60th Wexford Festival Opera Expressions & Impressions – part 1
8 December 2011 |
Posted by George Fleeton |
60th Wexford Festival Opera - Expressions & Impressions – part 1
By George Fleeton
It is a principal characteristic of the human voice, whether speaking or singing, that it instinctively and immediately exteriorises, expresses the emotions that are felt at that moment.
It is always possible to dissimulate of course, to be less than honest, but we can spot that for it also shows in the voice.
If an opera singer enters the full state of mind and feeling of the character he is acting and singing, we know because those emotions should reach out and touch us. How and how often does that happen?
How sensitive are we to this encounter with the technique, colour, timbre and dynamism of the singing voice. What impressions does such expressionism leave with us and for how long afterwards?
On a fourth consecutive visit to Wexford (October 27-29), it was much easier to find one’s way about and to hit the target when anticipating the highlights.There were three of these, seen and heard mid-festival: an evening main stage opera from Poland, an afternoon short work by Puccini, and a lunch time recital by an Irish soprano. All three events were paragons of successfully expressive communication that left lasting but variant impressions.
During that short visit to Wexford Festival Opera’s 60th season, it was possible to attend and to appreciate three Lunchtime Recitals, two afternoon Short Works, a Brass Concert, two Talks, and the three evening Main Stage operas.
Each and all of those deserve comment and will be fully reviewed here on DownNews in the coming days.
Meanwhile the dates and three principal operas for next year at Wexford were announced last month: October 24 – November 04, 2012, during which there will be four performances each of Mercadante’s Francesca da Rimini, Chabrier’s Le Roi malgré Lui, and Delius’ A Village Romeo and Juliet.
George Fleeton
