Review - Vespro della Beata Vergine (Monteverdi), Concerto Italiano, 2017 Hong Kong Arts Festival

Concerto Italiano
Rinaldo Alessandrini (Conductor)

Despite Vespers is part of the daily divine office in the Roman church, Monteverdi's work not totally intend for a liturgical function. While a testament of religious loyalty and belief, it also serves as a job testament to the establishment and probably wishing that the workplace is musician friendly. The five additional concerti sacri forms an intriguing set in addition to the traditional setting. Instead of

responding directly to the psalms, the motets not only praising the Virgin Mary but also other female saints. An elaborated formation of instrumental ensemble is required, the vocal parts are also virtuosic and operatic by style. The music texture also has a large space in mind, which resembles a resonated church building with side chapels and levels for the theatrical sound effects.

This performance took place on the main stage in city hall due to the layout, but one felt that moments like 'Duo Seraphim' the soloists could sing antiphonal from the side boxes. Instrumentalists were placed on a platform behind the vocal ensemble consisted of 10 singers except the two theorbists. Whether due to Alessandrini's approach or technical imbalance among the soloists, the second half was probably too energetic preceded by a rather dull and uninspiring first half. An underwhelming flourish was made at the beginning and intonation was flat during the choral responses. Vertical reading of the music under a broad tempo hardly created momentum by the singing. There was a balance issue too that the two sopranos were vocally underweight and lacked body in compare to the male counterparts.

Introduction of the first psalm, Dixit Dominus, lacked intention and neither the part entries had a shape in mind, which resulted messy coordination and unable to make a crisp impression. Repeated notes would need to sing in fuller value than rushing through to secure the intonation. When 'De torrente in via bibet' was reached midway of the psalm, the singing finally became more dramatic with the intention to lead the music forward. Though to sustain the tone would require more legato and to maintain direction even under a broad tempo. Diction was blurry that one only hear the vowels but consonants were in absence. Singers lacked the flexibility at the runnings in the following motet, Nigra sum, and far from producing the virtuosic impression. The adopted tempo for the second psalm, Laudate pueri, was too slow and sluggish. It affected the music to sound dull and lacked energy even with a bodied tone. The two sopranos were again underwhelming in vocal volume and not able to sustain the line in the next motet 'Pulchra es'. Some blend ornaments were given that far from realising the period style.

The beginning of 'Laetatus sum' was shapeless and not much phrasing of the text nor the music. Most efforts went into the difficult runnings later and the male voice projected better vocally. Later tenors relaxed their singing more during Duo Seraphim. They were more able to sustain the vocal energy and produced a ringing tone. Though gradually returned to the hard edged timbre at the recapitulation of Sanctus that again lost the radiant quality set before. 'Nisi Dominus' involved the tutti chorus and the text was narrated in different lines simultaneously at a lightning tempo. Singers managed to drive the momentum forward throughout the heavy texted passage with more shapes in the dialogues. Though there was a balance issue that the men vocally had more weight and volume than the sopranos. Doxology that conclude the first half was majestically rendered followed by a brilliant gallop in the Amen passage.

Theatrical echoes in Audi coelum was not effectively realised when the two singers had a rather

different timbre. The tenor on stage possessed a brighter tone and more in style with the trills and rhythmic precision, whereas the quintus-echo at the backstage did not match the exact quality and sometimes struggled to imitate. The choral singing was more musically rendered than before when reaching Lauda lerusalem. Articulation improved and appropriate stress on important words for a dramatic realisation of the text. Tempo no longer sluggish and carried more direction with a bodied sound. Instead of a treble choir, the two sopranos sang the hymn like Sonata sopra Sancta Maria but again underwhelming in projection. Instrumental ensemble though gave a rather lively account of their virtuosic part with elaborate ornamentation, though perhaps too energetic and vigorous than the prayerful impression had in mind.

The vocal quartet in Ave maris stella blended well with a homogenous tone, but rather impatient with the long notes at the doxology. At Magnificat, instrumentalists again made a stronger impression in majestic playing with rich ornaments during the elaborate cornetti dialogues. Singing though was uneven that the lower voices gave a rather creamy and dreamy state in 'Et misericordia', but tenors' timbres did not always compliment each other. Tuning among the sopranos went flat again and lacked the smoothness in their singing. These left a mixed impression at the broad and solemn ending, which the performance as a whole was far from a ethereal experience.