Featuring:
- Britten War Requiem
Elena Zelenskaya - Soprano
Timothy Robinson - Tenor
Stephan Loges - Baritone
Melbourne Symphony Orchestra Chorus - Jonathan Grieves-Smith: Chorus master
National Boys Choir of Australia - Peter Casey: Chorus master
Tadaaki Otaka - Conductor
I really want to like this concert, but in the end, through no fault of MSO and the performance, I did not really enjoy the concert. The main reason is the unlucky seat that I got. Sandwiched between two gentlemen, one who was breathing heavily through out the concert as if he was about to die soon, and the other who fell asleep most of the time, waking up only in the exciting bit and bobbing his head off-time along. I really wanted to change seats in the middle, but the breaks between the movements are just too short.
Okay, enough of the rants, off to the program now. It was a packed hall that night, and the concert started late. Also, before the concert starts, Jeffrey Crellin, the principal oboist, gave a short talk about the passing of Sir Charles Mackerras. He then returned to his seat, in the chamber orchestra bit. It probably doesn't make sense to anyone who is not familiar with the work, so here's why. The requiem is written for three 'partitions': first, the full orchestra plus the choir, and soprano soloist; second, the chamber orchestra plus the two male soloists; and third, the boys choir. The first and second partition are on stage, while the boys choir sing in the foyer.
The best bits that I enjoyed from the concert is the part written for the boys choir, the twist in the poem in the Offertorium regarding the ending of Abraham and Isaac, the highly original settings of the 'Pleni sunt coeli et terra' in the Sanctus where the choir was quickly chanting those words in different pitches and rhythm, creating this magnificent mumbling effect, the Agnus Dei, and from the duet of Tenor and Baritone in the Libera Me to the end. I really think that the duet was heavily influenced by the last movement of Mahler's Das Lied von der Erde which Britten loved. How so? Both poems concern with two people, although in Mahler the concern is about two good friends departing, while in Britten, it's about two foes reuniting in the after life. The end of the piece is dissonant, just like how it should be, I think for a war related piece, to remind the listeners how terrible a war can have.
Wait, hang on, now if I look bad, I actually quite like a lot of the piece, but what ended up as a disappointment is the 'Dies Irae'. I don't know, maybe it's just not exhilarating as Mozart's or Verdi's. I'm not talking about the opening stanzas of the 'Dies Irae' sequence, I'm talking about the whole thing. I guess I'm used to certain way a composer sets certain part of the sequence. For example, Liber Scriptus and Recordare are usually given to the soloists, and Rex Tremendae is usually given to the chorus. Britten reversed a lot of them, and his settings sounded a bit rush, and a little bit less imaginative and creative compared to again, the two requiems by Mozart and Verdi. Oh yes, the biggest let down is the 'Kyrie', which is basically using the fragment of the Introit.
The orchestra played well in general, although I think the orchestration is on the sparse side, with the full orchestra usually stay put during a long chamber orchestra bit, and vice versa. As this was the first time I heard this piece, I can't really comment on the `correctness` of the playing. Both adults and boys choirs were good, no complaint in there. The soloists were alright, although yeah, now I remember it, I felt almost indifferently all the time during the male soloists prolonged settings of the poems. That's another aspect of the piece that I have to get used to enjoy it fully.
Showing posts with label requiem. Show all posts
Showing posts with label requiem. Show all posts
Tuesday, 27 July 2010
Sunday, 25 October 2009
Melbourne Symphony Orchestra concert 23 October 2009 - Serenity and Spectacle
Featuring:
- Faure Requiem
- Saint-Saens Symphony No. 3 'Organ'
Antoinette Halloran Soprano
Samuel Dundas Baritone
Melbourne Symphony Orchestra Chorus - Jonathan Grieves-Smith Chorus Master
Richard Gill Conductor
Fresh from his massive all Bach works organ recital for Melbourne International Arts Festival, Calvin Bowman presented an all Bach program which I won't go to details. There are 4 pieces, BWV 680, 639, 645 (the transcription of 'Sleepers, Wake') and finally 768 which is a very long "theme and variations".
I am fond of Faure's Requiem. The serenity and peaceful nature of this piece will always be its advantages. I have probably discussed this, but I really like the 'Sanctus'; a very simple movement with simple melody with harp accompaniment; a perfect picture of what we think of as 'Heaven'. MSO and MSO chorus, under Richard Gill gave straightforward reading of it. The choir sang beautifully although I would prefer the sopranos to sing more angelic-like in the Sanctus and In Paradisum. The performance could've been more effective with better soloists though; Antoinette Halloran has a fine voice but her vibrato is probably a bit too much for the angelic 'Pie Jesu'; Samuel Dundas has a darker timbre voice than what I would've liked. I prefer a baritone with 'lighter' timbre to deliver the solo in the Offertoire and Libera Me. All of this just comes down to your personal preference.
I noticed the following things when I was following the score while listening to Faure's Requiem before the concert and confirming it in the concert: the violins are not frequently used. Viola players would absolutely love this piece as they have all the spotlights and become the main driving force of the melody most of the time (with Cello).
After the break, it's time for Saint-Saens' Organ symphony. Richard Gill's tempo was on the slow side in the first movement, and therefore I felt that the orchestra did not really jump on the momentum to push the piece forward. The second movement was different; and it was heartfelt performance. Actually, come to think about it, I always prefer the 2nd movement compared to the last big movement which starts with a big chord from the organ. Richard Gill finally pushed the tempo towards the end of the piece. Combined that with well-executed fast runs from the orchestra, a timpani being thumped out, fanfare from the brass, and a massive C chord from the organ, you'll definitely will have the audience on loud cheers.
The encore of the night is Ravel's Pavane for Dead Princess. I rue another Pavane for encore. Why can't they play like one of Saint-Saens rarely heard tone poem as the encore? Sigh.
- Faure Requiem
- Saint-Saens Symphony No. 3 'Organ'
Antoinette Halloran Soprano
Samuel Dundas Baritone
Melbourne Symphony Orchestra Chorus - Jonathan Grieves-Smith Chorus Master
Richard Gill Conductor
Fresh from his massive all Bach works organ recital for Melbourne International Arts Festival, Calvin Bowman presented an all Bach program which I won't go to details. There are 4 pieces, BWV 680, 639, 645 (the transcription of 'Sleepers, Wake') and finally 768 which is a very long "theme and variations".
I am fond of Faure's Requiem. The serenity and peaceful nature of this piece will always be its advantages. I have probably discussed this, but I really like the 'Sanctus'; a very simple movement with simple melody with harp accompaniment; a perfect picture of what we think of as 'Heaven'. MSO and MSO chorus, under Richard Gill gave straightforward reading of it. The choir sang beautifully although I would prefer the sopranos to sing more angelic-like in the Sanctus and In Paradisum. The performance could've been more effective with better soloists though; Antoinette Halloran has a fine voice but her vibrato is probably a bit too much for the angelic 'Pie Jesu'; Samuel Dundas has a darker timbre voice than what I would've liked. I prefer a baritone with 'lighter' timbre to deliver the solo in the Offertoire and Libera Me. All of this just comes down to your personal preference.
I noticed the following things when I was following the score while listening to Faure's Requiem before the concert and confirming it in the concert: the violins are not frequently used. Viola players would absolutely love this piece as they have all the spotlights and become the main driving force of the melody most of the time (with Cello).
After the break, it's time for Saint-Saens' Organ symphony. Richard Gill's tempo was on the slow side in the first movement, and therefore I felt that the orchestra did not really jump on the momentum to push the piece forward. The second movement was different; and it was heartfelt performance. Actually, come to think about it, I always prefer the 2nd movement compared to the last big movement which starts with a big chord from the organ. Richard Gill finally pushed the tempo towards the end of the piece. Combined that with well-executed fast runs from the orchestra, a timpani being thumped out, fanfare from the brass, and a massive C chord from the organ, you'll definitely will have the audience on loud cheers.
The encore of the night is Ravel's Pavane for Dead Princess. I rue another Pavane for encore. Why can't they play like one of Saint-Saens rarely heard tone poem as the encore? Sigh.
Monday, 29 June 2009
Proper blog post..
I haven't been posting new music that I have discovered for a long long time. Partly because of my busy schedule, and partly because I don't feel the urge to write about them.
I joined a choir a while ago, and it changed my way of listening to choral music. After I learned to sing Mozart's requiem, now I can fully enjoy the part where I don't really like before, e.g. Domine Jesu and Hostias. Other movements became more attractive and interesting, e.g. Kyrie, Rex Tremendae, Confutatis and I found more pleasure listening to them compare to my previous experiences before joining the choir.
In the past few months or so, I've been listening to Faure's Requiem. What a great piece this is. Sure, it doesn't have the Dies Irae sequence, but the music simplicity (compare to say Verdi's or Brahms' Requiem) is simply heavenly. Most people would no doubt associate the Pie Jesu and In Paradisum when they heard about Faure's requiem. They're both fantastic movements, but the movement that I love the most is Sanctus. I can always imagine heavenly images when I heard harp arpeggios in the beginning of Sanctus. Also, being a tenor myself, I always enjoy the Tenor entry after the horn passages in the middle ('Hosanna in excelsis'). Other movements have their own charm, such as the baritone solo in Libera Me and the little 'Dies Irae' episode which sounded a bit underwhelming. As a whole, I still very much love this requiem.
The new choral music that I listened to recently is Haydn's Nelson Mass. Whoa, what a piece! I fell in love with the dramatic Kyrie the first time I listened to it. Gloria is an upbeat movement in the beginning, with memorable bass solo in the middle, and back to the same melody as the opening melody. I'm less keen on Credo, but still enjoy the 'descendit descaelis'. I guess I would be less keen on Credo in every mass if I always compare how composers set the 'Et vitam venturi' text with Beethoven's setting of the text as a massive fugue in his Missa Solemnis. Sanctus starts off solemnly before the 'Pleni Sunt Caeli' section changes the mood completely. The Benedictus is wonderful to sing at, especially during the most dramatic (IMO) in the whole piece where the trumpets and drums play fortissimo passages against the choir singing the word 'Benedictus qui venit in nomine domini' just before the 'Hosanna in excelsis' section in the end. Agnus Dei rounded up the whole work with upbeat 'dona nobis pacem'.
In piano concerto world, I'm still discovering Prokofiev's piano concertos. After the fantastic third piano concerto, I'm quite surprised with the different mood in his second piano concerto. The cadenza in the first movement is quite obvious fiendishly difficult to play, and of course the tricky running scales of the piano in the Scherzo. Heavy brass opens up the third movement and will catch a lot of people off guard. But what impressed me the most is the last movement. There's this passage around the 6 minutes mark in my recording where the piano enters after a fermata from the orchestra. The piano played a very eerie, satirical melody of the main theme. I always feel unsettled here. I don't know what to feel with the finale where it feels like the piano is arguing with the orchestra and finally had enough and ended it (and also the piece) with a big chord with the timpani in the end. A true masterpiece which made plenty of impacts to the listener!
I have also been exploring Chopin's Nocturnes - opp. 9 and 15 - . I very much prefer op. 9 nocturnes to op. 15 due to their more memorable melody and elegance. Op. 9 No. 2 and No. 3 are my favourites among these six nocturnes (3 each from both sets). For me, Ballade No. 3 is rediscovered when I listened to Cortot playing it in the EMI set. Whoa, what difference he brought to the piece! Just a couple of seconds in the beginning and I know that his playing is going to change how I think about this piece. His playing of other ballades is wonderful as well, do yourself a favour and get the recording of Cortot playing the ballades! They're so different (yet feel so right) than the other ballades that I've listened so far (Rubinstein, Zimmerman, and Richter).
Finally, I'll round up by just mentioning the 5th symphony of Dvorak. A very much underrated work with plenty of beautiful melodies. I loved it when Dvorak brought back the main theme of the first movement in the very end of the piece where it was played by one of the brass (trumpet?). That moment always made me very happy. The 2nd and 3rd movements are good fun as well. You might recall Tchaikovsky's first piano concerto in the opening 4 notes of the 2nd movement of this symphony (I noticed this courtesy of Wikipedia).
Until next time when I have listened to more interesting music and have the mood to write more about them.
I joined a choir a while ago, and it changed my way of listening to choral music. After I learned to sing Mozart's requiem, now I can fully enjoy the part where I don't really like before, e.g. Domine Jesu and Hostias. Other movements became more attractive and interesting, e.g. Kyrie, Rex Tremendae, Confutatis and I found more pleasure listening to them compare to my previous experiences before joining the choir.
In the past few months or so, I've been listening to Faure's Requiem. What a great piece this is. Sure, it doesn't have the Dies Irae sequence, but the music simplicity (compare to say Verdi's or Brahms' Requiem) is simply heavenly. Most people would no doubt associate the Pie Jesu and In Paradisum when they heard about Faure's requiem. They're both fantastic movements, but the movement that I love the most is Sanctus. I can always imagine heavenly images when I heard harp arpeggios in the beginning of Sanctus. Also, being a tenor myself, I always enjoy the Tenor entry after the horn passages in the middle ('Hosanna in excelsis'). Other movements have their own charm, such as the baritone solo in Libera Me and the little 'Dies Irae' episode which sounded a bit underwhelming. As a whole, I still very much love this requiem.
The new choral music that I listened to recently is Haydn's Nelson Mass. Whoa, what a piece! I fell in love with the dramatic Kyrie the first time I listened to it. Gloria is an upbeat movement in the beginning, with memorable bass solo in the middle, and back to the same melody as the opening melody. I'm less keen on Credo, but still enjoy the 'descendit descaelis'. I guess I would be less keen on Credo in every mass if I always compare how composers set the 'Et vitam venturi' text with Beethoven's setting of the text as a massive fugue in his Missa Solemnis. Sanctus starts off solemnly before the 'Pleni Sunt Caeli' section changes the mood completely. The Benedictus is wonderful to sing at, especially during the most dramatic (IMO) in the whole piece where the trumpets and drums play fortissimo passages against the choir singing the word 'Benedictus qui venit in nomine domini' just before the 'Hosanna in excelsis' section in the end. Agnus Dei rounded up the whole work with upbeat 'dona nobis pacem'.
In piano concerto world, I'm still discovering Prokofiev's piano concertos. After the fantastic third piano concerto, I'm quite surprised with the different mood in his second piano concerto. The cadenza in the first movement is quite obvious fiendishly difficult to play, and of course the tricky running scales of the piano in the Scherzo. Heavy brass opens up the third movement and will catch a lot of people off guard. But what impressed me the most is the last movement. There's this passage around the 6 minutes mark in my recording where the piano enters after a fermata from the orchestra. The piano played a very eerie, satirical melody of the main theme. I always feel unsettled here. I don't know what to feel with the finale where it feels like the piano is arguing with the orchestra and finally had enough and ended it (and also the piece) with a big chord with the timpani in the end. A true masterpiece which made plenty of impacts to the listener!
I have also been exploring Chopin's Nocturnes - opp. 9 and 15 - . I very much prefer op. 9 nocturnes to op. 15 due to their more memorable melody and elegance. Op. 9 No. 2 and No. 3 are my favourites among these six nocturnes (3 each from both sets). For me, Ballade No. 3 is rediscovered when I listened to Cortot playing it in the EMI set. Whoa, what difference he brought to the piece! Just a couple of seconds in the beginning and I know that his playing is going to change how I think about this piece. His playing of other ballades is wonderful as well, do yourself a favour and get the recording of Cortot playing the ballades! They're so different (yet feel so right) than the other ballades that I've listened so far (Rubinstein, Zimmerman, and Richter).
Finally, I'll round up by just mentioning the 5th symphony of Dvorak. A very much underrated work with plenty of beautiful melodies. I loved it when Dvorak brought back the main theme of the first movement in the very end of the piece where it was played by one of the brass (trumpet?). That moment always made me very happy. The 2nd and 3rd movements are good fun as well. You might recall Tchaikovsky's first piano concerto in the opening 4 notes of the 2nd movement of this symphony (I noticed this courtesy of Wikipedia).
Until next time when I have listened to more interesting music and have the mood to write more about them.
Saturday, 18 October 2008
Melbourne Symphony Orchestra concert 17 October 2008 - Mozart's Requiem
Featuring:
- Mozart Symphony No. 41 'Jupiter'
- Mozart Requiem
Jacqueline Porter - Soprano
Sally-Anne Russell - Mezzo-soprano
James Egglestone - Tenor
Richard Alexander - Bass
Melbourne Symphony Orchestra Chorus: Jonathan Grieves-Smith - Chorus Master
Benjamin Northey - Conductor
As usual with Town Hall concert, there is an organ recital performed by Calvin Bowman. For this recital, he played Scarlatti Sonata in G; Mozart's subdued Adagio K. 356 showing that organ can be played in a tamely manner; Suites from Henry V by Walton (arr. Robert Gower/Henry Ley) which is rather nice with the outer marching movements sandwiching the more restraint middle movements. The third movement Touch her soft lips and part probably is my favourite moment in the recital. The final piece is a composition by Bowman himself Vexilla Regis which structurally similar to Walton's piece, with the theme in the first movement coming back in the last movement (if I remember correctly).
So, now on to the one of this year's most awaited concert. The hall is fully packed but not all the seats were occupied, contrary to the 'Sold Out' claim in MSO website. The concert started out with the energetic first movement of the Jupiter. Some nice playing in the brass as well, bringing out musical lines that I never really paid attention to before. I won't critique anything on this composition of Mozart - this symphony is just perfect and I always think that this is the crown achievement of all Mozart's symphonies. The second movement was full of nostalgia, although the movement could be carried out a little bit slower to bring out all the musical ideas there. The third movement was very fine, but I was anticipating for the finale the whole time in the performance. The finale of this symphony is my absolute favourite Mozart symphony movement. That five-voices fugue in the end of this movement is a very good representative of Mozart's composition power. The performance itself was very fine. The tempo was brisk, showcasing the virtuosity of the orchestra. I almost lost my self control and joined the conductor in conducting the orchestra I should say :). The audience only called for two curtain calls, which is somewhat disappointing after a very fine performance, but they might be saving their applause for the next giant, the Requiem, K. 626
A more than 100-members of MSO chorus joined the orchestra to perform the Requiem. An interesting note is that there is no clear separation in the seating of the four voices of the chorus. The seating was mixed with men seating flanked by two women. I wondered what was the reason for this. On the performance itself, the Introit was good and the soprano soared in 'Te Decet'. The chorus joined back soon after and set the tone for the next section - the 'Kyrie'. The 'Kyrie' was taken quite fast, but not too much. I preferred this approach very much compared to slower tempo that some conductors took. One small minor complaint about the chorus: the tenor voices seemed to be very weak compared to the other. I finally found out why when I looked through the program notes after the performance: the tenor has only half the number of the bass. Also, after 'Kyrie', I noticed that there is no organ accompaniment for this performance, which is a little bit disappointing. The 'Dies Irae' was scary as usual, all four of the soloists delivered magnificent performance in the 'Tuba Mirum' sequence. Credit also to the trombone soloist for fine accompaniment. 'Rex Tremendae' opened up with great cries from the chorus but soon subdued in the contrasting 'Salva Me'. The 'Recordare' again featured fine performances from all of the soloists. 'Confutatis' was furious, but lacking in tenor voices, it lost some power of the duet of tenor and bass voices in the opening of this movement. The female voices were angelic in the contrasting 'voca me cum benedictis'. 'Lacrimosa' was probably the pick of the night, although the conductor did not leave enough time for me to take a moment of reflection on it by starting 'Domine Jesu' a bit sooner. The rest of the movements were again very fine. And in the end, the Kyrie fugue but now set with different texts overwhelmed me. Loud applause followed.
To sum up, a very memorable night featuring plenty of fine performances. The conductor obviously has great talent and look forward to seeing him conduct MSO again.
- Mozart Symphony No. 41 'Jupiter'
- Mozart Requiem
Jacqueline Porter - Soprano
Sally-Anne Russell - Mezzo-soprano
James Egglestone - Tenor
Richard Alexander - Bass
Melbourne Symphony Orchestra Chorus: Jonathan Grieves-Smith - Chorus Master
Benjamin Northey - Conductor
As usual with Town Hall concert, there is an organ recital performed by Calvin Bowman. For this recital, he played Scarlatti Sonata in G; Mozart's subdued Adagio K. 356 showing that organ can be played in a tamely manner; Suites from Henry V by Walton (arr. Robert Gower/Henry Ley) which is rather nice with the outer marching movements sandwiching the more restraint middle movements. The third movement Touch her soft lips and part probably is my favourite moment in the recital. The final piece is a composition by Bowman himself Vexilla Regis which structurally similar to Walton's piece, with the theme in the first movement coming back in the last movement (if I remember correctly).
So, now on to the one of this year's most awaited concert. The hall is fully packed but not all the seats were occupied, contrary to the 'Sold Out' claim in MSO website. The concert started out with the energetic first movement of the Jupiter. Some nice playing in the brass as well, bringing out musical lines that I never really paid attention to before. I won't critique anything on this composition of Mozart - this symphony is just perfect and I always think that this is the crown achievement of all Mozart's symphonies. The second movement was full of nostalgia, although the movement could be carried out a little bit slower to bring out all the musical ideas there. The third movement was very fine, but I was anticipating for the finale the whole time in the performance. The finale of this symphony is my absolute favourite Mozart symphony movement. That five-voices fugue in the end of this movement is a very good representative of Mozart's composition power. The performance itself was very fine. The tempo was brisk, showcasing the virtuosity of the orchestra. I almost lost my self control and joined the conductor in conducting the orchestra I should say :). The audience only called for two curtain calls, which is somewhat disappointing after a very fine performance, but they might be saving their applause for the next giant, the Requiem, K. 626
A more than 100-members of MSO chorus joined the orchestra to perform the Requiem. An interesting note is that there is no clear separation in the seating of the four voices of the chorus. The seating was mixed with men seating flanked by two women. I wondered what was the reason for this. On the performance itself, the Introit was good and the soprano soared in 'Te Decet'. The chorus joined back soon after and set the tone for the next section - the 'Kyrie'. The 'Kyrie' was taken quite fast, but not too much. I preferred this approach very much compared to slower tempo that some conductors took. One small minor complaint about the chorus: the tenor voices seemed to be very weak compared to the other. I finally found out why when I looked through the program notes after the performance: the tenor has only half the number of the bass. Also, after 'Kyrie', I noticed that there is no organ accompaniment for this performance, which is a little bit disappointing. The 'Dies Irae' was scary as usual, all four of the soloists delivered magnificent performance in the 'Tuba Mirum' sequence. Credit also to the trombone soloist for fine accompaniment. 'Rex Tremendae' opened up with great cries from the chorus but soon subdued in the contrasting 'Salva Me'. The 'Recordare' again featured fine performances from all of the soloists. 'Confutatis' was furious, but lacking in tenor voices, it lost some power of the duet of tenor and bass voices in the opening of this movement. The female voices were angelic in the contrasting 'voca me cum benedictis'. 'Lacrimosa' was probably the pick of the night, although the conductor did not leave enough time for me to take a moment of reflection on it by starting 'Domine Jesu' a bit sooner. The rest of the movements were again very fine. And in the end, the Kyrie fugue but now set with different texts overwhelmed me. Loud applause followed.
To sum up, a very memorable night featuring plenty of fine performances. The conductor obviously has great talent and look forward to seeing him conduct MSO again.
Saturday, 5 April 2008
Melbourne Symphony Orchestra concert 5 April 2008 - Verdi's Requiem
Featuring:
- Verdi Messa di Requiem
Aivale Cole - Soprano
Lilli Paasikivi - Mezzo-soprano
Virgilio Marino - Tenor
Askar Abdrazakov - Bass
Melbourne Symphony Orchestra Chorus: Jonathan Grieves-Smith - Chorus Master
The Bach Choir London: David Hill - Musical Director
Oleg Caetani - Conductor
Verdi's Requiem, which general public know only from its famous Dies Irae, is a work worth more knowing than the short section of Dies Irae. From the opening cello melody till the last notes, it is full of memorable melodies and events. There is seriously no 'boring' parts in the whole requiem. When I first listened to it, it was the Kyrie that grabbed my attention. Dies Irae followed next and without stop, Tuba Mirum that requires 8 trumpets in total blows my socks off. Other movements that I loved in my premiere listening were Rex Tremendae, Recordare, Confutatis, Lacrimosa, Offertory, and Sanctus. Upon my second listening, I've picked up why Libera Me is legendary. I also grow to appreciate the beautiful Liber Scriptus, Quid Sum Miser, the Tenor solo Ingemisco and lovely duets in Agnus Dei. And after tonight's concert, Verdi's Requiem is definitely my favourite choral works dethroning Mozart's Requiem.
The concert itself was brilliant. The sight of the number of double choirs are already very impressive and I will give them special 'bravo' again because they performed wonderfully. Dies Irae and Tuba Mirum gave me goosebumps and what magnificent Sanctus! The orchestra players played as if their lives are on the line. I could not really pick a highlight of good orchestral playing overall since the level of playing in that concert is really really high. The soloists themselves are wonderful although I would prefer the Tenor to sing a little bit louder. Sometimes his voice seemed to be overwhelmed by his other soloists and the chorus. However, his rendition of the Offertory was really brilliant. The bass really shone in Confutatis. The beautiful mezzo-soprano soared in Liber Scriptus and Lacrimosa and her Soprano counter parts did a wonderful job in Libera Me. Their duets in Recordare was just heart-melting.
The hall was more than 97% full, and from what I heard, the hall was sold out for the previous 2 days. The audience were well-behaved and applaused enthusiastically at the end of the concert. One of the best concerts that I've ever attended.
- Verdi Messa di Requiem
Aivale Cole - Soprano
Lilli Paasikivi - Mezzo-soprano
Virgilio Marino - Tenor
Askar Abdrazakov - Bass
Melbourne Symphony Orchestra Chorus: Jonathan Grieves-Smith - Chorus Master
The Bach Choir London: David Hill - Musical Director
Oleg Caetani - Conductor
Verdi's Requiem, which general public know only from its famous Dies Irae, is a work worth more knowing than the short section of Dies Irae. From the opening cello melody till the last notes, it is full of memorable melodies and events. There is seriously no 'boring' parts in the whole requiem. When I first listened to it, it was the Kyrie that grabbed my attention. Dies Irae followed next and without stop, Tuba Mirum that requires 8 trumpets in total blows my socks off. Other movements that I loved in my premiere listening were Rex Tremendae, Recordare, Confutatis, Lacrimosa, Offertory, and Sanctus. Upon my second listening, I've picked up why Libera Me is legendary. I also grow to appreciate the beautiful Liber Scriptus, Quid Sum Miser, the Tenor solo Ingemisco and lovely duets in Agnus Dei. And after tonight's concert, Verdi's Requiem is definitely my favourite choral works dethroning Mozart's Requiem.
The concert itself was brilliant. The sight of the number of double choirs are already very impressive and I will give them special 'bravo' again because they performed wonderfully. Dies Irae and Tuba Mirum gave me goosebumps and what magnificent Sanctus! The orchestra players played as if their lives are on the line. I could not really pick a highlight of good orchestral playing overall since the level of playing in that concert is really really high. The soloists themselves are wonderful although I would prefer the Tenor to sing a little bit louder. Sometimes his voice seemed to be overwhelmed by his other soloists and the chorus. However, his rendition of the Offertory was really brilliant. The bass really shone in Confutatis. The beautiful mezzo-soprano soared in Liber Scriptus and Lacrimosa and her Soprano counter parts did a wonderful job in Libera Me. Their duets in Recordare was just heart-melting.
The hall was more than 97% full, and from what I heard, the hall was sold out for the previous 2 days. The audience were well-behaved and applaused enthusiastically at the end of the concert. One of the best concerts that I've ever attended.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)