VIVA LA FRANCE

Michael Brofman, Kristina Bachrach, Miori Sugiyama, Steven LaBrie, Brent Funderburk, Chris Gross, Jill Sokol, Samantha Malk, and Jesse Blumberg

For their eighth season, Brooklyn Art Song Society is presenting La France, a series of recitals of French art song, a thorough exploration of France's contribution to this compelling art form--a happy marriage of text and music--a condition in which the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.

Last night's well chosen program focused on the music of two titans of this art form, Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel. The latter was born in 1875, fifteen years after the former and thus his music belongs squarely in the 20th c.

Founder and Artistic Director Michael Brofman not only performs on the piano but wrote the extensive and informative program notes which taught us things we didn't know.  For example, we have heard Ravel's cycle Don Quichotte a Dulcinee many times and Jacques Ibert's cycle Chansons de Don Quichotte only twice without knowing the full story. 

Here it is, courtesy of Mr. Brofman. Film director G.W. Pabst commissioned the cycle for a film he was directing and Ravel's ailing health prevented him from completing the commission; it was then given to Ibert. The three songs Ravel finished were published as a cycle. We are glad to have both!

He also explained why both Debussy and Ravel decried the use of the term Impressionism to describe their music. Their precise compositional style is anything but vague and perceptual but rather deep and descriptive. Beware the tendency to categorize!

For last night's exploration of Ravel and Debussy, Mr. Brofman assembled a stellar group of singers, all of whom are familiar to us and cherished for their contributions to vocal performance. The French was impeccable all around and the Gallic style was consistently captured.

The first half of the program was devoted to the melodies of Debussy. His cycle Chansons de Bilitis belongs to our all time favorites and was finely realized by mezzo-soprano Samantha Malk, whose consummate artistry made the subtleties of interpretation seem natural. 

We remember well the first time we realized that the three songs represent stages of a woman's life and that the singer must evolve from the innocence of girlhood through the sensual passion of young adulthood and on to the disillusionment that comes through the destruction of a shared dream.

This was achieved by Ms. Malk in a way that seemed effortless, with shifts from delicacy to the expansion of tone during the heights of passion. Miori Suiyama's pianism shifted right along with her in perfect partnership. Did we mention that Ms. Malk has a gorgeous instrument with which to accomplish this?

Accompanied by the wonderful Brent Funderburk on the piano, baritone Steven LaBrie entertained us next with the cycle Fetes galantes. The program notes list Mr. LaBrie as a lyric baritone but we heard a lot more going on in terms of texture and resonance. Undoubtedly his voice has grown since we first heard him several years ago and our companion thought he was headed toward bass-baritone. Whatever you call it, we found it mature and rich.

We particularly enjoyed the skillful variety of dynamics in "Clair de lune" in which Mr. Funderburk's piano limned moonlight, splashing fountains, and birdsong. In the first melodie "En sourdine", there was an unmistakeable nightingale in the postlude.

To soprano Kristina Bachrach fell the responsibility of bringing out all the melancholy of the cycle Ariettes oubliees, featuring the poetry of Paul Verlaine (also featured in Fetes galantes). These are mood pieces with "C'est l'extase langoureuse" evoking feelings of sensuality and languor.  Gallic melancolie permeated "L'ombre des arbres" and "Spleen" evoked desperation and vaguely unsettled feelings.

It takes a true artist like Ms. Bachrach to do justice to this cycle with its many shades of grey. Only the central song "Chevaux de bois" is filled with energy. The gayness is deceptive and seems to be masking deep seated feelings of the futility of life. Mr. Brofman's piano was particularly evocative there as the wooden horses turned round and round and, in "Il pleure dans mon coeur", as his fingers made the drops of rain fall.

The second half of the program was devoted to the works of Ravel and we were completely thrilled by baritone Jesse Blumberg's storytelling in the cycle Histoires naturelles, settings of text by Jules Renard. In this cycle, creatures are anthropomorphized for our delight and amusement. The texts are perceptive and indicates the poet's response to each critter.

Along with a true lyric baritone that falls beautifully on the ear, Mr. Blumberg is the possessor of considerable dramatic skills, preening like the peacock of "Le paon", gliding smoothly over the surface of the water like "Le cygne", and tormenting other fowl with defensive intent in "La pintade". 

Who has not had a special feeling of privilege when a wild creature comes close! The fisherman in "Le martin-pecheur" has just had that special moment and Mr. Blumberg and Mr. Brofman at the piano shared that moment with the audience.

Ms. Malk returned for the cycle Chansons madecasses which is rarely performed because of the unusual instrumentation necessary to create the exotic environment of Madagascar. Jill Sokol contributed to the multiple sonorities with flute and piccolo with Chris Gross' cello filling in with its own sensuality. Ms. Sugiyama has the softest hands and plays with delightful delicacy.

The multiple sonorities blended into a sea of sensuality in "Nahandove". "Aoua" is a painful anti-colonial rant and "Il est doux" describes a man lying about wanting entertainment and food from the women.  The melody was haunting.

The final cycle was the aforementioned Don Quichotte a Dulcinee performed by Mr. LaBrie and Mr. Funderburk. The range was a perfect fit for Mr. LaBrie's voice and he sang with deep commitment to the music and the text. "Chanson romanesque" is romantically worshipful whilst "Chanson epique" is spiritually devotional.

The final song "Chanson a boire'" is usually performed by the baritone pretending to be inebriated and staggering around the stage. Mr. LaBrie's take on it was more a celebration of joy and we liked that spin a great deal.

There will be four more concerts this season at the welcoming Brooklyn Historical Society which is easily reached by multiple subway lines. There will also be a bonus concert on December 1st at the Old Stone House, a charming venue.

B.A.S.S. keeps ticket prices low so that everyone can enjoy these recitals, which are always well planned and equally well executed. Those who come at 7:00 can avail themselves of lectures by experts in the field. One always sees a packed house!

(c) meche kroop

COME TO THE CABARET....IN BROOKLYN

Spencer Myer, Kristin Gornstein, Justine Aronson, Richard Valitutto, Samantha Malk, and Michael Brofman

Last night at the beautiful Brooklyn Historical Society, the Brooklyn Art Song Society presented their fifth and final entry in a season devoted to Vienna in the first half of the 20th c.  It was a time of decadence, intrigue, and radicalism....and marvelous music. Cabaret was the subject of last night's sold out performance and we enjoyed witnessing three singers we love pushing their boundaries.

Cabaret is a broad term but, in our opinion, it should be naughty and counter-culture. To our ears, it sounds best in German because of the sound and taste of the words as well as the facility with rhyming. Toward this end, soprano Justine Aronson's performance of Arnold Schoenberg's Brettl Lieder more than fulfilled our expectations.  We have heard his "Galathea" performed onstage but we have never heard it the way Ms. Aronson sang it, with devilish glee.

Although she used the loathed music stand, somehow she managed to incorporate ample gesture to accompany her ironic coloration and the song became completely new. We believe she plumbed the depths of meaning and came up with pearls. "Gigerlette" and "Der genugsame Liebhaber" were replete with doppelbedeutung. Richard Valitutto made a fine collaborative pianist.

Her performance of a set of French cabaret songs was a far different affair--not satirical but soulful. We particularly enjoyed Edith Piaf's "La Vie en Rose", Poulenc's "Les chemins de l'amour",  and Erik Satie's "Je te veux" -- but it is Piaf's "Padam padam" that keeps going around in our head.  It's a song that we first heard sung by Kim David Smith who performs a totally different type of cabaret. The piano accompaniment of Artistic Director and Founder Michael Brofman sounded just right.

Mezzo-soprano Kristin Gornstein is well known to us from Heartbeat Opera, so we have never seen her without extravagant makeup design. Last night was the first time we heard her in recital format, although that word fails to describe the intense performance she gave of Kurt Weill's music, for which Berthold Brecht wrote the lyrics. Mr. Valitutto's piano was forceful but never overwhelmed the voice.

We far prefer "Mack the Knife" in German but Marc Blitzstein's translation is quite good and Ms. Gornstein made every word count.  In "The Ballad of Sexual Obsession" there was plenty of ad libbing, about a man with an orange face and stringy yellow hair, that had the audience laughing out loud. This topicality meets a major requirement of cabaret!

Accompanied by Spencer Myer,  mezzo-soprano Samantha Malik performed a set of songs by William Bolcom, making each song into a little opera. The songs are mainly about contemporary society. Ms. Malik's interpretations were all right on point--romantic disappointment, a party turned sour, an overnight date that lasted too long. The most familiar of the set was "Amor" which we have often heard and enjoyed as an encore number. But the hymn-like "Waitin'", short, sweet, perfectly written and sung, seemed out of place with the other songs.

Ms. Malik also performed some songs by Benjamin Britten, settings of texts by W.H. Auden. They were fine songs but did not strike us as cabaret.  Perhaps we need to broaden our definition but we found them lacking in satire and naughtiness.

Although this was the conclusion of the series on Viennese music, B.A.S.S. is not finished with their season. On March 31st there will be a fine program of Debussy, Hahn, Poulenc and Heggie at National Sawdust.

(c) meche kroop

SONGFUSION--Personified

Eric Sedgwick, Michael Kelly, Mary Mackenzie, and Samantha Malk

We have reviewed baritone Michael Kelly's performances on many prior occasions and have always been impressed, not only by the satiny quality of his voice but by his perfect diction and his ability to tell a story in a meaningful way.  This was the first time we have been witness to his talents as an impresario or producer.  Last night he curated an evening of songs at The National Opera Center. The photographer Matthew Morrocco, inspired by the songs, contributed photographs that were projected above the singers.  The songs in the program were in turn inspired by and organized according to the Chinese zodiac, involving not just animals but elements of nature.  The program notes were fascinating.

Mr. Kelly was joined by two outstanding young women whose vocal and dramatic skills matched his own. Mary Mackenzie has that bright shiny soprano that we love to listen to and Samantha Malk's mellow mezzo rested easily on the ear.  Both of them demonstrated the same superb diction as Mr. Kelly, making sense of works we have heard before and not cared much about.  Piano partner Eric Sedgwick showed a sensitivity of touch and great versatility, working equally well with the modern and the traditional.

As readers already know, our taste runs toward the traditional so it is no accident that our favorite songs fell into that category.  Ms. Mackenzie and Ms. Malk performed a marvelous duet by Brahms entitled "Jägerlied", exchanging question and answer.  Mr. Kelly's delivery of the fatalistic "Der Tannenbaum" by Richard Wagner was chilling and emotional.  Neither did he stint on the menace of Schoenberg's "Warnung"; it made us shiver.

Fauré's "Eau Vivante", a tribute to a spring, was given a beautifully bright and clear delivery by Ms. Mackenzie.  We understood every word of her French, even though the range was rather high.  She also excelled in Poulenc's "Tu vois le feu du soir", making good use of enough dynamic variety to make the several verses interesting.  

We enjoyed Ms. Malk the most in Brahms' "Von Ewiger Liebe", a song that always touches our heart.  She is a born storyteller and drew us in.  In terms of storytelling, however, nothing matched Mr. Kelly's dramatic telling of Hugo Wolf's "Der Feuerreiter", a song filled with horror.

In the category of more modern pieces, we liked Copland's "The Little Horses" in which Ms. Mackenzie made vivid contrast between the gentle soothing verses and the lively description of the types of horses the child would wake to have.  We like English best when good use is made of the clever rhymes it allows (as in Gilbert and Sullivan) so it is no surprise that we loved the humorous "Judged by the Company One Keeps" by David Sisco--given a sensational delivery by Mr. Kelly.

Of all the Britten songs on the program, we far preferred "A Charm", a setting of a 17th c. text by Thomas Randolf.  Ms. Malk gave it an intense delivery and captured the irony of trying to terrify a child into sleep!  But we also were quite taken with Britten's "Silver" because of the lovely poetry by de la Mare; Mr. Kelly made generous use of word coloring to enhance the effect. 

The program tied each song to an animal and/or an element, surely an unusual way to organize a program.  It had the effect of making us search our own Chinese zodiac sign on Google.  We like Western astrology better!  Although the concept of music inspiring photography, we did not succeed at grasping the connections and preferred to focus on the glorious voices.

© meche kroop 

BACK TO THE 19th CENTURY

What a splendid evening we enjoyed pretending we were in a long dress at a musicale chez Herr Franz Schubert, listening to friends singing the songs he dashed off that day with the maestro himself at the piano!  But no, it is 2013 and we were visiting the spacious digs of one of the co-Artistic Directors of Schubert@Co. listening to three lovely ladies with gorgeous voices and two talented pianists.

The lovely lady #1, soprano Devon Guthrie, showed off some new darker colors, most appropriate to the sad songs she performed--Schiller's poetry for "Des Mädchen's Klage" and Kenner's "Grablied".  Lovely lady #2, Australian soprano Elena Perroni sang threee lieder which were settings of poetry by von Leitner--songs related to finding comfort in nature, in tears and in nostalgia for childhood.  In the strophic "Die Sterne", we enjoyed the repetitive rising pattern brought out by Bretton Brown's fine pianism.  Ms. Perroni continued with two settings of Metastasio poetry, showing off her fine Italian.  We could easily believe that Rossini was sitting next to Schubert when he wrote these bel canto inflected lieder.

Lovely lady #3, mezzo Samantha Malk, accompanied by the wonderful  Dimitri Dover, sang the one familiar lied on the program, Craigher de Jachelutta's "Die junge Nonne"; Mr. Dover perfectly reflected the change of mood from tormented to peaceful.  This was quite a change from the humorous "Das Echo", setting of poetry by Castelli; Ms. Malk is quite the story-teller and we loved the tale of the young woman who blames the echo for her falling into a romance with her suitor.  Translations were totally unnecessary, given Ms. Malk's fine diction and dramatic skills.

It was a memorable recital and the evening finished off with some more informal singing, much as we imagined Schubert would have had at his musicales so long long ago.  We felt connected to a lovely unbroken tradition.  May it continue!

(c) meche kroop

SCHUBERT, IMMER SCHUBERT

Dimitri Dover, Samantha Malk, Abigail Levis, Jonathan Estabrooks

Another splendid evening of Schubert lieder drew us out of our cozy home on a bitter cold evening and sent us back out on the street with lots of warmth in our heart.  How fortunate to have two marvelous mezzos and a brilliant baritone interpreting more of Schubert's glorious music.  We are always impressed by the wealth of vocal talent unearthed by Artistic Directors Jonathan Ware and Lachlan Glen.  Since both of them are doing exciting things in Europe this week, we had a chance to hear two other excellent piano partners--Dimitri Dover and Brent Funderburk who departed before the photo could be organized.

The program for the evening comprised Schubert's settings of poetry by August von Platen-Hallermuende, Franz Xaver Schlechta von Wschehrd (just try to wrap your mouth around that name), Ludwig Gotthard Kosegarten, Johann Friedrich Rochlitz and Karl Gottfried Ritter von Leitner.  Whatever the poetry, Schubert's settings illuminate the imagery.

Abigail Levis used her lovely voice and personality to enliven Mr. von Platen-Hallermuende's two sad songs of disappointed love, and went on to Mr. Schlechta's sad "Auf einen Kirchhof" with its many mood shifts.  We loved the ballad "Des Frauleins Liebeslauschen" and were taken with Mr. Funderburk's piano accompaniment in "Aus Diego Manazares".

Samantha Malk, accompanied by Mr. Dover, continued with a selection of lieder, setting of poetry by Mr. Kosegarten.  Ms. Malk has a fully developed mezzo sound and interpreted the songs with deep feeling and fine German diction.

Mr. Dover accompanied baritone Jonathan Estabrooks and both excelled during "Fischerweise" in which the subject of the verse can catch all manner of fish, but not the shepherdess standing on the shore. "Totengraber-Weise", the gravedigger's song, was understandably less cheerful!  Mr. Estabrooks' fine baritone and compassionate interpretation made every song come alive.

Anyone who loves Schubert will find uplift in these recitals.  If you attended one of them, you surely have returned for more.  And if for any reason you have overlooked them, you will regret the lost opportunity to hear every one of Schubert's 600-plus songs.  The next recital will be 6PM on 2/24 at Central Presbyterian Church, 64th and Park Avenue.

(c) meche kroop

DALTON BALDWIN MASTER CLASS

As part of The Song Continues, the venerable Dalton Baldwin offered a master class of inestimable value.  There is no one alive today that we know of who has as much to offer in the art of French chanson.  He was able to divide his attention equally among four superb singers and four equally talented collaborative pianists.  No one failed to profit by his suggestions and gentle guidance.  His unassuming and humble manner made the medicine go down very easily.

Participating singers were sopranos Pureum Jo, Emily Siar and Meghan Lindsay, mezzo-soprano Samantha Malk and tenor Brenton Ryan.  Participating collaborative pianists were Ronny Michael Greenberg, Dylan Perez , Saule Tlenchiyeva and Peter Walsh.

It's the little refinements that change a very good performance into a great one.  Even inexperienced members of the audience could not fail to hear the difference made by Mr. Baldwin's tutelage.  What a privilege to learn so much by observation!

(c) meche kroop