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Visit La Scena Musicale Online Reviews. [Index] Critiques de La Scena Musicale Online
1. Measha Brueggergosman, Canada
Finals (Part II) Sin-Nyung Hwang, soprano, South Korea
Bellini: "Oh! Quanto volte" Rossini: "Una voce poco fa" - Il Barbiere di Siviglia Gougeon: "Alea" The evening began with South Korean soprano Sin-Nyung Hwang who at once brought a fresh, well-projected clear voice to the first balcony of Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier where the judges were sitting. In the Haydn, Hwang presented a good musical line. The first part of the Bellini aria was boring, but Hwang developed a good mood in the second half. In the well-know Rossini aria from the Barber of Seville, Hwang offered several new interpolations but as a whole, the reading lacked intensity. Her performance of Gougeon's Alea was the best projected of the imposed piece thus far. V: 96, P: 92 Mélanie Boisvert, soprano, Canada
Offenbach: "Les oiseaux dans la charmille" - Les Contes d'Hoffmann Gougeon: "Alea" Bernstein: "Glitter and be gay" - Candide Not all singers make the adjustment well from a 800-seat hall to a 2800-seat hall. Canadian soprano Mélanie Boisvert seemed to be off her voice from the start. Whereas Boisvert's voice was one of the best projected voices in the semi-finals, here the voice did not distinguished itself most likely due to her habit of tilting her head towards the balcony thereby deforming her alignment. Although the voice was at times clear and well-projected, I detected an unstable vibrato and her voice was a bit tight in the upper register. She appear to make an adjustment in the Offenbach and became more relaxed in the second and third verses. Nevertheless, Boisvert brought good dramatic concept throughout her program. Her performance of the Gougeon was the most dramatic so far. I thought originally Bernstein's Glitter and be gay a poor programming choice, but Boisvert proved me wrong with an absolutely convincing performance. V: 92, P: 96
Verdi: "Caro nome" - Rigoletto Gougeon: "Alea" Gounod: "Je veux vivre" - Roméo et Juliette I had concerns whether Jennifer O'Loughlin could project in the big hall, but the American soprano's controlled clear firm tone managed well. If she could develop a higher placement and more head resonance, she would be able to float rather than lunge for high notes, and even be able to touch the heart strings of the listener. Musically, O'Loughlin gave a lovely performance. Her runs were clean, but presentation lacked dramatic intensity, most likely due to conductor Stefan Lano's inflexible accompaniment, especially in the Caro Nome. O'Loughlin left the stage quickly after her last piece, clearly unhappy. V:93, P: 93 Measha Brueggergosman, soprano, Canada
Fauré: "Pie Jesu" - Requiem, opus 48 Gougeon: "Alea" Catalani: "Ebben ? Ne andrò lontana" - La Wally After an entrancing semi-final round, Canadian soprano Measha Brueggergosman was the odds on favourite coming into the Finals. Since her last Montreal competition two years ago, she has corrected her tendency to consistently sing loud, exposing unstable fortissimos. Her repertoire choices at the JMMIC were all slow-moving works that allowed her to show off her pianissimi and legato. In the lesser performed Weber aria, Brueggergosman established a clear atmosphere through her soft singing and nice legato. The Pie Jesu was a disappointment. Too slow and pianissimo throughout, her voice sounded heavy and restrained, causing pitch problems on several occasions. Brueggergosman recovered nicely for the most dramatic reading of the Gougeon of the night. She concluded with a fine performance of her signature tune, Catalini's "Ebben? Ne andrò lontana" from La Wally. A lovely tone emerged. V: 95, P: 96
Massenet: "Ô souverain, ô juge, ô père" - Le Cid Verdi: "Ah, la paterna mano" - Macbeth Gougeon: "Alea" The only male singer of the evening, American tenor John Matz brought a firm lyric tone that is both clear and dark. The voice projects well in the large hall but a heavy muscular approach to high notes resulted in two noticeable breaks. Nevertheless, Matz gave an ardent performance, especially the aria from Massenet's Le Cid, which compared favourable to performances this year from both Ben Heppner and Richard Margison. I would take off points for his habit of expirating his end notes, a bad habit that he should correct. V:93, P: 95
On the Competition Throughout the finals, the conductor's podium was positioned well behind the singer often causing communication problems between singer and orchestra. Lacking a visual connection with the contestant, conductor Stefan Lano beat time inflexibly. There was also a difference in the volume of sound from the orchestra between Day 1 and Day 2; those performing early in the first round got the raw end of the draw while conductor/orchestra made adjustments. The discussion following the competition shows that the first two spots were consensus whereas opinion was divided over the placement of spots 3 to 6, reflecting the very close nature of the finals. The final outcome showed that this panel of judges favoured performance over vocal ability.
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