Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Fall has been an exciting time in New York, at least for me. As the lazy days of summer fade away I have looked forward to the start of the opera season. And with that opening comes opening night at the Metropolitan Opera, something that’s become quite a spectacle, these days. Though, gracefully, the company opened not with music, but a moment of silence, for Beverly Sills and Lucian Pavoratti -- a sobering reminder of what the opera community has lost over the summer. You could hear a pin drop, if there was one.
On a lighter note, the opening performance was a new production of the Bel Canto opera “Lucia di lammermore”. It’s not my favorite opera, per se, because it's all about – as its name implies – beautiful singing, which means the music is, perhaps, more in the service of the singer than sweeping you into a story. This doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy the opera: it is famed for its soprano-crushing mad scene and difficult passages. At worst, it can be simply a singer’s showpiece, which is always fun.
For what it’s worth, the Met really had something to open the season with. The production was nothing special, but the singers were excellent. And with the light coloratura soprano, Natalie Dessay, kicking some serious ass, I’d heard one of the longest ovations at the Met in while. High notes will always bring a house down and Dessay tossed them into the rafters without a problem, and without being swallowed by the Met’s 4k seat auditorium. At the end of the performance she got her time in the sun – a reminder that the Met is, above all, a singer’s house, and its audience expects it. Read about it in the New York Times (A Grand Opening at the Opera and Falling Leaves, Stars on the Red Carpet: It’s Opera Season ).
On a lighter note, the opening performance was a new production of the Bel Canto opera “Lucia di lammermore”. It’s not my favorite opera, per se, because it's all about – as its name implies – beautiful singing, which means the music is, perhaps, more in the service of the singer than sweeping you into a story. This doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy the opera: it is famed for its soprano-crushing mad scene and difficult passages. At worst, it can be simply a singer’s showpiece, which is always fun.
For what it’s worth, the Met really had something to open the season with. The production was nothing special, but the singers were excellent. And with the light coloratura soprano, Natalie Dessay, kicking some serious ass, I’d heard one of the longest ovations at the Met in while. High notes will always bring a house down and Dessay tossed them into the rafters without a problem, and without being swallowed by the Met’s 4k seat auditorium. At the end of the performance she got her time in the sun – a reminder that the Met is, above all, a singer’s house, and its audience expects it. Read about it in the New York Times (A Grand Opening at the Opera and Falling Leaves, Stars on the Red Carpet: It’s Opera Season ).
# posted by otas : 7:48 PM
