Gardens" in which the poetry by W.B. Yeats inspired a lovely vocal line.

We were completely satisfied by this recital; but there was an encore that added a special thrill.  We never would have foreseen the smoky seductive timbre with which this cool Nordic beauty invested the "Habanera" from Bizet's Carmen.  Let us just say WOW and be done with it.

Although we understand that rehearsal time was short, we found the teamwork to be impressive.  Both Ms. Jensen and Mr. LaNasa are excellent interpreters and matched each other beautifully in their phrasing and dynamics.  We would gladly hear the two of them tackle the entire cycle of  Die Winterreise.  Perhaps next Winter?

© meche kroop

CARMEN

Ana Maria Martinez and Roberto De Blasio (photo by Ken Howard)

The current trend in opera is "concept".  Directors are falling all over themselves trying to make opera relevant, changing locations, changing time periods, doing all kinds of things to attract new audiences.  We are not among those that appreciate this trend.  Occasionally this fiddling works but more often than not the audience is left baffled.  Such was the case last night at the Santa Fe Opera's Carmen; Bizet's masterpiece was updated to mid-20th c. and moved to somewhere on the Mexican-American border, although that was only revealed piecemeal. The time is ripe for an opera about illegal immigration and the plight of Mexicans but grafting that concept onto an opera that we adore in its original time and place seemed ill-advised.

Bizet's music trumps everything else and if you closed your eyes and listened to Rory Macdonald's apt conducting of the Santa Fe Opera Orchestra, you might have had a fine time.  With your eyes open, you might have expected to be in Spain with vintage black and white films of bullfights projected onto the set.  The picture of the dead bull might have made you wonder if this was meant to be symbolic of Don Jose's stabbing of Carmen in the final scene. Interestingly enough, that scene does take place in an arena-like area.  But why was Carmen trying to escape through locked doors when she was resigned to dying?

Many other inconsistencies and questions about Stephen Lawless' direction distracted us from enjoying the music.  Why were the girls of the tobacco factory behind bars?  They were dressed in identical uniforms so one wondered whether they were meant to be in prison and given time in the yard for a smoking break.  Why was Escamillo's entrance so tacky, passed out on a mechanical bull?  Why was Micaela standing on the American side of a chain-link fence?  We could go on and on about the inconsistencies and ill-conceived ideas.

Carmen is not just a factory-worker (if that is even true) but she and Frasquita and Mercedes don wildly colorful costumes (by Jorge Jara) as onstage entertainers in Lilas Pastias' tavern while the customers dance the lindy to Bizet's music!  There is more coke-snorting than we would ever want to see onstage-- to no meaningful effect.  Were the smugglers smuggling drugs or were they smuggling "wetbacks".  Why are the "wetbacks" pushing the truck right up to the Border Patrol?  Did we need to see a trashy hooker distracting the border guard so a few illegal immigrants could climb the chain-link fence?

Well, let us move on to what we did like about the production.  Most of the video projections by Jon Driscoll served to open up the story in a cinematic way.  The scene of Micaela tending to Don Jose's critically ill mother gave us some insight into their relationship.  The scene of Micaela and Don Jose attending his mother's funeral showed us that Micaela still had some affection for him; she made sidelong glances meaningful.

Benoit Dugardyn's set design was simple enough not to interfere and was flexible enough to create the soldier's locker room, a prison, a bullfight arena, ramparts and a background for projections.  Pat Collins' lighting was sometimes effective,  creating shadows that highlighted the action; at other times the light fell in the wrong place and the action was cast into darkness.

As Carmen, soprano Ana Maria Martinez created a character that had very little by way of redeeming qualities.  Perhaps it is only that we prefer the role to be sung by a mezzo-soprano but her voice seemed uneven through the wide range Bizet wrote; her voice improved as the evening wore on.       Her acting was forceful but appeared to be based on something that she or the director considered to be sexy. The sexiness did not seem to come from within but rather was based on gyrations and cliched mannerism. 

Tenor Roberto de Biasio also got off to a weak start but improved vocally in the second act. He produced a fine messa di voce.  However, his acting was stiff until he reached places where he was given over to violence.  Baritone Kostas Smoriginas struggled to achieve some dignity and the arrogance the role requires; the direction was not kind to him, what with that mechanical bull and having to hold a microphone onstage and gyrate like Elvis Presley.

We liked Joyce El-Khoury's performance as Micaela; she has an expressive soprano and managed to evoke sympathy which the other principals did not.  Her duet with Don Jose was tender and their hands reaching out toward one another was perhaps the most moving moment of the evening.

The smaller roles were more effective.  Bass-baritone Evan Hughes was outstanding as Zuniga, using his booming voice, imposing height and dramatic skills to create a more interesting character than we are accustomed to.  He too has his eye on Carmen and, by the time his pants are around his ankles in her prison cell,  she has escaped.

Baritone Ricardo Rivera was a strong Morales, also making much of a role that usually makes no impression.

We liked baritone Dan Kempson as Le Dancaire and tenor Noah Baetge as Le Remendado, the two smugglers.  It was amusing to watch their interaction with Carmen's two friends Frasquita (soprano Amanda Opuszynski) and Mercedes (mezzo-soprano Sarah Larsen).  Grant Neale made a slimy Lillas Pastia.

Before ending. we would like to contribute this factoid.  In Mexican bullfights, they do not kill the bull.

(c) meche kroop