The Opera Tattler

* Notes * 
Mezzo-soprano Daveda Karanas gave her Schwabacher Debut Recital, accompanied by pianist Allen Periello, yesterday evening. The program was designed around Wagner’s Wesendonck Lieder, which ended the performance. To begin we heard songs from Liszt, all on themes related to the source texts of Der Ring des Nibelungen. Likewise, Peter Heise’s Gurdruns Sorg is a Danish translation from The Poetic Edda. Karanas has a high, powerful voice with fine technique and lucid diction. There is a pleasantly metallic quality to her singing that never comes off as harsh. She is, however, not a natural actor, and there seemed to be a disconnect between the meaning of the words and how they came through her body. In contrast, Periello was expressive, but kept a subtle balance between piano and singer. “Wanderers Nachtlied” was especially stately, and Wagner’s “Träume” was cloud-like and floating. Karanas seemed to light up from inside for the encore, “Lorelei” from Gershwin’s Pardon my English.

* Tattling * 
I was recognized as the Opera Tattler for the second time in as many days.