ROSSINIANA #17

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ROSSINI 

... why does the fact that your birthday falls on a Leap Year seem so appropriate and fitting? You are probably the MOST FAMOUS Leap Year guy ever (the only other contenders I could dig up were an odd group--Dinah Shore, Jimmy Dorsey, Michele Morgan, Balthus and the coloratura soprano Reri Grist-- incidentally she sang a mean Rosina in her day). 

Well, here's a special serenade delivered by one of the few remaining descendants of that turkey you so tragically dumped into Lake Como many years ago (for those of you to whom this is  a puzzling reference look back at ROSSINIANA #2). BLO wishes you many happy returns and hopes to see you at the BARBER opening in a few days.

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David Angus ... watch out!

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hey ... man ... REAL cool ...

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hey ... man ... cool ...

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"I know of no more admirable occupation than eating"

                                       Rossini

"Caruso can have his spaghetti with chicken livers, Nellie Melba her toast and peaches. When it comes to Rossini it's all truffles, foie gras and Madeira sauce. Tournedos Rossini, perhaps the most famous of the dishes identified with him, consists of a filet mignon sauteed in butter, then placed on a crouton, also sauteed in butter. This assembly is topped with foie gras and truffles and anointed with a rich Madeira sauce. This recipe was one that Rossini is reputedly said to have suggested to the chef at the Cafe Anglais, the Le Cirque of the Second Empire. The name supposedly came about like this: the maitre d'hotel prepared this dish at tableside but with his back to the other customers so that they would not witness its excesses ... thus the French phrase--"tourner le dos"--became tournedos."

                                        Florence Fabricant (New York Times food editor) 

"We are unwell. It is from eating too much. The Maestro and I live to eat ... I am the fat woman who is occupied from morning to evening in digesting.

                                        Olympe (Rossini's wife writing to a friend)

"Appetite is for the stomach what love is for the heart ... The stomach is the conductor who rules the grand orchestra of our passion ... Eating, loving, singing, and digesting are, in truth, the four acts of the comic opera known as life."

                                         Rossini

Classic Tournedos Rossini

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OK, now it's the LOOK that's a bit bizarre but ... what singing! Rossini in his grandest opera mode (plus a little visit with one of the famous divas).

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... and speaking of bizarre ...

 

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A famously bizarre cartoon by Tex Avery from 1952. After its release, it was sometimes censored--the Chinese and black face bits edited out. But it was also selected in 1993  for preservation in the Library of Congress's National Film registry as being "culturally, historically or aesthetically significant." Apologies for the poor visual quality of this clip ... but you get the idea.

First time Figaro

My name is Jonathan Beyer and I will be singing Figaro, aka “The Barber,” in The Barber of Seville, here at Boston Lyric Opera. I am beyond thrilled to be here. This will be my debut with the company and my debut in this role. Although Figaro’s aria is probably the most famous in the entire repertoire, I haven’t sung any of it until now.

It is a thrilling experience.

I actually am no stranger to Boston. I am from Chicago originally but spent my first two years of college at the Boston Conservatory studying composition and piano. My junior year of college I decided to head back to Chicago and give singing a try. I’m pretty sure I made the right choice. Not only because I've enjoyed success as a singer but because I was a pretty lousy composer! ☺

Performing a role for the first time can be rather daunting. My fellow castmates have already had huge successes in major houses singing these roles. There is a desire to make sure that I keep up with the brilliance and experience they bring to each rehearsal. Each has a fantastic bag of vocal fireworks and hilarious stage gags. Everyone is so fantastic and I am confident that this production will be not only musically astounding but also a laugh riot!

The conductor for our production is Maestro David Angus. He is really spectacular and has such a wonderful feel and energy for the music of Rossini. He has been working with me closely as we determine which ornaments to use for this production. It is tradition to add a great deal of flourishes, additional high notes, and crazy coloratura passages to each piece. We get to start from scratch and pick ornaments that are flashy but tasteful and really represent the drama on stage.

Our director is Doug Varone. He is not only a great director but has a very successful dance company and extensive dance background. He has really been helping us this week create our characters as well as making some fantastic visuals for the audience. It is a very physical and fun production so far! We've finished staging Act 1 … a rather remarkable accomplishment to stage 300 pages in 4 days!

The cast is filled with amazing performers and singers. John Tessier as Count Almaviva has mind blowing high notes and wickedly fast coloratura. As Bartolo, Steven Condy is not only a great singer but an absolutely hilarious actor. His comic antics are matched with the hilarious comic timing of our Berta, Judith Christin. David Cushing has an incredibly impressive sound and Gregory Gerbrandt not only sings a beautiful Fiorello but plays some mean guitar in this show as well.

That leaves us with the Rosina of Sarah Coburn. I have been completely obsessed with her voice since I first heard it when we were singing at Chicago Opera Theater in 2006. I have never experienced such beauty, flexibility, power, and style in a soprano. Her singing is exquisite, she is absolutely gorgeous, charming on stage. Being able to share the stage with this remarkable talent is such an honor.

I cannot wait to perform this show with her!

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One piano--six hands

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Sir Arthur Sullivan (of Gilbert and Sullivan fame) visited Rossini one morning. When he entered the house, Rossini was feverishly working on a piece of music. Sullivan asked, "Why, what is that?" Rossini answered him most seriously, "It's my dog's birthday and I write a little piece for him each year."

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Figaro on ice

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This may, in the end, be the most famous performance of Figaro ever. 

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Great hair

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Maria Callas sang Rosina on the stage only once in a run of performances at La Scala in 1956 but her recording made a year later with the feisty Figaro of Titto Gobbi and lovely lyrical Almaviva of Luigi Alva is one of the most persuasive performances of the opera on CD. Her "Una voce poco fa" from a concert in Hamburg reveals Callas's unique take on the role--spicy, mischievous, even a bit dangerous.

      

An  fascinating historic recording of the famous coloratura Amelita Galli-Curci (made in 1917 ) obviously reveals an entirely different approach but one not without charm and revealing some extraordinary singing technique.

      

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And here's another Rossini overture ... 

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“I love Italian opera- it’s so reckless. Damn Wagner , and his bellowings at Fate and Death. Damn Debussy, and his adverted face I like the Italians like Rossini  who run all on impulse, don’t care a damn about their immortal souls, and don’t worry about the ultimate."
                                             D H Lawrence   (1913)



"I have cried three times in my life: once at the fiasco of the opening night of Barber; the second when I heard  Patti sing for the first time and once when I, while on a picnic cruise, inadvertently  tipped a truffle-stuffed turkey into Lake Como."                                                                               
                                             Rossini

ROSSINIANA #1

Well it's the opening day of rehearsal and we have 26 more days (of intense work by the singers and production staff ) until you have your first chance to see BLO's colorful production of Rossini's masterpiece THE BARBER of SEVILLE. I thought it might be fun to having a running, daily check-in with Rossini's world  here on the blog ... consisting of anecdotes, film clips, various (and wildly varied) performances of his music, etc. I think Rossini  himself, a sardonic self critic, fabled raconteur, and creator of exemplary (even manic) musical wit might well be intrigued or charmed at what we turn up--or perhaps in some cases amusingly  appalled with what has been done in his name. Enjoy.

--John Conklin

----

What better way to kick off than with an Overture:

What's for Dinner on THE LIGHTHOUSE?

If you're on a Scottish lighthouse in 1900, it's a family style plate of oatcakes and pilchards. At least, those are the two items mentioned in the libretto of Peter Maxwell Davies' opera The Lighthouse. As the Assistant Stage Manager in charge of props, food preparation falls into my domain, but I'll admit I did enlist the help of fellow ASM Ginger Castleberry when plating the most pungent of the fish.

We learned from our British director Tim Albery, British conductor, David Angus, and Canadian designer Camillia Koo that oatcakes are a familiar sight in English and Canadian grocery stores, but they were not as easy to find in Boston. A specialty shop in Harvard Square carried some, but finally, our props master ordered the preferred brand online for us to use for the show.

The creative team wanted to stay faithful to the story and have the singers eat real pilchards (canned fish), so we brought a variety of sardines to try. Packed in oil? Too messy. Packed in water? Just as smelly. With mustard? Didn't help the appeal. After a couple rounds of deli meat cut in strips stage management hoped would pass as pilchards, the winner was canned chicken - a little bit flaky like fish and moist enough to be palatable for the singers to eat between lines in the opera.

Wash it all down with water dyed brown to look like tea (most performers don't like to drink caffeine during a show), and you've got a balanced lighthouse meal. Don't forget to save some for the rats!

--Courtney Rizzo, Assistant Stage Manager

Lighthouses in peril

Thanks to everyone who joined us last night for the opening performance of our third Opera Annex, The Lighthouse. Join us tonight for another stunning performance and prepare yourself with this video of lighthouses in peril. The music is Mozart's Requiem, but perhaps it should be Verdi's Requiem ...

Know of other haunted, perilous lighthouse locations? Share them in the comments.