BBC Cardiff Singer prize eludes favourite

By Mark Pullinger, 22 June 2015

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Reviewed at St David's Hall, Cardiff on 21 June 2015

Leoncavallo, Pagliacci: Si può? Si può? (Prologue)

Wagner, Tannhäuser: O du, mein holder Abendstern (Song to the evening star)

Verdi, Un ballo in maschera: Eri tu che macchiavi quell'anima

Massenet, Hérodiade: Il est doux, il est bon

Korngold, Die Tote Stadt: Marietta's Lied, "Glück das mir verblieb"

Mozart, Idomeneo, re di Creta, K366: D'Oreste, d'Aiace

Mozart, Die Entführung aus dem Serail, K384: O wie ängstlich

Donizetti, L'elisir d'amore: Una furtiva lagrima

Flotow, Martha: Ach, so fromm, ach, so traut

Lehár, The Land of Smiles: Dein ist mein ganzes Herz

Mozart, Die Entführung aus dem Serail, K384: Ach, ich liebte, war so glücklich

Rimsky-Korsakov, The Tsar's Bride (Marfa's aria)

Delibes, Lakmé : Où va la jeune hindoue ?

Verdi, Messa da Requiem: Confutatis maledictis

Rossini, Il barbiere di Siviglia: La calunnia e un venticello

Ponchielli, La Gioconda: Si, morir ella de!...Ombre di mia prosapia

Amartuvshin Enkhbat, Baritone

Lauren Michelle, Soprano

Oleksiy Palchykov, Tenor

Nadine Koutcher, Soprano

Jongmin Park, Bass

BBC National Orchestra of Wales

Thomas Søndergård, Conductor

Martyn Brabbins, Conductor

Nail-biting Shostakovich from the BBC National Orchestra of Wales

Dominic Lowe, 15th August

Before a searing performance of Shostakovich's Thirteenth from Ryan Bancroft and his Welsh forces, Benjamin Grosvenor delivers a terrific performance of Ravel's Piano Concerto in G major.

****1

Bancroft and BBCNOW at the Proms: a deeply satisfying Mahler 3

David Karlin, 11th August

Bancroft and the BBC National Orchestra of Wales provide a Mahler 3 of exceptional clarity and forward momentum, with terrific posthorn solos from Corey Morris and Beth Taylor an outstanding soloist.

****1

Exciting Bacewicz and Lutosławski from Tadaaki Otaka and the BBC NOW

Nick Boston, 30th July

Strong performances of Bacewicz and Lutosławski in Tadaaki Otaka's final outing with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales at the Proms, with technically commanding and sincere Rachmaninov from Vadym Kholodenko.

***11

Nil Venditti impresses in BBC Proms debut

Christopher Woodley, 12th August

Beethoven and Sir Karl Jenkins receive top-notch performances from Nil Venditti and the BBC NOW.

****1

A choral treat to savour: Verdi’s Requiem at the BBC Proms

David Karlin, 23rd July

An outstanding choral performance by nearly 300 singers of the BBC National Chorus of Wales and the Crouch End Festival Chorus lights up Verdi’s hybrid of opera and devotional music.

*****

Music that eats into you: Schoenberg and Zemlinsky at the BBC Proms

Alexander Hall, 22nd July

The Proms are often very clever at recreating musical events from the past. Here, two works originally premiered in 1905 are given a fresh outing by Ryan Bancroft and BBC NOW.

****1

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Mark Pullinger

Mark has been a Bachtrack editor since 2014. He is also an experienced critic, writing hundreds of reviews for the site, as well as a freelancer writing for other magazines and newspapers. He also writes programme notes and blogs on Substack. Mark has a particular passion for the operas of Verdi as well as Russian and French repertoire. Outside the concert hall and opera house, Mark enjoys cooking and travel and is probably at his happiest let loose in a French patisserie or a Viennese coffee house.

When the voice alone is not enough: BBC Cardiff Singer prize eludes favourite