100% and 100 degrees

David Pershall, Maestro Alvise M. Casellati, Larisa Martinez, and Cody Austin

We will have much to say about last night's Opera Italiana in Central Park but let us begin by lauding the singers who performed with 100% commitment in sweltering 100 degree weather. No one less compelling than soprano Larisa Martinez could have pulled us out of our air-conditioned home; her prodigious talent was matched by that of tenor Cody Austin and baritone David Pershall, whose award-winning performances (Giulio Gari and George London) we wrote about in 2016. Last night he made a fine Figaro in the "Largo al Factotum".

We consider ourself to be rather good at predicting future stardom and Ms. Martinez' gifts impressed us from the first time we heard her five years ago, when we found her Barbarina overwhelmingly "winsome". A superb Musetta followed and we have been a great fan ever since. She has fame written all over her and witnessing her rising star has been a privilege.

Although we loved re-hearing Musetta's waltz last night what impressed us the most was her investment in the role of Violetta in Verdi's La Traviata. This role makes incredible demands on the soprano, not just vocally but dramatically. What makes her one of our very favorite female characters is her emotional growth.

In her duet with an appropriately lovestruck Mr. Austin ("Un di, felice") Ms. Martinez successfully portrayed the outwardly indifferent woman who secretly wants true love in her life.  In her confrontation with Germont père (Mr. Pershall), "Pure siccome un angelo", she colored her voice with dignity and restraint with flashes of anger and terror peeking through. Reunited with Alfredo at the end of the opera, (the duet "Parigi, o cara") she colored her voice with a very touching vulnerability and hopefulness.

The duets Ms. Martinez performed from Puccini's Madama Butterfly were excellent as well but were all from the romantic part of the opera and we were left wondering how she might have shown the emotional growth of Cio-Cio San. Mr. Austin's warm tenor made him the perfect romantic partner. We heard just about the entire end of Act I!  This was preceded by a duet between the upstanding consul Sharpless (Mr. Pershall) and the callow Lt. Pinkerton (Mr. Austin) who shows the audience his true colors.

There were other delights on the program. Soprano Jennifer Zetlan was joined by "vocalist" Helga Davis for an arrangement of Paola Prestini's Oceanic Verses. The shimmering texture of Ms. Prestini's orchestral writing were balm to the ear but we couldn't understand a word of Ms. Zetlan's Italian. Although the tonal quality of her voice was superb, we couldn't even tell it was Italian until we looked at the libretto. We cannot fault the sound design (uncredited) because the other singers were perfectly clear. We wonder whether the tessitura remained too long in the upper register. By contrast, Ms. Davis' smoky low tones were kind to the text, even though it was in English.

There were orchestral treasures to delight us as well. Maestro Alvise M. Casellati conducted a spirited reading of a couple of Rossini overtures that reminded us of the composer's gift for both memorable melody and rhythmic thrust. The overture from La Gazza Ladra came early in the program and had us tapping our toes.  The overture from William Tell was performed in its entirety with a profusion of themes that could only be described as "l'abbondanza". There was happily no haste to get to "The Lone Ranger" theme and we enjoyed the slower lyrical section equally, if not more.

It must be noted that the orchestra comprised seasoned players from The Metropolitan Opera Orchestra as well as gifted young musicians from our three local conservatories. From this diverse group, Maestro Casellati melded a fine unit.

The evening was produced and hosted by Dani Bedoni, sporting bejewelled butterfly sunglasses.  Her warmth and enthusiasm exceeded her familiarity with the Italian language and opera. She graciously brought to the stage Ms. Prestini and the teenaged Pauline Castro, a member of the New York Philharmonic young composers program, whose symphonic work opened the program.

The event was listed as a free event at the Naumberg Bandshell in Central Park; like so many other cultural events in the city, the benefits were heavily weighted towards the well-to-do. Only supporters got to sit in the chairs set up behind velvet ropes; we were rather impressed by their Italian style. Everyone looked as if they had just come from the salon or the spa. Men wore suits and ties. Women were groomed to a fare-thee-well. Meanwhile the paesani of NYC sat on the cement off to the side or on chairs they lugged from home. It may have been a smart move to watch the livestream from home!

The singers sang in the bandshell with the orchestra situated in front at audience level. Maestro Casellati occupied a large platform and we wished the singers had also been on the platform. If you have seen the fuzzy photos on our FB page (Voce di Meche) you will realize how far the audience was from the bandshell. Actually we were on the second row. For the finale "Libiamo", the singers moved toward us, making for a better experience. We were invited to sing along but no one did.

We just remembered that we were among those who vigorously protested the tearing down of the Naumberg Bandshell some years ago. We are so glad our efforts succeeded. What a great use it was put to last night!

(c) meche kroop

WINNERS ALL AT THE GEORGE LONDON COMPETITION

Nora London surrounded by a bunch of winners!

The George London Foundation has been generously awarding grants to young singers for 45 years now. Nora London has done a fantastic job of honoring the memory of her late husband.  Last Friday afternoon six eminent judges awarded $73,000. to the 23 finalists, culled from a field of 85 applicants.

The overall quality of the performances exceeded our expectations from prior years. We generally put a star on the program next to the name of the singers we like the best.  By the time we starred the first four singers we realized there was no point trying to second guess the judges. We are glad we were not called upon to put one performance above another.  For those readers for whom the amounts of the awards are of interest, we refer you to the press release...

http://www.wadacommunications.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Winners-Announced-for-George-London-Foundation-45th-Annual-Awards-Competition-February-19-2016.pdf 

For our part, we prefer to share with readers our own impressions without regard to the level of the award. Our bias is toward singers who relate to the text and can communicate that to the audience. Having spoken to some of the singers we believe that the singer does best if he/she loves the song.  Each singer submits a list and then is told what the judges wish to hear.

So...here goes! Soprano Jacqueline Piccolino wowed us from the first second with her thrilling sound, a garlic-scented dramatic coloratura, an unusual fach to be sure.  She performed "Bel raggio lusinghier" from Rossini's Semiramide with marvelous flexibility in the cabaletta and a true diva's command of the stage.

This year there was no shortage of big voices. One can always count on soprano Marina Costa-Jackson for a fine performance and she showed her stuff with the heart-breaking "Morrò, ma prima in grazia" from Verdi's Un ballo in maschera.

Antonina Chehovska used her wonderful soprano for the challenging "Letter Scene" from Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin. She mined every phrase for dramatic meaning and conveyed all the passionate intensity of a young woman in the throes of first love.

Lighter sopranos were also in evidence and we loved Claudia Rosenthal's "Non monsieur mon mari" from Poulenc's Les mamelles de Tiresias. It was an unusual choice but it gave full access to her vibrant personality and acting skills.

Another lovely performance in French was that of mezzo-soprano Cecelia Hall who filled "Oh! La pitoyable aventure!" from Ravel's L'heure espagnole with plenty of humor.

Soprano Kirstin MacKinnon excelled in the "Jewel Song" from Gounod's Faust and used her bright instrument effectively, bringing the aria to a stunning climax. 

Mezzo-soprano Shabnam Kalbasi performed "Nacqui all'affano...Non più mesta" from Rossini's La Cenerentola with a lot of charm and evenness throughout the wide-ranging skips and jumps.

Considering the male singers, baritone Steven LaBrie performed "Pierrot's Tanzlied" from Korngold's Die Tote Stadt with a great deal of feeling and artistry to swoon over.

Bass Colin Ramsey was simply wonderful in "The Catalog Aria" from Mozart's Don Giovanni. We haven't heard him sing since his undergraduate days at Manhattan School of Music and were thrilled to hear how his voice has developed.

Speaking of developing voices, we detected something new and exciting in the baritone of John Viscardi who filled the room with glorious sound in "Avant de quitter ces lieux" from Gounod's Faust. He sang with an enviable legato and wisely modulated the dynamic intensity in accordance with the text.

Baritone Sean Michael Plumb used his rich voice and dramatic skills in "O Carlo ascolta...Io morro" from Verdi's Don Carlo.  It was most convincing.

Baritone David Pershall sang "Starbuck's Aria" from Heggie's Moby Dick with power and eloquence, sensitive to the character's moral dilemma.

Bass-baritone Michael Sumuel sang "Blick'ich umher" from Wagner's Tannhäuser and pleased us with his breadth of tone.  The dynamic variety was well achieved and there was some lovely delicacy in the pp passages.

Baritone Jared Bybee sang "Vision Fugitive" from Massenet's Herodiade with lovely alternation between intensity and delicacy.

Craig Rutenberg was the accompanist for the singers and one could not have wished for better. We particularly enjoyed his playing of Wagner and Tchaikovsky.

We have heard the future of opera and we are not worried.  Au contraire, there are plenty of superlative artists.  All we need are the companies to employ them!

(c) meche kroop

A fine Holiday Concert yesterday, given by the Marcello Giordani Foundation (an organization whose mission is exactly the same as our own) provoked some interesting thoughts.  By what magic does a singer get onstage and sing an aria with no accompaniment other than a piano and evoke sets, lighting and all the drama surrounding the aria?  Perhaps the "magic doesn't work" if you've never seen the opera but this recital comprised the arias we all know and love so the task was made easier.  BUT, how does the singer put him/herself into the right frame of mind to achieve this magic?  We welcome hearing from you.

Baritone David Pershall, appearing with permission from the Met, created the powerfully angry character of Enrico from Luci di Lammermoor and also the calming-down character of Zurga in Les Pecheurs des Perles, in which he caressed every syllable of the French language.  Tenor Adam Bonanni took on the memory of Luciano Pavarotti in his "Una furtiva lagrima" and "Panis Angelicus".  Soprano Courtney Johnson evoked all the shy innocence of Mimi without sacrificing her big round sound and ease with the top notes and later delighted us with Gounod's arrangement of Bach's "Ave Maria".

Korngold's atmospheric "Tanzlied" from Die Tote Stadt was performed by baritone Takaoki Onishi in fine German.  His "O Carlo ascolta" impressed us with some very Italianate legato phrasing.  Soprano Joelle Harvey made a very perky Nannetta in Verdi's Falstaff and easily changed gears for "Rejoice Greatly" from Handel's Messiah.  Bass-baritone Ryan Speedo Green (also "on loan" from the Met) was a deliciously crafty Don Basilio in Rossini's "La Calunia" and did a swell job of building up dramatic and musical tension.  Later he performed Howard Swanson's "The Negro Speaks of Rivers" with poetry by Langston Hughes.

When soprano Vanessa Isiguen and tenor Marco Camerotta performed "O Soave Fanciulla" with beautifully blended voices, we had no trouble visualizing the drafty Parisian garret.  We heard Mr. Camerotta later singing Adam's "O Holy Night" in French and in English!

Soprano Suzanne Vinnick has a sizable enough voice and spirit to convey Nedda's wish for freedom in "Stridono lassu" from Leoncavallo's I Pagliacci.  Tenor Juan Jose de Leon was completely convincing as the prince in Rossini's La Cenerentola.  He has a bright voice with lots of vibrato and handled the embellishments well.  He closed the program with Ms. Vinnick singing "The Prayer" by C.B. Sager and D. Foster.  The style was rather pop-y and the languages were Italian and English.  The harmonies were delicious.  It was easy to see how the pair won the Marcello Giordani Foundation Competition.  Michael Fennelly ably accompanied all the singers.

(c) meche kroop