Passionate Pergolesi in Prague

Easter always brings a colorful bouquet of seasonal music to Prague, especially for Baroque devotees. The city is blessed with several first-rate early music ensembles, among them Collegium Marianum. Led by flautist Jana Semerádová, the group has brought a creative flair to the repertoire, unearthing forgotten manuscripts in Prague and delving into dance and drama. Its versatility was in full flower with a holiday performance of Pergolesi’s Stabat Mater, supplemented by well-informed samplings of his contemporaries.

Like Pergolesi, German composer Johann Adolph Hasse wrote operas and sacred music, both influenced by the time he spent in Italy. The introductory sinfonia from his oratorio Sanctus Petrus et Sancta Maria Magdalena opened the program, with the ensemble showing a light, delicate touch. It was at times too light, almost sleepy, though a run of cascading strings showcased fine work by the five violinists, whose combination of technical finesse and animated expression was a highlight of the entire evening.

Hasse’s Flute Concerto in B minor was more satisfying, displaying Semerádová’s virtuoso skills on the flauto traverso. The range of emotions she can pull from her instrument never fails to impress, with particularly sensitive work in the slow middle movement of this piece. Her fluid style made for an engaging opening, sharpening in the finale into staccato lines that danced through and around the melodies. There was some smart dialogue with the ensemble, whose backing was sublime, a soft but spirited complement to the warm tone and lively pacing set by Semerádová.

In between the Hasse pieces, visiting Spanish countertenor Gabriel Díaz warmed up with an aria from the Oratorio di Maria Dolorata by Leonardo Vinci, a Neapolitan opera composer whose expressive style influenced both Hasse and Pergolesi. Díaz has an exceptionally clear, piercing voice which was at times lost in this selection, not quite balanced with the music. But there was drama in it, more than one typically hears in such high registers, which proved to be well-suited for the Stabat Mater.

For that Díaz was paired with soprano Simona Šaturová, a longtime collaborator with Collegium Marianum and regular performer on Prague opera stages. Šaturová has a round, lustrous voice that fit beautifully with Díaz’s, striking bright, silvery tones that might seem out of place in a typical Stabat Mater. But Pergolesi’s version is not at all typical. It was criticized for sounding too much like his operas, which were already controversial for their use of the light, lyrical galant style. To modern ears this is all to the good, lending emotional impact and musical invention to a solemn, freighted form.

The duo captured that combination in the opening Stabat Mater dolorosa, with soaring vocals built on a mournful base. There was anguish in their singing but also tenderness, with an underlying tension accentuated by a steady, almost suspenseful pulse in the continuo behind them. Their duets grew in intensity, plumbing emotional depths that matched the surging dynamics and turbulent motifs in the music. And they showed polished technical skills in the exchanges and overlapping lines of Inflammatus et accensus.

Their solos were even more impressive. Šaturová slipped naturally into the dramatic contours of her arias, adding nuance and character to the pain. And Díaz was in full voice, with fire on the top notes in Fac ut portem, a powerful invocation of Christ’s pain and passion.

A duality in the music also worked very well. Collegium Marianum plays a vibrant, refined style of Baroque that was ideal for this piece, seamlessly blending convention and innovation, carefully balancing the sacred and secular, and handling dissonances, offbeat rhythms and other quirks that don’t belong in Baroque with aplomb. In all, an appropriately sorrowful and thoroughly enjoyable evening.