GIULIO GARI AWARDS

Le Bu, Minki Hong, Joseph Sacchi, Gabrielle Beteag, Esther Tonea, Brittany Olivia Logan,

 Fanyong Du, and Jonathan Kelly

For the past 22 years, the memory of legendary tenor Giulio Gari has been kept alive by his widow Gloria by means of a foundation established in his memory by the late Stephen DeMaio ad the great soprano Licia Albanese.  The goal of the foundation is to discover, support, and encourage young opera singers. 

After welcoming remarks from Mrs. Gari herself and Donald S. Levine (a member of the Board of Directors and co-producer of the concert), the thrilling two-hour concert was interrupted only by stirring comments by Artist Manager and Board Member Ken Benson.

Mr. Benson is well known and much appreciated for his devotion to young singers and that makes him a most valuable member of Planet Opera. We always like to hear what he has to say because we agree with his perspective!

We also enjoyed hearing from soprano and gifted teacher Catherine Malfitano who shared interesting tidbits about her career. We recalled with pleasure the many times we sat in on her classes at Manhattan School of Music, witnessing her drawing incredible performances from her undergraduate students, many of whom have gone on to fame. It is hard to believe that this is the fiftieth anniversary of her debut at The New York City Opera, which launched a world wide career!

What we would most like to dwell on, however, is the array of talent set before us. The original program was amended due to the usual occupational hazards of opera singers--illness and prior singing commitments. However, we were not at all disappointed since we got to enjoy the superlative artistry of several of this year's award winners, as well as that of prior years' award winners.

As is our wont, we are not going to tell you, Dear Reader, which singers won awards this year or prior years, or how they ranked, or how much money they received. This is surely available on the Foundation's website. Our concern is what we experienced with our own ears and eyes. We were happy to see a couple of familiar faces onstage as well as some new ones. Each and every one had something grand to offer.

It also became clear to us the importance of repertorial choice. Frequently we heard a performance that was technically perfect but, due to vocal color or some other factor, did not quite add up to the total immersion we feel when a singer's performance is so on point that the costume and scenery appear in our mind's eye and we are set down in the middle of an opera. That's magic!

For example, soprano Brittany Olivia Logan made a most believable diva in "Io son l'umile ancella" in which the anything-but-humble star of Cilea's Adriana Lecouvreur lets out all the stops. However, in spite of her flawless singing, she was less believable as the truly humble seamstress Mimi in Puccini's La Bohême. We could see her as an excellent Musetta! However, tenor Fanyong Du was totally believable as the ardent writer Rodolfo as they performed the duet "O soave fanciulla".

Similarly, soprano Esther Tonea created a strong Norma in the eponymous Bellini opera, easily conquering the master's lengthy legato lines and harmonizing beautifully with the Aldagisa of mezzo-soprano Gabrielle Beteag in the "Mira, O Norma". Her performance of Grigoriu's "Muzica" (previously unknown to us) won our heart as Jonathan Kelly's dissonant intervals of seconds took us on a Roumanian journey. However, the much loved "Letter Scene" from Tchaikovsky's Evgeny Onegin, while technically brilliant, somehow did not convince us that this was a young woman experiencing the anxiety of first love. We found our attention focusing on Jonathan Kelly's piano performance in which he beautifully limned the composer's feelings about Tatiana's youthful passion.

Although Ms. Beteag satisfied in the role of Aldagisa she best revealed the size of her voice in "Re dell'abiso affretatti", Ulrica's aria from Verdi's Ballo in Maschera. The corduroy texture  of her instrument lent menace, especially in the pianissimi and we really loved her lower register. There was something about those rolled "r"s that made our blood run cold. Ms. Beteag's performance of "Einsam wachend in der Nacht" showed a lot of potential for Wagnerian roles but it is the Ulrika that we will remember her for.

And while we are discussing Wagner, just see how Joseph Sacchi negotiated "Siegmund heiss ich und Siegmund bin ich" from Act I of Wagner's Die Walküre! We have a burgeoning heldentenor here, hampered only by his miming the removal of the sword Nothung from the tree in Hunding's hut, demonstrating to Sieglinde that he was indeed her long lost twin brother. We have no idea how one could do a better job physically but maybe just abandoning the effort?

It was a fine performance vocally, and far more interesting than the monologue from Britten's Peter Grimes.

Baritone Minki Hong succeeded in creating the character of Gérard in the ironic and heart-breaking aria "Nemico della patria" from Giordano's Andrea Chénier. We admired the lovely Italianate legato phrasing. We also enjoyed a Korean song by Kim which offered Mr. Hong the opportunity to show a sweeter coloration and dynamic variety. The song was called "A Thousand Winds" and had to do with a deceased person's spirit metamorphosed into nature.

We have already mentioned the success of Mr. Du as Rodolfo and we also enjoyed his aria from Gounod's Les Pêcheurs des Perles--"Je cross entendre encore". He exhibited a full tone, a fine vibrato, and exquisite dynamic control. We do love a gradually spun out decrescendo!

There was more Gounod to close the program with Ms.Logan, Mr. Du, and the sensational bass-baritone Le Bu creating the trio finale from Faust--"Ange pure, Ange radieux".

The thrill of witnessing young artists from their conservatory days to their fame on world stages is something that we cherish. Bravissimi tutti!

© meche kroop

 

GIULIO GARI FOUNDATION WINNERS CONCERT

Joseph Sacchi, Younggwang Park, Chelsea Lehnea, Amanda Batista, Le Bu, Chanae Curtis, Spencer Reichman, Key'mon Murrah, Mary Pinto, and Ken Benson 

For over two decades, Gloria Gari has honored the memory of her late husband Giulio Gari with a foundation that supports young singers--in much the same fashion as the late Nora London did for George London. What better way to honor the memory than by passing the torch.

The list of finalists for this year's competition reads like a roll call of the most promising young singers around and the winners have all been seen and heard at our major conservatories and young artist programs around the country. We were thrilled to witness Maestro Eve Queler, founder of Opera Orchestra of New York, receiving an award for her immeasurable contributions to the field of opera. 

After a warm welcome from Mrs. Gari herself, and some introductory comments by Linda Kundell, the charming Ken Benson took over the hosting duties and Mary Pinto took over as accompanist for the afternoon. The talented Ms. Pinto seems to be able to play just about anything and always went above and beyond to support the young singers on the program.

A couple of the winners on the program were more well known to us than the others so let us begin with them. Bass-Baritone Le Bu astonished us with a riveting performance of the hateful Philippe II of Spain in "Elle ne m'aime pas" from Verdi's Don Carlo. The King is hateful because he stole his son's intended bride and then consigned his son to death.  However in this aria, Mr. Bu showed us the lonely and disappointed old man and got us to feel sympathetic! And that's the artistry that astonished us. And he did so in perfect French.

When a singer's technique is this secure he can disappear into a character and take us to new places. He also sang the aria of a very different father. Senta's father Daland sings "Mogst du mein kind" with enthusiasm and it was great to hear Mr. Bu portray a very different character. Every facial expression and gesture had meaning; nothing was generic. The German was flawless and the characterization utterly compelling.

Chelsea Lehnea is known to us since winning the Premiere Opera Foundation Competition and through a starring role with Teatro Nuovo. She knows how to chew the scenery, so to speak, and, like Mr. Bu, creates characters from whom one cannot turn away. In Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor, the eponymous Lucia must, in her Act I aria, give a foreshadowing of her ultimate madness. She is clearly hallucinating and must get the audience to see visions through her eyes. This was thrillingly accomplished by Ms. Lehnea through vocal fireworks known as fioritura, so well composed by Donizetti.  All one needs is a stellar coloratura soprano to bring those notes to life and this we got in spades.

Not everyone appreciates the Countertenor fach as much as we do but there was no shortage of applause for Key'mon Murrah who performed "Ah quel giorno ognor rammento" from Rossini's Semiramide. He has a big bright top and was undaunted by the runs, jumps, and trills. The familiar "Parto, parto, ma tu ben mio" from Mozart's La Clemenza di Tito was similarly satisfying.

Bel canto was well represented on the program and Younggwang Park's booming bass was well suited to "Vi ravviso" from Bellini's I Puritani and "Song of the Viking Guest" from Rimsky-Korsakov's Sadko. The voice is substantial, especially in the lower register, and his embouchure permitted vowels that were clear and well matched ensuring a lovely legato in the Bellini. We hope to see him loosen up in his body to match the expressiveness in his voice.

In Mozart's Don Giovanni, Donna Anna must convince the importuning Don Ottavio that she really does love him in "Non mi dir". Chanae Curtis used her bright resonant soprano to convey emotion and let us realize from what source the bel canto composers drew their bags of tricks. This was Mozart laying the groundwork. Showing her versatility, she also performed the "Ave Maria" from Verdi's Otello, showing off the quiet legato of the lines, portraying an innocent woman facing death at the hands of an unreasonably jealous husband.

Speaking of jealous husbands, we enjoyed baritone Spencer Reichman's performance of "E sogno, o realta?" from Verdi's Falstaff. Mr. Reichman did a fine job of using the consonants effectively to convey Ford's jealous rage.

Joseph Saachi's powerful tenor was just right for "Durch die Walder" from Von 

Weber's Der Freischutz. We liked the texture of his voice and the way the aria grew in intensity. We got to hear him again in a duet with soprano Amanda Batista when they performed a happier scene from Otello--"Gia nella notte densa". We enjoyed this duet vocally but we wished for more interaction between Otello and Desdemona.

We enjoyed Ms. Batista singing "Donde estas Cristobal?" from Daniel Catán's Florencia en el Amazonas, one of the few contemporary operas that we enjoyed, having seen it some years ago during New York City Opera's heyday. Spanish sings so beautifully and Ms. Batista surely did it justice.

The concert was followed by a buffet dinner at which the singers and the guests mingled and each table had enthusiastic conversation about the performances. It is this interaction that keeps opera alive!

© meche kroop

2023 GEORGE AND NORA LONDON FOUNDATION COMPETITION FINALS

 

Pianist Maestro Michael Fennelly, Foundation President John H. Hauser, and finalists in the 2023 Competition

The gracious presence of the late Nora London was greatly missed but we received a warm welcome from John H. Hauser, President of the George and Nora London Foundation. The prizes awarded in this competition are generous and the winners generally go on to great careers. The twelve finalists were of the very highest caliber and the judging must have been extremely difficult. We were glad not to have been among them! We love this competition because all finalists walk away with great honor as well as financial benefit.

If you must know which five of the twelve received the greatest honor, you must look on the foundation's website. We are sure it made a difference to the competitors but to our ears, they were all winners. There seemed to be more large voices this year and also a preponderance of sopranos and tenors with a lone mezzo-soprano, a sole bass-baritone, and a singular counter-tenor.

Regardless of who won the major prizes, several performances suited our taste to the point of lingering in our memory. That they just happen to be three beautiful young women "should" be considered irrelevant but it surely doesn't hurt one's career to be as appealing to the eye as to the ear.

Karoline Podolak put a smile on our face with a spirited performance of "Je suis Titania" from Ambroise Thomas' Mignon. There was charm and expressiveness in spades, utilized to underscore the fioritura which was cleanly delivered. It was altogether enchanting.

No less enchanting was the bright soprano of Erika Bakoff who performed "A vos jeux amis" from Thomas' Hamlet. It seems curious that we have heard very little of Thomas' works and here we got to hear two on the same program. We got to realize how well he writes for young light sopranos! Along with the lovely vocal line, we appreciated a terrific trill and a smoothly descending scale passage.

The role of Sophie in Strauss' Der Rosenkavalier must impress the audience in the same fashion as Sophie herself is impressed by the attention paid her by Count Rofrano as he delivers the silver rose. In this case, Elena Villalon succeeded in conveying innocence and wonder with a sweet coloration to the voice and the assumption of a modest demeanor. It was a completely convincing characterization.

We have been hearing quite a bit of "Aleko's Cavatina" from the Rachmaninoff opera that we have never seen in its entirety. Poor Aleko sings of his despair, his Gypsy wife having fallen for a young man of her own people.  Somehow we were reminded of old King Philips's aria "Ella giammai m'amo" from Verdi's Don Carlo in which the singer must generate sympathy for a murderous man. At this task, bass-baritone William Socolof succeeded admirably  with a carefully modulated performance, generous tone, and exemplary Russian.

Contrasting with the lowest voice in the competition was the highest male voice, that of counter-tenor Aryeh Nussbaum Cohen who performed "Inumano Fratel...Stille Amare" from Händel's Tolomeo in which the eponymous title character believes he has drunk poison and cannot make it through the da capo. Mr. Cohen dazzled with his mastery of this rare fach and it's vocal fireworks. If our opinion inspires you, you can hear his video for yourself on YouTube.

It is always interesting in a competition to be introduced to an aria with which one is unfamiliar but it is an entirely different story when a young singer tackles a very familiar aria. We feel the satisfaction one feels with the familiar but we are looking for something original or different in which the singer tells us something new about the character. Tenor Matthew Cairns took on "La fleur que tu m'avais jetée" from Bizet's Carmen and he did so with full tone and a lovely vocal quality. We particularly admired the dynamic variety and a smooth decrescendo.

Tenor Joseph Sacchi has a large powerful instrument just right for the role of Max in Weber's Die Freischütz. "Durch die Walder, durch die Auen" was performed in clearly enunciated German, augmented by meaningful gesture.

We always enjoy arias more when we understand the words and tenor Jordan Loyd delivered "Inutile regrets" from the final act of Berlioz' Les Troyens in fine French. He employed his fine vibrato to express Énée's despair in an emotional performance.

Another highly emotional performance was that of tenor Ricardo Garcia who put 110% into his portrayal of Lensky facing death in Tchaikovky's Eugene Onegin. The vocal line was lovely and the gestures were Russian in their extravagance.

The only mezzo-soprano on the program, Olivia Johnson gave an expressive performance of "O ma lyre immortelle" from Gounod's Sapho. (The program listed the composer as Massenet and indeed Massenet did write a piece of that name almost a half-century later but we are quite sure that what we heard was from the Gounod.)

The only Puccini aria on the program was from Edgar, about which we know little. Amber Monroe has a sizable soprano with an expressive vibrato put to good use in "Addio mio dolce Amore" sung by the faithful Fidelia.

Perhaps it was the stress of singing first but having heard tenor Alexander McKissic several times in the past, we didn't think we were hearing him at his best in "Se all'impero amici dei" from Mozart's La Clemenza di Tito, sung by the merciful titular character. He sounded best in the pianissimi passages with a lovely legato but as the volume increased his tone sounded rough which did not suit Tito's character. We found ourselves wishing he had not been first on the program.

Splendid accompanying in all these varied styles was provided by Maestro Michael Fennelly.

© meche kroop

COMEDY TONIGHT!!!

Prince Orlofsky's ball--Act II of Die Fledermaus (photo by Jen Joyce Davis)

Thursday night at Prelude to Performance's La Bohème we wept and couldn't stop the tears; last night at their performance of Johann Strauss Jr.'s Die Fledermaus, we laughed, we giggled, we guffawed--- along with the rest of the enchanted audience.

Comedy is more difficult than tragedy to perform; the cast must play it straight so we can laugh at their foibles.  They are funny because they take themselves seriously. Nothing is worse than a performer working at being funny. We are happy to report that the totally terrific cast of this Prelude to Performance production got everything right. We can't remember having a better time.

The libretto by Karl Haffner and Richard Genée sparkles with wit and takes delight in poking a finger in the eye of 1874 Vienna with all of its hypocrisy. The entire story is one of deception and pretense. Dr. Falke (portrayed by the excellent baritone Thaddaeus Bourne) has orchestrated an elaborate charade to get revenge on his friend Gabriel von Eisenstein (brilliantly performed by Jonathan Tetelman, whose change of fach from baritone to terrific tenor was a wise choice);  Eisenstein once abandoned his friend drunk and in full chiropterological drag. (Now that morning return home must have been some "walk of shame").

Falk has invited all the characters in his little drama to a ball given by the idiosyncratic Russian aristocrat Prince Orlofsky (in a star turn by mezzo-soprano Hongni Wu, whose voice has a gorgeously unique timbre). Orlofsky is bored by life and only wants to be amused.  Amusement he gets!  In Spades!

Eisenstein has been invited to the ball as a last gasp of wild fun before he serves a brief prison sentence. (Something akin to a bachelor party!) He hopes to flirt with some dancers there but becomes entranced by his own wife Rosalinde.

Rosalinde has been invited, and is bent on getting even with her deceiving husband. She is disguised as a Hungarian countess and if the role could have been better portrayed by anyone but stunning soprano Haley Sicking, we have yet to imagine it. Her comedic skills are prodigious and her lusty soprano shone in the Czardas--an over-the-top Viennese interpretation of Hungarian "soul". The scene of the husband trying to seduce his own wife was one of the many highlights of the evening.

Rosalinde's chambermaid Adele (charmingly sung by the sparkling soprano Shana Grossman) has also been brought to the ball under false pretenses. She thinks the invitation was from her ballerina sister but we learn that it is Falke's doing. She begs Rosalinde for the night off "to visit a sick aunt" and "borrows" a gown from her bosslady. She pretends to be an actress and entrances Frank, the prison warden who is also there under false pretenses.  He is delightfully portrayed by baritone Paul Grosvenor, pretending to be Chevalier Chagrin while Eisenstein is pretending to be the equally Gallic Marquis Renard. Another comedic highlight was witnessing the two faux Frenchmen trying to communicate in pigeon French.

There is a subplot of Rosalinde being caught in an almost compromising position by Frank in Act I when an old lover named Alfred (enacted by Spencer Hamlin whose ringing effortless tenor made him perfect for the part of a singing teacher) is having a nocturnal tête-a-tête with Rosalinde. To spare her being dishonored Alfred pretends to be her husband and goes to jail with Frank.

Another source of humor was the bumbling lawyer Dr. Blind, portrayed by Joseph Sacchi, who was literally chased out of the house by the Eisensteins. So much physical humor!

There is yet another source of hilarity--the bibulous Frosch, portrayed hilariously (and in English spoken dialogue) by Steven Mo Hanan.

With musical and dramatic values at such a high professional level, it would be a pity to miss this witty production, directed with a fine hand by Gina Lapinski.  It will be reprised at Sunday matinée with the same fine cast.

Strauss' tunes have stuck in our mind and we have been humming them all night while we write. From the first theme in the overture the melodies are completely captivating. Maestro Steven M. Crawford kept the energy flowing non-stop with much of the music being in waltz or duple time.  It was difficult to sit still! 

As if that were not sufficient, the gorgeous costumes of Charles R. Caine dazzled the eye and transported us to a glamorous time and place. Abdul Latif's choreography added to the delight. The party scene in Act II gave an opportunity for chorus members to strut their stuff, under the guidance of Chorus Master Noby Ishida.

The set was simple and seems to have served for both this production and La Bohème, neither enhancing nor detracting from the action. 

Both singing and spoken dialogue were performed in the original German and performed with clarity. Although Brett Findley's titles were excellent for non-German speakers, we confess to getting a kick out of understanding the well-enunciated German. Credit for German coaching goes to Vera Junkers. 

(c) meche kroop

MSM DOES STEPHEN SCHWARTZ

Defying Gravity--the Magical World of Stephen Schwartz (photo by Anna Yatskevich)

Year after year, the students of the American Musical Theater Ensemble of the Manhattan School of Music present an evening of entertainment that rivals any evening you might spend on Broadway.

Last night's DEFYING GRAVITY presented the songs of Stephen Schwartz in a clever revue format, conceived and directed by Carolyn Marlow. The concept involved extracting songs from his large oeuvre and weaving them together with dialogue that posited interesting relationships among the members of the cast, comprising a dozen talented young performers, as adept at dancing and acting as they are at singing.

There was an arrogant male figure (Joseph Sacchi) and an insecure one (Luke Sikora), and a bunch of gals just bursting with pizazz. There was a big guy with an operatic voice (Christopher Lilley) and a skinny one (Frank Humphrey) who needed a lesson in "Style" from The Magic Show. 

Composer Stephen Schwartz has written a slew of captivating  award-winning musicals for the stage and for film--even having scored some Disney films. His tunes are memorable and the lyrics capture the zeitgeist beautifully. Having gotten on board too late for anything but Wicked, we will have to do a library search to get exposed to more of his writing, since the taste we had last night served to whet our appetite.

The voices were all excellent and the performers adept at creating believable characters. We particularly enjoyed Allie Altieri in the wistful "Lion Tamer" from The Magic Show and her moving account of "Just Beyond the Riverbend" from the film Pocahontas. Mr. Humphrey did his best work in "Corner of the Sky" from Pippin. The two artists sang these two songs simultaneously. (We don't know how they worked this out so successfully).

In "Style" the pair, pretending to be awkward losers, were coached by the very stylish Gabriela Moscoso and Christopher Lilley, both of whom had the moves. It's always humorous to see talented people pretending to be clumsy.

Ms. Moscoso was featured in a lot of numbers and impressed us with her high octane personality and expressive acting. She led Anna Mayo and Juliana Levinson in the wonderful "Sweet, Sweet, Sweet" from The Magic Show, and had a great solo in "Spread a Little Sunshine" from Pippin. 

Mr. Lilley commanded the stage in "Simple Song" from Leonard Bernstein's Mass (for which Schwartz wrote the lyrics) accompanied by Mr. Humphrey and some lovely flute playing from Aaron Patterson, who was just as fine on the clarinet as he accompanied the lovely Grace Callahan in "Blame it on the Summer Night" from Rags, for which Charles Strouse wrote the music. There was a fine bright ring in her upper register. We also enjoyed the duet "All for the Best" from Godspell, in which she was joined by Anna Mayo.

Ms. Mayo was lovely in "Since I Gave My Heart Away" from Gepetto while Nicole DeLuca and Joseph Sacchi did a graceful ballroom dance. There was a theme running through the revue that Ms. DeLuca, whose character was headed for a stint on Broadway, got nothing but negativity from her boyfriend, portrayed by Joseph Sacchi, as an arrogant philanderer, trying to keep his woman down on the farm, in pre-liberation mode.

Mr. Sacchi's solo "Proud Lady" from The Baker's Wife was excellently done. He got his comeuppance from the ladies of the cast in "Turn Back, O Man" from Godspell; they sure strutted their stuff and waved their feather boas!

There were some beautiful harmonies in "Serenade" from The Baker's Wife and even more harmony in five parts in "In Pursuit of Excellence" from Children of Eden.  

Juliana Levinson expressed some lovely sentiments in French in "Chanson" from The Baker's Wife.

Luke Sikora portrayed an insecure fella who finds his bearings during the show. There was nothing insecure about his performance however. His "everyman" in "Extraordinary" from Pippin was great and his "Dancing Through Life" from Wicked was even better.

The excellent musicians were not in the pit but were upstage. Music director and pianist Shane Schag was joined by guitarist Sean Richey, bassist Connor Schultze, percussionist Guilhem Flouzat and the aforementioned Aaron Patterson, a virtuoso on flute, clarinet and saxophone. Orchestrations were by Mike Webster with some special arrangements by Warren Helms.

The set and lighting by Shawn Kaufman were simple, involving staircases on either side with a walkway extending the width of the stage up above. The risers of the stairs were illuminated with tiny colored lights and the backdrop was washed in intense colors. It was simple but effective.

Colleen Durham's choreography was well suited to the skills of the students.  We particularly enjoyed a dance with black bowler hats that made us think of Bob Fosse.

Whether these students elect a career on the opera stage or on the Broadway stage, they do seem destined for success.

(c) meche kroop