Saturday's Matinée Performance at The Met - La Traviata (Again!)

       

Habits are not easy to break; whether they be good or bad.  Take, „La Traviata” (Music by Giuseppe Verdi, Libretto by Francesco Maria Piave).  This is one of the most widely performed Operas by Repertories Worldwide; it has endured literally unbroken Popularity since its Première in 1853 at Teatro La Fenice in Venice.

 

Marquis, Opening Night, La Traviata, Teatro la Fenice, Venice,

6 March 1853

The Metropolitan Opera in New York has performed and also broadcast this Work numerous Times, recently in the much talked aboout Willy Decker „hurried” Production on which we expressed some Concerns in this Column back in January 2011.  Unfortunately, the Met decided in reviving this Production in 2013 wíth a nationally and internationally broadcast Performance on 30 March 2011, on their regular Saturday Matinée.

There is one fantastic Thing to say about the 2013 Revival, Soprano Diana Damrau, from Günzburg, Bavaria, appearing, we think, for the First Time at the Met.  And it is about Time.  She has a spectacular Voice, even though this would also be the First Time she sings the Role of Violetta.  (She will be singing Violetta again in Zürich in May).

Soprano Diana Damrau

 

The Rest though, is much of the Same or, maybe even a Little worse.  Conducting is Yannick Nézet-Séguin and he is no Gianandrea Noseda, who conducted La Traviata in 2011 at the Met.  Conductor Nézet-Séguin did Justice to the hurried and uninispiring Willy Decker Production; he was obviously in a Hurry himself, having to conduct a Concert in Philadelphia, 100 Miles away, later on the same Day.

The Met's Desperation to populate the Stage with „Stars” is also evident in the ill advised Choice of Plàcido Domingo in the Baritone Role of Giorgio Germont (Alfredo Germont's Father) something which Domingo accepted to do gleefully.  There is something to be said for Domingo who wants to show he can do it all, sing Tenor (at which he unquestionably excelled), conduct, be an Artistic Director (Los Angeles Opera) and now, sing Baritone as well.  There is also something to be said about not wanting to do all these Things.

But there is Magic in it all, albeit in a strange and possibly perverted Way.  3000 Miles away, Conductor James Conlon, liberated from the „Directorate” of Plàcido Domingo, who was far away in New York trying to be a Baritone, conducted a spectacular orchestral Performance of „La Cenerentola” in an inspiring and artistically refreshing Production with, it must be said, a sadly inadequate Cast.  But in watching Mastro Conlon conducting, one could feel the Freedom, the Creativity and the unbound Enthusiasm that he put into his Orchestra (and, yes, in the Cast, too) trying to bring out the best Performance he could possibly do of this Rossini Masterpiece.

For those who might be curious to know what a „non hurried” Performance of La Traviata sounds like, here is Maria Callas, with Giuseppe di Stefano, singing the famous Brindisi (Libiamo) from Act I of La Traviata, in México City in 1952 and, again, in Milan in 1955 (Live Performances).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BL5udbfUM5o

 

 

Maria Callas

 

This was Callas at the Zenith of her Career.