A Brno Don Carlos

3 February 2019, 18:00
A Brno Don Carlos

The latest opera production of the National Theatre in Brno is Don Carlos by the composer Giuseppe Verdi and the poet Friedrich Schiller. This work, directed by the director of this institution, Martin Glaser, had its premiere on Saturday 2 February 2019 in the Janáček Theatre. The stage set was designed by Pavel Borák and the costumes by Markéta Sládečková-Oslzlá. Lighting was the responsibility of Martin Špetlík. The performance was conducted by Jaroslav Kyzlink, who also produced the performance with the choir and orchestra of the Janáček Opera of the National Theatre in Brno. The main roles were filled by Luciano Mastro as Don Carlos and Federico Sacchi as King Philip II, Carlos’ father; Jiří Brückler is the friend of the title character and the confidant of the king, Rodrigo, Marquis of Posa. Linda Ballová took the part of the young queen and madly infatuated Elisabeth of Valois; the figure of the vengeful Princess Eboli, who secretly loves the king’s son was played by Veronika Hajnová-Fialová. The intimidating inquisitor was played by Ondrej Mráz. Also appearing were Andrea Široká, Martina Mádlová, Zdeněk Nečas and David Szendiuch.

The historical works of the great authors only rarely depict actual historical developments, and rather than provide a precise picture of the past such literature offers romantic inspiration from ancient wars, political intrigues and the doomed love of the great lords. Even today as the result of the rich imagination of sensation-seeking burgesses and the literary talent of Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin the composer Antonio Salieri is seen by many as having murdered Mozart. In the same way the play Don Carlos by the writer Friedrich Schiller rather borrows from real history and subordinates the characters to romantic literary logic and deformation. A large part of his play was inspired by the novel Dom Carlos: Nouvelle Historique by the French abbot César Vichard de Saint‑Réal. Schiller’s vision however fortunately did not – as is so often the case in similar interpretations of history – did not depict the characters as all black or white. In the same way that we can mourn the doomed love of Don Carlos and Elisabeth of Valois, in the same way we can also have sympathy for the behaviour of the lonely and fearful King Philip II. Schiller’s drama despite its at times schematic approach gives space for a certain moral greyness even in its heroes. Verdi’s music in close harmony with the libretto builds these emotional and expressive bridges also for the singers themselves, who working with the director can accentuate in the given roles otherwise unusual character attributes. I would say that in this respect the opera company of the National Theatre in Brno is in safe hands.

Those taking the main roles (with the exception of Veronika Hajnová-Fialová) are visiting artists. The title role was being performed by the Italian tenor Luciano Mastro, who tried to give the emotional tension of the character the most significant features. Mastro’s aggressiveness, impetuosity and youthful indiscretion were unbelievable and were based on a purely eponymous character type. In the first act, the singer had perceptible intonation uncertainty and variable voice colouring in the higher notes, but in the following acts, however, the audible "stress" in demanding passages disappeared. Linda Ballová, a soprano, as Elisabeth of Valois, brilliantly portrayed the contradictory tendencies and feelings of the character, from the initial happiness through sudden dismay to the final reconciliation, apathy and exhausted resignation. Not just as a singer but also as an actor she breathed life and credibility into an otherwise rather passive and static character. The introductory scene however suffered slightly from overdone vibrato, which occasionally created completely the wrong mood – her shaky “Oh, let us speak of it!” suggesting sudden fright rather than joy and ardour.

The baritone Jiří Brückler as the Marquis Rodrigo gave a successful and intonation-wise steady performance, the only significant awkwardness was in the duet with Carlos, where the leaders knelt side by side and promised loyalty in friendship. The royal stately aura of Federico Sacchi was as strong as its unfortunate awakening sadness from loneliness and helplessness. It was here that Sacchi showed the full range of his acting skills. Princess Eboli as played by Veronika Hajnová-Fialová began somewhat unfortunately with an overly dark colouring to her voice and an insensitive use of sudden dynamic changes, which can be effective, came across as too abrupt and crude. In the following arias however her performance improved markedly and in the closing scenes with sorrow and regret it was strong and confident, even though their heroine lay at the king’s feet. The choir was good most of the time, although at the very beginning rhythmically fragmented and out of step with the brass section and orchestra. The fault however was mainly with the placing of the singers off the stage, removing them from direct contact with both the music and the conductor. This is however rather an issue of the direction, which was at the very least questionable.

At the start of the introductory scene there was a major title saying Fontainebleau against a blue background. That was all. Here the introductory encounter between Carlos and Elisabeth took place, and here also the future queen discovered that in place of Carlos she was to marry his father King Philip Filipa II. In this dumbed down and artistically unimaginative way the audience was informed that they were somewhere in the vicinity of the French city of Fontainebleau. Although the original libretto refers to the forest, here we can perhaps rely on our imagination along. Is the blue traffic sign showing the start of the city? Or still more bizarre – is each character a tree? Of course not, this is too ad hoc, too purposeless. Most likely seems to be a lack of meaning other than just communication, and this seems rather weak when it comes to my idea of artistic opera production. From letters will then erupt on the scene strange creatures in flowery dresses with round glasses apparently showing happy French people. It would perhaps be more comprehensible if they fought their way on to the stage with baguettes. At the start of the introductory scene there was a major title saying Fontainebleau against a blue background. That was all. Here the introductory encounter between Carlos and Elisabeth took place, and here also the future queen discovered that in place of Carlos she was to marry his father King Philip Filipa II. In this dumbed down and artistically unimaginative way the audience was informed that they were somewhere in the vicinity of the French city of Fontainebleau. Although the original libretto refers to the forest, here we can perhaps rely on our imagination along. Is the blue traffic sign showing the start of the city? Or still more bizarre – is each character a tree? Of course not, this is too ad hoc, too purposeless. Most likely seems to be a lack of meaning other than just communication, and this seems rather weak when it comes to my idea of artistic opera production. From letters will then erupt on the scene strange creatures in flowery dresses with round glasses apparently showing happy French people. It would perhaps be more comprehensible if they fought their way on to the stage with baguettes.

The second act improves the impression with the effective use of ancient colonnades and imaginative lighting effects, which, in combination with a turntable creates an impressive sense of endless corridors and aisles between columns. The second part of the third act, however, cuts off the initial impression at the knees - Glaser builds on the minimalist aesthetic, but it's minimalism stripped to the bone and then gnawing at the stage sets. All the action is static and could easily take place on a concert stage. Although the characters discuss whether the rebellious Carlos should be punished or shown mercy, little is shown in their emotions and gestures. The static quality of the stage is further underlined by its absolute emptiness, since the only thing there is a white staircase. Conversely there is excellent work with the space in the fourth act, where the king, high above the stage, laments the loneliness of his fate. In the second scene the inquisitor appears – a figure on the king has already warned about in advance and which within the performance should induce constant fear, caution and concern. But not in this Brno production, where the inquisitor’s power is manifested only with his entrance. I do not say that the correct approach would be naturalistic representation of war and devastation by the Inquisition in Spain and that the bizarre gothic version shown at the National Theatre in Prague in 2013 was a grasp of its production. Not at all! Only I consider that the chosen aesthetics – however modern ¬ should be compact and illuminate the director’s interpretation of the work. The fourth and fifth acts, however, can be described as successful in Brno and were finally emotionally engaged. The successful scene in which Rodrigo chases Princess Eboli on a rotating stage, was one of the most sophisticated and visually engaging parts production.

Under the baton of Jaroslav Kyzlink the orchestra gave a quality and rhythmically and intonation-wise solid performance. Praise should go to the solo instruments, primarily led by the cello with that heartfelt and expressively rich playing complementing the action on stage. Occasional mistakes, however, came from the wind section, where there were at times late entries and uncertain tones. Generally, however, it was a good interpretation that placed great emphasis on the naturally flowing melodies of Verdi's opera.          

The Brno production is built primarily on the singers’ performances which managed to eclipse the in places inconsistent direction. Not that I am not a supporter of the concept of minimalist operas, but in this case there was a qualitative imbalance in the directorial concept. While some stage design solutions managed with fewer resources to creatively grasp the situation, in many cases they were static, unimaginative and involved internally incoherent visual-musical communication. There's no doubt that the opera will find many supporters, for whom the approach works. For myself, I would add that there are more than enough similarly staged operas.

composer: Giuseppe Verdi
libretto: Joseph Méry, Camille du Locle
musical production: Jaroslav Kyzlink
conductor: Jaroslav Kyzlink, Ondrej Olos
director: Martin Glaser
staging: Pavel Borák
costumes: Markéta Sládečková
lighting: Martin Špetlík
choirmaster: Pavel Koňárek
dramaturge: Patricie Částková
assistant directors: Vojtěch Orenič, Natálie Gregorová


Philip II: Jiří Sulženko, Federico Sacchi
Don Carlos: Luciano Mastro (guest), Philippe Do
Rodrigo, Marquis of Posa: Jiří Brückler (guest), Svatopluk Sem (guest)
Grand Inquisitor: Martin Gurbal' (guest), Ondrej Mráz (guest)
Elisabeth of Valois: Linda Ballová, Charlotta Larsson
Princess Eboli: Veronika Hajnová-Fialová, Michaela Šebestová
Thibault, Page to Elisabeth: Andrea Široká, Eva Štěrbová (guest)
Count of Lerma: Martin Pavlíček, Zdeněk Nečas
Old Monk: David Nykl, David Szendiuch
Voice from Heaven: Daniela Straková-Šedrlová, Martina Mádlová
Royal Herald: Martin Pavlíček, Zdeněk Nečas

2 February 2019, Janáček Theatre

Petr Neubert photo

Comments

Reply

No comment added yet..

On Saturday, 24 August, the Korean radio orchestra KBS Symphony Orchestra with its musical director - Finnish conductor and violinist Pietari Inkinen - came to Brno's Špilberk Festival with an exclusively romantic repertoire. The invitation was also accepted by South Korean violinist Bomsori Kim, a graduate of the prestigious Julliard School.  more

For a quarter of a century now, the Brno Philharmonic has been organising the Špilberk Festival at the end of August in the courtyard of the castle of the same name. Four open-air musical evenings offer the audience a selection of concerts featuring classical, film and computer music, as well as often jazz and other genres. This makes it a diverse mix of performers and repertoires with an often pleasant, summery, laid-back ambience. This year's big and rapdily sold-out attraction was the Wednesday evening of 21 August, full of melodies from the James Bond films, performed by the Czech National Symphony Orchestra, headed by world-renowned conductor, composer and arranger Steven Mercurio. During the concert, the audience also got to enjoy singers Sara MilfajtováVendula Příhodová and David Krausmore

As part of its European tour, the Taiwanese Taipei Philharmonic Chamber Choir (TPCC), under the direction of artistic director and choirmaster Dr. YuChung Johnny Ku, took the city up on its invitation and visited Brno. The concert was held on Monday, 13th August in the hall of the newly renovated Passage Hotel.  more

The final concert of this year's season of the Brno Philharmonic was devoted to works by Antonín Dvořák and Jean Sibelius at the Janáček Theatre. On Thursday, 20 June, Danish conductor Michael Schønwandt, who had not appeared before a Brno audience since January last year, took the lead of the Philharmonic. In the first half of the programme, the orchestra was accompanied by violinist Alexander Sitkovetskymore

In the spirit of the idea that Brno and folklore belong together, the Folklore Ensemble Happening of the Year took place on Thursday 6 June. The event was organised by the Brno UNESCO City of Music Office in cooperation with the Brno Dances and Sings association. The event thus became part of a long-term project that set out to map the amateur music scene in Brno, and not only folk music. Last year Brno City of Music reached out to choirs in a similar way, and in the future will host garage bands and more. This just goes to prove the diversity of Brno's music scene, not only as regards professional ensembles, but also enthusiastic amateurs for whom music is an inseparable part of their lives.  more

The Brno Dances and Sings Association and TIC Brno organised the 49th annual Brno Dances and Sings show on 6 June. The programme, concentrated into a single day, was busier than in previous years. The subtitle Year of Folklore Ensembles was borrowed from the project of the same name organised by the Brno UNESCO City of Music Office.  more

A year ago we would have found an Asian market in the New Synagogue in Velké Meziříčí. However, the town decided to buy the building and has started to make more fitting and dignified use of it. On Wednesday 5 June, during the ongoing Concentus Moraviae festival, audiences could visit this heritage site and enjoy a chamber concert by singer and violinist Iva Bittová and her women's choir Babačka, featuring musicians Jakub Jedlinský (accordion) and Pavel Fischer (violin).  more

The evening concert by Ensemble Opera Diversa entitled The Face of Water, which took place on 4 June outdoors in the atrium of the Moravian Library in Brno, was preceded by a morning discussion between Professor Miloš Štědron and Associate Professor Vladimír Maňas from the Institute of Musicology at Masaryk University. They both enjoyed an engaging talk on the theme of water in art (from Gregorian chant to the early 20th century), concluding with a sample of the edition and the playing of a recording of Janáček's symphony The Danube. The concert, conducted by Gabriela Tardonová and inspired by the theme of water, featured one world and three Czech premières. Harpist Dominika Kvardová appeared as a soloist.  more

Like other music festivals, the 29th annual Concentus Moraviae International Music Festival has not only had to reflect the fact that it is the Year of Czech Music, but also the unique 200th anniversary of the birth of Bedřich Smetana, the founder of modern Czech music. The dramaturgy of this year’s festival, which has just launched, is in the spirit of "Metamorphoses: Czech Smetana!". The first festival concert, which took place on 31 May at the Kyjov Municipal Cultural Centre, gave a hint of the direction the rest of the festival's dramaturgy will take. The organisers of the show decided to explore Smetana's work from a fresh angle and to work not only with the music, but also with the audience’s expectations. The opening evening saw a performance of Smetana's famous String Quartet No. 1 in E minor From My Life, but in an arrangement for a symphony orchestra penned by conductor and pianist George Szell. Smetana's work was complemented by the world première of the Concerto for Flute and Orchestra "Sadunkertoja" by Finnish composer, conductor and artist in residence at the 29th annual festival, Olli Mustonen, commissioned especially for the festival. Mustonen also conducted the Prague Philharmonia's performance of the two works. Danish flautist Janne Thomsen performed as soloist.  more

As part of Ensemble Opera Diversa's Musical Inventory series of concerts, which began back in 2017, the ensemble aims to present (re)discovered works and composers that we rarely hear on stage. However, this dramaturgical line also offers the space and initiative to create some completely new works performed in world premières. This time, the chamber concert held on Wednesday, 29 May 2024 in the auditorium of the Rector's Office of the Brno University of Technology (BUT) was directed by the Diversa QuartetBarbara Tolarová (1st violin), Jan Bělohlávek (2nd violin), David Křivský (viola), Iva Wiesnerová (cello), OK Percussion Duo (Martin OpršálMartin Kneibl), soloists Aneta Podracká Bendová (soprano) and pianist Tereza Plešáková. The theme was a nod to the Prague composition school from a pedagogical and artistic perspective.  more

The concert with the subtitle Haydn and Shostakovich in G Minor closed the Philharmonia at Home subscription series on Thursday 16 May at the Besední dům. It was also the last concert of the 2023/24 season (not counting Friday's reprise), with the Brno Philharmonic led by its chief conductor Dennis Russell Davies. In the second half of the evening the orchestra was accompanied by singers Jana Šrejma Kačírková (soprano) and Jiří Služenko (bass). As the title of the concert implies, the dramaturgy juxtaposed works by Joseph Haydn and Dimitri Shostakovich, which are almost exclusively linked only by the key in which they were written.  more

Connection, unity, contemplation - these words can be used to describe the musical evening of Schola Gregoriana Pragensis under the direction of David Eben and organist Tomáš Thon, which took place yesterday as part of the Easter Festival of Sacred Music at the church of St. Thomas. Not only the singing of a Gregorian chant, but also the works of composer Petr Eben (1929-2007) enlivened the church space with sound and colour for an hour.  more

With a concert called Ensemble Inégal: Yesterday at the church of St. John, Zelenka opened the 31st edition of the Easter Festival of Sacred Music, this time with the suffix Terroir. This slightly mysterious word, which is popularly used in connection with wine, comes from the Latin word for land or soil, and carries the sum of all the influences, especially the natural conditions of a particular location and on the plants grown there. This term is thus metonymically transferred to the programme of this year's VFDH, as it consists exclusively of works by Czech authors, thus complementing the ongoing Year of Czech Musicmore

For the fourth subscription concert of the Philharmonic at Home serieswhich took place on 14 March at the Besední dům and was entitled Mozartiana, the Brno Philharmonic, this time under the direction of Czech-Japanese conductor Chuhei Iwasaki, chose four works from the 18th to 20th centuries. These works are dramaturgically linked either directly through their creation in the Classical period or by inspiration from musical practices typical of that period. The first half of the concert featured Martina Venc Matušínská with a solo flute.  more

The second stop on the short Neues Klavier Trio Dresden's Czech-German tour was at the concert hall of the Janáček Academy of Music on 6 March at 16:00. A programme consisting of world premières by two Czech and two German composers was performed in four cities (Prague, Brno, Leipzig and Dresden).  more

Editorial

This year's 35th annual Prague Cantat international choir competition also featured the Brno choir Gloria Brunensis, which won first place in the Women's Choir category and a special prize for its performance of Der Wassermannmore

Zuzana Čtveráčková, translator for the Brno City Theatre, has won the competition organised by the European Union Songbook Association, which in July 2020 invited translators to translate the lyrics of selected Czech songs into singable/melodic English.  more

Singer-songwriter, composer and producer Katarzia is preparing two concerts with her band. They will be played in Brno and Prague. Both performances will feature a special line-up combining acoustic instruments and electronics. The music and lyrics will be enhanced by projected works of Czech-Icelandic artist DVDJ NNS. In addition, the Brno concert will be filmed by Czech Television under the direction of Tereza Reková. At the same time, Katarzia will be presenting some new work - her electronic album "Rest in Euphoria" with music composed for the eponymous performance of Prague's Cirk La Putyka will be released in early December.  more

The Cotatcha Orchestra big band has been on the music scene for 10 years. They will be celebrating with a spectacular concert at the Goose on a String Theatre together with four guests - singers Lenka Dusilová and Géraldine Schnyder, double bass matador Vincenzo Kummer and trombonist and Latin Grammy winner Ilja Reijngoud. The sixteen-member ensemble nominated for the Anděl Award was founded by trumpeter Jiří Kotača to play original and original big band music. The anniversary concert will feature a selection of their best from past and present, including new works. All accompanied by animations by Magdalena Bláhová.  more

Due to an injury, the Staatskapelle Berlin will not be led by its chief conductor Christian Thielemann at the festival concert. Standing in for him will be conductor Jakub Hrůša, who has already performed with his Bamberg Symphonies at the Janáček Brno Festival this year.  more

The Brno Philharmonic has announced a new date for Pavel Černoch's concert, as a substitute for his summer concert at Špilberk that was brought to an end by a storm. The concert is scheduled for May 2025.  more

The Brno Culture Newsletter presents an overview of upcoming events and opportunities concerning theatres, clubs and other cultural events in Brno.  more

Although there are still two concerts left before the end of this year's JazzFestBrno festival, the organisers are already coming up with the line-up for next year. From the beginning of February to May, they’ll be offering a total of thirteen concerts featuring major world jazz stars and intimate performances from the Club Life series in the stylish Cabaret des Péchés. The winner of five Grammys, singer Dianne Reeves, one of the most respected figures in the world of orchestral jazz, nine-time Grammy winner Maria Schneider with the Oslo Jazz Ensemble, jazz piano stars and Grammy winners Kris Davis and Sullivan Fortner, the British trio Mammal Hands combining jazz and electronics, Italian virtuoso guitarist Matteo Mancuso - these and many others will all be coming to Brno.  more

The concert is dedicated to the memory of the forty children drowned during World War II on Mendlovo náměstí (20 November 1944). The concert will feature the world premières of two commissioned compositions, Adagio for Orchestra by Adrián Demoč and the meditative Exercise of Breath and Spirit by Pavel Zlámal. Clarinettist Marek Švejkar will perform the Czech première of Domaines by Pierre Boulez and the final performance will be the somewhat atypical Actions by Polish composer Krzysztof Penderecki.  more

Johann Sebastian Bach as a ground-breaking composer and the composers who were inspired by his work are the subject of the concert Schnittke 90 & Bach, to be played by the Brno Philharmonic on Thursday and Friday, opening another subscription series. The concerts will be conducted by Robert Kružík at the Besední dům.  more