johnwilsonemiEssential Opera – John Wilson & the RTÉ Concert Orchestra 19th September 2013 | Review

Featuring a selection of classics from the opera repertoire, newly appointed principal conductor John Wilson led the RTÉ Concert Orchestra in what was a largely successful night. While the programme could hardly be described as adventurous, the near full house was clearly appreciative.  Presenting works in this way, out of the context of the opera as a whole, is not without its potential pitfalls – jumps in tone and style are almost inevitable. To be fair to Wilson, he managed on this occasion to draw together a fairly coherent programme. The orchestra, too, dealt well with the shifts in approach asked of them by the different pieces.

Following the Overture to Verdi’s La Forza del Destino, the first of the evenings’ three guest soloists took to the stage to perform the final aria from that opera – Pace, Pace Mi Dio – with Maria Luigia Borsi bringing a suitably impassioned energy to the role of Leonora. The final Verdi selection of the evening – La Donna e Mobile from Rigoletto – featured the young Mexican tenor Jesús León. This much-loved work, was well received – although Leon at times struggled to match the orchestra’s volume.

Bizet’s Habanera, from Carmen, brought us the voice of Kai Rüütel, the young Estonian mezzo-soprano. Wilson – an enthusiastic but restrained conductor – drew a controlled and balanced performance from the orchestra. Rüütel’s voice was shown to be equal to the challenge of this most famous aria. Massenet, successful in his own time, is now known best for just two of his operas – Thais and Werther – selections from both of which were performed. The Meditation from Thais, a sweetly lyrical instrumental piece led by first violin Mia Cooper, managed to avoid the oversentimentality so easily brought to the work. This is followed by Werther! Qui M’aurait dit la Place – Rüütel’s voice underpinned by some sensitive playing, especially from the celli and basses.  Puccini’s duet from Madame Butterfly, Viene la Sera, sees Borsi and León retake the stage. A beautiful love song, full of desire and longing, the two singers bring a good chemistry to their respective parts – although again they struggle at times to be heard over the orchestra.

Post-interval both the soloists and orchestra appear enervated, the playing and singing having a sense of energy that until this point was somewhat lacking. The overture to Rossini’s The Barber of Seville gets things underway, before Rüütel returns to the stage for Donizetti’s Il Segreto per Esser Felici from Lucrezia Borgia – a lively and light-hearted drinking song. Jesús León also seems to have found some extra volume during the interval – his performance of Puccini’s E Lucevan le Stelle finding him in much more robust voice.

Maria Luigia Borsi gave perhaps the finest performance of the night, her voice filling the hall for Alfredo Catalani’s Ebben? No Andro Lontana from La Wally. A dramatic – melodramatic – story of love, loss and tragedy, with Rüütel’s tone and considerable poise bringing a sense of real class to the aria.  An instrumental interlude in the form of Pontichelli’s Dance of the Hours – used to such effect in Disney’s Fantasia, complete with dancing hippos – brings a little lightness before the final two pieces. Camille Saint-Saens Mon Coeur S’ouvre a ta Voix, with Kai Rüütel again showing the strength and range of her voice to great effect. The last selection, the finale to Giacomo Puccini’s La Boheme, finds both vocalists and orchestra in fine voice.

John Wilson – the Principal Conductor Designate, due to take up the post full-time in 2014 – is a welcome presence, bringing a controlled enthusiasm to the RTÉ Concert Orchestra. For a capital city with no dedicated opera house – and, despite the best efforts of the artists involved, a limited number of productions – there is clearly an audience there for this music. On the evidence of this evening’s performance, the RTÉ Concert Orchestra is in capable hands.

Soloists
Maria Luigia Borsi – Soprano
Kai Rüütel – Mezzo-Soprano
Jesús León – Tenor