Bravissimo! with soloists Donata D’Annunzio Lombardi, Lucio Gallo, Leonardo Caimi, and Diletta Rizzo Marin; Opera Canada Symphony and Opera Canada Chorus (Marco Guidarini, conductor). Roy Thomson Hall, December 31.
For nearly a decade now (nine years to be exact) Toronto opera fans have flocked to the annual New Year’s Eve Bravissimo! concert at Roy Thomson Hall. For voice fans, what’s more fitting than an opera gala to bid farewell to the year just gone by? To be sure, 2016 was a bittersweet year in the arts, not to mention in the world at large. We’ve lost some wonderful artists, but we’ve also experienced many great moments on stage and beyond. Bravissimo! is one of those shows that make us forget the bad and remember the good — “Opera’s Greatest Hits” as the event is billed, sung by beautiful voices in a festive setting.
This year was unusual in that it was an All-Italian Affair — four singers (two real-life couples), an Italian maestro, and an (almost) entirely Italian program. The only Canadian content was the “Opera Canada Symphony” and the “Opera Canada Chorus,” both made up of mostly local musicians and choristers, with many from the Canadian Opera Company. Conductor Marco Guidarini is well-known and loved in Toronto, having conducted the COC Il trovatore six years ago and most recently in La traviata last season. He also conducted last year’s Bravissimo! with Canadians Karina Gauvin and Krisztina Szabo. Of the four soloists, only the renowned veteran baritone Lucio Gallo has sung previously in Toronto. Joining him was his partner, mezzo Diletta Rizzo Marin. The other operatic couple was soprano Donata D’Annunzio Lombardi (her name, unfortunately, misspelled in the program) and tenor Leonardo Caimi. There you have it — four singers with lovely voice and stage presence, in a program of Italian and French warhorses. Not a Twelve-Tone, Minimalist, Contemporary score in sight, only “Easy Listening Allowed” — what’s not to love? I say that with my tongue firmly planted in my cheek…
The evening started off with a lively overture from Cosi fan tutte. Listening to the fine playing, one would not have guessed that it’s a “one-off” event with a guest maestro conducting a “pick-up” orchestra, likely with limited rehearsal time. But these sixty or so musicians are experienced artists, and for those from the COC Orchestra, familiar with every single piece this evening, except I Capuleti e I Montecchi. The only other possible exception was Prelude to Act 3 of Lohengrin, which the COC has not done in over thirty years! Quite a few of the other pieces were recently performed, such as Don Giovanni, Marriage of Figaro, Madama Butterfly, and Norma.
I was impressed with the potent yet smooth and mellow sound Guidarini coaxed from the orchestra. A highlight for me was the Lohengrin Overture, with the brass sounding marvelous. I did get the feeling that Guidarini aimed for a big sound, but there was no crudeness, with plenty of nuance when needed. A singer-friendly conductor, Guidarini kept the sound down so as not to drown out the singers. I hope he’ll be back.
A prime pleasure of these events for me is to hear voices new to me, and on this occasion, three of the four I had not previously heard. I was very impressed by the soprano, Donata D’Annunzio Lombardi, who possesses a beautiful, clear, well focused lyric soprano, with a full dynamic range, and used with taste and musicality. Her pianissimos were very lovely, and the fortissimos have good volume but no harshness. Her “Un bel di” – and particularly “Vissi d’arte” – were two of the highlights of the evening. She was partnered by Leonardo Caimi in the Madama Butterfly Love Duet, beautiful singing from both. That said, he seemed a bit underpowered, and he omitted the high C ending, choosing the lower option. Caimi is in the Ensemble in Deutsche Oper Berlin and is in demand all over Europe. Tonight he sang a very nice Flower Song, with the final high B flat sung fortissimo. And no opera gala these days can be without “Nessun dorma” which he sang beautifully and as expected brought the house down.
Lucio Gallo, of course, is an internationally ranked singer, having had great success at the Met, Covent Garden, Vienna and all the other “A” houses. At 57 and a 30-year career under his belt, the voice has lost some freshness. A committed artist, his sound remains vital and his stage presence palpable. He was excellent in the Catalogue Aria, drawing big laughs from the audience when in the line “Ma in Espagna son gia mille e tre,” he replaced Spain with Toronto!!! The Macbeth aria tested his top, and he went a bit flat there, but I’m quibbling. The last soloist was the mezzo Diletta Rizzo Marin. Hers is a very light lyric mezzo, at her best in the lighter things like the Cherubino’s Act 1 aria from Nozze, and as Zerlina in “La ci darem la mano.” She was less successful in the Barcarolle in Hoffmann, or in Romeo’s aria from I Capuleti, where her mezzo lacked the requisite richness of sound.
Kudos to the 38-strong Opera Canada Chorus, made up of 20 women and 18 men, mostly from the COC. It was a pleasure — they never disappoint, whether in Lohengrin or Pagliacci, or the Anvil Chorus from Il trovatore. The near-capacity audience was generally well-behaved, enthusiastic, giving nice ovations to the singers. However, it’s a mystery to me why the applause died so quickly, before the singers got completely off the stage! I’ve hardly ever find that in the European houses. Another faux pas was the applause breaking out right in the middle of Leporello’s Catalogue Aria! Never mind, at least the audience was awake. In the end, there was the obligatory “Libiamo, libiamo” with the chorus joining the soloists on the front of the stage, sipping champagne. The audience gave the artists repeated standing ovations. As expected, the evening ended with Auld Lang Syne with everyone joining in. As promised, the concert ended early, shortly after nine, to allow for further reveling by those so inclined. For us, it was a quick bite and then home to watch the festivities on television. Another year, another Bravissimo!
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