Festival Montréal baroque, du 25 au 28 juin

Pour sa grande fête traditionnelle de cette année, le Festival Montréal baroque a concocté un menu bien particulier. Comme plat principal, la très belle musique de Purcell dont on célèbre cette année le 350^e anniversaire de naissance. Selon la légende, la mort prématurée du célèbre compositeur aurait été causée par le chocolat. Il n’en fallait pas plus pour que l’on utilise ce thème attrayant pour illustrer les différents plats au menu musical. Et le choix n’était pas facile à faire dans les différentes approches chocolatées.

Le Millefeuille au chocolat illustre bien The Fairy Queen, le spectacle choisi pour le lancement du festival. Changeant continuellement de place, de personnage et de costume, comédiens et chanteurs étaient fort occupés dans une délirante mise en scène de Marie-Nathalie Lacoursière. La merveilleuse musique de ce semi-opéra, interprétée par La Bande Montréal Baroque, a été composée sur un livret adapté du Songe d’une nuit d’été, de Shakespeare. Et la magnifique partition est remplie d’humour et d’imagination. Même si une partie du texte a échappé aux francophones, dont l’oreille n’est pas habituée à Shakespeare, le grand talent des chanteurs et des comédiens du Repercussion Theatre n’a pas manqué de faire crouler de rire la salle entière. L’impressionnante distribution comprenait entre autres : Suzie LeBlanc, Monika Mauch, Laura McLean, Charles Daniels et Nathaniel Watson. Sous la direction de Mathias Maute, suivait le traditionnel défilé à l’extérieur, accueilli avec soulagement par la foule heureuse de prendre l’air, après avoir souffert de la grande chaleur qui régnait à l’intérieur.

Le premier concert de samedi soir, sous le titre Oh Henry! était consacré en grande partie à deux odes : L’Ode sur la mort d’henry Purcell de Blow et l’Ode Arise my Muse de Purcell. Cette dernière, composée pour l’anniversaire de la reine Marie est demeurée inachevée. Charles Daniels l’a terminée et est venu en faire la présentation. Les altos Daniel Taylor et Matthew White chantaient dans les deux pièces. Monika Mauch, Pascal Bertin, Charles Daniels et Nathaniel Watson les ont joints pour la seconde, accompagnés par l’Ensemble Caprice. Le concert débutait par l’entrée dramatique d’une procession d’instruments à vent et timbales, interprétant l’impressionnante March & Canzona, une musique funèbre pour la reine Marie. Il se terminait de la même façon, par la sortie des musiciens.

On avait choisi le Chocolat blanc pour le concert du Studio de musique ancienne qui présentait des compositions religieuses de Purcell. Sous la direction de Christopher Jackson, le SMAM a interprété sept Church anthems, dont le premier, Blow up the trumpet, écrit pour deux ensembles de dix voix, a été qualifié de véritable tour de force.

Commencé dans l’allégresse, le Festival se terminait dans la tragédie. Sous le titre Death by chocolate, l’Ensemble Masques interprétait le véritable opéra de Purcell, Didon & Énée, dont la bouleversante plainte de Didon demeure un des plus beaux airs de l’histoire de la musique. Dans une salle remplie à craquer et malgré le peu de moyens à leur disposition, musiciens et chanteurs ont présenté une magnifique prestation dans une mise en scène fort honnête de Pierre Saint-Amand. L’ensemble instrumental possède une belle sonorité au style baroque impeccable. Par les longues dissonances avant le lamento final, les musiciens ont fait ressortir la beauté de cette musique. La viole de gambe produisait des gémissements, donnant le ton à l’aria de Didon qui suit et devrait nous tirer des larmes, ce que Vicki St-Pierre a presque réussi à produire. Dans le rôle d’Énée, le baryton Dion Mazerolle a parfois un peu trop d’éclat, mais la fin du deuxième acte a été superbe. Tous les chanteurs possèdent une belle sonorité, mais il faut mentionner la réussite du chœur des sorcières, très convaincant par son cynisme et son sarcasme.

Les boulimiques avaient encore beaucoup à se mettre sous la dent. Entre autres, un concert du Flanders Recorder Quartet le vendredi soir et, le samedi, une soirée dansante qu’accompagnaient le Quatuor Franz Joseph et cinq autres musiciens. Les lève-tôt pouvaient se rendre au fameux concert présenté à 7 heures le matin du dimanche. Plusieurs autres activités étaient présentées en après-midi. Et pour les festivaliers qui voulaient échanger leurs impressions et rencontrer les artistes, le rendez-vous se situait au Café À Propos. Chaque représentation était suivie d’une dégustation de chocolats à la sortie. Une dégustation qui complétait joliment la soirée. A sweet ending !

Renée Banville

This Week in Toronto (June 22 - 28)

Well, the classical music scene in Toronto has definitely hit a lull! The opera companies (COC, OA, plus OIC, OH) are now in hiatus; the National Ballet of Canada has just concluded its spring season. Even the ubiquitous Toronto Symphony Orchestra is in its last week of performances. Summer festivals like Elora, Festival of the Sound, and Westben have not yet started for the most part, and unfortunately the Guelph Spring Festival is no more. The last COC event was the Ensemble Studio Cosi fan tutte that concluded yesterday. (Incidentally I attended the third performance and it was definitely worth seeing. The vocal standout was mezzo Lauren Segal as Dorabella - what a terrific voice she has!) The free concert series at the Richard Bradshaw Amphitheatre had its last how on June 18th. I think I'm suffering from opera withdrawal....

The Toronto Symphony Orchestra is offering a pops program of movie music the likes of Gone with the Wind, Lawrence of Arabia, Rocky etc., conducted by the "king of pop" Erich Kunzel. The shows are on Tuesday June 23 at 8 pm, and Wednesday June 24 (2 pm and 8 pm). If you happen to be a jazz fan, the Toronto Jazz Festival starts June 26 and extends to July 5. Go to http://www.tojazz.com/Pages/Toronto_Downtown_Jazz_Festival_pgM243.asp for event listing and ticket details.

Further afield - a short drive down the QEW - is the Brott Music Festival. On July 27 is Beethoven and Brott in Burlington, featuring Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 1 and Symphony No. 7. The soloist is Shoshanna Telner. It takes place as the St. Christopher's Anglican Church, at 662 Guelph Line, Burlington. Call 905 525-7664 for details.

Also of note is a recital given by mezzo Krisztina Szabo on Sunday, June 28, at the Sharon Temple, a short drive up the 404 towards Newmarket. It is part of the Music at Sharon series. Szabo will sing Britten, Mahler, Kodaly, de Falla, Ravel, and Canadian composer Ridout. Sharon Temple is at 18974 Leslie Street, in Sharon, Ontario. Call 416 597-7840 for more information.

Finally, if you have missed some of the Met in HD shows from past seasons, Cineplex is having a summer "re-run" of six of the most popular operas, at a bargain price of $9.95. Children between 3 and 13 get in free - understandably they don't want any babies in the audience! All shows are on Saturdays at noon Toronto time. It begins this Saturday June 26 with I Puritani starring the incomparable Anna Netrebko, followed by Magic Flute (July 11), Eugene Onegin (July 25), Il Barbiere di Siviglia (Aug. 9), La fille du Regiment (Aug. 22), and La boheme (Sept. 5). Eight Ontario locations will carry these shows, with Scotiabank Theatres downtown, Cineplex Odeon Queensway and the Sheppard Grande in North York the three locations in the GTA. Other locations include Oakville, Newmarket and Peterborough. For advance ticket sales, go to http://www.cineplex.com/Events.aspx

The Very Modern Face of Beijing

By Paul E. Robinson

Classical Travels

CHINA DIARY

After our all too brief encounter (12 hours!) with the fascinating city of Shanghai, we again boarded the Diamond Princess and settled in for several relaxing days at sea.

On the morning of the third day, our ship docked at Xingang, the closest port to Beijing. This was the final stop on our cruise, which had begun 16 days earlier in Bangkok. All 2,600 passengers disembarked here and headed for buses to travel the 100 km or so into Beijing.

The buses themselves were Chinese-made and looked like modern tour buses, but they were laid out for little people; there was barely enough room for me to sit with my legs sideways. After a 20 minute wait in the bus, off we went – about two blocks. We sat and sat in traffic, just inching along. At one point, our bus stalled. The driver had to get out and start it again with a crank. Then he got lost and had to turn the bus around. Next, much to our horror, when he missed an exit ramp on an expressway, he nonchalantly backed up in heavy traffic.

After about an hour of this unwelcome entertainment, we stopped at a restaurant for a toilet break. Three other buses had the same idea at the same time, making the line-ups for the toilets – two! – very long. These were traditional Chinese facilities; that is - holes in the floor! Duly relieved, off we went again, past endless rows of high-rise housing estates, and hundreds more under construction.

Three hours later, we arrived somewhere in Beijing. After a half hour of waiting and negotiation, we managed to arrange for local transportation and were on our way again across town to our hotel, the Intercontinental Beijing Beichen. As it happens, this Intercontinental was built for the Olympics in 2008 and sits right inside the new Olympic Park, overlooking the famous Bird’s Nest Stadium and the aqua blue swimming centre known as the Water Cube. A beautiful hotel and a stunning location on Beichen Road!

I had planned to attend a concert by the China National Symphony (conducted by Michel Plasson) on the evening of our arrival. I had seen it listed on the National Theatre website. I checked the website again after we had settled in, and also called in the very efficient concierge at our hotel for assistance, but the concert listing had disappeared!

From our vantage point near the Olympic Village, Beijing appears very modern, with impressive highway and rail infrastructure. The traditional, however, is much in evidence here too. The morning after we arrived, we visited the hutong area of central Beijing. This is the older part of the city, featuring walled houses with inner courtyards, separated by narrow alleyways. Many hutongs have been demolished to make way for new high-rise buildings, but there is a campaign underway to preserve at least some of them to honor the architecture and lifestyle of ancient times in Beijing.

I had hoped to see Red Cliff, the new Chinese Opera production directed by Zhang Yimou, one of China’s leading film directors (Red Sorghum, Raise the Red Lantern) and director of the spectacular show at the opening ceremony of the 2008 Olympics in Beijing; unfortunately, tonight’s performance of Red Cliff at National Centre for the Performing Arts was sold out months in advance!

Next in China Diary: The Forbidden City and Tian'an Men Square

Paul E. Robinson is the author of Herbert von Karajan: the Maestro as Superstar, and Sir Georg Solti: His Life and Music, both available at Amazon.com.

Photos by Marita

Classical Music Blogs

American Arts in Crisis?

There has been much talk in America about newspapers sacking their classical music critics and other arts journalists. A study released June 15 by the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) identifies a far more serious, long term and systemic problem: a declining audience for the arts in nearly all disciplines. The worse audience loss: opera, classical concerts and ballet. Almost all of this data was collected before the current economic crisis hit full force and It tracks trends since the start of the survey in 1982. The study is at the following URL:

http://www.arts.gov/research/NEA-SPPA-brochure.pdf

In an internet group a few months ago, the Pulitzer Prize-winning critic Martin Bernheimer made a simple observation. Looking at the web- available archives of Time Magazine’s covers, he found opera and classical music stars occasionally on the cover up until about 25 years ago. Since then there were none. In times past, names like Leonard Bernstein, Arthur Rubinstein, Rudolph Nureyev and Maria Callas were familiar among the general population. Now most classical music and opera is seen on American cable channels and music and arts-related stories no longer appear, as they occasionally did, in news magazines like Time, Newsweek or People. There is no major US magazine covering classical music. Other countries have proportionally many more related publications and dedicated websites than the U. S. It is not a world problem; the arts and serious music in European and Asian media have continued good coverage and the audiences are, by all reports, growing.

The critic Norman Lebrecht this week wrote a piece praising the vitality of the classical scene in France, trumpeting that the average age for a classical concert is 32. My observation for the past twenty years in Paris and around France is that, while there is always a range of ages at operas and concerts that I have attended, the 32 figure is simply not credible. Nevertheless, the average audience age is certainly far younger than in America and, according to the NEA report, the American audience is now significantly older than it was two decades earlier. Lebrecht also notes that “classical record sales in France [as I have reported elsewhere] amount to 9% of the total market. In the US they are barely one percent.” That is certainly a valid observation and further gloomy news.

To top this off, another new report, issued the day before, gives a failing grade to the nation’s education system for its declining arts education program. See: http://nationsreportcard.gov. America is clearly in crisis regarding the place of arts in their society and the dwindling audiences seem more and more conservative. Worse, there is no apparent recognition of this nor is there any evidence of concern among the country’s leadership.

Frank Cadenhead

Shanghai in Miniature!

By Paul E. Robinson

Classical Travels
CHINA DIARY

The Diamond Princess docked this morning at a container port on the Huangpu River, about an hour’s drive from Shanghai. The weather was foggy, with a light drizzle, and at 55 degrees, not particularly inviting for walking tours through the French Concession and the Old City.

At about 8:30 am we boarded shuttle buses into the city. From the terminal near the People’s Park, we walked past the magnificent Shanghai Grand Theatre and down Nanjing Lu (Rd) toward Zhongshan Lu (the “Bund”) which runs along the Huangpu River. Much of Nanjing Lu - divided into East (Dong), and West (Xi) and stretching for several miles - is a wide pedestrian mall, with excellent shopping. Nanjing Lu was the main retail district in Old (1930s) Shanghai and remains so today, with many of the old shops, refurbished and renamed, flanked by upscale new ones.

The rain stopped for a while, but the weather continued to be chilly and windy. We finally reached the waterfront, but there was so much construction on the roadway that we couldn’t see the river, or really take in the sweep of the Bund. We walked past the historic (looking rather ragged – at least from the outside) Peace Hotel built in 1930 by Sir Victor Sassoon, then hailed a taxi and spent the rest of the day wandering through the Yu Gardens and Bazaar (photo: right).

Yu Gardens is a modern re-creation of an ancient Chinese city with flying-eaved buildings in a maze of alleyways and ponds. It contains hundreds of shops and is a favorite tourist destination. In spite of the poor weather, it was teeming with visitors when we visited. The one authentic building is the 1784 Huxinting Teahouse approached across a lagoon by a zigzag bridge.

We interrupted our shopping to have lunch at one of the many restaurants in Yu Gardens. Naxiang Steamed Bun Restaurant was founded in 1900 and specializes in steamed buns famous for their “thin covers, full filling and delicious juice.” The restaurant consists of four dining rooms, some more elegant than others. They were all filled today. Naxiang also has a take-out window and it had a long line-up. We ordered two varieties of steamed bun and a curry pastry. Everything was tasty and carefully prepared. Part of the fun in the restaurant is the open kitchen, where four chefs dressed in full white uniforms with tall hats can be seen preparing the noodles and stuffing the pastry.

The rain began again in mid-afternoon and that made catching a taxi back to the bus terminal somewhat difficult. We joined a line of about fifty people at a taxi stand. At the terminal we waited again with hundreds of passengers for the shuttle buses to take us back to the ship.

Lots of interesting musical events listed at the Shanghai Grand Theatre; unfortunately, we did not stay long enough in Shanghai to hear anything but a gift shop vendor at Yu Gardens playing “Happy Birthday” on a miniature Chinese erhu (violin).

The Diamond Princess departed Shanghai about 6:15 pm, and after making a 180degree turn, sailed back out the busy Huangpu River into the Yellow Sea, heading north.

Paul E. Robinson is the author of Herbert von Karajan: the Maestro as Superstar, and Sir Georg Solti: His Life and Music, both available at Amazon.com.

Photos by Marita

Classical Music Blogs

This Week in Toronto (June 15 - 21)

The centerpiece of this week's vocal scene is the Canadian Opera Company Ensemble Studio's production of Cosi fan tutte. This must be one of the most popular operas for opera schools and young artist programs, and for good reason. First of all, Mozart is good for young voices still in development - it is said that the ability to sing Mozart well is a sign of vocal health and good technique. Cosi is particularly popular because it allows six soloists to show off their voices in many delightful arias and ensembles. The Royal Conservatory of Music's Cosi last April was a smashing success, so it will be interesting to compare it to the COC Ensemble's production. Current and former COC Ensemble Studio members who will be singing in the production are: Sopranos Betty Allison, Ileana Montalbetti and Laura Albino (Fiordiligi), Erin Fisher and Lauren Segal (Dorabella), Alexander Hajek and Justin Welsh (Guglielmo), tenors Michael Barrett and Adam Luther (Ferrando), sopranos Lisa DiMaria and Teiya Kasahara (Despina), and Michael Uloth and Jean-Paul Decosse (Don Alfonso). Conductors are Martin Isepp and Steven Philcox. There will be four performances starting this evening (June 15) at the Imperial Oil Theatre at the COC headquarters on 227 Front Street East. Three more performances take place on June 17, 19, and 21. All performances at 7:30 pm except June 21 at 2 pm. Tickets were all gone a long time ago, which led the COC to add extra seats. Do call the company to ask about availability.

For those who missed the Met in HD documentary The Audition, this evening is your last chance, at selected Cineplex theatres at 7:00 pm. There are quite a few theatres in the GTA carrying these Met shows - the ones I am familiar with are Sheppard Grande at Yonge and Sheppard, Scotiabank Theatres at Queen and John, and Silver City at Yonge and Eglinton. I enjoyed this show enormously the first time around and will see again tonight. In this feature-length documentary you will see American soprano Angela Meade, who won the Montreal competition back in late May. If you like the tenor voice, this documentary of the 2007 auditions is a real treat, with four tenors in the finals. Unfortunately this was one year without a Canadian finalist - soprano Miriam Khalil, seen in the beginning of the documentary, did not make the cut. 2006 had Canadian tenor Joseph Kaiser, and in 2008 we had Vancouver soprano Simon Osborne. Of the eleven finalists, six were declared "winners", although anyone who reached the finals against such fierce competition should be considered winners. There are also offstage, real life drama in the documentary as well, but I don't want to give it away by mentioning the details here.

While on the subject of Met in HD, it has just been announced that there will be a series of six Met Summer presentations - I Puritani (June 27), Magic Flute (July 11), Eugene Onegin (July 25), Barber of Seville (Aug. 8), La fille du Regiment (Aug. 22). All on Saturdays at 12 noon. These shows are repeats of previous seasons. Tickets are at a bargain price of $9.95, and children age 3 -13 can get in free! These will be at the usual Cineplex locations. Do check your favourite locations for availability.

The mini Bartok-Strauss Festival of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra continues with pianist Emanuel Ax playing Strauss's Burleske, as well as Bartok's Concerto for Two Pianos and Percussion. Although I do find the combination of Strauss and Bartok to be a little eclectic, any chance to hear Ax is not to be missed. Also on the program is Strauss's delicious Suite from Der Rosenkavalier. Performances are June 17 and 18 at 8 pm at Roy Thomson Hall.

This Week in Toronto (June 6 - 14)

Soprano Measha Brueggergosman (photo: Joy von Tiedemann)

Starting with the next post, the posting date will change to Mondays, since my editor tells me that the readership is higher on weekdays. For fans of Canadian soprano Measha Brueggergosman, she will be making one of her comparatively rare appearances in Toronto where she makes her home. She is soloist in the magnificent Four Last Songs. I am an avid collector of VLL and it's one song cycle I never get tired of! Also on the program are two Bartok pieces - Divertimento for Strings and Concerto for Orchestra. TSO Music Director Peter Oundjian is at the helm. The dates are Wednesday June 10 at 8 pm, Thursday June 11 at 2 pm, and June 13 at 7:30 pm, all at Roy Thomson Hall. The June 10 performance will be broadcast on CBC Radio 2. Remember June 13 is a "casual concert", with an earlier start and a jazz ensemble entertainment in the lobby after the show. Don't forget this evening is the return of American violinist Joshua Bell at 8 pm Roy Thomson Hall. On the program is Lalo's Symphonie espagnole, Brahms Symphony No. 1, and Berlioz's Overture to Benvenuto Cellini. Leonard Slatkin conducts.

Another important event this week is the third annual Luminato Festival of Arts and Creativity in Toronto. While there are almost no "traditional" classical music events, there is a new opera by Canadian composer Murray Schafer, The Children's Crusade, that will receive its world premiere at the festival, celebrating the 75th birthday of the composer. Go to the following link for interview with the composer - http://www.luminato.com/2009/events/42 The main focus of Luminato 2009 is popular music, dance, literature, and "spectacles". A worthwhile event is the presence of Cirque du Soleil. Go to www.luminato.com for details.

Toronto area opera fans can catch the riveting documentary The Audition, as the last offering of this season's Met in HD series, at 1 pm today at selected Cineplex theatres. The documentary covers the 2007 Met Auditions, a particularly interesting year, with three outstanding tenors in the finals. One of them was African American Ryan Smith, who had a beautiful lyric voice. Unfortunately, he was diagnosed with lymphoma last year and passed away in November. Also in the finals was soprano Angela Meade, who just won first prize at the MIMC in Montreal. At 2 hour 15 minutes, this documentary is unusually long but there won't be a doubt moment! It will be repeated on June 15, at 7 pm - an unusual time for the Met in HD series.

This Week in Toronto (May 30 - June 5)

Now that the opera season in Toronto has more or less come to an end - the COC Ensemble's Cosi fan tutte excepted, there is still the symphony and ballet, thankfully! The Toronto Symphony has Mahler Symphony No. 6, with the return of former TS conductor Gunther Herbig. Opening night was last Thursday, and tonight at 8 pm is the second and last performance. Also on the program is Haydn's Cello Concerto, a rather unusual combination, I must say! The cellist is Johannes Moser.

Tomorrow, Sunday 2pm in Massey Hall is the second performance of Haydn's oratorio The Creation by Tafelmusik, conducted by Bruno Weil. Soloists include Canadian soprano Nancy Argenta making one of her comparatively rare appearances in Toronto. Also featured are tenor Jan Kobow and baritone Locky Chung. This concert is part of Tafelmusik's Baroque Summer Festival.

Next week marks the return of violinist extraordinaire, Gil Shaham, playing the Canadian premiere of William Bolcom's Violin Concerto. Also on the program is Brahms Symphony No. 1. The conductor is Leonard Slatkin, Music Director of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. On Saturday June 6 (8 pm), American violinist Joshua Bell returns for a single performance of Lalo's Symphonie espagnole with the Toronto Symphony, also under the baton of Slatkin.

If you are into ballet, the National Ballet of Canada's spring season is in full swing. The big news is the farewell performance of Chinese-Canadian ballerina Chan Hong Goh, as Giselle on Sunday 2 pm. She will be partnered by Zdenek Konvalina. This show is completely sold out. However, there are two performances today, a matinee at 2 pm (danced by Xiao Nan Yu) and an evening performance at 7:30 pm, with Sonia Rodriguez as Giselle.

Jaap van Zweden's 1st Season in Dallas a Phenomenal Success!

Review by Paul E. Robinson

Classical Travels
THIS WEEK IN DALLAS

There is no doubt about it. A new era of musical excellence is underway in Dallas. Dutch conductor Jaap van Zweden has just finished his first season as music director of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra (DSO) and even the musicians are shaking their heads in disbelief. Is he really this good? Are we this good? “Yes,” and “yes” to both questions.

All this excitement notwithstanding, on May 21st at the Meyerson, the 'curtain went up' on a program that appeared neither well planned nor very convincing – at least on paper.

Van Zweden is passionate about opera. For this evening, he and the DSO had scheduled a concert performance of Madama Butterfly, but like orchestras everywhere, the Dallas Symphony has had to rework its budget in the face of a punishing recession; thus, instead of Madama Butterfly, we had, on the face of it, a mishmash of Tchaikovsky and Brahms culminating in yet another unnecessary performance of the 1812 Overture.

No matter. I would pay to hear Jaap van Zweden conduct Happy Birthday because I know he would give it one of the finest performances I have ever heard.

A Rousing but Anti-climactic 1812 Overture

The 1812 Overture, on this occasion, was the version by Igor Buketoff in which a chorus is substituted for lower strings in the opening bars and then makes several later appearances in the piece. We didn’t have cannons or fireworks in this performance, but the sparks were flying nonetheless in the overheated tempi chosen by van Zweden. The Dallas Symphony Chorus didn’t sound very Russian – not enough Russian basses have emigrated to Dallas, I guess – but they did their work with accuracy and gusto.

As good as it was, the 1812 Overture was an anticlimax after the most stunning performance of Tchaikovsky’s Capriccio Italien I have ever heard.

Superb Performance Recorded for DSO's Own Label!

Capriccio Italien begins with brass fanfares, based apparently on bugle calls Tchaikovsky heard played by an Italian cavalry regiment. It goes on to a series of Italian folk songs and street music and finishes with a wild tarantella.

One particular section in this performance of the work sounded more intense and ominous than I ever imagined it could. It was the soft, triplet accompaniment in the brass that did it. This figure was played with such rhythmic accuracy and so darkly that it became progressively more menacing.

‘Menacing’ or ‘ominous’ are not adjectives one normally associates with pop concert fare like Capriccio Italien. Hearing this performance, I began to suspect that the Italian influence here was Verdi.

This is what a conductor like van Zweden can do for ‘familiar’ repertoire. He approaches such pieces as if they deserved the commitment he would give to a Mahler symphony. Each phrase is given new life. Note values are accurately observed and balances are worked out in careful detail.

When Capriccio Italien moved into dance territory, van Zweden nearly danced himself off the podium and this involvement was infectious. The string sound soared and surged; it was fulsome and joyous. And the best was yet to come.

In this piece, Tchaikovsky’s brass section is headed by pairs of cornets and trumpets, the former employed for their sound and their super chromatic capabilities compared to the trumpet in Tchaikovsky’s time. Principal trumpet Ryan Anthony chose to play a cornet for this piece and the results were wonderful. It was just the right Italian folk music sound for the lyrical sections – with a generous helping of vibrato - and the agility of the instrument (and the player!) in the quick passages worked perfectly too.

For all its extraordinary nuances, what I’ll remember most about this performance is how van Zweden steadily increased the tempo in the proverbial ‘race to the finish.’ Van Zweden was fearless in his acceleration and the DSO players were with him every step of the way. This was virtuoso playing of the highest order.

Fortunately, this concert was being recorded for broadcast. Even better, the Capriccio Italien is scheduled for release later this year on the DSO’s own label. It will be coupled with a Tchaikovsky Fifth recorded earlier this season. If the recording of Capriccio Italien is anything close to what I heard Thursday night, it will be sensational.

Violinist Simone Lamsma Wows Audience!

The first half of the concert was pretty remarkable too. The young Dutch violinist Simone Lamsma made her debut with the DSO in the Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto.

Ms. Lamsma was scheduled to be a featured soloist with the orchestra in its forthcoming European tour; unfortunately, the tour has been scrubbed for the time being. It is hard to justify foreign tours when the basic operating budget is taking such a beating.

In any case, it was a pleasure to make the acquaintance of the gifted Ms. Lamsma, winner of at least four major violin competitions in the past three years. She has a formidable technique and a warm, distinctive sound. With van Zweden on the podium - a colleague who has played this concerto himself -this was a fine collaboration. The orchestra played with great sensitivity and panache!

Ms. Lamsma returns next season to play the Britten Violin Concerto.

The concert opened with Brahms’ Schicksalslied (Song of Destiny) , a setting for chorus and orchestra of a poem by Hölderlin. This is a beautiful if slight work by Brahms but it hardly fits in an all-Tchaikovsky program. And while the chorus sang beautifully, I thought that van Zweden miscalculated both dynamics and tempo. He started the piece so slowly and so softly that the line could not be sustained. Nor could the strings produce sufficient weight of sound. Still, this piece does not turn up often in concert and it was a pleasure to hear it, especially in an ideal acoustical setting like the Meyerson.

Jaap van Zweden has given Dallas a season of insight and excitement, with much more to come. Among the highlights next season will be the Mahler First and Second Symphonies, the Bruckner Ninth, the Rachmaninov Second Symphony and the Shostakovich Symphony No. 7 (Leningrad.)

Paul E. Robinson is the author of Herbert von Karajan: the Maestro as Superstar, and Sir Georg Solti: His Life and Music, both available at Amazon.com.

Photos by Marita

Classical Music Blogs

Chant 2009 Finals (Day 2 May 26)

left to right: Angela Meade, soprano; Yannick-Muriel Noah, soprano; Andrew Garland, baritone

Photo: Joseph So

Tonight was the second of two evenings of the MIMC Finals. Four competitors -

Jennifer Borghi, mezzo-soprano (Italy)

Borghi has a modest-sized high mezzo of pleasant timbre. She began with "Or la tromba" from Handel's Rinaldo, showing good coloratura, although she did not sound entirely comfortable in this repertoire. This was followed by "Erbarme dich" from St. Matthew Passion, a really moving piece that requires solid legato and smoothness of vocal production. Borghi's tone, while quite lovely, lacked sufficient legato and her phrasing was choppy. I think oratorio and baroque does not show off her voice very well. Her third piece, Air des lettres from Werther was easily her best moment - she has just the right instincts for Charlotte. The voice was freer here, and her attention to the text and her expression were exemplary. She ended with the Composer's Aria from Ariadne, an extremely popular choice for high mezzos in competitions. She sang it very well, but overall, I found her a bit subdued and low voltage. She didn't really connect with the audience. She received polite applause, although she did get a very good hand for the Ariadne at the end.

Seil Kim, tenor (Korea)

I remember Kim from the last Montreal vocal competition. I thought he sang beautifully but missed the finals. I recalled a quality tenore di grazia, used with taste. So it was good to have him back. He opened with "Comfort Ye...Every valley" from Messiah. I have heard this probably a hundred times if not more in performance from Jon Vickers on down, so I confess it is hard to get too excited. Kim sang it well, with plangent tone and excellent English. But his voice sounded smaller than I remembered, and it didn't make the impact it should, even in the modest sized Theatre Maisonneuve. His coloratura, while quite good, is aspirated. Dies Bildnis from Die Zauberfloete went very well - his best singing of the evening. He sang it with attractive tone, his most successful piece. Then he went off stage for an unusually long time and came back with a bottle of water, the only contestant in the two evenings that used water. His aria from Iphigenie en Tauride had its moments, but it was also marred by a very tight top. And his final piece, Kuda, Kuda from Eugene Onegin was a bit of a disappointment. I expected him to be really good in this. His singing lacked that plaintive quality one has come to expect in Lenski's aria, and again his top was very tight, distorting the line.

Andrew Garland, baritone (USA)

If the first half was a little underwhelming, things picked up decidedly with the appearance of Andrew Garland. His is a lyric baritone of very good quality, well schooled, and he communicates very well. His Rinaldo aria was authoritatively sung, making a big, robust sound. He received the first bravos of the evening. I was impressed with his long breath-line. Yeletsky's aria from Pique Dame, another very popular choice in singing competitions, was gorgeously sung. For me, the monologue from Billy Budd was his best moment - I liked his acting and his total commitment to the character. He will make a very good Billy. Interesting that he made Ich bin der Welt from Ruckert Lieder his final choice, instead of something flashy. If the countertenor Costanzo was unable to sing a high pianissimo, Garland had pianissimos galore, and overall, his execution of this piece was far superior. The orchestra, especially the horns, always played better, and Trudel was able to get the right balance from the orchestra. Overall, an excellent performance. This guy is the total package.

Angela Meade, soprano (USA)

What can I say about Meade? When you have a young singer picked by the Met to step in to replace an indisposed Sondra Radvanovsky, you know she has got to be special. Meade has a great voice, excellent technical control, from impressive fortes down to the smallest high pianissimos, she has it all. She began with D'Oreste d'Ajace from Idomeneo. Very impressive singing, although those staccato runs at the end were not as wonderful as I expected them to be. Her Beim Schlafengehen from Four Last Songs - a real test piece - was impressive, but I missed that ethereal entrance of the voice after the violin solo. Her third piece was "Casta Diva" from Norma. It takes guts - ok, chutzpah - to sing this in a competition! Meade has the legato and the rock solid intonation to do it justice, only the forte top notes were a little steely. This piece allows her to show off her piano singing, and the final note was extremely impressive. It elicited the first big salvo of bravos from the audience. She saved her best for last - Pace, pace - a truly fabulous piece of singing, absolutely perfect technical control. A big woman, she has found the art of stillness and the economy of gestures. Again, the last note she held on seemingly forever. And for that she received a standing ovation, the only one of the evening.

The jury panel retired to deliberate for about 30 minutes, and returned with the following three winners -

First Prize - Angela Meade
Second Prize - Yannick-Muriel Noah
Third Prize- Andrew Garland

Like most others in the audience, I played the game of picking my own winners. I had the same top three singers on my list, although in a slightly different order. Tomorrow is the press conference where we will get to meet the jury members. I hope to have more to report afterwards.