Comme des garçons
Metrosexual maestro Phillipe Jordan, currently gracing our Gotham at the helm of the Met's Le nozze di Figaro, has been named for the next music director of the Opéra National de Paris, effective with the 2009-10 season. His appointment was announced Wednesday evening at a meeting of the company's board of directors, according to PlaybillArts.Maestro Jordan is not yet 33, which in conductor years is about 11.
The Paris Opera has been without a music director under the current Gérard Mortier administration since 2004, when James Conlon (now at Los Angeles Opera) departed the post. Since that time, Mortier has used a series of guest conductors, most notably (if that is indeed the correct word) Sylvain Cambreling.
PlaybillArts also spills the beans on an upcoming live webcast by William Christie and Les Arts Florissants of Stefano Landi's 1632 music-drama Il Sant' Alessio, already one of the season's hottest tickets for its Lincoln Center stand on October 29 and 30. The television channel France 3 will transmit the Thursday, October 18 performance of the work, live from the Théâtre de Caen. France 3 Normandy's webcast begins at 19h45 Central European Time (1:45 pm US Eastern Time) with an introductory program (in French only). The performance itself begins at 20h00 Central European Time (2:00 pm US Eastern time ).
Labels: broadcast
POSTED at
9:42 AM
15 Comments:
The mediocrity that is Sylvain Cambreling will no doubt be gracing (if that is the correct word) the podium at NY City Opera when his husband, Gerard Mortier, takes over. God help us!!!
Sadly, considering the quality of City Opera's conducting roster (Mosteller, Pelto, Fletcher, Myers, Ross, Wilson, Wroe, DeMaris -- yes, you can say loudly WHO ARE THESE PEOPLE?) Sylvain Cambreling will seem like Fritz Reiner.
Cambreling may very well be the worst conductor in the world, at least among the professionals who appear at major venues; I sometimes doubt his ability to read music correctly.
Ari Pelto is a good conductor.
opera chic, are you *the* opera chic, as in opera chic? OMG, fabulous! You are so imaginative. Luv your stuff!! It's on my Favs for daily viewing. As if I needed the reminder.
This is great news for Paris--Phillipe Jordan is an excellent musician and conductor; I applaud l'Opera for taking a chance on a youngster, a la Los Angeles Phil and NY Phil. We had a great success with him in Seattle (symphony, not the opera--yet!) and still hope that he will return (though guest conductors whom the musicians "like" too much are often not invited back, as they are seen as some sort of threat...). Jordan is, of course, the offspring of the late maestro Armin Jordan, whose name is still spoken with reverence among the orchestra (Tristan and Ring about 8 years ago). Phillipe's also easy on the eyes, which never hurts.
Philip, Metrosexual???? Nobody at Scheune will think that of that ass...
Jordan has not been successful everywhere.
Just a few months ago, in the Spring of 2007, Jordan made a disastrous debut with the Chicago Symphony. It was perhaps the most disastrous debut there since the 1960's. Jordan was so bad that he literally startled the members of the orchestra and the management. Even though he was assigned French repertory, he was found to be incompetent beyond description. He will not be asked back to Chicago for a very, very long time.
Jordan's reviews in the Tribune and the Sun-Times were the most negative, if not vicious, within memory. Both reviewers were almost shockingly frank and dismissed Jordan as a total hack.
Drew80, that's too bad. I had not heard that, but a lot of it has to do with chemistry. While most of us loved him, the brass section here did not like him so well because he didn't let them blast; we know that Chicago Symphony is known for their brass! Deborah Card (CSO president) knew Jordan from his stint here in Seattle (she was Executive Director here before taking the Chicago post) so she was likely expecting him to repeat his success there. It has been said that he is even better in the opera house, so I wish him luck in Paris.
Everyone is entitled to a bad engagement which is clearly what Jordan had at the CSO but the worst since the 1960s? You must have missed Daniel Harding's recent appearances with the CSO which the Sun-Times properly called a disaster or Thielemann's coming to town to conduct Shostakovich with Schiff and so angering Schiff by his not knowing the score that Schiff has refused to work with him since (and Thielemann has not been re-engaged either).
Jordan's engagement was bad but it happens. Alan Gilbert's appearances with the CSO were not exactly barn-burners either.
He's a talented young man (lets leave his looks aside) who has had much success and an occasional bad night. Let's not condemn him to the dustbin quite yet.
I did not condemn Jordan to the dustbin. I merely pointed out that he had not been a success in Chicago.
Yes, Harding laid an egg in Chicago, too, but Harding has laid eggs in almost all of his American appearances. Remember what happened with Harding in Houston! And did not something similar happen in Cleveland? No one is surprised when Harding lays an egg.
Harding's lameness was not so unexpected as Jordan's lameness--and Jordan was specifically assigned repertory that was exected to be congenial to him. I was told that the Chicago musicians were literally dumbfounded, from the first rehearsal, how bad Jordan was.
Yes, I know Deborah Card's background well.
Thielemann does not seem to be liked by any American orchestras, does he?
If 33 is 11 in conductor years, what does that make Gustavo Dudamel?
11? that's just perfect for levine!
Dudamel must be considered "in utero."
As a Met musician, I must say the appointment of Phillipe Jordan to the Paris Opera is severely depressing (silver lining- he'll be less available to "conduct" at the Met). Jordan's Figaro is plagued by perverse tempos, bizarre dynamic alterations, and total lack of respect for the singers. During rehearsals the tension between the podium and the stage was the worst I've seen in my (admittedly only) 4 years in the pit. I would call it open revolt, and I wouldn't be surprised if Jordan was the real reason Bayrakdarian decided it wasn't worth prancing around with buns in the oven. This is his third Met production and they have all suffered in the same way. As for his relations with the orchestra: Let's just say he's known in the pit as "Calvin Klein", ever since his underwear protruded from his tux during his entire debut performance of Don Giovanni. The letters were so big even our 84-year-old timpanist (bless him) could read them. Is Jordan easy on the eye? Not when your eye is seeking sane musical direction, and not the pathetic pandering smiles of a man desperate to be loved, at once ingratiating and arrogant, convinced of his own greatness despite all evidence to the contrary, and eternally wounded that anyone (everyone) might fail to share his own high opinion of himself.
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