HELENA KEAN and the
Songs of RESPIGHI
This article is devoted
to an appreciation of Respighi’s music
by a singer.
mp3
Respighi Notte (sample)
Helena Kean is a young
English mezzo-soprano. She began her
professional training after a visit
to Bari in Southern Italy, where she
was invited to join the Bari choir for
a BBC broadcast in which her hosts were
participating. Helena specialises in
the performance of classical song and
chamber music recitals. She has given
solo recitals at many venues from Alston
Hall in Preston, Lancashire to the Boult
Hall in Birmingham. She has also been
invited to perform in Paris, and for
the Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington
D.C. And she has been invited to audition
with Opera North.
Helena speaks six languages
(three fluently). She and her mother,
Brenda, a photographer and lecturer,
have combined their professional talents
to create multi-media arts presentations
– combining classical song recitals
with illustrated lectures on cultural
aspects of regions or countries. Their
French programme, La Belle France, was
nominated for a Royal Philharmonic Society
Award, last year, for bringing new audiences
to classical music.
Respighi’s
songs inspire a new generation
by Helena Kean
"I’ve spent the
day practising some of the songs: Contrasto,
Il giardino, Pioggia and
Nevicata. They are so beautiful
and inspiring" – Helena Kean in
a message to Ian Lace, June 2002.
The first time I heard
Respighi’s music was as a small child,
listening to my parents’ LP of The
Pines of Rome and The Fountains
of Rome’. I can remember hearing
the most wonderful sounds that painted
pictures in my head and lifted me beyond
that instant into a world of impressions.
My life since has been punctuated by
moments of hearing these masterpieces
on recordings, on the radio and in live
performance. Each time I hear them I
am taken away. When I began my training
as a singer, my only experience of Italian
song was the ‘Arie Antiche’, which are
used to develop the technique and range
of the voice, as a preliminary to the
study of opera. I spent a very frustrating
two years being ‘forced’ to train for
opera and neglecting my deep passion
for song. Respighi was not a composer
I encountered in the limited vocal studies
of conservatoire training and I struggled
to be allowed to perform any song that
was not ‘heavy’ German lieder.
After post-graduate
training I embarked upon a seven-year
mission to study the ‘modern’ song repertoire
of all the countries whose languages
I could speak. I began with Spain, exploring
new colours in my voice and developing
a stronger technique, continued with
France, finding a new range of dynamic
and emotional expression, then English
song extended my range and interpretative
style.
With my mother, a professional
photographer and lecturer, we combined
the song recitals with illustrated lectures
on cultural aspects of the chosen country
and an exhibition of photographic images.
This proved very popular and brought
new audiences to classical music. As
a result we found business sponsorship
for our projects and were nominated
for a Royal Philharmonic Society Award.
Although I enjoy opera,
I am one of a handful of ‘younger’ professional
singers, who prefer the intimacy of
the recital platform and the freedom
of interpretation this allows.
This year I set out
to explore Italian Twentieth Century
song, to complement the images and lectures
on the Mezzogiorno, which we had collated
on our recent trip to Sorrento and the
surrounding region. I had begun my voice
training after my first visit to Italy,
when my host had been taking part in
a BBC broadcast with her choir in Bari.
I was invited to join the second sopranos
and sight-read Mozart’s ‘Ave verum corpus’.
No mean feat! I had gone to learn Italian,
staying with a friend who spoke no English,
and I returned with a good command of
Italian and a new direction in my life.
Two years ago I recorded
Respighi’s music from a BBC broadcast
of ‘Composer of the Week’. Last year
I spent a whole day listening to the
five programmes and was fascinated by
the brief exploration of his songs and
by the fact that his wife Elsa was a
mezzo. What better incentive to create
a recital, which could include songs
by Respighi? I also felt ready to express
myself in the language that had opened
the door to my new life.
My local library was
very excited about my new song project
and did everything they could to source
manuscripts for me to view. I was amazed
at just how many songs Respighi had
composed and on viewing them I decided
to dedicate the whole recital to him.
I had been worried about putting another
composer’s work in the recital, but
I soon realised that the variety and
quality of Respighi’s work provided
plenty of contrast and balance. These
songs stood proudly on their own, a
testament of the creative spirit of
a true genius.
I chose Il Tramonto
as the anchor for the whole recital.
Shelley’s beautifully evocative poem
and the emotional connection I felt,
were expressed in every bar of Respighi’s
setting. At first I did not want to
sing it, but just to listen to the heavenly
sound of the piano accompaniment which
a friend played for me. I borrowed a
CD of the string quartet version and
felt there was a plan for the future
in my studying this music. Both the
piano and the string quartet settings
are emotionally expressive of the mood
of the poem and I felt they each had
their own special beauty.
As I began to work
with the piano accompaniment, I found
a certain poignancy in the story evoked
by the sound of a drowning soul coming
from the piano. I immediately thought
of Shelley’s death by drowning off the
coast of Italy at Lerici. How appropriate
that this quality should be present
in the sound of the piano. Tears fell
onto my score and I knew this piece
would have the audience enraptured as
well. When I sang, I found the music
poured freely from me, as the vocal
line is so generous to the mezzo voice.
Now I am looking at
his other songs, I realised that the
work I put into Il Tramonto has
prepared me well. I have a better understanding
of Respighi’s idiom and harmonic structures
and how he set words. An initial glance
would have made me think this work needed
a large operatic voice although I could
find some comparisons with the music
of Debussy. On deeper inspection, I
find such subtlety and grace in his
music, that I am delighted to explore
new colours and expression in my more
lyrical voice.
I have also included
two other settings of Shelley, Su
una violetta morta and Serenata
indiana, which will complement Il
tramonto most effectively and two
of Respighi’s settings of poems by Gabrielle
d’Annunzio.
I had planned to include
the Quattro liriche dal poema paradisiaco
di Gabrielle d’Annunzio in the Italia
Classica programme but unfortunately
there wasn’t enough room. I will however
look for an opportunity to sing them
in the future. The timing of 11/8 in
‘Un Sogno’ looks quite intimidating,
but the effect is wonderful. These songs,
were composed on the isle of Capri and
this summer I will return to Capri to
explore the island with new eyes. The
poetry of d’Annunzio and Ada Negri (also
included in the recital) has inspired
me to find a new experience of Italy.
The Respighi Society
and Adriano have helped me tremendously
in sourcing further music and information
about Respighi. I will be collating
all my research into an article for
my programme to accompany the recital.
Italia Classica will be premiered
in my home town of Burnley in Lancashire
on Saturday 26th October
2002. The setting will be the sumptuous
‘Regency Room’ at Towneley Hall, our
local stately home and art gallery.
Italia Classica will then tour
the North West. The Italian Consul in
Manchester has been very supportive
and encouraging and it is hoped a performance
will be given for the Consulate at the
end of the year. Dates for performances
and details of the presentation can
be found on our website at www.italia-classica.co.uk
We are now in the process
of looking for a sponsor for our photographic
exhibition, which accompanies the recital.
The exhibition will be seen by thousands
of people and will show the most evocative
and timeless images of the Mezzogiorno
Our exhibitions create
a great deal of interest and are responsible
for bringing new audiences to our concerts.
The local and regional media are very
supportive of our work and we are often
invited to give radio interviews.
My greatest hope for
this recital is that I will be able
to bring new audiences to Respighi’s
music and share my enjoyment and enthusiasm,
which has grown since I began the project.
You can discover
more about the enterprising Helena Kean
by visiting her web site www.helenakean.co.uk
and about her Italian arts/Respighi
project at www.italia.classica.co.uk
Ian Lace
