FERNANDA

César Delgado and Laura Soto-Bayomi

Kelly Guerra and Marcelo Guzzo

Things have a way of coming full circle.  It was Maestro Jorge Parodi who taught us everything we know about the art of zarzuela and launched our deep interest in this art form. And now several years have elapsed and it is Mo. Parodi who, having taken over the reins of Opera Hispanica as General and Artistic Director, brought one of our favorite zarzuelas to the stage!  He has done so in an accessible fashion, emphasizing the gorgeous melodies of Federico Moreno Torroba's 1932 masterpiece Luisa Fernanda and omitting the confusing Republican versus Royalist politics of 1868 during the reign of Isabel II.

Although some day we would love to see the work produced in toto, for the time being we were more than satisfied to hear the memorable melodies sung by an excellent Panamerican cast, accompanied by Mo. Parodi himself at the piano, joined by violinist Mia Nardi-Huffman. We were delighted but not at all surprised that Mo. Parodi accomplished the excellent reduction of the lavish orchestral score.

Like many zarzuelas, the story of Luisa Fernanda is a combination of romantic issues and political ones. Poor Luisa, sensitively sung by Peruvian mezzo-soprano Kelly Guerra, is enamored of the dashing military man Javier, (dashingly performed by tenorific Mexican  César Delgado) who happens to be a "player". He surprises everyone by falling for the Duchess Carolina (seductively sung by Puerto Rican soprano Laura Soto-Bayomi) and switching political affiliations. Meanwhile Luisa is being courted by the wealthy landowner Vidal (authoritatively performed by Uruguayan baritone Marcelo Guzzo) who switches his political affiliations to win Luisa's affection. What political turmoil there was in 1862 Spain, matched only by the characters' romantic turmoil! We are not going to tell you the romantic outcome.

By eliminating the dialogue and extraneous characters, Mo. Parodi allowed the audience at the Instituto Cervantes (a most appreciative audience, we might add) to focus on each character's emotional shifts, which are so well delineated by Torroba's music. No doubt, the melodies may sound as familiar to your ears as they did to ours and, be warned, may lead to an infestation of "ear worms". We have been humming the themes all day!

The work was performed with minimal set but authentic period costumes by Eric Lamp, lending an air of verisimilitude.

Mo. Parodi, himself an Argentinian, succeeded on so many levels, from adapting the score to finding an attractive quartet of gifted singers who had the right style and the acting chops to make us care about the characters.

Fortunately, the opera world has not seen the end of this gem, since it will be performed at Opera in Williamsburg on May 13th. We left with our appetite appeased but somehow a hunger for more. Let us hope that this project will be developed further.

© meche kroop

JÚRAME...FULFILLING THE PROMISE

Pablo Zinger, Linda Collazo, and Maria Brea

Yesterday we were lured into Brooklyn by the promise of zarzuela; regular readers will recall our fondness for this Hispanic art form. The promise was fulfilled and our highest expectations were met. Moreover we got to learn more from Mr. Zarzuela--Maestro Pablo Zinger who was the collaborative pianist at this fulfilling recital.

Ms. Brea and Ms. Collazo make a dynamite duo and, as much as we loved their solos, our enjoyment was over the top when they harmonized in duets--Maria with her bright expansive soprano and Ms. Collazo with her firmly centered and textured mezzo. We have heard them together before since they co-founded Voces Unidas to raise money for RAICES. Is there a better way to use one's gifts than to help others?

The venue and the sponsoring organization were new to us, largely because we rarely have time to venture across the bridge. Vertical Player Repertory is a pioneer of the alternative opera movement in New York City and was founded by sculptor/singer/impresario Judith Barnes over 20 years ago in a Brooklyn storefront. Many of her performances take place in unconventional venues; an ongoing series entitled "miniatures behind the door" comprises interesting programs beyond vocal recitals but it is the latter which interests us.

The first half of the program consisted of zarzuelas and nothing but zarzuelas; we were in seventh heaven. Maestro Zinger explained how these entertaining pieces of musical theater were birthed in 17th c. Spain by King Philip IV and how they became popular in the mid 19th c. as composers were encouraged to express nationalistic fervor. Although influenced by Italian opera, Spain needed its own art form. Zarzuela achieved a new impact in the New World as Spaniards immigrated to Latin America. A new emphasis was racial and class distinction as we heard later in works from Cuba.

From the fertile period of the mid 19th c. (our favorite musical period) we heard Ms. Brea and Ms. Collazo harmonize beautifully in "Niñas que vais a Granada" from Francisco Asenjo Barbieri's Los diamantes de la corona. The duet speaks to us of the dangers of losing one's heart to a love bandit.

From Federico Chueca's La Gran Via, Ms. Collazo gave a charming interpretation of a loveable maid with unloveable qualities in "Tango de la Menegilda". She created a quite different mood in the rapid fire "Carceleras" from Ruperto Chapí's Las hijas del Zebedeo. This is a passionate tongue twister if ever we heard one! Even more radically different was "Yo soy María" from Astor Piazzolla's tango operita which we just heard and reviewed the day before. Frankly, we liked Ms. Collazo's interpretation better since it was unamplified and we could understand the words.

Ms. Brea achieved the same variety in her selections. We have heard her sing "Me llaman la primorosa" before and it always makes us want to see Miguel Nieto's El barbero de Sevilla in its entirety. The plot involves a company producing the Rossini opera. Ms. Brea's character is very proud of her physical attractions! In "Petenera" from Federico Moreno Torroba's La Marchenera a woman describes her love and, if we are not mistaken, suggests a doble oído. She is waiting for her rose bush to bloom so she can give her beloved the first rose!

From the 1939 zarzuela Cecilia Valdés, composed by the Cuban composer  Gonzalo Roig, she performed "Salida de Cecilia Valdés" with help from a "chorus" comprising Maestro Zinger and Ms. Collazo. The character she plays is completely irrepressible! The rhythms had us swaying in our chair. 

There was one more duet that delighted us--the Habanera: "Canta y no llores", from Don Gil de Alcalá, composed by the Spaniard Manuel Penella and set in a Mexican convent. Here the rhythm was a gentle swaying one.

The second half of the program would have been more familiar to the average lover of art song. Indeed there was nothing we haven't heard many times before but we found much to appreciate in the performances. 

Ms. Brea performed Cuatro madrigales amatorios by the 20th c. Spanish composer Joaquin Rodrigo. (We are embarrassed to admit that we never connected his name with the Concierto de Aranjuez which we have known and loved for decades!) The songs have different moods and we loved the way Ms. Brea colored her voice differently for sorrow and shame, lust, jealousy and anger, and elation. Maestro Zinger shared what the songs were really about.

She also performed "Allí está riyendo" from Manuel de Falla's 1913 opera La vida breve which put Spain on the musical map. The heroine, a gypsy, is so heartbroken she dies of love. Maestro Zinger gave us some giggles when he pointed out that in Italian opera the heroine must die violently.

Ms. Collazo brought new life to Xavier Montsalvatge's 20th c. song cycle Cinco canciones negras. "Cuba dentro de un piano" has text that is symbolic whereas "Punto de Habanera" is more descriptive. Our favorite has always been "Canción de cuna para dormir a un negrito". The text is heartbreaking to our 21st c. sensibilities but it is so beautiful to hear!

The program closed with some "popular" songs and y'all know how we feel about that distinction. Hearing trained voices without amplification surely blurs the difference between "popular" and "art" songs. Ms. Brea performed one by the Mexican composer Consuelo Velásquez which has achieved worldwide popularity; who doesn't know "Besame mucho"! She invested the song with a lot of variety from one verse to the next and met the challenge of a low tessitura. 

Ms. Collazo's contribution was the melodic "Te quiero dijiste" composed by the Mexican María Grever who studied with Debussy in France. Isn't it interesting that two such gifted women composers came out of Mexico in the early 20th c.? And today we have so many fine young singers coming from our southern neighbor.

So we had two fine female Latin American singers performing songs by two fine female Latin American composers!  The program closed with the two singing Grever's "Júrame" with lovely overlapping phrases. The promise was fulfilled!

(c) meche kroop

AMIGOS DE LA ZARZUELA

Maxim Anikushin, Conchi Moyano, Anna Tonna, Alejandro Olmedo, and Ricardo Rosa

Everything we know about the art form known as zarzuela we learned from Maestro Jorge Parodi. Today we learned some more interesting facts, none of which were necessary to appreciate the gorgeous melodies. The word comes from the word "zarza" which means "blackberry bush". 

It was during the reign of King Felipe IV who ascended the Spanish throne in 1621 and was known as a patron of the arts, not to be confused with the miserable Felipe II of the Verdi opera Don Carlo. The King and his court frequented the Real Sitio del Pardo in Madrid which was surrounded by blackberry bushes. There they enjoyed musical and comedic entertainment.  Now you know!

As Spain is somewhat geographically removed from Europe, zarzuela evolved as Spain's very own musical entertainment. By the 18th c. Italian and French opera became all the rage and supplanted zarzuela, but there was a renaissance in the 19th c. when several excellent Spanish composers revived the artform. Indeed, zarzuela was carried to the New World where it flourished into the middle of the 20th c. It remains popular in Puerto Rico and we understand that Placido Domingo has done much to introduce zarzuela to our nation's capitol.

We have never seen a complete zarzuela but aim to do something about that! Every time we hear an aria or duet extracted from a zarzuela we long to see it in toto. The plots remind us of telenovelas and the melodies are memorable.

Yesterday Amigos de la Zarzuela presented one of their enjoyable afternoon concerts at Weill Recital Hall. It is satisfying to know that there is a sizable and enthusiastic audience for this analogue to German singspiel, French opéra comique, and Italian opera buffa.

The program was generous and included four experienced performers, one for each fach--soprano Conchi Moyano, mezzo-soprano Anna Tonna, tenor Alejandro Olmedo, and baritone Ricardo Rosa.

It would be difficult to single out any one number because they were all charming in their own way.  But since we love duets, let us note our admiration for "Porque de mis ojos los tuyos retiras" from Ruperto Chapi's La Revoltosa. It seemed to be an enactment of a lovers spat and reconciliation, performed by Ms. Tonna and Mr. Rosa. The singing was incomparable and the acting so effective that even a person ignorant of the Spanish language would have understood.

Ms. Tonna's instrument has a pleasing texture and plenty of strength in her lower register. We loved her melismatic singing in her solo "Loa al fandanguillo" by Romero.

Mr. Rosa's full throated baritone was just right for "Oh licor que das la vida" from Soutullo y Vert's La Leyenda del Beso.

"Caballero del alto plumero" is a marvelously flirtatious duet from Torroba's Luisa Fernanda, here given a marvelous performance by Ms. Moyano and Mr. Olmedo.

Ms. Moyano has an instrument of great power with an expansive top. She performed "La Petenera" from Torroba's La Marchenera with warm expansive tone and lovely phrasing.

Mr. Olmedo's best turn was in the romantic ballad "Flor roja" from Guerrero's Los Gavilanes in which he floated the high note with exceptional delicacy.

The pianist for the evening, Maxim Anikushin, certainly accompanied with sazon!  However, he also performed some solo works showing his pianistic skills without distraction. Our favorite without a doubt was the brief introspective "Intermezzo" by Manuel Ponce. We always prefer such pieces to the virtuoso ones but that is just our taste.

A special feature of the program was the dancing of Elizabeth Torras.

One rarely witnesses such versatility but we enjoyed Ms. Torras' dancing in three different styles. Dressed in flowing white and accompanying herself with castanets, she performed the graceful "La Boda de Luis Alonso" by Gimenez with all the grace of classical dance.

Dressed in masculine attire, she performed "Farruca del molinero" from Manuel de Falla's El Sombrero de Tres Picos (known on English programs as The Three-Cornered Hat. The simplicity of the piano rhythm gave her an opportunity to embellish the 4/4 rhythm with rapid and forceful Flamenco-inflected footwork.

In her final selection, she danced in a traditional Flamenco gown with a long train that she kicked around artistically and held up over her head at one point. Isaac Albeniz' Asturias was rhythmically and powerfully performed by both Ms. Torras and Mr. Anikushin. Her graceful arms suggested the arm movements of Indian dance which surely influenced Flamenco.

It certainly was a fine afternoon of music and dance, one we enjoyed immensely.

(c) meche kroop

NOCHE DE SAN JUAN

Pablo Castillo, Rosa Betancourt, Laura Virella, José Heredia, and Keith Chambers

As explained in a most welcoming introduction by Laura Virella, La Noche de San Juan is a festive Latin American holiday, almost coinciding with the Summer Solstice--an amalgam of a Catholic holiday and a pagan celebration, involving bonfires and other festivities.

We were overjoyed to share this celebration (without bonfires) at the Inwood Art Works Culture Hub, a very new community center for the arts in Inwood. It is so new that the large crowd attending this special evening of art song and zarzuela was rather unexpected. We believe this to be Inwood's first cultural center and it is already wildly successful. "If you build it they will come."  And come they did!

We have noticed that along with the many small opera companies carving out niches for themselves, there has also been a movement toward bringing the arts to the various neighborhoods. When we first began writing, our world centered around Lincoln Center. Now we find ourselves traveling to the farthest reaches of Brooklyn and Manhattan, seeing new faces, new neighborhoods, and new venues.

The evening was an unqualified success. Readers know how highly we prize Latin American music and the program comprised both art song and selections from a zarzuela that we plan to produce next year in its entirety--Federico Moreno Torroba's 1932 Luisa Fernandez.

Three of the singers were known to us as was the accompanist Maestro Keith Chambers, who seems to be everywhere these days. He pulled some interesting sounds from an electronic keyboard.

Mezzo-soprano Laura Virella possesses a lovely expressive voice and a passion for Latin American art song that gives her delivery a jolt of drama, bringing each song to vivid life. She opened the program with a trio of songs about the sea by Jack Délano, settings of texts by female poets. 

The marriage of music to text in these mid 20th c. songs was pure delight, the likes of which we have not observed in 20th c. songs from our own country. It is obvious that Latin American composers were not taken in by weird academic movements that took songwriting into areas devoid of melody! These songs are delightfully tuneful!

Soprano Rosa Betancourt has a brightness in her instrument that was employed to highlight the cheerful beginning of Rafael Hernánez' "Lamento borincano" but there was an interesting switch to the minor mode when the hopeful merchant fails to find customers and pathos is heard. Mr. Chambers provided some lovely arpeggi in the left hand.

For her performance of Campos' "Felices días", she was accompanied by Ms. Virella playing the Guiro, a gourd with ridges that is stroked for a raspy sound. This song is typical of the "Danza", a turn of the 20th c. type of song that elevated folk music to the level of art song. (Think Stephen Foster).

Tenor José Heredia has a generosity and ease of sound that brought great passion to "Granada", written by Mexican composer Agustín Lara in 1932. He never forces his high notes and displayed a lovely messa di voce.

Ms. Virella returned for a quartet of songs by Puerto Rican composer Narciso Figueroa, written in 1976. We doubt that there is anything in the Puerto Rican song literature that Ms. Virella does not know. Her charm is like a perfume that scents everything she sings. We loved the romantic "Madrugada" and the regretful "Muerta". "Vida criolla" is a song in praise of ignorance and the simple life.

"Amapola" by Spanish composer José María Lacalle García, which was composed in 1920, is as recognizable as "Granada", a wonderful serenade. To hear Mr. Heredia sing it was a thrill. He easily assailed the "money note" without a hint of pushing.

Chilean Baritone Pablo Castillo closed the first half of the program with a 1965 composition by his countryman Vicente Bianchi, the setting of a text by Pablo Neruda called "Antes de amarte", followed by a tango by Argentinean Astor Piazzolla called "Los pájaros perdidos". Mr. Castillo has a lovely resonant sound and sang expressively in these songs which bore a less folklike theme and a more sophisticated text.

The second part of the program was devoted to zarzuela, the art form that has so captured our interest.  Torroba's Luisa Fernanda is one of the best and the four singers captured the essence of the story with a series of excerpts. Like all great stories, it involves a love triangle against a background of revolutionary politics in 1868, just prior to the revolution against Queen Isabel II, who will be dethroned.

The heroine Luisa (Ms. Virella) is fed up with her off-and-on lover, Javier, a military man (Mr. Heredia). She is courted by the wealthy older landowner Vidal (Mr. Castillo) who knows she loves Javier but is hopeful. Meanwhile, the Duchess Carolina (Ms. Betancourt) has her eye on Javier for reasons as political as they are romantic. She also has designs on Vidal who doesn't quite trust her.

This zarzuela has it all--a compelling story, unforgettable melodies, comedy, romance, pathos, and politics. At times we heard tunes that sounded downright Neapolitan. No wonder this zarzuela has seen over 10,000 performances.  That is NOT a misprint!

The evening closed with an excerpt from a different zarzuela of the same period--"El último romántico" by Sotullo and Vert. We heard Mr. Heredia perform the aria "Bella enamorada", a perfect way to end a glorious evening.

(c) meche kroop

THE SUNSHINE OF BETTY

Brent Funderburk, Betty Garces, and Nilko Andreas Guarin

It was a gloomy drizzly day outside but inside the National Opera Center we were given such a dose of sunshine that we wished we'd been wearing SPF 40!   Soprano Betty Garces, beside being a highly accomplished musician, radiates warmth onstage. We had the opportunity to hear her perform works of joy, grief, and everything in between. There was not a single false note, not musically, not emotionally.

Most of our reviewing experience  focuses on young artists at the conservatories whom we love to follow, documenting their artistic growth; it is not usual that we review a young artist who is fully formed.  But Ms. Garces comes from Colombia and has been creating sunshine in her native country and in Europe. The hour we spent with her was pure delight and we didn't want it to end.  

She had two superb collaborating artists as well.  Pianist Brent Funderburk, whose sensitive skills working with singers is well remembered from his stint at Juilliard, and classical guitarist Nilko Andreas Guarin who also hails from Colombia and whose artistry as a soloist and collaborator are celebrated world wide. We reviewed Mr. Guarin's superb performance a year and a half ago in an all-Spanish program.

The program certainly showed off Ms. Garces' versatility, in that it included songs in German by Austrian composer Joseph Marx, songs in Russian by Sergei Rachmaninoff, songs in Spanish by composers of Spain and el Nuevo Mundo, songs in Portuguese by Heitor Villalobos and Jayme Ovalle, and arias in Italian by Puccini and Verdi.  Although Russian and Portuguese are not among our languages they sounded just fine.  The German was perfect.

We have always loved songs by Marx whose work looks back toward the 19th c.  Rachmaninoff's lavish romanticism is always a delight to hear and Ms. Garces' performance of "Spring Waters" was particularly timely!

Fellow Colombian Jaime Leon wrote dozens of art songs in the 20th c., of which we heard two--"La Campesina" and "Si no fuera por ti".  Until yesterday we had never heard any of them but we long to hear more of them!

Cuban composer Gonzalo Roig wrote the zarzuela Cecilia Valdes, a tale of class and racial conflict, in 1932. The song of the ill-fated heroine is known to us and it was given a spirited performance by Ms. Garces. Spanish composer Federico Moreno Torroba wrote his zarzuela La Marchenera in 1928, from which we enjoyed "La Petenera". The Spanish song on yesterday's  program with which we are most familiar was Manuel de Falla's "Polo", from his Siete Canciones Populares Espanolas of 1914. Ms. Garces brought out every ounce of anguish.

The Portuguese songs comprised the much recorded "Azulao" by Ovalle and "Melodia Sentimental" from Villalobos' 1950 work "Floresta do Amazonas", both with guitar accompaniment by Mr. Guarin.

In every case, we felt like we were sampling antojitos, wanting Ms. Garces to return with una comida entera.

In the operatic department we heard "Si, mi chiamano Mimi" from Puccini's La Boheme in which Ms. Garces beautifully portrayed the modest but flirtatious Mimi, and "Pace, pace mio Dio" from Verdi's La forza del destino in which Leonora's desperation was limned.

It is in the performance of an aria that we know well that we are best able to evaluate vocal artistry and it would be an understatement to say that we were impressed. Ms. Garces has a luscious instrument that opens up like an umbrella at the upper end of the register with overtones bouncing around the hall. Her phrasing is impeccable and her use of vocal coloration was as extensive as that of the Fauvists in the world of visual art.  Every song was its own world. No matter how much rehearsal went into this recital, the overall effect was one of spontaneity.

Mr. Guarin entertained us with two fine guitar solos--Prelude No 1 in E minor by Villalobos and Tango in Sky by the recently deceased French composer Roland Dyens. Although we know very little about guitar technique, we could definitely appreciate the beautiful sound and the way he accompanied Ms. Garces for the Portuguese songs, the Torroba, and the De Falla. 

We left completely satisfied by this superb recital which offered a fine balance of vocal and instrumental delights.  Yes, we were satisfied, and yet....we wanted more!

(c) meche kroop