Metro Plus
Bangalore
Chennai
Hyderabad
A little night music
|
Some of Mozart's best works were played at a concert to mark the composer's 250th birth anniversary
|
PHOTO: R. SHIVAJI RAO
MUSICAL TRIBUTE Some of the performers at the concert
When soprano Nina Anna Maria Menezes and pianist Arul Siromoney performed "Aria-E amore un ladroncello" from Così fan tutte and "Der Holle Racha Kockt" from Die Zuberflöte almost flawlessly, you were glad you had made it on time, because the show ran to a packed house and there were no seats for latecomers. Even the gates and doors of The Museum Theatre were closed because it was a classical music concert (celebrating Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's 250th birth anniversary) where creaking doors and shuffling feet would not be brooked.
Saturday's "Mozart the Magnificent" did justice to Mozart's genius, by covering the best of the composer's works. "Così fan tutte," (which belongs to a genre of opera called dramma giocoso that takes the middle ground between seriousness and light-heartedness) may not be Mozart's magnum opus, but it definitely added to his popularity. Because Lorenzo da Ponte (who wrote the libretto) and Mozart dealt with a bold and interesting theme — fiancee swapping.
Aria "Deh vienni alla finestra" from "Don Giovanni", a mirthful opera that was the result of an artistic collaboration between Mozart and Ponte, was rendered by Ebenezer Arunkumar (tenor), Arun George (piano) and Chandran Abraham (mandolin). It is considered "the best musical work ever" and "the best opera ever on the licentious Don Juan." Can there be a Western classical concert without the Madras String Quartet? V. S. Narasimhan (violin), Hemanthraj Muliyil (violin), B. J. Chandran (viola) and V. R. Sekar (cello) performed one of the most popular works of Mozart — the "Divertimento in D," Opus K 133, a merry composition that fits into a social gathering.
Thanks to what can be called an "anticipatory" round of applause, Surender Schaffter and S. Balakrishnan felt honoured even before they settled down to play the "Duet for two flutes", no. 3, Opus K 75). Earlier, S. Balakrishnan combined with Ahlayu S. V. Naiud and Yuvadeeban to render Mozart themes arranged for recorder and guitar. Cleona John (soprano) and B. Edwin Roy (piano) performed the aria "Alleluja" and Roshan Rajkumar the piano sonata in C Opus K330/300.
The Clarinet Quintet Opus K 581 (arrangement for clarinet and piano) by M. S. V. Raja (clarinet) and Leslie David (piano) marked the end of the first part. The second and final was handled by The Invitation Choir (put together specially for this concert and constituted by conductors, accompanists, student musicians and professional singers). Led by Augustine Paul, it performed the "Coronation Mass" Opus K 317.
P. C. Ramakrishna livened up the evening as the compere.
PRINCE FREDERICK
Printer friendly
page
Send this article to Friends by
E-Mail
Metro Plus
Bangalore
Chennai
Hyderabad
|
