20th CENTURY POLITICAL OPERA

Michael Barrett, Steven Blier, Rebecca Jo Loeb, Sari Gruber, Alex Mansoori, and John Brancy

Last night at Merkin Hall, Steven Blier's New York Festival of Song scored another hit with songs excerpted from two political operas of the early 20th c.; the songs were joined together by narration from Mr. Blier and his co-collaborative pianist Michael Barrett. We are not sure whether we would have wanted to see either opera in full production but we valued the opportunity to have an exposure to two rarities that we may never hear of again.

Of the two works, we preferred the 1933 singspiel Der Silbersee, the run of which was truncated by the rising forces of Nazism, causing the composer Kurt Weill to flee Germany. Of course we can see parallels with our own situation here in 21st c. USA; nonetheless, this odd work seemed strangely dated.

The translation of Georg Kaiser's pungent lyrics was performed by Jonathan Eaton who did a fine job of creating punchy lines that scanned well and rhymed; still, we think it would have come across with greater power in the original German. The story is an odd one in which a starving man steals a pineapple and gets shot by a policeman who then feels guilty. With money won by lottery, the policeman buys a castle in which he cares for the thief. When the thief learns who his caretaker is he must lock himself in the basement lest he take revenge for his wounding.

Meanwhile, the policeman hides away in the tower out of fear for his life. It is only when they get thrown out of the castle by the devious "rich bitch" Frau Luben that they achieve forgiveness and reconciliation. With the company of Frau Luben's poor relation Fennimore, the pair make their way back to Silbersee where they experience hope and salvation. This story wended its way from realismo to some version of German magic realism.

In spite of the peculiar nature of the story, we heard some performances that knocked our hosen off. Tenor Alex Mansoori and baritone John Brancy (both well known to us for some time and worthy of our consistent admiration) delivered "Gravediggers' Duet" in close harmony with an abrasive edge.

The smashing soprano Sari Gruber (well remembered from long ago Marilyn Horne recitals) and adorable mezzo-soprano Rebecca Jo Loeb (whom we last heard singing in Czech in a rarely heard Martinu opera) performed the cute "Shopgirls' Duet". We recognized strains that came right from Brahms' Liebeslieder Walzer and could barely believe our ears.

In tango rhythm, Mr. Masoori delivered the ironic "Lottery Agent's Song" which was the most typically Weill-like number in the work, along with "Caesar's Death", sung by Ms. Loeb--a number that surely riled the Brown Shirts.

"You Take the Highway", sung by Ms. Loeb and Mr. Mansoori, had a haunting melody, ending with some hurdy-gurdy music in the dual pianos. 

Ms. Gruber's acting as the unpleasant Frau Luber was sensational, giving us a few good laughs as she and Baron Laur exemplified greed in "A Rich Man's Land", contrasting with the poverty of the other characters.

Mr. Blitzstein's 1941 No For an Answer seemed particularly dated and the need for a librettist seemed acute. The composer did seem to try to write short punchy phrases but reading them on the page seemed to add to the impression that a good librettist could have done a better job.

But no singers could have done a better job than the foursome and much of Blitzstein's music is appealing. Our hands down favorite was John Brancy's delivery of "Purest Kind of Guy", a tribute to a character who was gunned down; this is a great stand alone piece and one we hope Mr. Brancy will add to his repertoire.

The very funny Mr. Mansoori was hilarious with "Penny Candy", a song in which the character describes how he works on a wealthy woman's sympathy to extract some charity and then humiliates her by revealing his ruse. This was performed with a heavy accent which added to the fun.

Mr. Brancy had a beautiful love duet with Ms. Loeb entitled "Francie" in which Ms. Loeb prattles on and Mr. Brancy, portraying her husband Joe, recently released from prison, sings nothing but her name Francie over and over again.

It was an altogether interesting evening, although we would not be in a rush to hear either work in toto. But we will always be eager to hear more of those four splendid singers. Mr. Brancy has a real gift for sincerity and getting to the heart of a song whilst the other three have extraordinary comedic gifts. And today, we need all the humor we can get!

© meche kroop

THIRTY IS THE NEW WONDERFUL

Jack Gulielmetti, Steven Blier, Julia Bullock, Paul Appleby, Antonina Chehovska, Theo Hoffman, Lauren Worsham, Mary Testa, John Brancy, and Michael Barrett

Last night, New York Festival of Song celebrated their 30th Anniversary at Merkin Concert Hall. The well-curated songs were culled from several themed programs in NYFOS' history. Mr. Blier's customary witticisms peppered the notes in the printed program, relating for those who did not know how NYFOS got started-- in the small auditorium of the Greenwich House Music School, with room for only a hundred people.

We count ourself among the devoted followers. We don't even bother to find out what the theme of the evening is or who is singing because every program is sufficiently diverse to contain a few songs we will love and because the singers chosen to sing them are among our favorites. 

Last night's program comprised a collection of songs taken from earlier programs which were sung by a group of artists that we adore, mostly known to us from Juilliard--artists we started writing about when we first started writing. Seven years later, these young singers are singing all over the world and garnering awards by the score.

Not every song rang our bell or touched our heart in the same manner but they all expanded our awareness of what that particular singer can do.  And we are all about expanding awareness.

Take, for example, the very serious baritone John Brancy--an artist of great honesty and integrity. What a pleasure to hear him sing songs of romantic intentions and frivolous ones too! Sergei Rachmaninoff's "Spring Waters" showed Mr. Brancy's passionate side and his substantial baritone stood up well to Michael Barrett's equally passionate piano. The two together created a thrilling climax.

Another expansion was perceived during Gabriel Fauré's gorgeous and tender "En sourdine", sung in fine French with long Gallic lines. We heard an exquisite pianissimo and we decided that our favorite word in French is "rossignol".

Still another side to Mr. Brancy's artistry was heard in his colorful duet with tenor Paul Appleby--Ernesto Lecuona's "Como el arrullo de palmas". The harmonies were mellow and it sounded like a second cousin of Mariachi music.

We just reviewed Mr. Appleby's stellar performance in the title role of Candide at Carnegie Hall. Last night he impressed us with his performance of Jorge Ackermann's "Flor de Yumuri" accompanied not only by piano but by the guitar of Jack Gulielmetti and the percussion of Eric Borghi, which added so much to the Latin flavor.

We also enjoyed his "Tu vois le feu du soir", Francis Poulenc's setting of a text by Paul Eluard which was somewhat less surreal than others we have heard. Mr. Appleby never pushes his voice and we loved the apparent ease with which he spun out the final note.

We always feel most at home with Schubert and Mr. Appleby did complete justice to the jaunty "Taubenpost", a setting of text by Gabriel Seidl.

Baritone Theo Hoffman flew in from LA Opera's Young Artist Program to open the show with Ralph Vaughan Williams' "Orpheus With His Lute". Shakespeare's text may just as well have been speaking of Mr. Hoffman--"In sweet music is such art; Killing care and grief of heart".

That being said, we enjoyed him even more in the witty words and tuneful music of Stephen Sondheim who wrote "Talent" for a musical called Road Show that never made it. A distinguishing feature of Mr. Hoffman's performance is his English diction, which is so clear that not a word was missed. We wish that quality was not as rare as it is!

He also closed the program with the incredibly moving duet by John Lennon and Paul McCartney "In My Life", performed with the sensational soprano Julia Bullock, whose Carnegie Hall recital we just reviewed.

Ms. Bullock could grab our ear if she sang the proverbial phonebook but give her good material and she grabs our heart. Our classical taste was best satisfied by her heartfelt performance of Edvard Grieg's "En svane" but she also gave a toe-tapping performance of Fats Waller's early song "Ain't-Cha Glad".

Soprano Antonina Chehovska has been largely responsible for our evolving interest in Russian and Ukrainian music. One of the highlights of the evening was her performance of Sergei Rachmaninoff's seasonally appropriate "Spring Waters" which we have been hearing a lot lately.  "To her" was new to us and its melancholy nature touched our heart.

Russian was not the only language we heard from Ms. Chehovska. Dvorák's gorgeous song "Mé sredce často v bolesti" was sung in Czech and the title translates as "My heart often ponders in sorrow" but we have included the Czech to demonstrate the difficulty of this language, a challenge well met by Ms. Chehovska. The melody drew us in and we recognized a motif the composer used in Russalka. We also heard a Wagnerian flavor in the harmony.

After the difficult Czech, the Spanish of Enrique Granados in "El mirar de la maja" must have seemed easy but the effect was just as lovely.

Adorable soprano Lauren Worsham seems equally at ease with opera and cabaret. She took a very strange unpublished song by the late Jonathan Larson entitled "Hosing the Furniture" and made sense out of what appears to be the "diary of a mad housewife" who lives in a house made of vinyl. 

Her comedic skills were put to even better use in the 18th c. cabaret song "El dulce de América" which involved a lot of physical gestures to get the point across.  This gal is funny!

Another Broadway star was on board for the evening--the legendary mezzo-soprano Mary Testa who performed Michael John LaChiusa's "Heaven" with a lot of bending of the tone. In Hoagy Carmichael's "Old Buttermilk Sky", she was joined by Mr. Gulielmetti playing the banjo and David Ostwald playing the tuba. We always enjoy an original arrangement!

There were more songs but we only have space to hit the highlights. But let's not omit the encore--the Beatles song "Obla-di obla-da", a wonderfully upbeat way to end the celebration, with everyone taking part!

We wish NYFOS another 30 years of song!

(c) meche kroop

JOHN AND PETER

Peter Dugan and John Brancy

Hearing baritone John Brancy Thursday night in recital with pianist Peter Dugan got us wondering about how long we have been witnessing his artistic growth. The earliest review we could find was 2011, just about the time we began writing about young singers. He was one of the Juilliard students participating in Lachlan Glen's year long perusal of Schubert's 600+ songs.

But we are sure we were impressed with his singing even before that date! We have heard him win converts to the art of the song several times with New York Festival of Song, with Marilyn Horne's program "The Song Continues", at the Brooklyn Art Song Society, at the National Opera Center, as an Opera Index Competition awardee, in recital at Carnegie Hall, and as Apollon in the Gotham Chamber Opera's production of Charpentier's 1686 work, La descente d'Orphée aux enfers.  

Coming back to his Juilliard roots, Mr. Brancy and his superb collaborator Peter Dugan (also a graduate of Juilliard) presented an interesting program entitled "Armistice: The Journey Home" in the 20th annual Alice Tully Vocal Arts Recital. The two artists met whilst at Juilliard and seem to have a knack for programming. They have their very own approach to art song, encompassing classic works that we love from the 19th c. to modern popular music and original arrangements of American song.

The standing ovation at the end of the recital plus the large crowd lining up to buy their debut CD ("Silent Night") attest to the success of their approach. Many of the works on the program were by composers who lived through The Great War.

The program opened with Mr. Dugan's fleet fingers flying through Gustav Holst's "Jupiter: The Bringer of Jollity". We enjoyed the popular song of that epoch by Oley Speaks--"When the Boys Come Home" .  Mr. Dugan's brother, composer Leonardo Dugan, contributed "I Have a Rendezvous with Death", a dramatic setting of some depressing text involving a searching theme in the piano.

It was moving to hear the first verse of Pete Seeger's "Where Have All the Flowers Gone?" sung by Mr. Brancy a capella, with Mr. Dugan's piano joining in, tentatively at first, including an extra verse which we had never heard.

We are not sure how the three songs of Franz Schubert fit into the theme but we were very happy to hear them, especially "Der Wanderer" and "Du bist die Ruh". For some reason, they alternated with songs by Rudi Stephan who composed a century later.  We found Stephan's songs to be grim and depressing, but then, war is grim and depressing.

Three glorious songs from Sergei Rachmaninoff restored our mood, especially the seasonal delight "Spring Waters" which seemed just right for the tail end of Winter and the coming of Spring.

Irving Berlin's "Goodbye France" was a swell reminder of how happy people must have been to greet their loved ones returning from the war.  We could use some of that patriotism in the 21st c.! A pair of songs by Ivor Novello followed, not making much of an impression on us, and the program closed with another Vaughan Williams song; frankly, we had heard enough from Williams in the first half of the program, having heard songs #1-8 already!

The encore brought back our optimism with "When You Walk Through a Storm" the inspirational song from Rodgers and Hammerstein's Carousel.

(c) meche kroop

NYFOS GIVE US THE FAMILY RODGERS

Hal Cazalet, Lauren Worsham, Mary Testa, and John Brancy

Count on Steven Blier to assemble a gifted group of singers who are comfortable with genres from classical art song to Broadway to the Beatles.  Count on Steven Blier to dream up a thrilling theme.  Count on Steven Blier to curate enough songs to fill out the theme.  Count on Steven Blier to titillate the audience with tidbits about the composers. Count on Steven Blier to tickle the ivories and your ears with his arranging and playing. And count on Steven Blier to write a fascinating essay about the program, instead of the customary boring program notes.

The theme of last night's concert at Merkin Concert Hall was "Rodgers, Rogers & Guettel"; three generations of America's own musical dynasty. The first set of songs illustrated Richard Rodgers partnership with Lorenz Hart as lyricist and were composed in the 1920's and 1930's. Our personal favorite of this group was "Maybe It's Me" from the 1926 musical Peggy-Ann.  We loved soprano Lauren Worsham's charming style and were delighted by  Mr. Hart's clever rhymes (i.e. senator/progenitor).

In the 1940's, Mr. Rodgers produced some of his finest music in collaboration with lyricist Oscar Hammerstein II.  Mezzo-soprano Mary Testa sang the insightful "The Gentleman Is a Dope" which reminded us of how we tend to disparage what we cannot achieve. 

Baritone John Brancy performed "Some Enchanted Evening" in a highly personal fashion that enchanted us, pouring that old wine into some new flavorful oak barrels, adding nuance upon nuance.

Mr. Rodgers collaborated with Stephen Sondheim in the 60's and "Bargaining" from Do I Hear a Waltz? with it's humorous and clever lyrics was well performed by tenor Hal Cazalet.

Mary Rodgers, Richard's daughter, wrote some fine music in the 60's and last night's program included a number of them that had gone unpublished for one reason or another. She is better known today as a writer of children's books but it was a real gift from NYFOS to share these songs with us. She died just two years ago.

One of the songs was familiar to us--"The Boy From...." with hilarious lyrics by Mr. Sondheim; it was part of a revue called The Mad Show and may have been a send-up of a song "The Girl from Ipanema".  Ms. Testa is at her best in comedy and everything about her delivery was on point.

Ms. Rogers also worked with lyricist Marshall Barer on a musical called Once Upon a Mattress. "Happily Ever After" was delightfully performed by Ms. Testa, Mr. Cazalet, and Mr. Brancy. This satire of fairy tales made us think of Sondheim's Into the Woods which appeared in 1986.

The third member of the family to be honored by NYFOS was Ms. Rogers' son Adam Guettel, whose music is very much of our time, melding influences from several genres and time periods. 

Ms. Worsham was absolutely charming as Clara from Light in the Piazza singing the title song of Mr. Guettels's 2003 musical.

An earlier work from his 1998 Myths and Hymns, entitled "Awaiting You" was sung by Mr. Brancy who employed all manner of vocal colors and dynamic variety. The writing for piano was particularly complex and turbulent.

Mr. Blier's essay about the Rodgers clan touched upon the many problems of this musical dynasty but we prefer to focus on the musical gifts they have given to us. We understand that Mr. Guettel married just two years ago so it's a bit too soon to know if the family gift will be perpetuated!

(c) meche kroop

PLUPERFECT

Peter Dugan and John Brancy

"If the recital were repeated today we would be there. They left us satisfied but somehow wanting more."  This is a quote from a review we wrote exactly three months ago (archived on this website) entitled "Painting the Picture and Telling the Tale". Well, we had to wait three months but last night's recital at The National Opera Center fulfilled our desire. 

Three months ago it was John Brancy and Peter Dugan at Carnegie Hall  and last night's recital was at the National Opera Center, as part of Opera America's Emerging Artist Recital Series. This brilliant artist appeared as winner of the 2015 Jensen Foundation Vocal Competition. The Jensen Foundation established their first competition in 2000 with 91 competitors.  My, how they've grown!  In 2015, 270 singers competed for 125 audition slots. We have nothing but admiration for any and all institutions that give aid and attention to young artists.

Mr. Brancy has won many other competitions and has been singing around the world; the performance we would have most wanted to see was his Dr. Malatesta at Glyndebourne. Let's just say that his dance card is filled.

Can it be just three years since we reviewed his graduation recital at Juilliard? Mr. Dugan, a fellow Juilliard graduate, has been his regular collaborative pianist and the two artists match each other breath for breath, mood for mood.

We consider it a privilege to witness the growth of a young artist. We have a special affection for Mr. Brancy, having recognized his potential from the start. His years at Juilliard refined and developed his innate artistry that, we believe, emerges from a very special inner worth. 

The effect on the listener is one of joining something larger--a sphere shared by the composer, the poet or librettist, the singer, and the piano--a communal experience. This artistry goes way beyond technique. 

Of course, the possession of a fine instrument is a starting point and we have heard this instrument become darker and more polished over the years, like oil paint on the canvas of an old master. 

So...getting to last night's program, a recapitulation of many songs from the Carnegie Hall recital was a welcome choice. Our only tiny cavil from that recital was the need for a lighter color for the voice of the child in Schubert's "Erlkönig" and for the voice of Die Lorelei in Schumann's "Waldesgespräch". Last night's "voices" were much improved. 

As a matter of fact, we love it when Mr. Brancy interposes a lighter tender timbre where appropriate. For example: in the middle of Schumann's lively enthusiastic "Aus alten Märchen"; when he sang about the weeping bride at the end of "Auf einer Burg"; the knight's serenade in "Des Fräuleins Liebeslauschen"; and Fauré's "Dan la Nymphée", which had an ethereal quality.

The consummate storytelling skills, which we thought were perfect 3 months ago, are even better now. Many of the tales just gripped us by the throat. There was a lot of horror in Schumann's "Balsatzar", Schubert's "Der Zwerg", and of course in the aforementioned "Erlkönig".

We also heard songs by Sibelius in both Finnish and in Swedish, as well as Frank Bridge's "Love Went A-Riding" and the marvelously funny and marvelously performed song "The Green-Eyed Dragon" by Wolseley Charles in which Mr. Brancy perfectly voiced and enacted the greedy dragon and also his spooky ghost.

A highlight of the evening was Mr. Dugan's wild arrangement of Grieg's "In the Hall of the Mountain King", reprised from the February recital. His fingers flew over the keys but the melody never got lost.

There was no chance that the audience would let the pair off the stage without an encore--(a "Swann song" if you will pardon the pun)--"Bilbo's Last Song" with music by Donald Swann and lyrics by J.R.R. Tolkien.  A suitable choice for an evening of fantasy ranging from macabre to ethereal!

(c) meche kroop

PAINTING THE PICTURE AND TELLING THE TALE

John Brancy and Peter Dugan

What does one say when one has run out of superlatives? The recital we heard last night at the Weill Recital Hall of Carnegie Hall set the bar really high for a song recital.  As many superb recitals as we have seen this season, nothing approached the musicianship, artistry, and dramatic intensity of this one. We have followed the careers of baritone John Brancy and pianist Peter Dugan for several years and have seen them fulfill their initial promise.  We can think of no greater thrill.

One of the features that ensured the success of the recital was the flow of collaboration between the two artists. Although we are sure that a lot of hard work went into the planning and execution of the recital, the overall effect was one of naturalness and ease. We don't often get to hear recitals with a compelling theme, so the selection of "Fantasy" as a theme struck us as original and compelling.

There be fairytales, there be dragons, there be princesses in towers, there be elves and dwarves, there be satyrs, nymphs, nixen und hexen. Subjects of the texts meet their ends in horrifying and grisly ways. For two hours we were transported to a strange world that was immortalized by all the great composers. The first half of the program comprised lieder that were totally familiar to any recital goer.

Schumann's "Aus alten Märchen" was the introductory piece and it set the stage perfectly for what was to follow. Texts for the five songs in the Schumann set used texts by the young composer's favorite poets--Heinrich Heine and Joseph von Eichendorff. Of the five songs, our favorite was "Waldesgespräch"in which the courtly speech of the rider is hiding some not-so-courtly intentions; he is quickly dispatched by the Hexe Lorelei.

The set of lieder by Schubert was equally impressive with his debut entry as a teenage lieder komponist--"Erlkönig" with text by Goethe--being our favorite.  In this case, the tragic death belonged to a small child with the perpetrator being the nasty and seductive king of the elves. From both pianistic and vocal standpoints, this was an incomparable performance.

The entire first half of the program was marked by intensely dramatic storytelling. Neither artist has the slightest reservation about using every color on his palette. Both of them seemed completely immersed in the texts, drawing us into their fantasy world.

If we had one tiny suggestion for Mr. Brancy to take his performance from a 99 to 100, it would be to allow a different color in his voice for the Hexe in "Waldesgespräch", perhaps a more feminine tone, and a more feeble color for the sickly child in "Erlkönig".  Clearly his resonant and firmly grounded baritone is more comfortable in the parts of the rider in the first piece and the narrator, father, and Elfking in the second. But we longed for a bit more contrast.

The passionate piano playing could not have been improved and swept us along in a tide of excitement and wonder. In a most welcome addition, Mr. Dugan performed two solos in the second half of the program.

He played Debussy's "Pour invoquer Pan" from Six épigraphes antiques, reduced from the original flutes, harps, and celesta, all of which we could hear in the piano. The notes and their overtones seemed to hang in the air.  But it was his arrangement of Grieg's "In the Hall of the Mountain King" from Peer Gynt that brought down the house. We have never heard the like! The house was electrified. Abrupt changes from major to minor and the rumbling in the lower reaches of the piano were unsettling.

The artistic coupling continued to delight and mystify throughout the second half of the program with songs by Debussy, Fauré, Grieg, and Sibelius.  Only "Le tombeau des naïades" from Chansons de Bilitis was familiar, although we have never heard it sung by a man. What a treat to hear a song by Sibelius sung in Finnish, strange and beautiful to the ear. In Grieg's "Prinsessen" we could hear the sweet song of the boy playing the horn.

We even enjoyed the songs in English, due to Mr. Brancy's impeccable diction.  Not a word was lost! We loved David Long's setting of "Misty Mountains" (text by Tolkien) in which the simple melody and strophic organization were given a variety of moods in the artists' own arrangement.

Britten's arrangement of a French folk song "The king is gone a hunting" was delightful.  The English language lends itself so well to short punchy phrases that rhyme and scan.

Wolseley Charles' amusing "The Green Eyed Dragon" allowed Mr. Brancy to give full rein to his storytelling skills and was pure delight.

The welcome encore was "The Impossible Dream" from Man of La Mancha by Joe Darion/Mitch Leigh.  It is obvious that all of Mr. Dugan's and Mr. Brancy's dreams are more than possible! It was the perfect end to a stunning recital. The thunderous applause and the standing ovation were well deserved.

The two artists are far more than collaborators on vocal recitals. They both have impressive international careers in many aspects of their art. Clearly, their experience in the art of opera and cabaret and collaboration with other artists has informed their artistry. Still, if we had no knowledge or experience of their diverse talents, if this recital were all we had to go on, we would still select them as stars of the musical firmament. If the recital were repeated today we would be there. They left us satisfied but somehow wanting more.

(c) meche kroop

NYFOS LOVE FEST

John Brancy, Annie Rosen, Theo Lebow, Paul Appleby, Julia Bullock, Michael Barrett and Steven Blier

Last night at Weill Recital Hall, New York Festival of Song threw itself a party.  They called it a gala recital; we call it a love fest.

There isn't a shadow of a doubt how much Maestro Blier cares for the young singers he has championed and likewise how much they care for him.  He has nurtured their careers, coached them, taught them, encouraged them to develop in new directions and gotten them up onstage with programs of songs that are always as meaningful as they are entertaining.

They have learned well and we have witnessed their artistic growth over the past few years. Each and every one has broadened his/her reach and increased their versatility. Retreats at Caramoor have contributed to these Emerging Artists and the scope of the program continues to grow, gathering fans everywhere.

There was no printed program last night--it felt more like a celebration than a recital.  What joy to hear good songs without amplification, all treated with the same respect given to the repertory from other centuries.

Readers will forgive us, we hope, if we cannot correctly quote the correct title of each song and its composer.  We will do our best to share our wonderful memories. Mr. Blier narrated in his customary engaging manner and accompanied with an occasional relief from Mr. Barrett who is Associate Artistic Director of NYFOS.

Mezzo-soprano Annie Rosen began the program with a torchy ballad-- Bob Telson's "Calling You", to which Mr. Blier's piano contributed some harmonically interesting ascending figures. She clearly knows how to get a song across, which is true of all of these young artists. Later in the evening she sang "J'attends un navire" from Kurt Weill's Marie Gallant. Ms. Rosen sang it with passion and intensity.  Whew!

Baritone John Brancy sang a soulful version of Cole Porter's "Night and Day" to a wild piano arrangement. Later in the program he sang "I'm a Jonah Man" with as much substance as style. We always enjoy whatever Mr. Brancy gets his hands on.  Later he sang "If Ever I Would Leave You" from Lerner and Loewe's Camelot--a real romantic stunner.

Tenor Theo Lebow sang "The Judgment of Paris" from Offenbach's La Belle Hélène, in fine French; he sang it with such excellent dramatic instincts that it wasn't necessary to understand the French. Later he sang a Swedish song, the title and composer of which we did not catch.  Mr. Lebow has a fine flair for languages.

Tenor Paul Appleby has admirable dramatic instincts married to a fine voice and we have enjoyed hearing him for years.  Last night he sang Paul Simon's "So Far Away From Home". And he sang something from a song cycle by William Bolcom which we did not recognize, with four hands at the piano.  We enjoyed him the most in his duet with Julia Bullock-- "Only Make Believe" from Oscar Hammerstein and Jerome Kern's Showboat.  These two gifted performers gave a sincere and affecting performance that had an interesting twist at the end when Mr. Brancy joined the twosome and made a threesome.

Ms. Bullock, a soprano of incomparable artistry, could sing the phonebook and we'd be enthralled. When she performed "Little David Play on Your Harp" we forgot we didn't like "spirituals".  Now we do!  That's amazing when a performance can turn you around like that!

The program ended with the entire cast performing a song about which we know nothing.  Was it "Zumba"?  It matters little.  Everyone enjoyed themselves, as did the audience.

Long may NYFOS thrive.  Viva NYFOS!  They sing the songs.  We sing their praises.

(c) meche kroop

THE FIFTH EDITION

Joshua Breitzer, Joshua Jeremiah, Ben Bliss, Olivia Betzen, Alex Mansoori, Wallis Giunta and John Brancy

Last night marked the fifth edition of Steven Blier's annual Christmas treat as part of the "Sing for Your Supper--NYFOS After Hours" series hosted by the affable Henry at the eponymous friendly and comfortable Upper West Side restaurant. These delightful evenings always have a theme and the theme for the December show is (trumpet fanfare) "A Goyishe Christmas to you!--Yuletide Songs by Jewish Composers".

The beloved Steven Blier serves as pianist, arranger and raconteur, regaling the appreciative audience with anecdotes and gossip about the composers, in this case many Jewish composers who had changed their names.  For example, Frank Loesser composed "Baby It's Cold Outside" to sing with his wife; the song was picked up for the show Neptune's Daughter and the couple divorced.

The song was performed by mezzo-soprano Wallis Giunta and baritone John Brancy and we feel as if we actually heard it for the first time.  All the seduction lay in the voice and gestures; it seemed as if it were a scene in a film.  If this pair is not opera's next glamour couple we will eat our program!  

Rémy Yulzari joined them on the double bass and also accompanied Ms. Giunta in her lovely solo "What Are You Doing New Year's Eve" also by Loesser.  His bass playing equalled the expressiveness of her singing.  The instrument fairly spoke.  Or sang.

Mr. Brancy also had a solo--he sang "O Holy Night" by Adolphe Adam (possibly Jewish but evidence is contradictory) in both English and French; his voice has such a wealth of expressiveness behind it that we were moved close to tears.  He also provided an encore later in the evening--"I'll Be Home For Christmas".

Mr. Blier is fond of gender bending and "Winter Wonderland" was given a new slant, performed by Mr. Brancy and Joshua Jeremiah, accompanied by clarinetist Alan Kay. The cosy pair in their winter hats had the audience in stitches, especially when they were pretending the snowman was Parson Brown.

Even more gender bending was enjoyed when excellent tenor Ben Bliss (just seen at The Metropolitan Opera in Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg) sang one of the songs made famous by Eartha Kitt--"Santa Baby", written by Joan Javits in the 50's.  Here it was called "Santa Buddy" with appropriate rewriting of the Christmas list.

There was humor aplenty in the course of the program.  Joshua Jeremiah was hilarious in "Candle in My Window", also known as "God Bless the Christmas Jew" by Levitsky and Miller.  He has an expansive way of getting a song across as we noted in his duet with Cantor Joshua Breitzer--"Hannukah in Santa Monica", a Tom Lehrer song filled with his customary wit. They were accompanied by Mr. Kay who surely has a Klezmer background.

Cantor Breitzer regaled the audience with a Yiddish version of "Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer".  Even if we didn't understand the words we enjoyed the sound of the language and the spirit of fun.  Mr. Kay and Mr. Yulzari accompanied.

Alex Mansoori contributed yet more fun to the evening with David Friedman's very funny "My Simple Christmas Wish" to which he gave a most theatrical delivery.  He also showed another side in "Silver Bells" (Jay Livingston/Ray Evans) which, as explained by Mr. Blier, refers to the Salvation Army collecting money for the less fortunate.  Now that's something we did not know and perhaps neither did you.

The entire group, joined by Olivia Betzen opened and closed the program with ensemble arrangements of "Hark the Herald Angels Sing" and Irving Berlin's "White Christmas" involving some lovely humming in harmony.  There was also a jolly encore of "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree".  Let it be noted that the English diction was excellent.  We would not have wanted to miss a single word.

It was a fine show leaving the audience happy as can be.  Too bad we must wait a year for the next edition.

© meche kroop

OPERA INDEX MEMBERSHIP PARTY

Joseph Eletto

Michael Fennelly, Josh Quinn, Evan LeRoy Johnson, Jane Shaulis, John Brancy, Ryan Speedo Green and Opera Index President Murray Rosenthal

We can scarcely believe what goes on in church basements these days!  Luminaries of the opera world joined a roomful of opera lovers to celebrate Opera Index and its 31st competition.  Over $50,000. was awarded to 15 young artists, 5 of whom performed for members of Opera Index, an organization that supports young singers--an organization you should join if you haven't already.  Membership is a paltry $45!

You may notice that only four of these young artists are in the photo above, the reason being that baritone Joe Eletto was obliged to leave for a rehearsal immediately after his vocally and dramatically excellent performance of "Come un'ape ne' giorni d'aprile" from Rossini's La Cenerentola.  He conveyed every nuance of humor as Dandini comments on the pair of stepsisters.  Rossini underscored the humor with a clutch of staccato notes which Mr. Eletto handled effectively.

Bass-baritone Josh Quinn has a large round and mature sound which he employed effectively in "O, du mein holder Abendstern" from Wagner's Tannhäuser.  His ardent delivery made the aria incredibly moving and the size of his voice did not diminish his flexibility in the melismatic passage.  Mr. Fennelly's accompaniment was particularly lovely.

Tenor Evan LeRoy Johnson has a sweet youthful sound with an impressive expansion at the top and a sensitive touch with dynamics which served him well in "Salut! demeure chaste et pure" from Gounod's Faust.  He maintained that lovely even French line and exhibited some very nice diction.

Baritone John Brancy has a soulful delivery that imbues every word with deep meaning and we greatly enjoyed his vocally refined performance of "Pierrot's Tanzlied" from Korngold's Die tote Stadt, much as we enjoyed the two Korngold songs he sang last night at New York Festival of Song.  This one is filled with nostalgia and yearning and went straight to the heart.

Bass-baritone Ryan Speedo Green ended the recital on a humorous note as he gave an outstanding performance of "La calunnia" from Rossini's Il barbiere di Siviglia.  His large frame and expansive sound combined with an abundance of dramatic flourishes to leave the audience smiling from ear to ear.

All of these young artists are busy singing around the country and have impressive resumés.  How fortunate we felt to have them serenading us!  Since there was not a female winner present, Jane Shaulis contributed a delightful performance of the very funny Cole Porter song "The Physician".

As if that were not enough, Mr. Brancy thrilled us with an encore--"Maria" from Bernstein's West Side Story.  He spun the high note so beautifully!  And Mr. Green sang "This Nearly Was Mine" from Rodgers and Hammerstein's South Pacific with great depth of feeling.  We are convinced that the "American Musical" is just another iteration of opera.

Mr. Fennelly's skill as accompanist has been appreciated for several years.  The evening ended with a buffet dinner supplied by Opera Index members.  It seems unnecessary to say that those who love good music love good food.  We left satisfied in body as well as spirit.

There are ten more winners to be enjoyed and appreciated at upcoming events.  For further information, go to www.operaindexinc.org.  Join the party!

© meche kroop

MAN OF THE (50 minute) HOUR

Janai Brugger, John Brancy, Steven Blier and Michael Barrett

Our dear Steven Blier seems never to run out of original ideas for recitals for New York Festival of Song, of which he is the Artistic Director.  Last night's recital was entitled "Art Song on the Couch: Lieder in Freud's Vienna" and Mr. Blier introduced the program from the piano by describing Gustav Mahler's four-hour session walking with psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud.  He waggishly pointed out that it seemed to have helped and left Mahler transformed for the better.

We in the audience had but two hours to be transformed for the better.  Reading the program notes describing the circumstances in Victorian Vienna up to the 1930's gave an excellent background for appreciation of the music.  A society pretending to be respectable and controlled was seething with rebellion underneath, just as a person with a conservative exterior may be hiding some pretty wild secrets.

New ground was being broken in all fields and so it was with music.  We no longer hear the strophic melodies and reassuring harmonies of Schubert, Schumann and Brahms. Instead we are hearing experiments in rhythm, strange harmonies, and a searching quality in the melodies.

Bringing this challenging music to vivid life were two superb artists--one well known to us for several years since Juilliard days--baritone John Brancy-- and the other a dazzling soprano new to NYFOS--Janai Brugger.  It's thrilling to witness the meteoric rise of someone we have long appreciated and it's thrilling to hear someone as a recitalist whom we have previously heard only on the opera stage (as Liu in Puccini's Turandot at the Metropolitan Opera).

The evening opened and closed with Mahler.  The first set of songs comprised Herr Mahler's "Erinnerung" and his wife Alma Mahler's "Laue Sommernacht".  The first made use of Mr. Brancy's baritone and Ms. Brugger's soprano in alternating stanzas exploring the relationship between song and love.  The final couplet was sung as a duet and we found the entire song quite lovely.  

But Frau Mahler's "Laue Sommernacht" was even lovelier with it's intense yet intimate feel.  She was taught by Alexander Zemlinsky and Herr Mahler was disapproving of her composing--perhaps because of societal restrictions or perhaps out of envy.  Who knows?

After many wonderful songs by Hugo Wolf, Erich Korngold, Arnold Schoenberg, Alexander Zemlinsky and Richard Strauss, we were treated to an encore of a 20th c. Tom Lehrer song "Alma" which satirizes Frau Mahler's succession of famous husbands. We will spare you the lengthy list of lovers.  What a gal!

The songs were nearly all new to us with the exception of two cabaret type songs which we had heard at the Austrian Cultural Forum.  Hugo Wolf's "Erstes Liebeslied eines Mädchens" was sung by Ms. Brugger who communicated all the naughty suggestiveness of the lyrics.  She did the same for Schoenberg's "Der genügsamer Liebhaber", a song one would expect to have been sung by a man.

But Mr. Blier is fond of gender-free casting and put Zemlinsky's "Das bucklichte Männlein" into the mouth of Mr. Brancy who picked up the humor ball and ran with it all the way to the goal post.  (Forgive us our sports metaphor.)  Mr. Brancy is usually a contained stage presence, using vocal colors to convey the drama so this was novel and fun seeing him let loose.  Here, although the lyrics are funny, the piano line conveys substantial anxiety.

Ms. Brugger's finest moments were in "Frühlingsfeier" when she cried out for Adonis and in "Drei Ophelia-Lieder" both by Strauss.  Her dramatic instincts are as fine as her beautiful instrument.

We also enjoyed Mr. Brancy's amusing delivery of Korngold's unpublished early song "Die Geniale".  Short but sweet.

The two fine singers joined voices for the final work on the program "Arie aus dem Spiegel von Arcadien".  Apparently we were in a particular mood for humor last night. We had trouble imagining the super-serious Schoenberg setting the light-hearted words of the long-dead Emanuel Schikaneder.  But he did and we enjoyed it.

We measure the success of this type of recital by how many hours of reading they inspire.  We have been reading about the denizens of turn-of-the-20th c. Vienna for hours.  What a fascinating junction of time and place--zeit und stelle.

ⓒ meche kroop

JOHN + MARIO = MAGIC

Mario Antonio Marra and John Brancy

When the judges of the Marilyn Horne Song Competition chose baritone John Brancy and pianist Mario Antonio Marra as their 2013 winners they chose extraordinarily well.  This pair made magic yesterday in their recital at the National Opera Center.  When Mr. Brancy performs Robert Schumann's Dichterliebe at Carnegie Hall (no doubt he will have that opportunity), we will sit there smugly knowing that we heard it in the intimate environment that the work demands.

Mr. Brancy is a born storyteller and sings from a place deep within; he sings in an expressive manner that never panders to the audience but rather invites the audience to join him on his profound inward journey.  Unlike Schubert's song cycles, Dichterliebe is an inner journey.  There is no leierman, no miller, no brook, no frost on the window.  There is just the singer and his tale of a love lost, indeed lost rather early in the cycle. 

The remainder of the cycle relates the varying emotions he feels as he works through the loss; we experience with him the stages of anger, grief, bitterness, despair and ultimately acceptance as he confines his old songs to an hyperbolic coffin given a burial at sea.  Mr. Brancy and Mr. Marra plumbed every emotional depth leaving us feeling emotionally wrung out but artistically satisfied.

We welcomed the respite of intermission to restore our equanimity.  Three songs by Dvořák followed and we recalled an evening at Juilliard when we spent an evening listening to and growing accustomed to the sound of the difficult Czech language.  The effort spent in learning to sing in Czech yielded a big bonus for the listener since the songs are beyond lovely.

The first two were settings of Greek poems about mothers and sons.  In the first, a woman is learning of her son's successes in destroying Turkish pashas and armies and the second related the tale of a shepherd who disobeys his mother's advice and plays his pipes for the Nereids.  A third song entitled "Cypresses" was about the pains of love and had some gorgeous melodies typical of the composer's nationalistic bent.

Following this we heard the premiere of Force, an impressive work commissioned by Gary Portadin--a collaboration between composer Chris Kapica, poet Robert Corsini and Mr. Brancy.  In a universe of ugly and meaningless contemporary poetry which has been set to equally ugly and meaningless music, this work shines as brightly as Jupiter in the night sky.  The theme of man overcoming a mechanistic world and achieving identity through creative self-definition is a worthwhile subject for exploration.  Mr. Corsini's poetry rhymes (!) and scans (!!) and Mr. Kapica's music expresses and augments the ideas both the mechanistic ones and the spiritual ones, challenging the listener without hurting the ears.  Mr. Brancy's performance seemed to come from a very profound place.

The program concluded with three 20th c. American songs that were given the same attention and respect as lieder.  In each case Mr. Marra played with the songs in his own superb arrangements that tickled the ear.  In Hoagy Carmichael's "The Nearness of You" Mr. Brancy's beautiful baritone caressed each word as Mr. Marra's digits caressed the keys of the piano.  We heard some truly gorgeous floated top notes.

Jerome Kern's "The Folks Who Live on the Hill" was given a jazzy treatment by Mr. Marra in beautiful counterpoint to Mr. Brancy's sincerity.  Cole Porter's "Night and Day" offered a fine sense of fun with twinkles in the eyes. 

As an encore, Stephen Foster's "Beautiful Dreamer" was sung in tribute to Marilyn Horne.  How many times we have listened to her sing this treasure on You Tube!  It was the perfect end to a magical recital.  We will fall into bed with some beautiful dreams of a well-spent evening.

© meche kroop

MUSIC THAT CHARMS

Cullen Gandy, Daniel Curran, Yungee Rhie, Jamilyn Manning-White (photo by Richard Termine)

Pluto, god of the underworld, never permitted an arrival to his domain to return to the world of the living; no, not until Orpheus, encouraged by his father Apollo, used his prodigious gift of song to soften the heart of Pluto and charm him into releasing Eurydice.  At the Gotham Chamber Opera's production of Charpentier's 1686 work, La descente d'Orphée aux enfers, we the audience are charmed by the gift of song.

In a master stroke of site-specific staging we are invited into St. Paul's Chapel, the oldest continually inhabited building in New York, to hear one of the oldest surviving operas.  Although this is not the first opera to be based on the myth of Orpheus, (that honor goes to Peri's 1600 version) nor the most frequently performed (that honor likely goes to Gluck's l762 version) nor the favorite of early music fans (that honor might go to the 1607 Monteverdi version) it was well worth the gorgeous production it received from Gotham's completely effective production team comprising Stage Director Andrew Eggert, Set Designer Julia Noulin-Merat, Costume Designer Vita Tzykun, Lighting Designer Mark Stanley, Choreographer Doug Elkins  with projections by S. Katy Tucker.

The set was simply a slightly raised platform with a white scrim obscuring the sight, but not the sound, of eight early music specialists producing the most gorgeous sounds, conducted by Neal Goren.  The circular staircase and the balcony were put to good use for the gods Apollon, Pluton and Proserpine.  Apollon was magnificently sung by rising star baritone John Brancy, costumed in golden tunic with a curly blond wig.  Pluton and Proserpine, costumed in black with steampunk influence, were finely sung by appropriately booming bass Jeffrey Beruan and the scintillating soprano Mary Feminear.

That staircase was also used for Orphée's descent to the underworld.  Daniel Curran's winning tenor was persuasive in expressing the many moods of the young bard--joyful at his impending marriage, grief at losing his bride, imploring as he pleaded for her release.  Since the third act (in which he loses her again when he disobeys the instructions to not look back) was either never written or was lost, we the audience can leave without despair.

We have witnessed happy shepherds and nymphs celebrating the impending marriage in charming dance and song.  We have witnessed poor Euridice (lovely soprano Jamilyn Manning-White) felled by a snake bite and Orphée's grief.  We hear Apollon's advice and Orphée's pleading his case.  We thrill to Pluton's majesty and Proserpine's hard heart softening.  We see the happily reunited couple climbing out of Pluto's realm. We are satisfied without the tragic third act.

The contrast between the verdant first act and the threatening second act, which takes place in the underworld, were effectively conveyed by projections on the scrim and the spectacle of three bad boys suffering torments that were relieved by Orphée's singing.  Light-hearted shepherds were transformed into agonized souls by virtue of vocal color, scary makeup and tattered costumes.   Until we recognized the superlative voices of Cullen Gandy and Mr. Brancy, we would never have identified them.

The performance was a perfect example of all elements coming together with nary a weak link.  The Gotham Chamber Opera is known for producing unusual chamber works in unusual venues.  Our New Year's wish is that all future productions be as effective as this one.

© meche kroop

A GOYISHE XMAS

John Brancy, Theo Hoffman, Judy Kaye, Joshua Breitzer, Lauren Worsham, Joshua Jeremiah

Last night wasn't the first time Steven Blier's New York Festival of Song presented his program of yuletide songs by Jewish composers but it was a first time for us; it will not be the last since we plan on making this an annual celebration.  The musical selections were all over the map from serious to giggle-worthy.  The singers were all superb and Mr. Blier at the piano assumed his many equally winning roles of pianist, arranger and raconteur.  Although the songs could stand on their own, his narration took the experience to a whole 'nother level.  As was the case at the last event held at Henry's (a more-than-pleasant restaurant on the Upper West Side) the program was introduced by the versatile tenor Miles Mykkanen performing "Sing for Your Supper" from Rogers and Hart's 1938 musical The Boys from Syracuse.  We were completely enthralled by his charming delivery.

The program opened with the gleeful "God Bless the Christmas Jews" by Levitsky/Miller performed by well-known Broadway star Judy Kaye and operatic baritone Joshua Jeremiah who got right into the mood with none of the affectations heard in most crossover performances.  It was just a funny song delivered with personality and wit.  If that song was the funniest, the most serious one was baritone John Brancy's deeply felt "O Holy Night" by Adolphe Adam, a composer Mr. Blier pronounced Jewish with some rather tenuous evidence.  No matter.  Mr. Brancy sang it in English and then in French.  We have never heard Mr. Brancy sing anything without total commitment to the text; we were deeply moved.  His delivery of Walter Kent/Kim Gannon's "I'll Be Home or Christmas" was no less involved, coming as it did from Mr. Brancy's warm heart.

Lauren Worsham's light silvery soprano fairly gleamed in Jule Styne/Bob Merrill's "I'm Naïve" and her duet with Mr. Jeremiah (Frank Loesser's "Baby, It's Cold Outside" from Neptune's Daughter) was charming and finely acted.

Alan Kaye was on hand with his Klezmer clarinet while Cantor Joshua Breitzer performed  Johnny Marks' "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" as you've never heard it before.  You're probably sick to death of hearing it played in supermarkets and malls since Halloween but if you've never heard it sung in Yiddish, you haven't lived.  The audience roared with big belly laughs.

Roy Zimmerman's "Don't Let Gramma Cook Christmas Dinner" was performed by Ms. Worsham and Mr. Breitzer with guitar accompaniment.  In a world where everyone brags about their grandmother's cooking it was quite amusing to hear people sing about their fears of being poisoned by their untalented nana.

Ms. Kaye got everyone laughing even harder as she sang David Friedman's "My Simple Christmas Wish"; it was a wish to be rich and powerful and famous--nothing simpler than that!  Another giggle-getter was Felix Bernard/Richard B. Smith's old chestnut "Winter Wonderland" archly delivered by Mr. Brancy and Mr. Jeremiah.  We will never hear that song again the same way!

Baritone Theo Hoffman is at an earlier stage of his career than the rest of the cast; if we didn't tell you that you never would have guessed that he is still a Juilliard undergraduate.  His delivery of Mel Tormé's "Christmas Song" was completely professional and polished to a high sheen.  It made us want to find a fire and roast some chestnuts.  His sincerity eliminated all sense of cliché.

The evening ended with the cast joining together for Irving Berlin's "White Christmas".  Indeed, it will probably snow tomorrow but we will be warmed by memories of another marvelous evening spent with NYFOS.  We heard songs that were new to us and old chestnuts that were given new imaginative life.  YAY!

ⓒ meche kroop

BRAHMS' SONG CYCLE

Dominic Armstrong, Michael Brofman, Ty Jones, John Brancy, Peter Dugan

Yesterday's recital by the Brooklyn Art Song Society offered a number of delights--the opportunity to hear a rarely performed song cycle composed by Brahms in the 1860's, two gifted lieder interpreters and two equally impressive piano partners, plus the dramatic narration of plummy-voiced actor Ty Jones.  The song cycle Die Schöne Magelone is a setting of texts by Johann Ludwig Tieck--a group of intentionally archaic poems telling a somewhat extended tale of a medieval knight, Count Peter of Provence, his courtship of Princess Magelone of Naples, and the trials and tribulations of their separation and eventual reuniting. There are interesting symbolic elements, including three golden rings given Peter by his mother that he bestows upon Magelone only to have them wind up in the belly of a fish back at Peter's chateau. Shades of Des Knaben Wunderhorn!

There are 15 lovely songs in all; the narration was translated into English and recited by Mr. Jones while the songs themselves served to express the feelings of longing, love, sorrow and joy.  George London Foundation winners tenor Dominic Armstrong and baritone John Brancy performed the songs with beautiful tone and phrasing as well as total commitment to the material.  We noticed just one tiny flaw in Mr. Armstrong's performance which a non-speaker of German would not have observed.  "Ich" appears in so many German words and was often rendered as "ick"; this should be remedied. Otherwise, both singers had a fine command of the language.

Mr. Brancy was accompanied by Peter Dugan whose expressive pianism worked very well with Mr. Brancy's heartfelt delivery.  When Sir Peter gallops away from home, Brahms has provided a galloping rhythm in the piano.  In "Sind es Schmerzen, sind es Freuden" the two artists matched each other in sweetness.  In "Ruhe, Sussliebchen im Schatten" the lilt of this tender lullaby with its descending line reminded us of a barcarolle.  For "Wie schnell verschwindet" Mr. Brancy surprised us by singing the voice of the princess with its stratospheric tessitura in falsetto.

Mr. Armstrong's piano partner was Michael Brofman himself, Artistic Director of the Brooklyn Art Song Society.  They distinguished themselves in the strophic "Liebe kam aus fernen Landen" and in the two sanguine penultimate songs "Geliebter, wo zaudert" and "Wie froh und frisch mein Sinn sich hebt".

If you were unfortunate enough to have missed this stellar afternoon, there are a number of recordings and we recommend those by Peter Schrier and Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau.  There will be several more recitals this season by the ambitious Brooklyn Art Song Society and if you are a lover of lieder, you are sure to be satisfied.

© meche kroop

AUTUMN IN NEW YORK

Ms. Worsham, Mr. Brancy, Mr. Greenhalgh, Mr. Bielfield, Ms. Winters, and Mr. Bliss

The fall music season has gotten off to a dazzling start this past week with a major boost from Steven Blier whose New York Festival of Song always gives us something to celebrate.  Performing at Henry's, the consummately hospitable Upper West Side institution known for yummy food and professional service, Maestro Blier brought his crew of wildly talented young singers to entertain the overflowing crowd with a selection of songs suited to the season.

Mr. Blier wears many hats and wears all of the them well, with a jauntiness that makes everyone feel good and fall instantly in love with him.  He hosts the event, narrates with charming anecdotes, arranges the music and performs at the piano; but, most importantly perhaps, he seeks out just the right singers to suit his upbeat style.

The evening began with a big bonus--the inimitable Miles Mykkanen performing "Sing for your Supper" from The Boys from Syracuse by Rogers and Hart.  His charming persona was the perfect start for the evening and "Sing for your Supper" will now be he title for all the NYFOS evenings at Henry's.

Leading off the programmed part of the evening was tenor Kyle Bielfield whose seductive voice made "Dream with Me"...well...dreamy!  This lovely romantic song was composed by Leonard Bernstein with lyrics by Comden and Green.  (You will hear more from us in the near future about Mr. B's newly-released CD with Lachlan Glen which is already topping the charts.)  Mr. Bielfield was joined by barihunk (OH, NO, we didn't just say that!) Tobias Greenhalgh for the spirited "Rumba Blanca" by Armando Oréfiche.  The always wonderful baritone John Brancy, newly back in NY after some major successes abroad, sang Marc Blitzstein's "Stay in My Arms" and was just as wonderfully listenable later in the program in Cole Porter's "Night and Day".

The women on the program were no less delightful.  Corinne Winters sang Xavier Montsalvatge's "Paisatge del Montseny" and Jésus Guridi's folk poem "Cómo quieres que adivine" which suited her voice to a "T".  Lauren Worsham was absolutely adorable in two timely songs about auditions, as Mr. Blier pointed out that autumn in New York is all about auditions.  Ms. Worsham has a fine sense of theater and we in the audience were given a hefty dose of what it's like to go to open calls.

Mr. Greenhalgh made some really good music with Kurt Weill's setting of Maxwell Anderson's text in "September Song" which Mr. Blier said he had neglected for many years after a hefty overdose.  It was indeed time to revive this nostalgic number.

Tenor Ben Bliss played guitar and sang "Forever My Friend" by Ray LaMontagne, following which he sang "Au fond du temple saint" with Mr. Greenhalgh and we almost fell off our chair in amazement to hear this gorgeous operatic voice.  Regular readers will have no doubt which song we preferred.  Just sayin'.

The satisfying evening was brought to a close with the entire cast singing Vernon Duke's "Autumn in New York";  summer is over and we have ushered in the autumn in high style.  These delightful evenings of fine food, wonderful music and good fellowship fill up fast and we promise to let you know about the next "Sing for Your Supper" event in enough time to get your table at Henry's.

© meche kroop

NOTHIN' CHANCY 'BOUT BRANCY

Peter Dugan, Wallis Giunta, John Brancy

In John Brancy's voyage through Juilliard we have heard him sing the old, the new, the borrowed and the blue; we have even heard him sing Icelandic poetry.  We have never been anything less than thrilled with the authenticity of his performance, not to mention the mature burnished timbre of his baritone voice.

At his graduation recital last night, we were filled with joy for his success but felt twinges of sadness that this six-year voyage is coming to an end.  Mr. Brancy sings from the heart and throws his entire being into every word, every note and every gesture.  He is a consummate storyteller.

The opening story was Britten's tall tale about The Crocodile; Mr. Brancy's delightful sense of humor got the audience giggling.  In an entirely different mood, Kurt Weill's "A dirge for two veterans", a setting of a poem by Walt Whitman about a father and son fallen in battle, gave the artist an opportunity to evoke feelings of grief amplified by a sustained high note.  It also gave collaborative pianist Peter Dugan the opportunity to create drum sounds on the piano, an impressive feat.

We delighted in Mr. Brancy's performance of Ravel's Don Quichotte a Dulcinée which permitted him to create the many faces of Don Quichotte; the idealistic in "Chanson romanesque", the prayerful in "Chanson épique" and the bibulous  in "Chanson à boire".  No matter how many times we have heard these songs they always delight us.  Mr. Dugan created a wonderful contrast in the first song--between Mr. Brancy's long legato vocal lines and the syncopated Spanish rhythms in the piano.  In the second song, Mr. B. gave us an exquisite messa di voce in the final "Amen".

His German was impeccable in Wolf's Morike lieder; no translations were necessary.  We particularly enjoyed "Nimmersatte liebe".

A special added attraction of the evening was the presence of Mr. Brancy's sweetheart, mezzo Wallis Giunta, who joined him for some wonderful duets.  The pair were in perfect harmony in Ralph Vaughn Williams setting of Shakespeare's text "It was a lover and his lass".  But Schumann's "Ich bin dein baum" was the one that touched us most deeply; it is about the mutual dependency of the gardener (Mr. B.) and the fruit-bearing tree (Ms. G.)  Ms. G's pleasing vibrato somehow made us think of a peach tree.  But....the best was yet to come.  Henri Duparc set a text by Pierre-Jules-Théophile Gautier entitled "La Fuite" in which a woman tries to persuade her lover to run away with her in spite of his objections.  She's the romantic and he's the realist.  The acting was so on point that it seemed like a scene in an opera waiting to be written.

Mr. B's dark timbre is very well suited to Russian and we loved what he did with Rachmaninov's "In the silence of the mysterious night"; there was a delicate decrescendo at the end.  Our disappointment at not hearing the Czech language in Cunning Little Vixen was lifted by hearing Dvořák's "My heart is often in pain"; certain motives reminded us of his "Song to the Moon"--absolutely ravishing with its unique sonorities.

After two beautiful Bellini songs with their long vocal phrases and typical arpeggiation in the piano, off came the jacket, out came the stool and Mr. B. enchanted us with his stirring performance of "The Soliloquy" from Carousel.  As if that were not enough, as encore Mr. B. called Ms. G. back onstage for Daniel Hunt's "All the Way".  Never has a pop song sounded so good to our ears!  And it gave Mr. Dugan an opportunity to improvise some great jazzy riffs on the piano.

Mr. Brancy faces future fame and we will feel rather smug telling his fans "I remember him when..."

© meche kroop

CZECH-MATE

Karen Vuong and Julia Bullock-photo by Nan Melville

We haven't shed tears at the opera since Violetta died, but we had tears streaming down our face at the conclusion of the Juilliard Opera's production of The Cunning Little Vixen.  It is difficult to believe that Leoš Janáček wrote his own libretto based on a child's comic strip.  As if a child could comprehend those deep philosophical ideas!  The 1926 work deals with man's relationship to the natural world and shows a deeply compassionate but unsentimental view of the cycles of birth and death.  There were also some anti-capitalist overtones to absorb.

Much credit for the emotional impact (as well as the aural delight) goes to the superior work of the singers of the Juilliard Opera who fulfilled the direction of Emma Griffin and to that of the musicians of the Juilliard Orchestra under the baton of Anne Manson.  The ensemble work was impressive yet each unique character stood out on his/her own merit.  Soprano Julia Bullock did everything right in her portrayal of the feisty vixen who outwits her captor in search of freedom, finds a mate, starts a family and meets her sad end (as people also sometimes do) due to an overweening sense of invulnerability.

Soprano Karen Vuong turned in a superior performance in the portrayal of the vixen's mate.  The foxy pair have a shotgun wedding when the vixen discovers she is pregnant and the neighbors are gossiping.  Bass-baritone Aubrey Allicock made a fine Forester who captures the vixen and treats her like a pet until her inborn qualities lead her to destroy his hens;  then he must tie her up like his dog (a fine Laura Mixter) and she must escape to the freedom of the forest.  Mezzo Lacey Jo Benter portrayed his wife who is somewhat intolerant of his bringing home strays.

Baritone John Brancy turned in another deeply felt and beautifully sung performance as Harašta the poacher who shoots the vixen (thus, the tears) because he wants a fur muff for his bride, the gypsy Terynka.

There is some comic relief in this production in the form of a gaggle of hens presided over by a rooster, played by a very funny Raquel González in male drag.  Soprano Mary Feminear was the "lead hen", and a fine "lead hen" she was. The hens all wore blond wigs and short nighties while the rooster wore suspenders.  We couldn't help thinking of a pimp with his group of "ladies of the evening".  Oh, the risks of anthropomorphization!

Tenor Martin Bakari played the drunken schoolmaster who also wanted to marry the gypsy Terynka; his drinking buddy the priest was played by sturdy bass Önay Köse who also played the badger whose home the vixen appropriated.  Elliott Hines, a bass-baritone, was the innkeeper with mezzo Rachael Wilson as his wife.  There was not a single vocal misfire in the cast.

Surprising was how effectively the cast performed Jeanne Slater's choreography; we were sure the dancers came from Juilliard's Dance Department and later learned that everyone came from the Vocal Arts Department.  If you think that watching dancers cavorting onstage in street clothes pretending to be woodland critters would be preposterous, guess again; the movement was entirely convincing.  And if you were wondering why woodland critters would be wearing street clothes, you would have to ask the director.   To us, the point being made was how much alike are humans and animals.  We humans are animals; we are not them but we are OF them.  Respect for their well-being is called for.  They live, they hunger, they mate, they thrive, they suffer, they die, just as we do.

This concept was further emphasized by Laura Jellinek's set which had nothing of the woodlands about it.  The humans and the animals all use the same brass bed, table and chairs; it was as if two worlds were sharing the same space.  The costumes by Jessica Trejos were witty and reinforced the same concept.

With all this visual and philosophical cud to chew, we still had the music in mind throughout; it held our ear with its Moravian folk melodies and interesting harmonic structure.  Although we would have preferred to hear it sung in Czech, we were quite pleased with the translation by Yveta Synek Graff and Robert T. Jones; the right syllables seemed to fall on the right beats of the music.  The jarring problems of most translations were completely avoided.

Major kudos to the Juilliard Opera and Orchestra for bringing this work to vivid life!