opera
fanatic
Schein,
Mir uber's haar gestreuet.
Da glaubt'ich shon ein Greis zu
sein,
Und hab' mich sehr gefreuet.
Doch bald ist er hinweggetaut,
Hab' wieder schwarze Haare,
Dass mir's vor meiner Jugend
graut-
Wie weit noch bis zur Bahre!
-die Winterreise
Center Great Performers,
12/6/2002
have someone else's viewpoint of Schubert's die Winterreise thrust upon us? "New
Visions" indeed! Try "Someone else's Vision"! Let's face it ? adding visuals to
anything is ostensibly adding your editorial comment to a work. One presumes that if
Schubert wanted visuals added to die Winterreise he would have expanded it into
an opera. Instead, die Winterreise is the very cornerstone of the Lieder recital and
the audience is left to muse upon whatever its poetic message might mean to them
? rather than what it might mean to Dance Maven A or Uber-director B and, oh, here,
let me illustrate.
Whew, the Fanatic got that off his chest. Were anyone else but Simon Keenlyside
participating in this "New Vision" of die Winterreise, the Fanatic would be smug and
revel in the ridiculousness of it all. And, yet, the Fanatic respects Keenlyside more
than any other artist for his intelligence and artistic integrity. Furthermore, in the
liner notes, the Fanatic reads that a choreographed Winterreise was Keenlyside's
idea! Thus, the Fanatic is willing to concede that perhaps he just doesn't "get it"
when it comes to a choreographed Winterreise, especially since his knowledge of
dance begins with Busby Berkeley and ends with Hermes Pan. For the Fanatic, the
dance accompanying the die Winterreise performance, while well-executed, was
distracting and offered no new insights into the soul of the work. Alright, maybe it
added two:.
(1) Perhaps one was made more aware of the song cycle being a physical journey and
(2) if die Winterreise has any homoerotic subtext it was certainly brought out:
watching handsome Simon Keenlyside being man-handled and fondled by two Gap
model male dancers (and one androgynous female) was worth the price of admission.
Kudos to Simon Keenlyside for giving a moving vocal performance as well as a
daring physical one: the Fanatic can't imagine Fischer-Dieskau being thrown about
the stage in such a manner, unless it is by Julia Varady. And, if Keenlyside vogueing
added little insight into Schubert, his impersonations as "The Wanderer" were
dramatically effective. Vocally, Keenlyside's interpretation was an unqualified
success, even more so considering his physical exertions: Simon Keenlyside gave a
powerful, virile, yet ultimately world-weary rendition of the song cycle in a style more
akin to Han Hotter than Fischer-D. Simon, get thee into a recording studio!
Die Winterreise is such a powerful work & Keenlyside's interpretation is so intense
that the Fanatic may wander back to John Jay College some winter night very
soon?he just might shut his eyes and imagine his OWN Winter's Journey.
BTW, NYC Moment: Of course, attending a Winterreise recital with snow upon the
ground is quite a treat for this Texas boy. For even more fun, put the recording on
your walkman and trek around the City during the next snowstorm.
The NY Times View: Spare Look, Stark Poems & Sad Songs
professional music critic, nor does he hold himself out to
be one. The Fanatical Views are my thoughts on the
performances I attend. I don't care if you disagree. If
you'd like to express your opinions, create your own
webpage. When the NY Times sends me a paycheck for
being their opera critic, then I will accept any & all
criticism. Until then...
©2002 Roy J. Wood All Rights
Reserved