Friday November 3, 2006 SGN.org |
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Volume 34 Issue 44 |
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Thursday, Jul 24, 2008
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An Isolde to die for at San Francisco Opera |
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| An Isolde to die for at San Francisco Opera | ||
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by Rod Parke -
SGN A&E Writer Anyone who saw Seattle Operaʼs brilliant 1998 production of Wagnerʼs ʻTristan und Isoldeʼ knows what an intoxicating and exciting evening this work can be. (Counting rehearsals, I got to see it eight times!) I use this drug metaphor advisedly, for the opera is awash in harmonies and textures that leave both audience and the main characters in an almost drunken haze. And an addictive one at that! Such an ideal experience left me at a disadvantage in viewing San Francisco Operaʼs just completed presentation of the David Hockney production. Despite the radiant Isolde of Christine Brewer, which could hardly have been more satisfying, the whole experience was far less successful. Several of the elements were first-rate, but they did not come together, either sonically or dramatically, to sweep me into Wagnerʼs drugged dream of nocturnal “love-death.” Sonically, it was hard to pull the voices and orchestra into a unified tapestry of sound. I was in row L, rather close to an orchestra that played in a very shallow pit. Although I could almost always hear the singers, the orchestra was often a loud distraction, rather than the magic carpet upon which the voices could soar. Donald Runnicles led an energized, if fairly slow, reading that was nicely phrased and transparent. The orchestra, while not quite up to the Seattle Symphonyʼs standard, was mostly more than adequate. What I most missed was a certain floating sense of soaring line, such as one hears in superhuman abundance, for instance, in the Furtwangler recording of the scene in which Brangane (Blanche Thebom) watches for trouble during the love duet. Instead, what we got here was sung and played loudly (by Jane Irwin) and without any narcotic sense of floating. The Hockney design was his typical storybook drawings, purposely lacking any weight or substance, rather like the pop-up set of Seattleʼs recent ʻLʼItaliana.ʼ The stage was steeply raked, making it a bit awkward for the large-framed lead singers. The production was mostly serviceable, with one glaring exception. It forced the chorus to sing from the pit (no room on the stage for them to enter) and left the powerful conclusion to Act I without any sonic punch with which to try to pull the lovers out of their drugged dream world. Altogether too tame. What made this visit more than worthwhile was Christine Brewerʼs first staged Isolde. Her voice was without flaw, top to bottom. Equally impressive was her intelligence; every phrase was molded with appropriate emotion. Her large, gorgeous tone never seemed to tire. I have never heard a vocally more beautiful Isolde. Unfortunately her Tristan was less appealing in every way. Unattractive to look at, Thomas Moser was no heldentenor, often overpowered by the orchestra and far from heroic. To his credit he seldom pushed his voice beyond its means, but he nonetheless almost lost his voice in Act II. Needless to say, his Act III was boring and endless. His pal, Kurwenal, was well sung by Israeli Boaz Daniel. Limited acting skills and the modest size of his voice made his portrayal unexciting. No such limitations could be applied to Iceland native Kristinn Sigmundsson at King Marke. His intense acting and attractive voice made his lament in Act II one of the highlights. Tall and handsome, his Marke would be welcome in any opera house. Jane Irwin sang a fine if rather generic Brangane. Her voice was ample and well produced, if lacking quite the volume one might want. More satisfying was the tenor of Sean Panikkar, who sang both the Shepherd and a Sailor. Thank you, San Francisco Opera, for presenting Christine Brewer! This company has not apparently fallen prey to a disease I am hearing in the many live broadcasts from the Metropolitan Opera on Sirius Satellite Radio, for none of the singers had anything like a wobble (an excessively wide vibrato). [I will elaborate on the fantastic Met on the Radio – four LIVE performances a week! - and this wobble disease in a future article.] Rod Parke can be reached at rmp62@columbia.edu. Visit us on the net @ www.sgn.org |
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