CLASSIC LYRIC ARTS FALL GALA

Glenn Morton and participants in Classic Lyric Arts summer programs

The Classic Lyric Arts Fall Benefit Gala is a highly anticipated annual event; it is a golden opportunity to be introduced to participants in CLA's immersive summer programs in France and Italy. These stars of tomorrow have spent some very intensive time in the country of their choice--studying, coaching, learning the subtleties of the language, the culture, the food, and the music.

After a decade, the program is well established; young artists of promise are able to attend even if they cannot afford the tuition because, this year alone, 18 grants were made to help them along. Next year's goal is 28 grants and lovers of this very special art form could find no better means to make a valuable contribution.

The teachers and coaches have been selected for their dedication and desire to pass along their knowledge and expertise. Artistic Director Glenn Morton gave a wonderfully welcoming address to the select audience, pointing out that not every participant will achieve a major opera career; some will wind up in different capacities within the field and others will choose a different profession. But it seems that each and every participant soaked up what was offered to him/her and was greatly enriched.

Before and after the performance, we enjoyed a generous spread of goodies and an opportunity to mingle with the artists and to learn about their education and career goals, and also to hear them extol the benefits of their summer study. 

Alumna Caroline Lopez Moreno possesses a glorious soprano instrument that she uses well and which has captivated us on prior occasions. She has presence to spare as well, and spoke eloquently of her experience with CLA and her respect for Mr. Morton's astute and encouraging coaching.

She performed a divine duet with mezzo-soprano Sarah Fleiss, who is new to us. Rossini's Tancredi offers opportunities to show off and these two young women ran with it, giving an arresting account of this fraught scene in Act II. Rossini gave these conflicting lovers the most harmonious music; Ms. Moreno made a marvelous Amenaide and Ms. Fleiss sounded just grand as Tancredi. The overtones of each voice bounced off the overtones of the other. The fireworks in the cabaletta were dazzling.

We love listening to mezzo-sopranos who have a true mezzo texture to their voices and Ms. Fleiss surely does have the right sound. She was not the only one. Swedish mezzo Loella Grahn gave a winning performance as Rosina in the "note scene" ("Dunque io son") from Rossini's comic masterpiece Il barbiere di Siviglia. Ms. Grahn had all the right qualities--charm, presence, musicality, and good chemistry with her Figaro, wonderfully acted and sung by baritone Carlos Arcos.

Rossini's music is very kind to coloratura sopranos but Puccini demands a more substantial voice and we heard that in Johanna Will; she has a voice with plenty of substance that can effortlessly soar into the upper register. We greatly enjoyed her Cio-Cio San, singing in the Act I love duet from Madama Butterfly "Vogliatemi bene". Tenor Alexei Kuznietsov, whom we have written about several times, did an admirable job as Pinkerton. He just keeps getting better and better, a trajectory we love to witness in a young singer.

His versatility as an artist showed in the lighthearted "C'est l'amour" from Ganne's comic opera Les Saltimbanques, singing with Rachel Liss. We were excited to be introduced to a work and a composer that were new to us.

Similarly we got a kick out of  "Non, non jamais les hommes" from the Yvains operetta Ta bouche--another work and another composer new to us. The delightful Shannon Delijani was joined by Hannah Klein in this very cute number about how men can't understand women. In another number from this operetta, we heard Ms. Klein sing a duet with Wesley Diener entitled "Ta bouche a des baisers".

Soprano Lena Goldstein had a winning presence as Susanna in the scene from Mozart's Le Nozze di Figaro in which Susanna misunderstands the marital intentions of Figaro, here performed by Mr. Arcos who had to take a slap to the face which was quite convincing.

Marcellina was sung by mezzo Nanako Kato who also made a fine Isabella  in a scene from Rossini's L'Italiana in Algeri with Chang Liu singing the rejected wife of Mustafa (Mr. Arcos). 

There was a charming fluffy trio from Berlioz' Béatrice et Bénédicte with the voices of Temple Hammen, Bela Albett, and Melanie Dubil achieving perfect harmony.

We also enjoyed a sweet duet from Puccini's La Rondine--"Bevo al tuo fresco sorriso"-- with Ms. Lopez Moreno's Magda partnered by tenor Travis Benoit as Ruggero and a rousing "I Could Have Danced All Night" from Lerner and Loewe's My Fair Lady with Courtney Sanders singing Eliza Doolittle, joined by the chorus.

There seemed to be varying levels of experience in the singing. Some were "performance ready" and other showed promise. But all exhibited the kind of enthusiasm that warms our heart. And everyone sang with Italianate or Gallic style as the piece demanded. All had excellent diction which speaks well for their training with CLA.

Let us not forget the artistry of the collaborative pianists: Jake Landau, Migeun Chung, Vladimir Soloviev, Xu Cheng, and Ariela Bohrod. They too seem to have picked up a lot of French and Italian style during their residency abroad.

© meche kroop

DOUBLE FEATURE AT MANHATTAN SCHOOL OF MUSIC

Joseph Tancredi and Carolina Lopez Moreno
(Photo by Carol Rosegg)

In the best of all possible operatic worlds, one witnesses art and enjoys entertainment simultaneously. This was the case last night at Manhattan School of Music when a group of young singers, comprising mostly graduate students, presented a felicitous choice of two one act operas--one we have often heard and one we had never even heard of.

The first opera was Nino Rota's I due timidi, a work written for radio performance on RAI with libretto written by screenwriter Suso Cecchi D'Amico. The work was broadcast live in 1950 and later adapted for the stage in London and in Bari. This epoch seems as remote from today as the 19th c.

The work is set in a pensione run by the crabby Signora Guidotti (mezzo-soprano Polixeni Tziouvaras, as excellent vocally as she was dramatically) who has her hands full with plumbing problems and irate guests. The superb set by Lee Savage is the courtyard of the pensione which has three cameriere (soprano songbirds Heather O'Donovan, Kaitlin Turner, and Bridget Casey) gossiping whilst doing their chores. Flowers grow in window boxes and laundry hangs in the sun to dry.

Director Dona D. Vaughn (Artistic Director of the MSM Opera Theater) created a sense of time and place that hasn't been equalled since the Metropolitan Opera's late production of Mascagni's Cavalleria Rusticana.  People shout out of windows and lower baskets for groceries and payment. Very realistic.

The protagonists are the shy pianist Mariuccia (superb soprano Carolina Lopez Moreno, so fine of voice and so successful at creating empathy) and the equally shy suitor Raimondo (the promising tenor Joseph Tancredi who is still an undergraduate, singing with fine tone and phrasing). 

This is a comedy with a bittersweet ending which we will not divulge, but which seemed just right. Through a series of misunderstandings, Il dottore Sinisgalli (terrific tenor Zhiyu Shi) persuades Mariuccia's mother (marvelous mezzo-soprano Erin Reppenhagen) that the daughter needs his love, whilst La signora Guidotti mistakes Raimondo's intentions for love for herself.

In the playing out of this comedy of errors, the principals were each given a lovely aria so we could savor their vocal gifts. Acting as a one-man Greek chorus was the Narrator, bass Yi Yang whose rich voice convinced us that he was a worldly-wise observer.

Rounding out the cast were Laureano Quant as the porter and Sidhant Seth as another resident of the pensione.

Nino Rota would go on to compose film scores and had a particularly fruitful relationship with Federico Fellini.  But we doubt that his music was ever played as well as it was last night when the esteemed Maestro Giovanni Reggioli led the MSM Opera Orchestra in a lively reading of this colorful score.

Although Ms. Lopez Moreno was completely convincing as a pianist, the sound came from the beguiling offstage piano of Anna Smigelskaya.

Tracy Dorman's costumes looked just right for post-war Italy. Tyler Micoleau's lighting created a sunny Italy. Italian diction was excellent, thanks to Glenn Morton's coaching. Steven Jude Tietjen's supertitles were excellent for those who couldn't understand the very clear Italian.

Michelle Blauman and Xiaotong Cao (photo by Carol Rosegg)

Giacomo Puccini's Suor Angelica, celebrating its centennial, has been heard many times, mainly as part of an evening's production of Il Trittico, comprising Il tabarro, Suor Angelica, and Gianni Schicchi. There was something special about seeing this work up close and personal that resulted in our experiencing the work anew and being moved in ways that we had not been before.

Instead of a collection of nuns, we observed each one exhibiting a different personality behind the nearly identical ecclesiastical habits. We consider it a major triumph of director Dona D. Vaughn that we had different feelings for each one!

The eponymous Suor Angelica was portrayed by superb soprano Xiaotong Cao. She seemed on a different level from the others.  Apparently she had adjusted to the cloistered life although her admission to the convent had probably been not exactly elective. Culture at that time was not kind to girls who got pregnant out of wedlock, especially if they came from aristocratic families. Hiding the "sinners" away in convents was considered the only solution to deal with the family's shame.

This in itself seems tragic but tearing a mother away from her infant seems even more tragic. Poor Angelica has harbored secret wishes for a visit from her family but when the visit finally comes it is her aunt, La zia principessa who arrives with no love or forgiveness, just disdain and some documents through which Angelica must sign away her inheritance.

The role of the aunt was played by Michelle Bauman with rigid posture, icy demeanor and wonderful mezzo-soprano tone. We tried to figure out why she was costumed in the Italian version of Dior's post-war "New Look" with a silly hat. It was probably done to provide some chronological resonance with the first opera on the program but it served to undercut her critical authoritarian stance and gave the lie to her arrival in a coach with a family crest.  We far prefer the character wearing a long black dress and veil!

Another mezzo, Erin Reppenhagen, shone in the role of the Monitor, doling out corrective punishment to the nuns for their minor infractions. Yet another mezzo, Gabriella Chea, excelled as the Abbess.

Among the nuns, our favorite character was Suor Genovieffa, sung by the sweet voiced soprano Hannah Friesen. When she sung of her longing to hold a lamb, we were quite moved.

But the most moving moment was toward the end when Angelica rips off her wimple and collapses on the floor in tears, lamenting the death of her son. Having poisoned herself she believes herself to be damned and thereby separated eternally from the boy. We confess to a bit of water in the eyes.

We enjoyed the two Lay Sisters played by Michelle Capano and Cambrey Willhelm. The Mistress of the Novices was sung by mezzo Mengran Jia and her charges comprised Amanda Larkin, Lauren Curet, Duqingna, and Nicole Rowe.

Xiao Xiao and Sophie Blatt portrayed the Begging Sisters who brought provisions via bicycle. Corinne DeJong was Suor Osmina and Bridget Casey was Suor Dolcina.

The set was repurposed from the first work, this time with the second story shutters tightly closed and a fountain in the center of the courtyard. Mr. Micoleau's lighting was effective but we would have loved to see the golden light which purportedly illuminates the fountain only three days a year!

This is such a great opera with so many female roles, giving opportunities to so many female singers. Each one was wonderful in her own way.

There are three more opportunities for you, dear reader, to share in this outstanding experience--tonight, Saturday night, and Sunday afternoon. The newly redecorated Neidorff-Karpati Hall has excellent acoustics and is just the right size.  Don't miss out!

(c) meche kroop

TALENTS OF THE WORLD INTERNATIONAL VOICE COMPETITION

Contestants and Judges of 2nd Annual International Voice Competition of
Talents of the World, Inc.

This was only the second annual competition run by Talents of the World, Inc. but the competition already has a reputation for fairness. Indeed, there were no voice teachers as judges, favoring their students.  Judges included President of Talents of the World David Gvinianidze, Adam Cavagnaro of IMG Artists, Metropolitan Opera star tenor Francisco Casanova,  Alexandra Naumenko of The Bolshoi Theatre, Artists Manager Matthew Laifer, and the lovely singer Olga Lisovskya of Talents of the World.

We enjoyed the informality of the competition, held at the National Opera Center. Member of the audience could hear the judges discussing which selections they wanted to hear and why they chose them. Apparently, competitors were asked to prepare a couple of arias and also a piece from the music theater or art song genre. Although we did not always agree with the judges' requests, we were mostly in agreement with their decisions about the awards.

If you want to know who won how much money, you won't find it here; perhaps Talents of the World will post it on their website or FB page. We choose to use our limited space to give our impressions of the singers who made us sit up and take notice. The overall quality was extremely high. Semi-finals had been held in both New York and Boston so we got to hear singers we had heard before and enjoyed, as well as hearing some new singers that we'd like to hear again.

We felt very involved with tenor WooYoung Yoon in the role of Tonio from Donizetti's La Fille du Regiment. We totally believed his character, equally exuberant over winning the love of Marie and over his acceptance into the regiment. There were no problems with the succession of high C's in his "Ah, mes amis!" although we hope with time they will become "easier"; we noted an improvement in his pronunciation of the French nasals. His second selection was Richard Strauss' "Heimliche Auforderung", which he imbued with clarion tone and passionate delivery.

Soprano Shaina Martinez made a superb Fiordiligi in her delivery of "Come scoglio" from Mozart's Cosi fan tutte, as firm vocally as the intention of the character she was portraying. There was dramatic clarity and a lovely centeredness throughout the register. Her tonal quality has the same kind of excitement as Mr. Young's. Furthermore, she showed considerable versatility by singing "Tu che di gel sei cinta" from Puccini's Turandot. She was persuasive and affecting enough to melt anyone's heart.  As if that were not enough, we heard a beautiful rendering of Rachmaninoff's "Zdes Khorosho" which we recognized as being "How fair this place".

Megan Moore has a lovely mezzo-soprano which she employed judiciously as Cenerentola from the Rossini opera; she delighted us with "Nacqui all'affanno...non più mesta"; she took plenty of time for the embellishments in the slow section but then in the fast section, she dazzled us with her rapidfire coloratura.  She made a splendid Komponist from Richard Strauss' Ariadne auf Naxos. She also sang Rachmaninoff's "Ya zhdu tebya" with deep feeling and dynamic variety. Although we do not speak Russian, we got the feeling of nostalgia for something lost.

Sarah Saturnino also showed impressive versatility going from the wild seductiveness of Carmen's "Seguidilla" to the wily charms of Rosina in "Una voce poco fa" from Rossini's Il barbiere di Siviglia. Her mezzo-soprano instrument delighted us with its texture.   Her appearance changed dramatically as she assumed each character, and so did her vocal coloration. We would have preferred to hear her Tchaikovsky song but the judges requested "So in Love" from Cole Porter's Kiss Me Kate, which she delivered with gorgeous vibrato.

Soprano Carolina López Moreno sang Juliette's "Dieu! Quel frisson...Amour ranime mon courage" in lovely French and followed it with Violetta's Act I aria "E strano...Sempre libera". She was persuasive both in her awe over the possibility of love and her determination to continue her life of wild abandon and pleasure.

Soprano Sarah Joyce Cooper performed the same scene with conviction and with equal attention to the two different moods. We enjoyed that as well as "Depuis le Jour" from Charpentier's Louise. 

Mezzo-soprano Elizabeth Kinder brough brightness and energy to "Nobles seigneurs, salut!" from Meyerbeer's Les Huguenots, an opera of which we cannot claim familiarity. But we very much enjoyed her stylish and waltzy performance. Equally fine was "Wie du warst", Octavian's gorgeous post-coital aria from Strauss' Der Rosenkavalier.

Soprano Laura McHugh introduced us to Adelaide's Aria "It's my Wedding" from Jonathan Dove's The Enchanted Pig, derived from Roumanian and Norwegian fairytales. We don't know how this "bridezilla" song fits into the opera but we loved Ms. McHugh's hilarious interpretation and want very much to hear it again!

Soprano Meredith Hansen exhibited a large instrument and made a good choice in "Tu puniscimi o Signore" from Verdi'sLuisa Miller.

Tenor Tianchi Zhang showed a nice ringing top and lovely pianissimo, especially in "Dein ist mein ganzes Herz" from Franz Lehár's Das Land des Lächelns.

Basso Zachary James has a powerful instrument that shows promise for Wagner. He did a great job with Claggart's nasty aria from Britten's Billy Budd. What was remarkable was his superlative English diction. Every word was clear.

Baritone Michael McAvoy did best with "Lucky to Be Me" from Bernstein's On the Town. He seemed less comfortable in French and Italian, actually a bit stiff.

We have heard tenor David Rivera Bozón before and wished that he had chosen to sing something in Spanish. His selections in English did not do justice to his talents. Singing Tony's aria "Maria" from Bernstein's West Side Story was a particularly unfortunate choice in that Tony's not being Spanish was the main problem in his love affair with the Latina Maria; hearing the song sung with a Spanish accent was just peculiar.

Baritone Chonghwa Kim's interpretation of Rodrigo's "O Carlo ascolta...Io morro" from Verdi's Don Carlo seemed a better fit for his voice than "Avant de quitter ses lieux" from Gounod's Faust.

Tenor Omar Najmi gave us one of our favorite songs, the not very seasonal "Spring Waters" by Rachmaninoff.

The judges took over an hour to deliberate and we can surely understand why.  We would absolutely hate that job!

Winners received cash prizes and opportunities to perform as well as being exposed to agents and managers.

(c) meche kroop