The winners this year are sopranos Leah Crocetto, Lori Guilbeau, and Rachel Willis-Sørensen; tenor Nathaniel Peake; and baritone Elliot Madore.
The Opera Tattler
Reviews of Performances and their Audiences
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Francesca Zambello will be the next general and artistic manager of Glimmerglass Opera, starting September 1, 2010.
Press Release [PDF] | Official Site
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Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France played a program consisting only of Ravel in San Francisco last Sunday evening. Myung-Whun Chung had the musicians well in hand, he was always ahead of them, and his cues seemed quite precise, despite the fact that he did not use a score for any of the pieces. The evening began with the quite and restrained Ma Mère l'Oye, which was followed by Shéhérazade sung by a very sweet Anne Sofie von Otter. The second half of the program brought us a very clear rendition of Suites Nos. 1 & 2 from Daphnis et Chloé. The evening ended with the wry and grotesque La Valse. In general, the playing was controlled, the brass pristine, and all the musicians were entirely together.* Tattling *
The audience was mostly quiet, only a slight bit of whispering was noticed, and most of this was in French.Leave a Reply
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San Francisco Symphony just finished 4 performances a program that included a world premiere of Kissine's Post-scriptum and Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto with Christian Tetzlaff. The musicians seemed quite focused during the Kissine, they were clearly paying a good deal of attention to Michael Tilson Thomas on the podium. The result was a diaphanous sound, the music itself wavered icily, and at times achieving an atmospheric, otherworldly beauty. In contrast, Christian Tetzlaff almost seemed possessed during the Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto. His playing could be savage and fervid, never mawkish, but not without tenderness when necessary.The second half of the program gave us Ravel's Valses nobles et sentimentales and Lizst's Tasso: Lamento e Trionfol. The playing was facile, and the brass was particularly clear in the Lizst.
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Somehow I found myself in the first row of the orchestra, in the middle section, just slightly to the left. Everyone around me was well-behaved, though there was some minor talking aloud.Leave a Reply
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Jordi Savall started his run of six performance with Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra in San Francisco last Friday. The program, entitled "The French Suite in Europe," began with the Suite du Ballet de Stockholm by Guillaume Dumanoir and Anonymous. The orchestra started off quite crisply and the concertmaster, Carla Moore, played boldly. The brass was clear, but the woodwinds squeaked, and someone was out of tune during the Presto (Tambourin). The oboes and bassoon sounded better in Lully's Suite from Alceste, and the piccolo was suitably harsh in Les Démons: 2ème Air. The trumpets were a bit hazy, but overall the piece had a pleasing stateliness followed by triumph at the end.After the intermission Savall was the soloist in Telemann's Ouverture in D Major for Viola da gamba, strings, and continuo. The musicians of the Philharmonia played beautifully, and Savall was arresting, the viola da gamba sounded rich, passionate, and never cloying. The finale consisted of a vigorous performance of two suites from "Water Musick" by Händel, the second and third. With the exception of few stray sour notes from the trumpets in Alla Hornpipe, the orchestra sounded crystalline. The horns did particularly well.
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There was only a tiny bit of talking from the couple in Row C Seats 8 and 10 of the orchestra, but just during the Suite du Ballet de Stockholm, when the first violin solo began. By chance, we were seated next to the friends who introduced us to PBO in the first place.The encore, the contradanse from Ramaeu's Les Boréades, was wonderfully fun, as it involved audience participation. We clapped a certain rhythm, but only when cued by Savall, and "not too loud," as he requested.
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September 7 2010: Gala with Jessye Norman
September 22-25 2010: Harrison, Copland, Tchaikovsky
September 29- October 3 2010: Ravel, Debussy, Berlioz
October 7-9 2010: Revueltas, Villa-Lobos, Varèse, Beethoven
October 14-17 2010: Bychkov conducts Ravel, Rachmaninoff, Walton
October 21-24 2010: Conlon conducts Wagner, Bruch, Dvořák; Joshua Bell, violin
October 24 2010: Dresden Staatskapelle plays Beethoven and Brahms
October 28-30 2010: Heras-Casado conducts Mendelssohn, Liszt, Kurtág, Shostakovich’s 12th
October 31 2010: SF Symphony Youth Orchestra
October 31 2010: Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1920 film)
November 2 2010: Murray Perahia, piano
November 3-5 2010: Kalmar conducts Schnittke, Haydn, Orff
November 6 2010: Día de los Muertos Concert
November 7 2010: Mutter-Bashmet-Harrell Trio plays Beethoven
November 11-13 2010: Concerts for Kids
November 11-13 2010: Kahane conducts Ravel, Rufus Wainwright, Weill
November 14 2010: Music for Families
November 14 2010: Chamber Music Series
November 17-21 2010: MTT conducts Schubert, Strauss; Elza van den Heever, soprano
November 21 2010: Oliver Latry, organ
November 24-27 2010: MTT conducts Brahms, Berg; Yefim Bronfman, piano
December 2-4 2010: Adams’ El Niño
December 5-6 2010: Deck the Hall
December 5 2010: Chamber Music at the Legion of Honor
December 5-6 2010: MTT conducts Cowell, Mozart, John Adams; Gil Shaham, violin
December 11-12 2010: Cabrera conducts Peter and the Wolf
December 12 2010: John Adams
December 13-15 2010: Colors of Christmas
December 18 2010: Music for Families
December 31 2010: New Year’s Eve Masquerade Ball
January 6-9 2011: Karabits conducts Silverstrov, Schumann, Rachmaninoff; Hélène Grimaud, piano
January 13-15 2011: Tortelier conducts Mussorgsky, Khachaturian, Prokofiev; Vadim Gluzman, violin
January 18 2011: Lang Lang, piano
January 20-23 2011: Janowski conducts Beethoven; Juho Pohjonen, piano
January 23 2011: Itzhak Perlman, violin
January 26-28 2011: Robertson conducts Dukas, Prokofiev, Avner Dorman; Leonidas Kavakos, violin
January 29 2011: Chinese New Year Concert
January 30 2011: Paul Jacobs, organ
February 9-12 2011: Janowski conducts Beethoven
February 9-12 2011: Koopman conducts Bach, Haydn, CPE Bach, Schubert
February 12 2011: Music for Families
February 13 2011: Dmitri Hvorovstovsky, baritone; Ivari Ilja, piano
February 17-19 2011: Labadie conducts Mozart
February 20 2011: Chamber Music Series
February 23-26 2011: MTT conducts Feldman and Mozart
February 28 2011: Mehta conducts the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra
March 3-6 2011: MTT conducts Hindesmith, Grieg, Brahms; Anne Sofie von Otter, mezzo-soprano
March 10-12 2011: Masur conducts Mendelssohn; Susannah Biller, soprano
March 13 2011: Yefim Bronfman, piano
March 14-17 2011: Concerts for Kids
March 16-20 2011: Mass in B Minor
March 9 2011: Music for Families
March 24-26 2011: Blomstedt conducts Mozart and Dvořák
March 27 2011: Chamber Music Series
March 27-28 2011: Saint Petersburg Philharmonic
March 30- April 2 2011: Blomstedt conducts Tchaikovsky, Sibelius
April 3 2011: Jane Parker-Smith, organ
April 7-9 2011: Vänskä conducts Mendelssohn and Vaughan Williams
April 10 2011: National Orchestra of Spain
April 14-17 2011: Dutoit conducts Dutilleux, Berlioz
April 28-30 2011: Oundjian conducts Rouse, Beethoven, Brahms
May 1 2011: Chamber Music Series
May 5-8 2011: MTT conducts Mahler’s 9th
May 12-14 2011: MTT conducts Mahler’s 6th
May 15 2011: SF Symphony Chorus Concert
May 22 2011: SF Symphony Youth Orchestra
June 14 2011: Yuja Wang, piano
June 16-19 2011: MTT conducts Bartók, Tchaikovsky; Yuja Wang, piano
June 21 2011: Yuja Wang, piano
June 23-26 2011: MTT conducts Missa solemnis; Christine Brewer, soprano
July 4 2011: Fourth of July Concert
July 10 2011: Dolores Park Free Concert
July 24 2011: Stern Grove Free Concert
The San Francisco Symphony announced the 2010-2011 season today. Jessye Norman, Dawn Upshaw, Michelle DeYoung, and Christine Brewer sing. Guest conductors include John Adams, Zubin Mehta, and Osmo Vänskä.
Press Release [PDF] | Official Site
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* Notes *
Berkeley Opera's inaugural production at El Cerrito Performing Arts Theatre, Don Giovanni, is a great success. The new venue features an actual orchestra pit, a balcony, and 450 seats compared to the 328-seat Julia Morgan, where Berkeley Opera performed for the last 12 years. The second performance last night looked quite full, and it is possible the whole run sold out. The opera company needs a new name, as El Cerrito is not even in the same county as Berkeley. In fact, there is a contest on to submit suggestions, and the winner will receive a subscription for next season.Alexander Katsman did not quite have the orchestra in hand, the musicians and singers were not entirely together, and there were intonation errors from the violins. The woodwinds were a bit squeaky, and the brass also made a few mistakes. The overture did go fairly well, and the brass did especially nicely. In any case, there were many pretty voices in the cast. William O'Neill was convincing as Masetto, his voice suits the role, but his accent in Italian could use some work. Elyse Nakajima (Zerlina) sounded vulnerable, light, and young. Aimée Puentes was hilarious as Donna Elvira, her comic timing was perfect, and she did not push her voice too hard.
Michael Desnoyers was warm and bright as Don Ottavio, and he sang "Il mio tesoro" with beauty. "Dalla sua pace" was not used in this version. Kaileen Miller (Donna Anna) started off somewhat quietly, but warmed up over time. Her voice is icy and has perhaps too much vibrato at the top, but still is appealing. Igor Vieira was amusing as Leporello and has a lovely voice, though he did get a little ahead of the music more than once. Eugene Brancoveanu was a cartoon of a Don Giovanni, completely excessive in his portrayal. It was funny, and certainly Brancoveanu has a gorgeous voice, rich and hefty.
The light-hearted production, directed by the new artistic director of Berkeley Opera, Mark Streshinsky, had its moments, but missed the mark at crucial points. There were many original and diverting aspects, certainly. Having a yoga class for "Ah, chi mi dice mai" was exceedingly entertaining, and Puentes did a fantastic job of pulling this off. Having racks of costumes descend during "Fin ch'han dal vino" set us up nicely for the following scenes. The rubber chicken at the end of one of the racks was a fine touch.
Projections were used to good effect for the "Madamina, il catalogo è questo," but the falling rose petals for the marriage procession certainly must be a screensaver on some ancient desktop somewhere, and the way the statue of the Commendatore was handled simply looked like a video game. Projection is quite tricky, especially because they tend to be behind the singers, rendering the interaction between the two rather artificial. Technology aside, the real problems were in the stage direction. How exactly is Don Giovanni keeping his attackers at bay at the end of Act I, when he has no weapons and is simply dancing around? What prompts Don Giovanni to get on the upstage platform in the finale, besides the fact that he has to descend?
* Tattling *
The audience was enthused, and talked very little during the music. The patrons on the right side of Orchestra Level Row P were indulgent, and put up with my crawling over them to get to my seat, which of course was nearly in the middle of the row. Next time one should be sure to arrive earlier, as the line for will call was extensive. Both Aaron Copland's The Tender Land and the adaptation of Wagner's Ring by David Seaman sound worthy of attendance.Leave a Reply
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Last night Herbert Blomstedt conducted Mozart's Symphony No. 36 and Bruckner's Symphony No. 6 at San Francisco Symphony. The former sounded rather jolly, the dynamics were clear and the tempi restrained. The oboe sounded particularly good in the first and third movements. The brass was hazy in the second movement, but the following Menuetto danced and the phrasing was lovely. The strings sounded crisp throughout. The Bruckner was played with more lushness, starting off darkly but ending brightly exultant. The brass creaked slightly in the beginning Maestoso, but sounded fairly clear in the third movement. Again, the oboe was especially fine, as were the woodwinds in general.* Tattling *
There was a little talking but no electronic noise in the front orchestra seating. Many people rustled cellophane, perhaps from their cough drops. Applause was heard after the first movement of the Mozart.Leave a Reply
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Last Monday Riccardo Chailly lead Gewandhausorchester Leipzig in a program of Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 5 and Symphony No. 7 at Davies Hall in San Francisco. The pianist was Louis Lortie, whose playing is precise and music box-like. One almost felt that he was some sort of mechanized toy that was carefully wound up beforehand. The orchestra had a wonderful sense of dynamics, the pianissimi were breathtaking. The brass had a warm, damp sound, and in general the music floated along. The Seventh was spirited and the tempi were rather fast. There were very few horn errors, and the timpani was especially fine.
* Tattling *
There was very little talking, no electronic noise, but quite a lot of tapping during the Seventh. We were treated to an encore of the Die Geschöpfe des Prometheus. One can read Herr Feldheim’s account of what happened here.Leave a Reply
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September 27 2010- April 2 2011: Das Rheingold
September 28- October 19 2010: Les Contes d'Hoffmann
September 29 2010- May 12 2011: Rigoletto
October 11 2010- March 17 2011: Boris Godunov
October 16 2010- February 25 2011: La Bohème
October 26 2010- April 30 2011: Il Trovatore
October 29 2010- February 19 2011: Don Pasquale
November 4 2010- January 13 2011: Carmen
November 9- December 2 2010: Così fan tutte
November 22- December 18 2010: Don Carlo
December 6 2010- January 8 2011: La Fanciulla del West
December 17 2010- January 1 2011: Pelléas et Mélisande
December 21 2010- January 6 2011: Die Zauberflöte
December 31 2010- January 29 2011: La Traviata
January 10- April 16 2011: Tosca
January 24- February 5 2011: Simon Boccanegra
February 2-19 2011: Nixon in China
February 21- March 5 2011: Iphigénie en Tauride
February 24- March 19 2011: Lucia di Lammermoor
February 26- March 5 2011: Armida
March 3-26 2011: Roméo et Juliette
March 11-26 2011: The Queen of Spades
March 24 -April 21 2011: Le Comte Ory
April 1-23 2011: Capriccio
April 6-16 2011: Wozzeck
April 22- May 14 2011: Die Walküre
May 4-14 2011: Orfeo ed Euridice
May 7-13 2011: Ariadne auf NaxosThe press release went out in February 22nd. The 2010-11 season of The Met: Live in HD will feature Das Rheingold (October 9, 2010) Boris Godunov (October 23, 2010), Don Pasquale (November 13, 2010), Don Carlo (December 11, 2010), La Fanciulla del West (January 8, 2011), Iphigénie en Tauride (February 26, 2011), Lucia di Lammermoor (March 19, 2011), Le Comte Ory (April 9, 2011), Capriccio (April 23, 2011), Il Trovatore (April 30, 2011), and Die Walküre (May 14, 2011).
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