Jaap van Zweden blazes trail for the HK Phil

By Alan Yu, 22 January 2018

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“Nearly five hours of musical drama flew by as if it was a fleeting moment”

Reviewed at Hong Kong Cultural Centre: Concert Hall, Hong Kong on 21 January 2018

Wagner, Götterdämmerung

Jaap van Zweden, Conductor

Daniel Brenna, Siegfried

Gun-Brit Barkmin, Brünnhilde

Shenyang, Gunther

Amanda Majeski, Gutrune

Eric Halfvarson, Hagen

Peter Kálmán, Alberich

Michelle DeYoung, Waltraute

Sarah Castle, First Norn

Stephanie Houtzeel, Second Norn

Jenufa Gleich, Third Norn

Aurhelia Varak, Wellgunde

Eri Nakamura, Woglinde

Hermine Haselböck, Flosshilde

Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra

A noble Norma trapped in a hollow dystopia

Andrew Larkin, 24th May

Salome Jicia delivers a vocally impressive and emotionally committed Norma, but Orpha Phelan’s post-apocalyptic staging fatally weakens Bellini’s sacred tragedy.

***11

A deli-cious revival of Rossini’s Il turco in Italia at Glyndebourne

Dominic Lowe, 23rd May

Mariame Clément’s production of Rossini's meta comedy is tightly revived with some excellent singing. Come for the writing tips, stay for the cured meats.

****1

Superb musical performances in Pinchgut's Scarlatti rarity in Sydney

Sandra Bowdler, 23rd May

As usual, Pinchgut lavishes musical excellence on an obscure Baroque work... but why stage an oratorio?

****1

The Met’s Frida y Diego proves visually stunning, musically thrilling

David Wolfson, 22nd May

Deborah Colker and her design team create visually vibrant worlds for the Met’s new production of El último sueño de Frida y Diego, by Pulitzer Prize winner Gabriela Lena Frank.

*****

Dudamel’s LA Phil Walküre proves worth the wait

Matthew Richard Martinez, 21st May

An enveloping performance of Die Walküre spans three consecutive evenings, featuring world class singing in Frank Gehry’s stunning space.

****1

Glyndebourne’s first Tosca: vocally strong but imperfect

David Karlin, 21st May

Ted Huffman brings some interesting ideas to his first Glyndebourne production. Excellent singing is let down by indifferent physical acting.

***11

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Alan Yu

The first concert Alan attended was Mahler’s Das Lied von der Erde. For 7 years he presented classical music programmes for Radio Television Hong Kong, partly to pay his way through university. He attends concerts whenever he can and believes there is no substitute for the thrill of live performances. He writes here.

Jaap van Zweden blazes trail for the Hong Kong Philharmonic with Götterdämmerung