parterre box

96 comments

• ashtonjoliet says:

  Tommissini’s review is a joke. A real critic would not have written the way he did.

  on January 27, 2009 at 10:21 PM
• o mein Gott says:

  “Her earthy, subdued expressivity had me thinking of Callas.”

  With her imprecise use of vocal colors, so bland her monotone
  use of no word expressively, he DARES to compare this industry hoax with a pretty face and a warm voice to the greatest architect of music in the world of opera? When does he experience shame this piece of fluff that writes for the times. The AP was MUCH more accurate.

  on January 27, 2009 at 11:47 PM
• operadent says:

  I just read the review in “The Times.” It seems Mr. Tomassini and I were at different performances.

  on January 27, 2009 at 11:50 PM
• il lavatore says:

  I question the accuracy of this recording.
  The shifting around of pitch is not only the vocal line.
  The orchestra and chorus seem to warped in pitch too.
  Can someone with a good ear comment on this?

  on January 27, 2009 at 11:56 PM
• o mein Gott says:

  AP review, Mike Silverman-

  It should have been the most glamorous of nights at the opera: the return of Russian superstar soprano Anna Netrebko, reunited with her longtime stage partner, tenor Rolando Villazon.

  Instead, their joint appearance at the Metropolitan Opera in Donizetti’s “Lucia di Lammermoor” on Monday night proved nearly as ill-starred as the fate of their characters in this tale of love, betrayal, madness and murder.

  Netrebko, fresh from six months of maternity leave, looked ravishing if a bit plumper than before, and opened the night in splendid form. Her penetrating sound, cushioned as if by a thick coating of honey, was as striking as ever. If anything, her voice seems to have grown in size without losing any of its allure.

  Her characterization was well thought-out, too. Though she appeared too happy and healthy to be at risk of madness in her opening duet with her beloved Edgardo (Villazon), in subsequent scenes she persuasively showed Lucia losing her grip on reality. In one memorable image, after her brother, Enrico, has tricked her into believing Edgardo is unfaithful so she will marry another man, Netrebko crumpled to the floor and tried to scurry away on her back from Enrico’s outstretched arms.

  But “Lucia” is all warmup and no payoff unless it climaxes with a dazzling Mad Scene, and it was here that Netrebko disappointed.

  Appearing in a blood-drenched wedding gown after she has killed her bridegroom, Lucia holds forth for 16 or so minutes of solo singing that combines plaintive strands of melody with extreme coloratura fireworks to mirror the unraveling of her mind.

  Netrebko simply lacked the vocal agility to pull it off. She stinted on much of the usual ornamentation and failed to hit the final high E-flat squarely. The applause that followed was surprisingly tepid for a scene that usually stops the show in its tracks.

  For Met audiences who have heard both Natalie Dessay and Diana Damrau triumph as “Lucia” in the last 18 months, the question is why Netrebko should undertake the role at all when her voice is so much better suited to other repertory.

  As for Villazon, he sounded in bad shape from his first entrance, an ominous rattle infecting his high notes. During his solo outburst in the wedding scene, his voice cracked and he froze for several seconds, then continued a half-tone lower. Before the curtain rose for the final act, general manager Peter Gelb announced Villazon “was not feeling well” but would continue. He made it, just barely, through his final scene, but the ovation he received was surely more a sympathy vote than a true endorsement.

  It’s especially worrisome to hear this once-promising Mexican tenor in such ragged shape, since he suffered a vocal crisis nearly two years ago and stopped singing for several months. This was his first Met appearance since he resumed his career in early 2008.

  The other soloists fared better. As Enrico, Polish baritone Mariusz Kwiecien pushed his polished sound to its limits, but he created a powerful study in cruelty. Russian Bass Ildar Abdrazakov sang sympathetically as Lucia’s tutor, Raimondo, though his lowest notes were barely audible.

  As Arturo, Lucia’s hapless husband, tenor Colin Lee made a promising debut, singing his few phrases with fresh and ardent tone and all but stealing the scene with his memorably self-satisfied demeanor.

  Marco Armiliato conducted with a few ragged patches, understandable since the new cast didn’t have the benefit of a full orchestra rehearsal.

  There are three more performances over the next two weeks.

  on January 27, 2009 at 11:59 PM
• Bill says:

  Scifisci – it would be tough to choose the best Lucia even only among the ones I was fortunate to see. I think at first the great revelation was Callas after seeing only canaries – not for the high notes a few of which were wretched, but for the sense of drama, the glistening slithering runs, every note articulated, and of course the second act scene with Enrico (Enzo Sordello who Callas later supposedly had Bing fire as Sordello held on to a note longer than she had – he actually did so)- one hadn’t really paid much attention to that scene before with Pons or Peters or whomever. I remember Moffo on a Christmas Night performance being in particularly good voice. I liked Scotto also. Sutherland was vocal perfection though in a non-specific way. There was not alot of intensity in her performance and not much tension for the listener as you KNEW she would hit all the notes (except in her last Lucias at the Met – with a bit more strain) without fail. I was really excited by Rost in Vienna when she suddenly replaced Gruberova because not that much was expected from a Zerlina and she was (then) a formidable and delightful surprise – the audience knew it and reacted accordingly. Brooks was always a wonderful actress -quite moving as Lucia – her voice was just slightly covered so not as bright as the others. Gruberova was not an intense actress but maybe the one vocally I appreciated the most as her technique is so enviable – there was such ease in her execution – even just two years ago at 60 – and yes she always has a few too many squeezed notes, could be a little shrill or mannered up to a point, but after each aria was over one just felt one had heard a special rendition of it from Gruberova (and she has missed one or two high notes in her day as well), and one had heard a few vocal nuances from her which even Sills or Sutherland could not achieve. I did not hear Gencer (ever) and I skipped Dessay and so far missed Damrau but no doubt will catch her someplace or other. In summation, at least for me, there was no ONE Lucia -that is the joy of going to different performances with varied casts – the differentiation in vocal qualities and in interpretation keep the opera fresh for further hearings. I am no specialist in Bel Canto operas – much more fond of Mozart, Strauss, Wagner, Weber, Janacek, Smetana, Gluck, Dvorak, Haydn, Beethoven, even Kalman, and more embarassingly perhaps, even Andrea Chenier. Many others on this blog would be much more lucid and musically knowledgable regarding Lucias, and obviously some truly memorable Lucias just never crossed my path.

  on January 28, 2009 at 12:41 AM
• scifisci says:

  Bill — thank you so much…your recollections are very much appreciated by those of us not lucky enough to catch the greats!

  on January 28, 2009 at 1:04 AM
• ChevalierDupin says:

  Dear Parterre Readers,

  Quite frankly I’m complacently unsurprised and nonplussed at the outcome of this casting and the “filth” of the performance being discussed. To put it simply, Villazon needs to get a teacher and Netrebko needs not only a stable and good teacher but also needs to move far away from anything considered “Bel Canto.” It is a grave disappointment that the “stars” who sell tickets are seemingly incapable at delivering barely decent singing; forget expecting great or stupendous.

  Both Dessay and Damrau were spectacular in this production, albeit in extremely different ways yet both outstanding actresses and both vocally secure (even if Dessay is not quite in the same shape she was a few years ago, she knows how to make her resources work to her advantage).

  The demands of the operatic industry today are truly singer-suicide. As I have told many of the vocalists I’ve worked with on numerous occasions: No one cares about your voice more than you should and it’s up to the singer to take care of themselves because no one else is going to do it. Teachers and coaches are here to (hopefully) offer advice and positive assistance, but it is up to the singer to preserve themselves and make the correct decisions concerning vocal health and career choices. Anyone who jumps from one corner of the earth to a nother in a matter of days singing extremely varied repertoire is not taking the correct or professional steps at taking care of their instruments or themselves. They do a grave injustice to themselves, to those who hire them, to their colleagues, to those who are forced to listen to them, and to the music. It is always better to cancel in the event of illness than go out and “fare una figura di merda.” You end up being a huge disappointment to everyone involved and shoot yourself in the foot. I say: let the queens and critics speculate all they want—if you know that you are doing what is best to keep yourself healthy and sane and vocally fit, no amount of slander can harm you. Villazon, once a promising voice and talent has proven to be nothing more than an extremely foolish and arrogant personality who , much like Miss Gheorghiu, lacks the appropriate education in handling oneself professionally. I am referring to his famous interview where he states that he does not have a teacher or coach and that when he took time off to recover from his vocal crisis, how he boasted that he didn’t sing a note prior to his performance of Werther upon his return to the stage. It is simply unprofessional and disrespectful and idiotic. The issue is not whether he chose to sing the final aria transposed down (although I am personally against many such choices and many tenors of old have resorted to doing so: Corelli in Trovatore, Pavarotti and Valletti in Fille, various individuals in Les Pecheurs or in Boheme) but the fact that he seems to have such little regard for his vocal health and his ability to successfully execute a role after making some of his repertoire and schedule choices.

  Netrebko, too, should stay home, be a mother and completely recover physically, work through the vocal changes affected by her various hormonal alterations, and learn from the mistake of other singers who have suffered vocal crises at the result of intense body modifications (Voight). It’s simply atrocious to walk out on stage and sound like that.

  My last thought: Sutherland was certainly one of the greatest Lucia’s, but both Gruberova and Devia have carried that torch and both are able to do things that no one else is capable of executing. It is foolish to draw comparisons. Certainly one can state that one has a preference for one soprano’s rendition over another, but to withhold due credit to other great interpreters of a part (and I believe that with regards to recent history, both Dessay and Damrau have achieved such stature) is immature and ignorant.

  I have spoken.

  Stay warm!

  on January 28, 2009 at 1:19 AM
• Cocky Kurwenal says:

  I think Chevalier Dupin is quite right. I also think ArmerJ at about #44 is quite right too – Netrebko is surely mis-cast, fails at the e-flats, and doesn’t sound terribly interested in what she is doing, but some of the basic singing is not without redeeming features. I think the case against her is being over-stated.

  on January 28, 2009 at 5:09 AM
• Pleasetellme says:

  there is an idiot coming to the USA who says the only really great singers are Dessay and Renay.

  Jazz and white tone. I will try to remember the freak’s name, but he told a young student who worked a few things with him that the way to sing bel canto is like dessay and Renay.

  So, let’s al;l get this straight, lush gorgeous tones mean nothing. You must sound white, straight toned, ugly, reestablish the legato on every new word, throw in vocal screams wherever possible, leave portamenti out, what do all those Italian composers know any way.

  Anyone who finds Dessay on any chart at any level passable is forgetting what food sound and singing is supposed to be about. Forget Renay withher hideous misuse of a great sound, forget it entirely, when she behaves it is still possible to care. BUT I mean are we crazy to think some freak teacher is coming here from london the land of the white ugly voice to tell us Dessay is better than Callas!

  Coming to an HD near you!

  on January 28, 2009 at 5:10 AM