CLASSIC LYRIC ARTS GALA-2018 EDITION

Classic Lyric Arts students in recital at the Kosciuszko Foundation

We have often written about the contributions made by Classic Lyric Arts to the field of opera. With summer programs in both Italy and in France, CLA offers total immersion programs for emerging artists--young singers who will eventually fill the stages of opera houses around the world. Vocal repertoire is taught through the prism of language, history, and culture--including food! We often recognize former students onstage around town; their linguistic and diction skills are always impressive.

Last night was CLA's 10th gala, heavily attended by supporters who enjoyed a lavish cocktail hour, followed by a thrilling recital, and ending with a dessert buffet at which an abbondanza of macarons were almost inhaled. It was notable that the glamorous servers were the young artists themselves!

President and Artistic Director Glenn Morton welcomed the crowd to the stunning upstairs salon of the Kosciuszko Foundation, speaking to us of the special impact of the human voice and describing the value of taking young singers to the source of the music they will sing, providing a means to become part of the culture and its history for a period of several weeks.

Two alumni of the program in Italy shared their experiences with CLA and how it has affected their lives and professional development. The work at CLA is very intimate and students often maintain relationships with their coaches after the program ends. Tenor Ganson Salmon attended the program in 2017 and baritone Xiaomeng Zhang (who sang so beautifully the prior night as an Opera Index winner) attended in 2014.  Being a fan of both these young artists, we can attest to the benefits they derived from their time in Italy. 

Of course, dear reader, you want to know about the singers and the program last night. The main point we'd like to make is how well every singer utilized the text in their delivery. Everyone sounded natural and authentic. There was no linguistic clumsiness to distract from the music making. It was evident from the several ensemble works on the program how well the singers were able to connect with one another.

The program began with the "Gloria tutti" scene which closes Mozart's delightful Nozze di Figaro and ended with the closing scene "Make our garden grow" from Bernstein's Candide. It seemed to us that the hard work in foreign languages had benefited the students in their English diction as well, since we understood every word. That is not to be taken for granted! Jonathan Heaney conducted the Bernstein from the piano.

A couple performances stood out for us and merit our focus. Baritone Fernando Cisneros, already quite well known on the international opera stage, made the most frightening Baron Scarpia we have ever heard. He created a character that was coming from a position of power more than lust. His vocal colors were chilling and his face actually snarled!  All this occurred in perfect Italian with a long legato line and no loss of vocal tone. Puccini would have loved it.

We might add that his interpretation of Count Almaviva down on his knees in apology to the Countess was humble and sincere with appropriate vocal coloration.  He is indeed versatile!

Mr. Zhang revealed his bel canto artistry as Belcore in "Venti scudi" a scene from Donizetti's L'elisir d'amore in which he manipulates the gullible and desperate Nemorino (the aforementioned Mr. Ganson) into signing up for the army. The two men worked well in bringing the scene to life. We think of this role as Mr. Zhang's "signature role" since we've seen him perform the entire opera with ARE Opera (now called City Lyric Opera) and recall thinking he was the best Belcore we'd ever heard.

We heard some very fine singing from tenor Zachary Goldman and baritone Sunyeop Hwang in everyone's favorite French duet for two men--"Au fond du temple saint" from Bizet's Les pêcheurs de perles. The Gallic phrasing and pronunciation were just right and the harmonies delightful.

Another delight was the duet from Mascagni's L'amico Fritz in which Fritz first meets Suzel. Stephanie Guasch's soprano soared and Taicheng Li's tender tenor matched well with her both vocally and dramatically.

We also enjoyed "Soave sia il vento" from Mozart's Cosi fan tutte in which the two sisters Fiordiligi and Dorabella (Sarah Bacani and Rosario Hernandez) watch their lovers sail away, joined by Don Alfonso (Ari Bell). Mozart's lovely line was filled out with equally lovely harmonies.

Also on the program were two ensembles. One was the septet from the Giulietta act of Offenbach's Les contes d'Hoffman. The other was the "Gran pezzo concertato" from Rossini's Il Viaggio a Reims, conducted by Lochlan Brown who is also responsible for CLA's new website--www.classiclyricarts.org.  We urge you to take a look and see how you too can become part of the CLA family.

Pianists for the evening were all excellent--Mina Kim, Lochlan Brown, Marianna Vartikyan, Jonathan Heaney, and Cherie Roe.

Other singers and members of the chorus included Chantal Brundage, Aleea Powell, Melanie Dubil, Leah Israel, Travis Benoit, Yongjae Lee, Blair Cagney, Daniela Magura, Rachel Querreveld, Victoria Policht, Emily Hanseul Park, Shan Hai, Yue Huang, Bela Albett, and Nathan Seldin.

(c) meche kroop

COURTESANS AND THE MEN WHO LOVE THEM

Jonathan Tetelman, Emily Birsan, and Ethan Simpson

We can think of no opera we like better than La Traviata, nor can we think of a heroine who touches our heart as deeply as Violetta does.  Readers, you are about to hear an extravagant encomium. We have seen dozens of performances of Giuseppe Verdi's masterpiece and have never seen one so perfectly cast as the one we saw last night at Merkin Hall.

Who but Daniel Cardona of Martha Cardona Opera takes the time and does the hard work to discover young artists with big impressive voices and fine technique--and to give them a New York stage on which to show their stuff. Production values in this semi-staged production may have been at a minimum but the casting was first rate.

As the tragic heroine Violetta, soprano Emily Birsan used her generous instrument with emotional accuracy by means of vocal coloration and consummate skill in the fioritura, which never seemed gratuitous but always connected with the feelings of Piave's text.

We love Violetta for her dignity and emotional freedom and we love witnessing her characterological growth from the wild spirit of Act I to the desperate frail creature she becomes by the end. We watch and hear her deal with ambivalence in Act I; what independent woman has not felt such ambivalence about accepting love into her life with all its concomitant risks! Ms. Birsan captured it all in a way that no one could fail to grasp.

Just watching her blossom in Act II, only to have her butterfly wings pulled off by the self-righteous father Giorgio Germont, who manipulates her into leaving his love-besotted son by playing the religion card. Stunned by the magnificent performance of baritone Ethan Simpson, we observed this stiff-necked provincial soften when faced with Violetta's dignity and devotion.

In Act III one could observe the outcome of her enormous sacrifice. Love is the best medicine but loss of love is totally toxic. Her frailty and thin thread of hope kept the audience riveted until she collapsed into Alfredo's arms.

And what an Alfredo we had last night!  Tenor Jonathan Tetelman is a star on the rise and if you were there last night, you got to say you "heard him when". Finding a tall handsome tenor with terrific tone is almost impossible, but one with superb technique is beyond belief. We heard marvelous phrasing, lovely legato, superb command of dynamics, and a variety of vocal colors. Significantly, he doesn't push his voice but floats the tone confidently.

Alfredo also grows as a character. He begins as a love-sick pup in Act I and blossoms into a loving man in Act II. His apparent rejection by Violetta creates grief and then anger. The sympathy of his father in Act II becomes disdain and shame in Act III when Alfredo behaves badly toward Violetta.  Only in Act IV is there resolution, when all three principals can share their grief.

What a pleasure to see three young artists interact so believably! It was impressive to watch the young Mr. Simpson convince us that he was a middle-aged father by the manner in which he moved his body and the authoritative tone in his voice! This is surely a baritone to watch! Both his arias in Act II were outstanding.

Another dramatic "deception" was seeing the beautiful young soprano Maria Brea transform herself into the elderly and exceedingly dowdy Annina. Although she had but a few lines, they were well sung.

As the unpleasant Barone Douphol, we had the excellent baritone Eric Lindsey whom we always enjoy.  He and Mr. Tetelman created the requisite tension in Act III without benefit of a gambling table. Tenor Ganson Salmon was effective as Gastone, Alfredo's friend. Mezzo-soprano Stephanie Sanchez made a fine Flora with bass Neil Eddinger as her Marchese.

In a semi-staged production like this, the acting took place in a narrow space in front of the orchestra with only a couple pieces of furniture. It is testament to the vocal and dramatic skills of the principals that we were able to focus on them and to create scenery for them in our mind's eye.

Maestro Gregory Ortega is a conductor of precision; he evoked an excellent performance from the Martha Cardona Opera Orchestra. We could not have asked for better musical values. We might have asked for better titles, but if the only quibble we have is with a recalcitrant projector, that should tell you how much we enjoyed this production.

The highly regarded Jestin Pieper served as backstage conductor (Mr. Tetelman's offstage singing at the end of Act I sounded great as did the Carnival crowd in Act IV) and master of the excellent chorus who portrayed party-goers.

Watch out for these rising stars!  May they fill the operatic firmament with their glitter.

(c) meche kroop

MANNES CELEBRATES INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY

I-Yun Tsai, Wenting Yu, Wen Guan Li, Zhihong Li, Jingci Liu, Pavlina Dokovska, and Ganson Salmon

Only in New York can one hear a highly professional concert and find out that the artists are students. The quality of the performances were uniformly splendid in last night's recital at the Consulate General of the Federal Republic of Germany.

Last month we reviewed the graduation recital of tenor Ganson Salmon, the highlight of which was his performance of Robert Schumann's Dichterliebe, composed during the period when Robert's longing for Clara was at its peak. Last night's repeat performance was in honor of Clara, who was not only her husband's muse, but, as related by Pavlina Dokovska, created her own musical career after rebelling against her strict family and the extant cultural norms.

For details about Mr. Salmon's artistry with this song cycle, we refer readers to our recent review, http://www.vocedimeche.reviews/search?q=ganson+salmon. We will only say that Mr. Salmon, Heinrich Heine, and Robert Schumann seem even more united than before as Mr. Salmon has settled into the work; he held us spellbound with his mastery. The connection between him and his superb collaborative pianist Brianna Han has intensified.

The program included selections from Kurze Waltzer for four hands by Wolfgang Rihm. The thrill of hearing contemporary music that we actually enjoyed was quite overwhelming. The music is charming, accessible, listenable, and even danceable. 

The four fortunate hands that brought us such joy belonged to Wenting Yu and the very beautiful Jingci Liu who were totally in tune with one another.

There was sufficient differences among the brief waltzes that our attention was held throughout. There was great variety of melodic intent, mood, tempi and dynamics.  Now if we could only get Mr. Rihm to write an opera! He has written dozens of lieder and we mean to track them down.

The final work on the program was Johannes Brahms' rousing Piano Quartet in C minor, op.60. It opened with a muscular Allegro non troppo which was followed by the Scherzo in a somewhat unusual position. The third movement, Andante, opened with a lyrical theme in the cello, played by Zhihong Li, making it our favorite part.  The Finale featured the violin of I-Yun Tsai and the piano of Wenting Yu. And we all know that the viola fills in all the gaps. Wen Guan Li played it well.

Mannes can be very proud of their students, all on their way to superstardom.

(c) meche kroop

GANSON SALMON MASTER'S RECITAL

Brianna Han and Ganson Salmon

Getting a Masters in Music degree from The New School Mannes is a big deal, big enough to draw a highly enthusiastic crowd of fellow students and big enough to bring to New York Mr. Salmon's beautiful Nana--all the way from Indiana! Of course, master teacher Arthur Levy was also in attendance, with everyone bursting with pride. We personally take great pleasure in witnessing the culmination of years of vocal study and the threshold of a professional career.

Mr. Salmon chose an ambitious program, one that showed off his storytelling skills. We long ago lost track of the number of times we have heard Robert Schumann's intense song cycle Dichterliebe, but we always hope to find something new in the songs, rich as they are.

The cycle traces the arc of a love affair gone sour and requires the singer to evoke a wide spectrum of moods and emotions. It is such a general human phenomenon that it is easy to relate to, given a singer who is not afraid of his emotions.  Just such a singer is Mr. Salmon. Accompanied by the superb collaborative pianist Brianna Han, every emotion was explored. Mr. Salmon did not appear to be acting but rather seemed to inhabit the songs from within.

The opening lied "Im wunderschönen Monat Mai" was sung with tender expressivity, achieved by dynamic variety.  In "Aus meinen Tränen spriessen" Mr. Salmon appeared to enjoy the taste of the text, poetry by Heinrich Heine. We loved the coloration on the word "nachtigall". The enthusiastic "Die Rose, die Lilie, die Taube, die Sonne" was filled with energy and excitement, and the singer seemed particularly involved in "Wenn ich in deine Augen seh".

Ms. Han had her chance to shine in the rippling accompaniment Schumann wrote for "Ich will meine Seele tauchen" and the ponderous chords of "Im Rhein, im heiligen Strome".  We always love "Ich grolle nicht" for its bitter irony, well captured by the two artists, the mood recaptured in "Das ist ein Flöten und Geigen" with it's energetic hurdy-gurdy music in the piano.

"Allnächtlich im Traume" was sung with astute recreation of the wonderment of the dream state in which the dreamer fulfills his wishes. In the end he wants to bury his sorrow and his lost love in a coffin and give them a burial at sea.  What a heartbreaker!

The second most impressive part of the recital was the final entry in which Mr. Salmon performed "The Stage", a poem he wrote in college about the particular thrills and chills of expression on the stage, set to music by his lady love Tatev Yeghiazaryan who commanded the piano. We do not know if this was a premiere of the work but we were touched by the sincerity.

According to the composer, she was inspired by Mr. Salmon's words to create a melody and then the harmonies. To our ears, the melodies evoked Armenian folk music in their flexible alternation of modes; the harmonies were original and quite lovely.

Also on the program was the cycle Tre Sonnetti di Petrarca performed with Ms. Han at the piano. She has very soft hands and produced some gorgeous arpeggi in "Pace non trovo" and a marvelous piano interlude in "I vidi in terra".  Mr. Salmon's voice has the loveliest overtones in the middle of the register.

We haven't much to say about Samuel Barber's Knoxville: Summer of 1915, except that 19th c. Germany and Italy felt much more relevant than James Agee's text about 20th c. Kentucky! The text is descriptive and seemed not to inspire a very interesting vocal line. Mr. Salmon brought out the loathed music stand which he seemed not to need!

There are some interesting operatic roles in Mr. Salmon's future and one just passed that we hated to miss--The Fall of the House of Usher. We are sure there will be much to look forward to from this fine young artist.

(c) meche kroop