Oksana Volkova (mezzo)
Poison d’amour
Kaunas City Symphony Orchestra/Constantine Orbelian
rec. Kaunas Philharmonic 13-16 May 2019
Texts and translations included
Reviewed as downloaded from press preview
DELOS DE3584
[63:50]
Belarusian mezzo-soprano Oksana Volkova has been a leading exponent for her
voice category in the great opera houses of the world for the last decade,
having more than twenty roles in her repertoire. Her real international
breakthrough came in 2013 with her Metropolitan debut as Maddalena in Rigoletto and Olga in Eugene Onegin. It was also as
Maddalena I first met her in the Delos recording of Rigoletto with
Dmitri Hvorostovsky in the title role, a recording that also turned out to
be his last. Only a few days after the release of that recording news media
reported that the Siberian baritone had died of brain cancer aged 55,
mourned by a whole world of opera lovers. Maddalena is hardly a role that
catapults a singer to stardom, but even her appearance in the last act –
including the famous quartet – was enough for me to wish to hear more of Ms
Volkova. When I at last got the opportunity in this premiere solo album, I
was more than satisfied. Thirteen great mezzo-roles, most of them
well-known, but there are one or two lesser-known items as well. More than
half of this baker’s dozen is French, complemented with four Slavonic arias
and two Italian.
The odd man out is Dmitry Smolski, who is practically unknown in the West.
He was Belarusian and was attracted by the avant-garde music of the 1960s
and early 1970s, employing serial technique in some of his key-works. But
his opera The Grey Legend from 1978 is a tonal work of great
beauty, at least to judge from the aria recorded here. It is sung with
great conviction and glow and makes me wish to hear more from the same
work.
The programme opens, however, with a couple of French works, and Gounod’s
very first opera, Sapho, is hardly a repertoire work, even though
Sapho’s final aria, sung before she throws herself into the sea, is no
rarity in recital and on records. It is also a suitable calling card for
Oksana Volkova. She has a slightly vibrant voice, which may reveal her
Slavonic background, but it’s miles away from the Slavonic wobble which
disfigured so many east-European singers in the distant past. This is a
well-controlled vibrato – even at forte – the tone is remarkably beautiful;
she has an excellent legato, and she nuances well. All in all, it is a
classy voice that belongs up in the Parnassus.
It is followed by Delila’s two famous arias from Saint-Saëns’ Samson et Dalila, beloved songs for fruity and impassioned
mezzo-sopranos. The “spring song” is powerful and beautiful; the opening of
the “seduction aria” sounds a little breathless, but that may be
intentional, since the character must be nervous before her deed: to cut
the hair of the strongest man in the world. And the rest of the “aria” is
glorious. As usual one misses Samson’s phrases – after all this is a duet –
and even though this is Oksana Volkova’s recital, it wouldn’t have come
amiss to hire a capable tenor to make the score complete. I have already
mentioned the Smolski aria, which should be a pleasant surprise for many
listeners. Let me add only that I have a distinct feeling that Ms Volkova
is at her very best in the four Slavonic arias. Belarusian is an
East-Slavonic language, closely related to Russian and Ukrainian, and both
Russian and Belarusian are official languages in Belarus. Russian is even
the most common language spoken in the homes.
Ambroise Thomas composed more than twenty operas during his long life, but
only two have survived to the present day, Mignon and Hamlet, and even they are fairly sparsely performed nowadays.
Mignon’s aria Connais-tu le pays is, however, often heard in
recital and is a sweet bon-bon, whether sung by a mezzo, as in the 1866
original, or by a soprano, as in the revised version from 1870. The Mignon
at that second premiere was Christina Nilsson, who had been Ophelia in the
premiere of Hamlet in 1868. Oksana Volkova naturally chooses the
mezzo variant, originally performed by Célestine Galli-Marié, who nine
years later was the first Carmen. The reading here is excellent, and I
would also like to give a rose to the solo flautist.
Of Rimsky-Korsakov’s fifteen operas, Sadko is the seventh, and it
was premiered in 1898. It is based on a legend about a 12th
century minstrel who leaves his young wife to explore the world and
eventually returns to Novgorod as a wealthy man. In this aria, early in the
opera, his wife Lyubava is alone, longing for her husband to come home,
which he does, only to tell her he is leaving. The aria is less known than
the Song of the Indian Merchant, which became a hit in 1953 when Mario
Lanza recorded it with lyrics by Johnny Mercer, but it is a fine piece of
music and Oksana Volkova sings it with deep involvement.
Back to the French repertoire and Jules Massenet, she sings an aria from Le Cid, a grand opera which was a great success in 1885 at the
Paris Opéra and continued to be so until 1919. After that it fell into
oblivion and was not performed again – apart from a concert performance in
1976 at Carnegie Hall with Placido Domingo and Grace Bumbry, which was
issued on LP – until 1979. It has not been established as a repertoire work
again, but it contains a lot of fine music, including a famous ballet
suite. The aria performed here is one of the best and it is sung with
feeling and intensity. Unfortunately, the track list has mixed it up with
the aria from Werther, which follows later in the programme. The
track list below is the correct one.
One of the greatest Russian mezzo arias is Joan of Arc’s farewell to her
native home in the first act of Tchaikovsky’s The Maid of Orleans. Here Oksana Volkova applies some extra
Slavonic vibrancy to underline her emotional connection to neighbourhood
where she grew up. It is a strong reading, and the atmospheric French horn
solo in the interlude enhances the outdoor feeling.
Carmen has naturally become a signature role for Oksana Volkova, and it was,
of course, unavoidable to include the Seguidilla in this programme.
I wouldn’t mind if Delos choose to record a complete Carmen for
their next opera project – naturally with Ms Volkova in the title role!
For her last Russian item, she chose Marfa’s aria from Mussorgsky’s Khovanshchina – another of the great roles in the Slavonic
repertoire – and again she is at her very best. I would say that this is
possibly the highlight of the disc. But she is also very good as
Santuzza in Cavalleria rusticana, where she lightens her tone
somewhat but still has scope for brilliant drama. Charlotte’s Va! Laisse couler mes larmes from Werther is inward but
with restrained glow, and for the final offering we get Princess de
Bouillon’s high-octane aria from the second act of Adriana Lecouvreur. Here the album’s title Poison d’amour
, which must be seen as a symbolic “Poison of Love”, applies literally,
since the Princess actually poisons Adriana.
The programme is an interesting mix of the well-known and some rarities.
The Kaunas City Symphony Orchestra under Maestro Orbelian have a
comprehensive discography of more than twenty recordings on the Delos
label. They have excellent rapport, which contributes greatly to the
success of this disc, and the sound is excellent.
I do urge readers to explore this recital with one of the most thrilling
singers now before the public.
Göran Forsling
Previous reviews:
Michael Cookson ~ Ralph Moore ~ Paul Steinson
Contents
Charles GOUNOD (1818 – 1893)
Sapho: O ma lyre immortelle [8:01]
Camille SAINT-SAËNS (1835 – 1921)
Samson et Dalila: Printemps qui commence [4:58]
Mon Coeur s’ouvre ŕ ta voix
[6:15]
Dmitry SMOLSKI (1937 – 2017)
The Gray Legend: Ti pripomni jak lotaz kalisti u lugah mi zbirali
(Remember how we once plucked marigolds in the meadows) [3:15]
Ambroise THOMAS (1811 – 1896)
Mignon: Connais-tu le pays [5:05]
Nikolai RIMSKY-KORSAKOV (1844 – 1908)
Sadko: Vsyu noch zhdala ego ya ponaprasnu [5:09]
Jules MASSENET (1842 – 1912)
Le Cid: Pleurez! Pleurez mes yeux [5:33]
Pyotr Ilyich TCHAIKOVSKY (1840 – 1893)
The Maid of Orleans: Prostite vi, kholomi polia rodniye [7:02]
Georges BIZET (1838 – 1875)
Carmen: Seguidilla [2:08]
Modest MUSSORGSKY (1839 – 1881)
Khovanshchina: Sily potainye [5:18]
Pietro MASCAGNI (1863 – 1945)
Cavalleria rusticana: Voi lo sapete o mamma [4:12]
Jules MASSENET
Werther: Va! Laisse couler mes larmes [2:34]
Francesco CILEA (1866 – 1950)
Adriana Lecouvreur: Acerba voluttŕ [4:20]
