Aino Ackté - Finland´s first major international opera star

The picture below with Aino Ackté as Elizabeth in Tannhauser, based on an engraving by Le Lieurre, is included in the 1925 memoirs of the Finnish star soprano. (My coloring)

Aino Ackté (originally Achte; 23 April 1876 – 8 August 1944) was a Finnish soprano. She was the first international star of the Finnish opera scene after Alma Fohström, and a groundbreaker for the domestic field.^[1]

Ackté was born in Helsinki. Her parents were mezzo-soprano Emmy Achté (née Strömer)^[2] and the conductor-composer Lorenz Nikolai Achté. Aino Ackté married a doctor, Heikki Renvall, in 1901 and gave birth to a daughter, Glory Leppänen, the same year.^[3] Their son, Mies Reenkola, was born in 1908.^[4]

The young Ackté studied singing under her mother's tutelage until 1894 when she entered the Paris Conservatory, studying under Edmond Duvernoy and Alfred Girodet. Her debut at the Paris Grand Opera was in 1897 in Faust^[5] and she was signed on for six years as a result.

In 1904 Ackté was engaged by the New York Metropolitan Opera where she remained until 1906. She created the title role of Richard Strauss's Salome at its local premieres in Leipzig (1907) and London (1910).^[6] The Covent Garden premiere was an enormous success and Strauss himself proclaimed Ackté the "one and only Salome".^[7] Ackté considered the London performances her real breakthrough.

In 1911, Ackté, Oskar Merikanto, and Edvard Fazer founded the Kotimainen Ooppera (renamed in 1914 Finnish Opera, and then in 1956 the Finnish National Opera). She was to act as its director in 1938-39.^[8]

After parting ways with the National Opera, Ackté organized an international Savonlinna Opera Festival beginning on 3 July 1912;^[9] it was held 1912-14, 1916 and 1930.

Jean Sibelius dedicated his tone poem Luonnotar to Ackté and she premiered the work on 10 September 1913 at the Three Choirs Festival in Gloucester, England.^[10] She also sang in the first performance of Luonnotar in Finland, in January 1914.

Ackté ended her international travels in 1914 and returned to Finland, where she gave her farewell performance in 1920. Her final public performances took place at the Savonlinna Opera Festival in 1930.

Ackté's coterie included among others Albert Edelfelt, who painted a famous full portrait of her in 1901.^[11] She provided the libretto for Juha, and opera that received two treatments: the first by Aarre Merikanto (1922) and the second by Leevi Madetoja (1934).

She died of pancreatic cancer in Nummela, Vihti in August 1944. (Wikipedia)

Finnish bass-baritone Yrjö Somersalmi as Boris Godunov (1925)

Finnish bass-baritone Yrjö Somersalmi (1885 – 1929) was much praised for his role as Boris Godunov. This photograph by Atelier Helander was published by the Finnish weekly Suomen Kuvalehti in 1925. (My colouring)

Soprano Christina Nilsson (19th century photograph)

Here is an early portrait of the great 19th century Swedish soprano Christina Nilsson. Colour added by me:

Additional information about Christina Nilsson from Wikipedia:

Christina Nilsson, Countess de Casa Miranda, (20 August 1843 – 20 November 1921) was a Swedish operatic soprano. She possessed a brilliant bel canto technique and was considered a rival to the Victorian era's most famous diva, Adelina Patti. --

Christina Nilsson was born Kristina Jonasdotter in the village of Sjöabol, near Växjö, Småland, to the peasants Jonas Nilsson and Cajsa-Stina Månsdotter. From her earliest years, she demonstrated vocal talent.^[1] She taught herself to play on the violin and flute, and sang in the peasants' fairs in Sweden with her brother. She was discovered by a prominent civil servant when, aged 14, she was performing at a market in Ljungby. He soon became her patron, enabling her to have vocal training. She was a pupil of Franz Berwald for two years.

In 1860, she gave concerts in Stockholm and Uppsala. After four years' study in Paris, she had her operatic début 1864 as Violetta in Giuseppe Verdi's opera La Traviata at the Théâtre Lyrique, Paris.^[1] After this success she sang at major opera houses in London, Saint Petersburg, Vienna and New York. She also appeared in the Metropolitan Opera's inaugural performance on October 22, 1883 in Gounod's Faust.
Christina Nilsson was married in Westminster Abbey to the French banker Auguste Rouzaud, who later died in 1882. In 1887 she married Angel Ramon Maria Vallejo y Miranda, Count de Casa Miranda, who died in 1902.^[1] In correspondence, Nilsson often signed her first name as Christine, and during the last part of her life she was generally known as the Countess de Casa Miranda.
She died in Växjö, Sweden in 1921. Unfortunately, unlike Patti, she never made gramophone recordings of her voice.

The Gala Opening of the Mariinsky II on ARTE: Ah, Those Mariinsky Ballerinas!

As part of its Christmas programming, the ARTE television channel last night brought us the opening gala concert of the Mariinsky Theater Second Stage, which took place on 2 May this year.

The concert, which featured such mega stars as Plácido Domingo, Rene Pape and Anna Netrebko, and of course the host Valery Gergiev, was a stunning display of music and dance on the highest level.

However, the ones who made the evening truly memorable, at least for this "reviewer", were the Mariinsky ballerinas. To me, they are the essence and the beauty of the Mariinsky tradition:

Yekaterina Kondarouva

Yekaterina Kondarouva

The Mariinsky Children's Chorus was another of the evening's highlights:

 

And, of course, Boris Godunov in all his splendour:

Evgeny Nikitin

 

Still another highlight: The Song of the Volga Boatmen

 

Bass Mikhail Petrenko and the Mariinsky Chorus

ARTE's broadcast of Puccini's "spaghetti western" La fanciulla del West from the Saatsoper in Vienna

The final scene in Marelli's production of La fanciulla del West: Nina Stemme and Jonas Kaufmann take off
 in a hot air balloon.

Last night the ARTE television channel showed Giacomo Puccini's "spaghetti western" La fanciulla del West from the Staatsoper in Vienna. Puccini, who himself ranked this opera as his best, wrote the piece for the Metropolitan, where it was premiered in 1910.

Emmy Destinn as Minnie and Pasquale Amato as Rance
in the Metropolitan 1910 production. The man "asleep" in
the middle is Enrico Caruso (Dick Johson).
(image by Wikipedia)

Musically La fanciulla del West is clearly Puccini at his best, but the libretto, which is based on  David Belasco’s play, “The Girl of the Golden West”, is not quite on the same level as those by Giacosa and Illica in previous operas. (Personally I have always had difficulties with a 19th century opera set in the Wild West, but that may of course be a prejudice).

Wonderful singing by Nina Stemme, but maybe she "could do with a touch of glamour".

The audience and the critics rightly praised this production by Marco Arturo Marelli, not least because of the stellar cast. Nina Stemme - widely considered to be the world’s reigning dramatic soprano - gave a powerful performance as Minnie, and Jonas Kaufmann - widely considered to be the leading dramatic tenor in the world - was equally convincing as Dick Johnson (Ramerrez).

Tenor Jonas Kaufmann as Dick Johnson.

However, I agree with Financial Times critic Richard Fairman, who in his otherwise extremely positive review added, that "Maybe Stemme’s tomboy portrayal of Minnie, not helped by a frizzy red wig and jeans, could do with a touch of glamour".

A strong performance by baritone Tomasz Koniezny.

Baritone Tomasz Konieczny also produced some fabulous singing in the third main role as the embittered sheriff  Rance. And, as always, the Staatsoper orchestra (whose members also constitute the Vienna Philharmonic) led by Generalmusikdirektor Franz Welser-Möst was a joy to listen to.

An enthusiastic audience at the Staatsoper.

Mozart's La Clemenza di Tito at the Drottningholm Palace Theatre 2013 - A musically and visually superb performance

The cast of the Drottningholm Palace Theatre performance of
Mozart's La Clemenza di Tito.

Thank God that you can still find non-modernized performances of classic - particularly baroque - operas! One of the best - and certainly the most beautiful - venues for historically informed performances (HIP) is the Drottningholm Palace Theatre in Stockholm.

This intact 18th century opera theatre, which has been described as "the Swedish jewel in our European cultural heritage crown of centuries-old theatres", was after the assassination of King Gustav III in 1792 (Verdi based his Un ballo in maschera on the event) forgotten for almost 130 years, until it was rediscovered in 1921.

The highlight of the Drottningholm Palace Theatre's 2013 summer season was without doubt Mozart's La clemenza di Tito in a HIP production by Sigrid T'Hooft. Last night, those who did not have a chance to attend one of the performances, could watch Swedish SVT2 channel's broadcast of the opera. The star studded cast included Richard Croft (Tito), Katija Dragojevic (Sesto), Annemarie Kremer (Vitellia), Luciana Mancini (Annio), Elena Galitskaya (Servilia) and Markus Schwartz (Publio). The The Drottningholm Theatre Orchestra was eminently conducted by Drottningholm's artistic director Mark Tatlow. The small, but superbly singing chorus consisted of members of the Swedish Radio Choir.

One must hope that this performance of extraordinary musical and visual beauty soon will be available on DVD!

Mezzo soprano Luciana Mancini as Annio was one of the brightest stars of the evening.

 

Tenor Mark Croft was a superb Tito.




A scene with Tito, Publio and Sesto.

 

Sesto, Publio and Vitellia.

Members of the excellent Drottningholm orchestra.

A vocally and visually great Don Carlo from Salzburg

Jonas Kaufmann in the title role.

Almost all recent Salzburg Festival opera productions have been "modernized" versions, mainly enjoyable as radio broadcasts. When somebody - in this case the legendary director Peter Stein - dares to make a traditional staging, some of the critics cannot stand it:

The Salzburg Festival’s new Don Carlo staging is an object lesson in sumptuous emptiness. Throwing everything that money can buy at a production is no guarantee of excellence. Peter Stein, who has been sinking ever further into his own conservatism in recent years, has outdone himself in cringe-inducing dullness with this production. So diligently does he strive for authenticity that you can almost smell the mothballs; it is a wonder the whole thing does not crumble at the touch.
The costumes are historical, the poses are borrowed from period stage sketches, the detail is extravagant. Ferdinand Wögerbauer’s sets look alarmingly like something dug from the bottom of a cornflakes packet, and the little things that go wrong are almost legion enough to supply the missing entertainment value.

Fortunately, the audience - and quite a few other reviewers - disagreed. On the television screen (as broadcast by ARTE last night) Stein's production was hugely enjoyable. It was a vocally and visually stunning evening of great Verdi music. Thank you Peter Stein, Ferdinand Wögerbauer (sets) for daring to challenge the "modernizers"!

The star-studded cast, with Jonas Kaufmann in the titel role, Anja Harteros as Elisabetta, Thomas Hampson as Rodrigo and Matti Salminen (still in fine voice at 68!) as Filippo, of course, also should be thanked. And the Vienna Philharmonic under Antonio Pappano, as well as the fine chorus, should not be forgotten either.

Two great Wagner anniversary concerts on ARTE

Jonas Kaufmann and Christian Thielemann in front of the Sächsische Staatskapelle Dresden.

Last week the French/German ARTE channel broadcast two Wagner anniversary concerts, both conducted by the great Christian Thielemann. 

I must admit that I have never been a very dedicated "Wagnerian" - operas lasting five or six hours are a little too much for me. However, the incomparable Thielemann certainly inspired me - and probably thousands of other viewers - to find out more about Wagner's beautiful music. Also, I think that the concert format is very suitable for this kind of exploration. 

The Semperoper is one of the most beautiful opera houses in the world.

The two broadcasts, the first one from the Bayreuther Festspielhaus and the second one from Dresden's beautiful Semperoper, also were technically top notch. Modern High Definition technology makes viewing so much more enjoyable!

Jonas Kaufmann - a great singer.

If I would have to choose between the two anniversary broadcasts, I would probably go for the one from the Semperoper. The combination of Thielemann, the Sächsische Staatskapelle Dresden and tenor Jonas Kaufmann is irresistible. Kaufmann's rendition of  Lohengrin's "Gralerzählung" was utterly moving. 

Christian Thielemann again created musical magic.

It is always a joy to listen to and watch the Staatskapelle Dresden's highly concentrated musicians.

The 300th Anniversary Gala of the Paris Opera Ballet School on ARTE

The Paris Opera Ballet School has for three hundred years carried on its mission: to pass on its traditions to future dancers. The French-German television channel ARTE last night broadcast the spectacular 300th Anniversary Gala from the Palais Garnier  in Paris.

It was Ludvig XVI, the Sun King, who founded the ballet school 300 years ago.

The evening began with a new creation, "D'ores et déjà", by choreographers Béatrice Massin und Nicolaus Paul, which combined baroque and modern style. The piece was set to music by Jean-Philippe Rameau:

A extract from Gounod's Faust was one of the other highlights of this wonderful evening of superior dancing:

Television director François Roussillon should also be congratulated. He and his team did a marvelous job in bringing the action to the living rooms of - hopefully - millions of viewers.