it takes a villars
Heldentenordiva Jon Villars (center, in mohawk) “basically fired himself by walking off the stage” at a public dress rehearsal for the Canadian Opera Company’s production of Fidelio. According to a report in The Globe and Mail, Villars stormed off stage immediately after conductor Gregor Buhl “loudly sang out a few phrases of the tenor’s part” during the second act. Jumping in as Florestan will be Icelandic tenor Jon Ketilsson and later Richard Margison.
Is the picture from the production in question? If so, things may have worked out for the best.
Miss Kitty: Actually no, this photo is from a Paris Wozzeck presented by “La Môme” Mortier.
Reading between the lines of the Everett-Greene article, it struck me as though Villars and conductor Gregor Buhl must already have shared a stormy professional relationship, and Mr. Villars nursed his burgeoning animosity to its natural and logical conclusion.
Who is singing Leonore? I hope it isn’t Carol Wilson.
Pieczonka and that is why I couldn’t find her. Now that someone said this was the Paris Wozzeck that makes sense since Denoke sang there and is in the picture.
I had wondered what Villars was up to. He sang the fuck out of Bacchus at the Met last time they put on Ariadne, but also sounded like he was singing perhaps without great regard to his vocal well being. “On capital,” as I think they say.
I was at the now infamous rehearsal. Villars was not in good voice. Sometimes, the voice responded and other times, it just wasn’t there, and he ran out of steam at the end of his aria. But that really wasn’t the problem. He was fighting the conductor for the tempo the entire time, often singing behind the beat.
However, in the finale, he wasn’t just behind the beat; he had fallen at least a full measure (if not two) behind. The conductor had no choice but to step in and sing his part to keep everyone else together. At this point, Villars stopped singing, walked off stage, and gave the conductor the finger on his way.
The next day, Richard Margison and Jon Kettilson were listed as Florestan on the COC website.
This was my first time hearing Villars. I liked the basic voice, eventhough he was clearly not at his best.
Alagna has established the paradigm of storming off stage! Who’s next? 4 asked who’s singing Leonore. Kathrine Jenkings is a good choice! Opera is becoming more and more opera
“comique” and a farse in real life. Everything’s possible when Domingo gets involved.
Well, if this picture had been run as a Guess-the-Regie production, I would have said Rigoletto…the quartet.
I mean, doesn’t it look (left to right) like Maddalena, the Duke with mohawk, a very unhappy Gilda, and Rigoletto shedding his hump for a fascist uniform?
No matter how poorly Mr. Villars was singing, he should never have walked off that stage. It is NOT ok to walk off in the middle of a scene, regardless of sickness or poor singing; wait until the end of the scene and then inform the stage manager.
So unprofessional of a singer to do that; I hope his management, the union and the opera company kick his ass! Yes, conductors can mess with singers, however, it is so unfair for patrons and ticket holders to have to sit and wait for singers to be replaced mid-scene because of tantrums.
I’m not sure how Mr Papas manages to blame Placido for Mr Villars’ walk-out. But that’s the constant fascination with this forum: everything is always the fault of one’s perennial bete noir. Renee, Placido, it doesn’t matter, but somehow the two of them are always at the bottom of anything bad.
Walking off stage isn’t new. Does anyone else remember David Poleri storming off stage in Carmen half way through the final confrontation snarling “Aw, finish it yourself”, leaving Gloria Lane to commit suicide?
Is the figure at right in the picture Wozzeck or Andres?
He looks worth experimenting on…
My guess is this is a punked out Carmen, Act II, chez Lillas Pastia, Escamillo seated between Frasquita and Mercedes (or vice versa), with Dancaire looking on. (Or even Lillas P, my favorite everybody-talks-about-him-but-he-never-shows-UP character in opera, Dio aside.)
So I’ll say Rake’s Progress, as usual.
Hm…I live in Canada but have never been to the COC, so I don’t know anything about the quality of their productions in general. However, what I do know is:
a) Richard Margison has an excellent voice and presence – good on them for getting a “star” replacement (by canadian standards, anyway)
check out his cielo e mar: http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=gXkqShr7wh0
b) Have you guys listened to the finale of Fidelio? It’s insanely complex and involves a HUGE number of singers. I am not surprised by the anger felt by the conductor when one of his singers was two bars off. I wonder what James Levine would have done, though….hmm….
Yeah, who IS that guy in the uniform. I think he just winked at me.
Opéra national de Paris: Wozzeck. Angela Denoke (Marie), Jon Villars (Tambourmajor), Ursula Hesse von den Steinen (Margret), Simon Keenlyside (Wozzeck). Director: Christoph Marthaler. Photo R. Walz / Opéra national de Paris.
Richard Margison is still being mistaken for a singer ???
Anyone who looks that foul sporting a mohawk deserves to be fired! Heldentenors can at times be divas of the worst kind!
I saw him in Turandot in Cincinnati, and he was great. To bad to hear about this situation in Canada. In that Cincinnati Turandot production, we also had the wonderful Liu of Measha Bruggergosman.
“Yes, conductors can mess with singers, however, it is so unfair for patrons and ticket holders to have to sit and wait for singers to be replaced mid-scene because of tantrums.”
For the record, this was a public rehearsal so there were no paying patrons, just invited guests…
And as unprofessional as his behavior was, there is NO reason why a conductor should mess with a singer. The article quoted states that although Villars has sung the role several times, the conductor has never conducted the opera, YET, it also seems like the conductor wanted to take on a dictatorial role, as opposed to accompany the singers.
As someone already said, the tension must’ve started long before the performances, and it seems to me the conductor was a willing participant in the conflict. The times of Toscanini and Muti as the Hitler of the opera house are gone. Why do we still have conductors who come in to a show wanting to dictate shit, as opposed to coming in to collaborate with fellow musicians?
I would have fired both motherfuckers: One for being a baby and the other one for being a dictatorial diva unwilling to collaborate.
I think Villars LOOKS great…just the kind of biker rough trade who would do it in the street
Domingo famously put, I think, David Atherton in his place at a Dress Rehearsal at Covent Garden for Aida. Domingo had only arrived the night before from Vienna and it was his first meeting with Atherton, who proceeded to take the Celeste Aida very slowly.
Domingo raised his hands and stopped the orchestra.
“Maestro”, he asked, “Do you always take Celeste Aida so slowly?”
“Why, yes.”, replied Atherton.
“Then, might I suugested”, Domingo responded, “that you come up here and sing it and I come down there and conduct it?”
Now lets see – only one of the people commenting was there and actually saw what happened but so far Villars is to blame, Buhl is to blame, Domingo (who wasn’t there) is to blame, Toscanni (who is conducting angelic orchestras or choruses of the damned depending on how you feel about him) and Muti (who really is very busy at the moment) are sharing blame … very Pirandelloish!
Lillas Pastia (No 13) … In her turgid Covent Garden production of Carmen, Zambello took the radical step of making Lillas into a FEMALE character. Fortunately, Micaela still had the ‘a’ at the end of her name, though … On the other hand, maybe a light tenor would have been better than Norah Amsellem who can only really pull off pianissimi.
Jon Villars has been a major league drama queen for years which is why despite a nice stage presence, a fine physique, and a pretty good voice he has not had the major career that many predicted for him several years ago. Nothing worse than a hypocondriachal gay tenor to drive people nuts.
As for the dress rehearsal. The person in charge of the musical side of things is the conductor, not the singers. Period.
“As for the dress rehearsal. The person in charge of the musical side of things is the conductor, not the singers. Period”
Then the conductor can come up and sing the damn thing. I think we forget that voices have limits. Something taken too slow or too fast will feel uncomfortable and could ultimately hurt.
deviafan: Don’t you mean Measha GobblesBurgers?
As a singer, let me say this. It has to be a give and take. Both the singers and the conductor have stakes in the performance. Ultimately, I side with singers, because we have to breath occasionally to keep the sound coming out.
I’ve heard about this kind of unprofessional behavior from Villars before—showing up unprepared, throwing tantrums.
oh come on sanford be fair!
God knows I side with the singers too, especially tenors, as we seem to bear most of the brunt of disgruntled conductors and Lord only knows I have had my fair share of it myself, but “breathing” is no excuse for walking out of anything.
Argue later and talk then about the “small” breathing issue that they seem to disregard all too easily, but you have the professional responsability, and must have the balls, to stay in the “ring and fight the fight” if need be.
PS: Are you a fellow-tenor? Just curious…
Oh Jon, Jon, Jon…
Sigh.
This is not coming at all as a surprise to anyone who knows him. The surprise is that it hasn’t happened sooner. He’s always behaved this way.
My personal feeling is, knowing him fairly well early on in his career, that he was having vocal trouble, which he’s always had by the way, the conductor wasn’t helping him, and he hit his limit. Yes, it was unprofessional to walk off the stage, and no he is certainly is no Alagna that can get away with that sort of behavior and still have a career.
He’s always been a serviceable voice in these heavier roles, and was a non pareil Bacchus for some time in European houses because the most comfortable area of his voice was his upper register, which had a nice, big, fat sound. The rest of the voice has always been in tatters. He never really figured out his technique, but the upper register (really about three notes from a flat to b) was so stunning that it got him work immediately out of school.
He hasn’t sung in America for some time because he has certain, um how shall I say it, financial arguments with the US Government.
Honestly, I’m surprised he’s lasted this long vocally and professionally. He won’t be around much longer.
I wish we could hear some excerpts from the rehearsal to hear a) how out to lunch Villars must have been or b) how unreasonable the conductor was being. Maybe it was a bit of both; God knows I’ve sat through performances led by bonehead conductors who have no clue as to the horrific demands they are placing on their singers, and those with errant singers who take their conductors for a wild ride. Neither is excusable. Villars does seem to have higher cards in his hand since he’s done the opera more than Buhl and has recorded it with Rattle/BPO, but his reputation for acting-out doesn’t help. If a singer really goes off the radar, it’s absolutely the conductor’s duty to hold his/her ground in the interest of keeping everything together. While most singers are taught to be flexible in their tempi to satisfy the overall artistic “vision” of the maestro (those pedantic late Karajan opera recordings come to mind… God bless Freni, et al), in the end the best tempo is really where the singer sounds their best given the dramatic context.
OUCH that “review” reads more like an epitaph…
The conductor wasn’t “messing” with the singer, he was shouting where Villars should have been in the score…but wasn’t. Regardless of who’s-performed-what how-many-times, if someone’s lost it’s the job of the conductor to try to put things back on track. If the singer’s pride is hurt, that’s totally out of the control of the maestro. Plus, paying patrons or not, I don’t think that kind of behavior is at all warranted in ANY rehearsal, especially the dress. (I know, right?)
No matter what the facts were, I’m all for the singers to remind conductors, directors and producers that operas are composed for singers, not for directors, conductors, producers, et al. As far as I’m concerned if a singer needs a faster or slower tempo, the conductor should comply. Period. If the singer is not able to give his/her best I don’t care a bit what the conductor does.
This reminds me of Daniel Oren who “sings” / screams from the pit at singers for the last 25 years during EVERY performance I heard with him. Just surprised nobody walked out on him yet during a performance (many gave him the finger and quit, but backstage after the show or rehearsal). He is a very talented conductor, but his rude manners are demoting him to local houses of Trieste and Verona.
He used to conduct at the MET, Vienna, Munich, Rome; but they don’t seem to call him back these days (except last minute subbings). What do you think of him?
So what opera would sound good with only the singers on stage, no orchestra in the pit (thus no conductor necessary)? There is a certain thing as following a composer’s wishes and performance “history” and “practice”. Yes, there is a certain give and play within tempi and matters can be easily discussed. I have never, however, found a conductor who wasn’t at least somewhat willing to be flexible in order to help the singer. The singer, however, has to be prepared, enough and in charge of his or her instrument, musically educated, and a good enough performer to handle MANY different variables from day to day, rehearsal to rehearsal, and performance to performance. The singer can not go off on his or her own vocal or dramatic agenda at his or her own desire. I am familiar with Mr. Villars’ work and no, this incident does not surprise me in the least—even if it is a piece he has performed before.
Tenore, you’re assuming that the singer always has impeccable taste.
So, someone like Vampirette should be allowed to totally bend the tempo over the opinion of someone like the much missed Solti? Opera is more than just one singer, and it’s the conductor’s job to reconcile all the massed forces and sometimes that includes making a decision that may not be the same as the singer. The very best conductors though know how to frame this as if it was the singer’s idea all along (Levine). I’m not saying that conductors don’t have their own personal indulgences with the score, but at the end of the day it’s their decision.
This would also lead to the interesting question for contemporary opera- composer v singer. But that’d be a total minefield.
Well then, he can get a job at Indiana University, or the Berlin Hochschule fur Musik, etc.
Those of you who think the entire opera performance exists for the singers need to have your heads examined. The conductor is in charge of the musical performance, the entire musical performance, not the singers. There is more to it than just what comes out of the singers mouths. There is much more to the performance than just that.
The conductor has the vision — or should — of how the musical performance should go. The tempi should be his, not just to accomodate a singer. That serves the singer, not the piece. The days when singers ran the show are over. long over. Singers should not be indulged. If they cannot sing the piece, they should be replaced. Not indulged.
Give me a break.
“The days when singers ran the show are over. long over. Singers should not be indulged.”
Maybe that’s one of the reasons that singing today is not nearly as good or exciting as it used to be.
As I’ve mentioned, I was there. While there were clear tempo disagreements in evidence throughout the dress rehearsal, the “incident” wasn’t just about tempo. During the final ensemble, when Florestan sings the main melody by himself, Villars screwed up the rhythm and fell behind by a bar or so. The conductor let this go one for a few more bars (assumingly, trying to correct Villars through eye contact and mouthing the words) but, when Villars did not get back on track, the conductor started to sing his part to get him back in sync with everyone else. The choir was soon going to come back in and the conductor had to either stop the performance or sing Florestan’s part to keep the ensemble together. It was the dress rehearsal, and I’m guessing that he didn’t want to stop the performance.
My personal belief is that the conductor is the boss and has the final say but that he/she also needs to be sympathetic to a singer’s needs regarding tempo. There has to be compromise throughout the rhearsals to arrive at a finished product that works for everyone.
So, someone like Vampirette should be allowed to totally bend the tempo over the opinion of someone like the much missed Solti?
There is more to this question than either/or. In some places, a singer should be allowed more freedom of tempo; in other places, the conductor should set a more strict beat.
Conductors do not always know the best way to shape a vocal melody, and for that matter they do not always understand how a voice works. If a conductor sets a tempo that is too slow or too fast, he can basically ruin whatever effect the singer can potentially make in the music.
The ideal is a partnership of singer and conductor, and especially in Italian music of the 19th century, the singer often will take the lead in shaping the music while the maestro follows with sensitivity.
Again, none of this is “always.”
The whole thing is a partnership (hopefully) between the conductor and the singer, with the lead being taken by both at different times throughout a performance. Of course, many, many other factors can come into play. Vocal problems, ego, idiot conductor, idiot singer, memory slips, idiot staging… the list goes on and on.
Speaking to Jon’s particular problematic section of Fidelio at COC, I can’t imagine that any tenor would be given much room for error there because it’s not really a solo moment, it has much to do with ensemble, and the chorus comes in as well during that time. The conductor is pretty much steering the course during the finale, no matter who the tenor. If Jon was having problems vocally, I can’t imagine that he would have wanted to drag out the tempo any more than he all ready was.
It sounds to me as if he was suffering throughout the production rehearsal, and combined with the fact that the conductor probably was unable to help him out, in a fit of pique decided to leave in the most dramatic way possible.
Floestan, although notoriously difficult like Leonore, is VERY short. The tenor doesn’t even come on until the second act, and then only sings one aria, a short duet, and an ensemble. It has resulted in many tenor disasters though which can be excruciating to sit through, either as fellow cast member or member of the audience.
Of course, ideally we have a combination of musical minds working towards a common objective. My gripe is because in the last few decades the vocal capabilities of the singers seem to taken little into account or even totally ignored. I’m tired of directors and producers making the singers sing with their backs to the audience, lying prone, wearing ridiculous costumes, etc. I’m tired of producers casting singers based on popularity or physical appeal. And I’m tired of conductors not working with the singers. So I’m ready for a bit of a revolution from the singers. It’s time for a few of them to tell directors and conductors to shove it. Bring the pendulum back to where there is a true collaboration. That’s change I’m ready for.
Off-topic, anyone else listen to Orfeo ed Euridice this afternoon? I LOVED Stephanie Blythe! At first I thought I was hearing a countertenor but decided it was too butch to be one of them. Then I thought she sounded like Marilyn Horne, just a little more femme. A rich, gorgeous voice!
This fellow is insane. But on the whole conductor vs singer affair, it seems to be growing ever more since most of the times conductors have absolutely no clue on the needs/possibilites of singers AND seem extremely uninformed about the historical practices of operatic singing.
Conducting nowadays seems to be an exercise of the mind, having little regard for the sounds that are actually coming out and their dramatic significance.
tenore—this post I’m more in agreement with you than your earlier post. However, this is all, of course, a different matter than a tenor who has problems coming in on time and holding tempo. The section of the finale of “Fidelio” that we’re discussing must be in a strict tempo and I would seriously doubt Mr. Villars was being asked to do anything too strenuous in his acting at this point.
Yes, I too would prefer to hear a singer singing at his or her optimum without all of the laying around on stage with their heads hanging over the edge, upside down, falling down stairs and balancing a cabbage on their head (sorry, it was only the latest dumb image I could come up with). Singers are indeed asked to “do” much more than they have in the past and I think the voices are suffering for it. On the other hand, opera has become more theatrical. Singers, directors, conductors–you name it—need to work together in the rehearsal room and get these things worked out before they get to the stage. Many wait too long and then find that they can’t “do” it on stage. I find that that rehearsal rooms are for the most part and in most instances very cooperative places. Certain singers, directors, and conductors make it less so—however, I truly don’t think that was the case in this example of a singer having a vocal and character “meltdown” in front of an audience (paid or just observing the final dress).
Pavel, I was at the cinecast – it was fabulous. I totally adore Gluck’s music, and Stephanie Blythe was wonderful with it. Much fuller and richer than a countertenor. The orchestra also did a great job with a type of music they probably don’t play much (early classical).
Singers v. Conductors? Reminds me of how Solti pretty much deprived us of Jussi Bjorling’s complete Ballo cause “Sir Georg” had to be in absolute control. Just one of the greatest singers of the last century! Bah! Humbug!
As an accompanist, I always try to catch singers when they make mistakes. But surely when an entire orchestra and chorus is involved and one is in the middle of a (quasi-)performance of an ensemble number, it should be up to the one errant singer to make the necessary adjustment (as opposed to having the universe adjust to him). I don’t understand why this is a “singer vs. conductor” issue, it’s just common sense. I know singers think the world revolves around them, but you know what, it really doesn’t.
blythe certainly sang like a goddess (although she did get a little tired in the middle of che faro … understandable, as she was unstinting in her use of chest throughout the afternoon). however, she doesn’t really make the impact you can in this piece with her VERY limited acting. this is NOT a size-ist remark … not at all … i found her and de niese a very believable couple … but having experienced daniels (in the chicago production) break my heart, this was a more purely musical experience. de niese, actually, took acting honors … her recits and aria were very moving. murphy was a disaster. and palumbo deserved every cheer — some of the best choral work i’ve ever heard at the met. and finally … did mark morris really need to wear pearls and a pink pashmina?
Sorry, guys, I go back to Birgit Nilsson in 1966 who lay on the cistern platform in that incredible black crow feather wig and sang the beginning of the last section of Salome’s final scene with her head thrown back over the edge. A) Birgit Nilsson was known for working hard in rehearsal but didn’t do things she felt were bad for her, and B) She looked and sounded fantastic. And let’s not forget Jeritza who famously sang Visse d’Arte flat on her stomach, which Puccini loved.
Singers don’t have to stand still in the middle of the stage looking straight at the conductor to perform well.
Having performed Fidelio many times before, I can attest to the fact that the finale is one big potential train wreck. Everybody’s on heightened alert for the last 10 minutes or so of the opera. Conductors and singers know this – or they should – which is why it’s so essential for them to have worked out early on what to do if something goes wrong. It’s hard to know what Buhl thought he was accomplishing by taking over Villar’s line. In my experience, this sort of thing only adds to the confusion, mainly because everyone on stage gets distracted by all that caterwauling emanating from the pit. I think a far better approach would have been for the conductor to look at Villars directly while holding up his left hand as a signal to stop singing until he’s cued to come back in. After that, the two of them could have hashed things out in private, away from the rest of the company.
tenore23 from YouTube posts an example of Villars as Florestan.
Speaking of the simulcast…I thought Blythe was fantastic. I have to admit that I’ve never been a huge fan of dance in opera, and so most of the time my mind wandered when the dancers were the main focal point.
#54 – speaking of the Orfeo simulcast, I was bored stiff and very disappointed by Blythe. NOT a role for her. She looked so coarse and uninteresting. She was not on form at all, I felt. The voice is getting much too baritonal and hooty from mid register on down; she seemed today to bring the “chest” tone way to high, and when she finally would go into ‘head’ voice it was dynamically weak and a whole different color. I think there are problems there. I was told she was not well, and she surely sounded it — plus there was little dramatic force in her work today. DeNiese is all about De Niese, which I guess is OK for the role, though I thought the voice a bit throaty; and that New Jersey hausfrau they had for Amor was simply a bad joke. She looked and sounded like Gracie Allen. Jeez, Louise, can’t they do better than this? Di Donato should have been singing the title role rather than serving as mere hostess.
In all, a hon-hum afternoon.
MrMyster, having seen Blythe in the house last Tuesday, I listened again this afternoon to see if she could possibly be as dull, as uninvolved with the music as she seemed then. Alas, it was true. This is simply not a part that speaks to her, or that she is capable of bringing to life. She might have been singing the phone book.
Technically, however, I disagree with you – she seemed in splendid form all through the performance (on both occasions). But none of it meant anything, and when Daniels sang it, it was a cry of anguish and despair.
I also liked De Niese more than you did – she was acting quite intensely, both as a singer and a player. Her confusion for once made this incomprehensible role make a bit of sense. (I hate what the librettist did to a wonderful myth in this opera.)
Murphy – yes, isn’t she awful? I guess she’s the only Met singer who will get in that flying harness, huh?
revisiting the met archives … orfeo followed by cavalleria? that must have been truly shocking!
My memory of David Daniels in the first season of the production are of a totally committed, involved, and enormously moving Orfeo. My experience of him goes back to his breakthrough role as Nerone in L’Incoronazione di Poppea at Glimmerglass in 1994. His voice, even then, had a presence and dramatic quality enough that I referred to him as a heldencountertenor. The man is a treasure.
just noticed that ying huang does one night only as amore. that will be much better, although she might not be as *zesty*
Am trying to imagine what would have happened at the NBC broadcast of Boheme in c.48, if Peerce had yelled at Toscanini “If you want to sing ‘Che Gelida’ get up here and sing and I’ll leave.”
Listen to the recordings, Willimer–Toscanini WAS singing Che Gelida (and Mi chiamano Mimi and all the rest) right along with the singers. They stayed.
I have listened to the aforesaid Boheme, and Maestro sings all through it. And No one said No to him(not even Caruso and La Homer). Just trying to compare Him with the John Villars incident. And Rodzinsky conducted with a loaded pistol in his pocket.
There are a lot of recordings where you can actually hear Maestro humming away in the background(none too quietly either).
From recollection I think the best/worst example is Scotto’s Butterfly – Barbarolli contributes so much to the entract to the third act, I thought it was a recording fault before I realised what it was.
Tim(Comment #50) you wish to slam Solti the conductor over Bjorling not completing the ‘Un Ballo In Maschera’ Decca recording in 1961. It is well documented that Bjorling unfortunately was in one of his ‘rip roaring drunk’ periods. He died not so long after the incident. Decca had to shelve the schedule and return to re recording of it 6 months later with Carlo Bergonzi. Was Bjorling going to compensate Decca for the wasted costs? I don’t think so! Solti, like a few other conductors- waa renowned for not taking shit from singers. One singer was reputed for challenging Solti over the pattern of musical notes in a passage in Verdi’s Otello during a converstaion. Solti, not having it on hand, called for a copy of the score and proved that he was correct. Solti WAS a too great conductor.
Any (opera) guys from Toronto around here? I will be there for one week in February. Pls contact me: fierrabras@web.de
Willimer wrote: And Rodzinsky conducted with a loaded pistol in his pocket.
Willimer, maybe he was just happy to see you.
After reading all of the postings on this subject of temper-tenor vs. conductor, it is clear that the two who are speaking from knowledge are, one who was actually there (Kashania), and one who knew him and his tenor antics personally (Cassandra).
La Cieca: of course, you are right. But if it becomes a “choice” then I think that the singer must bow to the wish of the conductor.
Am I wrong? Was’nt Villars the Tristan in that awful Tristan & Isolde video with Waltraud Meier where the lovers in Act 2 sat on a sofa with yellow daisy patterns ? If so, there was no ‘love going on’….’just a big unmusical conflicted shouting match’ between two singers. Tempos also, were all over the place.
What we are in short discussing is ‘Professionalism’. The ability to get up on stage and deliver what people should expect out of an artist. Is there no such thing as pre performance ‘consultations’ between singers and conductor if one or the other has concerns? Sure someone can have an ‘off night’ but when they become frequent, covered up with tantrums, or a myriad of sickness excuses: it is time for them to pack the bags and leave the ’scene’ quietly and gracefully. A defiant ‘fingers up Florestan’ is not exactly what Beethoven had in mind.
The funniest incident similar to the above mentioned: A day time dress rehearsal of Verdi’s Otello with a audience mainly comprised of school children ‘getting to know Opera’. Except the kids tended to chatter throughout. By the time Desdemona was ’strangled’, they were still chattering. The soprano then rose up from her bed and called out “Will you lot, fuckin’ shut up”!!! The Opera then continued to the finish.
turandot: I suppose you’re right, but this abstract musing has led us rather far afield from the original question, which is what went wrong in the Fidelio.
One big problem here is that atavism the “public dress rehearsal,” which generally means an extra performance that the singers grudgingly do for free, pressured to sing full voice. The conductor and stage director too are supposed to take one for the team and relinquish their prerogative of using rehearsal time to stop and work through troublesome parts of the piece. Instead, the focus is on entertaining the “invited” audience with the knowledge that they’re about to go gossipping about the show all over town and all over the web.
On the other hand, La Cieca doesn’t know the run-up to the climactic event here: it may be that Villars had been in full meltdown for a week or more, and the “walkout” served as a useful excuse for the opera company to can him. It remains La Cieca’s opinion, though, that a walkout or firing so late in the game represents a major failure on the part of the system. The purpose of an opera company is to present opera, not excuses.
“One big problem here is that atavism the “public dress rehearsal,†which generally means an extra performance that the singers grudgingly do for free, pressured to sing full voice.”
This is absolutely true. This also applies to concert work where you’ll have the final dress rehearsal on the MORNING OF the performance with an audience in attendance. Imagine being expected by management of an orchestra to sing a Verdi Requiem at 11 am in full voice, and then REPEAT it again that night. That’s just the tip of the iceberg. Conductors are generally more understanding about this predicament, but not always.
I’ll add that while I think the ultimate arrival of the final product is most hopefully an even exchange between artistic equals (meaning the conductor and singer), this frequently does NOT happen, and I will ALWAYS err on being on the side of the singer because the singer is the one on the stage having to make a nearly impossible job look easy.
Conductors CAN’T do our job, can I can fairly guarantee we would be able to do theirs.
This is a point frequently forgotten in the industry. Those people a singer is surrounded with during the rehearsal and performance process, and I mean everyone, from costume designer, to stage manager, to general director, to pit musician, to critic, and on and on and on would NEVER be able to do the job that we do on the stage. As in, it would be physically impossible for them to do. It feels very bizarre to be surrounded by people telling you what to do when they themselves could never do it. Is there any other industry quite like this where you have those who could never perform the tasks required attempting to demand things from those who can?
There is a point when you’ve been around long enough where you learn as a singer to listen to very few people. You learn to live in a protective bubble that very little penetrates, and with good reason. I personally allow maybe three people per gig to be part of the process for me, and one of those generally includes my manager who is my outside set of ears and my complaint box, so you can imagine that a conductor, a director, a coach, and many others who just love to be heard are going to have to have a very good reason to be heard by me.
As a singer, you learn to edit quickly and efficiently in order to survive. Sometimes this process runs into problems when a singer’s physical apparatus no longer works. Unfortunately, this is what sounds like is happening to Jon, and when the singer’s “bubble” is burst, things can go awry.
I’m not saying the singer is always correct, so don’t jump all over me about that.
Harry (#66): Aside from the fact that Jussi died in 1960 I refer you to Cornell McNiel’s account of the recording in Farkas’ biography “Jussi” in which he states that JB showed up for rehearsal on time and in shape anxious to do the recording. My point is very simply that Herr Solti when presented the opportunity to record Ballo with the preeminent Riccardo of his generation should have had the wisdom and humility to make allowances for a singer who admitedly could be difficult. In other words, in the persuit of art it’s ok to take a little shit.
Villars didn’t sing the Tristan opposite Meier. That was Jon Frederick West. He is even worse than Villars.
What do I think of Oren? I think he’s a pig. Conductors can be pigs too, with total disregard for the music, the singers or anything that is happening on stage. I agree that a conductor cannot do a singer’s job, but sometimes a conductor prevents a singer from doing their job. That is when singer star power can have its advantage. Unfortunately singer star power can wreak havok when the the conductor is the one who knows what he is doing. The one with the most talent should have the final say. Now who is going to decide that? That is when the general director is supposed to step in, but that requires real knowledge and musical sensibilities on the part of the general manager. How many general managers can really do that today?
Jon was my roomate in college…..oh the stories I could tell!!!!!!
“Florestan, although notoriously difficult like Leonore, is VERY short. The tenor doesn’t even come on until the second act, and then only sings one aria, a short duet, and an ensemble. It has resulted in many tenor disasters though which can be excruciating to sit through, either as fellow cast member or member of the audience.”
Actually, there is a bit more to the role than just an aria, short duet and ensemble. There is in addition the trio “Euch werde Lohn” with Leonore and Rocco and the quartet “Er sterbe!” with the trio characters plus Pizarro. Of course, Florestan is not a long role, particularly in the helden tenor fach, but it is tiring. I’ve only heard one tenor make it through the aria without losing steam or cracking – Anthony Dean Griffey was quite impressive in the role a couple of years ago in Seville.
I heard Jon Villars sing Bacchus in a concert Ariadne with the Minnesota Orchestra many years ago. Not a bad performance of a difficult role, although I agree with the assessment that the middle and lower voice are produced oddly. I was wondering what had happened to him, hadn’t heard or seen much of him in the last few years. I’m sorry that he felt the need to flip the bird while performing the role of Florestan. Beethoven’s Fidelio deserves more respect and that kind of behavior is uncalled for. If there is an issue, discuss the matter afterwards with the conductor and act like an adult. Respect the music, please.
Tim Comment 75…adding to your comments about Bjorling,rhe fact that I mentioned the year of recording ‘Ballo’ one year out (as 1961) is neither here nor there. From recording to its release can be a far duration. I believe that Decca faced a real crisis with Bjorling. It has been stated that he was found in his hotel absolutely depressed as well as ‘wildly blotto’. If someone is ‘a professional’, you deliver your contractual commitments. Bjorling was not fit to do the recording. I am sure that whatever Solti’s opinions may have been,they would not be the ONLY opinion that the Decca producers used to come to the final decision to remove Bjorling from the recording. Decca had a another ‘drop -out’ situation with Di Stefano from their Mefistofele (Tebaldi) recording. Whatever the cause, I do not know. Decca completed their Mefistofele with Del Monaco. Many years later, all of Di Stefano’s previous recorded contributions to the project were released by Decca on separate CD release.. Does anyone know the facts behind that Decca ‘Mefistofele -Di Stefano saga’?
Thanks Feldmarschallin (Commnet 76) for clearing up that point about Jon Fredrick West.
Slightly off topic but it concerns a tenor so…
Going to see Peter Grimes at San Carlo on Friday with a young American tenor Brandon Jovanovvich singing the Peter. I’m not familiar with him. Any thoughts or opinions?
Also looking at pictures he seems a bit young – and I might add too good looking – for the role. But that could give the opera with so many levels, one more dimension.
In regards to comment # 82, sometimes we get locked into a certain look and age for certain roles, when neither has really been indicated by the libretto. As long as the ages and looks are believable in the plot, why not go for something different? Old people have sex lives, people fall in love with fat people, an old witch can be timelessly beautiful and the town drunk can be a young man.
Sometimes a certain look becomes a tradition because it was defined that way by a particular artist and people come to expect it. If the portrayl is honest and well executed, the audience is usually very accepting of such changes. It’s when the changes aren’t logical with plot, and the effect the composer was trying to convey is warped beyond recognition that the audience in general feels annoyed and cheated.
Ortrud—were there two productions of “Fidelio” in Seville?
In 2007, Robert Dean Smith sang Florestan there, not Griffey. RDS indeed sang the role of Florestan very well.
The Villars story in barebones form was reported in today’s NY Times
I have seen and heard Brandon Jovanovich three times in performance: 1) in Jonathan Dove’s Flight in Boston (where he had a hook up with another male character that I wished hadn’t been mostly off-stage); in Richard Rodney Bennett’s The Mines of Sulphur (where he played a hot, violent hunk); and as Turridu at NYCO, doing pretty well, I thought.
He’s a tall, good looking man, with a nicely sized medium weight tenor, excellent acting skills, and a lot of presence. He will definitely not have the same physique du role that we are familiar with in the iconic Grimes of Jon Vickers or of current, excellent Grimes, Anthony Dean Griffey.
re:21 = and one could assume the Villars is using his own costumes in this production, as I understand he is a big burly leather queen.
78 – Leontyneschiava – Spill, Miss Thing! Spill! LOL
Perhaps he was not fond of the way, Florestan was bound ‘in bondage’ in this production???!!! After all there is a right way and a wrong way… for some people. It can pot some people off their game.
# 86. On January 26, 2009 at 10:36 am, balabanov11 muttered:
re:21 = and one could assume the Villars is using his own costumes in this production, as I understand he is a big burly leather queen.
Re #74 . . . “Is there any other . . .” Yes, I think one could safely say politics.
T1, THANK YOU for catching my mistake. Robert Dean Smith was the Florestan in the Seville 07 Fidelio. He was very impressive!
BIG….yes he is….burly leather queen may be a stretch.
I was there. It was a bizarre moment, with that kraut shouting like an idiot from the pit. (Richard Bradshaw was famous for this too, but at least he stopped the rehearsal to yell at singers).
The scope from backstage was that Mr. Villars in a previous rehearsal told the conductor he was unable to take that particular point in the music at the fast tempo the conductor wished for. The conductor subsequently took it even faster at the final dress.
For the record, I heard a wonderful Bacchus from Mr. Villars in Paris in 2002.
It is funny that the discussion here is about a ‘crisis’ towards the end of Fidelio.
Go back 20 years, I remember an first night incident where the Leonore and Florestan together , glanced at each other, then decided to take the music one way and the conductor another. Comes curtain call, the ‘fuck wit’ conductor finally appears on stage, went to have sharp words with the soprano, but was blocked by the tenor who threatened to knock him into the orchestra pit. The singers were well known.
Another time this stupid conductor was doing Andre Chenier. He dragged out the 1st Act to a snail pace – 36 minutes. His pacing and execcution of the complex opening chords of Act 3 were a absolute mess. Later the same night this conductor was observed at the ’social’ afterward, (quietly snooping and listening) / ‘overhearing’ a former opera singer go through the faults, one by one..Guess what? The conductor quietly called another rehearsal before the next performance, due 5 days later. All the ‘problems mow corrected….even Act 1 down to 29 minutes….that’s a full 20 per cent, faster. There are some clots / baton beaters around.
I haven’t seen John in years, but the performances I have seen were flawless. Knowing Villars, I would say there were tensions before the event. It takes some doing to get him angered to this point. I would say there is much more to the situation. Villars is very professional. I know him.