Oberon's Grove

Ivan Petrov

Watch and listen to Ivan Petrov in the Coronation Scene from BORIS GODUNOV here.

And hear Petrov as the Khan in Borodin's PRINCE IGOR:

Ivan Petrov - Konchak Khan's aria ~ PRINCE IGOR

The Tongue of the Flame

Since I am not yet attending live concerts or dance events, Blakeley White-McGuire very kindly sent me a  film of The Tongue of the Flame, her collaboration with Daniel Fetecua Soto. Photo above by Paula Lobo.

ID Studio and Daniel Fetecua Productions will present four evening performances of The Tongue of the Flame from May 24th - 27th, 2021 at 8:00 PM at 311 West 140th Street, Bronx, NY; tickets are available for attending in person, or via livestream. For more information, go here. Donations are accepted here,

The Tongue of the Flame is a sensuous duet which might be viewed as a domestic dance-drama; but it also has a mythic quality about it. Together, the dancers explore themes of domination and surrender; it is a work of captivating intimacy, deep trust, and great tenderness. A sonic tapestry has been woven from music by Trois (Rain),Chris Becker, Mad Rush, Bruce Brubaker, Reason or Rhyme, Oi Va Voi, and the Bryan Ferry Orchestra.

The Tongue of the Flame opens with dreamlike music as the two dancers - nude - rise from the floor and join together in a passionate embrace; kissing is a recurring motif throughout the work. As the music turns otherworldly, a caressive pas de deux is danced. More animated music finds the dancers striking intimate poses and exchanging kisses. They recline of the floor as the music slows.

Now they begin to dress: Blakeley at first in a sort of shroud, and Daniel in black briefs; she places a blindfold over his eyes. Their duet becomes one of temptation and elusiveness. The music takes on a jaunty beat, and the dancing has a ballroomy feeling, with an erotic tinge. During this, they continue to dress one another. An ensuing duet with both dancers seated in chairs turns steamy.

A coda of sorts finds Blakeley and Daniel dancing about the space, together or in pursuit of one another; then there's a cadenza of kisses as their clothes come off. A sense of quiet ecstasy settles over them, and the work ends with the sound of their breathing.

All photos by Paula Lobo.

~ Oberon

Discoveries II

More things I found by chance on YouTube during the pandemic:

Giuseppe Sabbatini sings "Salut! demeure chaste et pure" from Gounod's FAUST at a concert in Tokyo in 1991.

Watch and listen here.

I heard Sabbatini take the same stunning diminuendo on the high-C in a broadcast of FAUST from La Scala during the 1996/1997 season.

Martha Lipton sings Brahms' Alto Rhapsody with the Westminster Choir at a 1952 New York Philharmonic Concert conducted by Guido Cantelli. Listen here.

Sylvia Sass sings the final movement of the Verdi REQUIEM from a performance given at London's Royal Albert Hall in July 1978. Brian Wright conducts the London Symphony Orchestra. Listen here.

Francisco Araiza sings "Recondita armonia" from Puccini's TOSCA from a concert on German television in 1986.

Watch and listen here.

Craig Salstein, dancer and opera fan, sent me this rarity: Alpha Brawner and Tatiana Troyanos singing Bach's "Du wahrer Gott und Davids Sohn," recorded in 1959. Listen here.

Franca Mattiucci sings "O don fatale" from Verdi's DON CARLO in a performance from Bologna 1969. Listen here.

Canadian basso Don Garrard sings the Tsar's monologue from BORIS GODUNOV, in English. Listen here.

Katia Ricciarelli sings "Vissi d'arte" from TOSCA at a concert in Madrid, date unknown.

Watch and listen here.

Wonderful WALKURE @ The Met ~ 1988

Above: Johanna Meier

On Wednesday, March 23rd, 1988, I attended a performance of Wagner's DIE WALKURE at The Met. I had just seen the opera on the prior Saturday: a matinee performance with a stellar cast. You can read about that performance here.

At that time, it was unusual for me to make a mid-week trip from Hartford to New York City for a single performance. But the WALKURE cast on the 23rd featured different singers in five of the six principal roles. When planning my season, I knew I'd want to be there. And I am so glad I went.

From my diary:

"Second WALKURE within a five-day span, and another super performance of this great opera. James Levine and his orchestra were, if anything, even more exciting than they had been at the Saturday matinee. With the exception of Theo Adam repeating his Wotan, the principal casting was completely different from the earlier performance.

Theo Adam (above) seemed to be on far better vocal form than he'd been at the matinee: real power and command, the vibrato less prominent, the tone truly secure. Today he really sounded god-like, with many superb passages: a very interesting monolog, and a great final scene. Bravo!

John Macurdy (above) was a voicey, smug Hunding; his strong performance helped make for a vibrant Act I.

Gail Gilmore (above) is not a plush-timbered singer, but she scored a success as Fricka by introducing subtle nuances and expressive piano passages into the music so that she was not a nagging wife but a crafty, almost seductive persuader. Where power and edge were called for, the Gilmore voice could take on a fierce thrust. Her voice is really rather bizarre, and often curiously appealing, and she's an attractive presence onstage. I hadn't expected her Fricka to be so absorbing.

Sabine Hass (above) made a very good impression as Sieglinde, though her voice is of a more lyric-soprano dimension than what we usually hear in this music; I would love to hear her Elisabeth and Elsa. Today, as the Walsung sister and bride, the soprano gave an impassioned, musically impressive performance, the voice shining out into the big house as she went to the top range. Very appealing in Act I, and powerful in Act II, Ms. Hass sealed her success with a truly excellent "O hehrestes Wunder" in Act III.

Johanna Meier's authentic Brunnhilde-sized voice made her the rightful center of the evening, her ultra-feminine portrayal adding to the pleasure. She gave a great battle cry, and was extremely moving in the Todesverkundigung, singing with simple beauty and power. Her third act was marvelous, so vocally generous, warm, and appealing. The Meier voice has house-filling power, and if some of the music lies a bit low for her, she essentially gave us an evening of top-class Wagnerian vocalism. Brava!   

In a veritable triumph, Gary Lakes gave a vocally perfect Siegmund. Lakes easily surpassed the rather frayed-sounding Siegmund of Peter Hofmann in last week's performance. Lakes stunned me from note one with his tremendous natural voice: huge, warm, very appealing! Much of the time he sounded rather like Domingo; unbelievable, the almost Italianate sounds Lakes produces. It's a voice of vast proportions, giving us a superb Sword Monolog, a very fine Winterstürme, and proving a perfect match for Ms. Meier's Brunnhilde in their richly Wagnerian Todesverkundigung. He, and the entire cast, were hugely applauded at their curtain calls...a most enjoyable evening."

~ Oberon

Huw Montague Rendall ~ Rückert Lieder

Baritone Huw Montague Rendall, the son of mezzo-soprano Diana Montague and tenor Devid Rendall, is establishing a notable career for himself, both in opera and lieder. 

Watch and listen to his performance of Mahler's Rückert Lieder here.

Mr. Montague Rendall sings Debussy's Pelléas in a production from Opéra de Rouen Normandie here.

Ursula Ferri

Swiss contralto Ursula Ferri began singing at age four, and by the time she turned twelve it was clear that becoming an opera singer was her destiny. She pursued vocal studies (and also played the cello) at Winterthur, Hamburg, and Kiev.

Her earliest concerts were as a soprano, but in In 1991 she switched to mezzo-soprano and eventually specialized in the contralto repertory. Her operatic roles ranged from Wagner's Erda and Verdi's Dame Quickly to the most demanding Handel and Rossini parts. Fluent in German, Italian, French, English and Russian, Ms. Ferri has took on extensive concert and recital work. Among the renowned conductors she has worked with are Marcello Viotti, Franz Welser-Möst, Christoph von Dohnanyi, Wladimir Fedosseyev, Gennady Roshdestvensky, Gianandrea Noseda, and Riccardo Chailly.

She sang with the Zurich Opera, at La Fenice, at the Deutsche Oper Berlin, with Vlaamse Opera, the New York City Opera, and at the opera houses of Montpelier, Bern, and Turin.

It was at New York City Opera that I had the pleasure of hearing Ms. Ferri twice: in Rossini's ERMIONE in 2004, and in Dukas' ARIANE ET BARBE-BLEUE in 2005.

Ursula Ferri is the 3rd Lady in a charming scene from ZAUBERFOETE with Piotr Beczala here. And she sings Carissimi here, and Wagner here.

Pauline Tinsley Has Passed Away

The death of the English soprano Pauline Tinsley at the age of 93 has been announced. I saw her unforgettable portrayal of Elizabeth I in Donizetti's Maria Stuarda opposite Beverly Sills at the New York City Opera in 1972 (photo above).

Ms. Tinsley was an incredibly versatile singer; she sang everything from Handel to Puccini's Turandot and Strauss's Elektra. She was a vivid actress, with an unexpected flair for comedy in such roles as Lady Billows in Albert Herring, Fata Morgana in Love For Three Oranges, and the Witch in Hansel and Gretel.

She studied in Manchester at the Northern School of Music, and later in London with Joan Cross, Roy Henderson, and Dame Eva Turner. She made her first appearance with Welsh National Opera in 1962, and with Sadler's Wells the following year; those two companies were her base throughout her career. She sang at Covent Garden from 1965, and also appeared with Scottish Opera.

Ms. Tinsley sang in the USA at Santa Fe, New York City Opera, San Diego, and at Saint Louis (where she created the role of Candace in The Village Singer by Stephen Paulus in 1979). Her European career took her to La Scala, Amsterdam, Basel, Geneva, and Barcelona, as well as to several German houses.

Among her many roles were the Dyer's Wife, Aïda, Anna Bolena, Elektra, Brünnhilde, Ortrud, Kundry, Irene in Wagner's Rienzi, Amalia in I masnadieri, Elvira in  Ernani, Gulnara in Il corsaro, Lucrezia in I due Foscari, Donna Elvira, Elsa, Abigaille, Lady Macbeth, Tosca, Turandot, Kostelnička, Fiordiligi, Santuzza, and Leonore in Beethoven's Fidelio.

One of Pauline Tinsley's great triumphs came in the role of Elizabeth I when English National Opera presented Donizetti's Maria Stuarda in English with Dame Janet Baler as Mary Stuart in 1973. Here is their confrontation scene - the fictitious meeting of the rival queens:

MARY STUART - Confrontation Scene - in English - Dame Janet Baker - Pauline Tinsley - ENO 1973

In 1977, at Cardiff, Ms. Tinsley sang Elektra, also in an English-language production:

Pauline Tinsley - ELEKTRA ~ Monolog - in English - Cardiff 1977

Los Perros del Barrio Colosal

I first met choreographer Omar Román de Jesus when he was dancing with Parsons Dance. Having recently formed his own Company, Boca Tuya, Omar brought his dancers together during the pandemic to create a filmed dancework entitled Los Perros del Barrio Colosal ("The Wondrous Neighborhood Dogs"). He sent me a copy and asked for my thoughts on the piece; I loved it from start to finish, and decided to write about it.

First off, the setting is incredible: in a Civil War-era warehouse in Red Hook, Brooklyn, videographer Drew L. Brown has made wonderful use of the space and light. The dancers - Rachel Secrest, Rafael Cañals, Carlos A. Sánchez Falú, Ian Spring (also formerly of Parsons Dance), Christian Warner, and Spencer Weidie - are all casually dressed in trousers, tee-shirts, and sport-coats.

The work is in two parts, the first set to an infectious score (it made me want to dance!) by the Colombian composer Lucho Bermúdez, and the second set to Franz Liszt's immortal 'Liebestraume'. In the first, the mood-swings and emotional outbursts that are iconic elements in Spanish-language soap operas are woven into the physically demanding choreography. Brief solos are worked in amidst the group dances, and there's some growling and snarling from these dawgs when things get competitive. The pace becomes frenetic, and then silence falls.

The transition from Bermúdez to Liszt is perfectly managed; twilight seems to settle over the space. There is a really moving group adagio with the dancers huddled and entwined. A unexpected outburst of violence, people get machine-gunned. After clasping hands in a gentle tug of war, the dancers end up each alone in a state of pensiveness. Then as a collective they rush about the space as if pursued.

In the end, Carlos A. Sánchez Falú is left alone. He sinks to the floor and lowers his mask, emitting a forlorn howl.

~ Oberon

Ileana Cotrubas as Mimi

Romanian soprano Ileana Cotrubas sings Mimi's Act I narrative from Puccini's LA BOHEME in a performance from Covent Garden in 1982. Watch and listen here.

This is one of my all-time favorite BOHEMEs, wherein Ms. Cotrubas and tenor Neil Shicoff give compelling performances as the doomed lovers. Marilyn Zschau, Sir Thomas Allen, and Gwynne Howell are outstanding as Musetta, Marcello, and Colline respectively, and conductor Lamberto Gardelli has just the right feeling for this score.

Ileana Cotrubas, one of the most distinctive operatic artists of my experience, fascinated me with her performances of Mimi, Violetta, Micaela, and Mozart's Ilia at The Met; my dearest memories of her onstage are from her ideal portrayal of Tatyana in EUGEN ONEGIN. In 1983, for the Met's Centennial Gala, Ms. Cotrubas sang the touching Air de Lia from Debussy's L'ENFANT PRODIGUE.

The Met Presents: Wagnerians in Concert

Saturday May 8th, 2021 - As part of their Met Stars Live in Concert series, The Metropolitan Opera today presented a program entitled Wagnerians in Concert, streamed live from the magnificent Baroque lobby of the Hessiskches Staatstheater in Wiesbaden, Germany. Four prominent interpreters of Wagner's music-dramas - Christine Goerke, Elza van den Heever, Andreas Schager, and Michael Volle - joined forces, and the program branched out a bit to include songs by Richard Strauss as well as the finale of the composer's Die Frau ohne Schatten, in which the four voices were united.

Initially I was a bit skeptical of the idea of hearing these operatic selections without an orchestra, but I must say immediately that pianist Craig Terry soon swept any reservations aside: he played superbly, and in a way, he was the star of the concert.

Each singer's vibrato seemed rather prominent in their first selections, but as the program moved forward, this became less evident.

Strikingly gowned, Ms. van den Heever appeared on the balcony where the lobby's two sweeping staircases meet to sing "Dich, teure Halle” from Wagner's Tannhäuser. This aria is always a perfect start for any opera gala, especially when it is as finely sung as it was today. Ms. van den Heever's top range is especially appealing,

Christine Goerke then appeared, her hair now shot thru with silver, for two Strauss songs: “Allerseelen” and "Cäcilie”. She sang these with fine feeling, ideally supported by Mr. Terry's ravishing playing. A trace of pitchiness in "Allerseelen", and a slightly squally feeling at the end of "Cäcilie” did not detract from her interpretations; Ms. Goerke would soon after be providing genuine thrills as the concert continued.

Michael Volle, in recent Met seasons a magnificent Hans Sachs, Wanderer, and - especially - Scarpia, offered Wolfram's "O du, mein holder Abendstern” from Tannhäuser. Mr. Terry's playing of the introductory passage was so atmospheric, and Mr. Volle's well-modulated soft singing drew us in; the familiar melody of the poignant aria was most persuasively sung.

In the Sword Monologue from Die Walküre, tenor Andreas Schager showed his skill at bringing drama to the narrative. His cries of "Wälse! Wälse!" were well-sustained, and in the reflective passages that followed, he fleshed out the character's mingled feelings of desperation and hope. Yet again, the pianist was fascinating to hear.

Mr. Terry's playing of the Wesendonck Lieder was a masterpiece in its own right. By this point, the lack of an orchestra has ceased to concern me in the least. I was expecting either Ms. Goerke or Ms. van den Heever to sing all five songs, but instead Mr. Volle sang the opening "Der Engel” with expressive dynamics, followed by Mr. Schager's urgent "Stehe still!”; in the calming section of this song, the tenor brought forth a lyrical quality.

Ms. van den Heever looked fetching as she sang the evocative "Im Treibhaus” with its haunting evocation of Tristan's Castle Kareol. Mr. Terry's playing here was hypnotic, giving the soprano's thoughtful interpretation of the song a silken aural cushion.

In “Schmerzen”, Christine Goerke made a splendid impression, pouring out the passionate song with epic grandeur.

By the time Mr. Terry commenced his playing of the introductory measures of "Träume”, we were completely immersed in the dreamworld of Wagner and his fabled Mathilde. Ms. van den Heever, standing on the staircase, looked down on the pianist and sang to him with a sense of quiet rapture.

The final section of the great Senta/Dutchman duet from Der Fliegende Holländer, one truly had a sense of being at the opera. This scene was perfectly staged, with Ms. van den Heever as Senta assuring the anxious Durtchman (Mr. Volle) that she will be faithful onto death. "What a sweet sound in my night of grief!", he sings. The drama was palpable; Mr. Volle's entire being seemed to tremble at the first touch of the woman's hand. Both singers sounded spectacular here, with the soprano's blooming top notes a joy. Yet again, Mr. Terry was a great force in the duet's vibrant unfolding.

As the long-sundered twins Siegmund and Sieglinde, Mr. Schrager and Ms. Goerke gave us "Winterstürme" and "Du bist der Lenz” from Act I of Die Walküre, singing with unbridled passion. The tenor was now singing at full-tilt, whilst the sound of Ms. Goerke pouring out the opening passage of her response to the tenor's ardent courting was simply thrilling. 

Michael Volle gave us“Abendlich strahlt der Sonne Auge” from Das Rheingold, with Mr. Terry again glorious. The baritone's splendid voicing of the  climactic phrase, and his subsequent invitation to Fricka to join him in Valhalla, were outstanding moments.

Mr. Schrager's singing of “Nur eine Waffe taugt” from Act III of Parsifal was strong and committed, with a very fine finish; Mr. Terry's playing was incandescent.

 

In a scene from Act II of Lohengrin, commencing with “Euch Lüften" and ending with Ortrud's venomous "Enweihte Götter!”, the two sopranos played well off one another. Ms. van den Heever sang a poetic 'Song to the Breezes' from the balcony; twice on sustained notes her voice had a split-second blip, but mostly she sounded just lovely. Ms. Goerke as Ortrud then emerged from the darkness, staring up at Elsa. Christine's invocation of the pagan gods was spectacular.

The concert ended with the great celebration of conjugal love: the final quartet “Nun will ich jubeln” from Strauss’s Die Frau ohne Schatten. Here the singers pulled out all the stops, the two sopranos polishing off the performance with smashing top-Cs. If we were deprived of Strauss's dazzling orchestration, this arrangement allowed us to hear some of the inner workings of the vocal lines that can get lost with an orchestra thundering away.

Without an audience, there were no waves of applause; Mr. Terry joined the four singers, all exchanging friendly hugs and mutual admiration.

~ Oberon