MUSIC BEATS POLITICS

Fernando Cisneros, Riccardo Gatto, Sandra Buongrazio, Meixu Lu, Xiaojie Fan, Feifei Yang, Jiajun Hong, Yuxiao Chen, Xiaofen Min, Jinghan Zhang, Zhongbei Wu, and Qian Liang

Last night's glorious concert at Weill Recital Hall spoke to us loud and clear.  "What the world needs now is more music and less politics." Where politics is divisive, music unites.  Thanks to Blossom Season International Culture Media, a creation of baritone/pianist Jiajun Hong and his beautiful wife soprano Jinghan Zhang, we heard a delightful melding of Chinese, American, and European traditions in music.

The first half of the program was a splendid introduction to the predominantly Chinese audience of opera from Italy and France, as well as German operetta. It was wise to choose selections from Verdi, Puccini, Mozart, Bizet, Donizetti, and Lehar. Every selection was tuneful and accessible, not to mention superbly performed.

Opening the program was Ms. Zhang, whose luminescent soprano was well matched by the silky baritone of Fernando Cisneros, whose impeccable linguistic skills are a product of some intense work with Classic Lyric Arts programs. They performed "Pronto io son" from Donizetti's Don Pasquale.

Mr. Cisneros made an impressively virile Escamillo in Bizet's Carmen, strutting around the stage with just the right degree of self confidence, bordering on arrogance.  He went on to command the stage as Figaro in "Non più andrai" from Mozart's Nozze di Figaro. It was a treat to see him take on such a variety of roles, inhabiting each one as if he owned it.

Mezzo-soprano Sandra Buongrazio threw herself into her performance of Carmen's "Habanera" with all the right moves and a smoky sound that was just right.

We liked her even more in "O don fatale" from Verdi's Don Carlo in which the larger than life Princess Eboli shows her remorse for entrapping her Queen. The overtones filled the hall and we noticed how Mr. Hong's piano and Ms. Bunograzio's voice changed color at the same point in the aria.

Having just seen Puccini's Tosca at The Metropolitan Opera, we were very ready to hear an alternative interpretation of "Vissi d'arte" and enjoyed Ms. Buongrazio's passion and commitment, emphasized with dynamic variety.

It is always a treat to hear a tenor who sings with ease and Riccardo Gatto is just such an artist. Tenors risk a great deal when they take on an aria made famous by Luciano Pavarotti. Mr. Gatto owes no apologies for his very excellent performance of "Che gelida manina" from Puccini's La Bohème. It was performed with all the ardor of a young writer trying to impress a new woman.

In "Nessun dorma" his color changed completely and his performance was expansive, in keeping with the expression of Prince Calaf.

The quartet from Verdi's Rigoletto is a real showstopper and almost always appears on programs by Judith Fredrick's Opera New York. It shows off all four fachs and requires exquisite balance among them.  In this case, Ms. Zhang, Ms. Buongrazio, Mr. Gatto, and Mr. Cisneros were well matched and balanced.

The second half of the program brought some very special treats. The stage was filled with Chinese musical instruments commingled with Western ones. Our evenings spent reviewing Chinese music were excellent preparation for recognizing the haunting bamboo flute, the elaborate zither-like guzheng, the slender erhu, and the gorgeous pipa, which is plucked upright.

We heard the premiere of Qian Liang's "Spring's rosy color fades from forest flowers".  Oh, if only contemporary American composers could be as melodic! Ms. Zhang sang it with tender word painting, and was no less lovely in a Xin Jiang Folk Song "Si Lian" that had the feeling of a barcarolle but was actually about longing.  Still...our thoughts turned to Venice and Rossini.

Mr. Hong and Ms. Zhang seemed to be celebrating their own love in "Lippen schweigen" from Lehar's Die Lustige Witwe.  Mr. Hong left the piano and sang the duet with his wife; we even got a waltz!

We wondered who wrote the arrangements of Western music for the interesting ensemble of piano, cello, violin, bamboo flute, erhu, pipa and guzheng. This genius' name is Wenhao Pei and he deserves a lot of credit.

The program closed with three Italian songs.  Mr. Gatto let loose with "Non ti scordar di me", written for Beniamino Gigli by Ernesto de Curtis, and popularized in our generation by Mr. Pavarotti. The singer subtly enhanced his vibrato for this piece and was accompanied by Xiaojie Fan's exquisite violin solo. Mr. Curtis was also the composer of "Torna a Surriento". Eduardo di Capua was the composer of the final selection "O sole mio" in which the entire ensemble participated.

Praise must be offered to Xiaopeng Teng who directed the opera scenes.

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RENÉE FLEMING MASTER CLASS

Renée Fleming and Lindsay Mecher

The Song Continues 2018

Renée Fleming Master Class

The Marilyn Horne Legacy at Carnegie Hall

(All photos by Richard Termine)

The Song Continues will continue with Renée Fleming at the helm.

Boya Wei and Ms. Fleming

 What we observed at her master class last week reassured us that the program is in excellent hands.

Ms. Fleming's master class was fascinating for the audience and participants alike.  The audience got to see how much hard work goes into taking a song from an "8" to a "9".

Cameron Richardson Eames and Brea Marshal

Each participant received a highly personalized set of tools with which to work, some of which will improve their singing in general and others which were specific to a particular song.

We liked the way she asked each young singer to introduce herself and to tell why she chose a particular song. In nearly every case, the choice had particular value for the singer and informed her performance.

So many of the practice techniques could be picked up and used by the numerous singers who were in the audience. We personally had never heard of vocalizing through a drinking straw but were impressed about how successful it was in achieving a pianissimo in the upper register.

Another tip was to vocalize with a pencil between the upper and lower teeth. One singer, bothered by tightness in the tongue was helped by vocalizing with her tongue stretched way out.

A good way to convey the meaning of a song was to recite the text in colloquial English and then to sing it.

Students who ignored the composers markings gained a great deal by exaggerating the markings. Often, when they thought they were exaggerating, it sounded just right to our ears!

Young singers tend to put too much effort into their singing and they were shown how to lighten up.  Not every word is important and the singer should not give it all up at the beginning but rather must save something for the important word in a phrase.

A lieder is like a 3-minute opera and the singer must tell a story.

Soprano Brea Marshall opened the program, accompanied by Cameron Richardson-Eames. Ms. Fleming worked with her on bringing out the nostalgia and eroticism of Joseph Marx' "Selige nacht". We have always wondered why Marx' lovely songs are not heard on more recital programs!

In Ricky Ian Gordon's setting of Emily Dickinson's "Will there really be a morning", some playfulness is called for and each questioning phrase needed a different value.

Soprano Boya Wei was accompanied by Christina Giuca and performed the lovely "Apparition" by Debussy.  She was encouraged to "taste" the French. This reminded us of performances we have thrilled to in which the singer did seem to savor the flavor of the language being sung.

Ms. Fleming urged her to take the risk of floating the high note. Here's where the drinking straw technique came in handy as a means of practicing.

Mezzo-soprano Lindsay Mecher followed with Richard Strauss' "Befreit" in which pianist Richard Jeric produced some wonderful arpeggi. Ms. Mecher was urged to say something instead of trying to create a sound. In facing a challenging vowel, the tongue exercise was used to get the muscle tension out of the way.

This is an incredibly difficult song and the singer must listen for the harmonic changes and establish a feeling of intimacy.  Breath control is very important here and it is helpful to substitute resonance and color for over-breathing.

Soprano Isabella Moore, accompanied by Andrew King, worked on Richard Strauss' "Ruhe, meine Seele".  The portentous piano seemed to create the storms  of the soul and the singer can paint a picture of the calming elements of nature.

It seems to us that with master teachers like Ms. Fleming and with talented and hard working young singers, the future of art song is promising.

As we mentioned in our last review, Marilyn Horne has devoted a lifetime to championing the art of the song. Ms. Fleming seems to be the perfect choice to carry the mission forward.

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HONORING MARILYN HORNE

Warren Jones, Martin Katz, Nicole Cabell, Susanna Phillips, Beste Kalender, Isabel Leonard, Marilyn Horne, Leonardo Capalbo, Russell Thomas, Lester Lynch, and Edward Parks

Music lovers from all over the world come to Carnegie Hall every January for The Song Continues. This year is Marilyn Horne's last year as artistic advisor; the celebration was a bittersweet one in which singers she has fostered heaped gratitude upon her but also shed some tears as well, as did members of the audience. Anyone who loves the art of the song owes a huge debt to Ms. Horne for going the full mile to see that this art form survives.

We ourselves have attended The Song Continues for the past 15 years at Carnegie Hall. Before then we heard her young singers at St. Bartholomew's Church and before that at the Kosciuszko Foundation. We have lost count of all the incredibly talented singers to whom she has introduced us. But we will be eternally grateful to her for her devoted service to the field.

For yesterday's celebration, eight splendid singers graced the stage of Zankel Hall and performed a program that only hints at the scope of art song; it held the audience spellbound for a good two hours, or should we say a wonderful two hours.

If there were one quality all the singers had in common it was the ability to inhabit a song and turn each one into what Renée Fleming, in her master class of the prior day, called a "3-minute opera". These singers were all storytellers and did not rely solely upon their vocal gifts to entertain us. Rather, they used their artistry to pull us into the world of the poet and that of the composer.

Opening the program was mezzo-soprano Beste Kalender who used facial expression and ample gesture to carry us to Reynaldo Hahn's Venice. She chose three selections from his Venezia. We loved the romantic "La barcheta" for its stunning vocalise and "Che peca!" for its wry humor. The songs were sung in Venetian dialect and delighted us thoroughly.

Leonardo Capalbo has always tantalized us with his garlic-infused tenor and yesterday he introduced us to a trio of songs by Pietro Mascagni; we always love hearing songs that have been undeservedly neglected on concert programs. There was a lovely pianissimo in "Serenata" which was matched by pianistic delicacy on the part of the peerless Warren Jones whose artistry supported the four singers on the first half of the program. Mr. Capalbo invested the songs with dynamic variety.

Baritone Edward Parks, whose performance of the role of Steve Jobs in The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs was so completely honest and believable, performed three songs by Charles Ives. "In the Alley" is a wry look at an unrequited infatuation-- and a lot of fun. Not so much fun was "General William Booth Enters into Heaven" which made us feel as if we were missing something. "Berceuse", on the other hand, showed off the lovely soothing quality of his instrument.

Closing the first half of the program was the lovely Susanna Phillips whose soprano always gives us pleasure and whose interpretations are always spot on. She gave us three songs by Richard Strauss. "Muttertänderlei" is a cute song about an overly proud mother whose child is, of course, exceptional. The passionate "Cäcilie" was given an enthusiastic reading, but it was "Morgen" that brought us to our knees. Mr. Jones took a slower tempo than usual and played with an ethereal delicacy that created an otherworldly mood, causing us to question our assumptions about the text. We love an interpretation that shows us something new! Ms. Phillips' singing sustained the mood.

For the second half of the program, Martin Katz took over as collaborative pianist. Soprano Nicole Cabell chose three selections by three different composers to show off three different styles. "Del cabello más sutil" is perfumed with sensuousness and comes from Fernando Obradors' Canciones clasicas españolas; it contains some marvelous melismatic writing, beautifully negotiated by Ms. Cabell. Henri Duparc's "Chanson triste" created a tender mood, and Ricky Ian Gordon's "Joy" gave the singer an opportunity to be more expansive. Ms. Cabell shows a deep understanding of what she is singing about.

Lester Lynch has a big baritonal sound that we almost called baronial. There is so much power there that Mr. Katz could pull out all the stops without holding back. The voice is well suited to Schubert's "Gruppe aus dem Tartarus" and to Barber's "I hear an army"; but we preferred the tenderness he exhibited in Brahm's "Wie bist du, meine Königen", a lovely romantic tribute.

Tenor Russell Thomas opened his set with Stefano Donaudy's familiar ode "O del mio amato ben", causing us to look at his bio to make sure he is a tenor. It sounded great but not nearly as tenorial as his performance of two Tosti songs which followed--"Non t'amo più" and "L'alba sepàra dalla luce l'ombra"--a memorable performance indeed.

The program ended with the matchless mezzo-soprano Isabel Leonard singing a heartfelt rendition of "Take Care of This House" from Bernstein's 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.  Of course the song is about The White House which could use some care right now, but we also took it to mean caring for Carnegie Hall, our cultural house.  She also sang "Greeting" from Arias and Barcarolles but when she got to the final selection "Somewhere" from West Side Story, she asked the audience to sing along with her--a capella!

There were two notable encores: Warren Jones dedicated his amazing arrangement of Stephen Foster's "Beautiful Dreamer" (one of her signature songs) to Ms. Horne and the entire cast raised their voices in tribute. We have never appreciated the song so dearly!

Mr. Katz also contributed an encore, Richard Strauss' "Zueignung".

We do not want to leave our readers thinking that Ms. Horne is retiring or anything that unbelievable.  Although Renée Fleming will take over the helm of The Marilyn Horne Legacy at Carnegie Hall, Ms. Horne will likely stay involved. Similarly, Ms. Horne is retiring as director of the voice program at Music Academy of the West but will stay involved there as well. When you are that large and generous a personality, you just can't stop giving!

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MAESTRO YANNICK NÉZET-SÉGUIN'S MASTER CLASS AT JUILLIARD

Jacob Scharfman, Onadek Winan, William Guanbo Su, Dominik Belavy, Kathryn Henry, Meghan Kasanders, John Chongyoon Noh and Maestro Yannick Nézet-Séguin (photos by Claudio Papapietro)

Yesterday's Master Class at Juilliard was somewhat of a departure from the typical master class for singers. The audience was welcomed by Brian Zeger, Artistic Director of the Vocal Arts Department. He prepared observers by saying that this would not be a one-on-one event with an individual getting coaching on a prepared aria. It would be a renowned conductor (Music Director elect of the Metropolitan Opera) teaching Juilliard Singers how to perform in an ensemble.

The Maestro is a highly engaging presence, filled with humor as well as prodigious artistic knowledge and experience; it was deeply satisfying to witness how the students trusted his judgment and followed his suggestions.

The highlight of the class was the septet from Act I of Mozart's Don Giovanni. This highly elaborate piece of writing makes different demands on each singer. Each character has a different intention.

Donna Anna (soprano Meghan Kasanders) and her intended Don Ottavio (tenor John Chongyoon Noh) are praying for divine protection in "Protegga il giusto cielo". The maestro suggested more direction from Ms. Kasanders. Donna Elvira (soprano Kathryn Henry) needed more "fire".

The rapid-fire duet between Don Giovanni (baritone Dominik Belavy) and Leporello (bass William Guanbo Su--being reviewed for the third time this week!) was greatly improved when the two of them got in rhythm and in tune with each other. 

Zerlina (soprano Onadek Winan) needed to exhibit repressed anger. Masetto (baritone Jacob Scharfman) was helped to get into character and coached to put different colors and emphasis on the repeated "Va bene!".

We confess that we were happy with the first run through but after hearing the improvements we were thrilled. The gifted pianist Michal Biel can always be counted on to accompany skillfully.

We also got to hear two different singers perform the roles of Donna Anna and Don Ottavio in their first act duet "Ma qual mai s'offre oh Dei...Fuggi crudele, fuggi". Their voices were magnificent! They were coached to trust Mozart's dynamics (didn't we just hear that at last night's master class?). Jinhee Park did her customary fine accompaniment on the piano.

Subtle changes can make a big difference and we agree with the maestro that the singer must draw people in. Much of the work was on using the breath to amplify the gestures.  Used judiciously, it can be used to highlight emotional breathlessness.

We also enjoyed the coaching for the marriage scene from Gounod's Roméo et Juliette. Soprano Tamara Banješević was encoouraged to be an excited 14 year old girl. The entire scene needed to be more intimate and less "ceremonial".  Vocal colors were encouraged to avoid a "four square" sound. Too many singers establish a color and then abandon it too soon. 

Bass Alex Rosen made a fine Friar Lawrence and tenor James Ley did well as Roméo with mezzo-soprano Myka Murphy portraying Gertrude. Art Williford accompanied beautifully.

The class closed with some questions from the audience and some general remarks from the maestro about how exceptional vocal and language preparation allows the singer the freedom to personalize his/her performance. The result is the alignment of heart and mind. We couldn't agree more!

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GRAHAM JOHNSON MASTER CLASS

Master Teacher Graham Johnson

What Graham Johnson doesn't know about the art of the song would fit in a thimble.  How can one distill such wisdom into a few paragraphs! 

Last night's master class was part of The Song Continues 2018, a festival celebrating the art of the vocal recital.  For the past twenty years we have been enjoying this festival initiated by the the Marilyn Horne Foundation and now presented by the Weill Music Institute, as part of the Marilyn Horne legacy at Carnegie Hall.

With his plummy British accent Mr. Johnson shared his vast experience with four young singers. From our standpoint, the most interesting information regarded the differences of style necessary to do justice to Mozart, Schubert, Schumann, Wolf, and Brahms. All of the selections offered were sung in German and we are pleased that all of the students sang in fine German, with only an occasional lapse in the area of the final "ch".

Regarding the final singer on the program, superb mezzo-soprano Siena Licht Miller had the benefit of a German-speaking mother and was thereby so at ease with the language that she was able to devote her attention elsewhere, giving a splendid performance of two songs by Brahms.

Unlike the obsessive attention to markings by Hugo Wolf, Brahms took a freer approach and left much to the artistry of the singer in terms of rubato and spontaneous shaping. Ms. Miller's collaborative pianist Richard Jeric was encouraged to produce more effulgence in the accompaniment. The texts dealt with unrequited love and the freedom sounded just right.

Two songs by Hugo Wolf were performed by the splendid soprano Devony Smith, accompanied by Christina Giuca. The pair worked well together in these settings of texts by Goethe from Wilhelm Meisters Lehrjahre. Indeed, Mr. Johnson brought with him a book of that epoch that contained inserts of the songs! He marked this book as one that strongly influenced German literature of the 19th c.

Wolf's music, as opposed to the gentle Schubert setting, portrays Mignon in all her high strung glory, an innocent creature abused and betrayed, as vulnerable as Ophelia in Hamlet.  Mr. Johnson saw this portrayal of psychological trauma as an anticipation of the discoveries of Freud. He is as well informed about literature and history as he is about music!

Ms. Smith captured this near madness and vulnerability very well; having translated the songs herself contributed to her ability to convey the feelings of Goethe's text. We particularly enjoyed the pianistic artistry of Ms. Giuca.

Hannah Rose Kidwell has a sizable soprano instrument with an interesting vibrato that makes one sit up and take notice. Her selections were by Robert Schumann whose composition of lieder took off along with his romance with Clara. There were many opportunities for variations of color in his "Widmung" (text by Rückert) which needs to be sung with intimacy, as if directed toward only one person, not the entire audience.

The tessitura is low for a soprano but Ms. Kidwell handled it well. Mr. Johnson made a good case for humility before the text and encouraged the pianist Andrew King to set the stage for the singer. He made a good point that vocal color comes from the imagination. Justinus Kerner's text for "Stille Tränen" tells us about the inner sadness of those who seem happy on the outside. This is a very different song from "Widmung"!

Songs by Mozart and Schubert made up the remainder of the evening. Mr. Johnson wants to hear Mozart with very little pedal and then, only for color.  "Abendempfindung" is profound and the color must be one of regret and acceptance, not bombastic tragedy. It should not be romanticized.

Mezzo-soprano Veronika Anissimova was accompanied for her performance by Cameron Richardson Eames, who was coached to keep the piano light when accompanying a light voice. It takes discipline to know what not to include in a performance.  One might say "less is more".

Schubert's "Im Frühling" actually follows a "theme and variations" model. The mood of regretful acceptance is quite similar to the Mozart. The performance needed to be bigger without being louder. More energy and more confidence were called for.  

Some general remarks by Mr. Johnson are well worth remembering.  In the performance of art song, the text takes precedence. The singer must emphasize human understanding and compassion for the human condition. The singer must be a spokesperson for the poet and foster a conjunction of the text and the music. Each poet and each composer is different.

There is no conductor to obey in this art form. The singer must make a full investment and maintain ownership of the performance, whilst exchanging energy with the pianist. The performance must be in the service of the poet and the composer. This requires empathy with the past. The singer is filtering the words and the music through the self.

As we reflect back on lieder performances that have grabbed us by the throat and made us feel the full range of human feeling, we must acknowledge that the singer seemed but a conduit and we experienced the text as speaking directly to us in the most intimate fashion.

This must be the most difficult art form!

There will be another master class tonight so stay tuned.  No doubt Renée Fleming will have a very different but equally valuable approach.

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DOUBLY TALENTED

Minjung Jung and Ji Yung Lee at uilliard Morse Hall

Last night was a chance for Ji Yung Lee to shine with dual artistry. She appeared first as a singer, offering three selections from Richard Strauss' Mädchenblumen in which the text compares different flowers to different types of women. This is an opportunity for the singer to exhibit different colors and moods, which this lovely soprano had no difficulty achieving.

Her bright soprano sounded beautiful in the upper register, but we could best appreciate her facility with German in "Epheu" which has a lower tessitura.  Our only complaint was the use of the music stand. This loathed piece of stage furniture was used for the entire recital, to our dismay. The collaborative pianist for the Strauss was the excellent Minjung Jung.

For the remainder of the program, Ms. Lee served as collaborative pianist; it would be an understatement to say that we are impressed when an artist can do justice to two fields. 

Her accompaniment of bass William Guanbo Su was excellent; she has a real feel for Brahms. We confess to a certain antipathy for this composer's  Vier Ernste Gesänge largely due to their pious nature. The Bible comes in last in our appreciation of literature. We far prefer the sanguine Brahms with his lighthearted folk songs and ironic romantic despair.

That being said, a wonderful singer can nudge our appreciation in a positive direction and this was accomplished by Mr. Su whose richly textured instrument and expressive coloration went a long way toward alleviating the tedium of the preachy text.  He was particularly fine in the lowest end of the register.  Now, if only he could abandon the music stand!

If mezzo-soprano Marie Engle continued this connection-blocking habit, we were feeling more tolerant since she was a last minute replacement for the ailing Kady Evanyshyn. We are sure she has studied Schumann's Frauenliebe und -leben for some time, however, because she invested the work with all the various moods and colors called for by the text.

Ms. Engle has a pleasant voice quality and a fine command of German. Her interpretation of the earlier songs dealing with naiveté, excitement and girlish glee were right on point. That she was also able to convey shock and sorrow came as a surprise to us since that emotion is more difficult to convey by acting. In the final song, she employed a wider vibrato that added to the depiction of grief and despair.

It was in the affecting major/minor shifts that the two artists showed their stuff, leading to a very effective performance in spite of the music stand! We would love to hear this pair perform the same cycle off the book.  Put it on my wishlist!

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OPERA INDEX GALA

Michael Fennelly, Brittany Nickell, Tamara Banjesevic, James Ley, Bryan Murray, Courtney Johnson, William Guanbo Su, and Jane Shaulis

Sunday evening was special for many reasons. The Opera Index Gala is a golden opportunity to socialize with fellow opera lovers in the beautiful Essex House on Central Park South. Most of the luminaries of the opera world were in attendance. 

It is also a chance to witness the future of opera by hearing six stellar singers who filled our ears with music in between salad and steak.  Trust us! With talent like this, one needn't worry about the future of opera.

Mistress of ceremonies was Opera Index President Jane Shaulis who did a fine job keeping the evening moving along briskly and giving due honors to the lovely Mignon Dunn, recipient of the Opera Index 2018 Distinguished Achievement Award. Both women possess the gracious and dynamic presence so specific to great singers.

Opera Index is a nonprofit volunteer organization with a mission to advocate for opera and support its artists. The six singers who so delighted us at the gala were among a group of sixteen young artists who received a total of $55,000. in awards. You too, dear reader, can be a member of this fine organization for the paltry membership fee of $45/year. Members have a number of activities to enjoy and share with other opera lovers.

As is our wont, we will focus on the singers and the songs, not on the amounts of the awards. The recital opened with the sparkling soprano Tamara Banjesevic who enchanted the members with Juliette's paean to life "Je veux vivre" from Charles Gounod's Roméo et Juliette. She let loose volleys of joy in fine French as she left the stage and circulated between the tables just as Juliette might have done at her birthday party.

Baritone Bryan Murray evinced oceanic depths of feeling in his performance of "Mein Sehnen mein Wähnen" from Erich Korngold's Die tote Stadt. His mellifluous baritone was well suited to the requisite sincerity of expression. His fine phrasing, superb German diction, and dynamic variety made for a splendid performance.

Soprano Courtney Johnson's performance of "Come scoglio" from Mozart's Cosi fan tutte revealed a vocal firmness that echoed Fiordiligi's firmness of character (at least at this point of the opera). This firmness extended from the bottom to the top of her register, allowing the wide skips of this difficult aria to be successfully negotiated. An impressive ease in the fioritura was icing on this delectable cake.

James Ley has the sweetest tenor which he put to good use in "Vainement, ma bien-aimée" from Edouard Lalo's rarely performed opera Le roi d'Ys. (Interestingly, one of the luminaries in attendance at the Gala was Eve Queler who conducted her Opera Orchestra of New York in a concert version of this opera in 1985!) Although this opera is in no way comedic, this particular aria is a love song sung by the knight Mylio to his lady love and Mr. Ley's light touch and delicate French were perfect, as was the accompaniment by pianist Michael Fennelly, who can always be counted on for taking his lead from the singer. 

Bass William Guanbo Su is one of those young basses whose advanced vocal development belies their youth. Considered a late maturing fach, it is tempting to mentally cast him in all kinds of marvelous roles with a lengthy and enduring career. He sang "Vi ravviso", Count Rodolfo's Act I aria from Bellini's La Sonnambula and he totally convinced us that he was a man returning to the beautiful land of his childhood. It was a completely wonderful performance.

Closing the entertainment portion of the evening was soprano Brittany Nickell who employed her fine instrument with intense expressivity in "Robert, toi que j'aime" from Meyerbeer's Robert le Diable. There was ample brilliance at the top and Mr. Fennelly's piano matched the singer's urgency. We particularly admired the very fine vibrato which suited the aria perfectly.

Having heard six such excellent singers at the Gala, and a few more at the November Membership Party, we commend the judges for their fine choices. We would have happily exchanged our steak for more music! But we suppose that the belly demands its due as well as the ears and the heart.

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