History being my area of study at university, I was
not as surprised as some in the audience when they read the story of
this almost unknown opera by the composer of Carmen. Sounding like it
was ripped from the headlines of this year, it is the story of Czar
Ivan IV (sometimes referred to by uncharitable elements as "the Terrible")
and an assassination plot against him by Moslem extremists in the Caucasus
who were feeling oppressed. The operatic complication here is that the
tenor assigned to do the deed arrives to find his long-lost sister has
just married the monster.
The last act remained only partially complete before
the composer's untimely death and the opera received its first performance
only in 1947. Rarely performed since then, this edition has an ending
to Act V composed by the English composer and conductor Howard Williams.
A work of powerful expression, this is Bizet's only grand opera and
an impressive finale finish each of the acts, requiring the singers
to struggle to be heard against a massed chorus and orchestra. Bizet's
keen dramatic sense infuses a relatively static plot with fresh melody
and strong ensembles and it in no way deserves its present neglect.
This concert performance is part of an annual effort
by the Orchestre National de France to bring some of these neglected
masterpieces to light (last year it was the Fauré opera, Pénélopé.)
Conducted by the skilled Michael Schönwandt, director of
the opera in Copenhagen, it was accompanied by a gifted cast of singers
who made a strong case for the value of this music. Soprano Inva
Mula is the young girl who wins the fearsome Czar's heart. Her powerful
dramatic soprano was equally matched by the Australian tenor Julian
Gavin as her brother, Igor. French baritone Ludovic Tézier
was our sturdy Czar and bass Paul Gay struggled a bit with the
heaviness of the role of Temrouk. The Young Bulgarian, here sung by
the talented soprano Henriette Bonde-Hansen, has some of the
most appealing music in this work.
Bizet made no effort to compose in a "Russian" style,
despite the setting in and around the Kremlin, and the stirring scenes
reflect his own musical style and owe much to Meyerbeer tradition of
grand opera. This performance was live on France Musiques and those
who recorded it have a copy that hopefully captured the excitement in
the hall and should bear repeated hearings.
Frank Cadenhead
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