The Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra responded to the palpable energy of conductor Eckehard Stier. Photo / Adrian Malloch
The Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra responded to the palpable energy of conductor Eckehard Stier. Photo / Adrian Malloch
On Friday, Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra delivered another fine Opera in Concert with Puccini's Turandot, justly rewarded by a full house and standing ovations.
Such was the impact that, come interval, a patron was cheerily singing one of its five-note "Chinese" tunes en route to the ice-cream wagon.
Turandot is theultimate operatic blend of the spectacular and exotic, an extravagant tale of an icy Chinese Princess who makes Cruella de Vil seem like a potential SPCA sponsor.
The APO, responding to the palpable energy of conductor Eckehard Stier, thrilled with its clashing and crashing in Puccini's opening pages. Later, there would be wind solos as finely executed as classic Chinese pen-and-wash as well as strings so lush that, in the final act, one could almost imagine moonlight flooding the palace gardens.
The chorus, made up of Freemasons NZ Opera Chorus and chamber choir Viva Voce, revelled in the big sing of Turandot, fit and fiery in their early barbaric chanting, full-bodied when they wrap the opera up with its most famous tune. A small children's chorus sang with precision and style.
There was no disputing the vocal power of Tiziana Caruso's Turandot, effortlessly projecting her first iconic aria from the top of the stage, although a more laser-like cut in the upper register would have been appreciated. After interval, in front of the orchestra, interacting with the hero, she was more relaxed.
Nadja Stefanoff was a memorable Liu. The purity and incisiveness of those celebrated octaves ending Signore ascolta took the breath away; her leavetaking in Act III was almost unbearably poignant.
Thiago Arancam is not the most robust-toned of tenors, but it did not help that a lot of Calaf's singing was directed away from the audience towards the aloft Turandot. However, his Nessun Dorma, treated as a set piece, with relatively subdued orchestration, worked its magic.
Other singing, including Warwick Fyfe's Mandarin and Runi Brattaberg's Timur, was solid, while Andrew Moran, Robert Macfarlane and Richard Greager's Ping, Pang and Pong made one want to see this trio in a fully staged production.
At the opera What: Turandot Where: Auckland Town Hall When: Friday
