TENOR BARRY BANKS AND SOPRANO SUMI JO IN CARAMOOR’S “PURITANI”
Caramoor International Music Festival, Katonah, N.Y.; July 8, 2006
Since the bel canto revival in the 1950s, Bellini’s last opera, “I puritani” has been sung by some of the greatest sopranos in the world, sopranos having the agility, the legato, high notes and temperament to bring the frequently mad, very gullible Elvira to life with pathos. There were Callas (of course), Sutherland, Sills, Gencer, Caballé (on records), Freni and a few others who have been enormously effective in the part; indeed, they have been the reason for any revival of the work. But when the opera was first performed, in Paris in 1835, sharing top billing equally with the Elvira, Giulia Grisi, was the tenor Giambattista Rubini, the greatest tenor of his day, for whom the difficult, high-lying, emotionally wrenching role of Arturo was composed. Since the 1950s, the role of Arturo has been severely cut and usually transposed downward, since most tenor voices stop at high C (if that), and Arturo is written frequently up to D flats, Ds and even a high F. And if a tenor comes along who can sing the role in the original keys with grace – Nicolai Gedda, Alfredo Kraus in the 60s and 70s (with a recorded version by Luciano Pavarotti) – it is big news.
As part of the Bel Canto at Caramoor series, Conductor Will Crutchfield recently found the ideal Arturo in the person of British tenor Barry Banks. Mr Banks, short of stature but grand of voice and delivery (is there such a thing as a “bel canto Heldentenor”?), who sang spectacularly in Rossini’s “Ermione” at the New York City Opera a few seasons ago, tackled Arturo with apparent ease, utterly fearlessly. He sings a long, tender line as well as he belts out the top notes, and he imbues the text with real feeling. He even got to the high F, in falsetto – as it would have been sung by Rubini (who also would have sung everything above in A in half voice as well, while Mr Banks sang full-throatedly) – and earned a splendid ovation from the audience.
Sumi Jo, the Korean soprano who has made a specialty of the bel canto roles, used her pristine sound exquisitely, if with a bit more caution than in the past. Somewhat less generous than usual with the very highest notes (and with a bit of effort reaching the Ds and E flat), she nonetheless sang with great purity of line, if less involvement than Mr Banks. Bass Daniel Mobbs sang the role of Giorgio, Elvira’s uncle, with big, rounded tone and a grand Bellinian style. Young baritone Weston Hurt has a lightish tone, capable of singing Riccardo’s elegant lines, at times filled with coloratura, with ease, but a bit more attention to what he was singing about would be welcomed. The remainder of the cast was excellent, with the tiny part or Enrichetta (who may or may not be Mary Stuart in the opera’s convoluted plot) taken by a marvelous mezzo named Laura Vlasak Nolen.
Will Crutchfield, with an intimate knowledge of the bel canto idiom, brought out the score’s beauties, coaxing particularly lovely playing from the horns and grand sound from the lower strings, giving the opera the gravity it sometimes can appear to lack. Vocal lines were tastefully embellished; the last act Elvira-Arturo duet was transposed down a half tone to make life easier for the singers. There were a few cuts in the score. The Orchestra of St Luke’s and Chorus played and sang handsomely. The opera was presented in concert, with no attempt at staging. This was not a problem – the singing carried the evening.
Robert Levine
