Werba makes Florence recital debut; Takes on Wagner in Salzburg

Markus Werba

If you're anywhere near Florence, Italy you may want to check out Markus Werba's recital debut at the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino on May 30th, accompanied on piano by Claudio Marino Moretti. He'll be performing lieder by Robert Schumann, Gabriel Fauré, Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel. Tickets are only € 15 and are available online. 

Markus Werba sings Mahler's "Wenn mein Schatz Hochzeit macht":

We've primarily featured Werba in his acclaimed Mozart roles, but he'll be moving into the music of Richard Wagner this summer. He'll be singing Beckmesser in Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg at the Salzburg Festival opening on August 2nd with the Vienna Philharmonic.

Wes Mason to sing Pelleas at AVA

Wes Mason as seen in the 2012 Barihunks Charity Calendar. From the Ft. Worth Opera's "Before Night Falls"

Barihunk Wes Mason will perform Pelléas opposite soprano Chloé Moore's Mélisande in a performance of the Academy of Vocal Arts’ upcoming production of Debussy's Pelléas et Mélisande running from February 25th through March 1st.  

Wes Mason and Chloé Moore discuss and perform an excerpt from Pelléas et Mélisande:


For the past seven seasons, The Academy of Vocal Arts has offered as part of its season, a fully staged opera with piano accompaniment in order to showcase AVA’s talented artists in roles they might not otherwise have an opportunity to perform. Often, these are operas that require large orchestras that would not fit into AVA’s small theater. Music director Luke Housner will be the pianist.

Bass Patrick Guetti sings the role of Arkel:


 Zachary Nelson (Golaud) and soprano Sydney Mancasola (Mélisande) sing Act l scene:


There are multiple casts, but Wes Mason will perform Pelléas for the performance on Tuesday, February 28 at 7:30 PM. Patrick Guetti will be performing Arkel in all of the performances. Zachary Nelson will perform Golaud on February 25th and 28th, as well as March 1st. Tickets range from $10-$60 and are available at www.avaopera.org or 215 735-1685.

CONTACT US AT Barihunks@gmail.com

Jacques Jansen's "Pelleas" Named Among "50 Greatest Recordings of All Time"

The great Jacques Jensen on CD

The January 2012 issue of BBC Music magazine features their list of the 50 greatest recordings of all time. At #30 is the classic recording of Claude Debussy's "Pelléas and Mélisande" with barihunk Jacques Jansen and soprano Irène Joachim. BBC Music magazine wrote:

 

This 1941 recording captures the elusive nuances and mystery of Debussy's symbolist masterpiece like no other. The trio of singers in lead roles - Irène Joachim as Mélisande, Jacques Jansen as Pelléas and Henri Etcheverry as Golaud - had all performed the opera many times together under the direction of Roger Désormière. 

 Jacques Jansen and Irène Joachim sing "Mes longs cheveux" from "Pelléas and Mélisande":

The #1 recording of all time is Georg Solti's recording of "Der Ring des Nibelungen" with Kirsten Flagstad, Regine Crespin, Hans Hotter, Birgit Nillson and Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau. The top non-operatic recording was Carlos Kleiber's recording of Beethoven's 5th and 7th symphonies with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra.

Jacques Jansen was born in Paris in 1913 and died there in 2002. He became associated with the role of Pelléas like no other singer in history, as his light, high-baritone was perfectly suited for the role. He spent thirty years performing the role around the world and critics marveled at his crystal clear enunciation of the text.

Jacques Jansen sings "Ballades Médiévales":

He also made quite a mark in operetta, singing Eisenstein in “Die Fledermaus,” Duparquet in Reynaldo Hahn's “Ciboulette,” and Count Danilo in Léhar's “The Merry Widow,” which he performed nearly 1,500 times. His original dream was to be an actor, and during World War II, he was featured in a number of movies, including  Sacha Guitry's “La Malibran.” He  dubbed the singing voice of Alain Cuny in Marcel Carné's “Les Visiteurs du soir” and Jean Marais in “Le Lit à colonnes.”

After World War II, he performed outside of France, including roles in Vienna, Dublin, Amsterdam, London’s Covent Garden, the Metropolitan Opera in New York, and Milan’s La Scala. After his retirement, Jansen taught voice until his retirement in 1982.

 

CONTACT US AT BARIHUNKS@GMAIL.COM