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BRITTEN CENTENARY AT ALDEBURGH MUSIC
Aldeburgh and the BBC joined forces for the whole weekend, Radio 3
in residence and broadcasting concerts and features, the BBC Symphony
Orchestra with local Choruses, conducted by Oliver Knussen, giving rare
performances of Britten’s Cantata Academica and Spring Symphony on
the centenary evening (22.11.), and following up with a Sunday morning
family concert including the Welcome Ode, written for School Choirs
in honour of the Queen’s visit to Suffolk and Britten’s last completed
work, and an enthralling setting of Dylan Thomas’s poem ‘Death shall
have no dominion’ by 16 year old Jay Richardson. There was also a premiere
of a setting of four poems for tenor, horn and strings by 18 year
old Alexei Watkins which held real promise. Several other pieces were
premiered by young composers.
There were choral concerts, including a splendid St. Nicholas with Alan
Oke in Aldeburgh Church where it premiered at the first Festival’s opening
concert in 1948. All three of his string quartets were played, and the
gifted musicians of the recently formed Aldeburgh Strings rounded off the
celebrations on the Sunday evening with the Serenade which led without
a break into Part’s Cantus In Memoriam Benjamin Britten, the glow of
the Maltings acoustic making its own unique tribute.
There were art installations, The Red House, his Aldeburgh home and his
birthplace in Lowestoft (now a Guest House) had open days, the amateur
Aldeburgh Music Club (founded by Britten) gave its own choral
tribute… so much else to enjoy.
The emphasis on young talent was absolutely in the spirit of how Britten
saw his place in society. The set of songs for children, Friday Afternoons,
was sung by 800 children at noon on the birthday at Snape, part
of performances by an estimated 100,000 (!) children worldwide starting
in New Zealand and finishing in California during the day. Because
there was no room for an audience, the enterprising Jubilee Opera independently
arranged a tea party in the Jubilee Hall with sandwiches and
cake and invited guests – Britten’s nephews and others associated with his
life and work – who answered questions, and the youngest and newest recruits
gave their own performance.
St. Margaret’s Church, Lowestoft: “NOYE’S FLUDDE” – 21.11.
Britten’s home town got together for this community project with an enormous
North Suffolk Youth Orchestra, led by the Navarra Quartet, an
equally large array of children as the animals, and soloists as Noye’s children,
their wives and gossips.
Paul Kildea, Britten’s latest biographer, led the whole ensemble seemingly
without any difficulty, and the buglers and hand bell ringers were immaculate.
He also managed the audience rehearsal for the integral hymns with
efficiency and good humour. Martin Duncan directed all his performers
with confidence and clarity, everything could be seen on the acting area,
ramped through the choir to the altar at the east end of the church. At
the finish the lights dimmed and the outside floodlights glowed through
the huge window.
Francis O’Connor provided a wonderful set, Noye’s house pulled on its
side formed the Ark, and the washing line became the sail. Suspended
clouds revealed rain drops and lightning bolts and then opened again as
flowers in front of the beautifully projected rainbow on a curtain of stage
smoke. The animal masks were colourful and had many amusing details,
above all they were fun for performers and audience alike! Chris Ellis
devised the lighting. Gently simple choreography for the child raven
and dove by Adam Scown fitted the little musical interludes like a glove.
Andrew Shore was a forthright Noye, exactly what was required and
most moving at the end when blessed. His Wife, the formidable Felicity
Palmer, was also perfectly cast. Zeb Soanes, a well known radio voice
and Lowestoft born, was the Voice of God; as the audience assembled he
was reading the shipping forecast (an institution of our maritime nation)
Noye‘s fludde, der Stoff über die Arche Noahs (© Robert Workman)
over Noye’s radio, and it was when Noye tried to change the programme
he found he was being instructed by God. A perfect little joke!
Britten said: “I am first and foremost an artist, and as an artist I want
to serve the community”. This extraordinary week end showed how his
works have become his legacy, as he wished.
I recommend a visit to www.britten100.org
„Die Zauberflöte“ – entzaubert
17.11. – Premiere in der Staatsoper
Stephen Mead
Als Wolfgang Amadé Mozart nach dem Höhenflug der Da Ponte-Opern
zum Text eines etwas dubiosen Emanuel Schikaneder griff – wobei man
nicht einmal genau weiß, ob nicht ein Herr Giesecke, Chorist am nämlichen
Theater, daran beteiligt war – hatte das Stück zwar einen Riesenerfolg,
aber die Nachwelt urteilte strenger. Gar zu sehr habe er sich auf die
Maschinenkomödie der Vorstadt eingelassen, meinten selbst wohlmeinende
Mozartfreunde, zu jäh kippten die Leitfiguren Sarastro und Königin
der Nacht vom Guten ins Sinistre und im übrigen sei das Werk eine
allzu simple Kinderoper.
Dabei ist gerade durch die Mischung heterogener Elemente, die das Werk
kennzeichnet, seine Einmaligkeit entstanden, denn wo können Volkstheater
und Ägyptensehnsucht, priesterliche Erhabenheit und gestrenge Initiationsriten,
Freimaurerei und sogar Frauenmissachtung und Rassismus
miteinander auskommen? Ganz einfach: Durch die hohe musikalische
Kunst des Meisters, durch volksliedhafte Schlichtheit, erhabene Polyphonie,
ariose Innigkeit und Herzlichkeit, durch Witz und Charme. So
entsteht das Werk, das fast Jahr für Jahr die Aufführungsstatistik anführt.
Und das trotz aller Schwierigkeiten, die es bietet. Und diese Summe an
Kraft, Wahrheit und Lebendigkeit ist ausgegangen von einem hölzernen
Theater in der Wiedner Vorstadt.
Nun ja. Die Tendenzen des Theaters heute machen eine „Zauberflöten“-
Aufführung nicht einfacher. Ausgeklügelte Gags verdrängen den echten
Humor, die Ausstattungen dürfen nicht mehr märchenhaft sein, sondern
dienen der Erklärung gesellschaftlicher Gegensätze, die auch spürbar waren,
als man das Stück noch vom Blatt spielte. Aber dafür wurde damals
besser gesungen.
So sieht die jüngste Neuinszenierung von Moshe Leiser/Patrice Caurier
eben aus. Eine Produktion, mit der man leben kann (wahrscheinlich praktikabler
als Marellis bereits in Schieflage geratene priesterliche Macht),
6 | DER NEUE MERKER 12/2013