In praise of concert-hall opera
Hugh Kerr’s piece on the future of the Festivals mentions the possibilities afforded by opera in the concert hall. I want to expand that idea by reflecting on concert performances of past Festivals. At their best – and we in Edinburgh have often seen the best of concert-hall opera - they provide an exciting way to see standard repertoire performed by world class singers as well as once-in-a lifetime opportunities to see rarer works.
My first acquaintance with opera in concert came in performances at the Usher Hall during Brian McMaster’s directorship. Charles Mackerras conducted exciting casts of mainly British and American singers in Mozart’s Figaro, Don Giovanni and Cosi in the Usher Hall in successive years in the mid-1990s They were accompanied by the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, and the SCO Chorus were also involved. All of them were recorded and are available in a Telarc box set along with a Mackerras Magic Flute, recorded in the Usher Hall, but not actually performed at the Festival. My memory is that these performances were little noticed by the London press, but were enormously popular with Edinburgh audiences. Mackerras went on to conduct Usher Hall performances of Verdi’s Macbeth, Fidelio and the Seraglio (the last two maybe not at the Festival) and a memorable Clemenza di Tito with Magdalena Kozena in the early 2000s. Readers may be able to remember others.
Brian McMaster also arranged a series of Usher Hall performances of rare Rossini operas over a number of years. He recruited specialist bel canto singers – I recall Jennifer Larmore and Bruce Ford among others. The SCO, under various conductors were usually on stage. McMaster’s Armida actually did have the six tenors the casting requires, not the same three doubling up in Act II after their demise in Act I. Famously one year the Rossini opera – possibly Zelmira - was the closing concert, then on a Saturday night. The Fireworks Concert was held on the same night. The SCO was playing at both. By the second act it was clear that the opera – so rare no-one had been sure of the timing - was over-running. An announcement had to be made that no-one should leave early for the Fireworks Concert as the SCO would have to get there too – and the second interval would last 12 minutes!
One year (2004 perhaps) there were performances of the three Weber operas, Oberon, Der Freischutz and Euryanthe over three successive nights. What a treat! This was preceded by a day school on the operas and their background, held at the museum, which, as I had just stepped down to part-time teaching, I was very thrilled to be able to attend. I believe the choruses were provided on successive nights by the SCO Chorus, the Festival Chorus and the Chorus of Scottish Opera (then full-time).
A good time to leave the trip down memory lane to point out some of the advantages of concert hall opera for the Festival Director. Each is a one-off performance, so fits neatly in the Usher Hall EIF schedule. Most involve a local orchestra, often the SCO, but sometimes the RSNO, as in parts of the recent Ring Cycle (so much reduced travel and accommodation costs). The experienced local amateur choruses always turn in excellent performances – in the Weber operas just mentioned they did as well, if not better then the Scottish Opera chorus. I should mention that singers from the Conservatoire have also taken part in the choruses in more recent concert stagings. Generally the singers are British, or when US and European appear, they may be able (and it seems to happen more often) to fit in an Edinburgh appearance with a visit to the Proms.
Concert performances have continued to be a feature of EIF programmes after McMaster’s time, but apart from the recent outstanding Ring, presented over four years, I can’t remember any series of operas over one year or successive years. There have been wonderful single performances from visiting orchestras or opera companies. The Hamburg Flying Dutchman conducted by Simone de Young comes to mind, and also Peter Grimes with the Bergen Philharmonic. There are travel costs associated with these one-off events, of course, though not so much as with staged performances, and they are a good way to add an international dimension to Festival opera. But some long-term planning for opera in the festival is called for. Sure, go round the world and choose operas to bring to the Festival Theatre. Often they’re wonderful (though not always – for example the Opera de Lyons Fidelio set on a spaceship and featuring singers on segways Jonathan Mills imposed on us in 2013 - how much did that travesty cost?). So how about a decision to perform all the Wagner Operas in concert – or as Opera North have got there first - a series of Donizetti or Bellini rarities, or operas by Haydn? Or Britten? Or operas about Scotland: Handel’s Ariodante, Rossini’s Lady of the Lake, Donizetti’s Lucia di Lammermuir, Verdi’s Macbeth, Bizet’s The Fair Maid of Perth (well maybe…)
Playing Fantasy Festival Director is a good game during the lockdown, but I hope I have made a serious point. Concert performances of opera are not nearly as expensive as stagings, especially when they use Scottish orchestras and amateur choruses, they introduce audiences to new and exciting repertoire, and they present opportunities for long-term programme planning.
Finally, for two operas in concert at their very best, see the Bergen Philharmonic performances of Duke Bluebeard’s Castle and Peter Grimes, currently available free from their archive of live-streamed performances. Bluebeard stars John Relyea (frequently seen in Usher Hall Festival performances) and Michelle de Young. Both they and the orchestra under Edward Gardner are in top form. The Peter Grimes is the semi-staged performance seen in the Usher Hall three years ago with a very similar cast. It is astonishingly good, with a heart-rending performance by Stuart Skelton, and an amateur Norwegian chorus who sing beautifully - and without scores. See both at https://www.bergenphilive.no/concert-archive/
