THE NEW ZEALAND OPERA SOCIETY

I was lucky enough to get to Auckland for the Lexus Song Quest last Thursday. And what a magnificent experience.

It was a very close competition. But there’s no question: Madeleine Pierard is a star. Duparc’s ‘Chanson triste’ shone — one of the few moments I was able to forget that it was a competition and just think about enjoying the music while the tears welled up. Her ‘Una voce poco fa’, on the other hand, was a lightning bolt: or rather a whole electrical storm full of them. When the semifinalists were broadcast on Concert FM, I was impressed but not as much as I wanted to be. Live at the final, it was another matter entirely: beautiful beautiful sound, incredible agility, wonderful characterisation and some simply impossible decorations. The thunderous applause and foot-stomping which followed was utterly deserved, and the sense of triumph in the hall was palpable.

Jamie Frater’s Handel lacked a little of that sublime Baroque flavour which even sacred oratorio can take on in the right hands, but Ravel’s ‘Chanson à boire’ was a delight. Still recovering from Madeleine’s ‘Una voce’ as I was, I didn’t pay his third aria (from Eugene Onegin) as much attention as I ought, but I’m certain he deserved his placing. Allison Cormack, however, was a revelation. After hearing her during the semifinalists’ broadcasts, her selection for the final surprised me more than anyone else’s. But live, I was hooked. Brahms’ ‘Wie Melodien zieht es mir’ was simply mouthwatering, and ‘Senza mamma’ from Puccini’s Suor Angelica just broke my heart. I see a shining future for this woman, especially with the help of scholarships like this.

Among the unplaced finalists, I enjoyed Penelope Muir the most. Penny’s a Dunedin girl like me, and I’ve seen her sing many times, but almost always with piano. It was a joy to see how well she responded to an orchestra: Monica’s Waltz from The Medium benefited in particular, and was even more dazzling than ever. Robert Tucker, our other Dunedin representative (although he’s now living in Perth) was as gorgeous as ever. Pierrot’s Tanzlied was lyrical and heartfelt, without resorting to syrupiness, and his hilarious ‘Miei rampolli femminini’ had me grinning: he’s a natural comedian. Joanna Heslop was not at all as I expected. The delicacy which impressed me on radio seemed to have evaporated a little — nerves perhaps — and her high notes were a little harsh. The ability and drive are clearly present, and she had moments of brilliance, but on Thursday night her performance lacked some of the beauty her chosen programme deserved.

It truly was a fabulous night. Grace Bumbry, our illustrious and gorgeous adjudicator, was faced with an incredibly difficult decision, to be sure, but she definitely picked the right winners. So until the 2007 Song Quest I guess there’s nothing to do but sit and back and watch these new stars rise and rise. I’ve no doubt they will.

(This review appeared earlier, in almost unrecognisably different form, in my own opera blog, Prima la Musica.)