(In moving content from Oberon’s Grove to Oberon’s Glade, some articles proved resistant to being re-located. This is one of them, from an evening I especially enjoyed.)
Wednesday April 30th, 2025 – The annual Gerda Lissner Foundation Winners Concert took place this evening at Zankel Hall. Female voices well out-numbered the male contingent (just two tenors, no baritones nor bassos), and – as a special treat – the marvelous Sasha Cooke flew in from Houston where she is singing Venus in TANNHAUSER to make beautiful music together with the iconic pianist Warren Jones. Midge Woolsey was the host
The first half of the concert was given over to lieder. Pianist Francesco Barfoed, whose playing for Joseph Parrish’s Merkin Hall recital earlier this year was so impressive, supported the singers with his attentive, nuanced playing.
Soprano Ashlyn Rock opened the concert with well-contrasted songs by Jean Sibelius and Libby Larsen. A striking blonde woman, Ms. Rock is already a fully-formed artist; her presence and presentation were engaging, and the voice is clear and effortlessly hall-filling. Mr. Barfoed’s piano introduction to the Sibelius was grand indeed, and the soprano delivered a great outpouring of tone. In the Larsen song, the doomed Anne Boleyn veers from explosive to prayerful, Ms. Rock was in command at every moment, her diction outstandingly keen. Though now a lyric soprano, I can hear a future Elsa and Sieglinde in that voice: a stunning opener to the program.
Bridget Esler, in a peach-coulored frock, teamed up with Mr. Barfoed’s inspired playing for Schumann’s Requiem, the pianist veering from gentleness to rhapsodic, the soprano’s lovely timbre and dynamic variety impressive at every moment. Messiaen’s Resurrection opens with some banging on the Steinway; the singer then commences an Alleluia, her voice vivid as she moves between dramatic passages and moments when coloratura comes into play.
Tenor Michael John Butler, a sturdy, youthful fellow, has a distinctive timbre and is wonderfully word-conscious. In Poulenc’s C, a setting of a Louis Aragon poem, he and Mr. Barfoed made a most congenial effect, the tenor’s singing at once masculine and elegant. Rippling piano motifs open Strauss’ Heimlich Aufforderung wherein Mr. Butler’s powerful sound and very appealing personality held us under a musical spell: passion was the watch-word as tenor and pianist regaled us with their artistry.
Mezzo-soprano Erin Wagner then took the stage; in a velvety blue gown, she and Mr. Barfoed opened with Dominick Argento’s The Diary from the composer’s Virginia Woolf cycle. From a rambling piano introduction, Ms. Wagner offered lovely, expressive singing, her mastery of a vast dynamic range (honed down to an exquisite, lingering pianissimo on the song’s final note), was ideally merged with her making every word of the text count. In Hugo Wolf’s thrilling Kennst du das land, Mr. Barfoed’s immaculate piano introduction set the tone for a spectacular performance in which voice and piano entwined to ravishing effect. Both artists caught every nuance of the music and text; in the passionate passages, Ms. Wagner’s outpouring of sound was riveting, standing in contrast to the more pensive phrases…and an undercurrent of restlessness. The pianist was simply marvelous, from first note to last. The song ends with a sustained, delicate note, and in that moment the singer appeared to be gently weeping.
Sasha Cooke and Warren Jones were warmly welcomed; Sasha, in a forest-green gown, looks more beautiful than ever, and the voice has a charismatic radiance that casts a spell over listeners – a spell that tonight was palpable. Honoring Michael Tilson Thomas, in whose farewell performance at San Francisco Sasha has just taken part, she and Mr. Jones (stepping out of retirement this evening) offered Grace, a joyous song of giving thanks by the conductor/composer that opens with a long piano intro and was then was deliciously voiced by Ms. Cooke. For a moment I thought that the mood-swing from that extroverted song into Mahler’s sublime “Ich bin der Welt abhanden gekommen” wouldn’t work, but leave it to Sasha to prove me wrong. Her incandescent voice and her deep connection with the text, combined with Mr. Jones’s poetic playing, created an incredible atmosphere of peace; as the music faded away, a sublime silence fell over the hall. Time stood still.
After an overly-long intermission, the opera singing commenced. A pair of chatterboxes had settled in behind us, and they talked openly through much of the concert’s second half. I’m sure there were times when the singers onstage could hear them (we were in the second row); it really put a blot on the proceedings.
Magdalena Kuźma, in a black frock slit to the thigh and amazing red shoes, was my Papagena at the Met a couple of weeks ago. With Arlene Shrut at the Steinway, she opened the operatic half of the program with an arias from Tchaikovsky’s IOLANTA, which commences with a few bars of grand piano playing. Ms. Kuźma has a vibrant voice, and a colorful personality; she is a generous singer, but also capable of subtlety. She would later return to close the program.
Subtlety was lacking in some of the remaining singing of the evening. Amanda Batista, in a lacy gown, has a voice to be reckoned with, impressive in size and colour. She seemed too ‘healthy’ for Mimi’s Act I narrative from LA BOHEME, music which can be so poetic when piano/pianissimisi effects are woven in. Ms. Batista’s personality is quite extroverted; Tosca might be a better match for her in that regard. She sang very well in the ARABELLA aria, though more nuance might make it more magical. The piano postlude was most appealing.
Sofia Gotch looked striking in deep blue; her “Caro nome” was deftly voiced, though again it’s an aria that profits from more subtle colourings. The piano’s setting forth of the main melody was too dotty. Music from Britten’s MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM was then charmingly dispatched by Ms. Gotch, who found beauty in the words as well as the notes. Hers is an impressive young voice, to be sure.
Shelén Hughes, in a purple gown, reminded me very much of my dear friend, dancer Francesca Todesco. Ms. Hughes opened with the Snow Maiden’s aria from the Rimsky-Korsakov opera. It’s an appealing voice, and she captured the maiden’s mood-swings with lyrical singing, fine dynamic control, and amusing outbursts. Her singing is often delectable, and she gave the aria a big finish. Then she sang one of my favorite arias, “Son pochi fiori” from Mascagni’s L’AMICO FRITZ, in which she captivated me with a sustained, a lovely diminuendo.
Tatev Baroyan looked truly fabulous in her flared red skirt and black bodice – it’s a look I associate with the great Agnes Baltsa, whose New York debut in a concert version of Mercadante’s IL GIURAMENTO at Lincoln Center many, many moons ago made such a vivid impression. Ms. Baroyan shares the Baltsa gift for dramatic flair and fearless vocalism. Her Song to the Moon from RUSALKA boasted an ideal vocal mixture of passion and wistfulness, whilst her entrancing arms and hands spoke of her longing. Ms. Baroyan followed this with a gypsy song from Kalman’s CSARDASFURSTIN, which features echo effects before getting fast and fun…and then the diva started dancing.
Giorgi Guliashvili, a Georgian tenor, offered two of my favorite tenor arias, both sung with passion and intensity. The haunting piano introduction to Lensky’s aria from EUGEN ONEGIN led to the tender, lamenting air of the young poet about to die in a duel with his best friend; Mr. Guliashvili singing is at once tender and powerful as he resigned himself to his fate. This was followed by the splendid “O souverain, O juge…” from Massenet’s LE CID, which the tenor commenced with a rich-toned recitative that leads to the prayerful aria, which was intensely rendered; there is a delectable hint of a sob in the voice. Very moving!
Ms. Kuźma then returned; at first Susanna’s “Deh vieni non tardar” seemed like merely a nod to the otherwise absent Mozart, but the soprano made something of it with her skilled interpretation. An aria from Moniuszko’s HALKA commenced with a grand piano introduction from Ms. Strut, launching Ms.Kuźma’s big-voiced start. A reflective passage found the soprano capable of lovely softness, but then the drama takes over and propels the aria – and the evening – to its finish. All the participants then joined together for a bow:
Click on the above photo to enlarge.)
On a personal level, two wonderful things happened as we made our way out of the hall: I encountered a friend, Arthur Levy, who I had not seen for nearly 40 years; and I greeted and shook hands with the foremost Wotan, Dutchman, and Hans Sachs of his day (and mine!): the great James Morris, with his dear wife Susan Quittmeyer.
~ Oberon
Oberon's Glade 