LONDON'S LOVELY LADIES

Ken Noda, Julie Adams, and Emily D'Angelo

After two weeks of operas about women being suppressed and abused it came as quite a relief to enjoy a George London Foundation recital in which two women made a strong showing of artistry and presence. Soprano Julie Adams and mezzo-soprano Emily D'Angelo have no qualms about showing both beauty and strength. We couldn't have imagined a better recital, well worth the soaking we got from yet another rainy day.

The big surprise was how Ms. D'Angelo's artistry surpassed our inherent dislike of American 20th c. songs. We have suffered through Copland's settings of Emily Dickinson's poetry on a few occasions and we were not expecting to be so drawn in. But, there it is! True artistry can bring out hidden qualities in anything. (We are thinking of how Moroccan Cauliflower Soup changed our mind about that previously detested vegetable.)

We felt as if this gifted young singer were composing the poetry as she sang it but actually, she was "merely" channeling Ms. Dickinson. Words on a page became experienced reality. "Heart we will forget him" was particularly affecting. She is a true story-teller!

She performed two works about eerie myths in a single set. In "The Seal Man" by 20th c. composer Rebecca Clarke, she related the story of a woman so madly in love that she follows her beloved into the sea and drowns-- quite a metaphor! We preferred Clara Schumann's telling of the tale of "Die Lorelie", probably because we prefer German lieder of the 19th c. better than 20th c. songs in English. The former rhymes and scans; the latter is prosy.

Ms. D'Angelo's instrument has a wonderful texture and her artistry has earned awards and recognition including a 2018 George London award. All the ingredients for success are there; it is gratifying to read about the many roles for which she has been chosen.

It take courage to include Schoenberg and Berg on a recital program. The vocal lines are strange to the ear and the text even stranger. And yet she made sense of them with her precise German and apt phrasing.

Nonetheless, our favorite among Ms. D'Angelo's selections was "Sein wir wieder gut" from Strauss' comedy Ariadne auf Naxos. She captured all the enthusiasm of a young composer who recognizes the reconciliation required of this most sacred art.

Ms. Adams is likewise the recipient of many awards including a 2015 George London award; she too has earned recognition for her powerful dramatic soprano which lent itself so well to "Elsa's Dream" from Wagner's Lohengrin. She sang with ardent passion and ringing tone, bringing out the yearning in Elsa's character. We loved it!

Lovers of Strauss (and we count ourself in that group) could not help but thrill to her performance of two songs--"Morgen" and "Beim Schlafengehen". Both songs are of a peaceful nature, the first one a shared peacefulness, and the second one a solitary peace. In "Morgen" we realized we were holding our breath! At the word "stumm", her coloration and diction took us into a new place. The violin accompaniment by David Chan echoed the vocal line to great effect.

And look how she interpreted a pair of songs by Rachmaninoff! We generally expect "Ne poy, Krasavitsa" to be sung by a man so it was an interesting choice. It is so filled with Russian soul that we could feel the pain in our heart. We love the way the piano echoes the Oriental mode of the vocal line and vice versa. In "Son" we enjoyed the dreamlike rippling in the piano. This seems like a good place to tell how much we appreciate Ken Noda's playing, about which we will have more to say further along.

Grieg too wrote about a dream. In "Ein Traum" the dreamer's dream becomes reality and what passion we heard in Ms. Adams' coloration! This set of songs included some low lying passages but this did not daunt our singer, not even in the regret filled "Zur Rosenzeit".

We were thinking how perfect the recital would have been had there been a duet. Lo and behold, these two lovely ladies provided an encore that was the perfect cherry on the sundae--"Belle nuit" from Offenbach's Contes d'Hoffman. We had just heard it Friday night but would be happy to hear it again tomorrow. The harmony of the two contrasting voices was delicious and it didn't hurt that these two ladies looked the parts they played. There was shapely Ms. Adams with flowing blond locks, very believable as an enchanting courtesan; and next to her the stately Ms. D'Angelo with her short hair and androgynous attire, looking like a young student.

We could end here on a high note, so to speak, but we would be remiss not to say more about the superb violinist Mr. Chan who opened the program playing the "Allegro vivo" from Debussy's Sonata in G minor. We know very little about violin technique but we know artistry when we hear it and noticed how similar the violin is to the human voice in terms of dynamics and phrasing. Both Mr. Chan and Mr. Noda began with a delicate touch that quickly swelled into passion. Mr. Noda's piano produced purling figures to accompany and support the wordless voice of the violin.

The two instrumentalists were even more impressive in the "Méditation" from Massenet's Thaïs in which the violin sang its secrets supported by some gorgeous arpeggi in the piano. We love the way tenderness gave way to passion.

What an exceptional concert! We love the fact that the George London Foundation supports these young singers at the early stage of their careers and then invites them back a few years later so we can assess their growth. We love witnessing promise becoming perfection!

(c) meche kroop

VOTING WITH OUR APPLAUSE

Warren Jones, Amy Owens, and Anthony Dean Griffey at George London Foundation Recital

We first heard the adorable coloratura soprano Amy Owens five years ago when she was an Apprentice at the Santa Fe Opera. She sang Zerbinetta's aria from Richard Strauss' Ariadne auf Naxos and dazzled us with her high flying voice and presentation. Since then we have heard her at the George London Competition, with Steve Blier's New York Festival of Song, with New Amsteram Opera, and with On Site Opera. She excels at everything she does but we were particularly delighted to hear her reprise the role of Zerbinetta yesterday onstage at the Morgan Library. She absolutely owns that role! We wanted to hear it again right on the spot. 

Audiences let the artists know what they like best with their applause and we must say that the rest of the audience was as impressed as we were with her stage presence, acting, phrasing, and artistic use of her natural gift--a bright and clear instrument that is as flexible as it is sonorous.

The applause was not nearly as generous for Donald Waxman's Lovesongs for Soprano, Violin, and Piano. Ms. Owens used the detestable music stand, although she barely glanced at it. Perhaps the lack of musicality in the vocal line made it too difficult to commit to memory.

As is the case with post-Strauss art song, we found ourself listening more to Warren Jones' customary excellence at the piano and Cindy Wu's violin weaving through the piano part. We heard Ms. Owens' voice as just another instrument, a very pleasing instrument that was especially ethereal at the upper end of the register. Perhaps that is what Mr. Waxman intended but we prefer the human voice singing a melody.

The high tessitura of Darius Milhaud's Chansons de Ronsard presented no challenge to her. We enjoyed the sound of the French language and the way she used gesture to convey the various moods. 

Although Ms. Owens enjoys a wide variety of material, we feel singers do well to select works that highlight their special gifts. If we consider audience applause as votes, the Strauss won the day.

We had similar feelings for the performance of tenor Anthony Dean Griffey. We did not have the same opportunity to watch him "grow up". He was already famous when we heard him and we always associate him with the lead role in Britten's opera Peter Grimes.

Yesterday we enjoyed him best in a group of folk songs because of their melodic vocal lines. It was the first time we heard the strophic song "The Roving Gambler" and quickly decided that was our favorite. The situation of a man winning a woman away from her family of birth is one that is not tied to any epoch or ethnic group; it is something we can all relate to, one that evokes memories or anticipations. 

What struck us about Mr. Griffey's performance is how deeply he feels whatever he sings. One gets so caught up in the mood or the story he is telling that one almost forgets to notice the exquisite nature of his instrument. No matter how much labor went into polishing a performance it always feels spontaneous. That is no small gift!

We were less enchanted by Three Songs for Tenor, Cello, and Piano by Frank Bridge. We have on occasion enjoyed Bridge's songs but there was something about the poetry that dictated a vocal line of less than customary interest. We found ourselves listening more to the melodic line of David Heiss' cello as it wove through Mr. Warren's piano tapestry. 

That being said, Mr. Griffey's terrific timbre and expressive delivery made the most of what amounted to a monotonous vocal line. 

Mr. Griffey seemed to be personally invested in "Mitch's Aria" from André Previn's opera A Streetcar Named Desire, a Tennessee Williams play which never asked for music and never needed it. He also performed "Sam's Aria" from Carlisle Floyd's Susannah with great intensity.

Aside from the thrilling Strauss, our second favorite piece on the program was "The Song That Goes Like This" from Eric Idle's Spamalot. This clever duet is a meta-observation about songwriting and singing. The phrases are short and punchy; and they rhyme. Ms. Owens and Mr. Griffey gave it their all and the audience responded in kind.

The program ended with "You are Love" from Jerome Kern's Showboat. As far as music from the 20th c., we vote for American Musical Theater over pretentious "art song".

(c) meche kroop