 |
| Thomas Hampson & Ferrucio Furlanetto |
The ageless American barihunk Thomas Hampson launched the 2012-13 season of the Orchestre de la Suisse
Romande singing music by the composer with whom he is perhaps most
closely associated: Gustav Mahler. The performance of "Das Lied von der Erde" is now available online and we figured it was a beautiful way to the start the week, so we posted it below.
Hampson and tenor Paul
Groves performed the piece under Music and Artistic director Neeme
Järvi, for two concerts in September in Geneva’s Victoria Hall.
This unique and transcendent “song-symphony,” featuring texts of
Chinese poetry translated into German, with additional texts by Mahler
himself, explores nothing less than the meaning of life, from the
innocent joys of youth to the inevitable parting from this world. True
to the work’s inspiration, Mahler infuses the orchestral sound with many
evocative Eastern touches.
Hampson recorded “Das Lied” in 1995 with
Simon Rattle and the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, and again in
2007 with Michael Tilson Thomas and the San Francisco Symphony.
Hampson is currently performing the title role in Verdi's Simon Boccanegra at the Lyric Opera of Chicago through November 9th. As and added treat, the Fiesco is the great Italian Verdi specialist Ferrucio Furlanetto and Paolo is the rising Verdi baritone star Quinn Kelsey. Tickets and additional cast information are available online.
Hampson may be ageless but his performance in Simon Boccanegra was not one for the ages. Heard Sherrill Milnes in the role at my first opera in 1980. Hampson was not nearly as exciting or dramatic in the role.
ReplyDelete