| A sumptuous feast served up with great verve and delight |
Welsh National Opera |
| Welsh National Opera- Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg , Wales Millennium Centre , June 21, 2010 |
The Meistersingers of Nuremberg were a latter day Only Men Aloud, with a touch of Free Masonry. They prized highly not only the quality of the beauty and the intricate construction of the poetic lyrics of their songs but also the great musicality with which the words were sung. Meistersingers, whose ranks were drawn mainly from the craftsmen of the day, were a major feature of cultural life throughout 14th, 15th and 16th century Germany. Only those reaching the highest standards were admitted. In order to uphold the standards of the Meistersingers Wagner wrote the libretto of this opera himself.Hans Sachs around who this story revolves is a real life character who settled in Nuremburg in the later part of his life. Here he is brought vividly to life in a wonderful and moving performance by Bryn Terfel. This is a comic opera, not buffa but more subtle and Terfel delicately touches in the humour. Now and again there is even a smile on his face as he works towards bringing the fable to its happy ending. But it does take him nearly six hours to do it. This is not due to his character’s lack of guile but to Wagner’s commitment to his art that has produced what is probably the longest known of any opera. And what a sumptuous feast it is, served up with great verve and delight by Director Richard Jones and this very different Wagner music with the sweetness of many of its phrases beautifully executed by the company’s near perfect orchestra, consummately lead by musical director Lothar Koenigs. There’s a handsome knight, handsomely sung and acted with great sincerity by Raymond Very. He’s in love with a beautiful young girl – she’s very much in love with him but there’s a problem. It’s the Feast of St John (Midsummer’s Day). Veit Pogner, the town’s goldsmith has offered the hand of his daughter Eva to the winner of the singing contest held annually on that day. Beckmesser the Town Clerk has set his cap at Eva and is already a Meistersinger. The young knight’s singing powers are not good and his understanding of the complexity of the rules set for poetry construction – nil! It doesn’t take a lot of guessing to work out how it all resolves itself. The greatly extended, full voiced chorus open and close the show with a powerful musicality that both fills the hall and raises our spirits. They also get up to some riotous behaviour in the middle which adds to the fun. The hours just whizzed by. The quality of the acting and the story telling captivated and created a real sense of involvement with all the characters and we were rooting for a good ending. A sadness too, Terfel’s character really wanted the girl himself but he was happy to see the young lovers finally united. Amanda Roocroft looks delicious and sang with a gentle power that seduced us all. As her companion Magdalene Anna Burford was equally enchanting. Andrew Tortise as Sachs’ apprentice again reflected the light touch of joy that was a hallmark of this fine production. The bad guy Beckmesser, here was high comedy at its best, once again Christopher Purves showing his strong ability to completely entrance his audience with both the quality of his acting and his singing. His Wozzeck marked a new high point in the life of the Welsh National Opera; this production of Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg will do the same. The performance is repeated in Cardiff: 23,26,29 June and 3 July. In Birmingham 6 & 10 July |
Reviewed by: Michael Kelligan |
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