Jonas Kaufmann in concert with Australian Opera and Ballet Orchestra
under baton of Jochen Rieder at the Sydney Opera House 7pm Sunday 17th
August 2014 (repeat of same concert from Sunday 10th - plus an extra
encore).
Dear colleagues in opera,
We were treated to a magnificent and memorable evening of opera arias
and concert favourites which would be hard to find a rival since the ‘golden age’.
Not since Pavarotti and Sutherland sang in this hall in 1983 have we heard
such glorious vocalism. As well as
having an enormous and beautiful voice Mr Kaufmann is also a very serious
singer. He has clearly studied every
note and every word of each aria, imparting their lines with depth and
meaning. And his command of forte-piano
is consummate, wielding the crescendo-diminuendo like no other singer I have
heard. His pairing with maestro Jochen
Rieder was crucial to the evening, one reason being that some slow tempi chosen
could easily have got out of control.
Both visiting artists are Germans of the same age … they almost look as
if they could be brothers. And the whole
night was about control … breath control, pitch, dramatic and legato control in the context of
big, dramatic vocal delivery.
Of all the facets which opera singers have to master Mr Kaufmann ticks
nearly all the boxes (I don’t recall any trills). The
elements required include good enunciation, on-the-note, rolled ‘r’, true trill, inaudible breaths, long legato lines,
even portamento, colouring of notes, acting and (finally) good looks which all
contribute. And Mr Kaufmann also
possesses that extra special indefinable quality on stage. Maria Callas had it to spare as all the
greats have to some extent. Kaufmann
looks younger than his 44 years and he has a genuine and well humoured
appearance on stage. And he sings what
audiences want to hear. So there you
have it, the “perfect’ tenor … and nothing like the archetypical short, stocky
operatic hero.
Being a single vocalist doing major arias he needed some recovery time
which was ably provided by excellent operatic pieces from the company’s Opera and Ballet Orchestra. It was the last night of their guest lead
violinist (who played the Meditation from Thaïs superbly). It was touching that Mr Kaufmann spoke
briefly to wish her well for the future and thank her for leading such a fine
orchestra in Sydney. And he plucked a
flower from one of the enormous arrangements, presenting it to her with some
gentlemanly style.
My only slight disappointment was a lack of any lesser known aria … or some Wagner perhaps. Mr Kaufmann or his advisors may have been
taking Nellie Melba’s
controversial advice to Clara Butt on tour in Australia: “Sing ’em muck, that’s all they will understand!” There
were no German pieces until two Viennese encores. Virtually all brackets were top-of-the-pops
tenor items. By contrast, a generation
ago, each of the Three Tenors sang ‘E la solita storia del pastore…’ from L’Arlessiana in their concerts – something few of us will ever hear in the
full opera. Another regret is that no
other singer was showcased, nor the marvellous chorus of our opera company … but that is show-biz.
I was also perplexed that both halves started with a concert piece. Knowing the need to space out the vocalist’s high-octane output it would have seemed
more logical to get on with it early.
The rousing overture to the Sicilian Vespers was followed by Cavaradossi’s act I aria Recondita armonia from
Tosca. The Louisiana music from Manon
Lescaut preceded the improvviso from Andrea Chenier by Giordano. Then we had the Forza del Destino overture
followed by its long tenor aria ‘La vita è inferno
all'infelice’. The entr’e act from Pagliacci was followed by ‘Recitar … Vesti la giubba’ to end the first half to an enormous
(sitting) ovation.
The bacchanale from Saint-Saens’ Samson and Delilah was followed by the flower song
from Carmen. The meditation from Thaïs
by Massenet. “Pouquoi me reveiller?” from Werther. Intermezzo from Cavalleria Rusticana then ‘Mama, quel vino e generoso’.
After a universal standing ovation with serious foot stamping four
encores started with Du bist die welt by Tauber (tenor and composer); E
lucevan le stelle (Tosca); Catari … Cor ngrato (written in Neapolitan dialect by American
Cordillo); You are my heart’s delight (verses in German then English). Mostly Italian, but four other languages for
the evening!
It is clear that here is a man at the peak of his vocal and artistic talents
who has discovered his extended staying power, like a marathon runner. On the one hand he can sing extended roles
like Siegmund and Parsifal … and happily he can also sing up to a dozen arias for a concert like
this … which otherwise would need
three or more ‘normal’ tenors!
Comments by Andrew Byrne ..
