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Opera gala in the rain: The choir had to be divided into two blocks, which found a rain-proof place on the left and right of the orchestra on the stage ramp under the roof of the ruins. © Steffen Sennewald
The opera gala of the Working Group for Music in the Bad Hersfeld monastery ruins was aptly titled “Moon Nights”.
Bad Hersfeld – The title “Moon Nights” of the 2023 opera gala of the Working Group for Music could not have been better chosen, as this year in August the moon should appear twice in full splendor and particularly close to earth, an event that only occurs about every three years . Unfortunately, the persistent rain threw a spanner in the works. At least the visitors could admire a large balloon as a moon ball in front of the entrance to the monastery ruins.
Due to the unfavorable weather conditions, the concert evening turned out a little differently than planned. The choir had to be divided into two blocks, which found a rain-proof place on the left and right of the orchestra on the stage ramp under the roof of the ruins. The approximately 70 singers mastered these difficult acoustic conditions – and this was said in advance – superbly, and a wonderful “stereophonic” room acoustic developed in the auditorium.
The diverse selection of music by musical director Christoph Becker dealt with “moon night music” from different perspectives – sometimes as magic, sometimes as romantic nocturnal thoughts, but also with the night from the perspective of the villains and crime. In the process, Christoph Becker found a good mix of classic hits and less popular pieces that fit the theme.
The concert opened with the overture to the opera “The Magic Flute” by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, which deals with the fight between Sarastro, the priest of light and the queen of the night against the background of the love between Prince Tamino and Pamina, the daughter the queen of the night, goes. The “Rhine-Main Symphony Orchestra” proved itself not only in this instrumental opening, but also as the accompanying orchestra for the arias and choral pieces, as a committed, dynamically finely graded orchestra that effortlessly mastered even the most demanding works.
The first part of the program moved in the field of tension between musical classics, the baroque and the romantic. The airy elf song with choir “Bunte Schlangen, zweizüngt” from the incidental music to Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” by Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy was gracefully performed by the women’s choir and the two soloists Judith Spießer and Vero Miller. Then the whole choir shone in “Moonrise” from the operetta “The Merry Wives of Windsor” by Otto Nicolai. The Dutch bass-baritone Nico Wouterse inspired with expressive facial expressions, great joy of playing and musical composition in Figaro’s aria “Aprite un po’ occhi” in which he, waiting in the garden at night, sings of the wickedness of all women.
Music from “Ariodante” and “Semele”, two rather unknown operas by George Frideric Handel, formed an interesting contrast to the previous part. In Ariodante’s aria “Dopo notte” Vero Miller shone with elegant, slim coloratura, while Judith Spießer convinced in the aria of Semele and later in the aria of the Queen of the Night from the Magic Flute with stylish and powerful coloratura.
The second part of the concert was dedicated to works from the late 19th century, including the famous prisoner’s chorus from Verdi’s “Nabucco” and the barcarole from Offenbach’s “Tales of Hoffmann”, Gilda’s aria “Gualtier Maldè” from “Rigoletto” (again with virtuoso coloraturas by Judith Spießer) and the emotional dance of the spheres of the fixed stars from the opera “Sleeping Beauty” by Engelbert Humperdinck. “Auf Euer Wohl” from “Frau Luna” by Paul Lincke formed the energetic conclusion, in which all soloists, choir and orchestra were able to prove their quality once again – an extremely entertaining opera concert, conducted by Christoph Becker with confidence and knowledgeable, charming and humorously moderated by Frederik Frank, who in the encore even surprised as a soloist with the entrance song of Theophil together with the choir.
The audience expressed their thanks in the sold-out monastery ruins with minutes of standing applause. (Helgo Hahn)
Opera gala in the Bad Hersfeld monastery ruins: moonlit night music in the rain
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2023-09-03 15:47:53
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