Les Troyens in Berlin (DOB)

Les Troyens, Deutsche Oper Berlin, December 11 2010

Conductor ..... Donald Runnicles
Director ..... David Pountney
Stage design ..... Johan Engels
Costume design ..... Marie-Jeanne Lecca
Chorus master ..... William Spaulding

Énée ..... Ian Storey
Chorèbe ..... Jean-Francois Lapointe
Panthée ..... Seth Carico
Narbal ..... Reinhard Hagen
Iopas ..... Gregory Warren
Ascagne ..... Jana Kurucová
Cassandre ..... Petra Lang
Didon ..... Béatrice Uria-Monzon
Anna ..... Liane Keegan
Priam ..... Lenus Carlson
Greek military leader ..... Sergio Vitale
Hector's shadow ..... Stephen Bronk
Hélénus ..... Yosep Kang
A soldier ..... Ben Wager
Two Trojan soldiers ..... Ben Wager
Two Trojan soldiers ..... Lenus Carlson
Mercure ..... Stephen Bronk
Hécube ..... Fionnuala McCarthy
Andromache ..... Etoile Chaville

Chor der Deutschen Oper Berlin
Orchester der Deutschen Oper Berlin
Opernballett der Deutschen Oper Berlin

J’avais entièrement terminé à cette époque l’ouvrage dramatique dont je parlais tout à l’heure et dont j’ai fait mention dans une note d’un des précédents chapitres [allusion aux Troyens; voyez ci-dessus]. Me trouvant à Weimar quatre ans auparavant chez la princesse de Wittgenstein (amie dévouée de Liszt, femme de cœur et d’esprit, qui m’a soutenu bien souvent dans mes plus tristes heures), je fus amené à parler de mon admiration pour Virgile et de l’idée que je me faisais d’un grand opéra traité dans le système shakespearien, dont le deuxième et le quatrième livre de l’Énéide seraient le sujet. J’ajoutai que je savais trop quels chagrins une telle entreprise me causerait nécessairement, pour que j’en vinsse jamais à la tenter. "En effet, répliqua la princesse, de votre passion pour Shakespeare unie à cet amour de l’antique, il doit résulter quelque chose de grandiose et de nouveau. Allons, il faut faire cet opéra, ce poème lyrique; appelez-le et disposez-le comme il vous plaira. Il faut le commencer et le finir." Comme je continuais à m’en défendre: "Ecoutez, me dit la princesse, si vous reculez devant les peines que cette œuvre peut et doit vous causer, si vous avez la faiblesse d’en avoir peur et de ne pas tout braver pour Didon et Cassandre, ne vous représentez jamais chez moi, je ne veux plus vous voir." Il n’en fallait pas tant dire pour me décider. De retour à Paris je commençai à écrire les vers du poème lyrique des Troyens. Puis je me mis à la partition, et au bout de trois ans et demi de corrections, de changements, d’additions, etc., tout fut terminé.

Hector Berlioz, 1864

New Komischer Meistersinger

Before claiming that Bieito's Aida [currently running at Theater Basel] is one of the 5 best operatic events this year*, we should check at least 5-6 new productions still to be unveiled this year, one of them being new Meistersinger von Nürnberg which opened the 2010-2011 season at Komische Oper Berlin last Sunday.

Andreas Homoki directed the show, Patrick Lange conducts, while in the cast you find Marco Jentzsch (Walther),  Tómas Tómasson (Sachs), Dimitry Ivashchenko (Pogner), Tom Erik Lie (Beckmesser), Ina Kringelborn (Eva) etc.

From Act-3 of the new Meistersinger directed by Andreas Homoki [© Komische Oper Berlin]

You probably already understood that Komische is one of my 5 favorite theaters in Europe so I obviously wish I could encourage you to go and see one of the eight remaining shows. [I will of course see it, but in November or December.]

Trailer attached below.

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*I'm still to post a short review on that show. 
In addition to his Aida, I saw the "new" Bieito's Carmen at Liceu in Barcelona yesterday.  Both reviews - tomorrow.

Der Rap des Nibelungen

Another exciting theater in Switzerland is Theatre Freiburg. It's very Regie-oriented with a goal to resonate more explicitly with cultural needs of the people of Freiburg. In 2009-2010 they completed their Ring des Nibelungen which received rave reviews (especially Das Rheingold and Die Walküre). This season they will run the whole cycle twice...

In parallel they organized Der Rap des Nibelungen, to increase their interaction with younger audience and introduce them adiabatically to the Wagner's masterpiece. To that end they unified theater groups of youngsters from Freiburg and a rap-band from Berlin and produced a Ring that proved to be success. It was premiered last June and several shows were performed at the main theater in front of the packed house.  Here is a collage of the photos taken during the show:

Have 5 minutes?!

Portrait of Richard Wagner - Auguste Renoir, 1882  (Musée d'Orsay, Paris)

Listen to Bryn Terfel's unearthly 'O du, mein holder Abendstern' from Tannhäuser:

The Dutchman took off at Opéra Bastille

Der fliegende Holländer/The Flying Dutchman/Le vaisseau fantôme, Opéra Bastille, September 9 2010

Angel on the top of the Bastille obelisk seen from Opéra Bastille 

Peter Schneider ..... Conductor

Willy Decker ..... Stage Director

Matti Salminen ..... Daland

Adrianne Pieczonka ..... Senta

Klaus Florian Vogt ..... Erik

Marie-Ange Todorovitch ..... Mary

Bernard Richter .....  Steuermann

James Morris ..... Holländer

The time is up

Since we are in The Flying Dutchman mood, I think it is the right moment to draw your attention to  a brilliant young bass-baritone, Ryan McKinny, who won the Birgit Nilsson Prize at this year's Operalia for his performance of "Die Frist ist um"(The time is up)

YT video appended below. Enjoy!

Senta stuck at Bastille

Der fliegende Holländer/The Flying Dutchman/Le vaisseau fantôme, Opéra Bastille, September 6th 2010

Peter Schneider ..... Conductor

Willy Decker ..... Stage Director

Matti Salminen ..... Daland

Adrianne Pieczonka ..... Senta

Klaus Florian Vogt ..... Erik

Marie-Ange Todorovitch ..... Mary

Bernard Richter .....  Steuermann

James Morris ..... Holländer

Die Walküre ride in Paris: supreme singing in a wonderful production by Günter Krämer

Die Walküre, Opéra National de Paris - Opéra Bastille, May 31

Philippe Jordan Conductor

Günter Krämer Director

Robert Dean Smith Siegmund

Günther Groissböck Hunding

Falk Struckmann Thomas Johannes Mayer Wotan

Ricarda Merbeth Sieglinde

Katarina Dalayman Brünnhilde

Yvonne Naef Fricka

Marjorie Owens Gerhilde

Gertrud Wittinger Ortlinde

Silvia Hablowetz Waltraute

Wiebke Lehmkuhl Schwertleite

Barbara Morihien Helmwige

Helene Ranada Siegrune

Nicole Piccolomini Grimgerde

Atala Schöck Rossweisse 

Gertrud Wittinger Ortlinde

Confirmed: Rienzi on DVD later this year

Next Sunday there will be the last show (in this run) of the excellent new Rienzi produced by Philipp Stölzl's at the Deutsche Oper in Berlin.

Not surprising to see that they've spread the dates for 6 shows over 3 months [2 shows - long break - 2 shows - long break - 2 shows] because otherwise it would be humanly impossible to sing 6 shows in a row. This opera is especially demanding on Adriano [Kate Aldrich] and Rienzi [Torsten Kerl], and also on the chorus.

Torsten Kerl (left) and Kate Aldrich & Camilla Nylund (right)

What is more important for you --who could not go and see the show but who'd love to see/listen to this strange but wonderful opera-- is that this production was filmed in February of 2010 [ when I saw it] and will be released on DVD later this year, by Unitel Classica.  The press person from the Deutsche Oper Berlin confirmed that this DVD will most probably be available in October/November this year.

You're welcome :)

Siegfried: Lance Ryan et al.

After I saw this third opera of the Furasic Ring, the publicity stunt by which this DVD-set has been promoted --"The Ring of the 21st Century"-- crossed my tolerance threshold. Did they see the Copenhagen Ring before formulating that PR-line?

La Fura dels Baus did manage to produce a mind-blowing Rheingold. There the timing was perfect, an exquisite combination of their theatrical language with clever ideas that uncovered a different face of that opera. Add to that some superb singing and yes, you may say their Rheingold had set a very high standard and will remain a reference to whoever decides to mount The Ring in the future.

In Die Walkure, instead, Carlos Padrissa started relying too much on video imagery. I'm not complaining about video if it supported the drama instead of diverting our attention from the lack of  theatrical ideas. That second opera was nevertheless wonderfully sung and the verve of the libretto somehow makes you tolerate the excessive use of video.

Siegfried is less crowdy and less busy, and the lack of director's ideas becomes more apparent. Padrisa tries to compensate by throwing the video stuff at you but only to further tickle your annoyance and by the time we reached the hour four of the show, I was this close to stop the DVD...
On the positive note, this opera is as wonderfully sung as the previous 2, and even if there are a few great moments on the stage, it's hard to forgive too much pointless video trash [Fura is usually so much better than this Robert Lepage kind of videology].

Sensational Budapest Festival Orchestra at Pleyel

I listened to various orchestra conducted by Iván Fischer, but this was my first time listening to him conducting the Budapest Festival Orchestra. Yes, it is a completely different experience and the memories from that Saturday, January 9 2010, will stay with me for quite some time.

You could feel a symbiosis of the conductor and his orchestra, a global technical prowess mixed with joy of all the musicians - the joy to play and share that moment in which the most sublime music is being produced. We shared that unique moment with them too, for which I am grateful to this  orchestra, its astounding conductor, and -of course- to Pleyel for making this all possible.

On the program: Richard Wagner - Siegfried Idyll, Wesendonck Lieder (with our fave Petra Lang), Igor Stravinsky - Petrushka.

The Idyll will never Curb Your Enthusiasm

Last night I went to Pleyel to listen to this absolutely brilliant Hungarian orchestra (The Budapest Festival Orchestra) and their Maestro Ivan Fischer performing the most extraordinary Siegfried Idyll I've heard in my life. I'll hopefully drop a post about that tomorrow.

Coincidentally today I finally watched the Second Season of the funniest show ever, and guess what happens in the third episode ("Trick or Treat")?!  Larry David spins a good chunk of it around... yes, around the Siegfried Idyll!

Hojotoho! Heiahaha! - Wonderfully sung Walkure

It is hard to live by your own highest standard.

After their magnificent production of Das Rheingold, Carlos Padrissa and  La Fura dels Baus do not convince in Die Walkure [also released on DVD at the end of 2009].

Hadn't I seen Das Rheingold I guess I'd have liked this DVD far more than I actually do. In any case, this still remains a very good production; certainly worth your 4 hours (actually 4h30 if you count  "Making of" in).  This DVD will not be remembered for what La Fura did, but rather for a smashing performance of all the singers  [Peter Seiffert and Juha Uusitalo, in particular].

Gesamtkunstwerkish Rheingold of Fura dels Baus

As far as I can tell, this double DVD is the best release since the Copenhagen Ring (OK that Khovanshchina is close too).  La Fura dels Baus deftly crafted an outstanding piece of work: it is inventive, it is filled with brilliant ideas, it cleverly uses technology... In short, they managed to make  the Gesamtkunstwerk of our time. Moreover they did what seemed hardly possible, i.e. to shade a new light on this giant masterpiece. For that I am grateful to all the crew involved in making this production happen.

EXTRA-FREAKING-ORDINARY!