THE DRAMA OF THE LIED

 

Lara Saldanha, Victoria Falcone, and Nina Riley (photo by Andrew Bisdale)

If you were fortunate enough to have attended Dell'Arte Opera Ensemble's concert last night at the A.R.T. Center you would have experienced what a lieder recital can and should be. In a program conceived by Maestro Chris Fecteau, each set of songs became a mini opera, since each set had a theme.

There was an overall unity to the program since all of the texts were written by Paul Heyse who translated them from Italian--hence the title of the concert Italienische Liederbuch. Most fans of lieder have heard Heyse's poetry as set  by Hugo Wolf under that very name. But many of us, ourself included, did not know the wealth of material set by other composers. 

We did, of course, know that other German texts have been given multiple settings by different composers but this assemblage had a dramatic intent, the realization of which was an original and effective undertaking. Although no director was listed in the program, we will hazard a guess that Mo. Fecteau undertook the task and it was a fine undertaking indeed.

The material was not organized by composer, but rather organized along the principle of theme, so each listener was swept into the mini dramas and offered an opportunity to access his or her own memories and imagination.

Hermann Goetz's brief period of composition predated that of the late 19th century Hugo Wolf whereas Joseph Marx's heyday was somewhat later. Nonetheless, there is enough similarity within German Romanticism to unite the works, which also included one by Brahms and also Arnold Mendelssohn (a relation of Felix). There was no jarring as there might have been if modern compositions had been included.

The first set of songs was entitled "Young Lovers" and found the bright-voiced soprano Nina Riley locking gazes with the richly voiced mezzo-soprano Victoria Falcone. Both singers amplified the vocalism with dramatic enactments of flirtation. Accompanying with panache at the piano was Lara Saldanha.

We have special admiration for singers who deliver their material "off the book" which makes for better audience contact and soprano Ellen Teufel accomplished that with ease, accompanied by Mo. Fecteau himself who is always a pleasure to hear.

Following was an exploration of a love triangle comprising soprano Heather Bobeck, mezzo-soprano, Olivia Ericsson, and tenor Stephen Steffens. The facial expressions and gestures of the two women were priceless. Furthermore, it was a pleasure to hear Mr. Steffens in gentler material than that written by Mozart for Emperor Tito, which we had heard the night before.

The relationship between Father and Daughter was well explored by soprano Elizaveta Kozlova and bass Jason Adamo who presented a very distant father who seemed never to look at his lovely daughter. David Stech accompanied and also provided an absolutely delightful interlude.  Felix Mendelssohn' Songs Without Words do not need words but his "Barcarolle" in the hands of Mr. Stech produced images of Venice in my mind's eye, a gentle swaying in my body, and strangely enough, in my mind's ear, the lonely musings of the gondolier paddling himself home at the end of the night! Words were not needed but they came unbidden.

Soprano Clara Lisle joined with tenor Andres Penalver for songs about love transcending death, accompanied by Ms. Saldanha. Just when we thought the program was over, we were fortunate enough to have two more songs by Ms. Teufel accompanied by Mo. Fecteau. We observed that Ms. Teufel is always "off the book" and in a position to make good contact with the audience. In the Wolf "Gesegnet sei" she was very still but seemed to loosen up with her gestures in Marx's "Ständchen". We had the thought that her artistry could go from an "A" to an "A-plus" if she could make her gestures more specific. This is a fine point we have been becoming more aware of recently. It takes a performance to a higher level.

Although we could happily have listened to more, we did feel satisfied by the program, which succeeded in accessing our own memories and associations. As in the other two events of Dell'Arte's 25th season, we were very happy with the organization of the space and the clarity of the supertitles. We found ourselves wishing there were more events!

© meche kroop

VOICE OF HER HEART

 Dell'Arte Opera Ensemble is celebrating its 25th Anniversary with some compelling evenings this week and next. The season opener was a delightful evening celebrating women composers and songs about women, sung by an all-female cast. Among the singers we heard some fine young singers comprising those singing currently with Dell-Arte and some alumnae that we recall from years gone by.

We were enchanted by the first half of the program which represented various stages of a woman's life, apparently inspired by Adelbert von Chamisso's text which was set by Robert Schumann and Carl Loewe (Frauenliebe und Leben). We would never hold one above the other; each composer invested the text with different shades of emotion, within his compositional style. 

Both sopranos served the music well, as did collaborative pianist Lara Saldanha. We have been hearing Elizaveta Kozlova quite a bit recently whereas Victoria Falcone has been off our radar screen since 2017 when we loved her performance in Janaçek's Cunning Little Vixen at Manhattan School of Music. It is always rewarding to hear singers remembered from their conservatory years. This part of Act I was called Enchanted and we were indeed enchanted, especially by the sopranos opening and closing the set with a Schumann duet.

Separating Enchanted from Betrothal  Ms. Saldanha delighted our ears with Clara Schumann's Fier Flüchtige Stücke, no. 3.

The Betrothal section also focused mainly on the Schumann and Loewe settings. The fine singers were soprano Jennifer Gliere, well remembered for a stunning Violetta about 8 years ago in Amore Opera's production of La Traviata, and mezzo-soprano Valerie Filloux who performed so well just last year with Dell'Arte.  We couldn't help noticing that the young narrator of the von Chamisso text was so much calmer in "Ich kann nicht fassen, nicht glauben" than the one portrayed by Schumann. We were also glad to hear  a lied by Clara Schumann, a setting of a Rückert text which was later set by Richard Strauss--"Liebst du um Schönheit". The fine accompaniment was performed by David Stech.

The third section, also accompanied by Mr. Stech,  was entitled Motherhood, and was performed by sopranos Nina Riley (new to us) and Jenny Ribeiro whom we reviewed at least a decade ago as a fine Susanna and an even finer Rosina, surprising us with her take on a role usually assigned to a mezzo-soprano. Augmenting the most welcome excerpts from the Schumann and Loewe cycles, were two duets, one by Mendelssohn ("Volkslied") and one by Richard Strauss ("Muttertanderlei") which never fails to amuse us with two mothers boasting about their respective offspring.

The final section of Act I was entitled Departed with Ms. Filloux returning, joined by soprano Barbee Monk accompanied by Ms .Saldanha. The two lovely ladies opened with a Brahms duet "Klänge 1" and closed in perfect harmony with Maestro Chris Fecteau's arrangement of the tragic "Nun hast du mir den ersten Schmerz getan", weaving together Schumann and Loewe, whose compositional voices joined as successfully as the voices of the two singers had.

It is always a pleasure to hear Maestro Fecteau at the piano but we cannot express the same enthusiasm for Act II as we did for Act I. Perhaps it is unfair to try to appreciate contemporary compositions when one has just swooned over the 19th century greats. Three female composers from New York City were given voice--Martha Sullivan, Valerie Saalbach, and Ellen Mandel.

Forgive us Dear Reader if we seem somewhat vague but try as we might, we could not keep our 19th century-tuned ears involved in the compositions, one of which was a setting of text by Elizabeth Barrett Browning. However, we did appreciate hearing some new voices. The soprano of Andrea Chinedu Nwoke is an astounding instrument, full of power but also luscious in its overtones We were not surprised to learn that she has a past in the mezzo-soprano fach. 

We were also happy to get another hearing of soprano Antonina Ermolenko, who we remember for having sung some delightful Ukrainian songs perhaps two years ago. We were also glad to get a further hearing of Clara Lisle. She was a bright light in a regrettable 2018 production of Eugene Onegin which we are glad she survived! She closed the program with Ellen Mandel's setting of a text by Seamus Heaney entitled "Sleep".  Our opera singer companion thought the program should have ended with a more rousing finale but we actually enjoyed the soothing quietude.

The second half of the program involved a dancer of the Modern Ballet persuasion which involves a lot of floor work and is not to our taste. We are great fans of virtuoso classical ballet which commands our full attention, especially when it brings Tchaikovsky's music to visual life. What we saw was  more a distraction in its abstractness and did not appear to add anything to the music. We are quite sure however that there were many in the audience who found pleasure in it. We are just rather particular in our taste.

We cannot close without praising the titles which were projected in full view of everyone in the audience, and sufficient in size and illumination. This seems rather basic but we recently had an experience where the text was tiny and obliterated by the set for most of the time, and washed out by the lighting.

Dell'Arte has two more events in store that we are looking forward to and you should too. The Italienische Liederbuch will be presented on 6/19 and 6/21. Mozart's La Clemenza di Tito will be performed on 6/18, 20, and 22.

©meche kroop

HOW CUNNING!

Hyungjoo Eom (photo by Brian Long)

Rachel Hall (photo by Brian Long)

Dell'Arte Opera Ensemble has mounted an incredibly moving production of Leos Janacek's comic/tragic opera which has delighted opera goers for nearly a century. We have written about its origins and composition a number of times and readers are encouraged to enter the title in the search bar if they are curious.

At this moment, however, we prefer to focus on this production, which offered new insights, thanks to the thoughtful direction of Ashraf Sewailam. It is auspicious when a singer takes on the job of directing since he seems to know exactly what to do with the singers onstage. Mr. Sewailam is himself a bass-baritone.


We have seen and enjoyed this opera at least four times in the past couple years but were not prepared for the intense emotional impact of this production. Mr. Sewailam's connection with the piece was unmistakable and, consequently, so was ours. In this battle between the world of mankind and the world of nature, our heroine loses her life in a tragically senseless fashion and the hero is transformed by his experience.

Not only is the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth illuminated but also we are allowed to examine the activities of two-legged creatures through the eyes of those with four (or even six) legs. These creatures are anthropomorphized such that we in the audience get the opportunity to examine our own behavior and to raise vital questions about our existence on this planet Earth.

Power and politics also get explored in a new way. The libretto shows evidence of Marxist thought (the wealthy badger has no right to a big home all for himself when there is room for an entire fox family) and proto-feminism (Vixen Sharp-ears tries to liberate the subservient hens from the domination of the entitled rooster).

There are two scenes of marriage--one between the Vixen and her Fox, prompted by her pregnancy and woodland gossip--the other between the poacher Harasta and the gypsy Terynka. The former union is one of mutual respect and caring, taking place after a very human and tender courtship; the latter union involves the groom "buying" his wife with (what else?) a fox pelt and an act so symbolic and so affecting that we will not divulge it here. We want you, dear reader, to see this opera and experience the shocking act for yourself. It may have something to do with Mr. Sewailam's Egyptian background.

Not only is the storytelling way more compelling than usual, but the musical values were of equal quality in every respect. The sixteen-piece Dell'Arte Opera Ensemble Festival Orchestra responded to David Stech's vibrant conducting of Jonathan Dove's score reduction, giving Janacek's music all the right accents of Moravian folk melodies.

It was quite a feat for the young singers to learn the opera in Czech and our gratitude for this labor is boundless. There is nothing like hearing opera in its original language, and especially so in Czech; the marriage between word and music was as well balanced as that between the Vixen and the Fox!

For those of you who don't know the story, a Forester brings home a fox cub who is subjected to disdain from his wife and beatings from his children. In Mr. Sewailam's version, it is evident that his feelings for her are almost romantic. Like a bereft lover, he becomes angry when she runs away and keeps looking for her.

She falls in love and starts a family. She is strong, independent, and defiant. She outwits the poacher Harasta but eventually he shoots her and takes her pelt for his bride.  The Forrester grieves for her but consoles himself with nature and his awareness of the life cycle.

We haven't heard soprano Rachel Hall since her apprenticeship at Santa Fe Opera four years ago when we applauded her Norina. Her artistic growth is notable and we enjoyed her warm and rich soprano in the title role. Her phrasing honored the sound of the language and her acting was completely committed.

As the Forrester, we admired bass-baritone Hyungjoo Eom for his affecting portrayal as well as for his substantial sound. We have heard him a number of times in the past couple of years and have been impressed by his versatility.

We enjoyed soprano Stephanie Kim Johnson in the role of the Vixen's mate. Although the role is generally performed by a mezzo, there was still a nice contrast with Ms. Hall's voice and a meaningfully tender portrayal.

Summoned at the last minute as a replacement for the role of the Dragonfly was Brittany Goodwin, director of La Calisto (which we will see tonight).  That girl can dance! So much talent in such a petite person!

Tenor Jeremy Brauner made a fine Schoolmaster, garnering laughs as he stumbled home drunkenly with his cane, confusing a sunflower for the lusted-for Terynka. He was even funnier as a mosquito, thanks to some clever use of props.

Soprano Zoe Marie Hart (well known to us from Utopia Opera) did well as the young Vixen. As the family dog Lapak, mezzo-soprano Inbal Milliger created a believable canine and sang with substantial tone.

Harasta, the devious poacher,  was sung well by baritone Joshua Miller.

Kristi Esch successfully employed her deep voice to portray the Forrester's disagreeable wife. Bass Brian Alvarado doubled as the grumpy Badger and the Greek-quoting Parson who once had a secret love.

Camilo Estrada took the role of Pasek, the tavern keeper; his wife Paskova was sung by Lisa Flanagan who also played the humorous hen Chocholka.

The singers who took on several small roles were also fine, including Samantha Scully, Lauren Glaves, Sarah Daniels, and Lisa Flanagan.

Much credit for the success of the production goes to Costume Designer Claire Townsend who put streetwear to good use by mixing pieces eclectically and cleverly to create costumes that worked well and suited each character. Makeup and Hair Design by Georgina Eberhard completed the illusion.

Scenic Designer You-Shin Chen made much of little--some hedges and a ramp, a table and chairs. It was the clever use of props that put us into a world of make-believe.

Were you waiting for the obligatory quibble?  Here it is. Harasta's use of a pistol seemed wrong, as did the one-time use of iPhone and iPad.

There will be two more performances--Friday night and Sunday matinee. You would do well to try to snag a ticket for this illuminating production. You may leave at the end with tears in your eyes (as we did) but they will be blissfully cathartic.

(c)  meche kroop

IN A GADDA DA VIDA

The Spirit World--Magda Gartner and her Fairies

The Human World--Emily Peragine, Joey Rodriguez, Daniel Byerly, and Allison McAuley

The birth of a new opera company is always a cause for rejoicing but when their debut is as outstanding as that of Gramercy Opera, we find ourselves rather over the moon.

Well actually we found ourselves in a charming verdant private garden on E. 61st St. which had been decorated with strings of twinkling lights and colorful flowers, both nature made and man made. This perfectly suited an entertainment that involves two worlds--the human world and the spirit world.

Leave it to two opera singers to accomplish the impossible!  Major props to Magda Gartner and Allison McAuley who joined forces to create Gramercy Opera.

What we experienced with such complete joy had very little to do with what was presented in 1692 as The Fairy Queen, a masque or semi-opera by Henry Purcell, loosely based on Shakespeare's late 16th c. comedy. 

What we experienced was the result of an impressive show of creativity by Director Brittany Goodwin who also adapted William Shakespeare's text from Midsummer Night's Dream and contributed some spoken dialogue of her own. We were wildly impressed!

The music, of course, was by Henry Purcell and was performed by a chamber orchestra using original instruments. There was a string quartet augmented by two trumpets (almost unrecognizable to those accustomed to the modern trumpet) and a pair of oboes d'amore and a harpsichord, all conducted by David Stech. Even without the enrapturing production design by Maria Torffield we would have enjoyed the music.

And what a production it was! Coming in at just under two hours, the production excised the little Indian changeling, the framing device of the marriage of the Duke of Athens and Hippolyta, as well as the gathering of rustics producing a play as entertainment for the festivities involved with said marriage.

Wisely Ms. Goodwin placed the emphasis on the interface between the human world and the spirit world. The humans flee into the woods to escape paternal interference but meet interference from the spirit world. It rests upon Puck's naughtiness to baffle and confuse the lovers--until he finally establishes order.

The cast was flawless. Mezzo-soprano Magda Gartner was perfect as Titania, angry at Oberon for his philandering. As Oberon, baritone Angky Budiardjono had a marvelous sound and exotic look just right for the part. His primary interaction was with the Puck of soprano Chelsea Feltman who both introduced the opera and brought it to a successful conclusion. She was, well, "puckish" in her compelling characterization. She enchanted us!

The fairies included the rich-voiced mezzo-soprano Kat Liu as Cobweb and soprano La Toya Lewis as Mustardseed, who harmonized beautifully in their duet. Sopranos Rachel Duval, Jaeyeon Kim, Megan Brunning, and Sara Lin Yoder added to the fairy fun, along with baritone Frank D. Fainer and tenor Carlos J. Jiminez who sang and danced the role of Cupid.

Now what of the humans! Canadian soprano Allison McAuley was totally convincing as the desperate Helena pursuing the rejecting Demetrius of tenor Daniel Byerly. As "fair Hermia" we heard the lovely soprano Emily Peragine who defied her father to elope with the Lysander of baritone Joey Rodriguez. Mr. Rodriguez had a great moment as he tried to persuade Hermia to lie closer to him.

We also enjoyed baritone Paul La Rosa's performance as Bottom, who wore his donkey-head quite rakishly.

Did we say how superb all the voices were?  We guess we did.

And now to discuss the production which involved some of the most imaginative costuming and makeup one could imagine. We suspect that imagination was in greater supply than funds but one could not tell that from the colorful results.

Ms. Goodwin's direction involved some stunning imagery that lingers in the mind's eye as much as that of Frederick Ashton's ballet The Dream. There were so many magnificent moments both scenic and choreographic that we find ourselves running out of words to praise.

Ms. Goodwin shared with us her casting method which involved asking those auditioning to improvise. That probably explains how integrated the performers were.

We urge our dear readers to see and hear for themselves. We are sure you will be as enchanted as we were. This weekend is sold out but hopefully you will find tickets for next weekend. If you succeed you will be the happier for it.

(c) meche kroop

THE MASTERY of XIAOMENG ZHANG

David Stech and Xiaomeng Zhang

We hear a lot of baritones and most of them are quite listenable. But the current crop of graduates has been remarkable. (See May 4th review of Xiaoming Tian). Last night Xiomeng Zhang presented his graduation recital as he is about to be granted a Masters Degree from Manhattan School of Music. His recital gave evidence of a great deal of work and yet he appeared completely relaxed onstage and made every song appear easy. 

In our opinion, his voice is perfect for the bel canto repertoire. His Italian flows like olive oil from one phrase to the next with perfect legato. The timbre of his voice is warm and exceedingly pleasant with just the right vibrato. His interpretations are particularly expressive.

Although he is perhaps too young in appearance for the part, his voice was perfect in "Bella siccome un angelo" from Donizetti's Don Pasquale. The crafty Doctor Malatesta is trying to pass off Ernesto's beloved Norina as his convent-educated sister Sofronia.  Mr. Zhang got it just right.

No less wonderful were the other well known selections by Gluck and Bellini. Perhaps our favorite was Verdi's "Non t'accostare all'urna" which is filled with bitterness and therefore gives an opportunity for intensity of performance.

Mr. Zhang's facility in Italian was equalled by his facility in French. We were sure we never wanted to hear Ravel's Don Quichotte à Dulcinée again, having heard it on every single baritone program the past few months. Nonetheless, Mr. Zhang made it his own with lovely Gallic phrasing and good dynamic control. The variety from the dreamy "Chanson romanesque" to the passionately reverent "Chanson épique" to the bubulously expansive "Chanson à boire" held our interest.

With crisply enunciated German, Mr. Zhang performed the first seven songs of Schumann's Dichterliebe op.48. Heinrich Heine's incomparable poetry inspired Schumann to some glorious writing for piano and voice and Mr. Zhang interpreted it well. The cycle begins with the promise of love but by the end he is "singing a different tune" so to speak--one of disappointment and bitterness.

There was more to come in the program, songs in English and songs in Mandarin, which we wish we had understood. Even the best English diction is never as clear as Italian or German but Mr. Zhang's was as good as anyone else's. For the final song in Mandarin, he was joined by soprano Amy Frances Kuckelman. At times the voices were in unison, at other times they harmonized beautifully, and at other times the vocal lines were completely different but woven together.

Wolfram's aria "Oh, du mein holde Abendstern" from Wagner's Tannhäuser was the perfect encore, showing yet another aspect of Mr. Zhang's talent. Could anything be more welcome when one is about to step out into the night?

After hearing the artist sing so well in five languages we confess to being impressed. His collaborative pianist David Štech is also his coach and surely deserves some credit.

(c) meche kroop