SCENE MAKERS

Pavel Suliandziga, Jarvis Dams, Claire Wilmoth, Olivia Ottinger, and Amanda Panaccione

Instead of another "curtain call" photo, we have decided to give our readers a better idea of what we experienced at last night's IVAI recital of opera duets, trios, and ensembles. If you haven't already guessed, Mozart's Die Zauberflote was the source of this scene from Act I in which the three ladies (sopranos Amanda Panaccione, Claire Wilmoth, and Olivia Ottinger) have just given  Tamino the titular Magic Flute.  And what a scene that was with the three ladies harmonizing beautifully and Pavel Suliandziga giving us all the drama and vocalism we want in Tamino. As Papageno, baritone Jarvis Dams was hilarious trying to express himself with a lock on his mouth.

A second Papageno (baritone Evan Henke) performed a charming scene with the exciting young soprano Melody Yun Xie  who is so well-named. "Bei Mannern" is melodic and tender, and just right for Melody and Mr. Henke.

With a program this uniformly excellent, it is difficult to single out the ones that were outstanding. Everything was memorable.

The idea of presenting the opening scene of Puccini's Manon Lescaut followed by the same opening scene from Massenet's Manon was a brilliant one. The story is a very French one and perhaps that gave Massenet's a slight edge, although we must say that the appropriately named Nanyoung Song  matched incredibly well with the Des Grieux of Fanyoung Du. Both are possessors of gorgeous instruments which they use well to create believable characters. Mr. Du was convincingly smitten and Ms. Song showed evidence of the high spirits that will create so many problems later in the opera. That they sang in fine French style was a bonus.

In the Puccini, tenor Alexei Kuznietsov revealed a sizable instrument that bodes well for his future. He sang his "Cortese damigella" to soprano Lisa Faieta with great conviction and passion. Ms. Faieta maintained her modest air almost to the end when they ran offstage. We were glad to hear more of her as Donna Elvira in a scene from Mozart's Don Giovanni.

Bass-baritone Lawson Anderson impressed us in two roles, demonstrating a real feel for Mozart and an equal feel for complicated male characters. As Don Giovanni in the aforementioned scene, he was busy trying to persuade Donna Anna (soprano Claire Jihye Choi) and Don Ottavio (tenor Eric Alexieff) that Donna Elvira was crazy.  The scene was his and we were captivated by the texture of his voice and the intensity of his acting.

He was equally fine as Figaro in Mozart's Nozze di Figaro and sang the opening scene with soprano Sofia Sanchez as his Susana. Ms. Sanchez is not the only singer to blossom in an operatic role, making a far greater impression than when delivering a song.

Figaro's Act IV aria "Aprite un po' quegli occhi" was delivered with great indignance over his bride's supposed betrayal. Meanwhile, soprano Kyaunnee Richardson had a fine time teasing him with "Deh vieni non tardar". When we hear of Mr. Anderson performing either role in toto, we will SO be there!

The third Susana of the evening was Ashley Alden who teased Evan Henke's Almaviva in the excellent duet "Crudel, perche fin'ora". This group of IVAI singers responded so well to Mozart, bringing his music to vivid life.

We recently heard soprano Banlingyu Ban's Cio-cio San at Heartbeat Opera so we were not at all surprised by the excellence of her performance last night in the duet "Bimba dagli occhi pieni di malia" --the performance itself filled with malia! But we were astonished by the ardent performance of tenor Yang Chen. Both artists have ping-y qualities to their instruments and a most affecting quality.

And finally, from Mozart's Der Schauspieldirektor, two sopranos (Ashley Alden and Amanda Panaccione) got to duke it out while tenor Eric Alexieff tried to make peace. We saw that opera not too long ago in Santa Fe and have always enjoyed that scene, although, truth to tell, the sopranos we know are uniformly supportive of one another. But still the cliche is a funny one and satisfies those opera goers who would like to imagine catfights between rivals.  And now, we are thinking of Rossini's "Miaou" and if you've never heard that piece of vocal one upmanship, do give it a listen.

Stage Directors for the evening were Joshua Major and Dietlinde Maazel. Conductors were Maestri Paul Nadler and Brent Chancellor.  Pianists/coaches were Lucy Arner, Liora Maurer, and Jane Steele.

For lots of photos of these scenes, please see our Facebook Page, Voce di Meche.

(c) meche kroop

OPERA SCENES FROM IVAI

OPERA SCENES AT MANNES

The International Vocal Arts Institute is very high on our list this week and we are attending as many of their events as we can squeeze into our schedule. IVAI seems to be held in very high esteem also by the young artists participating in the program. We got to speak to a few of them and their enthusiasm matches our own. Some of them have attended several years in a row; there is always something new to learn, some barrier to break down, some new pathway opening up.

Last night's recital comprised duets, trios, and ensembles, coached by pianists Jane Steele and Liora Maurer and conducted by Maestri Paul Nadler and Brent Chancellor. The scenes were staged by directors Joshua Major and Dietlinde Maazel although we perceived the hand of Founder and Artistic Director Joan Dornemann and confirmed her participation as we spoke to the singers.

The overall quality was extraordinarily high. When we see and hear a scene from an opera and the sets and costumes appear unbidden to our mind's eye, we know the singers are doing well and putting their skills to good dramatic use. It was a thrill to witness the growth of the few singers with whose work we are acquainted but also a treat to be introduced to others whose careers we hope to follow.

Most memorable was the performance of tenor Pavel Suliandziga whose Nemorino has been evolving over the past couple of years to the point that we consider it his signature role. We hope to witness his winning awards from several foundations with this role! He performed it with admirable flexibility in the coloratura and winsome personality. When Donizetti wrote the music for L'elisir d'amore, he gave Nemorino so much with which to play. If Nemorino is too shy and awkward, we won't believe that Adina will fall for him.  But he can't be too personable at the outset or we won't accept the entire premise.

Last night, Mr. Suliandziga performed "Caro elisir! sei mio!...Esulti pur la barbara" with his lovely scene partner soprano Jessica Hyun Joung Kim. We felt his character, under the influence of the "magic potion", coming out of his shell and trying to impress Adina. We had a grin from ear to ear!

Two scenes from Donizetti's La fille du regiment delighted us; each young artist was completely convincing. Soprano Brynn Terry made us forget all about Natalie Dessay! This petite and very feminine young woman employed her bright soprano and coloratura skills, perfectly enacting the part of a tomboy. In the first scene she interacted with Sulpice, sung by the splendid baritone Evan Henke. 

In the second scene, she frustrated The Marquise of Berkenfield who was trying to make a "lady" out of her. The Marquise was performed by mezzo-soprano Olivia Smith-Grugan, who created a marvelously imperious character, actually playing the piano for Marie and mouthing the words of the song she wanted her niece to sing. Looking on and distracting Marie was Mr. Henke who kept bursting into the "Rataplan". The scene worked well with Marie breaking down into a tantrum.  What fun! 

The versatile Mr. Henke also appeared in the sextet from Mozart's Cosi fan tutte, enacting the role of Don Alfonso, presenting Fiordiligi (soprano Zoe Chunghui Kim) and Dorabella (mezzo Daiyao Zhong) with their two lovers disguised as Turks. Soprano Eugenia Forteza performed enthusiastically as Despina with fine tone and spirited acting. Tenor Hyunho Cho had the role of Ferrando wth baritone Jarvis Dams as Guglielmo. Their outrageous behavior clearly offended the two sisters. Mozart's writing involved some stunning harmonies and the six voices blended and balanced well.

Everyone loves Delibes' Lakme and "Sous le dome epais", known as the "Flower Song" gives soprano and mezzo an opportunity to harmonize the delicious vocal lines. In this case, soprano Sarah Heilman and mezzo Olivia Ottinger lived up to our expectations with both matching their dynamics. The overtones they created tickled our ears. They used a very long piece of fabric to create the river at their feet; it was a particularly lovely staging which added to the effect.

Ms. Ottinger reappeared as Prince Charmant in the duet "Toi qui m'es apparue" from Massenet's Cendrillon with mezzo Daiyao Zhong in the title role. We liked her flexibility.

A program with so much Donizetti is always a treat and his comedy Don Pasquale always tickles us. Mr. Dams made a fine Dr. Malatesta, instructing Norina (soprano Juri Jung) in how to fool the old man. Ms. Jung had to try several "faces" until Malatesta approved. We enjoyed the way he mocked the old man's big belly and waddling walk and we enjoyed Ms. Jung's penetrating upper register. 

Finally, we heard "O nuit divine" from Gounod's Romeo et Juliette, performed by soprano Melody Yun Xie who gave a lovely interpretation of innocence, and Yang Chen whose good sized tenor was a pleasure to hear solo after Juliette flees back indoors.

The recital lasted not much more than an hour but we would have been happy to have an hour or two more. We wanted to mention one more thing. Everyone's French was merveilleux!

(c) meche kroop