The Symphony is releasing the live recording that captured those performances. The “Ring” is always compelling, but this “Ring” is a once in a lifetime experience.ĭetails: Through July 1, War Memorial Opera House, Single tix $210-$535, $10 standing room tix day of performance 41 MTT’S EMPATHETIC ‘PATHETIQUE’: If you have fond memories of Michael Tilson Thomas and the San Francisco Symphony’s 2017 performances of Tchaikovsky’s “Pathétique” Symphony, here’s another chance to hear it as it sounded in the hall.
One of the world’s great Wagnerians, he has complete mastery of this music, and in each opera, he drew the best from the singers, the orchestra and, in “Götterdämmerung,” the San Francisco Opera Chorus. Leading these performances is conductor and former San Francisco Opera music director Donald Runnicles. Barton’s warm mezzo was an asset as Waltraute, and Tappan, Lauren McNeese and Renée Tatum blended prettily as the Rhinemaidens. “Götterdämmerung” brought Brian Mulligan’s sturdy Gunther, Andrea Silvestrelli’s looming Hagen and Melissa Citro’s sleek Gutrune. Miller sang with authority as the Earth goddess Erda, Stacey Tappan was a captivating Forest Bird, and Raymond Aceto was a sonorous Fafner. German bass-baritone Falk Struckmann, another company debut, exuded menace as Alberich, and David Cangelosi was a vibrant Mime. Bass-baritone Greer Grimsley sings with authority and pathos as the uber-god Wotan/The Wanderer.
Swedish soprano Iréne Theorin is a stunningly strong Brünnhilde, fierce and focused, with a voice of soaring allure. In the title role of “Siegfried,” tenor Daniel Brenna undertakes the character’s journey from callow youth to maturity in a magnetic performance. Still, any opera begins and ends with the singers, and the company has assembled first-rate casts. Swedish soprano Irene Theorin was a fierce and focused Brunnhilde in both “Siegfried” and “Gotterdammerung.” CORY WEAVER/S.F. The Gibichungs’ louche palace overlooks a hellish power plant. “Götterdämmerung” begins with the three Norns (Ronnita Miller, Jamie Barton, Sarah Cambidge) inside a giant motherboard, trying to avert the meltdown that will doom the planet.
Staged with insight, ingenuity and technical panache, the “Siegfried” scenes span squatters’ camps, industrial wastelands and a verdant forest. Watching Francesca Zambello’s remarkable productions, which set the action in the American West, it’s hard not to be struck by the parallels to our time. It’s a timeless story, and a feminist one, too – the work’s hero is Brünnhilde, the fierce Valkyrie whose battles seem to anticipate the #MeToo movement. First performed in 1876, the “Ring” explores themes that are still with us today – family dysfunction, loyalty and betrayal, the destruction of the environment, and what happens when we choose power over love.
0 kommentar(er)
