Less vs More in Opera: How can composer Benjamin Britten do so much with so little?

Sound Mind - A Classical Music Blog Beta Toronto Edition Login/Register Weather wheels.ca healthzone.ca yourhome.ca parentcentral.ca toronto.com thestar.com Web find a business Home News GTA Opinion Business Sports A & E Living Travel Columns Blogs More ? Autos Careers Classifieds Deaths Real Estate Diversions Acts of Kindness Sudoku Crosswords Bridge Results Contests Lotteries Comics TV Listings Horoscopes Public Editor Public Editor Columns About the Public Editor Recent Corrections Report an Error Stay up to date RSS Feeds Twitter Updates News Alerts Newsletters Mobile Devices Other sites: toronto.com parentcentral.ca yourhome.ca healthzone.cawheels.ca flyerland.ca goldbook.ca starauctions.ca insurancehotline.com wonderlist.ca collapse Site map Home Blogs Sound Mind - A Classical Music Blog

? back to Sound Mind - A Classical Music Blog

? Toronto Estonian film festival profiles contemporary composer Erkki-Sven Tüür at screening this evening |Main| A rare chance tonight to hear veteran violinist and teacher Miriam Fried in a live Toronto recital ?

10/17/2010Less vs More in Opera: How can composer Benjamin Britten do so much with so little?

How is it that, with the right training, a 50kg person is capable of overpowering someone twice her weight?

That was the analogy I was looking for in trying to describe how Benjamin Britten's spare operatic orchestrations pack as much of a wallop as Richard Strauss's.

I realise this isn't a fair juxtaposition, because Strauss was a generation older and came of age with a different aesthetic. But his name did come up when I was chatting with Steuart Bedford, conductor of the unreservedly amazing Canadian Opera Company production of Britten's Death in Venice, which opened last night in Toronto.

Because of his long working relationship with Britten and his music, Bedford is authoritative. He also has a long freelance career where he has conducted a lot of Mozart operas. I mentioned to him that you can't take a single note out of Mozart opera without upsetting something, and the same is true of Britten's scores. He thought for a second and agreed -- then chuckled and said, "You can't say the same for Richard Strauss, though."

Bedford's reading of the Death in Venice score was mesmerizing last night -- especially in the context of how well the staging was coordinated with the music.

So I thought it might be fun to compare some Britten with Strauss, tossing aside notions of fairness just so we can have an excuse to listen to some engaging operatics.

Here's English baritone Andrew Ashwin singing "In Peace I Have Found my Image" from Britten's chamber opera, Owen Wingrave. Accompanying him is the Vienna Chamber Orchestra led by Daniel Hoyem-Cavazza:

It's not a dramatic piece, but from the sheer richness of the score, I love Strauss' Capriccio. Here's the scene where the characters sing about how ridiculous opera is, brought to us by conductor Ulf Schirmer and the orchestra of the Paris Opera and a fabulous cast that includes Renée Fleming, Anne Sofie von Otter and Gerald Finley:

Posted by John Terauds at 08:15:49 AMin Canada, Current Affairs, Europe, Music, Opera, Voice

Save to Delicious Digg This Reblog

TrackBack

TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.typepad.com/services/trackback/6a00d8341bf8f353ef0133f5228641970b

Listed below are links to weblogs that reference Less vs More in Opera: How can composer Benjamin Britten do so much with so little?:

Comments

You can follow this conversation by subscribing to the comment feed for this post.

Verify your CommentPreviewing your CommentPosted by: |

This is only a preview. Your comment has not yet been posted.

Your comment could not be posted. Error type: Your comment has been saved. Comments are moderated and will not appear until approved by the author. Post another commentThe letters and numbers you entered did not match the image. Please try again.

As a final step before posting your comment, enter the letters and numbers you see in the image below. This prevents automated programs from posting comments.

Having trouble reading this image? View an alternate.

Post a commentComments are moderated, and will not appear until the author has approved them.

If you have a TypeKey or TypePad account, pleaseSign In

You are currently signed in as(nobody).Sign Out

(URLs automatically linked.)

Your Information

(Name and email address are required. Email address will not be displayed with the comment.)

Name is required to post a comment

Please enter a valid email address

Invalid URL

Sound Mind:
A Classical Music Blog

John Terauds started at the Toronto Star as a freelance writer in 1988, and has been on staff since 1997. He began writing on classical music in 2001, and has been the full-time classical music critic since 2005.

He is also the organist and choir director at St. Peter's Anglican Church, a parish founded in 1863 in downtown Toronto.

If he's not listening to, writing about or playing music, it means he's either asleep, unconscious, walking his dog -- or all of the above. Subscribe to this blog's feedFollow him on TwitterRead more by John TeraudsRecent CommentsClassical BlogsAlex Ross: The Rest Is Noise
Anthony Tommasini
Greg Sandow
Jessica Duchen
Joshua Kosman: On a Pacific Aisle
La Scena Musicale
Richard Morrison
Classical LinksAllAboutOpera.Com
Arts & Letters Daily
BBC Music Magazine
Canadian Music Centre
Classical DJ
Diapason
Dilettante Music
Gramophone
Medici.tv
Musbook
CategoriesAnniversariesAsiaBaroqueBooksCanadaCDCelloChamber MusicChoralCrossoverCurrent AffairsDVDEarly MusicEuropeFilmFood and DrinkGamesHistoryInterviewMultimediaMusicNew MusicNewsOperaOrganOverheardPeriod PerformancePianoReligionScienceSymphonyTelevisionTravelUnited StatesViolinVoiceWeb/TechWeblogsWorld MusicArchivesOctober 2010September 2010August 2010July 2010June 2010May 2010April 2010March 2010February 2010January 2010More...

Related LinksToday's Online News
TheStar.com
More Star Blogs
TheStar.com Photos
TheStar.com Videos
Commenting Guidelines
Advertisement
Legal NoticeTheStar.com
Copyright Toronto Star Newspapers Limited. All rights reserved. The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Toronto Star or www.thestar.com. The Star is not responsible for the content or views expressed on external sites.Distribution, transmission or republication of any material is strictly prohibited without the prior written permission of Toronto Star Newspapers Limited.
For information please contact us using our webmaster form. www.thestar.com online since 1996. thestar.com Corrections Contact Webmaster FAQ Site Map Toronto Star About Subscribe Subscribe Self Service Contact Us News Releases Star Internships Careers at TheStar.com Advertise with us Media Kit Online Advertising Print Advertising Special Sections Initiatives Santa Claus Fund Fresh Air Fund Classroom Connection Community Giving Stay up to date RSS Feeds Twitter Updates News Alerts Newsletters Mobile Devices parentcentral.ca wheels.ca yourhome.ca toronto.com pages of the past Stock photos New in Homes more ? Copyright Toronto Star 1996-2009 Terms & Conditions Privacy Policy

View the original article here

View more related article click

here