Vocal and Choral

Stravinsky Choral Works – Mass; Cantata
Choir of St Mary’s Cathedral, Edinburgh; Duncan Ferguson
Delphian DCD34164
(delphianrecords.co.uk)

This CD comprises works Stravinsky wrote after he was Orthodoxically reborn in 1926. The discretely composed parts of the Mass run from celebratory to sparse, and even the two Credos are contradictory: one is stalwart and modern, the other urgent and sounding slightly more like traditional English church music. The Choir of St. Mary’s Cathedral is joined by youngsters from the dedicated choir school, as the composer had intended the Mass to be sung. The blend is wholesome.

The Cantata is based on Middle English songs on Christian themes but likely with secular origins. Soloists Ruby Hughes’ and Nicholas Mulroy’s voices complement each other and so in turn do the choral Versus refrains of A Lyke-Wake Dirge, which recount the voyage of the dead from Earth to purgatory. The setting of Tomorrow Shall Be My Dancing Day was new to me, as was the controversy of the inclusion by Stravinsky of the anti-Semitic middle verse, which is outlined in the liner notes.

The a cappella Tres Sacrae Cantiones, some of the partially lost pieces of late-Renaissance composer Carlo Gesualdo, were “finished off” by Stravinsky, at a safe remove of 300 years!

Duncan Ferguson deftly conducts Scottish Chamber Orchestra soloists so that the two larger pieces are accompanied in the truest sense of that word; they go alongside their singing companions rather than merely support them. This would be a lovely addition for collectors of Stravinsky, jack-of-all-eras.

Stabat Mater – Sacred Choral Music by Lennox & Michael Berkeley
Marian Consort; Berkeley Ensemble; David Wordsworth
Delphian DCD34180
(delphianrecords.co.uk)

It is indeed a pleasure to witness the resurrection of a worthy, yet neglected English vocal work, particularly when performed so eloquently as by the Marian Consort. They deliver this 20th-century musical setting of the 13th-century text with all the precision, depth of feeling and intimacy required. Lennox Berkeley’s Stabat Mater was originally commissioned by Benjamin Britten who premiered the work in 1947 with his English Opera Group tour. The next known performance took place at the Aldeburgh Festival in 1953 and the BBC presented a broadcast performance in 1965. The intricate scoring calls for four-part chorus and 12 exceptional instrumentalists (flute, oboe, clarinet, bass clarinet, bassoon, trumpet, harp, percussion and string quartet) and conductor David Wordsworth, who serves as chairman of the Berkeley Society, leads the ensemble with great sensitivity and meticulous execution.

Berkeley’s exquisite Mass for Five Voices was composed for the choir of Westminster Cathedral in 1964. In this and another a capella work Judica me, the Marian Consort fully exploits their experience performing early music with perfect intonation and diction. The recording ends with Touch Light by Lennox’s son Michael Berkeley; a rapturous nod to Monteverdi with its sensuous dissonances and highly ornamented phrasing.

Schubert Sessions
Philippe Sly; John Charles Britton
Analekta AN 2 9999

Brahms – Chants d’Amour
Kimy McLaren; Michèle Losier; Pascal Charbonneau; Alexandre Sylvestre; Myriam Farid; Olivier Godin
ATMA ACD2 2710 (atmaclassique.com)

Verismo
Anna Netrebko; Orchestra dell’Academia Nazionale de Santa Cecilia; Antonio Pappano
Deutsche Grammophon 4795015

Puccini – La Rondine
Dinara Alieva; Charles Castronovo; Orchestra and Chorus of the Deutsche Oper Berlin; Roberto Rizzi Brignoli
Delos DV 7010

In Puccini’s unfairly neglected La Rondine two souls are desperately in love, but predestined to fail due to societal forces and pressures that destroy their happiness. La Traviata comes immediately to mind, and this became one of the problems hampering its success, but the comparison is wrong. In Verdi, Violetta’s love never falters, while here the heroine is simply unable to break with her past and choose freedom (like a swallow), arbitrarily ending the relationship.

Rolando Villazón whom the Deutsche Oper Berlin picked to direct the opera saw the problem very clearly and very differently from average past productions. He embedded the tragic conclusion from the very start into the frothy superficial fun-and-games party atmosphere. Three masked men always surround the beautiful heroine representing former rejected lovers, soberly reminding us of her past, and at the end her true love Ruggero also gets a mask and joins the group much like in Bluebeard’s Castle where the three murdered wives are joined by Judith in oblivion.

Deutsche Oper’s new production finally vindicates and reinstates this opera into the repertoire sumptuously presented and resplendent in rich colours. The action moves with an irresistible forward momentum and is directed with virtuoso skill. The second act’s complex crowd scenes are especially memorable. Puccini’s score is harmonically adventurous, full of irresistible melodies and conducted with romantic abandon by Roberto Rizzi Brignoli. The fine, young and talented cast is headed by Dinara Alieva, soprano sensation from Azerbaijan, whose voice is “a gift from heaven” (Montserrat Caballé) absolutely perfect for the role of Magda. French tenor Charles Castronovo, her unfortunate lover, is radiantly expressive, especially in the last act – guaranteed to break your heart. The other couple (Alexandra Hutton and Alvaro Zambrano) reminds us of Marcel/Musette of La Bohème and provides a delightful contrast and comic relief.

Bellini – Norma
Radvanovsky; Kunde; Gubanova; Aceto; Vas; Puche; Symphony Orchestra and Choir of the Gran Teatre del Liceu; Renato Palumbo
C Major 737208

On October 6, I attended the opening night of Norma at the COC, a co-production with the opera companies of Barcelona, San Francisco and Chicago, featuring Sondra Radvanovsky in the title role. With this four-city run – she’d already sung it at the Met – Radvanovsky lays claim as today’s pre-eminent Norma. Her thrilling, stentorian top notes, hairpin pianissimi and an edgy, tenebrous timbre reminiscent of Callas, makes this DVD from Barcelona’s Liceu merit comparison with the classic recordings of Callas, Sutherland and Caballé.

Sometimes, however, I’ve found Radvanovsky’s singing overly studied. In Barcelona and Toronto, her Casta Diva seemed too carefully sung, as if she were coolly calculating the placement of every note, rather than being transported in rapturous prayer. She sounded more emotionally involved in her duets with Adalgisa – in Barcelona, a fervent Ekaterina Gubanova – and her love/hate exchanges with Pollione – in Barcelona, the brawny, brassy Gregory Kunde. (She had different co-stars in Toronto.)

A big plus for this production: no Eurotrash-updating! The set and costumes drew inspiration from Game of Thrones, the single set representing the interior of a Druidic fortress-temple, with a severed sacred tree-branch magically suspended in mid-air. Unlike the plodding conducting of Stephen Lord at the COC, Liceu conductor Renato Palumbo kept things moving, generating real tension and excitement.

This DVD provides a splendid showcase for Sondra Radvanovsky, documenting a signature role of this Caledon resident, the GTA’s international operatic superstar.