NEVER LOOK BACK!

Maestro Richard Owen, cast of Orfeo ed Euridice, and Camerata New York Orchestra

The legend of Orpheus and his descent into the Underworld to retrieve his wife Eurydice is a mutable one. Even Virgil and Ovid told the tale differently. Perhaps every age puts a different spin on the story to teach a lesson. Even before Gluck wrote his masterpiece in 1762, Jacopo Peri and Giulio Caccini had composed their own version in 1600, and Monteverdi had composed his in 1607. The theme has inspired innumerable books, plays, ballets, and songs as well as operas.

Just as Gluck stripped the music of baroque orientation, so librettist Ranieri de' Calzabigi stripped the story of extraneous plot elements. He does not even show us how Eurydice died. But, thankfully, he provided a happy ending. Perhaps the message of his age was that the god of love conquers every ill.

Last night at the gorgeous St. Jean Baptiste Church, we were presented with a unique and fortunate artistic collaboration between Mannes Opera (under the leadership of Emma Griffin), Mannes Sounds Festival (of which Pavlina Dokovska is Artistic Director), Graham 2 Dancers (choreographed by Virginie Mécène), and Camerata New York Orchestra (under the baton of Maestro Richard Owen).

Just to set the record straight, Maestro Owen conducted from the harpsichord senza baton, but with incredibly expressive hands; he is not only Artistic Director of Camerata New York but is also Music Director and organist of the church and conducts the Adelphi Orchestra.

A European symphony conductor of our acquaintance to whom we posed the question "Where is the best place to sit?" replied "As close to the conductor as possible". Last night we sat about five feet from Maestro Owen and indeed we heard some very specific touches that we might have missed had we sat farther back. 

We generally notice the wind instruments but last night we were able to focus on the violins right in front of us and to observe certain details of technique that held our interest. We particularly enjoyed the parts in which the harp joined in with the pizzicato violins. Not to shortchange the winds, we were captivated by the melodies produced by the flutes.

However, there was a price to pay for this experience. Although the acoustics at St. Jean Baptiste are highly resonant, the voices did not always carry over the sound of the floor level orchestra. Had there been an intermission, we would have moved to the rear to see how the sound was back there.

The higher register was no problem and Michaela Estrin sang beautifully as Euridice, investing her soprano instrument with wonder, anxiety, and joy, as the story demanded.

Coloratura soprano Yoonjeong Yoo made a pert Amore, carrying off her role with spirit and benevolence. Her voice also carried well, with a silvery sheen.

Mezzo-soprano Perri di Cristina fared less well, although she sounded superb in the upper register. We just lost a lot of her sound in the middle voice and lower register. Nonetheless, her Italianate vowels and legato technique were put into service as she created an Orfeo with depth of feeling. Her emotions ran the gamut from grief to hope, from despair to joy, as Amore restores his beloved to him. 

The highlight was, of course, the "Che faro senza Euridice", for which Ms. di Christina produced some finely crafted embellishments of the vocal line in the ritornello. We also loved the final duet between the two reunited lovers.

The chorus was splendid, filling the sanctuary with resonance and we would like to give props to Chorus Master Bryant Denmark.

Stage Director William Gustafson made excellent use of the enormous space. Most of the drama took place on the altar, just a few steps above floor level. Early on, the deceased Euridice appeared in a white gown way up near the dome. We wished there had been a spotlight on her because she was easy to miss.

Amore first appeared in the pulpit but later joined the despairing Orfeo and the dead Euridice on the platform.

The chorus appeared first as mourners dressed in black under large black umbrellas as Orfeo wept over Euridice's bier. Later they sang from the rear balcony and finally appeared clad in white.

Orfeo made his entrance coming down the aisle. It was altogether a fine use of existing elements. Initially we wondered why the opera was not presented downstairs in the theater, which has a pit. As the evening progressed we recognized how appropriate the sanctuary was.

Costumes by Taelen Richardson were right on point although vaguely contemporary. Orfeo was dressed in a mourner's black suit and Euridice in a white gown. Amore's fuschia gown brought a welcome pop of color.

We must confess that we generally dislike modern dance but loved Virginie Mécène's choreography for the Graham 2 dancers. They appeared first as the Furies who bar Orfeo from the underworld, wearing dark menacing costumes and making dark menacing movements. Later the dancers appeared in pastel flowing Greek-inspired costumes, gracefully accompanying Euridice on her journey.

Do take a look at photos on our Facebook page-- Voce di Meche-- to see the gorgeous costumes.  And do plan to attend the performance Saturday night at 8:00!

(c) meche kroop

THE TRIUMPH OF MUSIC

Fanyong Du, Anna Viemeister, Ricardo Rivera, Richard Owen, Megan Nielsen, Riad Ymeri, and Andrew Cummings in Camerata New York Gala

How well we remember last year's star-studded Camerata New York Gala! This year's version was equally thrilling. The theme was "The Triumph of Music" and the same successful formula that packed St. Jean Baptiste Church last year was again put into play. Favorite arias and duets from well known operas were performed by a cast of international opera stars; each piece was introduced by Maestro Richard Owen who gave the audience just a brief synopsis.

Once again, we had the notion that the audience was partly opera devotés and partly newcomers attracted by the stellar cast, the popularity of the pieces, and a modest ticket price--less than one would pay for a balcony seat at the Met. There were no titles and we didn't see many people reading the translations.  We got the impression that people were truly listening and feeling entertained.  And that's what opera is all about, isn't it?

Readers will recall how much we love duets and the program opened with a solo performed by two tenors!  After the wonderful Camerata New York Orchestra treated us to the Easter Morning Prelude to Pietro Mascagni's Cavalleria Rusticana, not neglecting the underlying menace in this familiar melody, the "Siciliana" was sung by Fanyong Du and Riad Ymeri, both sounding tenorrific. Pardon our neologism!

Mr. Du appeared again with baritone Ricardo Rivera in the Act IV duet from Puccini's La Bohème in which the two Bohemians chat about their lost loves with seeming carefree nonchalance. Puccini's music gives the lie to their jolly chatter. Mr. Du's sweet tenor balanced beautifully with Mr. Rivera's substantial baritonal colors.

These two singers make a fine pair, as manifested in their "Au fond du temple saint" from Bizet's Pêcheur de Perles, in which their love/lust for the temple priestess Leïla threatens their friendship. By the end of the duet, they are affirming their amity.  But we know better that one of them is going to break that vow of friendship!

Yet another sensational duet was the final scene from Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin in which Tatiana, still in love with Onegin, dismisses him partly out of duty to her husband Prince Gremin, and partly out of suspicion that Onegin is only interested in her because she has a high position in society. The lovely soprano Megan Nielson made a fine ambivalent Tatiana and baritone Andrew Cummings excelled as the importuning Onegin who just won't take "nyet" for an answer.

The final duet on the program was the Act I finale of Puccini's Madama Butterfly in which Butterfly was performed by Ms.  Nielson with Mr. Ymeri as Pinkerton. Mr. Ymeri's voice is so sweet we could scarcely believe that he is such a heel who will abandon this Butterfly with whom he is so taken. Their two voices soared as they invoked nature and he distracted her from the rejection she suffered at the hands of her family. It was a lovely way to end this very special evening.

But we are not ending our review here because we have yet to mention the marvelous arias we heard. Mr. Ymeri got a huge round of bravos for his portrayal of the troubled Riccardo, Governor of Boston, in Verdi's Ballo in Maschera. He must send away his aide Renato because of his love for Amelia, Renato's wife. Mr. Ymeri gave this aria "Forse la solia" an emotional reading without any hint of tightness.

Renato's rage, as he believes Amelia to have been unfaithful, permeated Mr. Cummings' affecting performance of "Eri tu".

Mezzo-soprano Anna Viemeister did her best with Ulrica's aria "Re dell'abisso" but did not always penetrate the dense orchestration with the very low-lying tessitura. 

We enjoyed her much more in "Senta's Ballade" from Wagner's Der Fliegende Holländer, which is a soprano role.  Go figure! But she had the power and the top notes and the touch of madness needed to show us that Senta was a bit off-kilter. It was a splendid performance with the intervals of descending fourths particularly affecting.

We heard two popular arias from Gounod's Faust. Mr. Rivera's performance of Valentin's "Avant de quitter ces lieux" was particularly well handled with the prayerful part colored with tenderness and the patriotic part with resolve. Mr. Du did equally well with Faust's serenade of Marguerite "Salut! Demeure chaste et pure" which was filled with romantic longing, fine French phrasing, and a lovely messa di voce. 

Although opera was the major focus of the evening, the Camerata New York Orchestra was given their opportunity to shine, not only in the Easter morning prelude to Cavalleria Rusticana, but also in the "Polonaise" from Eugene Onegin. The lively ballet from Faust had a lovely lyrical central section. Similarly, the Prelude to the Madama Butterfly duet was filled with tenderness. Maestro Owen has wonderful command of his orchestral forces.

We found the harp accompaniment (Hannah Murphy) to the Mascagni particularly lovely and also heard a lovely flute solo in the Verdi.

The only downside to the evening was the overly resonant acoustics of the gorgeous St. Jean Baptiste church. This tended to smear the sound, but what can we do? Placing the orchestra at audience level with the singers behind is not a great solution but there seems to be no alternative. There are no suitable midsize theaters with an orchestra pit in Manhattan, although there are dozens of small opera companies that need one. To coin a phrase..."If you build it, they will come".

Let us call the evening "The Triumph of Music Over Acoustics"!

(c) meche kroop

BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY

Richard Owen and the Adelphi Orchestra

It was a chance encounter with an oboist that led to our fortuitous awareness of the Adelphi Orchestra from across the Hudson. Learning of their program Bohemian Rhapsody we decided to attend and wallow in music of our favorite period, the second half of the 19th c. Happily, there were no nerve-wracking modern pieces to disturb our Romantic indulgence.

Not only did we get to hear some soulful solos from oboist Jacob Slattery, but we got a private inspection of all three oboes--the regular oboe, the mellow English horn, and the oboe d'amore that we've mostly heard in Early Music. We also heard a sensational young violinist tackle Saint Saëns' Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso which was written for, and made famous by Pablo de Sarasate.

At the tender age of seventeen, an age when a budding opera singer would best be overlooked, Nathan Meltzer is already playing all over the world, studying with Itzhak Perlman, and worthy of the loan from Juilliard of an 1844 Joannes Pressenda violin! And oh, what he did with that instrument! The virtuoso sections of the work were performed with style and the lyrical segments were performed with substance--and gorgeous legato. This is an artist to watch, dear readers, even if you, like me, are mostly addicted to opera.

Under the firm baton of conductor Richard Owen, the remainder of the program was similarly outstanding. We do not ever have to worry about music lovers in New Jersey being deprived! We love that Maestro Owen actually talks to the audience and tells them interesting things about what is on the program.

The program opener was Dvorák's Carnival Overture. It began with a maelstrom of lively sound, almost frenetic. The central section was lovely and lyrical.

Baritone Andrew Cummings was on hand for Mahler's Rückert Lieder which was composed initially for voice and piano and later orchestrated, adding a great deal of rich detail. We know and love these songs which are filled with deep feelings. 

Since Mr. Cummings was "on the book", we did not feel the connection that we value in vocal music so we concentrated on the orchestration, especially the marvelous oboe solos. We did admire Mr. Cummings' use of dynamic variety and his word coloration but would have to hear him another time without the score to have an appreciation of his value as a singer of lieder.

Of the five songs, our favorite was "Blicke mir nicht in die lieder" in which the string section created the sound of busy bees, hard at work making honey, Rückert's metaphor for creation.

The major work on the program was Tchaikovsky's Fifth Symphony in the stirring key of E-minor. So many symphonies strike us as a collection of varied movements; what distinguishes this symphony is a sense of dramatic unity. The theme heard in the opening movement reappears in minimal disguises in the subsequent movements and by the end of the symphony we are hearing it transmogrified by being in a major key.

We were particularly taken with the Waltz movement that occupied our imagination with scenes of a ballroom with glamorous dancers swirling around, much as one sees at the ballet.  As a matter of fact, our love of classical music came out of that very art form, which is how we can say that Tchaikovsky and Rimsky-Korsakov are responsible for our being here today!

(c) meche kroop

CAMERATA NEW YORK ORCHESTRA OPERA GALA

Andrew Cummings, Antonina Chehovska, Maestro Richard Owen, Tammy Moore, and Riad Ymeri

The lavishly decorated St.Jean Baptiste Church has a resident orchestra called Camerata New York Orchestra and a fine orchestra they are indeed. Last night they presented an Opera Gala that packed the church from the first pew to the last. We have no way of knowing whether the huge crowd comprised opera fans or newbies.

Maestro Richard Owen not only conducted but explained each aria before it was performed, leading us to think that perhaps the majority of the crowd was not made up of experienced opera goers. What better choices could one have made than Mozart, Bizet, Puccini, Leoncavallo, and Tchaikovsky! The choices were tempting to newbies but equally satisfying for regular opera goers. We had the pleasure of hearing two singers of whom we are most fond, and two which we would like to hear again.

A major highlight was soprano Antonina Chehovska performing the "Letter Scene" from Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin, a work which Utopia Opera is presenting this weekend and which we will review. Ms. Chehovska has won awards from just about every foundation around and we have always been there to witness her artistry.  As the innocent and confused Tatiana, Ms. Chehovska was completely believable. She sang with a beautiful clear tone, coloring her voice to match the many variations of mood undergone by the character. Anyone able to recall their first infatuation would have been able to identify. It was a flawless performance.

It hasn't even been two weeks since we heard tenor Riad Ymeri perform the role of Don Jose in Amore Opera's production of Bizet's Carmen. So we were not at all astonished by the excellence of his intense performance of "La fleur que tu m'avais jetee".  Still, we found plenty of subtle variations as he accompanied mezzo-soprano Tammy Moore in the "Seguidilla". Ms. Moore gave quite a steamy performance as the manipulative and seductive Carmen with Mr. Ymeri's subtle shift from feigned indifference to total abandonment particularly noteworthy.

Ms. Moore put her fine instrument through its paces in the fiendishly difficult "Smanie implacabile" from Mozart's Cosi fan tutte. Her Dorabella was joined by Ms. Chehovska's Fiordiligi for the lovely trio "Soave sia il vento" from the same opera. The role of Don Alfonso was sung by baritone Andrew Cummings and we were swooning over the delicious harmonies.

Mr. Cummings had a fine solo as Escamillo, singing the "Toreador Song" with fine voice and minimal arrogance. He had another fine solo singing the "Prologo" from Leoncavallo's Pagliacci. He seemed more comfortable in the latter role.

We always love duets and his duet with Ms. Moore was particularly well done--"La ci darem la mano" from Mozart's Don Giovanni. This seemed a comfortable role for him both vocally and dramatically and Ms. Moore made a willing Zerlina, a bit reluctant and quite a bit tempted.

The audience favorite, and perhaps ours as well, was the final scene from Act I of Puccini's La Boheme.  Who doesn't know and love the scene in which Mimi comes to Rodolfo's door and they pour out their hearts to one another! Not only was the singing lovely but the acting was very convincing--so convincing that the absent scenery appeared in our mind's eye. Each artist showed the gradual shifts of mood one experiences when romance is on the horizon.

Ms. Chehovska's Mimi began shyly but grew in confidence as the scene progressed.  Mr. Ymeri's Rodolfo began with the excitement of having a woman come to his door; you could almost read his innermost thoughts of how he might get her interest with a bit of humble-bragging. These are the kinds of performances guaranteed to get people interested in opera!

There were instrumental pieces as well and the orchestra performed in fine fashion for Maestro Owen. We heard Verdi's overture to Nabucco with its forceful trombone and tuba introduction and loved hearing the melody of "Va pensiero". 

The music from Bizet's Carmen was portentous and featured some exciting kettle drumming. There was also a piece by Puccini written when he was a student--"Preludio Sinfonico". One could readily appreciate his skill with melody and orchestration.

When listening to instrumental music, we often focus on an instrument that stands out for us--frequently the harp or percussion.  Last night we fixated on the oboe. It just seemed to be playing a most important part in many of the works. The oboist who so impressed us was Roy Beason.

We believe that those who entered the church as operatic non-believers left as converts!

(c) meche kroop

STUCK ON GLUCK

The plucky chamber opera company known as The Little Opera Theatre of NY has unearthed a little-known comic opera by Christoph Willibald Gluck; L'ivrogne corrigé, a short one-act piece premiered in Vienna in 1760, just two years before his well-known Orfeo ed Euridice.  The stock situation of a young couple whose romantic plans are obstructed by a guardian is familiar to us from literature and opera libretti.

The venue chosen, 59E59 Theater worked surprisingly well.  The sightlines are superb and Scenic Designer Neil Patel did a most effective job in dividing the small stage on the diagonal placing the musicians (comprising a string quartet with oboe and harpsichord) to one side and the operatic stage to the other. Nothing more was needed than a couple chairs, some hanging lights, and a wardrobe that doubled as a bed and a platform.  Costume Design by Lara de Bruijn was lovely and appropriate to the period.  Director Philip Shneidman kept the action lucid.

Herr Gluck wrote some gorgeous music here, some of it presaging his later works.  Conductor Richard Owen at the harpsichord brought out many subtleties in the score; it was oboist Slava Znatchenii who captured our ears most often, as well as first violinist Francisco Salazar.  The duet between the eponymous "hero" Mathurin, sung by tenor Anthony Wright Webb and his drinking buddy Lucas, sung by a very funny baritone Ron Loyd, involved some beautiful vocal blending.  A subsequent duet between Mathurine the tippler's wife, sung by mezzo Teresa Buchholz, and her niece Colette, sung by soprano Jessica Sandidge delighted the ear with its harmonies in major thirds--very appropriate for two women discussing the price women pay for marriage.

The plot centers around the two women plotting along with Cléon, Colette's love interest, sung by tenor Jonathan Winell, in an effort to forestall Mathurin's plan to marry Colette off to Lucas.  The three of them get the two unconscious drunkards onto the bed together (providing the audience with no small degree of laughter) then wake them and convince them they are dead; they then don masks and present themselves as Pluto and two furies who first condemn the men to the underworld but finally relent and allow them a reprieve if they beat each other.  Mathurin must promise to drink no more and to allow his niece to marry Cléon.

The singing was fine throughout, as was the acting.  Mr. Loyd was consistently hilarious.  Mr. Winell was a bit stolid as Cléon but made much more out of his playing the part of Pluto.  Diction was variable and therein lay the sole problem with this delightful evening.  The original libretto by Louis Anseaume and Jean-Baptiste Lourdet de Santerre was written in French in rhyming couplets.  Here we got a ham-handed translation by Ivana Mestrovic which did not scan and did not rhyme.  Musical accents and verbal accents seemed at war with one another.  The irony is that the plot is so straightforward that no one would have protested a performance in French, even without titles.  This was an (un)artistic decision which we failed to understand.

Nonetheless, it was an enjoyable evening and we count on the feisty Little Opera Theater of New York will bring us more undiscovered gems in the future.

(c) meche kroop