A PREMIERE COMPETITION

 

Eric Margiore and Premiere Opera Foundation Competition Finalists

We just attended the Live Finals of the 8th annual Premiere Opera Foundation International Vocal Competition and the artistry was so evenly divided we can't imagine how the judges managed to make their decision. Fortunately, we are not a judge and had the freedom to choose our own favorites. Generous prizes were awarded but we are not here to discuss money, just to discuss our own impressions. Admittedly, our preferences are often colored by the match between singer and repertoire and our favoring certain periods within the opera canon. Rest assured, Dear Reader, that our opinions and our prose are entirely our own and artificial intelligence has not been consulted!

We heard over a dozen singers within the space of a few hours and then waited patiently for the judges to deliberate, a period during which we attempted to reconcile our memories of each artist's performance in the first half with our memories of their performance in the second half. Occasionally we changed our opinion of the artist due to a more suitable choice of material. Mostly our opinions were consistent and here we will present our memories of what impressed us.

To begin, we rarely get to hear a contralto and the statuesque Canadian Rose Naggar-Tremblay took us right into Wagner's Das Rheingold with "Weiche Wotan, Weiche", in which the prescient Erda foreshadows the unhappy end of the Ring Cycle some 18 hours or so later. This performance gave us chills and, as many such superb performances do, created the scene in our mind's eye--in this case the Schenck version from ?1990 which was unforgettable and never equalled. This riveting artist won the Audience Favorite prize (the only one we will mention) so our admiration was not exclusive.

Standing out in our memory was the coloratura of Kathryn Henry which was amplified by some fine acting in "The Jewel Song" from Gounod's Faust. It was so effective that we could see the jewels with which Marguerite adorned herself. 

Another performance that touched us was that of Eva Rae Martinez whose "Prendi, per me sei libero" from Donizetti's L'elisir d'amore gave us a peak into Adina's realization of her growing affection for Nemorino.

Still another affecting performance was that of South Korean soprano Luna Seongeun Park who perfectly created the character of Sophie, an innocent young woman understandably impressed by the customs of the aristocracy. This performance also brought the scene to mind and our imagination recreated Sophie's lavish nouveau riche home with all its servants bustling about, excited about their upcoming elevation to the nobility.

Let us mention some of the male performances that stick in our mind. South Korean bass-baritone Sunghoon Han brought Leporello to life with an amusing delivery of everyone's favorite, the "Catalogue Aria" from Mozart's Don Giovanni. This is an aria that singers can have a lot of fun with but it is difficult to bring something new to it; it seemed to us that Mr. Han added a few twists, gestures and facial expressions that made it fresh for us.

It was a good night for male voices and Mexican bass Raul Morales Velazco had a great time with "Vous qui faites" from Gounod's Faust which he filled with menace and irony.

South African baritone Thandolwethu Mamba also evinced a flair for comedy as he created the character of Dr. Malatesta, putting one over on the eponymous Don Pasquale in the Donizetti opera. No matter how many times one sees this opera, that scene is always a pure delight.

Darren Drone lent his fine baritone to the introductory"Si puo"  from Leoncavallo's Pagliacci, which ended the program. By this time we didn't think we had any listening energy left-- but he woke us up. This would have been a great aria to have opened the program with.

As usual, the excellent accompaniment was provided by Michael Fennelly

The overall level of artistry was very high and the singers we failed to mention were no less marvelous and at a professional performance level. We are only sharing our "take home" which comprises the results of an imperfect memory. If you want to hear about all the other superb singers you can read about them at www.premiereoperafoundation.org. If you are feeling Christmas-generous,you can also make a donation there.

© meche kroop

WHO IS MARCELLA SEMBRICH AND WHY WE SHOULD CARE

 Michael J. Butler, Lucy J. Altus, Ruby Dibble, Gemma Nha, Rose Naggar-Tremblay, and Magdalena Kuzma at the Marcella Sembrich Awards Ceremony

What a fine Sunday evening we spent at The Kosciusko Foundation! We learned something new and impressive, we heard six superlative young singers, and we dined on Polish delicacies. Before we get to the pierogis, let us share with you an interesting story related to us before the concert by Ewa Zadworna, who seems to keep the Kosciuszko Foundation running. 

Marcella Sembrich, a Polish soprano and star at The Metropolitan Opera House at the turn of the 20th c. was not only a great singer with a 30 year career, but also a founder of voice programs at Juilliard and at Curtis Institute, and a great philanthropist, helping to establish the Kosciuszko Foundation in 1926. She worked tirelessly to promote the music of her homeland, which had been partitioned and virtually ceased to exist-- except in the hearts and souls of its people.

The Russian occupiers forbade the use of the Polish language and, of course, the programming of Polish songs. Having been warned several times against singing Polish songs at her recitals, Sembrich risked her life by singing a Polish song at the invitation of the court of Nicholas II. Not only was she not punished but he enjoyed it. We love when music trumps politics!

And here we are today, always yearning to hear Polish songs at recital programs and, having enjoyed works by Moniuszko and Szymanowski (Halka by the former and King Roger by the latter), wanting to hear more.

At the awards recital, we got our wish granted. Magdalena Kuzma performed Halka's tragic aria  “Ha! Dzieciatko nam umiera “ from the Moniuszko opera of the same name. We also heard two lovely Chopin songs.  Gemma Nha sang the lovely "My Darling" and Michael Butler did equal justice to his "Melodia".

There were several other outstanding moments in the recital. We were floored by the powerful contralto of Rose Naggar-Tremblay singing Fricka's “Weiche, Wotan, weiche” from Wagner's Das Rheingold. We rarely hear such power and intensity from someone so young and if Wotan was not persuaded, we certainly were!

Both Lucy Altus and Ruby Dibble sang the "Composer's Aria" from Strauss' Ariadne auf Naxos and we were impressed by how each talented mezzo-soprano was able to extract  different riches from the same mine. We have never been to a competition in which the judges requested the same aria from two different singers. In a way we wished they had performed it back-to-back.

Ms. Nha was hilarious in the playful "Non monsieur ma Marie" from Poulenc's Les Mamelles de Tiresias. Mr. Butler was soulful in "Salut! Demeure chaste et pure" from Gounod's Faust.

Not only were the young singers of exemplary quality but the chosen accompanists, Katelan Tran Terrell and Michal Biel, are both well known to us. They were outstanding in terms of sensitivity to the singers and flexibility of approach to arias from different musical periods. 

The recital went from one high to the next, convincing us that these emerging artists will all go on to success in the opera world. We enjoyed every moment until the very end when the awards were given. We hate to criticize an organization that provides so well for young artists but a misstep like this needs to be remedied.

 If you have six finalists onstage and five of them are given award certificates and bouquets of roses, how do you think the sixth singer feels? Our heart was breaking for her. Obviously competitors have to have nerves of steel and we personally know several semi-finalists whose talents were equal to the five major winners. But they were not onstage putting smiles on their faces. Singers cannot afford to be sore losers but they should never be humiliated in that fashion. This is the same objection we have to the Laffont Competition at The Metropolitan Opera when half of the finalists get awards and the other half do not. This situation exceeded that one in poor taste and should have been avoided.

That bit aside, it was a splendid show of vocal excellence and we are glad not to have been doing the judging. We were happy to be introduced to an important figure in opera and to learn of her outstanding legacy.

© meche kroop