ON THIS ISLAND...AND OTHERS

Ho Jae Lee, Steven Blier, Benjamin Dickerson, Hannah Dishman, Jack Swanson, Christine Price

It comes as no surprise that Steven Blier (Artistic Director of New York Festival of Song, collaborative pianist, educator, coach, recording artist, etc.) graduated from Yale with Honors in English Literature. His program notes are always invaluable and highly instructive. Furthermore, they are so well written that we find ourself wanting to quote directly from them instead of finding our own words. So, dear reader, when you see a phrase in quotes, please know exactly whom we are quoting, which surely beats plagiarizing. We hope the generous Mr. Blier will feel complimented.

The theme of last night's recital was Four Islands--comprising Ireland, Cuba, Madagascar, and Manhattan. Mr. Blier finds island dwellers to be "fundamentally different from our landlocked neighbors". Having been "under attack from outside enemies (we) must learn to protect ourselves from invasion".  Just think about that when you are trying to push through the throngs of Times Square to get to the theater!

The program opened with some Irish folksongs and regular readers will recall how taken we are with folk melodies. In "Siul A Ghra", soprano Christine Price and mezzo-soprano Hannah Dishman created some exquisite harmonies a cappella, even before Mr. Blier chimed in with a spare piano accompaniment. We haven't a clue what Gaelic is supposed to sound like but to our ears it sounded authentic. 

Ms. Dishman was then joined by baritone Benjamin Dickerson for a cute romantic ditty entitled "The Palatine's Daughter". From Mr. Blier's program notes, we learned that the Palatines were a German-speaking group who were forced out of their country by war in the early 18th c. and given asylum by England. Apparently they assimilated successfully, in this case through romance. The accompaniment by the flute of Marco Granados was lovely.

Let us skip over the song by Arnold Bax, a Brit who was as entranced by Ireland as was Victor Herbert, about whom we wrote last week.  But we won't skip without mentioning the powerful piano of Ho Jae Lee whose artistry on the piano is astonishing.

John Corigliano also set Irish folksongs and Ms. Price's clear and lovely soprano wove in and out of the fanciful line of the flute.

But the song from Ireland that captured our heart was Houston Collisson's "Eileen Og" which was given a charming and humor filled performance by tenor Jack Swanson, joined by Mr. Granados' flute. The song contained a very particular lesson for men who go a-courtin'.

The ship was ready to sail and off we went to Cuba where the "Spanish elements suppressed, resisted, slowly co-opted, and finally embraced the rhythms of the oppressed Afro-Cubans". Does that scenario sound familiar? Afro-Cubans were not freed from slavery until 1886 and yet, today, seem far more integrated than Afro-Americans.  Cuban music is a "grafting of Spanish elegance onto the complex throb of African rhythms".  (Wish we'd written that!)

It took four hands of piano (Mr. Blier and Mr. Lee) to give enough textural support to Mr. Swanson and Mr. Dickerson as they performed "Guarina", a lyrical serenade written by the untrained but gifted composer Sindo Garay.

Ms. Price, accompanied by Mr. Lee, excelled in Ernesto Lecuona's setting of "Quiero ser hombre", text by the Uruguayan feminist poet Juana Ibarbourou.

Cuba must stand among the nations of the New World which adapted the Spanish operetta known as zarzuela to their own use. Mr. Brier's droll explication added much to our enjoyment of "Aria de Matilde" from Jose Mauri's La Esclava. It was not the only piece to highlight difficult social issues like interracial romance, but it was one of the first.  Dark-skinned heroine (soprano) has dark-skinned lover (baritone) but gets seduced by aristocratic light-skinned man (tenor) gets pregnant and commits suicide. In this case, however, the aria was sung by a mezzo and Ms. Dishman sang it with lovely tone and depth of feeling.

The funniest song in Cuba must have been Emilio Grenet's "Tu no sab ingle" (sic) which sounds like a Spanish answer to ebonics. Mr. Dickerson (whom we have now heard in French, German, English, and Spanish) was hilarious lecturing his friend about his linguistic failure with American girls.

After the interval, we weighed anchor once more and set sail for Madagascar. The traditional Zulu melody, gloriously harmonized by Ms. Price, Ms. Dishman, and Mr. Swanson thrilled us with its strange words and interesting harmonies. 

However, as hard as we tried to like Maurice Ravel's Chansons Madecasses, we were unable to relate to the music. The French text of "Nahandove" and "Il est doux" was incredibly sensual which we readily picked up from Mr. Lee's piano and the delicacy of the cello, beautifully bowed by Nan-Cheng Chen. However, the vocal line did nothing for us and Mr. Dickerson's use of the music stand prevented us from feeling the connection we felt in the Zulu piece.

We were very happy to dock in Manhattan and Cole Porter's "I Happen to Like New York" perfectly expressed our sentiments. All four singers and all four hands on the piano were enlisted for this exciting final song with its punchy Anglo-Saxon rhymes.

But let us not omit the other wonderful songs in the Manhattan group. Ms. Price gave a galvanizing performance of "One Life to Live" from Kurt Weill's 1941 Lady in the Dark, in which she has a YOLO moment.  Ms. Dishman gave a highly convincing portrait of an auditioning actress in Jason Robert Brown's "When you Come Home to Me". (We sincerely hope that none of last night's artists ever have to endure such humiliation.)

Mr. Swanson sang an unpublished song by Irving Berlin, cut from the musical As Thousands Cheer. "Through a Keyhole" was considered too risque for its Depression-era Broadway and it certainly is filled with naughty innuendo which Mr. Swanson captured without exaggerating.  It was done just right.

As encore, we heard a composition by Villa Lobos based on the NewYork Skyline. 

It was a great cruise and we are glad to be home safe and sound to tell you all about it.

(c) meche kroop

FIRST LIEDERABEND OF THE SEASON AT JUILLIARD

Alex Rosen, Julia Wolcott, Onadek Winan, Maria Brea, and Thomas West

Everything about yesterday's liederabend at Juilliard delighted us--the entire program was in German and, since it was coached by Brian Zeger, the German diction was excellent and not a word was slighted. The choice of composers included our favorites and the young artists performed them well, each with his/her own style.

We haven't spoken to Mr. Zeger about this but we suspect that he encourages each singer to honor his/her own performance style and each one seemed comfortable with his/her own choice. There is no right or wrong in lieder performance.  Some artists are highly expressive and make ample use of gesture to get across the meaning of the text. Others are more reserved and rely on vocal colors and the barest minimum of dramatic expression.  We can appreciate the entire spectrum.

Soprano Maria Brea opened the program and we enjoyed her highly expressive style in a half dozen songs by Richard Strauss. Not only did she employ ample gesture but used her facial expression to fine effect.  Even her eyes danced along with the music. Her bright tone was just right for Strauss. 

She opened the set with the sprightly "Wozu noch, Mädchen" and invested the final repetition of the opening verse with sufficient variation. She captured the sensuality of "Breit' über mein Haupt". The blind hope of "Hoffen und wieder verzagen" was made clear; the closing "Mein Herz ist stumm, mein Herz ist kalt" had appropriately chilly colors. Collaborative pianist Nathan Raskin provided excellent dynamic support.

Baritone Thomas West performed a quintet of songs by Brahms--songs with which we are unfamiliar--from Lieder und Gesänge, Op. 32.  Most of the Brahms songs that we love are of a folksy nature; these songs are quite serious and deal with more complex and troubling emotions.

Mr. West is an artist of the more reserved type, employing an economy of gesture and relying predominantly on vocal colors to convey the mood. That he translated the songs himself lent a word-by-word authenticity to his performance.  In "Wie rafft ich mich auf", Brahms repeats certain phrases and Mr. West handled this beautifully. His piano partner Jinhee Park evinced ample strength.

We particularly enjoyed the final song "Wie bist du, meine Königen", a more romantic affair to be sure, and a lied which permitted Mr. West to use a lighter tender tone, especially in the final verse. Every time he repeated "Wonnevoll!" we felt an inner smile.

Bass Alex Rosen performed a pair of serious songs by Schubert, lieder with opposing spiritual values. In "Prometheus" Goethe's text speaks of anger toward Zeus; the cynicism is so thick you could cut it with a knife.  In "Grenzen der Menschheit", the same poet speaks with spiritual reverence.

Mr. Rosen captured both attitudes and did it with low notes to spare. Collaborative pianist Chérie Roe made a powerful statement throughout.

Some genie must have read our Friday night review of the Brooklyn Art Song Society in which we expressed the wish for more songs by Joseph Marx to appear on recital programs.  How delighted we were that soprano Julia Wolcott performed four of them! Although he came along a generation after Strauss, his music is entirely accessible and melodic. Ms. Wolcott's performance was lovely and her instrument brilliant in tone.

We had heard two of the songs "Nocturne" and "Selige Nacht" Friday night and had enjoyed them entirely. How delightful to hear them again. Piano partner Dror Baitel enjoyed the dazzling runs of the former and Ms. Wolcott clearly enjoyed the sensuality of the latter, which has become one of our favorites. It is interesting that Otto Erich Hartleben wrote the text for both of them.

Soprano Onadek Winan closed the program with four selections from Strauss' Brentano-Lieder, Op. 68. which she translated herself; this lent an immediacy to her performance. Our ears feasted on her beautiful tone and our eyes on a lovely stage presence.

In "An die Nacht" piano partner Ho Jae Lee's passion matched hers.  But our favorite is always "Amor" in which she gave a charming reading and some stunning vocal fireworks.  Mr. Lee's piano was particularly fine in "Als mir dein Lied erklang".  This summed up the recital for us--"Your song rang out to me"!  Indeed, these five singers managed, in 80 minutes, to erase an entire day's cares.  Long live music.  Long live song!

(c) meche kroop

TWO TERRIFIC TENORS...AND MORE

Grace Canfield, Allison Porter, Cristobal Arias, Katelan Terrell, Cristina Stanescu, Caitlin Redding, Matthew Swensen, William Kelley, Sora Jung ,Ho Jae Lee, Nathan Raskin

It was another thrilling early evening liederabend at Juilliard and the hall was packed. Five superb singers joined with five collaborative pianists for a pleasant respite from the Xmas shopping chaos outside.  The performances were all excellent; we would expect no less.

It's possible to admire all the artists and yet to single out a couple that for one reason or another affect us more deeply.  We suspect it has something to do with the mood we are in or the choice of material. We sometimes hear an artist on another occasion and have very different feelings.  So...here goes.

We were absolutely enchanted by two tenors, which, in itself is remarkable because we get very turned off if a tenor pushes his high notes.  (We actually feel the tension in our own throat and it hurts!) What a surprise to learn that Cristobal Arias is just a sophomore in the Vocal Arts Department. He performed Beethoven's song cycle An die ferne Geliebte, and he performed it magnificently.

This cycle is Beethoven at his most melodic and the melodies have been running through our head all night. Unlike Schubert's cycles, this one does not tell a story. Rather, all the songs revolve around the central theme of longing for a distant beloved. They are best sung simply without spurious dramatic effects and this is exactly how they were performed. 

Mr. Arias has a gentle sweet tone and made liberal use of dynamic variety from the very start. In "Leichte Segler in den Höhen" he sang with marcato emphasis and in "Diese Wolken in den Höhen" he sang with a lovely lilting quality. He ended the cycle with intensity and passion. We were, as they say, "feelin' it".

The cycle was performed without breaks and his piano partner Katelan Terrell was delightful in the interludes which knit the songs together. We loved the way she captured the nature sounds and it was clear that she was enjoying herself.

The second tenor was quite different but equally impressive. Accompanied by Ho Jae Lee, he sang a trio of songs by Francis Poulenc whom we are coming to appreciate more and more. His instrument is a rich one with an interesting velvety texture and a pleasing resonance; his technique is flawless. His involvement in the material was intense and sustained right through the silences. He drew us into the text from the very beginning and by the time he got to the setting of Appolinaire's "Bleuet" we were close to tears.  That's communing with the audience!

We also heard three fine women whom we enjoyed a great deal. The glamorously gowned soprano Grace Canfield, ably accompanied by Nathan Raskin, has a bright sound that opens at the top like a parasol. She sang two selections from Liszt's Tre sonetti del Petrarca--"Pace non trovo" and "I' vidi in terra", and she sang them with intensity and urgency.

Soprano Allison Porter, accompanied by Sora Jung, introduced us to some early 20th c. French songs by Louis Beydts. The texts of the cycle Chansons pour les oiseaux were mostly nonsensical and Ms. Porter succeeded in bringing out the humor with her bubbly personality.

And finally, mezzo Caitlin Redding performed a trio of selections from Claude Debussy's settings of Cinq Poèmes de Baudelaire. They are a far cry from the no nonsense realistic depiction of longing in the Beethoven cycle; au contraire, they are filled with metaphor and imagery.  Similarly the music is radically different from Beethoven's direct illumination of a feeling but rather indirect and impressionistic. William Kelley performed well as piano partner.

The singers were coached by Cristina Stanescu who deserves to be pleased as punch.

Now wasn't that a better way to spend an hour than shopping??  You betcha'!

(c) meche kroop