Sunday, November 26, 2006

Bryn Terfel and the UBS Verbier Festival Orchestra

I've said before that I *heart* opera and when my brother and I found out that Bryn Terfel, considered the world's leading bass-baritone, would be coming here for a recital, we shot out and bought tickets!


We weren't allowed to take photos so here's a photo of the programme and Terfel's new CD of Mozart arias. Terfel sang Mozart's Cosi dunque tradasci'...aspri rimorsi atroci (Concert aria K432) and Io ti lascio, o cara, addio (Concert aria K245/621A) and Wagner's Wie todesahnung dammrung deckt die lande (Tannhauser) and Die frist is um...wie oft in meeres tiefsten schlund (The Flying Dutchman). Brilliant! For encore, the Melb. Welsh Men's Choir (gee, I didn't know there was one) were present and accompanied him on a welsh song (natch), and then he sang something in italian that involved him coming off the stage and hanging out flowers to women in the audience. It was really funny, especially since an old woman sitting behing me (we were in the back of the stalls) kept yelling out "COME HERE!!!"

But possible the real star(s) of the show were the orchestra itself. It's a youth orchestra consisting of members from around the world (although most of them come from the US) where the members are between the ages of 17 and 29. The pieces played were the overture to Le Nozze di Figaro (which I'll be seeing in a fortnight, yay!), the overture to The Flying Dutchman, selected pieces from Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet, and as encore Grieg's In the Hall of the Mountain King, and a hungarian dance whose proper name eludes me now. It was just really...wow...and my hands were sore from all that clapping.

Next on the list of classical music to come, Sumi Jo next week! YAY!

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Thank you dear one for writing about the Verbier Festival
Orchestra concert. My daughter
plays viola with the orchestra
and I have been searching the
internet for information on
how they are doing. I loved
what you wrote, thanks again,
Sally Dreyer - Beaverton, Oregon