Krassimira Stoyanova: Reluctant diva excels in Slavic Arias

Krassimira Stoyanova: Slavic Opera Arias, 2011.

Bulgarian soprano Krassimira Stoyanova had a rather late start to her career; born in 1962, she is as violinist as well, and played in 3 different orchestras before embarking on her singing career in 1995. Perhaps this is why she, 48 at the time of recording of the present CD is as fresh-voiced as ever. A long-time favourite of the Vienna State Opera where she is Kammersängerin, she has appeared extensively in all major houses and there can be no doubt, that despite flying somehow below the media radar giving very few English-language interviews, she is one of the greatest lyric-dramatic soprano in present time. Her limited discography does not reflect adequately upon her talent. She has released a few solo CDs, all recommendable, but this, the present one "Slavic Opera Arias" is the best. On DVD she may be seen as Desdemona and Tatjana as well as Rachel in La Juive.

Her voice has a rather square voice, and while some may find it lacks bloom when compared to someone like Anja Harteros, it is firmly centered in the middle register, as well as being equal throughout the range. Furthermore her intonation is spot-on, at least on this CD. Ideal for this repertoire of Slavic Arias, of which some may have seen her live as Tatyana - on DVD in Stefan Herheim´s Amsterdam production and live/screened in Kasper Holten´s recent (2013) production for the London Royal Opera.

She is scheduled to sing the Marschallin in the new Rosenkavalier in Salzburg in 2014, an offer she received after her critically acclaimed debut as Ariadne in Vienna a couple of months ago. More Strauss or Wagner in her future? I hope so, but a look at her website reveals Trovatore-Leonora, Marguerite and Amelia (Boccanegra) as well as Aida and Manon Lescaut.

Her next album will be recorded this summer featuring verismo arias.

Track list:

Tchaikovsky: Letter Scene (Eugene Onegin)
Hadjev: Act 4 Scene (Maria Desislava)
Borodin: Ne malo vremeni (Prince Igor)
Tchaikovsky: Otchevó éto prézhde (Iolanta)
Tchaikovsky: Spi, mladénets moy prekrasny (Mazeppa)
Dvorak: Song to the moon (Rusalka)
Dvorak: Mne zdálo se, ze smrt bledá (Dimitrij)
Dvorak: Necitelná vodní moci (Rusalka)
Tchaikovsky: Uzh polnoch blizitsya (Pique Dame)
Rimsky-Korsakoff: S podrúzhkami po (Snow Maiden)
Stoyanov: Zvezdíte tázi noshch (Hitar Petar)
Smetana: Och, jaký zal! (The Bartered Bride)
Rimsky-Korsakoff: Iván Sergéyevich, khóchesh (The Tsar´s Bride)

The letter scene from Stefan Herheim´s Eugene Onegin:

The bottom line (scale of 1-5, 3=average): 5

Muti with the Verdi Requiem in Salzburg

Verdi Requiem. Grosses Feststpielhaus, Salzburg Festival. August 15th. Riccardo Muti conducts the Vienna Philharmonics. Soloists: Krassimira Stoyanova, Olga Borodina, Saimir Pirgu, Ildar Abdrazakov.

• Muti conducted not without nuance, but his version of the Verdi Requiem is still mainly brisk and powerful
• I still wonder to what extent the Vienna Philharmonics could actually play this piece without a conductor, though obviously someone has to coordinate between orchestra and choir
• Olga Borodina was in booming voice, seemingly oblivious to fellow colleagues as well as the conductor and absolutely NOT blending in with Krassimira Stoyanova´s distinctly different vocalism and significantly smaller voice.
• Well done by Saimir Pirgu, while Abdrazakov did not have an exceptional day
• I spotted a total of 5 women in the orchestra (one concert master, the rest strings). This does not indicate all five are members of the Vienna Philharmonics as the orchestra often hire "seasonal employers" for the Salzburg Festival.
• After the soprano´s initial "libera me", in the orchestral pause a cell phone went off...
• Grosses Festspielhaus was sold out despite the distinctly antisocial hour of this concert (11 am). Later I found out that this day is a national holiday in Austria, which does not influence the hour of the concert as the Vienna Philharmonics traditionally play several series of concerts at this hour.

Salzburg 2003: David McVicar´s stellar Hoffmann

Les Contes d´Hoffmann. Salzburg Festival 2003. Production: David McVicar. Cast includes: Neil Schicoff (Hoffmann), Angelika Kirchschlager (Muse), Ruggero Raimondi (Villains), Waltraud Meier (Giulietta), Krassimira Stoyanova (Antonia). L´ubica Vargicová (Olympia). Conductor: Kent Nagano.

Unsurprisingly, David McVicar produced a tragic version of Hoffmann´s tales for the 2003 Salzburg Festival. Why write about this event 5 years later? It was shown on television, and if released on DVD, it will be first choice on the market, pushing Robert Carsen´s Paris version down to second place.

It is a very atmospheric staging, one of McVicar´s best. He succeeds brilliantly in capturing the essence of Hoffmann - provided one accepts his view of decadence and tragedy.

According to David McVicar, Hoffmann is an alcoholic and a looser. In the end, this Hoffmann simply dies, and the opera simply follows his death spiral. The imagery are slightly more glitzy aesthetical, but otherwise typical of David McVicar (Manon, Salome, Nozze, Rigoletto) portraying the fading elegance of a decaying society. On a related note, I though the naked muscular man with blood sprayed all over his back was a McVicar invention for his London Salome earlier this year. Not so. This man appears in the beginning of the Giulietta scene 5 years earlier in Salzburg...

Neil Schicoff is the perfect Hofmann for this sort of interpretation capturing the exact essence of desperation and tragedy as well as being vocally on top from. Accompanied by Ruggero Raimondi as the perfect villains, with the exact required undercurrent menacing presence. Vocally he may be past his prime, but not enough to make it matter: He still pulls of a scintillating Scintille Diamant. And looks excactly as I imagine the Villains to look.

Angelika Kirchschlager is quite simply the perfect Muse, here Hoffmann´s lover. As demonstrated by L´ubica Vargicová (surely one of the strangest names on the opera circuit) Olympia is not an easy part to bring off. Krassimira Stoyanova is a straight-foward, unsentimental and stylishly sung Antonia. And Waltraud Meier, though an unusual choice for Giulietta and slightly unusual sounding, nevertheless is entirely captivating as well as in fine voice.

My main reservation of this production, and unfortunately not a negligeable one, is Kent Nagano. Never the conductor of a dense romatic approach he choses a lighter reading, unfortunately not fitting David McVicar´s tragic approach, nor Offenbach´s sumptuous score.

Marjana Lipovsek, Kurt Rydl and Robert Tear had smaller parts in this much-too stellar cast not to warrant a DVD release....

As this is not commercially released, this obviously is no competition to the Carsen Paris DVD.

The bottom line (scale of 1-5, 3=average):

Neil Schicoff: 5
Angelika Kirchschlager: 5
Ruggero Raimondi: 5
L´ubica Vargicová: 3
Krassimira Stoyanova: 4
Waltraud Meier: 5

David McVicar: 5

Kent Nagano: 3-4

Overall impression: 4-5

Barcelona DVD: Otello with Cura and Stoyanova

Otello. Barcelona Liceu, 2006. Director: Willy Decker. Cast: José Cura (Otello), Krassimira Stoyanova (Desdemona), Lado Ataneli (Iago), Vittorio Grigolo (Cassio). Conductor: Antoni Ros-Marbá. Further information here.
Willy Decker has a tendency of picking one major symbol around which to center his productions. In La Traviata it was a clock, in Boris Godunov a chair, in Don Carlo a mausoleum. In this Otello it is a cross as religion is the main theme of Decker´s staging.

Otello is both weak, insecure and touching. A Christian by convenience, a Muslim by conviction. The drama is about the cross-cultural and religious identity of Venice. Otello, the warrior is no hero as Venice is not his native city. On the contrary, he is simply a mercenary and traitor, hired to kill his fellow-Muslim compatriots. He has adopted the Christian faith to further his career in Venice. Towards the end, Otello symbolically breaks the cross. Having returned to his roots, he feels no guilt in killing Desdemona. Desdemona, on the other hand, who is Christian by belief, treats the cross with reverence.

The modern, minimalistic sets could have been considerably more aesthetic in the execution. However, I must admit to being rather impressed with this characterization by Decker, which for once provides new insights into the characters their motivations in one of the major repertoire operas.

Jose Cura's voice is sometimes quite strained, but his acting and commitment is captivating and he looks the part as well. The competition on DVD is however rather towering, as most will know. Lado Ataneli is not a Machiavellian Iago, but rather Otello´s jealous friend.
The major problem with Krassimira Stoyanova´s Desdemona is that she is off-pitch for most of the part and doesn´t quite seem to achieve that floating quality essential to lift off the part. Otherwise she is fine. Antoni Ros-Marbá and the orchestra play well, though not riveting.

As a modern Otello it works rather well, though I find the Flimm/Barenboim Otello (also modern) more captivating.

José Cura with Krassimira Stoyanova - Il fazzoletto- duet:

The bottom line(scale of 1-5, 3=average):

José Cura: 3-4
Krassimira Stoyanova: 3
Lado Ataneli: 3

Willy Decker´s staging: 4

Antonio Ros-Marbá: 3

Overall impression: 3

DVD: La juive

La Juive. Vienna State Opera 2004. Production: Krämer. Cast: Neil Schicoff (Eleazar), Krassimira Stoyanova (Rachel). Conductor: Sutej. Further information here.

The only DVD option for Halévy´s grand opera La Juive is this 1999 production by Gunther Krämer from the Vienna State Opera, also seen at the Metropolitan Opera a couple of years later.

In all honesty, I´ll have to label this release among the "fine DVD releases of operas I don´t really care for". Though, at face value, it is a fine addition to the DVD catalogue: A simplistic production placing the action around the year 1900, quite literally dividing the stage along a horizontal line in an upper section (for the ruling class and Christians), leaving the Jews below.

Superb performance from Neil Schicoff as Eleazar, an ideal role and an absolute career highlight for him. Just see below, how his "Rachel, quand du Seigneur" brought down the house. This was definitely his evening.
Also a convincing performance from Krassimira Stoyanova as Rachel, though she doesn´t fit my idea of a young Jewish girl in this plot which has certain elements of Trovatore on top of the unevitably heavy politicol-religious drama.

As the Vienna Philharmonics played superbly under Sutej, this release is highly recommended.
Neil Schicoff brings down the house with "Rachel quand du Seigneur":

The bottom line (scale of 1-5, 3=average):

Neil Schicoff: 5
Krassimira Stoyanova: 4-5

Krämers staging: 4

Sutej: 4-5

Overall impression: 4

Mariss Jansons with Beethoven 9 in Salzburg

Competing for attention last Friday night with both Claus Guth´s Nozze di Figaro next door and Mozarts C-minor mass, the guest performance of Symphonieorchester des Bayerische Rundfunk conducted by Mariss Janssons nevertheless completely sold out the Salzburg Festival Hall.

The concert started with Honeggers 3rd symphony, a work I was not familiar with by a composer that I am not extensively familiar with either – a tonal piece with floating harmonies. According to seasoned concert-goers, the coupling of the Beethoven 9th with a “modern” piece is now common practice. The Beethoven, of course, was the main thing. And the performance was greeted ecstatically by immediate standing ovations by the entire audience, which I was a bit curious about. I mean – the performance was good – but I missed some structure and dynamic particularly in the first and third movement.
Four stellar soloists were hired for the occasion: Krassimira Stoyanova, Lioba Braun, Johan Botha and Thomas Quasthoff – although the female parts are so small that I wouldn´t think it worth the effort to hire stellar female singers, since you hardly hear them sing and I guess just about any soprano and alto would do justice to the very small parts. Furthermore, Thomas Quasthoff´s lyrical bass-bariton does not seem ideal for the bass part (the largest solo part).