Of the many marvelous productions offered by New York City Opera back in their heyday, nothing surpassed their bi-lingual staging of Strauss's ARIADNE AUF NAXOS. I saw it several times, with casts which featured Carol Neblett/Johanna Meier/Stephanie Sundine in the title role, Patricia Wise/Gianna Rolandi as Zerbinetta, Maralin Niska/Olivia Stapp/Susanne Marsee as The Composer, and the redoubtable John Alexander as Bacchus.
It's an opera in which every character sparkles, with marvelous vocal writing and enchanting orchestration. One unforgettable characterization was that of Echo, sung by soprano Barbara Hocher. While the trio of nymphs in this opera might not be considered major roles, they sing a lot, and it's heavenly music. My memories of Ms. Hocher - both in terms of her clear, sweet vocalism and of her stagecraft in this whimsical production - have reverberated magically thru the years.
On Sunday, June 4th, quite by chance, I was introduced to Ms. Hocher by tenor Richard Cox. I asked my friend Adi to take a picture of me with the soprano, and she was very sporting about it. We reminisced about the heyday of New York City Opera and the tremendous impact that the loss of that Company had on New York's cultural scene.
Here are two brief excerpts from a later performance of the opera: part of the nymphs' trio with Mlles. Derr, Curry, and Hocher; and Dominic Cossa singing Harlequin's serenade, with Ms. Hocher's Echo chiming in. Patricia Wise is Zerbinetta.
Ariadne auf Naxos ~ trio - Emily Derr - Barbara Hocher - Diane Curry - w J Meier - NYCO 1974
Dominic Cossa as Harlekin ~ Ariadne auf Naxos - with Patricia Wise & Barbara Hocher - NYCO 1974