A Masked Ball
Squirrel is using his Parterre Pulpit to make a pitch. If the Met wants to produce a work that has never been seen in New York, they could do worse than a new production of Carl Nielsen’s excellent comic opera Maskarade. It’s easy listening for sure, melodically akin to La boheme or Lehar, but marked by Nielsen’s mature style – folk-song simplicity, and a love of cacophony and unlikely orchestration.
The Met has been beat to the US premiere by Sarasota Opera, who offered a Danish-language production in 1995 (which Squirrel saw when he was still just a small squirrel). But this opera is ready for the Big Time, having been produced in recent years at the Bregenzer Festspiele, Salzburger Festspiele, and Covent Garden. So who will get there first, The Met or City Opera?
To hear more, there is a wonderful 1970s recording, recently re-released on Da Capo
UPDATE: A member of the kære publikum has pointed out that Maskarade was indeed given a New York performance by the Bronx Opera in 1983, and reprised in 1999. Thanks for pointing this out. Sarasota still has the American Danish language premiere, and the work still awaits a major US stage with a top professional cast.
Thank you VERY much, Mr. Harry for that bit of information.
If I have got to buy another turntable, I will, as that performance is out of this world.
And Harry — RANT ON! I love your rants.
Someone has got to have the brains and bluster to do the dirty work of separating the wheat from the chaff.
I think both of these operas could take advantage of the “bigness” problem everyone is always talking about with the Met stage. With the dancing, rebelling, and erupting, Muette could fill the place up. And I imagine you could demonstrate the vastness of space quite eerily on that vast stage.
Bomarzo was riveting.
I’m with Richard on this one. Freischutz just doesn’t seem to travel well. The tree or four times that I’ve seen it on this side of the pond,despite some beautiful and familiar music, it’s come off as quaint and dated. I think Weber is one of those transitional figures, justly famous for composing the first popular German romantic opera, but fated to be more famous for his influence on Richard Wagner. If Lorengar and Konya in the Met’s ill fated production can’t make a case for it, I’m not sure who could. The last time I saw Freischutz was in Seattle several years ago with Voigt and Lakes, but it was Dresden house singer Ute Selbig as Aennchen who made the most authentic impression. I think there’s something about it’s indigenous folkishness that defies translation. It obdurately remained a period piece. I’m content to listen to either Erich Kleiber or Furtwangler with the peerless Elizabeth Grummer and charming Rita Streich who are absolutely enchanting.
SFO did Tsar’s Bride about a dozen years ago with
Netrebko, Borodina, and Hvorostovsky. I really enjoyed it, both ladies sang much more lyrically then they do today. Sorry, I used to find Borodina’s singing really beautiful, silken, etc back then. Now it is all balanced on the bottom part of her range and the middle is muddy and the top squally and white, the higher notes lunged at.
What luxury casting that production had! I wish I’d been around to see it.
Squirrel, or as the French say, M. Ecureuil (you’re a better man than I if you can pronounce that!), who would you have sing the title role of Louise, who
conduct it?
It has to be taken seriously, as in the recent Paris
production, and done with dignity; then it’s magic!
Best Louise soprano I ever saw, Arlene Saunders; best sung, Carole Neblett; worst, Sills – too old too little
voice left, production “assembled by Rudel.” Oops.
So, who’s your cast? Is the Met maybe too large a
hall for Louise? I wonder?
The Met is too large a hall for EVERYTHING, but no more too large for Louise than anything else, I don’t think.
I was going to say, Mireille Delunsch, then went looking to see who sang Louise at the Paris production you reference, and voila! Delunsch. Although in this video clip, though she is formidable, she sounds a bit more mature than I would have expected.
(Also, god bless Jose van Dam!)
Terribly afraid that what Mr. Straussmonster says about declamation is the truth and a large part of the problem, that is, until I remembered that Fidelio and the Serail are done at the Met and somehow the dialogue was managed therein, respectively. In fact, I wished some of the Fidelio dialogue had been cut.
The real reason, I feel, is much closer to what Mme. Graciella Scusi has said relating to the period quaintness of it all. I’m afraid that most people would titter.
In the autumn of 1987, this commenter saw a production at the Vienna Statsoper, with the wonderful Gundula Janowitz singing the Agathe. I still remember the moonlight effect they created for her first aria wherein she missed the climactic high note by a mile, most unfortunately, but made up for it with a truly exquisite performance of the cavatina, Und ob die Wolke, later on. She fairly glowed with moonbeams as did her voice, when she sang that lovely music.
The Viennese didn’t have any problems that I can recall with the Wolf’s Glen Scene,and it was rather thrilling, too, but then they’ve had a lot more practice at it than either the Met or NYCO.
It’s such a terrible shame such lovely music, good for budding helden/hoch fach voices, should be left for naught and newer audiences should not have the chance to experience this work. Even if laughable these days, it is an important landmark of German theatrical music and should be accorded some kind of respect.
I mean, REALLY, who the hell needs Alfano’s Cyrano de Bergerac, and yet we got that crammed down our craws a few years back.
Marooned in the soggy Netherlands on a Christmas Day of 1995, I was lucky enough to see a transmission of a broadcast (repeated twice on the same day) of the last two acts of Guillaume Tell, featuring Francoise Pollet and, I think, Chris Merritt. It was a real eye and ear opener as that flipping last act, the way Riccardo Chailly conducted it, was one of the most fan_fucking_tastic things I’ve EVER heard!!! It’s worth the whole opera just to hear the end.
No wonder Rossini stopped composing after that. Nobody would have comprehended him and probably he didn’t know how to surpass himself.
Well, still haven’t heard the first few acts, but what an indelible impression that made upon me.
Just cut the ballets, and let it play.
oh also, I think ‘Dancin’ Danielle’ as La Muette de Portici is a SCREAM! She is SOOOOO L.A.! She should go back to L.A. and get a talk show.
She could do an opera version of ‘Single Ladies’.
My favorite part of the opera.
Mireille Delunsch is such an admirable artist with such an intersting repertory. She doesn’t have quite the voice, but almost, to pull it off. I think she lookd lovely and very appropriate in the role.
But Jose van Dam is fantastic and steals the show. What a force.
Maybe a lot of the music is not inspired as Mr. Hans Lick says, but this is certainly compelling theatrical music.
Grand merci for posting, Monsieur Ecureuil
Stuart Neill sang Arnold, Timothy Noble Tell.
Pollet replaced Charlotte Margionio, who withdrew one week before the rehearsals.
Agreed – he was impressive, more so than the ladies (which makes for a pretty terrible Elektra, really).
The one in English? They’ve had that for years.
Surely all Squirrel means is that Millo really only appeals to her devotees these days. Isn’t that fair enough? I’d also correct 20.1.1 to read ‘a once world class soprano’. One can’t really claim she remains world class with any seriousness.
The other day, one of the French TV stations in Toronto showed a Guilleme Tell with Hampson/Giordani/Papian and it was pretty good. THe sound quality from this station is never very good but the opera had its exciting moments. It strikes as the kind of opera that only comes to life with really exciting singing. Part of the excitement for me is the tenor part of Arnold, which has such a high tessitura while still requiring some heft of sound. When a singer nails it, it’s quite thrilling.
There was a production of a fully uncut William Tell on video and CDs from La Scala (in Italian) from 1988 with Zancanero, Merritt and who else but.Ms Studer…………….(yes Cherry Studel cake)! “I am already shutting down the defense hatches…the brick bats are falling as I write… I plead guilty I have those CDs in my possession……what is the punishment?”
Camille : Checking websites, That Linda Esther Gray Tristan & Isolde was actually once released on CD, but is listed at the moment as ‘currently unavailable’ It should turn up again.
Thanks, Buster, for jogging my memory!. . Surprising, as Stuart Neill made a big impression on me at that time, later giving me high hopes for his Puritani debut at Met.
Things did not go as well there, it seems and we’ve heard little from him since. Seems a shame.
(Yes, I know he was in scaligera Don Carlo last December)
.
All in all, a wonderful Christmas Day present for all
Camille: found the Pollet frock!!
Stuart Neill is a kick-ass tenor in tough parts – I heard him nail the coloratura heldentenor role of Huon of Bordeaux in Weber’s “Oberon” with Collegiate Chorale – he was amahzing!
BTW: was Charlotte Margiono ever good? Its a bigger voice than her recordings would suggest but is hollow and edgy on top. Eve had her in “Der Freischutz” and there was a voice there but the technique was deficient. Her Fiordiligi on CD (is it Harnoncourt?) is awful-sounding.
Pollet was damn good — just lacking a bit more thrill and edge in the tone and diction.
Be Still My Heart!!
That’s what I had heard somewhere, but did not know whether to trust the information. Thanks again for your kind help, Mr. Harry
Speaking of Linda Esther Gray, do any of you British Boys, Cocky, Buster, Monty, oh YOU Know Who You Are — have any recollections of performances you’ve actually attended with LEG??
Please, do write about her, as she is kind of a legend — there is a fellow’s website on the net wherein I’ve read something about her — but has anyone actually SEEN that famous Tristan und Isolde, produced where — in Wales or wherever
I would really LOVE to hear about this cherishable artist.
Thanks for any and all titbits.
Ah, Dame Mags. A little Golden Age all of her own.
Charlotte Margiono has given me so much pleasure the past twenty-five years that I am probably not the right person to answer your question. Also, I don’t mind inexact singers at all, not to say that she is one. In fact, if there were a Finnish equivalent of Kammersängerin, I am sure Beatrix would have made her one, a long time ago.
She always reminds me of the lovely Julia Culp – especially in Frauenliebe- und leben.
Camille Loved Francoise Pollet! An elegant and intelligent singer.
A few years back she sang a performance of ‘Erwartung’ with the New York Philharmonic. If I recall correctly, she was off book and truly sang all the notes that are usually a geschrei.
Quelle pitie that she appears no longer to be active.
Not flashy, crude, or dumb enough?
Quelle ivresse!!!
Thank you, Mr. Buster, so very much for this clip. What beautiful runs at the end! Hard to believe this lady also sang Erwartung.
Un grand merci, Monsieur!
Tell is appallingly long, but GREAT. A musical masterpiece from beginning to end. With or without cuts, it belongs at the Met.