Too Many Leaves; Not Enough Sex

Kwiecien and Breslik in Munich- More (implied) sex; fewer leaves.

So, I just chatted with My Uncle (now that Dad has passed on, we'll be hearing more about My Uncle, who is My Dad's younger brother). My Uncle loves opera, choral music, and music in general. He has a beautiful voice, plays piano wonderfully by ear (doesn't read a note of music), and has a rather surreal sense of humor.

He and my cousins saw Eugene Onegin at the Lyric Opera of Chicago last week. Lyric has a pretty stellar cast (Mariusz Kwiecien, Charles Castronovo, Anna Maria Martinez), and the old Met version: Robert Carsen's production with the leaves. My Chicago relatives are not fond of the "new" productions. They prefer rich costuming and scenery to look at as they take in the lovely singing. 

My Uncle's neighbor (a retired music professor) asked how they enjoyed the performance (she happened to attend the same one). 
My Uncle said, "I'd like to see more sets." 
"More sex?!?!" she asked. 
"Well, that too," he added. 
I guess it just depends on which production you see. Hopefully they'll see more sex in Carmen.

Guth/Cosi Redeux – La Scala 2014

There are some opera productions we get to see over and over on video (a certain very elaborate La Boheme, for example). But this is the first time that I’ve seen a second video version of a Claus Guth Mozart production. 

It seems Herr Guth has done some rethinking, so comparisons should be interesting. However, this is not that post. This is the post that calls attention to the videos to make sure my fellow Guth fans and fellow Mozart fans (and fellow Guth/Mozart fans) check out this 2014 La Scala iteration of this Cosi fan tutte that originated in Salzburg.

Must-See Monteverdi from France

Technically, Magdalena Kožená and Rolando Villazón are the "star power" in this program. Ms. Kožená really does shine (RV, not quite so much, but we still love him), especially in her solo turns as Octavia and the lamenting Nymph (She seems to be pregnant again, which lends a special poignancy to her Octavia. I'm surprised no director has explored the idea of Octavia being pregnant when Nero dumps her. Maybe someone has and I just haven't seen it.)

But the real stars here are Emanuelle Haïm and the vocalists and instrumentalists of her Concert d'Astrée. 

The program, a "Monteverdi Gala" performed at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées last February, contains opera excerpts and madrigals, and it's great fun. And of course, the music-making is marvelous as usual. Conductor, musicians, and the audience all seems to be having a great time. And you will, too!  

(Unless you don't like Monteverdi, in which case, you won't enjoy this concert at all.)

Meanwhile, here's the concert, as seen on the Arte Concert website: 

Watching the Radio – Vocal Treasure from Ö1 Radio

Among the vocal fun on Austria's  Ö1 Radio this week:

Weber’s Oberon, in a recording from 1996, featuring youthful performances by a few familiar singers:

Vesselina Kasarova (Fatime)

Peter Seiffert (Hüon von Bordeaux)

Bo Skovhus (Scherasmin)

Deon van der Walt (Oberon)

Inga Nielsen (Rezia)

Conducted by Marek Janowski

And Monday’s episode of Apropos Musik is 50 minutes of operetta, Broadway, and film music sung by your favorite opera stars. Slumming? No, not at all! It's kind of fun to hear lighter tunes (particularly the operetta) sung by such wonderful voices. The program features: Diana Damrau, Piotr Beczala, Anna Netrebko, Rolando Villazon, Elina Garanca, Renée Fleming, and others. (Well, perhaps AN's voice is not quite so operetta-friendly any more; but still, it's a nice little program)

P.S. "Lied der Eliza aus dem Musical "My fair Lady" is Ich hat getanzt heut' Nacht (gesungen auf Englisch– and DD pulls it off rather well, except for a little odd back-phrasing.)

Gratuitous Friday – More Miah (and Rolando) in L'Elisir

I have a lot to say about this production, but I will save a more lengthy discussion for another day. 

As a director, Rolando is a very good tenor, and of course Miah Persson is a game leading lady (and probably a better director). 

Rolando's s concept is cute; but he either needs to go further with the silent movie camp, or really reel it in (no pun intended). For my money, I'd like to see less mugging and more character. Meanwhile, Adina seems to be a good fit for Ms. Persson. So for now, let's just enjoy Miah and Rolando doing some lovely vocalizing. 

And with this clip, Miah Persson week comes to a close...or does it?

The New Cosi – Nézet-Séguin, Persson, Villazón, and Friends

Here is the follow-up to last year’s intriguing Don Giovanni, just released in Europe a few days ago and due in the U.S. on August 20. There are some lesser known names here, and most are worth keeping track of. The recording promises to be good, and it will be worth it just to hear Miah Persson's Fiordiligi again!

Rolando Villazón explains the plot* (in his inimitable, fun, animated, but confusing way):

Gratuitous Friday – Rolando Villazón Sings Tchaikovsky

Rolando Villazón sings Lensky's aria from Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin. Back in 2009 he got stuck in a truly dreadful production in Berlin (though he claims to have liked being in it.) My readers know I’m all for new directorial interpretations. But from what I have seen and heard of this one, it’s a concept that has nothing to do with the opera; and it’s a concept that could easily be applied to virtually any opera. The Mostly Opera blog posted several photos, plus a review of that production.

Monteverdi Monday – Rolando Villazón sings Sì dolce è 'l tormento da scherzo

Rolando singing Monteverdi?!? OMG, what are they thinking!?!?

This clip and the related discs remind me of those old Monteverdi recordings, back in the day, before "historically informed performance" practices became more widespread. And when singers didn't specialize quite so narrowly. 

La Traviata, Salzburg 2005: I Have a Theory, and it's Mine

Probably no one needs to say anything more about the Willy Decker production of La Traviata. But I never let that stop me before, and with a blog called “Regie, or Not Regie?” I feel obligated to address it. In this post, I will present several theories, answer a few questions, and make a suggestion.

Puccini: La Boheme – Bregenzer Festspiel 2002 (Part 2: A Cozy Table for Two Hundred)

There are approximately a gazillion extras in this production of La Boheme: Shoppers, children, partiers, chefs, waiters, guards, street cleaners, private body guards, etc., etc. Zeffirelli would be envious. During the Momus scene, extras actually sit around the huge (main stage) table. In the crowd scenes there is always a big crowd, especially at Momus; but the principals are never obscured nor lost in the confusion.  There are a few modern-ish dance moves and a marching band that looks suspiciously Sgt. Pepper-inspired.  I will never get that “tattoo shimmy” line dance at the end of Act 2 out of my head. (For better or for worse.)

Puccini: La Boheme – Bregenzer Festspiel 2002 (Part 1: Cafe Grandissimo)

There are a few things we should note right up front about this DVD: 

1. An opera on the Seebühne at Bregenz is meant to be a spectacle. It’s a tourist attraction. The stage is in the lake. They have fireworks, there are tons of people on stage, they always have to work a boat into the production, and the set is usually something really strange and/or symbolic. (It also has to be sturdy enough to survive being in the lake for 2 full years.)

Gratuitous Friday – Dorothea Röschmann IS Michaela

This one caught me by surprise.  Not only is Dorothea blonde(!), she's singing in French. 

Unfortunately, it seems she is not in the commercial DVD release of this 2006 Berliner Staatsoper production. It looks pretty interesting; it also stars Rolando Villazón, is conducted by Daniel Barenboim (apparently his first Carmen), and directed by Martin Kušej.  It seems Don José dies during the overture and the rest is in flashback. I hear that Escamillo falls before the Finale, too. 

Die blonde Dorothea

Blog Posts I Wish I had Written

Every once in a while, I come across a blog post that really speaks to me; it usually says, "Why didn't you think of that?"  It might be deep, thoughtful, spiritual, analytic, or just silly.  Here are a few blog posts that I wish I had written, and some clips to go with them.