“Kleine Oper am See” from berlinen inspires audiences in Bleibach.
(BZ). Actually, the concert of the Little Opera from berlingen should have taken place in 2020, on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the MGV choir community in Bleibach. After the Corona break, it was now made up for in the well-filled Bleibacher Festhalle. The guest performance has a history: the former chairman of the Bleibach Choir, Paul Seeger, found a new choir home after moving to Lake Constance at the “Kleine Oper am See”, also due to the multiple engagements of the singer and director of the Kleine Oper, Isabell Marquardt, at Bleibach concerts.
According to the announcement, the opera choir from Berlingen is supported by professionals: the soprano Nina van Ryn and the mezzo-soprano Felicitas Brunke traveled from Hamburg and Karlsruhe. Vincent Ghlow, Gerhard Rimmele and Isabell Marquardt and the Ukrainian pianist couple Elena Orlova and Sascha Burdenko came from Lake Constance.
The choir and bass-baritone Ghlow opened the concert with radiant sounds. “Victoria! Victoria! The master shall live!” from “Der Freischütz” by Carl Maria von Weber sounded powerful but soulful. We continued with pieces from the Mozart opera “Cosi fan tutte”. First came a solo trio with Brunke, van Ryn and Ghlow with “Soave Sia il Veto” sensitively and with expression, then the duet “Il core vi mono” by baritone and mezzo-soprano and finally a solo number by soprano van Ryn with ” In uomini, in soldati”.
Now tenor Rimmele had his first appearance. The aria “Nessun dorma” (Nobody sleep) from Puccini’s opera “Turandot” came with a lot of feeling and radiant height. Brunke now came out of the audience with “Habanera” as “Carmen” and enchanted with her warm and voluminous singing “Innegiamo” from the opera “Cavalleria Rusticana” the choir had to overcome a challenge. With solo participation and simultaneous conducting by Marquardt, they succeeded. Ghlow now sensitively interpreted an aria from “The Dead City”.
Now the operetta has arrived. Ghlow and Marquardt shone in Franz Lehr’s “lips silent”. It continued with Johann Strauss’ “Fledermaus” with soprano van Ryn and “Mein Herr Marquis”, “Brderlein und Schwesterlein” with choir and all five soloists. At the end of the first part, “Im Feuersturm der Reben” was played together with the choir and the soloists Brunke, Rimmele and Ghlow.
The choral movement “Adiemus” by Karl Jenkins was performed expressively and precisely at the beginning of the second part. Two Chre from “Sonne, Mond und Sterne” by Peter Schindler followed. The choir proved its power of expression here, with “Mund” the male voices had their grand entrance. Van Ryn and Marquardt now sang the “Flower Duet” (Duo des fleurs). A great duet by Felicitas Brunke and Gerhard Rimmele from “Samson et Dalia” was followed. With “Summertime” from Gershwin’s “Porgy and Bess”, interpreted with great sensitivity by Isabell Marquardt, the duet “Bess, you are my woman now” with Rimmele, Marquardt and the choir drew to a close. This came powerfully with “Libiamo”, the Brindisi from “La Traviata” by Verdi and the use of three soloists and the choir. Encores that were stormily demanded were also granted.
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