
2 December - Toulouse |
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- The first staged performance in France of
Janacek's Makropolous Affair in the original Czech was
entrusted to the baton of the little-known James Johnson who proved
to be just about ideal in that he refused to sentimentalize the
sound, a fault too often encountered today. Pierre Médecin's "concept"
production - a theater within a theater - could have worked had it
not been so self-conscious in its application, while Hubert
Monloup's sets and costumes were attuned to the director's needs.
Unfortunately, Lisbeth Balslev in the title role lacked the animal
magnetism that would make us feel anything at all about her, while
her singing offered her customary approximations and vibrato-ridden
sound. Keith Lewis shirked most of his high notes but did a better
job of acting than is his wont. Sir Donald MacIntyre and Rolf
Haunstein as Prus and Kolenaty were visible proof that it is
possible to be a singing actor or acting singer. The Orchestre du
Capitole showed its versatility in adapting to the Janacek idiom
with little trouble.
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4 December - Lyon |
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- The second of two recording sessions for the new
EMI Orphée aux Enfers was open to the public to
provide ambiance, and once again it was possible to marvel at the
craftsmanship of Natalie Dessay, Jean-Paul Fouchécourt and
Laurent Naouri who reproduced their stage goings-on without losing
an ounce of spontaneity. The goddesses were replaced for the
recording, so that Jennifer Smith sang Diane, Véronique Gens
Vénus, Patricia Petitbon Cupidon and Virginie Pochon became
Minerve, while L'Opinion Publique devolved to Ewa Podles who more
than made a meal of the role, easily outclassing her colleague from
the stage production. The hero remains Marc Minkowski whose embrace
of farflung repertoire seems to know no bounds.
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10 December - Paris |
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- The Théâtre des Champs-Elysées
offered the possibility of seeing Leonore and Fidelio
in juxtaposition, thanks to their co-productions with,
respectively, the Opéra de Lausanne and Welsh National Opera.
I chose to see them in chronological order, eagerly awaiting this
evening's Leonore, a work hitherto known only from recordings.
Unfortunately, the much overrated Louis Langrée and the
Orchestre des Champs-Elysées offered a bland underpinning,
while anyone who had seen other Leiser-Caurier productions designed
by Christian Fenouillat would have felt entirely at home. Susan
Anthony seemed more engaged than other times I have seen her, but
her gleaming top notes were not as thrilling as usual while she left
out the impossible cadenza in her aria. Christopher Ventris
(Florestan) and Hartmut Welker (Pizarro) were more imposing
physically than vocally, while Laszlo Polgar's Rocco made me think
of various war criminals who protested that they were only doing
their duty. Elzbieta Szmytka and Mathias Zachariassen as the
singspiel couple did double duty, appearing also in Fidelio,
but evidently pleased with the greater opportunities of Leonore.
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11 December - Paris |
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- Die Lustige Witwe, announced as La
Veuve Joyeuse, was entrusted to Armin Jordan and Jorge Lavelli,
but the production was evidently constructed around the presence of
Karita Mattila in the title role. A veritable force of nature, it
would not appear that Hanna is a natural fit for her but she sweeps
away all one's objections. Glamorous costumes (only for her) help
her maintain a certain allure, at the same time demonstrating that
it is possible to recreate 1930s clothing that is attractive. The
hero of the performance, however, is Bo Skovhus as Danilo, a fusion
of singing and acting too rarely seen today so that we are as easily
seduced as Hanna. Lesser roles were filled mostly by singers who
verged on inaudibility, not helped by Armin Jordan's heavy hand from
the pit, not to mention Lavelli's invisible staging which was filled
by such brilliant ideas as having everyone advance to the footlights
to sing his or her bits.
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12 December - Paris |
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- Return to the Champs-Elysées for Fidelio,
the orchestra and conductor in even more lamentable condition than
the other evening, Elisabeth Meyer-Topsøe singing the title
role even though she is having throat problems. She is nonetheless
more convincing than her opposite number of the other night in
delivery of dialogue. I much prefer the Florestan and Pizarro
tonight (Hubert Delamboye and Robert Hale) for their more solid
voices allied with a more convincing delivery of the dialogue. Kurt
Rydl's Rocco is more matter-of-fact but much more solidly sung than
Polgar's. Having heard the two works in such proximity, Leonore
for the first time in the theatre, it is now much easier to state a
preference for Fidelio, the longueurs of the earlier work
offering few compensations for the concision brought by the composer
with his revisions. At the same time I must confess a preference for
the recitative preceding the Leonore-Florestan duet as well as the
melodic curve given to the opening phrase of the duet.
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13 December - Paris |
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- At last a chance to catch up with Cavalli's Didone
in the production staged by the Académie Baroque Européen
and the Ambronay Festival, now in its final performances at the Opéra-Comique.
This year's animateur, Christophe Rousset, chose two
seasoned professionals for the roles of Didone and Enea, the rest of
the cast chosen by audition from beginning artists. The extensive
rehearsal period resulted in a performance with a cast welded in
harmony. Pascal Paul-Harang's direction was always to the point, not
easy with a Busenello libretto which, Shakespearean fashion, mixes
the tragic heroes, comic servants and heavenly intervention. Claire
Brua and Stuart Patterson as the doomed lovers set the example of
intelligent and intelligible declamation of Cavalli's lengthy
arioso-recitative. Only Evgueniy Alexiev's Iarba forgot to sing
while producing lots of forte notes. Simple sets for touring
effectively reduced the playing area, while costumes were not always
becoming to the singers. It is above all the contribution of
Christophe Rousset that must be singled out, his belief in a
disparaged work buoying the singers to give probably the best
performance heard this week.
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14 December - Lyons |
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- Wolfgang Rihm's Jakob Lenz, created in
1979, is denoted a "chamber opera", a reassuring concept
because it is one of those works where, after 10 or 12 hours have
gone by, you look at your watch and discover that in fact 20 minutes
have passed and that you still have about an hour to go. A small
orchestra, with cellos the only strings, is placed on one side of
the stage, lots of Christmas trees fill out the remainder of the
stage, while the orchestra pit is used as an additional playing
area. Johannes M. Kosters in the title role is on stage non-stop,
singing at all volumes from top to bottom of his voice, while
Christoph Späth's hysterical tenor and Jyrki Korthonen's solid
bass fill out the roles of Kaufmann and Oberlin. It is to be hoped
that Berlin audiences at the Hebbel Theater, co-producer of the
spectacle, are as enthusiastic as that in Lyons, my negative
reaction evidently a minority opinion.
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17 December - Lyons |
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- Natalie Dessay takes on a new challenge. Two
nights earlier she gave a recital in Paris, repeated this evening at
the Opéra de Lyon as a benefit for Handicap International
with the collaboration of pianist Ruben Lifschitz. A program without
concession offered a little-known cycle by Pfitzner written for
Maria Ivogün which might have been greeted more appreciatively
had we been able to read the texts so kindly provided were the
auditorium not entirely darkened. Poulenc, Debussy and Strauss
rounded out the program, the latter two being especially congenial
to the soprano. All the Debussy items came from the "Vasnier"
collection of early Debussy with incredible demands on the soprano
voice. Strauss also offered material suited to Dessay, but then he
is a composer that delighted in writing for just such a voice and
interpretative intelligence.
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20 December - Paris |
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- The Bastille (aka Opéra National de
Paris) seems to be on a losing streak, the new production of La
Traviata being hideously ugly, badly conceived and directed by
Jonathan Miller, and uninterestingly sung by Angela Gheorghiu. James
Conlon's tempi were swift beyond measure, but then the
small-but-sweet-voiced Ramon Vargas and the gravelly Alexandru
Agache might otherwise have been in trouble. Miller responded
serenely to the booing which greeted his bow, perhaps the most
exciting moment of the evening.
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