INTERNATIONAL OPERA GALA

The CSO is assisted by the Commonwealth Government through the Australia Council, its arts funding and advisory body

The International Opera Gala is a proud collaboration between the Commonwealth of Australia and the Federal Republic of Germany

LERIDA E S TAT E

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2017 International Opera Gala

WAGNER Lohengrin: Vorspiel 3. Aufzug 4ʼVERDI Falstaff: Ehi paggio...L'onore! L'onore! Ladri! (Olafur Sigurdarson) 4ʼSAINT-SAËNS Samson et Dalila: Mon coeur s'ouvre à ta voix (Judith Braun) 6ʼDONIZETTI L'Elisir d'amore: Una furtiva lagrima (Carlos Moreno Pelizari) 5ʼDESSAU Leonce und Lena: Tanz der müden Füße (Herdís Anna Jónasdóttir) 3ʼWAGNER Tannhäuser: Dich teure Halle grüß ich wieder (Susanne Braunsteffer) 5ʼMOZART Die Zauberflöte: In diesen heil'gen Hallen (Hiroshi Matsui) 4ʼMOZART Don Giovanni: Là ci darem la mano (Herdís Anna Jónasdóttir & Olafur Sigurdarson) 4ʼVERDI Rigoletto: Un dì, se ben rammentomi - Bella figlia dell'amore (Herdís Anna Jónasdóttir, Judith Braun, Carlos Moreno Pelizari & Olafur Sigurdarson) 6ʼHUMPERDINCK Hänsel und Gretel: Abendsegen (Susanne Braunsteffer & Judith Braun) 3ʼ

INTERVAL

WAGNER Tannhäuser: Einzug der Gäste 7ʼWAGNER Tannhäuser: Gar viel und schön ward hier (Hiroshi Matsui) 5ʼVERDI Falstaff: Reverenza! (Judith Braun & Olafur Sigurdarson) 5ʼMOZART Die Zauberflöte: Dies Bildnis ist bezaubernd schön (Carlos Moreno Pelizari) 4ʼVERDI Rigoletto: Quel vecchio maledivami (Olafur Sigurdarson & Hiroshi Matsui) 5ʼPUCCINI Tosca: Vissi d'arte (Susanne Braunsteffer) 4ʼBIZET Carmen: Votre toast je peux vous le render (Olafur Sigurdarson & all) 6ʼ

Please note: this program is correct at time of printing, however it is subject to change without notice.

Saturday 8 July 2017 Llewellyn Hall, ANU 7.30pm

Nicholas Milton AM Conductor Artistic patronage courtesy of ActewAGL

Guest artists from the State Opera House of Saarbrücken, Germany

Susanne Braunsteffer SopranoHerdís Anna Jónasdóttir SopranoJudith Braun Mezzosoprano Carlos Moreno Pelizari Tenor Olafur Sigurdarson BaritoneHiroshi Matsui Bass-----

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INTERNATIONAL OPERA GALA

The CSO is assisted by the Commonwealth Government through the Australia Council, its arts funding and advisory body

The International Opera Gala is a proud collaboration between the Australian Government and the Federal Republic of Germany

International Opera Gala Partners

SAVE THE DATE!

The CSO is assisted by the Commonwealth Government through the Australia Council, its arts funding and advisory body

/canberrasymphonyorchestra/canberrasymphonyorchestra

cso.org.au

Be the first to hear Chief Conductor & Artisic Director Nicholas Milton AM as he unveils the exciting 2018 season of music experiences with the CSO.Sip your complimentary bubbly and book your tickets on the night —first in best dressed!

Thursday 10 AugustNational Portrait Gallery, 6.00pm Details to follow.

2018 CSO Season launch Thursday 10 August

Welcome It is with tremendous joy that I welcome you to the CSO’s 2017 International Opera Gala this evening. On this landmark occasion, we celebrate international collaboration, mutual respect and the unity of nations through the universal language of music. The CSO is

honoured to have been chosen by the Australian and German governments to host this very special performance by six world-class singers from Saarländisches Staatstheatre, Germany, and I know you join me in welcoming them to the CSO stage for their only concert appearance in Australia.

This event has been eighteen months in the making, ever since the Australia-Germany Advisory Group recommended the collaboration in the November 2015 paper “Collaboration, Innovation & Opportunity”. I would like to thank the Commonwealth Department of Communications and the Arts, the Commonwealth Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, the government of the Federal Republic of Germany and the Embassy of Germany, Canberra for their generous vision and support which makes tonight possible.

There has been an enormous amount of work taking place behind the scenes in Canberra and in Saarbrücken, Germany, to bring you this sublime concert. I am immensely proud and inspired by the CSO administrative team, all of whom have pitched in tirelessly to deliver a world-class experience for you, for our guest artists and for our musicians. Significant contributions have also been made by staff within the Commonwealth departments, the German Embassy and Saarländisches Staatstheatre.

Externally, we are proud to welcome Rolfe Classic BMW as a new CSO partner and we look forward to collaborating with them on future projects of excellence. The Australian Government through the Australia Council for the Arts and the ACT Government through artsACT are also important on our list of gratitude for the ongoing support they contribute which makes it possible for the CSO to operate.

And then there’s you, our valued patrons and our raison d’être. Thank you for being here tonight; thank you for opening your life to the beauty and joy of live music. We are delighted to bring you this memorable concert, and we hope that you will leave the Hall this evening with a lighter heart and a warming sense of connection in sharing this unique moment in time with your fellow concert-goers.

If you are seeking new inspirations after tonight’s concert, mark Thursday 10 August in your diary when the CSO’s 2018 Season will be launched at the National Portrait Gallery. Current and new subscribers are invited to this free event to celebrate a whole new season of CSO music and magic – and you can subscribe on the night! Details can be found on the CSO website.

Meanwhile, we come together tonight for this unique concert event where literally, as well as figuratively, we share a voice in the beauty and transcendent power of music.

Sarah Kimball Chief Executive Officer

2018 CSO Season launch Thursday 10 August

New Combination “Bean” Lorry No.341 commissioned 31st December 1925.

Photograph courtesy of The University of Melbourne Archives 2008.0045.0601

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115 YEARS OF POWERING PROGRESS TOGETHERSince 1901, Shell has invested in large projects which have contributed to the prosperity of the Australian economy. We value our partnerships with communities, governments and industry. And celebrate our longstanding partnership with the Canberra Symphony Orchestra.

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From the Minister for the ArtsThe Australian Government is proud to support the collaboration between the Canberra Symphony Orchestra (CSO) and the State Opera House of Saarbrücken to present an International Opera Gala in Canberra.

Australia and Germany have a warm, vibrant and diverse bilateral relationship.

The CSO is uniting with world class stars from Germany, Iceland, Chile and Japan to perform a concert for one night only in the nation’s capital. This unique performance will be conducted by Australia’s own Nicholas Milton AM, CSO Chief Conductor and Artistic Director, who lives and works between Canberra and Saarbrücken.

The Government is committed to strengthening Australia’s international ties and understands the significant role the arts play in fostering these relationships and boosting our international reputation. Cultural engagement encourages collaborative partnerships and highlights

the power of the arts to promote respect and recognition of our cultural diversity and heritage. Cultural engagement also contributes to long-lasting and robust relationships, which enhance cultural cooperation and provide new opportunities for partnerships.

Tonight’s Gala is proudly supported by the Australian Government through the International Cultural Diplomacy Arts Fund administered by the Department of Communications and the Arts. I would also like to acknowledge the support of the German Government and German Embassy for this musical exchange.

Tonight’s Gala has led to new connections and strengthens current relationships with the Saarländisches State Orchestra, Goethe Institute and Wagner Society.

I would like to congratulate everyone involved for their efforts in bringing this event to fruition. I look forward to our countries continuing to work together to inspire and support artistic development and creation, and further collaborations that may arise in the future.

Senator The Hon Mitch Fifield Minister for the Arts

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WE’LL ALWAYS WORK IN HARMONY WITH OUR ORCHESTRA.

Nicholas Milton AM ConductorDr Nicholas Milton AM is the Chief Conductor and Artistic Director of the Canberra Symphony Orchestra, and has been the musical force behind an extraordinary period of growth and success in the CSO’s history. Since 2007, Milton’s direction has seen the orchestra break all previous box office records and establish itself as one of the most successful

and dynamic orchestras in the nation. In addition to his work with the CSO, Nicholas is also currently General Music Director and Chief Conductor of the State Opera House in Saarbrücken, Germany, where he conducts fifty performances each season and is the Chief Conductor of the Willoughby Symphony Orchestra in Sydney.

In 2016, he was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia for his significant service to the arts, particularly to classical orchestral music performance, as a musician, conductor and artistic director.

“I feel deeply honoured to have been recognised in this way, but stress that this award belongs to the musicians, management and board of the exceptional Canberra Symphony Orchestra, who have so stunningly transformed this organisation. The CSO has established itself as the backbone of professional orchestral performance in the nation’s capital. I am so proud of the work we do, and I never would have been considered for this award were it not for the positive influence that the CSO and its musicians make on so many levels in our society.” Nicholas Milton AM.

Just two months before being awarded the AM, Nicholas was nominated for a Grammy

Award for his work on Joseph Moog’s album Grieg & Moszkowski: Piano Concertos. Despite the international accolades, when asked what he loves the most, he says: “The CSO’s education and community outreach programs are particularly close to my heart and watching the impact of our musicians performing for young children, people with Parkinson’s or for students at special schools has changed my ideas and thoughts about what an orchestra means to its community and the profound force for good that an orchestra like the CSO represents.”

In 2001 Nicholas Milton was awarded the Australian Centenary Medal for Service to Australian Society and the Advancement of Music. At the invitation of the Australian Prime Minister, he has served in 2015 as the cultural consultant to the Australia-Germany Advisory Group.

Prior to joining the Canberra Symphony Orchestra, Nicholas was appointed as the youngest ever concertmaster of one of Australia’s major orchestras, where he enjoyed an exceptional career as a violinist and chamber musician before dedicating himself exclusively to conducting. Renowned for his dynamic conducting style, energy and compelling musical integrity, the immediacy of Milton’s rapport with musicians continues to thrill orchestras and audiences alike.

Nicholas studied at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, Michigan State University, Mannes College of Music and the Juilliard School. He holds four Master’s degrees (Violin, Conducting, Music Theory and Philosophy) and a Doctoral degree in Music from the City University of New York; he was mentored at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki by Jorma Panula.

Nicholas Milton’s artistic patronage is gratefully received from ActewAGL.

When in Canberra, Nicholas Milton AM chooses to stay at Hotel Hotel

Artistic Patronage of Nicholas Milton AM courtesy of ActewAGL

[1]‘Daily Rituals’ with Alyssa McClelland. Shot in Creative room 105 by Lee Grant.

[3] ‘Dropping A Kumbhar Wala Matka’ by Trent Jansen. Shot by Neville Sukhia. For our ‘Porosity Kabari’ exhibition at the Nishi Gallery from 9 June.

Recognize yourself in he and she who are not like you and me

Carlos Fuentes

Hotel

+612 6287 6287 — Thello@hotel-hotel.com.auhotel-hotel.com.au

Hotel

NewActon Nishi25 Edinburgh AveCanberra

[2]Jim White and Giorgos Xylouris of ‘Xylouris White’ in the Mosaic room. Shot by Lee Grant.

Susanne Braunsteffer SopranoBorn in Rosenheim, Germany, Susanne Braunsteffer studied singing at the Mozarteum in Salzburg with Professor Kjellaug Tesaker and Lied and Oratorio with Professor Wolfgang Holzmair. In 2008 she graduated this institution with highest distinction. During her studies she debuted as Pamina in Mozart s̓ The Magic Flute.

Currently she is vocally coached by Professor Heidrun Franz-Vetter.

In the season 2008/09 she joined the Opera Studio of the Opéra National du Rhin in Strassbourg, where she performed among others the Countess in Mozart s̓ Le nozze di Figaro and Gretel in Humperdinck s̓ Hänsel and Gretel. From 2009 to 2011 Susanne Braunsteffer was engaged at the Accademia Teatro alla Scala in Milan, where she worked with Luciana Serra and Lela Cuberli. In 2012 she represented Germany at the BBC Competition Cardiff Singer of the World.

On the concert stage, Susanne Braunsteffer has sung Pergolesi s̓ Stabat Mater and Mahler s̓ 4th Symphony at the Teatro alla Scala and in Parma, a Beethoven cycle

with the Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano Giuseppe Verdi, as well as concerts with the Staatsphilharmonie Rheinland-Pfalz under the baton of former Melbourne Symphony Orchestra Chief Conductor Oleg Caetani, Gala concerts in Athens and Madrid and various recitals in Germany and abroad.

In a short time, Susanne Braunsteffer has established herself as one of Germany’s most sought-after lyric-dramatic sopranos. As a guest singer she has been engaged at the Dortmund Theatre for Verdi roles as Leonora in Il Trovatore, Elisabetta in Don Carlo and Amelia in Un Ballo in Maschera. She debuted as Puccini’s Mimì in La Bohème in Sao Paolo and in the title role of Verdi’s Aida at the Eutin Festival in Germany. Verdi’s Amelia was also her debut under Nicholas Milton at the Saarland State Opera House, where she subsequently joined the ensemble in the season 2015/16.

Since then, in Saarbrücken she has been heard in the title roles of Puccini s̓ Madama Butterfly and Tosca, Dvor ̌ ák s̓ Rusalka and Janác ̌ ek s̓ Katya Kabanova, as well as Weber s̓ Agathe in Der Freischütz and Verdi s̓ Amelia in Simon Boccanegra. Recently she gave her first Wagnerian role debut as Elisabeth in Tannhäuser, also conducted by Nicholas Milton.

Herdís Anna Jónasdóttir SopranoBorn in Isafjördur, Iceland, Herdís Anna Jónasdóttir studied with Elisabet Erlingsdóttir at the Icelandic University of Arts in Reykjavík and with Martha Sharp at the Mozarteum in Salzburg. With Brenda Mitchell, Julia Varady, Wolfram Rieger and Anna Samuil she continued her studies at the Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler Berlin, graduating 2012.

In addition to concerts and various recitals— some of them with world premieres of new works by Icelandic composers—Jónasdóttir has already appeared at the State Opera and at the Komische Oper of Berlin, in the Berlin Konzerthaus, and also in England and Austria. She has performed roles such as Pamina in The Magic Flute (Mozart), the Blue Fairy in Sleeping Beauty (Respighi), Mélisande in Pelléas et Mélisande (Debussy), Romilda in Serse and Galatea in Acis und Galatea (Handel), Annina in Eine Nacht in Venedig (J. Strauss), and Micuccio Fabbri in Lemons from Sicily (Trojahn).

In 2012 she debuted as Musetta in La Bohème (Puccini) at the Icelandic State Opera and performed soprano parts in Mozart s̓ Mass in c-Minor in the Icelandic Dome, and in Beethoven’s Oratorio Christus am Ölberge. From the 2012/13 season Jónasdóttir joined the International Opera Studio of the Zurich Opera House where she performed in a Wagner Project directed by Hans Neuenfels. Recently she received a nomination for the Icelandic Music Award in the category Singer of the Year.

Since the 2013/14 season, she has been an ensemble member of the Saarland State Opera House, where her roles have included, among others, Adele in Die Fledermaus (J. Strauss), Sophie in Werther (Massenet), Serpetta in La finta Giardiniera (Mozart), the Fire/Princess in L’enfant et les sortilèges (Ravel), Maria in West Side Story (Bernstein), Adina in L’elisir d’amore (Donizetti), Zerlina in Don Giovanni and Mabel in The Pirates of Penzance. For the two last-mentioned roles, she was awarded the prestigious Saarbrücken Opera House Sponsor Club Prize for 2016.

Judith Braun MezzosopranoHaving first completed a commercial traineeship, Judith Braun studied opera and music education at the Hochschule für Musik des Saarlandes, where she graduated in 2002.

As a student, she attended the Richard Wagner Scholarship programme at the Bayreuth Festival in 1998, and also attended masterclasses with Kai

Wessel at the Telemann-Akademie in Magdeburg. She made her first guest appearances at the Theatre Kaiserslautern and was a member of the Opera Workshop in Wiesbaden from 2001 to 2002.

Her professional operatic career started with guest engagements at the Theatre Lüneburg and at the State Opera Houses of Karlsruhe and Saarbrücken.

In 2006, she was a finalist at the 5th Concorso Vocale Internazionale di Musica Sacra in Rome, Italy.

Together with the Ensemble PARLANDO, she recorded for Saarland Radio (Saarländischer Rundfunk) two cantatas by Johann Sebastian Bach.

Commencing with the 2009/10 season, she has been an ensemble member of the Saarland State Opera House where she started as a lyric Mezzosoprano. Still singing parts as Hänsel in Hänsel and Gretel (Humperdinck), Charlotte in Werther (Massenet) and Mrs. Quickly in Falstaff (Verdi), her current roles include Ježibaba in Rusalka (Dvor ̌ ák) and Kabanicha in Katya Kabanova (Janác ̌ ek), enlarging her repertory towards the dramatic fach. With Herodias in Salome (Strauss) and Fricka in The Ring of the Nibelung (Wagner) this direction will be continued during future seasons.

At the Saarland State Opera House she has collaborated with conductors such as Constantin Trinks, Konrad Junghänel, Toshiyuki Kamioka, Nicholas Milton and Erwin Ortner. Recently she was awarded the Saarbrücken Opera House Sponsor Club Prize for 2017.

Also a distinguished singer for concerto and sacred repertory, she has sung, among others, the contralto parts in Verdi’s Requiem and in the Christmas-Oratorio by J.S. Bach.

Carlos Moreno Pelizari TenorThe young tenor Carlos Moreno Pelizari was born in Santiago de Chile where he also started his musical studies. Since 2011, he has continued his vocal development under the supervision of Professor KS Wolfgang Millgramm at the Folkwang University of the Arts in Essen (Germany).

From the very beginning of his career in Chile, he has

appeared on stage as a soloist performing in a wide range of oratorios and operas. During his subsequent studies in Germany, Carlos Moreno Pelizari debuted as Ferrando in Così fan tutte (Mozart) in Münster and afterwards was awarded an engagement at the Theatre in Dortmund.

For the 2014/15 season, he was an ensemble member of the Landestheater in Detmold, where he performed Nemorino in L'elisir d'amore (Donizetti) and Tamino in The Magic Flute (Mozart), among other major roles. In 2015 he debuted as Alfredo in Verdi’s La Traviata at the Magdeburg Theater.

Since he joined the ensemble of the Saarländisches Staatstheater in Saarbrücken in the 2015/16 season, he has sung Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni and Tamino in The Magic Flute (Mozart), Nemorino in L'elisir d'amore (Donizetti), Mercure in Platée (Rameau), Duca in Rigoletto, Fenton in Falstaff (Verdi), Wanja Kudrjasch in Katya Kabanova (Janác ̌ ek) and Walther von der Vogelweide in Tannhäuser (Wagner).

For Duca in Rigoletto he was also recently engaged at the opera house of Lucerne (Switzerland), and as Alfredo Germont in La Traviata, he was heard at the Teatro Municipal de Santiago (Chile) and also recently at the Landesbühnen Sachsen (Germany).

Olafur Sigurdarson BaritoneThe Icelandic baritone Olafur Sigurdarson studied in Reykjavik, at the Royal Academy of Music in London, and at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama.

Since 2008/09 as a principal soloist in the ensemble of the State Opera House of Saarland, this diverse singer is extremely well known to the wider Saarbrücken

public. He has appeared in most of the major title roles of the repertoire, including Rigoletto, Falstaff, Macbeth and Simon Boccanegra, as well as Iago in Otello, Renato in Un Ballo in Maschera (Verdi), Scarpia in Tosca (Puccini), Telramund in Lohengrin, Klingsor in Parsifal (Wagner), Jochanan in Salome (Strauss), Tonio in Pagliacci (Leoncavallo), Captain Balstrode in Peter Grimes (Britten) and as Bluebeard (Bartók).

Highlights of his career in recent years have included his roles in the production of Don Quixote at the Danish National Opera, Wagner’s Flying Dutchman at the

Finnish National Opera and Telramund at the Theater Basel. For his superlative portrayal of the role of the Flying Dutchman in Saarbrücken, he was awarded the Honorary Membership of the Richard Wagner Association of Saarland. His debut as Wanderer in Siegfried (Wagner) as part of a concert performance with the Dortmund Philharmonic was also a great success.

His concert engagements have included Beethoven’s 9th Symphony in Lugano with the Orchestra Della Svizzera Italiana under the direction of Vladimir Ashkenazy on the occasion of the inauguration of the new LAC cultural center; a tour with the Yomiuri Nippon Symphony Orchestra in Japan under Toshiyoki Kamioka; and in the Stuttgart Liederhalle with the Stuttgart Philharmonic Orchestra under Nicholas Milton.

Future projects include the premiere of the opera Brothers by Daníel Bjarnason directed by Kasper Holten in Denmark and Falstaff at the Opera Colorado in Denver.

By bringing world class music to the region season after season, the Canberra Symphony Orchestra is central to the ACT’s vibrant arts community. Supporting such an inspiring organisation continues to be our privilege after 20 years.

Photo by Lindi Heap

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Hiroshi Matsui Bass The distinguished Japanese bass, Hiroshi Matsui, studied singing at the University of the Arts (UdK) in Berlin and has had engagements at the Theatre Würzburg and the State Opera House of Darmstadt. Guest engagements have also taken him to France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Austria, Japan and Switzerland. In October 2002, he was celebrated as König Marke

in Tristan und Isolde (Wagner) at the Salzburg Festspielhaus under the baton of Leopold Hager and the direction of Christian Pöppelreiter. He is a permanent guest singer at the New National Theatre in Tokyo, where he has performed, amongst others, the roles of Sarastro in The Magic Flute (Mozart), Daland in The Flying Dutchman (Wagner), Bartolo in Le nozze di Figaro (Rossini), Padre Guardiano in La forza del destino, Lodovico in Otello (Verdi) and Colline in La Bohème (Puccini).

Mr. Matsui has worked with conductors such as Leopold Hager, Ralf Weikert, Hans Drewanz, Ulf Schirmer, Michael Boder, Marc Albrecht, Kazushi Ono, and Ryusuke Numajiri.

Currently Hiroshi Matsui is first bass soloist at the Saarland State Opera House in Saarbrücken, where he has been enjoyed extraordinary success across all of the major bass roles of the repertoire. In March 2012, he gave a highly celebrated Parsifal debut in Saarbrücken as Gurnemanz.

In the current season in Saarbrücken, he has sung Iacopo Fiesco in a new production of Simon Boccanegra (Verdi) and the Landgraf Hermann in Tannhäuser (Wagner).

Hiroshi Matsui is also a guest professor at the College of Music in Osaka, Japan.

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MUSIC NOTES

2017 International Opera GalaRichard Wagner (1813–1883)Vorspiel 3. Aufzug from Lohengrin

The celebratory Prelude to the third act of Wagner’s Lohengrin—based on the legend of the Swan Knight—sets the scene for the wedding of Elsa and a mysterious knight who has fought for her honour and will marry her on the condition that she never ask him his name or where he comes from. After the bombastic fanfare of the opening, Wagner’s famous wedding march is foreshadowed in the final bars.

Giuseppe Verdi (1813–1901)Ehi paggio...L'onore! L'onore! Ladri! from Falstaff

In the first act of Verdi’s take on Shakespeare’s comical, drunken knight from The Merry Wives of Windsor, Falstaff is down on his luck and reveals a plan to seduce two married women to gain access to their husbands’ wealth. His servants, the thieves Bardolfo and Pistola, balk at the prospect of delivering love letters to each of the women, citing their honour. “Honour!” Falstaff sings incredulously, before he decries the meaninglessness of the word, eventually chasing the pair out of the inn.

Camille Saint-Saëns (1835–1921)Mon coeur s'ouvre à ta voix from Samson et Dalila

The enchantingly beautiful Mon coeur s'ouvre à ta voix (Softly wakes my heart) is one of the most popular mezzo-soprano arias in the repertoire, and has taken on a life of its own as a recital piece. In Saint-Saëns’ biblical opera Samson et Delilah, Delilah, a high priestess of Dagon, seeks to seduce the supernaturally strong Samson – the leader of the Hebrew uprising – to learn the secret of his strength. She sings her aria against throbbing strings and cascading winds, in response to his admission of love.

Gaetano Donizetti (1797–1848)Una furtiva lagrima from L'Elisir d'amore

Melancholy oboe and harp introduce Una furtive lagrima (a furtive tear), the tenor aria from Act 2 of Donizetti’s comic opera L’Elisir d’amore (the elixir of love). The peasant Nemorino is in love with a beautiful landowner, Adina. He buys a love potion —which is actually cheap wine—from a travelling salesman. When he spots a tear in Adina’s eye while fending off a hoard of women (who have learned, unknown to him, that he has inherited a huge fortune) he takes it as proof that the elixir has worked and Adina is in love with him.

Paul Dessau (1894–1979)Tanz der müden Füße from Leonce und Lena

Based on a play by Georg Büchner, Paul Dessau’s 1979 opera Leonce und Lena— which the composer described as his Così fan tutte—tells the story of a prince and a princess who both run away to avoid their arranged marriage, only to meet coincidentally and fall in love anyway. In the first act, a bored Prince Leonce tells his concubine, Rosetta, to dance for him. She sings her delicately haunting “dance of the tired feet.”

WagnerDich teure Halle grüß ich wieder from Tannhäuser

Wagner’s Tannhäuser draws on the legend of the Wartburg Song Contest and the myth of Venus and her underground lair. After a long absence, during which time he has been a willing captive of Venus in her grotto, Tännhauser returns to the Wartburg castle. Elisabeth, who fell in love with him before he left, is thrilled at the prospect of his return and sings Dich teure Halle grüß ich wieder (Dear Hall, I greet thee once again) as she enters the minnesingers’ hall ahead of the song contest.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791)In diesen heil'gen Hallen from Die Zauberflöte

In Mozart’s The Magic Flute, The Queen of the Night gives her daughter Pamina a dagger and orders her to kill Sarastro, the High Priest of the Sun. Pamina asks Sarastro to forgive her mother and he sings the bass aria In diesen heil'gen Hallen (In these sacred halls), reassuring her that he has no interest in vengeance.

MozartLà ci darem la mano from Don Giovanni

Sleazy nobleman Don Giovanni happens across the wedding of two peasants, Masetto and Zerlina. With his eyes on the bride, Don Giovanni sees off Masetto with the prospect of a lavish wedding celebration – and an implied threat of violence – and attempts to lure Zerlina to his castle in the duet Là ci darem la mano (There we will entwine our hands).

VerdiUn dì, se ben rammentomi, Bella figlia dell'amore from Rigoletto

In this spectacular quartet of tangled motives from the third act of Verdi’s Rigoletto, the Duke of Mantua flirts with Maddalena, who has lured him to the house of the assassin Sparafucile, who plans to kill him. Outside, Gilda is devastated to hear the Duke flirting with someone else, and her father Rigoletto promises revenge.

Engelbert Humperdinck (1854–1921)Abendsegen from Hänsel und Gretel

The tranquil duet Abendsegen (Evening Prayer) from Hänsel und Gretel is a highlight of Humperdinck’s 1893 opera. Starving and poor, Hansel and Gretel are sent out by their mother into the haunted Ilsenstein forest to look for strawberries. It gets dark and they become lost, and the Sandman comes to put them to sleep. Gretel reminds her brother to say their evening prayer.

INTERVAL

WagnerEinzug der Gäste and Gar viel und schön from Tannhäuser

In Tannhäuser’s second act, the Wartburg Song Contest is about to begin. Elisabeth and Hermann, the Landgrave of Thuringia, watch from a balcony as the guests arrive in the minnesingers’ hall (Einzug der Gäste / Entry of the Guests). The knights and nobles enter, followed by the ladies and, finally, the minstrels. Gar viel und schön is the Landgrave’s aria welcoming the singers and announcing the theme of the contest: can you explain the true essence of love?

VerdiReverenza! from Falstaff

The two married women—Alice and Meg— compare their love letters and immediately see through Falstaff ’s ploy, conspiring to set their own plot in motion to teach the knight a lesson. In the second act, Mistress Quickly delivers a reply from each (flattering Falstaff at every turn) and setting up rendezvous times. She assures the knight that neither woman knows about the other’s letter.

MozartDies Bildnis ist bezaubernd schön from Die Zauberflöte

“This image is enchantingly lovely,” Prince Tamino sings in the first scene of The Magic Flute. He has just been rescued from a serpent by three ladies in the service of the Queen of the Night, who show him an image of the Queen’s daughter, the princess Pamina.

VerdiQuel vecchio maledivami from Rigoletto

Ominous chords in the winds and dark lower strings accompany the hunchback jester Rigoletto in the street outside his house. He ponders the curse an elderly noble Monterone dealt him in return for his mockery in the opera’s first scene—“The old man cursed me!”—before he runs into the assassin Sparafucile, who offers his services.

MUSIC NOTES

Giacomo Puccini (1858–1924)Vissi d'arte from Tosca

In the emotionally charged soprano aria Vissi d’arte (I lived for art) from Tosca’s second act, Tosca— who has seen her lover Cavaradossi tortured and led off to the gallows—asks God what she has done to deserve such a fate.

Georges Bizet (1838–1875)Votre toast, je peux vous le render from Carmen

The bullfighter Escamillo introduces himself to the crowd in Lillas Pastia’s inn, in Carmen’s second act, with his macho Toreador’s Song. He sings of the excitement and danger of the bullring to impress the ladies—particularly the beautiful Carmen. “Toreador, on guard!” he sings, “think as you are fighting that a dark eye is watching you, and that love is waiting for you.”

Angus McPherson © 2017

ViolinBarbara Jane GilbyDoreen CummingPip ThompsonLeanne BearCatherine BucknellJack ChenowethLauren DavisTess DuflouJenny HiggsMichelle HiggsValerie JacksonJocelyn JamesLiam KeneallyAndrew LorenzErin PatrickClaire PhillipsTim WickhamEsther Wong

ViolaRobert HarrisIrina AndreevaLucy Carrigy-RyanBen CarvalhoLiz ChalkerIska Sampson

CelloPatrick SuthersSamuel PayneGillian PereiraMichael RyanAlex Voorhoeve

Double BassKyle Ramsay-DanielIsabella BrownDave FlynnPaul Laszlo

FluteVernon HillVirginia TaylorTeresa Rabe

OboeMegan PamplingJulie Igglesden Caitlin McAnulty

ClarinetAlan VivianRachel Best AllenSteve Wylks

BassoonRichard McIntyreKristen SutcliffeJordan London

French HornNeil FavellDianna GaetjensRafael SalgadoCarly Brown

TrumpetJustin LingardGreg StenningJulie Watson

TromboneNigel CrockerMichael Bailey

Bass TromboneColin Burrows

TubaBjorn Pfeiffer

TimpaniAndrew Heron

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Harp Meriel Owen

Lindi Reksten

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Virginia Taylor

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Samuel Payne

Cello

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