Arias from Bach cantatas pose terrific technical challenges for a singer. Many of Bach’s vocal lines are written as intricately as his instrumental ones and he makes few concessions to facts like singers needing to breathe, or the difficulty of moving quickly between ends of their register. So young countertenor Paul Figuier was giving himself a lot to do in a concert of seven arias (plus a couple of encores) at the giant Abbatial church at the Abbaye d’Ambronay. Fortunately, Figuier showed himself to be a confident performer, able to overcome the technical challenges while bringing shape and expression to the text.
His unusual technique involves a great deal of lip movement and contortion of his facial features, which can be strange to watch but clearly serves his enunciation of the German text, which is immaculate – no mean feat in the highly reverberant space of a stone church with tall ceilings. In the opening “Was mein Herz von dir begehrt” (“What my heart desires of you”) from BWV108, the vibrato developed beautifully at the end of long notes. Crucial phrases were reinforced with vigour, such as “Ach schläfrige Seele” (“Ah, slumbering soul”) from BWV115, the consonants at the end of “noch” and its rhyme “doch” rousing the sleeper from their lethargy. This was a very accomplished vocal performance.
Christophe Rousset and Les Talens Lyriques provided the backing for the arias as well as interspersing them with sinfonias from other Bach cantatas. They were a backing band of the very finest quality, but their sheer energy levels added to the challenge for the singer. When 14 string players plus Rousset’s organ played at anywhere close to their potential in such a reverberant venue, Figuier was sometimes able to cut through the sonic wash, but not always; his lower notes in particular were often lost. As for Karl Nylhin’s theorbo: with the exception of two of the arias when the violins were quiet or silent, I hardly heard a note all evening.
The show was stolen by oboist Gilles Vanssons. The larger of his two instruments was so rich in tone that it sounded almost like a cornett, and his breath control and mastery of line made him almost into a second vocalist. For “Schläfert allen Sorgenkummer” (“Lull to sleep all worrying cares”) from BWV197, Vanssons joined Figuier at the front of the stage to give us a wonderful duet between oboe and voice – albeit one where the voice struggled to compete. Several of the sinfonias – played on the smaller, reedier instrument – felt like oboe concertos in miniature.
The most compelling aria was “Wie furchtsam wankten meine Schritte” (“How fearfully were faltering my footsteps”) from BWV33, where the steady tread of the music and Figuier’s dynamics perfectly conjured the image of the pilgrim trudging on the road to what he hopes will be salvation.
Finally, while I may cavil at the effect of such a large space on the crispness of sound, it was hugely heart-warming to see a church packed with an audience of around 600 to listen to Bach’s music. The Festival d’Ambronay are to be congratulated on bringing together an Early Music audience of this size and enthusiasm.
David's accommodation in Ambronay was provided by the Festival d'Ambronay
