Even on paper, this concert by the innovative Classical Opera Company seemed delectable: seventeen arias and duets interspersed by a range of love poems read by Zoe Wanamaker and Simon Russell Beale.
And in the event, the concert, entitled 'The Truth about Love: A Romantic Journey through Mozart's Operas', was brilliantly executed by the guest singers and the COC under their artistic director, Ian Page.
What people think of as the 'sublime' nature of Mozart's music is particularly apparent in the love scenes from his operas, nine of which were represented here. The idea behind the concert was brilliant because of the huge range of emotions attached to love that Mozart depicts in his stage works. Though a couple of the tenor arias sung here tend to have a similar feel – Tamino's 'Dies bildnis', Don Ottavio's 'Dalla sua pace', the repertoire was strikingly varied, with characters in furious (Ilia's aria from Idomeneo), comically reproductive (the Papageno-Papagena duet from Die Zauberflöte), seductive (Don Giovanni's 'Deh vieni alla finestra') or jealous mode (Figaro's Act IV aria). As usual, one can only ask: who can be put beside Mozart for invention and insight?
The five soloists for this concert were all extremely good, which helped to make this a truly satisfying experience. Mezzo-soprano Katija Dragojevic started both halves of the concert with one of Cherubino's arias and later appeared in duets from La clemenza di Tito and Idomeneo. Her performance was thoroughly impressive, combining a rich fruity tone with an ability truly to engage with the material; I can imagine her being brilliant in Mozart's trouser roles on the stage.
Klara Ek's light but flexible soprano briefly threatened to be overcome slightly by the demands of Sandrina's aria from La finta giardiniera,and she was not the most assertive interpreter of text on the stage, but she acquitted herself well and came into her own with the Servilia-Annio duet from La clemenza, the Papageno-Papagena duet and Tamiri's aria from Il re pastore.
The evening was also a reminder of how far Andrew Kennedy has come since leaving The Royal Opera's Young Artists scheme: his renditions of the arias of Tamino, Belmonte, Ferrando and Don Ottavio blended a beauty of sound with excellent diction; that he is a great Lied singer was also apparent from his acutely expressive delivery of the words.
Baritone Gary Magee gave enjoyable performances of aptly macho arias for Don Giovanni, Figaro ('Aprite un po' quegl'occhi') and Nardo in La finta giardiniera. The latter was his showpiece, allowing him to sing in German, French, English and Italian whilst serenading a brilliantly bored-looking Zoe Wanamaker. The lyric qualities of his voice know no bounds, and he was also very fine in the two duets from Die Zauberflöte.
However, I have to save the best till last. The attraction of the evening in advance for me was the opportunity to hear the internationally-acclaimed Welsh soprano Rebecca Evans performing Fiordiligi's 'Per pietà' from Così fan tutte for the first time. The aria was written for Adriana Ferrarese del Bene, a singer of phenomenal talents of whom it was said: 'She has, in addition to an unbelievable high register, a striking low register, and connoisseurs of music claim that in living memory no such voice has sounded within Vienna's walls'. That would explain why the aria is so fiendishly difficult to sing, with a range of more than two octaves and frequent leaps between the registers. Yet the challenge held no fears for Evans: she nailed every single note with ease and accuracy, crowning the aria with a heart-stopping high B. Before the interval, she was no less impressive in Ilia's aria, done as fierily as one could hope, and sailed through her creamy upper register in the Pamina-Papageno and Ilia-Idamante duets. It was a bonus to hear her perform 'Soave sia il vento' from Così fan tutte as an encore (with Magee and Dragojevic exceptional partners): she's clearly ripe to sing the whole of Fiordiligi's role, and I can't wait to hear her debut as the Countess in Figaro with WNO and as Mimì in La bohème at Covent Garden.
This concert was a triumph for the Classical Opera Company – the best I've heard from them. With the exception of a few inevitable blips from the natural horns in Fiordiligi's aria, the playing was responsive and sensitive, while Page's leadership maintained an urgent flow through what was, after all, a vast amount of music.
It was an inspired idea to have the readings, too: Beale's execution of Shakespeare's sonnets, a letter from Mozart to his father about his marriage and Roger McGough's hilarious 'At Lunchtime' provided an excellent context for the music, as did Wanamaker's warmth in Auden's 'Tell Me the Truth about Love' and e.e. cummings' 'i carry your heart with me' and deadpan wit in Wendy Cope's 'Flowers'.
In all, a hugely pleasurable and absorbing occasion, and surely a great project to be recorded as a follow-up to the COC's 'A-Z of Mozart Opera' disc, released last year.
Recent related articles:
Classical Opera Company's The A-Z of Mozart Opera (Sony)
An interview with Rebecca Evans
Rebecca Evans in The Magic Flute at WNO
Rebecca Evans in The Turn of the Screw at ENO
Rebecca Evans in Cosi fan tutte at the ROH