Tag Archives: beethoven

Abstract Fidelio

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Fidelio is an interesting piece.  The music is great and it has a powerful, very straightforward, plot.  There are no convoluted subplots here.  But there is a lot of spoken dialogue which slows things down.  Is it necessary?  Claus Guth doesn’t think so and in his 2015 Salzburg production he replaces the dialogue with ambient noise and also doubles up Leonora and Don Pizarro with silent actor “shadows”; the former using sign language in the manner of the narrator character in Guth’s Messiah.  It works remarkably well.  The ambient noise sections are quite disturbing and the “shadows” add some depth, especially the frantic signing in the final scene.  Perhaps worth noting that the “noise” contains a lot of very low bass and precise spatial location.  It may need a pretty good sound system to have the intended effect.

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A weirdly eclectic Fidelio

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I’m really not sure what to make of Jürgen Flimm’s 2004 production of Fidelio for the Zürich Opera House.  It’s not offensive and it doesn’t really get in the way of the story but it seems quite devoid of originality beyond mixing styles in a way one might describe as anachronistic if one could figure out when synchronistic would be.  Rocco wears a sort of frock coat with, apparently, goatskin pants, Marzellina’s dress looks probably 20th century, bolt action magazine fed rifles are apparently muzzle loaded and metal cartridge cases filled by hand.  Then to cap it off when Don Fernando shows up he looks like he’s stepped straight out of a Zeffirelli production of Der Rosenkavalier.  So “nul points” for coherence.  For once one rather appreciates that so much of the action takes place in the dark.

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Anne Sofie von Otter and Angela Hewitt at Koerner Hall

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hewittI don’t usually give colloborative pianists headline billing but last night’s packed Koerner Hall recital certainly had an element of “They came for Ms. von Otter but stayed for Ms. Hewitt”.  Hewitt was phenomenal in a program that interspersed solo piano pieces with sets of songs.  In the songs she was simultaneously an individual voice and supportive of her colleague while the solo piano pieces were breathtaking; elegant Scubert and Brahms before the interval, staggeringly virtuosic Chabrier after.  She’s also fascinating to watch.   Continue reading →

Elizabeth Krehm Memorial

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Last night was the second annual fundraiser for St. Michael’s ICU in memory of Elizabeth Krehm.  The work for the evening was Beethoven’s 9th symphony; an ambitious project for what amounts to a pick up orchestra and chorus with minimal rehearsal time.  The orchestra, most competently conducted by Evan Mitchell did not disappoint.  Ensemble was excellent and the sound at times thrilling.  The choir sang with great enthusiasm and obvious enjoyment but the sound was a little “churchy” where something richer might have been preferred, though maybe in not in the resonant church acoustic.  In any event that’s a nit in the overall scheme of things.  The quartet of soloists was very good indeed.  The guys get the exposed bits and both bass Jeremy Bowes and tenor Adrian Kramer sang out clearly and powerfully with excellent diction.  The ladies too; soprano Rachel Krehm and alto Erin Lawson, clearly projected their lines over and through the orchestra and chorus.  All in all it was most impressive and enjoyable.  It was also well attended so hopefully the goal of raising lots of money for St. Mike’s was achieved.

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Upcoming worthy causes

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elizabethkNovember 17th sees the second annual Elizabeth Krehm memorial concert.  It’s at Metropolitan United Church at 8pm and will feature Beethoven’s 9th sympony.  The soloists will be Rachel Krehm, Erin Lawson, Adrian Kramer and Jeremy Bowes with the Canzona Chamber Players and a choir drawn from the Univox Choir and friends of the Krehm family.  Evan Mitchell conducts.  Admission is by tax receiptable donation to St. Michael’s Hospital where Elizabeth spent the last month of her life.

On 28th November, at Runnymede United Church a starry cast are donating their services for a charity performance of Bach’s Weinachtsoratorium.  The beneficiaries will be the Toronto Symphony Volunteer Committee Education Program  and Open Table Community Meal at Runnymede United Church.  Johannes Debus will conduct the Bach Consort with soloists Monica Whicher, Vicki St. Pierre, Lawrence Wiliford, Colin Ainsworth and Russell Braun.  Tickets are $50 in advance or $60 on the door.

TSMF begins

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Emerson-Quartet-300x200The Toronto Summer Music Festival kicked off last night with a concert by the venerable and renowned Emerson Quartet.  The theme for the festival is “The Modern Age”; explained to us by the festival director as meaning the many threads and styles that emerged in the opening years of the 20th century.  It might seem a bit odd then that the Emersons chose a programme of Beethoven, Britten and Schubert but in fact the rest of the programming doesn’t seem much closer to the tree with Bach, Haydn and Brahms all featured in upcoming concerts.

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Inspired by Love

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Joana CarneiroOnce in a while it’s fun to go to something almost entirely undemanding (for the audience at least!).  So, yesterday afternoon I attended a concert of classical “lollipops” given by the TSO under the baton of young Portugese conductor Joana Carneiro.  The chief attraction for me was that recent Ensemble Studio graduates Simone Osborne and Wallis Giunta were also performing.  Things got going with the overture from Il Nozze di Figaro. It was a brisk and stylish performance with Ms. Carneiros displaying a very physical conducting style.

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O namenlose Freude

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Katharina Thalbach sets her Fidelio, filmed at Zürich in 2008, somewhere in the early 20th century.  Most of the costuming suggests very early but Don Pizzaro’s suit suggests 20s/30s gangster.  Maybe he’s just fashion forward. The story telling is fairly straightforward and there’s no big concept.  There are a few, smallish, touches.  For example, the prisoners seem to be playing basketball with Don Pizarro’s head in the conclusion.  The sets are literal but evocatively lit and rather effective.

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Philanthropists in Music

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salon1Yesterday afternoon saw the final concert of the season for Off Centre Music Salon; the concert series organised by Boris Zarankin and Inna Perkis at the Glenn Gould Studio.  This one, as the title suggests, celebrating philanthropy in music by putting together a concert of works by composers who were supported by patrons.  It was very much salon style with many short sets by various combinations of performers.  There was some instrumental music; an impressive performance of Khachaturian’s Toccata in E flat minor by twelve year old William Leathers, reprised later on accordion by Michael Bridge.  Jacques Israelievitch and Boris Zarankin collaborated on a bravura rendition of Stravinsky’s Suite Italienne and Zarankin and Perkis gave their traditional one piano/four hands performance, this time an arrangement of Beethoven’s Egmont overture, which was received with enthusiasm.

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Nimm sie hin denn, diese Lieder

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Today’s free lunchtime concert in the Richard Bradshaw Amphitheatre was given by Canadian bass, Robert Pomakov and the Gryphon Trio (Annalee Patipatanakoon – violin, Roman Borys – cello, Jamie Parker – piano).

First up we got Parker and Pomakov performing Beethoven’s An die ferne Geliebte.  Pomakov has a big voice as I knew from having heard his Monterone twice this month at the Four Seasons Centre.  I was impressed by how well he could scale back his volume and even more impressed by the wide and appropriate range of tone colours he deployed.  He doesn’t sound entirely secure at ppp but for a voice of his type he was pretty good!  Next the Gryphons gave us the Elegia from Arensky’s piano trio.  I don’t know this work at all but they sounded very accomplished and musical.  The finale was Mussorgsky’s Songs and Dances of Death in Gary Kulesha’s arrangement for voice and piano trio.  This time Pomakov could let rip with all his considerable power accompanied with equal fervour by the Gryphons.  The whole thing was very impressive and very loud!

The scary thing is that Pomakov has only just turned thirty and already has this huge sound.  Apparently he’s had it for a while because he’s sung in twenty COC productions going back ten seasons. I did check out Youtube to see if I could find Pomakov and there is one clip of him singing the Russian National Anthem at the World Cup of Hockey in 2004. Here it is.