La Tremenda Ultrice Spada of Elina Garanca

"Vocal registers arise from different vibratory patterns produced by the vocal cords. The vocal cords are capable of producing at least four distinct vibratory forms, blah blah blah...."

Forget what you knew till today about the registers of the human voice.

Forget what you knew till today about the breaks
between the registers of the human voice.
As a matter of fact, reconsider what you already know about the human voice.

Elina Garanča sang tonight a unique recital at the Athens Megaron, in front of 1.500 bedazzled music lovers that cheered till they dropped.

~.~
Elegantly gowned and coiffed, La Garanča commenced the recital with a mozartian concert-aria (Giunse al fin il momento...Al desio di chi t'adora) and Sesto's Parto, parto. Her Mozart was lucid, crystal-clear, the coloraturas were fluid, the high notes were thrilling, a treat for the ear!

~.~

Time for some Bellini and after one of the typically atrocious performances of the overture to Nabucco by the ERT Symphony Orchestra, Elina sang what secondo me, was the peak of the evening: "Se Romeo...La tremenda ultrice spada" from I Capuleti e I Montecchi:

The cavatina was ethereal, her legato was from outa space, her frasseggio was exemplary, but it was the cabaletta that blew me off my seat: The volume and the quality of the low notes, the consonants that were spit out à la Baltsa (I can't stand singers who only or mostly sing vowels), the sovracute that sent me to heaven (or to my ear doctor). Perfection!

~.~

Part 2 found Elina in a red gown and in a witty mood,
adequate for the zarzuel-0-rama that would follow.
La Canción de la Paloma, La Romanza de Socorro, Al pensar en el dueño (from Las hijas de Zebedeo) were sung in perfect style and perfect spanish, offering some pop-thrill to the less operatic amongst the audience and receiving some wild cheering.

~.~

La Carmencita could not be absent from this tribute to España and especially now, just a few weeks before Elina's debut as Carmen at the Met.
The Habanera and the Seguidille, less the Chanson Bohème, usually send me straight to the Kingdom of Boredom and this was hardly an exception, however Elina sang all 3 arias stunningly.

~.~

The 2 encores were quite weird choices, Marechiare and O mio babbino caro.

Am I the only one who identifies neapolitan songs with male voices?
Tosti's favourite is one of those but Elina's rendition awed the audience.

Lauretta's aria is for the voice recitals what the Forza del Destino overture is for the orchestral concerts. You have heard it sooooo many times that the natural reaction should be "Gee! Not again!". Nevertheless, this Lauretta sent us home with some gorgeous floating pianissimi and lighter of heart.


Cons:

-Needless to say that the ERT Symphony Orchestra, even if they played more accurately and focused than in the Juan Diego Flórez Recital back in July - under the baton of Ion Marin tonight, was once again the reason for some pretty nasty jokes during the interval. The Orchestra itself is the nastiest of all jokes.

-The programme was more on the "popular classics" side than I would have expected or hoped. After the success of Garanča's exquisite Belcanto CD, I really cannot figure out the reasons for not singing at least 1 more belcanto aria (instead of half the history of the zarzuela at the second part - probably due to an upcoming zarzuela CD)

Pros:

-Elina's superhuman voice, totally even throughout all the tessitura, no edges, no register breaks, no strain, no daubed coloraturas, perfect overall.
A lesson of (wild!) technique.

Paldies Elina!

Elina at the signing-session after the recital