Highlighted as a bicentenary celebration of the birth of both Verdi and
Wagner I found myself writing this on the centenary of the outbreak of the
First World War. After the performance I thought of the words of
politicians. Those of 1914 about the lights going out over Europe; not just
for a few years as it turned out as a Second World War was followed by a
Cold War. Those lights were dimmed for a long time and perhaps were only
relit after the unification of Germany in 1989. That relighting is
particularly germane to the venue and presentation of this concert in
Munich. First staged in 2000 as a Millennium Concert in celebration of
Franco-German reconciliation it has, since 2002, become an annual outdoor
extravaganza. The architecture, the natural lighting as well as the
illuminations as twilight falls combine to give an added enjoyment to the
occasion. It tempted me, when faced with a lack of Roman arena, to adapt the
trio of words of a more recent politician to "Location, location,
location". The square of the Odeonsplatz and its grand surrounding
architecture is a quite magnificent venue which seats nearly eight thousand
for this event.
After a quiet opening to the overture from Verdi’s
I vespri
siciliani, Canadian conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin let the Bavarian
Radio Symphony Orchestra off the leash. This was a vibrant introduction to
the concert whilst the cameras showed the local architecture, rooftops and
statues (CH.1). The orchestra was then joined by the sonorous and vocally
disciplined Bavarian Radio Chorus in the
Auto da fé scene from
Don Carlos with the camera focusing on the adjacent church. In view
of the
raison d’être of the occasion, French composers followed,
introducing both soloists. In the first, Thomas Hampson, tall and elegant as
ever in open-necked shirt, sang with immaculate line and diction in
Ce
breuvage pourrait me donner from Massenet’s
Hérodiade. Rolando
Villazon shared Hampson’s elegant vocal characteristics in
Ah! tout est
bien fini...O Souverain, ô juge, ô père from
Le Cid. His voice
is now darker than a decade ago, but holds an even vocal line when singing
full-out (CHs.3 and 4).
After the sterling vocal efforts of the soloists, the languor of Ravel’s
La valse seemed rather drawn out (CH.5). The opening Wagner item of
guests entering the Wartburg was some compensation, orchestra and chorus
giving an excellent rendition. Fate and superb singing, in German, from
Hampson combined to add poignancy to the words as twilight and darkness fell
(CHs. 6-7).
In the second half of the concert, sunset having come and gone, Villazon’s
introductory singing of the little known arrangement of
L’esule
included some elegant
mezza voce (CH.9) before the Anvil Chorus
from
Il Trovatore was given in vibrant, committed and well
articulated manner (CH.10). What was surely the highlight of the concert
followed, the long duet between Rodrigo and Don Carlos,
E lui Desso
l’infante … Dio, che nell' alma infondere (CH.11). By then, as a
listener, I had become more used to the somewhat different acoustic of the
solo voices, inevitably miked, as the thrilling singing, orchestral playing
and Verdi’s music really got to me (CH.11). Then flowers were distributed
and bows taken. Short measure? No, merely a false alarm as three encores
followed concluding with a sonorous singing of what should surely be the
basis of the Italian national anthem (CH.15). This was preceded by Hampson,
as Said, in an extract from
Il corsaro, reflects on his love for
Gulnara whilst he holds the corsair prisoner. His vocal elegance, diction
and concluding high note to the cabaletta mark out his status as one of the
great Verdi lyric baritones of our day. Regrettably this fact is ignored by
his own country’s major theatre in its preference for east Europeans and
Russians who mangle the prosody of the great Italian composer’s words
(CH.13). Between these last two items Villazon rather throws his voice at
Ciel, che feci! from Verdi’s first completed opera
Oberto Conte
di San Bonifacio (CH. 14). He holds the final note somewhat beyond
Verdi’s intentions, but the audience are enraptured and love it.
This performance is also available on Blu-Ray in 1080i definition. I have
to say that the upscaling via my Panasonic player gives an excellent picture
on its matching TV with the sound into my reference speakers also being of
good standard allowing for the location.
Robert J Farr
Contents List
Giuseppe VERDI (1813-1901)
Les vêpres siciliennes - Overture [9.45]
Don Carlos - Auto da fé [8.17]; Dio, che nell' alma
infondere [10.50]
Il trovatore - Vedi, le fosche notturne (Anvil Chorus) [3.24)
Il corsaro - Alfin questo corsaro … Cento leddiadre vergini
[7.14]
Oberto, conte di San Bonifacio - Ciel, che feci!, [5.03]
Nabucco - Vá pensiero, (Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves) [5.24];
L’esule (arr. L. Berio)
Jules MASSENET (1842-1912)
Hérodiade - Ce breuvage pourrait … Vision fugitive [4.58]
Le Cid - Ah! tout est bien fini … Ô souverain, ô juge, ô pere
[5.33]
Maurice RAVEL (1875-1937)
La valse (version for orchestra) [13.34]
Richard WAGNER *1813-1883)
Lohengrin - Preludes to Acts 1 [10.01] and 3 [3.30]
Tannhäuser - O du mein holder Abendstern (Entry of the Guests on
the Wartburg) [6.28]
