Just 6 new shows in Vienna Opera’s season
OperaTempted?
DON CARLO (Giuseppe Verdi) – September 26, 2024
Musical direction: Philippe Jordan / Direction: Kirill Serebrennikov
with Joshua Guerrero, Asmik Grigorian, Roberto Tagliavini, Étienne Dupuis, Eve-Maud Hubeaux, Dmitry Ulyanov
FIN DE PARTIE (György Kurtág) – October 16, 2024
Musical direction: Simone Young / Production: Herbert Fritsch
with Georg Nigl, Philippe Sly, Charles Workman, Hilary Summers
THE MAGIC FLUTE (Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) – January 27, 2025
Musical direction: Franz Welser-Möst / Production: Barbora Horáková
with Ludwig Mittelhammer, Julian Prégardien, Georg Zeppenfeld, Serena Sáenz, Slávka Zámečníková
NORMA (Vincenzo Bellini) – February 22, 2025
Musical direction: Michele Mariotti / Staging: Cyril Teste
with Federica Lombardi, Juan Diego Flórez, Ildebrando D’Arcangelo, Vasilisa Berzhanskaya
IOLANTA (Piotr I. Tchaikovsky) – March 24, 2025
Musical direction: Tugan Sokhiev / Production: Evgeny Titov
with Sonya Yoncheva, Dmytro Popov, Boris Pinkhasovich
TANNHÄUSER (Richard Wagner) – May 22, 2025
Musical direction: Philippe Jordan / production by Lydia Steier
with Clay Hilley, Malin Byström, Günther Groissböck, Ludovic Tézier, Ekaterina Gubanova
Should we really call them ‘shows’? This smacks of Radio 3 and its stable-mate Classic FM…
If we call the ouvertures or the arias “songs”, then yes.
6 new shows. And it is enough. We do not go to opera to see the last stupid ideas of narcisistic directors. We go to listen great music. The casts in Vienna at the next season are far better than Paris, London ou NY. It is what really matter.
“We do not go to opera to see the last stupid ideas of narcisistic directors.”
and Lydia Steier?
Nothing is perfect.
Norma with Lombardi and Florez! Are you kidding me?! Both are excellent singers, do not get me wrong.
However, Ms. Lombardi is a lyric soprano and not a dramatic coloratura, which the tremendously difficult role of Norma requires. She is an excellent Countess in the Marriage of Figaro as well as Mimi in Boheme, both of which are lyric soprano roles.
I heard her sing Donna Anna live at the Met last year, and it was pretty terrible. She was forcing her voice, it was terribly out of tune and she couldn’t handle the coloratura. Again, this is not because of her abilities, or lack thereof, she just does not possess the right type of voice for a role like this.
When I think of an ideal Norma, Callas, Ponselle, Caballe and Sutherland all come to mind. This role requires one of the most extreme ranges in opera with one of the highest coloraturas ever written. Additionally, there are such long, sustained lines that I do not believe Ms. Lombardi has the equipment to handle
The same applies to Mr Florez, who is possibly the world’s greatest leggero tenor in recent years. His lightweight, flexible voice is suited for Rossini roles and the lightest Donizetti and Bellini roles, which he sings masterfully. On the other hand, Pollione requires a much heavier spinto (or even dramatic) tenor voice like that of a Del Monaco, Corelli or Prevedi.
It’s sad to see how agents and politics are destroying the artistic quality of opera performances. Of course, this has been a problem for decades and the Vienna State opera is notorious for their constant wheeling and dealing.
The casting for this production, however, is reflective of a new low.
Well said! But Vienna has two houses, and one should mention which of the two he/she is mentioning.
Vienna has 3 houses actually – well, 4, if you count the Kammeroper, managed by the Theater an der Wien …
I see Clay Hilley has already stepped into a Stephen Gould-shaped hole. He replaced him in Bayreuth last year before we all heard the terrible news. Clay is very good, he’ll go far.
Seeing there wil be a production of ‘Norma’ reminds me of what I considered an excellent new production of the work in that house by Piero Faggioni with Caballe and Cossotto and conducted by Muti in early 1977. At the end there was almost a fight in the auditorium, half the patrons applauding and cheering, the other half booing and jeering. It felt more like a bear pit than an opera house. I don’t think since then I have ever attended any performance anywhere with such an audience ‘split’. It seems now to have become mostly one or the other, or one with the a small part of the other.