Hector Berlioz’s massive masterpiece about the fall of Troy and its aftermath was repeated in Lubbock last night before a small group of opera lovers; only four made it to the end which was precisely at midnight. There are few, if any, composers who were as original as Berlioz and therein lies both his appeal and the problem his operas present. Even if you are a genius writing a great opera requires years of experience in the theater. Rossini is the only major composer who wrote great operas before he was 25. And his parents were musicians and he spent much time in the theater as a youth.

Berlioz wrote only three operas (Les Troyens was his second) and he had trouble getting them produced. Thus he was denied the practical theatrical experience that even the greatest composer needs to succeed in the opera house. That he did as well as he did is a tribute to his ability. Les Troyens is a massive work that would have benefited greatly from revision based on how it worked on the stage; but it was never produced in its entirely during its composer’s life. Compare it to Verdi’s equally massive opera Don Carlos also written for Paris and originally set to a French libretto. It exists in at least five versions set by Verdi to meet the demands of the theater. Add to this comparison the vastly greater practical experience that Verdi had (he had written more than 20 operas prior to its composition) and you can understand why Don Carlos works better on the stage and is performed so much more frequently than Les Troyens – 202 times vs 44 at the Met.

Further complicating Berlioz’s operas is his utter originality. He seemed constitutionally unwilling to repeat himself or even to build on what he had done before. Every one of his major works seems unique. While this is wonderful it means that every work will have a unique set of problems. Les Troyens is more likely to elicit admiration than affection. No one else could have produced it, but it would have benefited from some judicious pruning. This is especially so in the fourth act. Yet this act ends with a luminous septet merging into a duet (“Tout n’est que paix et charme” and “Nuit d’ivresse et d’extase infinie”). So I guess we ought to take what Berlioz gave us and go easy on the criticism.

Les Troyens act 1The Met has been doing this opera in every year ending with three since 1973. The current production under Francesca Zambello’s direction was first staged 10 years ago. It’s sets and costumes are generally generic and abstract and not of any time and place, except for the Greeks in Part 1, and both could just as well have been used in a Star Trek episode. But they worked well enough. Zambello’s staging was, for the most part, effective. The bits of interspersed choreography looked like they were left over from The Nutcracker. The placement of the chorus and supers was effective and often achieved the desired effect of loss in the first part and prosperous fecundity in the second.

With the exception of Bryan Hymel in the title role who was excellent throughout, the singing was better in the second part than the first. Deborah Voigt was Cassandra the distressingly accurate prophet of doom. Her voice has shrunken compared to its best days. At a normal volume it sounds small and constrained. At full voice it still has much of the power of yore. Similarly, Dwayne Croft voice lacks focus and has a woolly sound; he was Cassandra’s fiance Coroebus.

Vocally, things were much better in part 2. Eric Cutler (Iopas), despite being tall and of full build, moves and acts with comfort and effectiveness. His solo in Act 4, “O Blonde Cérès”, was well sung thought there was a hint of harshness to his tone. The other solo for lyric tenor, Chanson d’Hylas (“Vallon sonore”), was beautifully sung by the young American tenor Paul Appleby.

Graham Les Troyens Part 2Susan Graham seems to have been made to sing Berlioz’s tricky melodies. Her voice was rich and sensitive to every nuance required by Berlioz for Dido the lovesick Queen of Carthage. She was in complete control throughout and revealed all the joy and pathos of her role – a tour de force.

This leaves Bryan Hymel as Énée (Aeneas). By now anyone who cares knows that he replaced Marcello Giordani on very short notice and scored a huge success. Mr Hymel has a dark focused tenor that handles Berlioz’s very high tessitura with ease. He was equally effective in the lyrical part of his role. At age 33 his voice can continue to settle into the right placement or wilt under the pressure he places on it. One, of course, hopes for the former. If all goes well he can have a major career in the spinto repertory. The ovation he received at his curtain call was fully deserved.

The chorus has a major role in Berlioz’s sprawling score. They have to both act and sing through much of the long performance. They were completely up to the mark and added greatly to the success of this staging.

Fabio Luisi is conducting so much that I expect to see him on the Brighton Line before long. It’s almost impossible to judge how Berlioz’s sublime orchestration sounded in the house from a telecast, but from here it seemed that he had the score down pat and got a lush sound from his great orchestra. I look forward to hearing this opera in 2023. Mr Hymel, at least, should still be around.

 

LES TROYENS
Berlioz-Berlioz

HD Transmission/Simulcast

Part I: La prise de Troie

Cassandra……………Deborah Voigt
Coroebus…………….Dwayne Croft
Aeneas………………Bryan Hymel
Ascanius…………….Julie Boulianne
Priam……………….Julien Robbins
Hecuba………………Theodora Hanslowe
Helenus……………..Eduardo Valdes
Andromache…………..Jacqueline Antaramian
Astyanax…………….Connell C. Rapavy
Panthus……………..Richard Bernstein
Hector’s Ghost……….David Crawford

Part II: Les Troyens à Carthage

Dido………………..Susan Graham
Anna………………..Karen Cargill
Narbal………………Kwangchul Youn
Iopas……………….Eric Cutler
Ascanius…………….Julie Boulianne
Panthus……………..Richard Bernstein
Aeneas………………Bryan Hymel
Mercury……………..Kwangchul Youn
Hylas……………….Paul Appleby
Trojan Soldier……….Paul Corona
Trojan Soldier……….James Courtney
Priam’s Ghost………..Julien Robbins
Coroebus’s Ghost……..Dwayne Croft
Cassandra’s Ghost…….Deborah Voigt
Hector’s Ghost……….David Crawford

Laocoön……………..Alex Springer
Royal Hunt Couple…….Julia Burrer, Andrew Robinson
Dido’s Court Duet…….Christine McMillan, Eric Otto

Conductor……………Fabio Luisi

Production…………..Francesca Zambello
Set Designer…………Maria Bjørnson
Costume Designer……..Anita Yavich
Lighting Designer…….James F. Ingalls
Choreographer………..Doug Varone
TV Director………….Barbara Willis Sweete