MONTEVERDI'S REVOLUTION

Ryan Brown, Elizabeth Field, Liv Redpath, Lea Desandre, Kristen Dubenion-Smith, Patrick Kilbride, Alex Rosen, Thomas Dunford Jean Rondeau, and Beiliang Zhu (photo by Louis Forget)

We always look forward to visits from Opera Lafayette.  One can count on them to bring stellar musicians to perform in stimulating and unusual programs-- with the added bonus of an introductory lecture.  Last night at City University of New York's Elabash Recital Hall (an excellent venue), we heard a fine lecture on Claudio Monteverdi by Columbia University professor Giuseppe Gerbino, who put into academic words something we have written about frequently.

We are referring to the union of text and music, something which very few contemporary composers seem to grasp. Each language has acoustic properties and a rhythm. In Monteverdi's case, his music imitated the content and expressiveness of Italian, which is of course an easier language to set than English! This becomes both semantic and emotional. In simple words, the language of the text is enhanced by music.

Monteverdi's music bridged the orthodox polyphony of the 16th c. Renaissance period with the up and coming Baroque period of the 17th c. He was truly a pioneer and his 1609  Orfeo can be considered the first opera. He is mostly remembered for that and for the subsequent operas Il ritorno d'Ulisse in patria and L'incoronazione di Poppea.

Perhaps someday the music for L'Ariana will be discovered in someone's ancient library but, at present, all we have left from that opera is "Lamento d'Ariana"  which was superbly sung by mezzo-soprano Lea Desandre.  Poor Ariana goes through a succession of emotions and Monteverdi's music limned every one from pleading for Teseo's return to anger to self-pity.

Another astonishing work was the scene "Il combattimento di Tancredi et Clorinda" in which the unwary Tancredi, sung by the terrific tenor Patrick Kilbride, battles his unrecognized Clorinda, sung by the superb soprano Liv Redpath. It is not until she is dying that the armor comes off and he recognizes her. If this did not move you, nothing would! The work was staged which added to the effect. Jean Rondeau's organ raised the stakes even higher.

The lovely Ms. Redpath showed her vulnerable side in "Lamento della ninfa" with three male voices (Mr. Kilbride, baritone David Newman, and bass Alex Rosen) serving as a Greek chorus commenting on her fate. The performance of Guest Musical Director Thomas Dunford on the archlute was particularly fine here, adding to the sonorities. The archlute is a magnificent instrument that looks somewhat like a theorbo but please don't ask us to explain the difference!

Ms. Redpath and Ms. Desandre created stunning harmonies in the duet "O come sei gentile caro augellino" with ear tickling birdsong. The same pair delighted with "Ohime dov'e il mio ben". Both duets came from Monteverdi's Seventh Book of Madrigals.

The pieces for tutti were similarly remarkable. A setting of Petrarch's "Hor che'l ciel" began on one tone and expressed the peace and silence of nature.  As the poet describes his warlike nature, Monteverdi's writing becomes agitated and complex.

Other participants who added so much to the musical texture were alto Kristen Dubenion-Smith, the violins of Artistic Director Ryan Brown and Elizabeth Field, violist Paul Miller, cellist Beiliang Zhu, and bassist Doug Balliett.

We left the concert with a renewed appreciation for this titan who broke the rules and brought music to a higher level. We wish more of his music had survived the centuries.

(c) meche kroop

 

WALKING ON AIR

Chris Reynolds and Kady Evanyshyn

We almost always enjoy a good lieder recital but last night's recital at Juilliard left us walking on air. This is not meant to deny the pleasures of a recital program that is of a melancholy nature. Schubert's song cycles end in tragedy but we can enjoy being touched by sorrow. That being said, a recital involving a singer who loves to sing and chooses mainly happy songs leaves us feeling lighter. We are still smiling from last night's recital at Juilliard.

Mezzo-soprano Kady Evanyshyn is as luscious of voice as she is of appearance. She possesses a most welcoming stage presence and shows no evidence of anxiety; au contraire, her addresses to the audience were so relaxed we felt as if a friend had invited us to her parlor for some music-making. She is blessed with a gorgeous instrument of notable texture and has acquired fine technique and linguistic skills. Indeed, our prior hearings of her artistry have been through Glenn Morton's Classic Lyric Arts recitals--brief exposures but enough to have made us want to hear more.

We cannot say that the opening aria was cheerful but it served to show off her superb skill with early opera. "Disprezzata regina" is Ottavia's Act I lament from Claudio Monteverdi's last opera, the 1643 L'incoronazione di Poppea, which established the composer's reputation in the field of music theater. Poor Ottavia bemoans the fate of women chained to cheating husbands. As you may recall, Nerone is enamored of Poppea and casts his wife aside. Ms. Evanyshyn's lovely vibrato emphasized her grief.

A set of Schubert songs were performed in fine German--the lighthearted "An Sylvia" is such a joyful expression of admiration for the lovely eponymous Sylvia!  His "Der Vollmond strahlt auf Bergeshohn" was written as incidental music for the play Rosamunde by Wilhelmina Christiane von Chezy. The libretto for the play has been lost and only partially reconstituted, but Schubert's music continues to delight audiences. We are pleased to tell you that things end well for the heroine, but this piece deals with separation and heartbreak; Chris Reynold's piano established the sadness with his minor key introduction whilst Ms. Evanyshyn's dynamic control served her well.

After the troubled text of "Die Liebe hat gelogen", we heard the impulsive "Rastlose Liebe", given a breathless feeling tone but executed with excellent breath control.  Quite a feat!

The highlight of the evening was, for us, Modest Mussorgsky's nursery songs.  We haven't heard them since Mary-Elizabeth O'Neill performed them at Juilliard two years ago. We loved them then and we loved them last night. They gave Ms. Evanyshyn plenty of opportunity to exercise her dramatic muscle and to use her bubbly personality.

With admirable vocal coloration, she sounded very much like a little boy, sometimes naughty and sometimes trying to please his nanny. This little boy is entranced by scary stories but ultimately prefers the funny ones. She also created the character of the nanny who loves her little charge but can get cranky and scold him. Oh, did that little boy sound aggrieved when punished for the cat's misbehavior!

When he says his bedtime prayers, he seems to have countless aunties and uncles that he rattles off to our great delight.  And when he falls off his hobby-horse, the soothing words of his mother were given an entirely different coloration.  Oh, how we long to hear Ms. Evanyshyn sing the entire cycle, of which we heard more than half.

Gabriel Faure's final song cycle L'horizon chimerique comprises four delicate songs that were given a light touch and sung with fine French style. They certainly showed off some diligent work at CLA's summer program in France. For this cycle, Arthur Williford took over from Chris Reynolds as collaborative pianist.

The final set comprised cabaret songs by William Bolcom, settings of pithy texts by Arnold Weinstein.  In "Over the Piano", the voice has been given a melodic line but the piano has been given some abrasive harmonies. "George" is the tale of a cross-dressing opera singer who comes to a sad end, and "Amor" is that wonderfully tuneful and catchy creation that is usually given as an encore piece, one of which we never tire.

The encore piece was a tune the artist's parents played for her when she was a child. It was a cute and silly song with an uncredited composer and was dedicated to her parents who were in the audience. We stand in awe of an artist with the versatility to do credit to opera, lieder, and cabaret.

We looked back over the program and realized that the material was not what was creating our feeling of joy. It was the artist's joy in singing it that was so contagious. We are amazed to find such talent in an undergraduate! The best news we heard all day was that she will continue at Juilliard in the Masters of Music program so we will have the opportunity to hear her again.  Well done Kady!

(c) meche kroop

VIRGINIE ON MY MIND

Thomas Muraco and Virginie Verrez

The Art Song Preservation Society of New York (ASPS) is dedicated to promoting the art song repertoire and those who sing it.  Opportunities for artistic development, education and performance are offered, as well as an annual competition and winner's recital in honor of Mary Trueman.  This year's winner is the dazzling mezzo-soprano Virginie Verrez who yesterday presented a most impressive recital with famed conductor, coach and collaborative pianist Thomas Muraco.

At the moment you are reading this it is likely that Ms. Verrez is onstage at The Metropolitan Opera as a finalist in the Met National Council Awards.  As we told her, it seemed gratuitous to wish her good luck because she can make it on artistry alone. Every time we hear her sing we are enthralled.

Mr. Muraco is also well known to us as a brilliant conductor but this is the first time we have heard and experienced his artistry at the piano and it is just as remarkable. The two artists appeared to breathe together throughout the afternoon with the voice seeming to float just above the piano line.

The program opened with Ottavia's fiery aria from Monteverdi's L'Incoronazione di Poppea in which the queen lets loose her anger at men (particularly her unfaithful husband Nerone) and her bitter anguish over the victimhood of women. Her delivery was riveting.  At a certain level of artistry we lose awareness of the technique (the tone, the phrasing, the diction); we become lost in the poetry and the way the music enhances and amplifies it.

We always enjoy Brahms' Zigeunerlieder, Op. 103 for its tunefulness, its variety of moods, and its romantic vision of gypsy life.  Our favorite of the cycle was the sweet and flirtatious "Wisst ihr, wann mein Kindchen am aller schönsten ist?"  Our pair of artists made the most of this work and extracted every ounce of color.

It was a special treat to hear chanson performed by a native French speaker.  We enjoyed the early 20th c. Banalités of Poulenc more than ever before, especially the languorous "Hôtel" and the frisky "Voyage à Paris". The mysterious piano prelude to "Sanglots" was particularly lovely.

Two gems by master songsmith Henri Duparc were performed.  "L'Invitation au voyage" was exactly what the text indicated--calm, luxurious and beautiful.

We have always enjoyed Joseph Canteloube's Songs of the Auvergne but this was our first exposure to the cycle Chants de France. The work has the charm of folksong but, as by the pen of Brahms, was given greater import by the intricacy of the piano writing.  We loved the tuneful "Auprès de ma blonde" and cannot get it out of our head.  The moving "Où irai-je me plaindre?" was heartbreaking.  Was it the way Canteloube wrote it or the way Maestro Muraco played it when we actually heard the rossignol singing?

The surprise of the afternoon was the cycle Paper Wings, composed by Jake Heggie to texts by....none other than Frederica von Stade!  Who knew!  "Mitten Smitten" was delightfully whimsical and "A Route to the Sky" given a bluesy mood.  We do not often favor contemporary song in English but the performance created the appreciation.

As if we were not sufficiently enchanted, we got an encore--Poulenc's "Les chemins de l'amour" with text by Jean Anouilh, written for Yvonne Printemps.  It sounded as if it had been written for Ms. Verrez!

We refer you to www.artsongpreservationsocietyny.org for information on their future recitals and upcoming master classes, of which there are many.  We like their motto..."Where music speaks and words sing". We couldn't agree more!

(c) meche kroop

NAVIDAD ESPAÑOL

BRUNO PEÑA, AMAYA ARBERAS, ALBERT CARBONELL AND CORO CASA GALICIA

We spent a most satisfying evening yesterday at Casa Galicia in Astoria, Queens. Not only were we royally entertained and well fed but we managed to learn something new about Spain.  Galicia is in the northwest corner of the country, bordering Portugal, and retains its own identity.  Half of the inhabitants speak Galician which is close to Portuguese.  Casa Galicia is a home away from home for Galician folk in New York and provides a center for cultural identity, maintaining a music school for the youth.

Two stars of the musical firmament provided the excellent entertainment.  The excellent soprano Amaya Arberas opened the program with selections from Händel's Nine German Arias, HWV 202-210.  This work is said to be the inspiration for Haydn's Die Schöpfung, inasmuch as the text refers to the creation of the universe. We particularly enjoyed the aria about the creation of flowers and the one about the rolling of the waves. There were multiple melismatic passages of great beauty.

Ms. Arberas, whose Spanish singing we have reviewed several times, showed her facility in German; following this group of songs she sang in Italian--a lovely aria by Claudio Monteverdi "Quel sguardo sdegnosetto", offering the opportunity to show off her ease with fioritura. Accompaniment by Albert Carbonell was by electronic keyboard since a harpsichord was nowhere to be seen or heard.  It sufficed.

Bruno Peña was onstage to contribute some gorgeous pieces for violin.  He performed "Meditación" from Jules Massenet's Thaïs with great sensitivity and Pablo Sarasate's "Playera" with suitable Spanish passion.  Many phrases concluded with the rhythmic "fa-mi-do" we love so well, often heard in flamenco guitar.

Although our taste favors the Classical, we confess to enjoying the second half of the program in which our versatile Ms. Arberas gave the jazziest rendition of James Lord Pierpont's "Jingle Bells" we have ever heard, overcoming our fatigue with Christmas music.  The chorus of Casa Galicia entertained with a program of Christmas carols from many lands, sung mostly in Spanish.  The audience favorite was clearly José Feliciano's "Feliz Navidad"  the melody of which has been running through our head all night, as good melodies tend to do.

What a privilege to spend an evening exploring another culture!  If we were a food critic we would go on and on about the generous meal that followed but we will close here and wish our readers a very Happy Holiday season.  There will most likely be a break in reviewing until the new year.  We have enjoyed sharing our opinions with you during 2014 and look forward to the many fine musical events coming up in 2015.

ⓒ meche kroop

 

PERPETUAL MOTION

Sarah Pillow, Mary Anne Ballard, Ronn McFarlane

In a season with all hits and no misses, Salon Sanctuary Concerts has presented another stimulating evening that was both entertaining and educational.  In her choice of the library of the Fabbri mansion off Fifth Avenue, Founder and Artistic Director Jessica Gould wisely set the stage for immersion in the world of Renaissance Italy.  The library dates back to that era and was dismantled and shipped to New York in 1915 and reassembled in that very same room.

The theme of the concert was the interface between science and art--more particularly between astronomy and music, all within an historical context.  Narrator Dava Sobel, best known as a journalist and author, spoke about Galileo Galilei, his father and his daughters particularly in connection with the cosmology of that epoch.

Accompanied by Mary Anne Ballard on the viola da gamba and Ronn McFarlane on lute, soprano Sarah Pillow sang some gorgeous songs by Francesco Cavalli, , Barbara Strozzi, Bartolomeo Tromboncino, Giulio Caccini, Lucrezia Orsina Vizzana, Henry Purcell and our favorite Claudio Monteverdi whose Lamento d'Arianna was heartbreakingly beautiful.  Readers who are singers will readily recognize the composers whose works appear in many anthologies.  Ms. Pillow sang with vibrancy and an enviable variety of color, tempo and dynamics, making each song touching to the heart.

Instrumental music allowed the two string players to shine with the six-string viola da gamba (cousin to the cello) taking the bass line and the fascinating lute playing the melody.  Merely reciting the names of the composers would make one feel like a bard.

Video artist Marc Wagnon provided the projections from space, some taken from the Hubble Heritage Project, some from NASA.  Indeed the program opened with a film of an astronaut on the moon testing Newton's theory of the speed of falling objects.  And the evening ended out on the street with audience members invited to look into a telescope at Jupiter which performed right on cue, including several of its moons!

We left feeling entertained, enlightened and educated.  Not to mention eager for more programs of such quality.  We enjoyed the celestial harmonies spoken of by Plato and we heard the music of the spheres.

© meche kroop

WHEN IN ROME

Maestro Parodi and cast of L'incoronazione di Poppea

In the prologue to Monteverdi's final work, the prim Virtue (Leeanne Kaufman) and the slatternly Fortuna (Jessica Adkins) argue about which one is the stronger in affecting human behavior.  But it is Amore (Rebecca Wood) who laughs last, although Cupid seems to be more supportive of lust than love. Giovanni Francesco Busenello's libretto has taken literary liberties with history.

The dissolute emperor Nerone (Rahim Mandal) wants to rid himself of his wife Ottavia (Abigail Shapiro) so he can marry the sexy Poppea (Margaret Newcomb).  Ottone (Isaac Assor) the rejected suitor of Poppea is enlisted by Ottavia to murder her, disguising himself in the clothes of his servant Drusilla (Teresa Castillo) who would do anything to gain his love, including taking the rap for him.  Since great liberties were taken with history, Nerone's character has been softened and he graciously allows the perpetrators and his cast-off wife to live in exile.  Are we having fun yet?  Oh, yes, we certainly are!

Premiered in Venice in 1643, the work is relevant today even without contemporary attire; we are still plagued by cheating rulers and ambitious mistresses.  In fact, this opera represents a major moral departure from the standard of wrong-doers being punished. How refreshing!  How cynical!

Isabel Milenski has directed the students of the Manhattan Summer Voice Festival at Manhattan School of Music with a sure hand, keeping the action moving and the arias motivated.  It is difficult to believe that the singers are students; each and every role was beautifully sung and convincingly acted.  Comic relief was provided mostly by Drusilla and the fanciful costumes of the gods.  Amore had red feathered wings, Pallade had helmet and breastplate, Virtue looked like a 1950's church-goer and Fortuna, swilling from a bottle, was decked out in sequins.  Poppea's nurse Arnalta (Jillian Wiley) had fun toward the end when she lords her newly exalted position over the other servant Nuttrice (Ms. Kaufman)--Ottavia's nurse.  Elizabeth Barrett Groth was Costume Designer.

Musical values were splendid in every respect as Maestro Jorge Parodi conducted the Dorian Baroque Orchestra.  Our fascination with the theorbo continues and Kevin Payne's duet with cellist Margalit Cantor just about knocked our socks off.  There is much scholarly argument about whether Monteverdi wrote the entire opera or whether he had ample assistance from students and younger colleagues.  In any event, the music is gorgeously melodic and the young singers did it justice as did the musicians.  Duets were especially lovely as voices blended in perfect harmony.  We particularly enjoyed the love duets between Poppea and Nerone, and the duet between Nerone and the poet Lucano (John Ford) taking place at the baths.  Let it be said that the towels did not slip and there was no wardrobe malfunction Sunday night.  We make no promises for future performances Tuesday and next weekend!

As a stand alone aria, one could not ask for a better one than Ottavia's lament in Act I, describing the plight of women.  We long to hear it again.  In the relatively small role of a soldier (here an FBI-type bodyguard) Michael Papincak evinced an instrument of distinction.  We yearn to hear more of him.

The set design by Jian Jung was simple but effective--no more than a few architectural elements that served as bed, bath, table, whatever--and some columns.  Nothing distracted from the superb music and singing.

The Manhattan Summer Voice Festival seems to have attracted some highly talented young performers and molded them into a splendid ensemble in a few short weeks.  Bravi tutti!

© meche kroop

THE SACRED AND THE SECULAR

  It seems clear that angelic voices come not only from Leipzig, as reviewed recently, but also from right here in New York City.  Soloists from the Clarion Music Society were presented by the 5 Boroughs Music Festival (5BMF) in a concert of late 16th century music featuring works by Salamone Rossi and Claudio Monteverdi.  Jesse Blumberg, Artistic Director of 5BMF, lent his fine baritone to the ensemble, while Steven Fox, Artistic Director of the Clarion Music Society and Cantor Joshua Breitzer provided not only strength in the tenor section but educational insights as well.

The Hebrew liturgical music we heard was among the very first polyphonic settings and were performed a capella as they had been heard in synagogues at that time.  Early 17th c. pieces by Monteverdi were performed in Latin as they might have been heard in the court of Mantua.

The second half of the program comprised mostly secular songs in an early Italian that seemed quite understandable.  We particularly enjoyed Monteverdi's "Lamento della Ninfa" in which soprano Sherezade Panthaki bemoaned the loss of her lover while tenors Steven Fox and Daniel Pincus joined Mr. Blumberg in an ensemble which related the story somewhat as a Greek chorus might.  We also loved soprano Molly Quinn's deeply felt performance of "Tirsi Mio" by Rossi; one cannot help noting the strong presence of abandoned women in the secular songs of the period!  (Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose.)

These songs were accompanied by harpsichordist Bradley Brookshire who also played a dazzling solo--Bernardo Storace's "Ciaconna" which included some rather frisky scale passages and trills.  David Walker performed a solo on the theorbo, a member of the lute family invented in 1580 to accompany singers.  Composed by Bellerofonte Castaldi, it was entitled "Lusinghevole passeggio".  We enjoyed learning a little about this amazing instrument that covers so many octaves and has a neck as long as a giraffe. Carlo Gesualdo's madrigal "Moro, lasso, al mio duolo" was performed with both theorbo and harpsichord.  The harmonies and key changes were strange, modern and arresting.

The lengthy closing number, Rossi's "Eftach na sefatai" was notable for the stereophonic effect of having two antiphonal choirs separated by the length of the chapel.  At this point, we must comment on the setting for this lovely concert.  We felt as if we were in a Renaissance palazzo but we were in a rustic chapel of Brooklyn's Congregation Beth Elohim which, as we learned, was completed just before the stock market crash of 1929.  The floor is composed of variegated stones of grey, green and terra cotta hue.  Wrought iron candelabras abound and the roughly plastered walls are of ochre.  The carved wooden ceiling is actually faux but the painted plaster could have fooled us.  It was the perfect setting for some fine music.  The concert delighted the eye as well as the ear.

5BMF never lets us down!  Unusual programs are brought to the outlying boroughs of New York and ticket prices are eminently affordable.  Watch out for concerts in January in both The Bronx and Brooklyn.

(c) meche kroop