War and Peace

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sasha-djihanianLunchtime today at the RBA saw members of the COC orchestra get together with soprano Sasha Djihanian for a concert of works by Handel and Albinoni.  I realised that I really don’t listen to enough baroque chamber works.  The first work on the program was Handel’s Trio Sonata No.2 in D Minor.  It’s compact, playful and doesn’t overstay its welcome.  I stupidly didn’t make a note of who played on what piece so I’ll just credit the ensemble at the end of the post.  The other chamber work on the program was Albinoni’s Sonata à cinque in C major.  This was fun too with lots of fugue elements and dance rhythms and some serious toe tapping by violist Keith Hamm.

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Talking bears

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Joel IvanyToronto Wunderkind director Joel Ivany is directing the premier of Norbert Palej’s EAST o’ the SUN and WEST o’ the MOON for the Canadian Children’s Opera Company.  Operaramblings took the opportunity to ask Joel a few questions about his motivation for doing the piece and how directing young people differed (or didn’t) from his other directorial endeavours.  Here’s what we got: Continue reading →

Fan – tastic

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It was during the recent run of Cosí fan tutte at the COC that I realised that I really needed to get my hands on the M22 recording (Salzburg 2006).  Specifically it was discussing the Salzburg reading of Ursel and Karl-Ernst Herrmann with Thomas Allen and Rachel Andrist; who is the on stage continuo player in the Salzburg recording.  It sounded like there might be interesting parallels.  And parallels there are.  In both cases the girls are aware of the “plot” (in every sense).  In both cases four attractive young singers have been cast as the lovers and Don Alfonso and Despina made much older and more cynical.  There I think the parallels end.  Egoyan’s vision is essentially a positive one about relationships.  The Herrmans, I think, are more interested in exploring the psychologically destructive power of love and desire.

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From dark to light

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dover-beach-1upphl0Today’s recital in the RBA was given by Russell Braun. Carolyn Maule and members of the COC orchestra.  The programme, Journeys of the Soul, divided into two quite distinct halves.  In the first, Russell was joined by Marie Bedard and Dominique Laplants (violins), Keith Hamm (viola) and Paul Widner (cello) in a performance of Samuel Barber’s Dover Beach; a setting of a text by Matthew Arnold.  It’s a very dark text and rather an extraordinary choice for a twenty year old.  The music is equally dark and brooding.  It’s a great work for Russell though and plays well to the colours of his voice and his keen attention to text.  It was a pleasure to hear in the very intimate atmosphere of the RBA.

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Straightforward Gambler from the Mariinsky

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The 2010 recording of Prokofiev’s The Gambler from the Mariinsky Theatre is a bit of a mixed bag.  It’s a complicated opera about obsession and power and it needs a strong production and a director who can get coherent performances out of a large cast to fully succeed.  Temur Chkhiedze doesn’t really manage it.  The production is very straightforward, set in slightly abstracted versions of a hotel, a casino etc and at times it is brought to life by the clever lighting of Gleb Fishtinsky but it doesn’t do enough to establish any real purpose for the piece.  It’s not helped by some very broad acting, especially from Sergei Aleksaskin’s General which is further emphasized by video director Laurent Gentot’s heavy use of close ups.

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More “oy vey” than “¡Olé!”

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First a disclaimer, I’m not a huge Massenet fan and even among his works Don Quichotte would rate pretty low with its cheesy melodies and faux Spanoiserie.  However, a good production has the potential to liven it up and a stellar cast is always a plus.  The run that opened at the Canadian Opera Company last night certainly had the latter in Ferruccio Furlanetto, Quinn Kelsey and Anita Rachvelishvili.  Unfortunately Linda Brovsky’s production looked and felt like one of Mr. Peter Gelb’s attempts to get the Broadway audience into the Met.  It was cluttered, unfocussed, pretty much devoid of ideas and didn’t even really make best use of the acting talents of the principals though Rashvelishvili did her best to inject some life into it.  It’s exactly what I feared when I heard they were going to use a real horse and donkey (later replaced by a mule in one of the more recent of the season’s casting problems at COC).  For me, one of those productions almost best listened to with eyes closed.

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Lend me a tenor

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ramirezThe saga of “Where in the world is Roberto Devereux?” at the COC continues.  Originally Giuseppe Filianoti was slated to sing the title role in the seven show run that began April 25th.  At some point, some while ago, it was announced that Leonardo Capalbo would sing the first three performances; which he did to some acclaim.  During the week the rumour mill started grinding with news that cover Edgar Ernesto Ramírez would sing tomorrow night’s show and, a bit later, that Filianoti was out completely.  All this has now been confirmed.  Mexican born Toronto resident Ramirez will sing tomorrow and then Spanish tenor José Bros will complete the run (or at least that’s the plan).  It’s a great break for Ramírez and we wish him luck.

Coming up in May

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quichotte-thumbThings are starting to quieten down a bit on the Toronto vocal music/opera scene but there’s still a fair bit to seer in May.  Here are some of the highlights:

Friday, May 8 sees the opening of Massenet’s Don Quichotte at the COC.  It’s strongly cast with Ferruccio Furlanetto, Quinn Kelsey and Anita Rachvelishvili headlining.  There are seven performances between Friday and May 24.

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Of love and longing

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allysonMcHardy200x250Allyson McHardy’s lunchtime recital in the Richard Bradshaw Amphitheatre today was unusual and effective; combining contrasting works by Brahms, Robert Fleming and Britten.  Accompanied by Liz Upchurch on piano throughout, she was joined for the first set; Brahms’ Two Songs for Alto, Viola and Piano, Op. 91 by the COC’s principal violist, Keith Hamm.  They were rather beautifully sung and played and were true to music and text; both of which are a bit too German Romantic for my taste. Continue reading →