By happy coincidence
I happened to hear the Symphony Orchestra
of the Norrlands Opera in concert just
a couple of days before I listened to
this recording. At this concert they
played, Beethoven’s Leonora Overture
No. 3, Stravinsky’s Symphony in C and
Britten’s Serenade for Tenor, Horn and
Strings. The Stravinsky and the Britten
were composed at roughly the same time
Rosenberg wrote The Isle of Bliss.
I was prepared for the excellent playing,
which came as no surprise. I had heard
the orchestra before, under their then
principal conductor, Kristjan Järvi,
younger son of Neeme Järvi and
brother of Paavo, once sharing the leadership
of the Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra,
nowadays head of the Cincinnati Symphony.
What was a surprise, though, was the
opera. Of course I knew of its existence
but I had never heard it. Well I had
heard the final scene on a disc of excerpts
from Swedish 20th century
operas based on literary classics. That
was a Caprice release in the early 1980s.
The power, the inventiveness, the sheer
beauty and the melodiousness of this
opera was something of a revelation.
Hilding Rosenberg belonged
to the first generation of modernists
in Swedish music. The premiere of his
first string quartet in 1923 has gone
down in the annals of Swedish music
history through the infamous review
by Wilhem Peterson-Berger, who wrote
about "impotence, torture, insanity
and dazed fantasy". Towards the
end of the 1930s Rosenberg wrote several
works in a more accessible neo-classicist
vein, among them a ballet, Orfeus
i sta’n (Orpheus in Town). There
Carl Milles’ famous Orpheus statue,
erected in front of the Concert Hall
at Haymarket in Stockholm in 1936, roams
the town looking for Euridice and visits
fascionable nightclubs. There he dances
the tango and other popular dances of
the day. A concert suite from Orfeus
i sta’n is rather popular. Lately
the complete ballet has been recorded
in the Musica Sveciae series. By the
way, all the covers in the series are
sculptures by Carl Milles (1875 – 1955).
The opera Lycksalighetens
ö (The Isle of Bliss) is based
on a fairy play by one of the most important
romantic Swedish authors, Per Daniel
Amadeus Atterbom. The original play,
written in 1824, is 800 pages long.
Rosenberg condensed it and the present
version is further cut. Rosenberg had
seen the fairy play in 1929–1930, when
he wrote incidental music for a production
by the Radio Theatre. However the only
music that was recycled into the opera
was Felicia’s song (CD 2 track 1) and
the Nightingale’s song both in act III.
Astolf is the king
of the Hyperboreans, the wintry land
close to the North Pole. He goes astray
to the the Cave of the Winds where the
West Wind (Zephyr) sings about immortality
in the Isle of Bliss. Astolf asks Zephyr
to fly him there. He meets queen Felicia,
they fall in love and he stays there
for three centuries. Finally Felicia
allows him to go back to earth again,
where Astolf dies, but Zephyr sings:
By Time are all things overcome,
his spirit chills. Yet in saga and in
song shall ever live the dream of the
Isle of Bliss!
The text is rather
out of phase with time during the war
years. It could be regarded as escapism.
Rosenberg has here created what the
noted critic and author of several books
about opera Folke H Törnblom has
called an opera "amongst the most
remarkable that has been created in
Swedish opera production". Today
there is a steady flow of phantasy literature
and films, often based on ancient myths.
Now might just fine this work back in
phase. Admirers of The Lord of the
Rings should give it a try!
The opera was premiered
at the Royal Opera in Stockholm on February
1st, 1945, conducted by Herbert
Sandberg. Einar Beyron took the role
of Astolf, his real life wife Brita
Herzberg as Felicia and Hjördis
Schymberg was Zephyr. The sets were
by the noted expressionist painter Isaac
Grünewald, whose name is possibly
known to visitors to the Stockholm Concert
Hall, where the chamber music hall is
named after and decorated by him. It
was later staged again in 1962 with
Stig Westerberg conducting. It was performed
between 1945 and 1963 no less than 35
times, making it one of the most successful
Swedish operas. In 2002 the Norrlands
Opera in Umeå in the north of
Sweden (well, fairly north, still far
from the Arctic region where Astolf’s
kingdom was situated) gave 12 performances
to great acclaim. The present recording
was taped during four of these.
Rosenberg was no newcomer
to opera. Both Resa till Amerika
(Going to America or Journey
to America) (1932) and Marionetter
(Marionettes) (1939) had had
some success. Later he wrote Kaspers
fettisdag (Punch’s Shrove Tuesday)
(1954) – based on Strindberg; Porträttet
(The Portrait) (1956) – based
on Gogol, both for Swedish Radio, and
finally Hus med dubbel ingång
(House with double entrance)(1970)
– after Calderón. Moreover he
composed an opera-oratorio in four parts,
Josef och hans bröder (Joseph
and his Brethren) (1945 – 1948),
after Thomas Mann’s novel cycle.
This shows that Rosenberg
had a more than passing interest in
music drama. Here, in The Isle of
Bliss, he is a fully-fledged dramatist,
having adjusted his tone language to
the requirements of the texts. He presents
a large-scale canvas, deeply rooted
in the romantic tradition with minor
keys a predominant feature. Nordic folk
song runs through the score, which is
in four acts, divided into twelve tableaux.
Straight from the opening,
when the listener is thrown immediately
into the action, without an overture,
Rosenberg catches the attention and
never loosens the grip. A cold wind
is blowing, we hear gun-shots, some
hunters appear and soon there is a very
atmospheric Huntsmen’s Chorus. Astolf
makes his entrance in the second tableau
(CD1 track 2), blowing his horn and
finding that he’s gone astray. He sings
an almost italianate aria; it could
have been written by Puccini! He is
accompanied by a very active orchestra,
commenting, underlining and towards
the end whipping up a real frenzy, helped
by a wordless chorus. In the third tableau
(CD1 track 3) we hear a lively children’s
chorus. The East Wind enters followed
by the North Wind and then the South
Wind; all of them with seven companions.
We are treated to a ballet sequence
of orgiastic dimensions, especially
when they begin wrestling. Not even
Stravinsky or Prokofiev would have been
ashamed of this music. The Chorus of
Winds, concluding the first act: Up
through the air, away o’er the seas
is short but masterly.
The second act (CD1
track 4) starts lyrically in the park
of the Isle of Bliss, with a transparently
scored orchestral prelude – strings,
harp and a capricious flute. This is
weightless music and when the Nymphs
enter, singing and dancing, we are immersed
in the fairy tale. Act III opens with
wild, rhythmically alert music, depicting
Astolf’s dream, with chorus. Peter Kadiev’s
powerful bass-baritone sings the role
of Time (CD2 track 1). There are some
orientalisms when Nyx arrives and in
act IV when Astolf returns to Earth.
There is a fine harvest song sung by
some country-folk (CD2 track 3). In
the third tableau of this act (CD2 track
5) the contrapuntal orchestral introduction
is followed by a drinking chorus worthy
of Verdi. As mentioned before, the whole
opera ends enchantingly with Zephyr
and Choir. Rosenberg knows how to handle
large orchestral and choral forces and
he does it economically: everything
belongs organically to the whole and
the action always moves on. There is
not a scene here that outstays its welcome.
Playing and singing is of the highest
order and Kristjan Järvi has a
firm grip on the proceedings. Like his
father he is not one to dawdle and indulge
in introspection. It is difficult to
imagine this work better done.
That also goes for
the solo singing. The Norrlands Opera
have chosen young, fresh singers at
the beginning of their careers, some
of them taking their first professional
role. The roles of Astolf and Felicia
were written for and premiered by two
of the most renowned singers at the
Royal Opera in the forties: Einar Beyron
and Brita Hertzberg. They were the reigning
Tristan and Isolde at the time. Incidentally
their daughter, Catarina Ligendza, was
a leading Isolde internationally in
the 1970s. Young Patrik Forsman does
not possess the Helden-tenor’s shining
steel but in the smaller house of the
Norrlands Opera he can still ride the
orchestra. Even if he presses a little
too hard once or twice this remains
a very fine interpretation. His voice
not dissimilar in timbre and delivery
to that of the young Gösta Winbergh;
high praise indeed. The aria ending
I must needs even see the Isle of
Bliss ... (CD1 near then end of
track 3) is unabashedly romantic with
lush strings. Forsman makes the most
of it.
Felicia doesn’t have
an Isolde-voice but Agneta Eichenholz
has a gloriously lyric instrument, rounded,
creamy. She immediately won me over
in her first aria Eyes! Who is more
lovely (CD1 track 5). More wonderful
singing is to come: the closing scene
of act II, for instance (CD1 track 6).
The short but hauntingly beautiful love
duet with Astolf is accompanied by seductive,
almost Mantovanian strings. The end
is magical. Her aria in act III tableau
II (CD2 track 2) is also very beautiful.
Yes, indeed, who is more lovely? Maybe
Lisa Gustafsson’s Zephyr. The creator
of the part was Hjördis Schymberg,
Jussi Björling’s favourite partner
at his many guest appearances at the
Royal Opera. She was a notable Gilda,
Violetta and Queen of the Night. While
the lighter-of-voice Lisa Gustafsson
is more of a Pamina or a Blonde instead
of Schymberg’s Konstanze in Die Entführung,
she sounds ideally cast as Zephyr. In
the long tableau III of act I (CD1 track
3) she has a lovely aria, lightly scored
with harp and high strings. In my notes
I marked it with two exclamation marks,
which I don’t do very often. She displays
her lovely voice in act II tableau I
(CD1 track 4) in the aria Say, Astolf,
haven’t I kept my word? There she
rises into the highest realms of the
soprano range, and also in the third
tableau of the same act (CD1 track 6)
where she has a gently rocking folksong-like
solo.
Anna Axelsson (the
Nightingale) is another light and high
lyrical soprano singing beautiful cantilenas.
At the other extreme of the female voice,
Susanna Levonen’s full deep contralto
is impressive as Anemotis, the Mother
of the Winds (CD1 track 3). Overall
the solo singing is very confident and
contributes to the positive impression
made by the music.
Since this is a live
recording there are some stage noises.
They do not detract much from the listening
experience. The general sound quality
is excellent with good balance between
voices and orchestra. As always with
Musica Sveciae productions the disc
is well documented with a substantial
booklet in Swedish and English. The
English translations of Sofia Nyblom’s
commentaries are by Neil Betteridge
and Paul Britten Austin. The booklet
is also lavishly illustrated with photos
from both the original production in
1945 and from the Norrlands Opera. I
could have wished a more liberal approach
to tracking to make it easier to find
certain "arias". As it is
there is only one track per tableau,
and some of these are quite long (CD1
track 3 plays for 19:53). That is the
only complaint I have. This has been
one of the strongest opera experiences
(live or on records) I have had for
a very long time. I wish someone would
mount a production of The Isle of
Bliss again ... and soon. Maybe
the Norrlands Opera could be tempted
to do this by popular demand? In the
meantime this set is a worthy substitute.
Afraid of 20th
century opera? No need to be – this
is highly approachable music and any
lover of late-romantic opera will feel
at home. Afraid of the language? No
need to be – Swedish is a highly singable
language and the translations are excellent
and easy to follow. This is my Recording
of the Month. I recommend it with the
highest possible enthusiasm.
Göran Forsling
see also review
by Rob Barnett
Symphony Orchestra of the Norrlands Opera, Children’s
Chorus and Chorus of the Norrlands Opera, Chorus
Master: Kjell Oscarsson/Kristjan Järvi
