{"id":114590,"date":"2025-05-26T12:13:06","date_gmt":"2025-05-26T16:13:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/?p=114590"},"modified":"2025-05-26T14:00:01","modified_gmt":"2025-05-26T18:00:01","slug":"scrutiny-samuel-marino-adds-growing-legacy-tafelmusik-concert","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/2025\/05\/26\/scrutiny-samuel-marino-adds-growing-legacy-tafelmusik-concert\/","title":{"rendered":"SCRUTINY | Samuel Mari\u00f1o Adds To His Growing Legacy With Tafelmusik Concert"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Male
Male soprano Samuel Mari\u00f1o performs with Toronto’s Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra (Photo: Dahlia Katz)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Tafelmusik: Samuel Mari\u00f1o at the Opera: Bologne & Mozart | Bologne: Overture from L\u2019amant anonyme: Allegro presto; Concerto for violin, op. 3, no. 1: Adagio; Accomp & Aria \u201cEnfin un foule importune\u201d from L\u2019amant anonyme, Act 2, sc 1; Mozart: Overture & Aria \u201cIntendo amico rio\u201d from Il re pastore; Marianne Martines: Overture in C Major: Andante ma non troppo; Mozart: Symphony 10 in G Major KV 74: Allegro; Accompagnato & Aria \u201cDove sono\u201d from Le Nozze di Figaro; Salieri: Aria \u201cSento l\u2019amico speme\u201d from Semiramide; Salieri: Sinfonia from Armida; Gluck: Accompagnato \u201cBerenice che fai\u201d and Aria \u201cPerch\u00e9 se tanti\u201d from Antigono; Maria Antonia Walpurgis: Overture to Talestri; Gluck: \u201cChe far\u00e8 senza Euridice\u201d from Orfeo ed Euridice; Walpurgis: Aria \u201cDa me ti dividi\u201d from Talestri, arranged for cello & orchestra; Haydn: Accompagnato \u201cBarbaro! E ardisci ancor\u201d & Aria \u201cOdio, furor\u201d from Armida, Act 2. May 23, 2025, Koerner Hall. Repeated May 24 & 25.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

This past weekend, Koerner Hall resonated with the incredibly beautiful voice of Samuel Mari\u00f1o, and Tafelmusik. A rare bird, Mari\u00f1o sings in the highest range of the classical voice category.<\/p>\n

Following up on his wildly successful 2023 Toronto debut with Tafelmusik, Mari\u00f1o\u2019s careful musical selections illustrated his unusual voice, with lesser-known classical orchestral works interspersed in between, exposing the audience to composers who many may never heard of: Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-George \u2014 a first notable biracial musician of Western classical music \u2014 along with Marianne Martines and Maria Antonia Walpurgis, two rare female composers of the Classical period.<\/p>\n

\"Male
Male soprano Samuel Mari\u00f1o performs with Toronto’s Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra (Photo: Dahlia Katz)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Music<\/h3>\n

It is easy to pigeonhole such a unique voice as a curiosity. However, Mari\u00f1o\u2019s incredible dedication in cultivating his own place in the rigid, traditional classical music scene has given him the sweet reward of freedom \u2014 he was truly being himself, from the first note, to the two encores he added to the program: Voi che sapete from the Marriage of Figaro, and Alleluia from Exsultate Jubilate, both by Mozart.<\/p>\n

Mari\u00f1o\u2019s third choice, Glucks\u2019 accompagnato \u201cBerenice che fai\u201d and aria \u201cPerch\u00e9, se tanti siete,\u201d was especially stunning. Compared to the well-known recording of Cecilia Bartoli, whose voice is noted with power, Mari\u00f1o\u2019s voice is not a loud one; however, with clever diction, brilliant coloratura, and plenty of external physical emotional gestures, the lack of volume was hardly noticeable.<\/p>\n

Tafelmusik<\/h3>\n

Tafelmusik had a quite a challenge in this program; much of the music was new, and the technical brilliance of Mari\u00f1o required full-focus and dedication from everyone, especially for the complicated coloraturas and accompagnato recitatives where the entire orchestra needed to be in exact sync with the singer. Tafel\u2019s love for Mari\u00f1o felt genuine, if a bit difficult in spots. Perhaps this program could have benefitted from having a conductor for clarity and synchronicity, and a little delicate adjustment to the orchestral choices \u2014 as the playing lost a little brilliance and consistency, noticeably in the later part of the program .<\/p>\n

An interesting contrast to Mari\u00f1o was the cello solo adaptation of \u2018Da me ti dividi\u2019 from Walpurgis\u2019 opera, Talestry. Keiran Campbell, positioned in the centre of the ensemble, was wonderful as the soloist, yet the lack of vowels, consonants, and explicit human breath \u2014 so innate and natural to singers \u2014 brought up the century-old question: could instrumental music be as expressive as vocal music? Does the absence of words give a wider opportunity for the listener for emotional connection, or…? What happens when we adapt from one to another setting?<\/p>\n

\"Male
Male soprano Samuel Mari\u00f1o performs with Toronto’s Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra (Photo: Dahlia Katz)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Encores<\/h3>\n

The two encores were a great success, bringing the audience to their feet each time. Voi che sapete, a beloved aria for Cherubino from Le Nozzi, is a notoriously difficult pants role. As a \u2018boy,\u2019 Cherubino, usually a mezzo, sings in the top range of the voice, and negotiating the registral difference can be tricky, especially for the softer dynamics. This has become a signature song for him, wildly popular from Mari\u00f1o\u2019s Decca recording \u2018Sopranista\u2019: Mari\u00f1o is uniquely well-set for this aria, as his voice, which did not drop during puberty, continues to exist in that magical boyhood state.<\/p>\n

The ease and grace of Mari\u00f1o\u2019s Alleluia was also quite poignant \u2014 in this world where gender expressions bring division and violence, how could anyone fault such beauty, and for what valid reasons? If we are to believe in God, shouldn\u2019t we also believe that God\u2019s creations include everyone, especially when we are presented with such beauty, generously shared with no barriers? Mari\u00f1o said that \u2018\u2026(he) simply wishes to bring joy to others\u2019 \u2014 and this is a true gift that he did bring to us.<\/p>\n

Beyond his brilliant singing, Mari\u00f1o showed his whole self as an artist; the confidence and joy of his freedom, to sing, and to be who he wishes to be, away from the social conventions and expectations, is beautiful to witness. From the choices of concert attire \u2014 his love for vintage jewelry is well-known: the \u2018grandma brooch\u2019 on the cream-lilac suit he wore for the second half especially suited him \u2014 to the easy manner that he connects with his audience, this intimate evening was a great success, making it difficult to imagine why, or how, anyone could be against such joyful human expression.<\/p>\n

With great pleasure, I await his return to Toronto already. At age 31, Mari\u00f1o is just reaching his full potential, and his exuberance and sense of freedom is infectious. A great legacy is being made here.<\/p>\n

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This past weekend, Toronto’s Koerner Hall resonated with the incredibly beautiful voice of Samuel Mari\u00f1o, and Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":62,"featured_media":114592,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[41660,74,18,19,43,52,63],"tags":[40080,3224],"yst_prominent_words":[],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/05\/Copy-of-REVIEW-2025-05-26T120847.843.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p9bakr-tOe","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/114590"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/62"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=114590"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/114590\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":114602,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/114590\/revisions\/114602"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/114592"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=114590"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=114590"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=114590"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=114590"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}