I spent last week in London, taking some very interesting and helpful singing
lessons from Christopher Jacklin.
On Friday 13th November 2015, whilst the horrific
terrorist attacks were happening in Paris, I was at a concert in the Wigmore Hall.
The concert was given by the outstanding Franco Fagioli, an
Argentinian counter tenor, who was supported by Il Pomo d'Oro, an excellent string and
harpsichord ensemble led by Riccardo Minasi.
I have to admit that up to now I’ve not been a great fan of
the vocal music from the High Baroque, finding the melismatic passages artificial and wearisome. But I now realise that this
is because they are often not performed well and suffer from the limitations of some contemporary singers concerning the understanding of the idiom. In some cases the substitution of female mezzo sopranos for male alto roles changes the character of the interpretation, and stylistically the natural way that 18th century singers created and performed unwritten decoration
is partially lost to us; but Franco Fagioli's performance generated no such reservations.
The quality of Fagioli’s voice is both beautiful and clear
in the upper register, whilst also possessing a mezzo soprano quality in the
lower notes. In this performance well chosen decoration, together with his extraordinary vocal agility, produced accurately executed melismatic passages,
which never descended into purely vocal exercises but remained expressive and
focussed on the phrasing. His wide
range, perfect intonation and beautifully timed trills all supported his
artistry and musicianship.
Fagioli’s programme was inspired by the repertoire of the 18th
century castrato, Gaetano Majorano known as Caffarelli. He was taught at the conservatoire in Naples by
Nicola Porpora, who wrote the first item on the programme “Passaggier che su la
sponda”. Naples was at the time the centre of the
Italian opera industry and Porpora also taught the more famous Farinelli.
From the end of “Passaggier che su la sponda” the Wigmore Hall
audience, which surely must be the most educated group of music lovers in
London, broke out into well deserved and spontaneous calls of “Bravo!” which were frequently to be heard throughout
the evening.
The two famous castrati appeared together in the opera “Siroe
re di Persia” in 1733 from which the second item on the programme “Ebbi da te la
vita” was taken.
Fagioli has made a study of the gestures used by baroque
singers from paintings of the period and he uses them in performance. At first I found this mildly distracting, but
soon they became more natural in my mind, and helped me to feel that Fagioli very
convincingly both performs and portrays the music of the period, seeming for me
to inhabit the persona of a singer like Caffarelli whilst he is performing.
At the end of the
concert he didn’t get a standing ovation after his two encores, but in my
opinion he richly deserved it! I think that he takes the art of the counter tenor to a new level.
This bravura aria "Odo il suono di tromba guerriera" comes from Fagioli's outstanding debut
album "Arias for Caffarelli" and was written by Gennaro Manna (1748)
for the opera "Lucio Papiro dittatore".
And finally I have to include this most beautiful and moving aria
from Handel’s Ariodante, it's a real gem! At the end of “Scherza
Infida” you can see just how much he invests emotionally in what he is singing.
E vivo ancora?
E senza il
ferro,
oh! Dei! che farò?
Che mi dite, o
affanni miei?
Scherza infida
in grembo al drudo
io tradito a
morte in braccio
per tua colpa
ora men vo
Mà a spezzar
l'indegno laccio,
ombra mesta e
spirito ignudo
per tua pena io
tornerò.
Do I still live?
And without a sword,
O gods! What shall I do?
What do you say, o my troubles?
Enjoy yourself, o faithless one, in the arms of your lover
Betrayed by you,
I will now give myself up to death's embrace
But, in order to break this shameful tie
a sad and bereaved spirit,
I will return to punish you.
