View: Next message | Previous message Next in topic | Previous in topic Next by same author | Previous by same author Previous page (June 1999, week 2) | Back to main OPERA-L page Join or leave OPERA-L Reply | Post a new message Search Options: Chronologically | Most recent first Proportional font | Non-proportional font ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Date: Tue, 15 Jun 1999 01:04:55 +0000 Reply-To: "H.E.Elsom" Sender: Discussion of opera and related issues From: "H.E.Elsom" Subject: Il primo omicidio, St John's Smith Square, 14Jun99 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Adam Mark Padmore Eve Nancy Argenta Cain Sarah Connolly Abel Deborah York Voice of God Christopher Robson Lucifer David Wilson-Johnson Conductor Ivor Bolton St James's Baroque Players AKA Murder One. But there's nothing forensic about Scarlatti's oratorio, as there's no doubt who did it, and divine punishment follows the shortest of cross examinations. There is, though, as much drama as rhetoric and dogma. The framework of the action is the Catholic doctrines of sacrifice, sin and redemption, but the treatment is in the Counterreformation style, pushing at the problematic, even dangerous aspects of the story. In particular, the narrative focusses on three acts of killing: Abel's successful sacrifice of his sheep, Cain's murder of Abel out of jealousy because his sacrifice of crops was not accepted, and the crucifixion of Christ, which redeems humanity from the guild of Cain's murder. Although the text emphasises that God approves of Abel's pure heart rather than his choice of victims, there is an implicit thought that God wants blood sacrifices, and that the crucifixion is a good thing as a blood sacrifice as well as as an act of redemption. It is no suprise that Handel's librettist Charles Jennens owned the manuscript of Il primo omicidio. Handel's approach to the oratorio form in both Italian and English owes a lot to Scarlatti. Like the Messiah, Il primo omicidio uses a simple sequence of recitative plus aria, with symphonies at key points -- the arrival of God and Lucifer in each part, with Lucifer's something like the arrival of the bad guy in a western -- and occasional duets. (It's not as funny as it could be, but the duet between Cain and Abel on the joys of brotherly love is clearly meant to have Cain singing through gritted teeth.) And the musical evocation of character and emotion is very similar to Handel's, with Abel full of the joys of spring and Cain first morose and snarly and then tragically repentent. God is a heroic castrato role, and Lucifer is a sinister bass baritone, a long way from Handel's young thug in La Resurrezione when he tries to humiliate Cain into suicide after the murder. Eve's and Adam's mourning for their sons is as moving as anything in Jephtha. Il primo omicidio doesn't quite look into the abyss of human motivation in the same way, but it acknowledges the power of anger and despair while providing a closed musical and doctrinal argument against them. I had listened to the recording with Andreas Scholl as God, and found the music superb. This live performance was slightly uneven, but it had many compensations, starting with the sight of God and the devil chatting amiably at the back of the auditorium before they went on stage. Deborah York is perhaps on the ornamental wing of the baroque soprano party, but she made Abel's music delightful and his final aria from heaven very moving. Sarah Connolly as Cain was nigel molesworth to York's fotherington-tomas. (There is an element of small boys hating each other in the story which makes it all the more painful as the start of tragedy in human life.) Connolly didn't sound quite secure in her first couple of arias. But her slightly rough, dark tone was perfect for Cain's sense of failure and resentment of Abel's success, and she got great depth of feeling into the arias of remorse and fear. Mark Padmore sounds almost beautiful these days. His Adam was committed and musical. Nancy Argenta was a sweet, motherly Eve. Christopher Robson as God has the odd hoot and bark, but on the whole sounded as good as I've ever heard him, and delivered every moment of drama in the music. David Wilson-Johnson wears a red rollneck shirt when he sings the devil. It actually makes him look like a well-fed cardinal. But there might well be something of Innocente X about Scarlatti's tough, manipulative devil, and Wilson-Johnson found the right hard edge in the music. The St James's Baroque Players under Ivor Bolton were splendid, as usual. Regards, Helen - H.E. Elsom he@helsom.demon.co.uk http://www.helsom.demon.co.uk/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Back to: Top of message | Previous page | Main OPERA-L page ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Back to the LISTSERV home page at LISTSERV.CUNY.EDU.