There is no doubt that soprano Lydia Caruana has become a star attraction whenever and wherever she performs. The concert held on May 25 was no exception and as was expected, a great success. What contributed to this success were also the other essential ingredients of the concert, mainly the programme itself, which when assembled together resulted in a very pleasant evening of music from the predominantly operatic repertoire.
The Malta Philharmonic Orchestra, under the vibrant direction of the young Canadian conductor Charles Olivieri-Munroe, chief conductor of the North Czech Philharmonic Orchestra in Teplice, whose unique combination of talent and charisma shone throughout the evening, gave a very good account of himself in a programme evidently selected with care and good taste. Some of Verdi's most superb arias provided the backbone; these were interspersed with highly attractive French elements by Gounod and Massenet, as well as a very welcome inclusion of three of the most exquisite samples of Dvorak's compositions - a Czech element which is not usually present in a concert of this sort. More Czecho/Slovakian very much appreciated connections were the presence of tenor Peter Berger and baritone Jan Durco and their valid vocal contributions.
The orchestral Overture to Verdi's Nabucco, which marked the beginning of the composer's career, appropriately set the concert in motion. A rather subdued brass soon made way for a well-pronounced principal melody with consistently effective crescendos and a well- defined climax. This paved the way for the baritone's interpretation of Cortigiani, vil razza dannata from Act 2 of Rigoletto, the remarkable originality of which marked the composer's most famous victory over the critics.
Jan Durco denounced the courtiers, or cortigiani, as contemptible hirelings with good voice control and a convincing final crescendo. The next aria came in the form of Ms Caruana's interpretation of È Strano... È Strano from La Traviata, in which Violetta wonders whether the solicitous Alfredo could really be the saviour of her dreams, doing so with limpid well-controlled inflections, as the tenor reminds her of his love from the wings in a master stroke of dramatic psychology, only somewhat marred by an overpowering finale on the part of the soprano which was not helped by the extra amplification.
The first half of the programme came to an end with the very hackneyed Brindisi for soprano and tenor from the same opera which replaced the original duet for soprano and baritone Pura Siccome un Angelo; this suffered from a weak start on the part of the tenor but improved somewhat as it proceeded.
Verdi returned, backed beautifully by the orchestra, with the last two pieces at the end of the programme Tacea la Nott'e Placida for soprano and Qua Voce ...Ah, Dalle Tenebre for soprano, tenor and baritone, both from Il Trovatore, whose success at its premiere surpassed even that of Rigoletto.
In Il Trovatore many of the melodies owe much of their expressive force to a style of melody that the composer had been developing from his earliest years - typically the arias start from quiet, sometimes even unremarkable openings, gradually unfolding in mounting waves of melody to culminate in grand engulfing phrases employing the full extension of the voice. It has been said of Verdi's arias that the lyrical passages are there to provide a bridge between histrionics and more histrionics as was evident in the first of the two last pieces. The final piece exemplified some excellent teamwork full of dramatic tension.
Faust's Cavatina from the opera by Gounod introduced Peter Berger as a tenor with a mellow voice and pleasant timbre and confirmed Nadia Debono who was standing in for Marcelline Agius as leader of the orchestra that night, as an excellent violinist. This was evident in her contribution to Massenet's Meditation, the most celebrated single instrumental excerpt from Thaïs, and the most frequently played of all his compositions.
Ms Debono was accompanied by the harp and pianissimo violins in passages of heavenly harmony and received very warm accolades from the audience. Harp and strings were also very well coordinated in the Overture to Mascagni's Cavalleria Rusticana.
The rest of the programme was attributed to Dvorak with no less than three offerings, a choice which was more than welcome and a precedent to introduce Maltese audiences to other than Italian operatic excerpts in concerts of this sort.
Dvorak's wonderful Concert Carnival Overture was a magnificent way of ushering in the second part of the programme. Its ebullient and affirmative start evoked a festive atmosphere replete with infectious rhythms, soaring melodies and vivid orchestral colours. Vidino Divna from the opera Rusalka found its match in the tenor who was more at home here while Ms Caruana gave a very credible performance of the Song to the Moon, in which the composer writes with a melodic poignancy that memorably sets off his heroine. The soprano carried the long melodic phrases well and the absence of glitzy high notes was a welcome change.
No less than three encores affirmed the appeal of the concert; these were the ever popular O Mio Babbino Caro from Puccini's Gianni Schicchi for soprano; Tonight Tonight from Bernstein's West Side Story for soprano and tenor; and the Neapolitan favourite Turna a Surriento with soprano, tenor and baritone.
The Malta Philharmonic Orchestra, under the vibrant direction of the young Canadian conductor Charles Olivieri-Munroe, chief conductor of the North Czech Philharmonic Orchestra in Teplice, whose unique combination of talent and charisma shone throughout the evening, gave a very good account of himself in a programme evidently selected with care and good taste. Some of Verdi's most superb arias provided the backbone; these were interspersed with highly attractive French elements by Gounod and Massenet, as well as a very welcome inclusion of three of the most exquisite samples of Dvorak's compositions - a Czech element which is not usually present in a concert of this sort. More Czecho/Slovakian very much appreciated connections were the presence of tenor Peter Berger and baritone Jan Durco and their valid vocal contributions.
The orchestral Overture to Verdi's Nabucco, which marked the beginning of the composer's career, appropriately set the concert in motion. A rather subdued brass soon made way for a well-pronounced principal melody with consistently effective crescendos and a well- defined climax. This paved the way for the baritone's interpretation of Cortigiani, vil razza dannata from Act 2 of Rigoletto, the remarkable originality of which marked the composer's most famous victory over the critics.
Jan Durco denounced the courtiers, or cortigiani, as contemptible hirelings with good voice control and a convincing final crescendo. The next aria came in the form of Ms Caruana's interpretation of È Strano... È Strano from La Traviata, in which Violetta wonders whether the solicitous Alfredo could really be the saviour of her dreams, doing so with limpid well-controlled inflections, as the tenor reminds her of his love from the wings in a master stroke of dramatic psychology, only somewhat marred by an overpowering finale on the part of the soprano which was not helped by the extra amplification.
The first half of the programme came to an end with the very hackneyed Brindisi for soprano and tenor from the same opera which replaced the original duet for soprano and baritone Pura Siccome un Angelo; this suffered from a weak start on the part of the tenor but improved somewhat as it proceeded.
Verdi returned, backed beautifully by the orchestra, with the last two pieces at the end of the programme Tacea la Nott'e Placida for soprano and Qua Voce ...Ah, Dalle Tenebre for soprano, tenor and baritone, both from Il Trovatore, whose success at its premiere surpassed even that of Rigoletto.
In Il Trovatore many of the melodies owe much of their expressive force to a style of melody that the composer had been developing from his earliest years - typically the arias start from quiet, sometimes even unremarkable openings, gradually unfolding in mounting waves of melody to culminate in grand engulfing phrases employing the full extension of the voice. It has been said of Verdi's arias that the lyrical passages are there to provide a bridge between histrionics and more histrionics as was evident in the first of the two last pieces. The final piece exemplified some excellent teamwork full of dramatic tension.
Faust's Cavatina from the opera by Gounod introduced Peter Berger as a tenor with a mellow voice and pleasant timbre and confirmed Nadia Debono who was standing in for Marcelline Agius as leader of the orchestra that night, as an excellent violinist. This was evident in her contribution to Massenet's Meditation, the most celebrated single instrumental excerpt from Thaïs, and the most frequently played of all his compositions.
Ms Debono was accompanied by the harp and pianissimo violins in passages of heavenly harmony and received very warm accolades from the audience. Harp and strings were also very well coordinated in the Overture to Mascagni's Cavalleria Rusticana.
The rest of the programme was attributed to Dvorak with no less than three offerings, a choice which was more than welcome and a precedent to introduce Maltese audiences to other than Italian operatic excerpts in concerts of this sort.
Dvorak's wonderful Concert Carnival Overture was a magnificent way of ushering in the second part of the programme. Its ebullient and affirmative start evoked a festive atmosphere replete with infectious rhythms, soaring melodies and vivid orchestral colours. Vidino Divna from the opera Rusalka found its match in the tenor who was more at home here while Ms Caruana gave a very credible performance of the Song to the Moon, in which the composer writes with a melodic poignancy that memorably sets off his heroine. The soprano carried the long melodic phrases well and the absence of glitzy high notes was a welcome change.
No less than three encores affirmed the appeal of the concert; these were the ever popular O Mio Babbino Caro from Puccini's Gianni Schicchi for soprano; Tonight Tonight from Bernstein's West Side Story for soprano and tenor; and the Neapolitan favourite Turna a Surriento with soprano, tenor and baritone.