Sunday Brunch – Christine Schäfer sings Brahms

Christine Schäfer's skills as an interpreter of Lieder shine in this beautiful aria from Brahms' German Requiem. It's said Brahms composed this movement in memory of his mother. 

Masetto in Madrid – Another Gratuitous David Bižić Post

BLG Artist Management posted this on their Facebook page today (roughly translated): 

Called to the rescue, David Bižić reprises the role of Masetto in D. Tcherniakov's staging of  Don Giovanni at the Teatro Real de Madrid ... Starting tomorrow, April 3 to April 24.

This would explain his new cover photo at Facebook:

It must be interesting to finish playing the Don and go right back to Masetto. It's not actually clear whom he is replacing, as he is already listed by Teatro Real in the role. 

But what's really important is this means... the controversial production from Aix-en-Provence has been revived in Madrid. Canadian baritone Russell Braun and American bass-baritone Kyle Ketelsen appear as Don Giovanni and Leporello respectively, and Christine Schäfer leads the women as Donna Anna.

Fingers crossed for a broadcast! 

The Marriage of Figaro – Paris Opera, 2006 (Part 2: Eyeglasses and Wine Glasses)

Marthaler and Maestro Sylvain Camberling decided that a harpsichord or fortepiano wouldn’t seem quite right in this setting. So they brought in a performance artist as a “Recitativist.” He’s on stage and participates in the drama—accompanying the recitatives on an electronic keyboard and a batch of odd instruments, including a melodeon, a glass harmonica (pictured), and a pair of beer bottles.  This guy interacts with the other folks on stage, at one point providing the Countess with a couple of shots of whiskey.  

The Marriage of Figaro – Paris Opera, 2006 (Part 1: The Chair, the Stair, and the Lectern)

This Nozze di Figaro received such mixed (mostly bad) reviews I knew I just had to see it! I usually find Christoph Marthaler's viewpoint fascinating—but not always convincing. He often creates a lot of subsidiary action as a commentary to the main action. It’s something I enjoyed in his production of Věc Makropulos.

Handel: Theodora – Salzburg 2009: I Respectfully Dis-regie

I have nothing but praise for the musical quality of this performance of Handel’s oratorio. Each soloist is top notch (both singing and acting), the Salzburger Bachchor is outstanding, and I don’t think the Freiburger Barockorchester can do anything wrong.  However, I feel neutral-to-negative about the overall package.

Director Christof Loy thinks the oratorio has no narrative, so he doesn’t bother to deal with it. I happen to disagree with him, but he somehow forgot to consult with me.  The Groβes Festspielhaus is hardly an ideal venue for this intimate work. However, Loy notes that the massive stage helps him create an “installation” in which intimacy appears to be “threatened in the most extreme ways.” I admire him for attempting to turn a liability into an advantage, but I don’t buy this half-and-half, kind-of-staged approach. I say have more action; have less action; take a stand.  He keeps teasing me into thinking something is going to happen, but then it doesn’t.  If one is going to treat the piece as if there is no narrative, do a concert performance, or at least give us some nice tableaux to look at.