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Financial Times, 10 February 2017 |
by: Richard Fairman |
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Wagner-Konzert, London, Barbican, 8. Februar 2017 |
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A brooding, romantic Jonas Kaufmann at the Barbican
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The German tenor warmed to his task in an all-Wagner London concert |
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There had to be Wagner. Although Jonas Kaufmann is widely hailed as the
leading German tenor of his generation, he is more likely to be found
singing Verdi and Puccini or the operas of the Italian verismo school in the
theatre. Perhaps he is keen to keep his sanity by retaining as wide a range
of roles as he can.
Whatever the reason, his Wagner appearances
remain sought-after dates in his diary. It was an obvious high point for the
“Kaufmann Residency” at the Barbican to include Act One of Die Walküre in
the company of Antonio Pappano and the London Symphony Orchestra. By and
large the occasion did not disappoint.
As a Wagnerian hors d’oeuvre
Kaufmann offered the Wesendonck-Lieder, which he has sung before in London
at a celebrity concert. Wagner intended these songs for a female singer and
it may be that a male voice, lower within the orchestra, stands out less
prominently. The vocal writing lies well for him, though, and he scores in
an expressive sense by phrasing the music in whole sentences.
Kaufmann’s cautious start in those may have been the result of his long
break for illness, but he warmed up gradually in Die Walküre. Heroic power
has never been this tenor’s claim to the Wagner repertoire. He excels in the
brooding, romantic warmth of his voice and a musicality that respects words
and the vocal line, making his Siegmund more the matinee idol than the
swashbuckling hero. In this concert the high-octane performance came from
Karita Mattila’s charismatic Sieglinde, who is still a force to reckon with.
She sang fearlessly and seemed charged with electricity even when she was
seated waiting her turn. With Eric Halfvarson as the big-voiced, baleful
Hunding, they made a strong cast.
Pappano’s Wagner, mostly broad and
richly lyrical, is a well-known quantity from the Royal Opera House.
Unfortunately, he had the LSO on less than note-perfect form, sounding
unsure of the slow pulse in the Prelude to Tristan und Isolde and letting
through minor slips every so often. That was not enough to stop the standing
ovation at the end — a reminder that Kaufmann’s first Wagner with the Royal
Opera is overdue.
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