All Hail Jennie! The Jennifer Larmore Appreciation Society

Interview with the Diva

2011-04-08T04:55:00.000-07:00

On the occasion of the run of "Orlando Furioso" at Théâtre des Champs-Elysées the Diva received our foreign correspondent at her beautiful Parisian home and granted the Blog an exclusive interview.

Question:You are celebrating your 25th anniversary on stage this year. In what way have things changed in the opera world since the beginning of your career?

Answer:Its been changing gradually and when that happens one doesn’t notice as much. One thing that has been noticeable however is that while the music itself used to be the most important it is now how young and good looking you are that seems to be of utmost importance. This has happened because agents have decided to put young singers in the position of “Stars” even before they’ve had a chance to prove themselves or pay their “dues”. This isn’t fair to those young people because you can’t just skip the steps it takes to learn your craft, get experience and feel more and more comfortable in your skin onstage. Making money on these singers is the goal and not helping to create a real artist. This will ultimately be detrimental to all involved as the young singer may burn out emotionally, vocally or even come to believe all the hype and never even try to reach their potential and then the career is shortened. Everyone loses in the end.

Q.:In what way , according to you, is opera as an art form still relevant in the 21st century?

A.:Opera will always be relevant because there will always be those people who love it and want it. It speaks to the heart like nothing else can. True, the majority doesn’t understand or even want to, but for the ones who do, it’s eternal.

Q.:You are currently singing Alcina in Vivaldi’s Orlando Furioso in Paris and on tour in several European cities, a role you have sung many times in concert performances and on a memorable recording with J.-C. Spinosi. It occurred to me during the performance that Alcina who manipulates men and toys with them, like Circe who turns Ulysses’ companions into pigs, begins to lose her grip on things the moment she seriously falls in love, i.e. becomes “human”. How do you see the role of the sorceress in this piece?

A.: Alcina is on a journey that ultimately and surprisingly destroys her. She begins the opera seeing Love as a game. But when she falls in love for real, then she becomes its unrequited victim. She isn’t immune to the power of love or human emotion like she thought she was. It really surprises her in the end and she can’t accept her human like failings.

Q.:You have travelled a long way from the Rosinas and Angelinas of your earlier days to “grown up”-roles like Fricka in “Das Rheingold”, Countess Geschwitz in “Lulu” and upcoming Kostelnicka in “Jenufa” as well as Lady Macbeth! How do you make the transition?

A.:I sing whatever I sing with the voice that I have. There has been a vocal evolution through the years to be sure. My voice has taken on different colors and depths as well as personality, and if it isn’t exactly what it was as a young singer, that’s OK. It’s different and in some ways even better! The roles I have chosen to do through the years exemplify my voice as it is at that given moment. These roles also allow me to enjoy a depth of dramatic feeling and acting that maybe I just wasn’t capable of when I was younger. The transition itself has been rather effortless because I don’t pretend to sing any of these new roles as someone else might sing them but only as I am capable of singing them.

Q.:In recent years you seem to have become a favourite of German director Christof Loy’s. How did this “special relationship” come about and how would you describe working with him?

A.:I first met Christof Loy at my Paris apartment to talk over the role of “Geschwitz” in Berg’s LULU for his new production at Covent Garden. I immediately fell in love with his way of thinking, his joy for the project and ultimately his way of working. The feeling was mutual and after a wonderful MERRY WIDOW in Geneva, we are doing “Macbeth” together at Geneva again and Jenufa at the Deutsche Oper Berlin.

Q.:You teach masterclasses. How do you see your role, your responsibilty as teacher? In what way do you think young singers can learn from your experience, your career?

A.:Master classes are a passion of mine because I can see such an instant improvement in the well being and therefore the voice of the singer in just that 30 minute session! I don’t presume to teach technically in that amount of time, but I do believe its possible to zero in on the most important thing that could help that specific singer psychologically to open up their body and voice; I seem to be rather good at it so it’s encouraging for the future! I have 25 years of experience to give weight behind the things I say and I feel it’s a real duty to tell others what I’ve been through. That’s why the Q & A sessions at the end are so important.

Q.:Now for some more unpleasant aspects of the opera world; keywords: favouritism, sexism, ageism … Your experiences with any of these.

A.:Of course there is always a bit of all of this happening in the entertainment world, but to tell you he honest truth, I haven’t had terrible experiences that I can remember. The voice is a special animal! People do have their favorites and its not all just about the sound. It has to do with the total package and so I completely understand if I’m passed over for another Mezzo because I just wasn’t what they were looking for! It’s normal. There also comes a time in everyone’s career where you aren’t the new young thing anymore and there’s a new “flavor of the month”. If you’ve sung for 25 years, no matter how good you are, you are “old news” and you shouldn’t even try to compete with the “New”. Let them have their time and enjoy the time you’re in now!

Q.:What do you love most about your life and career right now?

A.:The changes and excitement that come with learning new, dramatic roles into which I can “sink my teeth”! The chance to work with interesting, insightful people, the fact of living in Europe. My family and friends and loved ones make it all worth it!

Q.:How do you deal with the moments when there is just “too much music to learn?”

A.:I get crazy and then just DO it! The only way to make yourself feel better is to do the work.

Q.:You have recently taken up residence in Paris. Do you have a special affinity to this city, to France?

A.:I began my career in France and it was the first country to open wide its arms and welcome me in as a young, unknown singer. I have always loved France and still do!

Q.:Are singers constantly concerned about their voice? Scarves wrapped around the throat, hats, cough drops?

A.: I’m not neurotic about it and made a decision early on not to let it rule me, but a singer must be smart and take care of oneself! You can’t do what normal people do because the instrument is inside the body, so it becomes a way of life to protect yourself.

Q.: Do you follow any rituals before the performance?

A.: Not a one. I’m not superstitious at all!

Les Liaisons Dangereuses or Alcina's Enchanted Island

2011-03-29T23:48:00.000-07:00

Ludovico Ariosto’s epic poem "Orlando Furioso" is one of world literature’s most influential works, having inspired artists and writers through the centuries down to 20th century comics, sci-fi movies and post-modern pulp fiction. The fantastic plot with ogres, dragons, sea monsters, valiant knights, damsels in distress, a flying island and a trip to the moon proved a goldmine for opera composers, too. Handel alone based three of his operas on it. Vivaldi was up til recently known as a composer of, as Stravinsky maliciously put it, 300 times the same concerto...But it was only a question of time until the operas of this prolific musician would be excavated from the archives where they had gathered dust for 3 centuries. Jean-Christophe Spinosi is one of the protagonists of the Vivaldi revival, and ever since he recorded “Orlando Furioso” to worldwide critical acclaim there had been talk of staging it. The Théâtre des Champs-Elysées in Paris assembled the protagonists of this memorable recording this past march in a very elegant if sombre production by Pierre Audi. The Baroque theatre loved to put on lavish spectacles with a lot of machinery. Nowadays mechanical tricks have given way to psychological insight. So the setting was not an enchanted island but rather the somewhat morbid atmosphere of an austere Venetian palace where the wandering lovers are kept in a kind of claustrophobic “huis clos” under the control of Alcina. The magician of undetermined age – she could be several centuries old like Emilia Marty in “The Makropoulos Case” – is entangled in several dangerous liaisons with men whom she keeps in thrall with magic potions and manipulates according to her own wiles. The dramaturgy of the opera creaks a bit in the hinges like rusty stage machinery, as Vivaldi unlike Handel who wisely split up the convoluted plot into two operas (“Orlando” & “Alcina”) mixes the Alcina & Ruggiero story with the errant Orlando’s quest for his lost love Angelica who in turn is in pursuit of her own lover Medoro… Whenever things come to a seemingly unsolvable head enter Orlando raving and ranting. Marie-Nicole Lemieux in the title-role stormed and raged frighteningly, with never a note of the fierce coloratura awry! - upsetting the carefully arranged furniture in Alcina’s palazzo for which misdemeanour the lady of the house locked him up in a dark room! This nuisance removed for the time being Alcina can turn her full attention to her newest acquisition, the charming young knight Ruggiero, betrothed to Bradamante (who follows him disguised in men’s clothing) whom he callously forgets as soon as he sets eyes on the enchantress. Philippe Jaroussky as Ruggiero was the ideal personification of (male) innocence in danger, singing his transcendentally beautiful aria “Sol da te, mio dolce amore” with angelic voice, enchanting the enchantress and the audience alike. Alcina turns from temptress into helpless victim of an overpowering passion, and from this moment , when she shows real emotion, she starts losing control and her magic edifice begins to show cracks. Jennifer Larmore gave a first class impersonation of the sorceress, running the gamut from triumphant ruler over her magic empire with her fierce entrance aria “Alza in quegl’occhi”, via woman in love, “Amorose da rai del sole”, to growing fear and despair over losing her love and power at the same time in a poignant rendering of “Così potessi anch’io”. In the third act when all the characters are locked up in a kind of Hogarthian Bedlam she regaled us with a madscene that was worthy of Phèdre, simmering with quiet rage and despair, a real Racinian tragédienne! It was only consistent with a rather pessimistic reading of this piece that the director here changed the conventional happy ending of opera seria and has Alcina swallow poison. Orlando, in a strait jacket, remains locked in his own madness, and the others are left “smothered in surmise”, the knowledge dawning on them that nothing can be as it was before they got into this haunted palace; there is no returning to square one…With such a formidable performance in the central (if not the title) role it was difficult for the remaining singers to make much of an impact. This is again partly the fault of the composer/librettist who gave the roles of the comprimarii hardly any scope to develop full-bodied characterizations. Veronica Cangemi was a clear-voiced, touching Angelica; Romina Basso embodied her lover Medoro, sweet of voice and demeanour, and Kristina Hammarström an energetic and muscular Bradamante, Ruggiero’s betrothed,( who incidentally appeared more masculine than her rather girlish beloved). Christian Senn stood out as the only “proper” male voice in the whole ensemble, with a warm baritone ,making the best of the rather ungrateful role of Astolfo, Alcina’s discarded lover and helpmate in her intrigues.

Ensemble Matheus’ performance in the pit was dynamic and animated, you sensed the musicians’ familiarity with the score as they breathed fresh life into every note. “Historically informed performance” has come a long way since the first tentative experiments in the 1960s and 70s by the “pioneers”. Nowadays you have period bands that can produce as plush a sound as any traditional orchestra without losing any of the precision and transparency needed for baroque music. Spinosi's interpretation has lost some of its rough edges over the years, but none of its vigour and freshness.

So four hours (including two intervals) went by like nothing, and I shall never understand why people always mutter about the l e n g t h of Baroque operas but sit through 5, 6 hours of Wagner uncomplainingly!

Lady Valencienne's Fan

2011-01-09T23:12:00.000-08:00

Not really caring for schmaltzy Viennese operetta I had originally had no intention of going to Geneva for Die Lustige Witwe/ The Merry Widow/La Veuve Joyeuse, especially as JL was not even singing the lead. But a short while ago I received a calling from above a faithful poodle could not ignore, so booked a ticket in the cheapest category, a flight (not so cheap on short notice) and a hotel room (probably cheap by Swiss standards) and set out in anticipation of a nice New Year’s Eve entertainment. I dimly remembered having been there before, 15 years ago, “L’Italiana in Algeri” at the Grand Théâtre, a party at a lakeside villa and a pair of black trousers being lost in transit (a subject of chaff among my friends ever since…this time I “played safe” and wore a skirt…)
The Merry Widow I had so far known only in the shape of the old Lubitsch movie starring Jeannette MacDonald and Maurice Chevalier. Of the Loy production it can be said that it was sober and decidedly un- schmaltzy – for which I was grateful. The setting was (apparently) a hotel-lobby, thirties-style, modelled on the entrance hall of the Palais des Nations. My fellow-Berliner Annette Dasch was in keeping with this anti-glamour interpretation in being a rather square and homespun Hanna Glawari. But who says that this role must be played like a “diva”?! The Vilja-Lied was rendered simply and touchingly, avoiding the pitfalls of kitsch of this “Wunschkonzert” number . Why the poor woman had to sing this clad only in bra and slip however was a twist of the Regisseur I could not quite follow. I shivered in her place although it was pretty warm in my seat in the gods. Johannes Martin Kraenzle was a dashing Danilo, his warm baritone belying his assumed rakish attitude. I was touched to see the great José van Dam again in the role of Baron Zeta after so many years whom I had admired in many performances at the Deutsche Oper in the 1970s.
Glitz and glam which this piece can after all not do without was added by JL in the role of Valencienne, wife to Baron Zeta, in this Genevan (i.e. cosmopolitan) version “an American from NYC with artistic ambition”. She got the most gorgeous dresses (and dessous!) and her rendition of Foolish Heart from Weill’s One Touch of Venus was a real show-stopper. Her admirer Camille de Rossillon was the young Swiss tenor Bernard Richter, fresh of looks and voice, whom she follows into the chambre séparée (all the while protesting that she is “a respectable wife!”, but only a woman of super-human virtue would resist such an ardently sung invitation!), and the almost Puccini-esque duet “Komm in den kleinen Pavillon” was another highlight of the evening. The whole intrigue here revolves around a lost fan, but whereas a lost handkerchief in “Othello” triggers a tragedy, a fan can pass through many hands and return to its owner without any harm being done. Still one should not trifle with these seemingly insignificant utensils. A fan might get lost irretrievably (like a pair of trousers) with dire consequences. But I digress…After all an operetta must have a happy ending: Valencienne remains an exemplar wife –transgressing only in doing a cancan in dessous –, Hanna gets her Danilo, safely depositing her millions in a Swiss bank, and they all live happily ever after to the tune of “Lippen schweigen, ‘s flüstern Geigen…”
I saw older members of the audience swaying (“schunkeln”) to the popular tunes remembered from their youth (and probably humming along inwardly). One elderly lady said starry-eyed (in German): “Das war ja ein richtiges Wunschkonzert!”
And, yes, I, too, got my money’s worth – although you are really being ripped off in that country: 16 chf for the programme, 2 chf for the coatcheck – and you could also book a posh New Year’s Eve dinner at 185 chf p.p. “Caviar to the general!” I say with Hamlet. Give me a decent Swiss fondue and I am with you! So the faithful poodle returned to the hotel without having got so much as a dog biscuit or a bone to gnaw upon and went to bed hungry. I think I now know why I’ve always preferred cats – they are independent, individualistic, wayward, unpredictable - and they never obey orders!

Quiet.

2010-11-11T23:55:00.001-08:00

Why We Love Our Diva!

2010-07-22T22:46:00.000-07:00

Riveting:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=idZhLHu1SIk

Email the Met and ask why Jennie is not on their upcoming schedule:

http://www.metoperafamily.org/metopera/utility/contact/

The Splendours of Würzburg

2010-07-20T02:40:00.000-07:00

The Würzburg Mozartfest was founded in 1921, which makes it one of the oldest music festivals in Germany; in fact it is only one year younger than the Salzburg Festival. Whereas Salzburg can boast of being the birthplace of “Wolferl” and the “Mozartkugel”, the composer only touched down once at Würzburg for a coffee break on the way to Frankfurt. As he informed his wife by letter he found the town “beautiful and magnificent”(“eine schöne, prächtige Stadt”). This verdict still holds true after more than two centuries. There is the pleasant site on the banks of the river Main meandering through vineyards; the mighty Marienburg castle dominating the townscape; the old Main bridge leading up to the towering Romanesque St. Kilian’s cathedral ; St. Mary’s Chapel on market square with the statues of Adam and Eve by Riemenschneider – and, of course, the famous Residenz Palace, arguably Germany’s most sumptuous Baroque palace, built by Balthasar Neumann, and a Unesco World Heritage site.

When you enter the palace you ascend the magnificent flight of stairs, Neumann’s most ingenious construction, where formerly royalty and prince bishops made their grand entrance, and your eyes go up to the vaulted ceiling decorated with Tiepolo’s brilliant “Technicolor” frescoes showing the four continents as they were known in the 18th century. America greets you as a shapely "Red Indian" woman sporting a colourful feather headdress and straddling an alligator! Asia and Africa float into view with turbaned figures riding camels and elephants and hunting the tiger. Such was the genius of the artist that you get the impression the whole painting is moving like a Cinemascope film, altering its shape with every step you take! The whole programme culminates in the triumph of Europe, leading in arts and culture (No, this is definitely no politically correct world vision!) We see Balthasar Neumann lolling on a cannon as if resting after the completion of his work and looking rather smug. Up in the left hand corner Tiepolo casts a rather detached glance at the world. The Weisser Saal gives your eyes and senses a rest in that it is only decorated with white stucco, and then you enter the Kaisersaal to be overwhelmed again by an explosion of colour and exuberant ornamentation. It is in this hall that most of the concerts of the Mozartfest take place and you involuntarily ask yourself how you will be able to concentrate on sound rather than sight in this room.

The aptly named Balthasar-Neumann-Ensemble has been appointed “orchestra –in-residence” to the festival as from this year. The programme on July 3rd and 4th consisted of bel canto arias and Schubert’s Great C Major Symphony. After a stirring rendition of Rossini’s “Guillaume Tell” overture by the ensemble under the baton of Thomas Hengelbrock, Jennie swept into the hall and sang a rousing drinking song (“Il segreto per esser felici”) from Donizetti’s “Lucrezia Borgia”, Romeo’s fiery and at the same time pleading “Lieto del dolce incarco” from Bellini’s “I Capuleti ed i Montecchi” and “Nacqui all’affanno” from “La Cenerentola”, touching in the beginning and triumphant in the “Non più mesta” section. The vocal fireworks earned our diva a mighty cheer which led to an encore, a totally unexpected aria from Mascagni’s little-known opera “Sì”, apparently Thomas Hengelbrock’s choice and which he announced as dealing with a woman who couldn’t say NO! This piece was a very simple and moving aria of regret and farewell, which Jennie sang with sincerity of feeling and beauty of tone. After the break the Balthasar-Neumann-Ensemble gave a riveting performance of Schubert’s C Major symphony which had me on the edge of my seat. I said to our diva - next to whom I had the honour of sitting on the second evening – that it was a long time since a rendering of this my favourite symphony had swept me so completely away from the opening bars to the last note! The strings were luscious, the brass brilliant, the woodwinds hauntingly beautiful and the basses virtuosic (especially the leader). I don’t think there is a recording of this symphony in “HIP”, so I hope this masterly interpretation will be made available on cd later. To sum up, two exhilarating concerts which kept me humming snatches of Schubert intermingled with Donizetti and Rossini for days to come. And in the end I was not distracted by the gaudy splendours surrounding me. Gorgeous as this hall is, I have to say that it is not an ideal setting for big orchestral concerts. The acoustics are problematic (to say the least), the orchestra was crammed on a way too small platform (some musicians were standing up all the time) and the heat was oppressive (there being no air conditioning), and the windows had to be kept shut because of the noise made by rioting soccer fans in the town!

Fit for a Queen (or How Jennie Kicked Hamlet's Butt)

2010-04-05T18:06:00.000-07:00

I rarely attend opera these days, but when the opportunity arose to be in NYC while Jennie was engaged to perform in Ambroise Thomas' Hamlet, I scrambled to make reservations, order tickets and turn in my coins in order to get my sorry ass to my old stomping grounds. Since arriving in Los Angeles 7 years ago, I’ve found my opera experiences to be simply ok; nothing great, an occasional good performance here or there. As the night approached, I had a feeling this was going to be a good experience. Natalie Dessay came to her senses and thankfully cancelled the entire run as Ophelia, so good luck was on my side. I didn’t care who sang Ophelia because I was there to see our mezzo as Gertrude. For me, this would be the first time I’d seen her in a staged role in almost 8 years. I was overdue.

view from our seats

Since I suffer from pre-movie and opera jitters, we arrived at the Met extra early to use the facilities and wander around our old home-away-from-home. The buzz was good. We got to our seats, saw the same old, wrinkly faces I saw 7 years ago and was comforted by the Met’s garish gold leaf ceilings, chandeliers and tightly fit seats.

The overture begins and Gertrude is the first character we see walk across the foot of the stage. Jennie not just walks, but manages to capture everything her character will endure, all in a few regal steps and one quick, heartbreaking stare. This alone should win her an opera Oscar. Her receding hairline wig that was plastered over the papers a week before was gone and she was beauty personified, along with some major cleavage.

Gertrude and cleavage

I have no problem saying Jennifer kicked-ass, old school, as Gertrude. She was completely in character and on some other plane every moment she was onstage. Every stare, every movement had meaning. Her singing came from a deep place, easily audible from our modest seats and she seemed to be the only singer whose French diction and French style was near perfect. She sank her teeth into every word and we hung on every one. The confrontation scene was reminiscent of The Miracle Worker dinner fight where Anne Bancroft and Patty Duke fling themselves across the room. It was riveting and I was frozen on the edge of my seat.

Jennifer Larmore as Gertrude encompassed all that has been missing in opera these days. This was grand opera and her performance was a tour-de-force; completely over-the-top, exaggerated and deeply moving. My partner turned to me during the curtain-call and asked, “Do you know how good she was?” Um, yes…I was happy to see others in the audience and in the press agreed. I hope the Met understands what they had in her Gertrude. The few naysayers who still refuse to see what the fuss is all about can simply go fuck themselves. I’ll be watching the broadcast and hopefully buy the DVD and in years to come will be thankful this artist will have endured the test of time. I am one happy camper.

curtain call

"Lulu, mein Engel..."

2009-07-03T00:02:00.000-07:00

Twelvetone music of the Second Viennese School is not for the faint-hearted. So it was with some trepidation that I went to the Royal Opera’s new production of Alban Berg’s “Lulu” despite having done my homework - and taken a large dose of Handel at the Halle festival to brace me for the coming…ordeal! But I need not have worried: the story is thrilling and the music has its own hypnotic pull, so that the piece grips you after a few minutes and you are carried along like in a Hitchcock movie! The radically minimalist production by Christoph Loy was at once demanding and enlightening with its stress on the psychology of the characters, having no props, gadgets & gimmicks to divert the attention of the audience, but forcing singer-actors and spectators alike to concentrate on a stringent development of the fateful events of this gloomy drama.

The picture of human nature at its most seedy, sordid and depraved that Frank Wedekind painted in his "Monstertragödie", made up of the two plays “Erdgeist” and “Die Büchse der Pandora”, is not an edifying one, and it is difficult to identify or sympathize with any of the characters. It is a satirical street ballad in the vein of Hogarth’s set of engravings entitled “A Harlot’s Progress”. Even if Berg softened Wedekind’s satirical venom, this is not “La Traviata” where you can suffer with the consumptive heroine and cry your eyes out over her sad end. Of course, taken literally, “Traviata” means “gone astray”, and in this sense Lulu is a latter-day Traviata, minus all the sentimental trappings Dumas & Verdi had to clad the story in to make a prostitute as heroine palatable to mid-19th century audiences. 50 years later Wedekind still encountered the same difficulties, the censors allowing only private performances of his plays for a handpicked audience.

When Berg decided to set the plays to music the situation had become even worse. After 1933 there was no chance of seeing an opera with such an obscene subject performed on a German or Austrian stage. The fact that twelvetone music was now declared un-German and "entartet" (degenerate) didn’t make things easier for the composer. At his sudden death at the age of only 50 he left the opera unfinished, and the torso was premiered in Zurich in 1937. It was only in the 1970s that the Austrian composer Friedrich Cerha undertook the completion of the third act on the basis of Berg’s drafts, and this version, premiered in Paris in 1978, has since become the accepted one.

The title-role poses enormous difficulties for a soprano, vocal as well as physical. It is no showpiece for a blasée primadonna, but the singer who undertakes it has to be prepared to commit herself totally - body and soul. Berg saw the character as the female pendant to Don Juan, only that her female sexuality is less overtly aggressive than the Don’s. But her manipulative wiles nevertheless wreak havoc among the persons who come near her, men and women alike. Wedekind wanted her to be played “like the Madonna”, so the reviewers who found fault with Agneta Eichenholtz’s impersonation because in their eyes she was not femme fatale enough missed the point entirely (in my opinion at least). Die Urgestalt des Weibes is a cipher, a blank canvas onto which everyone can (and does) project their own desires and fantasies. Lulu is neither angel nor demon but becomes what successive lovers want her to be.
Agneta Eichenholtz looked like Snow White, totally innocent and harmless, as if butter wouldn’t melt in her mouth, which made her rendering of the lines “Wenn die Menschen sich für mich umbringen, dafür kann ich doch nicht!”all the more chilling. She impersonated this “somnambulist in the field of love” (“Nachtwandlerin der Liebe” - Karl Kraus), who floats through life aimlessly and like an automaton, without taking notice of her surroundings, to perfection. Vocally she was also up to the challenge, her light girlish timbre matching her ingenue looks.

Of course, “Lulu” is an ensemble piece and the ROH had come up with a formidable array of first-class singers for all the other parts. Michael Volle made a very strong impact as the doomed alpha male Dr. Schön who, in vain, tries to assert his authority over Lulu and is manipulated by her into marriage and subsequently killed. His strong voice and robust physique stood in stark contrast to his emotional and psychological helplessness. Here was a fall indeed! In the end he gets his revenge when he returns as Jack the Ripper to finish Lulu off! Klaus-Florian Vogt had the right anodyne voice for Dr. Schön’s weakling son Alwa; Will Hartmann gave a touching performance as the guileless painter; Philip Langridge was equally convincing as the Prince who sees in Lulu the ideal wife and the sinister Marquis who threatens to sell her to an Egyptian brothel; Peter Rose (whom I remember as a great Basilio in the unforgettable “Barbiere” at Berlin Staatsoper with Jennifer Larmore, Dmitri Hvorostovsky, William Matteuzzi and Carlos Chausson in 1994!) as the animal trainer of the prologue and the athlete added a humoristic touch and reminded one that “Lulu” is also a comedy of sorts; Gwynne Howell was the shady Schigolch, the evil spirit, like Hoffmann's Dappertutto, who mysteriously seems to pull the strings from behind the scenes.

Which leaves only one character still to deal with: Gräfin Geschwitz. According to Wedekind she is "the tragic central character” (“die tragische Hauptperson”) of the piece; she loves Lulu unconditionally and “in an act of superhuman self-sacrifice” follows her to the bitter end. Apparently Christoph Loy took Wedekind at his word and made every effort to show the countess as the single sympathetic person in this array of freakish characters. In an interview he said that he didn’t want a cliché lesbian but “a feminine and attractive Geschwitz, a delicate creature, but one who is consistent in her actions. She remains true to her love for Lulu even though Lulu increasingly turns away from her.” To make his point Loy even went so far as to alter the final scene and lets the countess escape the Ripper’s knife: “I really feel that Geschwitz’s murder doesn’t need to be recounted. I’d be happy for her to survive, so that at that moment the Utopian element in the music also becomes a factor in the plot – so that tenderness and love can survive.” Hmmmm…I have to confess I was not entirely happy with this solution; although the effect of countess Geschwitz delivering her final lines “Lulu, mein Engel…” standing up, like entranced, with a spotlight from above illuminating her face was quite stunning and even otherworldly. But in my view there is nothing Utopian in this most bleak and gloomy piece and there can be no survivors.

What did Jennie make of this part which at first sight seems a very odd choice indeed for her, given her credentials as a Baroque and belcanto singer? How would she, the charming Rosina, the touching Angelina, the pert Isabella, the imperious Caesar, the tomboyish Hansel, the sultry Carmen, the lovelorn Marguerite fare as the doomed lesbian countess? Well, I can say she scored a resounding success! Critics were unanimous in their praise for her humane, sincere, touching and intelligently-nuanced interpretation. (See the listing of quotations below.) She was utterly convincing in her acting and in her singing, avoiding all caricature, delivering even cliché-laden lines like “Ich muß für Frauenrechte kämpfen, Jurisprudenz studieren.“ (Beware! No „normal“ woman would do such a thing!) with conviction. Even M. Brug, the often venomous critic of “Die Welt”, was bowled over (my translation): “The biggest surprise was Jennifer Larmore, the well-known queen of Rossini roulades: she impersonates countess Geschwitz as truly loving (“aufrichtig Liebende”), with sparing gestures to great effect, moving in every nuance of her singing.”

In short, her portrayal was an utter triumph and she can add another role to her still growing repertoire. I who had heard her only a couple of days before in a concert of Handel arias at the Halle festival was amazed how she could switch so seemingly effortlessly between Baroque and twelvetone music.

Last but not least, the excellent orchestra of the ROH, under the baton of Antonio Pappano, contributed to the success of this staging by delivering this complex and intricate score with eloquence and passion, emphasizing the lush Mahlerian qualities of this rhapsodic music, so that I who had entered the opera house with some misgivings came away utterly enthralled. I have climbed Mount (Berg!) Everest of twelvetone music and now new horizons have opened up before me.

And I am happy to report that this memorable performance was recorded and will later be made available on dvd!

To Sir, With Love...

2009-06-06T19:40:00.001-07:00

Jennie sang her first Countess Geschwitz in Berg's Lulu on June 4 at the Royal Opera House in London. The reviews were quick to come out and many! Pictures on All Hail Jennie/Facebook. Looks like a role Jennie can sink her teeth into. And she looks fabulous. I sure hope the ROH releases it on DVD. A radio broadcast on BBC3 is scheduled for July 4 but do stay tuned for Katrin's in depth blog review of her experience seeing Lulu live!

Go Jennie:

"...Jennifer Larmore sang Countess Geschwitz with devastating beauty and her deep attachment to Lulu was clear from the outset. A fantastically moving performance..."

“…The Countess was played by a wonderful Jennifer Larmore with a quiet power that was traced with yearning poignancy throughout…”

“…Jennifer Larmore’s feminine Geschwitz is a surprising success…”

“…Jennifer Larmore's cheerful and well-groomed version of the melancholy lesbian Countess Geschwitz…”

“…Jennifer Larmore's glamorous Countess Geschwitz…”

"...Inherently more sympathetic, Countess Geschwitz became the more involving through Jennifer Larmore's assumption – yielding and vulnerable, yet with an inner resolve and sense of self-sacrifice that intensified over the opera in a way that Eichenholz's Lulu never quite managed. If this had seemed an unlikely role for the American singer, it is one she brought off with conviction..."

“…a dramatic and enigmatic portrayal of Geschwitz…”

“…the excellent Jennifer Larmore…”

“…Jennifer Larmore was a more feminine Geschwitz than one often hears, beautifully sung…”

“…Jennifer Larmore's Countess Geschwitz is also a far more sympathetic portrayal than the butch Cruella DeVille some assume gay people must be…”

“…Jennifer Larmore's lovestruck, guileless Geschwitz – Loy's cleverest characterisation – holds a tiny kernel of kindness in an otherwise unremittingly brutal and depressing creation…”

“…Larmore’s Geschwitz brought a sympathetic, attractive quality to the role of the lesbian
countess…”

"...Jennifer Larmore’s superbly sung Countess Geschwitz..."

"...Jennifer Larmore looked and sounded stunning as the lesbian Countess Geschwitz..."

"...Jennifer Larmore gave a touching and intelligently-nuanced performance as Gräfin Geschwitz, the reverse-image of the iron-clad Lulu in her femininity and vulnerabilty..."

Coughing at the Concert

2009-04-15T01:35:00.000-07:00

"Husten im Konzert" is the title of a short story by Heinrich Böll in which he describes various types of compulsive coughing at concerts, and I was reminded of this story at a recent performance of Handel's "Messiah" in Paris. Now, you would think that by April the coughing and sneezing season is over, but it seems the flu and bronchitis of winter simply give way to hayfever in spring! But as Böll and all enervated concert goers know this coughing has something of an obsessive-compulsive disorder for which science has yet to find a remedy. One thing Böll doesn't mention (because he didn't live to know them) are the ubiquitous cell phones, the bane of our time, that accompanied Händel's music all through the evening with their persistent bleeping - the announcement at the beginning of the concert to switch them off blissfully ignored by their owners! This irritating lack of discipline is unfortunately on the rise and I have of late seen conductors turn round to shush the audience or singers like Thomas Quasthoff interrupt their recitals to ask for silence - and rightly so, as this kind of misbehaviour shows a lack of respect for a work of art and its performers! And I am afraid this constant coughing, sneezing and bleeping seriously interfered with my enjoyment of Händel's masterpiece which should have people sitting on the edge of their seats holding their breath, especially with such a truly riveting performance as the combined forces of the Ensemble Matheus, the Arnold-Schoenberg-Chor and the soloists (in alphabetical order) Florian Boesch, Cornelia Horak, Jennifer Larmore and Topi Lehtipuu offered on this Good Friday night at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées! Händel has this effect on me that when I feel the least bit down in the mouth or put out a few bars of his music suffice to cheer me up! This music exudes some kind of positive energy and a performance of one of his oratorios, operas or concerti makes me come out of the concert floating several inches above the ground and feeling like a better human being! "Messiah" has this additional effect that the tunes are so catchy you have to force yourself to not sing along! Of course, I had gone because of JL in the first place, and whereas her first aria "But who may abide" suffered from Spinosi abruptly "running away" with the orchestra in the rapid passage of "And who shall stand when He appeareth?" which left her rather out of breath, "O thou that tellest" was infused with the spirit of the "good tidings" this aria proclaims, and the emphatic repetitions of "Behold your God" set the mood for the rest of the evening. "He was despised" is the centre and turning point of the whole piece and the most moving of arias. JL sang this with touching sincerity and poignant directness that went straight to the heart. Unfortunately it was during this aria that the assembled patients of the lung sanatorium conspired to "enliven" this plangent piece by unleashing and avalanche of coughs and sneezes into the auditorium! One or two cell-phones were roused into furious bleeping by this and the cacophony was perfect! In moments like these I envy mad King Ludwig of Bavaria who commanded separate performances only for himself! But I, poor mortal, alas, don't wield royal power and consequently must suffer!
The soprano Cornelia Horak delivered her arias with clarity of tone and simplicity ("Innigkeit"), which is of particular importance in the moving and uplifting "I know that my Redeemer liveth". Tenor Topi Lehtipuu is tried and tested in this kind of repertoire and sang stylishly and with clear articulation. Florian Boesch's gorgeous bass voice is fit for Wagner, but he never shouted or boomed, and he had the necessary agility for the quick passages of "Why do the nations", and the coloratura was neat throughout. His rendition of "The trumpet shall sound" brought the house down - and for once drowned out the assembled coughers, sneezers and cell-phones! The Arnold-Schönberg-Chor sang exquisitely and their smooth and plush sound was a joy to listen to. Spinosi and his band are known for fast-paced and energetic performances of Baroque music, notably Vivaldi, and their rendering of Händel's master score was at once vivid and animated, stressing the drama but also doing justice to the more reflective moments. The audience responded enthusiastically at the end which led to an encore of the Hallelujah chorus in which all the soloists joined. All in all an exhilarating, uplifting and truly inspired performance which made me float out of the hall as on a cloud and feeling in perfect accord with the universe.
N.B.: This Böll story should be made compulsory reading for any concert goer and should be read out to audiences before a concert via loudspeakers!

Practice Makes Perfect!

2009-02-22T13:56:00.000-08:00

If you want to experience the magic of Jennie, look no further than the following YouTube clip. If this doesn't put a huge smile on your face, then you might want to check your pulse or find the number of a good mortician:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S1gvJP6RcAo

Spitzenklasse!

I Love Opera Blogs...Well, Some of Them...

2009-02-12T16:42:00.000-08:00

The blog Prima La Musica has a great little review of Jennie's Paris L'Italiana dvd. I saw Jennie sing this role at the Met and the duet (O Che Muso) had me in stitches. It was the first time I really had the giggles at the opera. The chemistry (or lack thereof!) between Jennie and Samuel Ramey was brilliant. It was an honor to see two pros on the same stage singing Rossini in the manner in which it simply must be sung.

Check out the review but also give a look at this great blog for a taste of opera in Australia:

http://primalamusica.typepad.com/primalamusica/2009/02/guardami.html

Jennie at the Met in 2010!

2009-02-10T10:34:00.001-08:00

I guess this means I'll be returning to NYC. From the Met's official press release, Jennie will be heard in Thomas' Hamlet in March of 2010:

The new production of Ambroise Thomas’s Hamlet, which opens on March 16, stars Simon Keenlyside in the title role and Natalie Dessay as Ophélie. Louis Langrée conducts a cast that also includes Jennifer Larmore as Gertrude, Toby Spence as Laërte, in his Met debut, and James Morris as Claudius. The production is by Patrice Caurier and Moshe Leiser with set designs by Christian Fenouillat, costume designs by Agostino Cavalca, and lighting designs by Christophe Forey – all in their Met debuts. When this production opened at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, The Independent called Keenlyside’s Hamlet, “a revelation…thrilling throughout.” The Met performances will use the alternative tragic ending, rather than the happy ending used at Covent Garden. Hamlet was last performed at the Met in 1897 and is particularly known for Ophélie’s famous mad scene, which was a favorite of such legendary sopranos as Nellie Melba and Maria Callas. The production is owned by the Grand Théâtre de Genève and is a gift of Mr. and Mrs. Wilmer J. Thomas, Jr.

More Stuff

2009-02-02T14:37:00.000-08:00

The current February issue of Opera News has a wonderful review of Jennie's Cenerentola from the Atlanta Opera. I love reviews that include words like "sheer beauty", "exquisite handling", "thrilling" and "triumphant". Sounds right to me. If you can pick up a copy from the newstand, there's a picture from the production along with the review...Sheer beauty.

Update: Opera News Online published the luscious picture of Jennie (and Nicholas Phan) and the author, Stephanie Adrian, is also responsible for the interview in Classical Singer. Great work, Stephanie!

http://www.metoperafamily.org/operanews/review/review.aspx?id=2669

Interview: Jennifer Larmore Reinvented

2009-02-01T16:17:00.000-08:00

Classical Singer has a great interview with Jennie. She mentions Atlanta Opera possibly doing Der Rosenvakalier for her, lots of advice for young singers and some fascinating concert projects in the works. Classical Singer always gets some good stuff out of the singers and I find I can even apply what Jennie says to my own humble non-singing existence. Thanks, Jennie for your always positive perspective! Enjoy:

http://www.classicalsinger.com/magazine/article.php?id=1881

Haydn Reloaded

2009-01-13T01:25:00.000-08:00

Joseph Haydn has this reputation of having been a harmless and somewhat dull chap who "invented" the string quartet and wrote symphonies with funny names - "The Clock", "The Hen", "Surprise"...and whose music is nice but rather predictable. Two formidable concerts I attended within a few days blew the dust off Haydn's wig and music: the one in Berlin on Jan. 1st, the other in Frankfurt on the 11th. In Berlin René Jacobs conducted a swift and exhilarating "Creation"; I love him and only hold one thing against him - that he doesn't work together with JL anymore! She performed in the other concert I attended at Frankfurt's Alte Oper under the baton of another noted exponent of the HIP movement, Thomas Hengelbrock. His fluent - and never predictable!- conducting of Haydn's symphony No. 53 showed that these days traditional orchestras like the Frankfurter Museumsorchester have learned from HIP and can produce a lighter, more transparent and swinging sound on "conventional" instruments. This work has an overall serene character to which the following dramatic scene "Berenice che fai" posed a stark contrast. Originally written for the soprano Brigida Giorgi Banti who was known for her formidable vocal range the piece is about love, death and desperation in ancient Egypt and was first performed in London in 1795. The composer was rather disappointed with signora B's performance and wrote "she sang but poorly." Well, he would not have said this of JL, I am sure, who although being unwell and suffering from a bad cold, certainly did not sing poorly at all! The reviewer in the "Frankfurter Rundschau" admired her "dramatic intensitiy & fervour", "intelligent and nuanced expression", and "brilliant technique"(duh?!) She would certainly have added more embellishments had she been in better health, but otherwise I can only agree and express the hope that we'll have more riveting performances like these in Haydn's anniversary year!

A Year Without Jennie...

2009-01-02T00:11:00.000-08:00

It's been about a year and a half since I last saw Jennifer perform with the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra. I've somehow managed to get by with great friends and the internet, so there's always good news out there on our favorite mezzo. I was happy to read that Jennifer was listed twice in Opera News' 2008 "Best of" list. Opera Rara's Alessandro nell'Indie was voted one of the best opera recordings and JeLa was listed as a "scene stealer" for her work on Zanetto. I can confirm the latter. She certainly does great work on this little gem of a cd. I wish the soprano was up to par, but Jennie is a treat in this trouser role. I'd love to hear anyone's thoughts on the Pacini set. Opera Rara's other Pacini/Larmore cd, Carlo di Borgogna, is one of their best offerings. Estella is a character Jennie makes come alive. Run out and buy this cd, you will not be disappointed. It's quite clear who is responsible for the current Pacini resurgence.

Once Upon a Time...

2008-10-22T02:00:00.000-07:00

The subtitle of Rossini's opera "La Cenerentola" is "La Bontà in Trionfo", and "goodness" triumphed in every way last week at La Monnaie in Brussels in a wonderful performance with JL in the title role. It was a real fairy tale! I saw her in Paris and Zurich in this role and found her as charming and touching as ever - perhaps even more so as only now she has the perfect physique du rôle: a poor thing and mere slip of a girl in rags among the cinders with only some friendly mice as companions! "L'innocenza e la bontà" are the keywords for this part, and JL conveys these qualities with simplicity and perfect naturalness. There is nothing artificial or contrived in her impersonation, and she has this radiance, this sunshine in her voice and person which transcend drabness and misery. The reason why this is my favourite Rossini opera and why I prefer it over "Barbiere" and "Italiana" is that it is not only funny but has something for heart & soul as well. So, I found JL most moving in the more elegiac passages like the wonderful ballad "Una volta c'era un re" or the duet "Un soave non so che - una grazia, un certo incanto" - one of the most charming love duets of all opera! - or "Ah, sempre fra la cenere, sempre dovrò restar" or "compatite, perdonate". There would be much more to single out, but this would go beyond the scope of this blog and beyond my very limited eloquence (English being a foreign language for me after all!)! Let me only add that the quick not to say breakneck passages and the coloratura were as neat as you would expect from a seasoned belcantist, and the final rondo "Nacqui all'affanno - non più mesta" got the deserved ovation! To sum this up: I don't think I'll see & hear a better Cenerentola/Cinderella/Cendrillon/Aschenputtel in my lifetime. I certainly don't know ANYONE who is fit to hold a candle to our diva, and I envy those who shall see her in Atlanta. I am sure this will be a triumphant homecoming for her and say: "Ritorna Vincitor!"
(or rather: "Vincitrice"! in her case!)

Ping Pong

2008-09-29T22:34:00.000-07:00

Have you been to All Hail Jennie! on Facebook? No? Well, you should. It's where I put sexy, yummy pictures of JeLa, in addition to videos of audio clips from live performances. Just click on that link to the right...Yes, that one...Join Facebook if you haven't already. I mean, even our dear Jennie has a Facebook page. What are you waiting for??? Once you're there, join All Hail Jennie! Only smart, sexy people join this group. If you're not smart or sexy, you'll become smart and/or sexy by simply joining All Hail Jennie! on Facebook. It's free and it's sexy. Did I mention it's on Facebook?

Werther

2008-09-22T06:45:00.000-07:00

I listened to the broadcast and it brought back vivid memories of a thrilling performance at Brussels' La Monnaie last december. Indeed, I believe the recording was made on the very day I was there, as I remember seeing the van of the Belgian radio outside the theatre! JL gave a touching performance of a woman trapped in the bourgeois conventions of the 18th & 19th centuries: The director had emphasized the very narrow space her world comprised by the almost claustrophobic stage setting of a kind of doll's house, making of Charlotte a "desperate housewife" out of Ibsen! The huge christmas tree in the 3rd act dwarfed the humans and was more threatening than festive. Charlotte sang her heart-rending Letter Aria sitting on a stool in the corner - like a "cornered" or trapped animal, which made the last words "...il se brise" all the more poignant. I literally held my breath during this whole act, and when Charlotte cried out embracing her sister and bidding farewell to her, my heart missed a beat! In the 4th act Charlotte's desperation comes over most vividly, and her cries are agonizing. JL really makes you live through the agony and the pain with her! When she sobs "Tout est fini!" you really feel as if the world has come to its end! And I must say Ludovic Tézier as Werther died most movingly. The part was, of course, originally written for a tenor, but I am grateful to M. Massenet that he also wrote this alternative version. I admit I am biased, as I love the baritone voice and have never much cared for tenors (and baritones are in most cases much more handsome to boot!)! In short, it was an evening to remember and I can only join Paul in his wish for a dvd of this performance!

My Wish List

2008-09-21T18:09:00.000-07:00

1. Kurt Weill cd.
2. Massenet's Werther on cd AND dvd (yes, I'm greedy).
3. Rossini's Semiramide full production in the US and recorded for dvd.

Is that asking too much? I didn't think so.

Werther, La Monnaie - December 2007!

2008-09-13T16:44:00.000-07:00

During my daily blog searches for all that is Jennie, I found the following Brazilian blog that has her Charlotte in Brussels from last year. Those of you who were there know how great she was. Those of us who were not (myself included), enjoy! It's a role I'm dying to see her do live. Why Los Angeles Opera doesn't engage her is beyond me, but that's another story:

http://maisumadofalsario.blogspot.com/2008/09/2007-massenet-werther-kazushi-onotzier.html

Bad Fan!

2008-09-10T22:46:00.000-07:00

I just read that Opera Rara’s Entre Nous cd has been nominated for a 2008 Gramophone Award for best recital disc. I sure hope it wins, although I’m embarrassed to say I do not own this disc set. Due to my current state of financial affairs, Opera Rara cds are too rich for my blood. And they are worth every stinking penny. I’m not just saying this because Jennie records with them. They are simply the best. And they always use great art historical paintings for their covers. Talk about simple marketing: great product, simple design, beautiful art and kick-ass music. Oh, and Jennifer Larmore on so many of their discs. Sweet.

So, not only can I not afford Entre Nous, I can’t afford Alessandro nell' Indie as well. (Carlo di Borgogna is my favorite Opera Rara/Jennie cd.) I’m a bad fan. To add insult to injury, I most likely will not be able to make it to Atlanta to hear her do Cenerentola in November. I think my Jennifer Larmore card needs to be revoked. But I’m grateful she’s recording so much and I hope Entre Nous wins. We’ll find out later this month. By that time perhaps I’ll be gainfully employed and I can stop my whining.

Utterly...

2008-08-30T21:14:00.000-07:00

Been listening to Royal Mezzo and was hit up-side the head by one word: Utterly. She cries this on the first track, Barber’s Andromache’s Farewell. The line is “now the Gods have destroyed us utterly” (11:05). This one word totally blew me away. It’s meant to. It’s that good! So, this got me thinking of other words she sings and I end up obsessing about. Barber’s Sure on this Shining Night (from her My Native Land cd) has the line “all is healed, all is health”. I’m brought to tears when I hear this. A few years later she sings the same song on a cd tribute to Lotte Lehmann but this time changes the emphasis on the words “healed” and “health” and I’m blown away, yet again. I’m not sure which version I prefer, but lately the Lehmann cd seems to be winning. She and Barber seem to be a perfect fit and I’ve mentioned before how I’d love to hear her do Knoxville: Summer of 1915.

For now, I’m thrilled she had the keen intelligence to put Barber, Berlioz, Britten and Ravel on one kick-ass cd (Hello, second Grammy award?). I’ll get to the Britten piece at some point, because I think she has broken new Larmore ground here. Britten? Lamore? Who knew?

Oh, and come to think of it, listen to the line “come close, embrace me” (7:59) on Andromache’s Farewell. It’s utterly breathtaking.

All Hail Jennie

2008-08-20T23:24:00.000-07:00

Katrin Schmidt-Berg said...
Great to have a blog to share thoughts about our favourite mezzo!I came to her through the fabulous recording of Handel's "Giulio Cesare" with René Jacobs which hit me like lightning! I had been an opera fan since my earliest childhood, but Baroque opera until then was just a boring string of repetitive da-capo arias for me(yawn, yawn!) This terrific recording changed all this! It made an epoch in my life and is my desert island disc! I was completely bowled over by Jennie's interpretation of the Roman hero: the majesty, the impetuosity, the ruthlessness, but also the playfulness, tenderness and vulnerability of this ambiguous character - and all traces of mathematical monotony of earlier Baroque music singing blown away in a vocal tornado! And the sheer beauty of the timbre is overwhelming: pure mousse chocolat, Nutella, crème caramel! She together with René Jacobs and the fabulous Concerto Koeln deliver a Handel on the rocks!I have been following her around now for about 14 years and seen her in all her major roles in Berlin, Paris, Edinburgh, New York, Brussels: her charming Rosina, her pert & perky Italiana, her touching Angelina, her forthright Hansel, her vulnerable and dignified Charlotte... - and hope she'll go on singing for a long time yet! and surprise us with more great portrayals! Her wonderful new cd "Royal Mezzo" hints at new possibilities opening up. I join the chorus: "All Hail Jennie, once and future Queen of Mezzos!
August 18, 2008 6:43 AM

How to Live Without a Diva...

2008-08-17T19:58:00.000-07:00

New York City, circa March 1992, in the throws of a new and wonderful and wicked relationship, my then (and current) love thought it prudent to drag my sorry Long Island ass to the Met. If memory serves me correctly, that first opera was Verdi’s Rigoletto. I’ll say Ruth Ann Swenson was Gilda…I remember her in a sack toward the end…There were NO super-titles and remember thinking “just get through this”. I could have been watching anything. My second opera was Verdi’s Il Trovatore. The anvil chorus was great, but what happened before or after that was a mystery. Opera for me was a means to an end. I sit through 3 hours of hell, I get to have great sex when I get home. Thinking back, I’m mad at myself for having been a reverse opera snob. A few years went by and with the help of Mariella Devia and Luciana Serra, a good job to help pay for good seats, super-titles and a very patient boyfriend, I was well on my way to actually understanding what all the fuss was about. Around 1995 I was able to see my first Barbiere with Ms. Larmore in her Met debut. This sealed the deal for me. Opera was now sport and I had my MVP. But more on that later…

It’s now 2008. I had grown accustomed to hearing Ms. Larmore sing several times a year in NYC for nearly 10 years. We moved to Los Angeles in 2003 and in five years I’ve heard Jennie sing on only two occasions. So, when I know she is singing somewhere in the U.S. or abroad, I feel empty; left out of the ball game.

So, I rely on the internet and my great friends who are lucky enough to hear her. Sometimes a critic will actually describe in great detail a concert or opera or recital. Here’s one by Paul E. Robinson reviewing Jennie’s opening recital at the 2008 Festival Bel Canto in Canada:

http://www.scena.org/blog/2008/08/report-from-bel-canto-new-music.html

Paul - Los Angeles

Another Opera Blog...

2008-08-15T13:31:00.001-07:00

I know...I feel the same way. But, since Jennifer Larmore turned me on to opera and I now have made many friends who also share my love for this mezzo, it seemed right to have a place for my humble thoughts and opinions. But also I hope everyone will share their feelings on an opera, concert, recording or anecdote relating to one of the greatest mezzo-sopranos of our time. Let's have fun and share the good feelings, as Jennifer would most likely have it! Thanks! Paul - Los Angeles