Chi Mi Frena In Tal Momento?

Who dares to restrain me in this moment [of epic proportions]?

October 25th, 2008
Lucia di Lammermoor
Lucia- Diana Damrau
Edgardo- Piotr Beczala
Enrico- Vladimir Stoyanov
Raimondo- Ildar Abdrazakov
Alisa- Michaela Martens
Arturo- Sean Panikkar
Conductor- Marco Armiliato


As promised, here is a review of the birthday celebration Lucia. I took three friends to sit in the Orchestra of the Metropolitan Opera House to see Diana Damrau, one of the great sopranos singing today, in Lucia di Lammermoor, one of the greatest bel canto operas ever written. I want to reiterate this because, not only did I witness an EPIC (to quote my friends) performance, but three of my friends did as well. I hesitate to say "converts", but they certainly enjoyed themselves immensely and have an added respect for this extraordinary art.

Really quick, here is the origin of "EPIC."
I usually use the thunderous applause after arias and during curtain calls to give my commentary. So after every aria/duet in the opera I had said "Beastly. That was amazing. Oh my gosh, beastly!" I figured I had used the adjective "beastly" (as a compliment, remember!) enough, so it was time for something new. After the mad scene I was dumbstruck. I couldn't even say anything! Suddenly my friend yells "EPIC! That was epic!" It was too perfect. The rest of the evening all we could saw was. "Wait, can you believe how EPIC that was?" "It was so EPIC, I can't even stand it." We even had to make up a new category of epic: Lucia-style Epic. =)

In case you want to hear about the singers at all...

Part of the epic-ness was the perfection of the cast. Looking at the list some of us may have been caught saying "Who?" Well, that question (and some of our prayers) were quickly answered.
Sean Panikkar as Arturo (while not exactly Stephen Costello *wink*) and Ronald Naldi as Normanno were strong supporters with beautiful voices and definite presence. An opera is only as good as it's supporting singers and these guys were great.
Michaela Martens as Alisa was, as last year, a force to be reckoned with. Hopefully, after the sextet you don't want to be heard, because this mezzo's voice is so big that during her high notes she drowns out everything else. It's a good thing. I love it. It's like proclaiming "Hello! I'm here! And I have a wonderful mezzo voice!!"
Ildbar Abdrazakov was a great Raimondo. He staggered onto the stage just before the mad scene in such a way that it made everyone in the audience nervous. Let's face it, we all know the mad scene is coming, but the horrified look he had made it so....real! His singing in the second act was great as well. His guidance to Lucia was heartfelt and very affecting.
No one likes Enrico. No one ever is supposed to like Enrico. He's a mean brother who has no consideration for his sister's feelings. Right? I guess not. Vladimir Stoyanov showed (me, at least) another dimension of Enrico. Sure, he is dishonest and mean to Lucia, but his intentions are clearer. With his deep voice and impressive acting Mr. Stoyanov shows a man who, in desperation, would sacrifice his sister's happiness for the "good" of his family's name. He is struggling, as head of the family, to maintain the favor the Ashton family had previously enjoyed. This all becomes clear through Stoyanov's personal interpretation of Enrico Ashton.

The real find at this performance was Piotr Beczala as Edgardo. He comes on stage and all of my friends lunged for the only pair of opera glasses we brought. Enough said? Well on the visual part of the discussion anyway... I'm always excited but nervous to see tenors I haven't heard [of] before. While I want them to succeed I'm always afraid they will disappoint. My worries were for nothing! Piotr Beczala possesses a gorgeous tenor voice with vibrant high notes and luxurious tone. He also has amazing acting abilities. Last year I commented on Marcello Giordani knocking over chairs for no apparent reason after he denounces Lucia. Beczala did that too, but here it looked normal. (Don't get me wrong, I adore Marcello Giordani, but his clear Italian style and knocking over chairs don't mesh well together.) Everything he did was perfectly relevant to the music and to the story. You really believed him and felt for him. This is a tenor to watch for! He is performing in two other roles at the Met this season (Duke in Rigoletto and Lenski in Eugene Onegin) so his name will be on every opera fans lips. Remember his name, because you won't forget his voice. <3
Diana Damrau. Lucia-style Epic. Lucia Ashton is not a half-insane girl who is clingy and weak and unstable. She's about as insane as any teenage aristocrat with a forbidden lover. She has a strong personality (demonstrated when she throws Edgardo's coat on the ground in Act I and rushes right back into his arms to elongate their duet) and a strong will (demonstrated in her duet with her brother, until she reads the forged letter). It's only, like I said, when Enrico shows her the forged letter that she breaks down. It's all downhill from the there. The wedding, the decrying, the mad sc-...we aren't there yet.
Diana Damrau. What a voice on this woman! You wouldn't know this was her role debut. You would think she'd been singing this for years! I've never seen a Lucia like this. All Lucia's are unique, but this was uniquely unique. It was Lucia, Diana Damrau style. That means it has sass, flair, it's piquant, vibrant. It's everything it should be, but with an edge. That edge is the mad scene. Every soprano is dying to do it, but only few get it just right. Need I say more? It's implied that she got it "just right." I've never seen a Lucia hobble in circles so many times, or stretch across the prompter's box and sing those extremely difficult passages. She had blood on her face, her arms, her dress. It was everywhere! Don't even get me started on this woman's high notes. THE HIGH NOTES! The High Notes. We know she has them from her Queen of the Night, but these are out of this world! All in all, it was ridiculous. It's ludicrous that those sounds can come out of a human being.
Never seen a Lucia quite like it. Beczala and Damrau have a warm and believable chemistry that had me thinking "Oh, I could see that." There was just something very different about how they reacted to each other. With some/most couples it's all about the love they share right now. Lucia and Edgardo are in love right now and yes our families fight, but now we are in love. With these two you can sense their past. You know that they know that they aren't supposed to be together, but it doesn't matter to them. You see the complexities of their relationship without them having to spoon feed it to you.

Dear Marco Armiliato, I salute you. Love, CaroNome of Score Desk.
EPIC. (The chorus, too. Finally catching up to the orchestra!)

To Summarize:
My birthday performance was LUCIA-STYLE EPIC.




Happy Listening!!! =) =)
PS. I apologize for the lateness.
PPS. I always try to make my reviews shorter, but it never works. You can handle that, right?

Birthday Birthday Birthday!!!!

IT'S MY BIRTHDAY IT'S MY BIRTHDAY IT'S MY BIRTHDAY!!!! =)

That's riiiight!!!!! Today is my birthdayyyyy! Not that I'm excited about it or anything...

I saw Lucia di Lammermoor with Diana Damrau last night with some of my friends to celebrate. I might actually be the first girl to ever have her birthday party at the Metropolitan Opera. Thank you, Peter Gelb!!! Hahaha.

I will have to talk about the epic-ness (aka beastliness) of Lucia another time, because I'm awfully busy right now!!!! Go Diana Damrau!!!! =)


Happy Listening!!! =) =)

Lucia Photo Gallery

Congratulations to Diana Damrau on her debut as Lucia!!!!!! What a feat, and at the Metropolitan Opera House! Any worry was for nothing because the reviews were awesome! Raving reviews from the New York Times, Seattle Times, The New Yorker, and the Associated Press are proof that Diana Damrau is the soprano to watch out for. Not that she wasn't before, she was always a force to be reckoned with, but now it's over the top!

The Metropolitan Opera has documented this historic debut in the form of a photo gallery in which Ms. Damrau looks gorgeous (and frightening!!!) as Lucy Ashton.

I can't wait to see her (for my sweet sixteen!!!!!) at the end of the month as Lucia. I'm so excited! I'm taking a few friends to see her and show them the majesty that is Donizetti, Lucia, and Diana Damrau. Is it too much to hope that I can meet her after? Maybe she'll stop by Fiorello's for dinner after the show, like me! =) =) Nah, it's definitely too much to ask for.



Happy Listening!!!! =)
and Congrats to Ms. Damrau again!!!!! =)

Lucia Di Lammermoor at the Met

Lucia- Annick Massis
Edgardo- Marcello Giordani
Lord Enrico Ashton- Mariusz Kweicien
Raimondo- John Relyea
Arturo- Stephen Costello
Alisa- Michaela Martens
Conductor- James Levine
Production- Mary Zimmerman


Okay, the sets weren't bad. I particularly enjoyed the mad scene staircase and the wedding ceremony. Both were very beautiful. The rest of the sets were a little "eh." It's better than some other Lucia's I've seen come from the Met (=O). The stage direction is what really got to me. Every minute Enrico puts his hand on another singers shoulder and after a while I wanted to yell "just stand in place!" There was some unnecessary movement during arias. It looked too forced, the acting was fine, but the direction looked like they didn't know what else to do. When Edgardo crashes the wedding he goes around kicking down all the chairs. For a minute it looks like he's just doing it for fun. Don't get me wrong, Marcello Giordani was ferocious in that scene. WOOF was he ferocious.
I really did like Annick Massis, although I think that some people's reviews of her were too praising. She was very good and her high notes were ringing and shining brightly and her coloratura is like nothing else, but it just lacked some special quality that, say, Beverly Sills or Joan Sutherland had. Her chest voice was booming and delicious, but like I said it lacked a "je ne sais quoi" that I like so much in particular singers. Her mad scene was amazing and the glass armonica was totally creepy. Her high notes and coloratura were, like I said, amazing and really gleamed in the mad scene. Marcello Giordani was brilliant as usual. He sounded so much better last night than he had in the opening night broadcast. He was just beautiful, acting and singing. Mariusz Kweicien and John Relyea were vocally outstanding and played their parts well. Kweicien as malicious as his character needed and Relyea as compassionate.
Two minor roles that really stole the show were Arturo and Alisa. Stephen Costello's 5 second part was stunning. He opened his mouth and we all leaned forward in our seats. It was incredible, I've never heard anything like it! I'm happy he is Edgardo for part of the run because he deserves it! Another stunning performance was Michaela Martens as Alisa. She's another one where she opened her mouth and we shot awake. Okay, that first scene is not exactly the most exciting, but when she came in the second scene her mezzo voice filled the house. During the sextet and the finale of the wedding scene she was the only female voice you could hear. I kept watching Annick Massis's mouth and then realized that it wasn't Lucia who was pounding out those gorgeous notes, it was her maid!
James Levine's conducting was flawless as can be expected. It took him a little while to make his entrance, which caused some nervous shuffling and giggles. Once he was out there he had total control, and he was workin it!!!!! Go Levine, go Levine, it's your birthday, it's your birthday. =)
My advice to Mary Zimmerman: You are very energetic, next time don't direct (let's be frank) an opera with only two exciting scenes. This opera doesn't require much movement, don't force it and next time maybe do something like Le Nozze di Figaro which is non-stop action!!

Happy Listening! =)

Lucia Madness and Other News

I'm extremely overjoyed to announce that a part of Natalie Dessay's mad scene can be heard on youtube. It's not a video (that has been removed from youtube, sorry), but you can hear how well she did. This is the famous "Spargi d'amaro pianto."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XesQJl7PdKY


In other news, it has been announed that Anna Netrebko's Met I Puritani is set to be released on DVD in January!!!!!!! This is very exciting news! Now I'm just waiting for them to announce that Onegin and Barbiere are being released. Those were by far my two favorite broadcasts. To not release them would be a crime on the Met's part.

I've just been notified that the long awaited LA Opera production of La Traviata with La Fleming and Mr. Bean (I mean, Rolando Villazon) is going to be released on October 30th. Oh wow, that seems awful close to my birthday =0 well if that isn't an interesting coincidence... Maybe this year I'll give myself a late birthday present?

TBAs at the Met

After lots of joking around about the many many TBA casting this season, we finaly hear who they are!!!!!

As Edgardo in Lucia di Lammermoor on October 25th is Stephen Costello.
The Lady Macbeths will be both Maria Guleghina and Andrea Gruber. La Guleghina, however, will be getting the bulk of the Macbeth's and even the moviecast!! =O

Lucia di Lammermoor opens this Monday, September 24th. (so excited!)
Macbeth opens on October 22nd. (way to cut it close, guys, good job.)

See the Met website for more details.

Lucia Sextet Party!

(Sorry for the delay. I've been in denial since I left "Barber" last Saturday. I can't stop listening to "Cessa di piu resistere", other Juan Diego Florez works, and various selections from "Barber". It's ridiculous! =) in a good way. However, "A te, o cara", Don Giovanni, and, today's selection, the Lucia di Lammermoor sextet, snapped me back into my old self. And I'm back! *coughs* Lucky you...)

http://youtube.com/watch?v=k5D4jRM1RPc
With two greats, Pav and Cappuccilli. However this clip is entitled "June Anderson in sextet LUCIA DI LAMMERMOOR" so I will mention that, yes, she does sing in this clip. =)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m2rpwS07yKY
With the wonderfully wonderful Dame Joan in her (from the looks of it) younger years. Diction better than what it would become. I love Dame Joan though, her Lucia is just beyond what Donizetti could have ever imagined it to be! (At least I think so...)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GdXP8wvDFc0
Now, I didn't promise they would all be good. Roberto Alagna in this glorious sextet. It took me a minute to figure out whether he had terrible diction, or if it was in French. Turns out it's in French. It looks like the guy singing with Alagna at first is not having a fun time, looks kinda bored. The Lucia looks half mad already. No offense to the clip, it's very well sung.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YTuEBwX8dQk
I love this clip. Maybe it's the stellar line up (Jose Carreras, Katia Ricciarelli, John Paul Bogart, and Leo Nucci) or maybe the visuals. Maybe not Ricciarelli at her absolute best, but still pretty awesome.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cHoXW_FYmNc
This clip is awesome. Carlo Bergonzi, Renata Scotto, with that set and all the men drawing their swords at the same time! It's glorious! Carlo Bergonzi shows why he's the best tenor around. Viva Bergonzi! Some of Scotto's high notes are a little "eh", but still, she's Scotto! What can you do!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m8T-o0-Bo0U
This was my first Lucia sextet and what a whirl! That pushed me over the edge for Donizetti. It was love at first Lucia!!


Thank you to YouTube for allowing people to put these kinds of things on the Internet! Thank you to the people who put them up! Thank you for (hopefully) not getting mad at me for giving the links to your videos, it's only because I love them! =)


Sorry. I'll try to do something "interesting" next time. lol I'm going to do something on "The Turandot Project." It's the movie that changed my life forever, so I'm going to need a lot of time to think, write, rent the DVD and re watch it all, so maybe this weekend? Thanks, y'all.