Lorraine Hunt Lieberson
A few nights ago* we were listening to the radio. Next up was a performance of Bach's solo Cantata Ich Habe Genug, to be sung by the late Lorraine Hunt Liebersen.
It was sometime last year — or was it two years ago? — that Isaac and I first came across Lorraine Hunt Liebersen, quite by accident. Some years previously we had been at some retail outlet that had some obscure videotapes at seriously reduced prices. Among them was one that attracted our attention: a recorded performance of Handel's opera Theodora, the title role sung by (soprano) Dawn Upshaw, assisted by (countertenor) David Daniels and (mezzo-soprano) Lorraine Hunt Liebersen, staged by Peter Sellars. Handel we liked. Sellars I usually find at least amusing. Dawn Upshaw and David Daniels we knew we liked, but we'd never heard of Lorraine Hunt Lieberson.
We finally watched the video sometime last year (I think) and enjoyed it immensely. The staging I thought fine, and the performances by Upshaw and Daniels matched our expectations. The startling performance, for us, was that of Lieberson in her role as "Irene". What a voice! What singing! What acting! She was mesmerizing. And so we embarked on slowly collecting recorded performance by Lieberson — all outstanding so far — just getting to know her voice.
We were, therefore, dismayed to hear her named as "the late Lorraine Hunt Lieberson". Late? Late! How could she be "late"? We were just getting started, alas. Of course, there are still her recorded performances to collect, but now there won't be any new ones. It's like we've missed our chance to know her really, really well.
Yes, it turns out she died early in July 2006, at the age of 52, of breast cancer. It makes me sad. Not only was her voice extraordinary and unique, it seems that she was too, as I now know from a bit of after-the-fact reading. Not least among the interesting facts of her life and career is that she didn't even really start singing until her late 20s, if you can imagine that.
I can point out two pieces that I read: a short one following her death (Christopher Lydon, "Lorraine Hunt Lieberson Remembered", Open Source, 12 July 2006), and a much longer but fascinating New Yorker Profile (Charles Michener, "The Soul Singer: A mezzo with the most potent voice since Callas", New Yorker, 29 December 2003).
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* Actually, I can be quite specific: it was last Friday night, because we were listening to the "listeners' choice" program on WBJC radio (Baltimore) with its irritating host Reed Hessler.
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on Friday, 19 January 2007 at 00.00
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Is there a radio host who is NOT 'irritating'? Well, CBC Radio 2 has one or two, but then they are offset by a myriad of others on the same network, at the top of which, as Chris Ambidge will attest, is Eric Freisen (whom, once we learned that he had worked for Minnesota Public Radio before returning to Canada, we have dubbed 'Ted Baxter' — and yes, he IS THAT irritating).
Speaking of Chris, it is a coincidence that, when I was visiting him a couple of weeks ago, he kept mentioning this DVD of Handel's Theodora with Dawn Upshaw and David Daniels, that I really should watch. I never quite got around to it. …
on Friday, 19 January 2007 at 01.36
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I think I remember once a radio host who wasn't irritating, but I can't remember who now. I suspect that even I was irritating when I hosted a couple of radio programs in college.
But speaking of Chris and this Theodora convergence, it's sounding to me more and more likely that you'll be seeing this performance sometime in the next year, Bill. Fortunately, I think you'll enjoy it, despite the Sellar's staging.
on Saturday, 20 January 2007 at 12.42
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Most of the daytime CBC Radio Two hosts are fine. you too can listen to CBC radio on the web. Go to:
http://www.cbc.ca/listen/index.html
and select what you'd like — there are multiple Radio One feeds, from different cities; there's a single Radio Two (classical music, mostly) feed, from Toronto. And just after the noon news, Live – From Ottawa – for three hours – it's the Ted Baxter Show! (actually, Studio Sparks with Eric Friesen, and you'll know it's Studio Sparks, Ted will mention it at least ten times an hour. But enough of MY pet peeves.
I quite like the Theodora dvd – it's Handel, it's in English, it's not Wagner, it has David Daniels — what's not to like? But (back of hand to forehead) I'm quite used to Bill ignoring my suggestions, it's all part of being a host really, just provide choices, and if your guest chooses to ignore what you provide, well that's all right. I'll just sit over here in the corner – I may not even turn the light on – but I'll be fine, really. don't mind me, I'm fine. maybe I'll watch David Daniels by myself. I'm fine, really. (/hand to forehead). I thought the Sellars staging was fine, though I can see the purists being sniffy about it.
on Saturday, 20 January 2007 at 14.45
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No one can be "fine" quite as long-sufferingly as Chris.
on Saturday, 20 January 2007 at 15.40
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No one can be "fine" quite as long-sufferingly as Chris.
:: curtsey ::
why thank you!
on Saturday, 20 January 2007 at 17.33
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Besides, we all know that Chris' role in all this is to plow the ground by making uninteresting suggestions to Bill so that, later, I can plant the seed by making the same suggestion and watch Bill's interest grow into a beautiful flower.
Indeed, Chris is really fine at being fine.
I think the purists would be apoplectic at the Sellar's staging, but they can't say so since that's just what he would want. I saw someone suggest — upon seeing his production sung with a different cast — that the staging had such powerful symbolism (and they thought the fluorescent-orange jumpsuits with machine guns a bit much) that it overwhelmed the text.
Obviously it was a lesser cast, because I never really had that feeling watching the Upshaw / Daniels / Hunt Lieberson performance, who were quite strong enough not to be upstaged by the staging.
on Sunday, 21 January 2007 at 14.53
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Having come across this blog entirely by accident (although the words "Daniels" and "Lieberson" were the keys), I can only totally concur with the thoughts expressed about both singers – and the ground-breaking and marvellous Sellars production of "Theodora". If anyone here wants to know more about Mr.Daniels' upcoming performances, gossip and reports etc – then do please feel invited to join the Yahoo Group called http://www.daviddanielsfans@egroups.com where you can lurk or participate as you prefer. I think it's true to say (although modesty forbids any higher recommendation) that if you want to know where David is singing next, and what, and with whom, then don't bother going to his "official" website – check it out with us! Alas, there will be no more from LHL, as we know, just the thrilling and mesmeric performances we have on disc to date.
with best wishes,
Sue.
on Sunday, 21 January 2007 at 22.28
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One of the things about classic works is they can stand multiple interpretations – so there have been n stagings of, say, Hamlet (where n is a VERY large number, just in the past 100 years), and nearly all of them "work".
Likewise, Handel's work is strong (well, the music; like most operas, the plot can be problematic — but hey, W*gn*r can rise above risible plots), so it can stand stagings from "authentick" productions to Sellars'.
I must allow that I have little patience with people who have to have "authentick" versions, exactly as Handel (or whoever the creator of the work was, this is wider than Handel) would have seen it. Nothing wrong with going for the early versions, it's the dismissing out-of-court ANY other interpretation that I find prissy beyond words.
It can be jarring at first to see something we think of as firmly in a time not our own to be set in contemporary (or even just-recent) terms – be that Sellars' version of Theodora with the soldiers as 'Murrican 20th/21st century armed men with helmets and orange jumpsuits, or that recent version of Richard III set in the 1930s.
A different instance of this for me was seeing a contemporary set of Stations of the Cross. Bill will be familiar with the Chris Woods stations – they were done for St David's Anglican Church in Vancouver within the last 15yr, and they're set in the city of that date. All of the people are late-20th-century Canadians. They can be found online here. (larger version – click on the image)
A friend sent me the card for the opening show of the stations – the card was station 13, pieta. I found it very compelling, and it gave me a whole new way to look at another pieta that I adore, the pieta of villeneuve-les-avignon, which is 450yr older. Exactly the same composition, right down to the clergyman off to one side, who was the donor. And it made me realise that the Avignon people are in their own contemporary dress – not biblical period at all (no, Chris, long robes are NOT all the same), but 1450 south of France; just as the Chris Woods ones are 1995 Vancouver.
I mean, I know people like that – from John: blue jeans, beard and birkenstocks, to Mary: glasses, sensible haircut, blue denim pantsuit – I've met her in more church basements than I can count. It really brought the every-day-ness of the scene home to me.
And the Sellars version of Theodora with modern soldiers, cans of coke and all, brought that into the realm of the real, my-everyday-world in a way I hadn't expected.
on Monday, 22 January 2007 at 18.07
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I think I'm with you, Chris, which probably comes as no surprise. May 20 years ago I thought I was more a purist who insisted on authentic performances of some sort — no Bach on piano, for instance — and who was thrilled by the whole "original instruments" movement. (Someone once asked: why don't we ever hear vocal music performed on the original instruments?)
But now I'm much more liberal about it all, and I wonder whether my original parochialism over "authentick" performance wasn't more just excitement at a re-expansion of the palette and deeper understanding of the original performing context. At the time I was also playing with a small early-musick ensemble and interested in learning all about it.
Nowadays I think what I want to hear is anything that is played well. Glenn Gould playing the Goldberg Variations on the piano is brilliant and informative; it has artistic integrity. It seems more important that the music be played well and with authentic aristry and integrity, and not merely authentick instruments.
I think that the Sellar's Theodora had plenty of artistic integrity and musicianship, which made it a brilliant performance of Handel's music.