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!!!!! =)

3 New Desert Island CD's.

If you asked me "If you were stranded on a desert island and you could only choose a few CDs to bring with you, what would they be?" I would take a ridiculously long time to figure it out. Two that would immediately come to mind are the Solti Le Nozze di Figaro and one Renee Fleming disc (not sure which one...) I'd want to take all of mine of course, but only a few... Hmm...

Recently I was told that I needed to branch out more, listen to different things. Here I am thinking I've got a pretty diverse "repertoire." From Russian opera to German opera to Italian opera and some other obscure languages in between. Apparently I was mistaken. While the comment was intended to push me in a more contemporary direction, I took it in the exact opposite direction. (I'm a firm believer in going back before going forward.) In an attempt to push my boundaries into the past, I purchased Patricia Petibon's "French Baroque Arias" and Diana Damrau's "Arie di Bravura." I made a pact with myself that I wouldn't rush to the songs I knew, but listen to the entire disc.














What a revelation! I'm listening nonstop to these two fabulous artists in arias that I have never heard before, but now can't live without! Consider these added to my Desert Island Collection.
Diana Damrau's stunning voice flowed through these arias with ease and precision. Having only heard two songs from this CD (both Queen of the Night arias) I was a little nervous about my pact. I put on the CD and at the first song I was hooked! Diana Damrau is fabulous!
I first discovered Patricia Petibon from Sarah Noble's "Tubular Belles" and I am sooooooo thankful for it. Not only is this glorious soprano out of her mind, she sings like an angel and has introduced me to wonderful new (well...old) baroque arias! Her Doll Song from Hoffmann that is on youtube had me falling out of my seat. Let's just say, you've never seen a doll break down like this before. Some people find it vulgar, or something, but I think it's wonderful!


Another disc that I recently acquired is Rolando Villazon's "Cielo e Mar". I feel like I'm branching out with this disc also, although it's still in my "comfort zone" which is more in the Romantic style.
Having obviously heard "Cielo e Mar" before, but nothing else on the disc I made the same pact that I had with the above CD's. I had avoided Villazon's recordings before because (I'm going to be brutally honest) most were with Anna Netrebko and I do not like how her voice sounds IN RECORDINGS. (keys words there) I bought this after hearing from various sources how wonderful it was and I'm happy I took their advice. Rolando Villazon is truly one of the great voices of our generation. Two of my favorite arias from this CD (besides "Cielo e mar") are the Mercadente aria from Il Giuramento and the aria from Adriana Lecouvreur, but I love them all!
Another addition to my Desert Island Collection!



I advice a speedy purchase of these three wonderful albums. You won't regret it, I promise!



Happy Listening!!! =)

"Abduction"'s Endless Sparkling and Wagner Retires

The New York Times review of "Abduction from Seraglio" in three sentences:
Diana Damrau's singing, acting, and person in general was sparkling. The rest of the cast sparkled brilliantly also. They lit up the city with said sparkling.

In case you want to read the actual review, here it is. Mine is better though. Nah nah.



Wolfgang Wagner has resigned from his position as head of the Bayreuth opera festival. He was head for at least 57 years, to my understanding. It is not clear who is taking over the festival, Katharina or Eva. After Katharina's disaster a few months ago, I'm sort of voting in the other direction. Having said that, I don't know what kind of person Eva is, so I won't judge. I'll leave it open for the Wagnerites to shed blood over. Not being a Wagnerite, I will stay out of it.



Happy Listening!!! =)