The opera season in Marseilles.

Past events.
On the 26th of september, Andrea Chenier opened the Season in Marseilles.
It was neither a striking performance nor a bad one. There was a major change in the cast as the soprano Sylvie Valayre could not make it. Irene Cerboncini had every thing to make a convincing Madeleine in love with the poet, but she evidently started this role and did not move according to the dramatic crescendo of the plot. Andrea on the contrary was quite at ease on stage but had no tops left and only at the end really gave a soft rendition which was much nicer than what I heard from him during the whole opera. The only striking voices came from the bass ones and the baritone Marco di Felice who stole the show: Beautiful rendition and acting, so the audience clapped a lot and the opening season was nicer from my point of view than last year. The orchestra did not over do it as often.
The staging was fine, quite stunning at the end. I cannot explain why I am not really fond of this music though some arias are fine.
I was not moved probably because I had the impression of reading a page of French history where some characters did not seem to be involved. And the music sounded crafty.

Production de l'Opéra de Monte-Carlo

Direction musicale Fabrizio Maria Carminati­
Mise en scène Claire Servais
Assistant à la mise en scène ­Xavier Laforge
Décors Dominique Pichou
Costumes Christian Gasc

Madeleine de Coigny Irène Cerboncini
Comtesse de Coigny, Madelon Eugénie Grünewald
Bersi Varduhi Abrahamyan
Andrea Chénier Zoran Todorovich
Charles Gérard Marco di Felice
Un majordome, Schmidt Jean Marie Delpas­
L'abbé Guy Gabelle
Mathieu Philippe Ermelier
Un Incroyable Rémy Corazza
Roucher André ­Heyboer ­
Fouquier-Tinville Jean-Pascal Introvigne

Orchestre et Choeur de l'Opéra de Marseille

Just a thought .

Music at the Cernuschi Museum.

"Felice" yes,what a relief...

Thanks for this upload on youtube to prestigiosoGaston!

Just a thought ! (message from Shanghaï)

Music for the 'Missing link'
from Cernuschi Museum ....


10月8日下午，国际著名语言学、语音学家、法国国家科研中心语音所所长D H应邀来我院访问，并为我院师生做了题为“Speech Prosody - the missing link between text and speech”的学术报告。外国语学院院长马秋武教授主持了报告会，我院的部分老师和研究生聆听了该报告会。



H教授首先从文字和言语之间的区别和联系分析介绍什么是韵律，简而言之“speech = text + prosody“。并进一步从不同的语言实例介绍韵律的功能，指出韵律的几个声学参数之间的相互关联性。最后还介绍了分析韵律的方法和工具，比如t本人创立的INTSINT语调标注系统、以及他本人编制的Momel韵律自动分析软件等。



H教授对韵律的发展有很多国际前沿方面的研究成果，这次报告是他正在撰写的关于韵律专著的入门部分，跟我院师生的互动将会给他的专著提供更多的问题进行思考。H教授的报告语言生动形象、讲解深入浅出，大家的注意力被他幽默活泼的话语深深吸引，不知不觉中两小时就过去了，大家仍意犹未尽。H教授表示下次将再赴同济给大家介绍他专著的第二部分。



报告会结束之后，外国语学院党委书记吕培明教授带领H 教授参观了同济大学的校园。我院活泼好学的同学还有金桂飘香的美丽校园都给H教授留下了深刻的印象。

So long...

La Stupenda.
Applause for ever.
Lucia ROH 1959. Amazing.

SmorgZone: Vesselina Kasarova: Passionate Arias

SmorgZone: Vesselina Kasarova: Passionate Arias

End of September in Paris.Vesselina Kasarova at Pleyel.

Two days in Paris: 27Sept, 28Sept, two musical events in the evening, the Flying Dutchman at Opera Bastille, then L'enfance du Christ at Pleyel. Two museums during daytime, Monet exhibition at the Grand Palais, then Cernuschi Museum. Still, I had time to feel the autumn touch in Parc Monceau, coming out of Musée Cernuschi and waiting for the Pleyel concert. Now, I try to group my outings in the same area, it saves travelling and gives me a better idea of the spot. Place des Ternes is keeping a poetic atmosphere with the flower stands in the middle. A pity there are no benches, and no kiosque à musique for either les amoureux de Peynet or those of Brassens 'les bancs publics'...and too much traffic around! In the Fnac nearby there was a nice selection of Vesselina kasarova's CDs, among them, "Passionate Arias" which is a good introduction to her voice and art:Passion is what is really the chore of her voice, with easy tops and rich low ones. All that with brassy harmonics and sometimes her own stress which is like her heart beat. When I really discovered her through the smashing Smorg's writings and samples, I knew she would fit in my mezzo family, along with the old and recent ones. Having been fed on Rita Gorr's voice, I now try to find my own mezzo. I thought I had found her in Joyce Di Donato and Sonia Ganassi who are really good but do not have that special tinge, that deep resounding and passion. They seem more tamed and following the rules. Of course there is Cecilia Bartoli, I would say Cecilia is absolutely standing on very special grounds... hors concours...Assoluta in her own ways!
Vesselina was au rendez-vous at Salle Pleyel on the 28th, for a graceful Berlioz evening : L'enfance du Christ. She was Mary, in excellent company with bass Laurent Naouri-Hérode and the Good man, tenor Paul Groves as The Narrator, baritone Matthiew Brook-Joseph. With Laurence Equilbey and her chorus Accentus plus the juvenile voices from La Maîtrise de Paris, Berlioz had soft curves and beautiful slow rocking choral tunes. I simply loved it all. It was such a peaceful and dramatic musical evening. Vesselina 's voice was perhaps unexpected there. She managed to keep her natural passion to serve the purpose of the biblical tale and its strange atmosphere, I thought she participated in giving a natural version, almost like a naïve and moving tale, not a religious one with that special spirit of Christmas, almost like Dicken's tale. Herode, in his beautiful aria 'O misère de Rois'sounded more like a sad philosoher, not the dreadful tyrant he really was. At the Interlude, this duet between harp and flute at the Good Man's house for a peaceful rest after the nightmare of the Flight to Egypt, Laurence Equilbey smiled at us and the solists, turned back, and sat on her stand, enjoying this chamber music like us: a moment of bliss for the conductor! The audience was very cheerful. I was really pleased to actually meet Vesselina Kasarova ( next to me was sitting a true fan of hers who took me to her dressing-room door, sometimes there are strange lucky coincidence in this artistic world). Such a beautiful person, natural, looking at you straight in the eyes! Wonderful! I asked permission for this photo. (another fan standing at the back of the picture).

I will see her in Alcina at the TCE at the end of November.I can't wait...
Pleyel programme : Berlioz L'enfance du christ (notes in french).

And perhaps not the last rose of summer for Vesselina, I can hear her sing this tune...

No need to cry ! good review from La Stampa!!

Pict from La stampa

Happy news! And I love the description of the tension during the trial aria..una furtiva lacrima.
Yes, it is a 'revenge' although I wonder whether this type of feeling belongs to Rolando Villazon 's turn of mind. It is a Victory not a revenge.
Hold on Rolando... and at the end show them your lucky pants...at the last performance, they will not have the knack to boo...