THE VIENNESE SCHOOLS / NAFA Orchestra & Chorus / Review

THE VIENNESE SCHOOLS

NAFA Orchestra & Chorus

Lee Foundation Theatre

Thursday (30 October 2014)

This review was published in The Straits Times on 1 November 2014 with the title "In the spirit of Mozart".

The title of this concert by the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts Orchestra and Chorus refers to the two historical movements centred in Vienna that revolutionised the course of Western music. The first was the classical school of Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven, while the second was represented by the 20^th century atonality of Schoenberg, Berg and Webern.

The evening’s very short first half comprised wholly of Anton Webern’s Six Orchestral Pieces Op.6, epitome of terseness and astringency that characterised the Austrian’s output. Its emphasis was on creating a specific tonal colour, known as klangfarb in German, rather than portraying a scene or mood. To this end conductor Lim Yau succeeded in coaxing a fine balance of sound from the young musicians.

Although certain solos sometimes struggled in their parts, there was an arch-like development to the pivotal 4^th movement, where percussion and winds managed to convincingly craft a crescendo of shattering and cataclysmic impact. The programme notes referred to the death of Webern’s mother as an influence, but this is absolute music at its purest and most uncompromising.

Mozart’s Requiem in D minor was the prime reason why this concert was very well attended. Conductor Lim elected to perform Robert Levin’s revision of the classic instead of the familiar and commonly heard Franz Sussmayr version. Levin was considered to have come closer to the spirit of the composer in a masterpiece that was left tantalisingly incomplete on his deathbed.

This meant paring down the orchestration in certain parts to better highlight the choir and altering some un-Mozartian quirks in the score. In the same spirit, basset horns favoured by the composer were employed instead of clarinets in this performance. A further addition was a new fugal Amen which followed the Lacrimosa, Mozart’s final utterance.

Typical of choirs trained by Lim, the NAFA Chorus was well-disciplined, accurate in pronunciation and consonants, and generally immaculate in fugal passages. Of sturdy and robust voice, the women outnumbered and out-sang the men; the latter group could do with further boosting and the vocal equivalent of Viagra. Their entry in Confutatis Maledictis was rather flaccid, for example.

The quartet of soloists, formed by faculty and students, were in good form and complemented each other well. They were introduced in sequence in Tuba Mirum, baritone Huang Rong-Hai, tenor Jeremy Koh, mezzo-soprano Jessica Chen and soprano Su Yiwen. From the opening Kyrie Eleison to the final Cum Sanctis Tuis, this was a very satisfying performance, filled with conviction and passion.

Tenor Jeremy Koh and baritone Huang Rong Hai.

Soprano Su Yiwen and mezzo-soprano Jessica Chen.

The concert was dedicated to the memory of Leong Yoon Pin, Lim Shieh Yih and Ong Lip Tat, all of whom were giants – figuratively and literally - of NAFA and Singapore music.

MOZART'S DON GIOVANNI / Singapore Lyric Opera / Review

MOZART’S DON GIOVANNI
Singapore Lyric Opera
Esplanade Theatre
Saturday (25 February 2012)

This review was published in The Straits Times on 27 February 2012 with the title "Don of a new age".

Considering that Don Giovanni is widely regarded as Mozart’s greatest opera, it comes as some surprise that the Singapore Lyric Opera had waited some 20 years to stage it. This may be due to the fact that there had been two previous productions in Singapore during the late 1980s and mid-1990s by groups from Britain and Hungary. This, the first featuring all Asian voices, however has much to recommend.

First, veteran director Tom Hawkes does not tamper with the story or setting as a tragicomedy and morality tale, instead allowing the relationships between the characters to be clearly defined. The two lead baritones, Song Kee Chang’s Don Giovanni and Huang Rong Hai’s Leporello, shared a marvellous chemistry together as master and serf (above). Huang’s comical mix of hero-worship and contempt for the Don was well characterised, as was Song’s nonchalant and callous way with women.

The excellent supporting cast was completely Singaporean, now achievable because a critical mass of experienced and young local opera singers exists today. Rising to the fore was soprano Cherylene Liew’s sympathetic portrayal of purity and goodness in the role of Zerlina (above). Her two arias Batti batti, Vedrai carino and the famous duet La ci darem la mano with the Don call to notice an impressive new talent.

But why was tenor Melvin Tan’s believable Don Ottavio denied his few minutes in the limelight of Il mio tesoro? Its excision to keep the show under three hours (the final curtain came down one minute before eleven) seemed cruel. He and relative veterans Nancy Yuen (Donna Anna), Yee Ee Ping (Donna Elvira), William Lim (The Commendatore), Martin Ng (Masetto) and the dependable SLO Orchestra conducted by Joshua Kangming Tan provided a firm bedrock to the proceedings.

Unlike the two previous productions which barely had sets to speak of, Christopher Chua’s backdrops were effective and simple, with an emphasis on stone that seemed to pre-empt the arrival of the stone guest for the final dinner scene. The Don’s fire and brimstone comeuppance, a rare scene with three low male voices (below) and an opportunity for special stage effects, however seemed a tad underwhelming.

With the unrepentant philanderer safely dispatched to Hades, the final sextet was a joyous denouement but was the descending image of a crucified Jesus Christ’s head appropriate? Surely this sent mixed signals about sin, recalcitrance and eternal damnation. Or had the Don made yet another one of his audacious escapes?

This production of Don Giovanni plays at Esplanade Theatre 8 pm this evening (Monday 27 February) and runs till tomorrow (Tuesday 28 February).