Digital Programmes
Lise Davidsen & Freddie De Tommaso with James Baillieu
Start time: 7.30pm
Approximate end time: 9.30pm, including a 20-minute interval
Please note all timings are approximate and subject to change
Alexandra Coghlan finds out what brought this exciting soprano-tenor duo together for tonight’s performance.
'When we first met we just connected immediately, there’s an unspoken energy between us,' Lise Davidsen says of tenor Freddie De Tommaso. 'There’s a pleasure in sharing great music with someone that’s like nothing else. I think that’s why there have been so many stage-couples over the years. In our case it’s just a really great friendship. We laugh at the same things; we enjoy each other’s company. I have so many talented colleagues, but to share the stage with a friend is something unique.'
The feeling is mutual, as Freddie De Tommaso, who describes Davidsen’s voice as 'The most incredible instrument on the planet', explains. 'We did a concert together in Oslo last year, and that was when I realised how amazing it was being on stage with Lise, and couldn’t wait to do it again.'
While Davidsen is currently synonymous with the big German operatic repertoire – Wagner, Richard Strauss – De Tommaso is making his name with the 19th-century Italian opera. So how did they go about putting together a shared recital?
'We bounced ideas back and forth,' says Davidsen, 'things we wanted to explore, things we wanted to try out, seeing where our repertoire overlapped. I haven’t done much Italian music up till now, but it’s definitely something I’ll be doing more in forthcoming seasons. I think we’re both quite old-fashioned in terms of our voice-types and the music we sing: it’s all Wagner, Verdi, Puccini – and there’s so much to choose from there.'
The result is a programme with 'a little bit of everything', that ranges from opera to operetta and Neapolitan song. But for both singers, there is one particular aria that is a touchstone. A 'journey' piece that has evolved with them through their career. For Davidsen it’s Elisabeth’s rapturous 'Dich teure Halle' from Tannhäuser. 'I feel a really strong connection between myself, this aria and London audiences. I won the Operalia competition at the Royal Opera House with it in 2015, so it feels right to return to it here. It’s so short and joyful – a musical welcome.'
For De Tommaso it’s Federico’s Lament from Cilea’s L’Arlesiana – an outpouring of unrequited love and despair, and one of the first arias he sang after making the shift from baritone to tenor at music college – that has been a fixed point. 'I sang it in the Vinas competition. That was the moment everything started moving fast; it took me onto the next stage in my career. The way I sing it now is very different though, I can take a lot more risks with it now, really do what the composer asks. Our bodies change, and so do our interpretations.'
A musical meeting point for De Tommaso and Davidsen is Verdi, represented here by two episodes from Un Ballo in Maschera: impassioned duet 'Teco io sto', in which the married Amelia finally declares her illicit love for Riccardo, and Amelia’s plea to her husband 'Morro, ma prima in grazia' to let her see her son once more before her death.
Oronte's impassioned declaration of love to Giselda, 'La mia letizia' from I Lombardi is set against the tenderness and fragility of the 'Ave Maria' from Otello – an aria Davidsen feels works particularly well in recital. 'With or without the opera, the aria feels complete. It’s a religious prayer but the spirit behind it doesn’t have to be; we could all easily sing for ourselves, for where we are in our lives. It’s a hope that things can be better in the future, so simple and so intense at the same time.'
De Tommaso’s love of verismo – the realist operas of the late 19th century – brings both rarities like Cilea’s Lament and Giordano’s 'Amor ti vieta' from Fedora and Puccini’s much-loved Tosca to the programme. 'I’m probably biased by the Italian side of my heritage,' he explains, 'but I just think Puccini was the ultimate plucker of heart-strings. Those arias from Tosca speak right to your soul. This really is the music of truth. Puccini’s characters might get caught up in political intrigue or drama, but they are just normal people living life: they are us.'
Davidsen is keen that audiences shouldn’t confuse arias that are well-known with music that is easy to sing. 'I have "Hold your horses" written over lots of my lines! The music just drives your forward emotionally, and it’s tempting just to end up singing fortissimo throughout, which is neither interesting or sustainable. Everyone can hum these arias, but to really sing them – that’s the difference between karaoke and opera.'
A second half featuring operetta, musical theatre, songs and light-music – familiar tunes but often less-familiar names – steers us into different territory. It’s a musical world that has drifted out of fashion, something De Tommaso sees as an opportunity. 'Fashion in music, as with all things, tends to be circular, and I think it’s nice to be the person reintroducing something, bringing a repertoire to a new generation. You hear the same tenor arias again and again. If people don’t know a piece that’s a good reason to do it!'
'Comedy doesn’t have the same life-span as serious drama,' Davidsen adds, accounting for how few once-popular operettas have remained in the repertoire. 'But a good tune will always survive somehow.'
© Alexandra Coghlan
Start time: 7.30pm
Approximate end time: 9.30pm, including a 20-minute interval
Please note all timings are approximate and subject to change
Programme and performers
Richard Wagner 'Dich teure Halle' from Tannhäuser
Giuseppe Verdi 'La mia letizia' from I Lombardi
'Teco io sto' and 'Morrò, ma prima in grazia' from Un Ballo in Maschera
'Cielo pietoso, rendila' from Simon Boccanegra
Giuseppe Verdi 'Ave Maria' from Otello
Umberto Giordano 'Amor ti vieta' from Fedora
Giacomo Puccini 'Vissi d'arte' from Tosca
Francesco Cilea 'Lamento di Federico' from L'arlesiana
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky 'Uzh polnoch´ blizitsya..' and 'Akh! istomilas ya gorem' from Queen of Spades
Ernest Charles When I have sung my song to you
Landon Ronald O Lovely Night
Paolo Tosti L'alba separa dalla luce l'ombra
Non t'amo piu
Ideale
Salvatore Cardillo Core'ngrato
Frederick Loewe I could have danced all night
Franz Lehár 'Lippen Schweigen' from The Merry Widow
Lise Davidsen soprano
Freddie De Tommaso tenor
James Baillieu piano
Part one
Elisabeth
Dich, teure Halle, grüss’ ich wieder,
Froh grüss’ ich dich, geliebter Raum!
In dir erwachen seine Lieder
Und wecken mich aus düstrem Traum.
Da er aus dir geschieden,
Wie öd’ erschienst du mir!
Aus mir entfloh der Frieden,
Die Freude zog aus dir.
Wie jetzt mein Busen hoch sich hebet,
So scheinst du jetzt mir stolz und hehr;
Der dich und mich so neu belebet,
Nicht länger weilt er ferne mehr.
Wie jetzt mein Busen hoch sich hebet, etc.
Sei mir gegrüsst! Sei mir gegrüsst!
Du, teure Halle, sei mir gegrüsst! etc.
Libretto by Richard Wagner
Elisabeth
You, blessed hall, I greet again,
I greet you with joy, beloved place!
In you his songs awake
and rouse me from my gloomy dreams.
Since he left you,
how desolate you have appeared to me!
Peace fled from me,
joy took leave of you.
As now my breast swells full of joy,
you seem to me sublime and proud;
he who revives both you and me
is no longer far away.
As now my breast swells full of joy etc.
I salute you! I salute you!
You, blessed hall, I salute you! etc.
Translation by Inge Moore and Gery Bramall, reproduced with kind permission from Chandos Records
La mia letizia infondere
Vorrei nel suo bel core;
Vorrei destar coi palpiti
Del mio beato amore
Tante armonie nell’etere,
Quanti pianeti egli ha;
Ir seco al cielo ed ergermi
Dove mortal non va!
Libretto by Temistocle Solera
To infuse my joy
I wish, in your lovely heart;
I wish to awaken with the throbbing
Of my blessed love
As much harmony in the heavens,
As it has planets;
To go with her to heaven and to rise up
Where no mortal goes!
Riccardo
Teco io sto.
Amelia
Gran Dio!
Riccardo
Ti calma:
Di che temi?
Amelia
Ah mi lasciate –
Son la vittima che geme –
Il mio nome almen salvate –
O lo strazio ed il rossore
La mia vita abbatterà.
Riccardo
Io lasciarti? no, giammai:
Nol poss’io; chè m’arde in petto
Sovruman di te l’affetto.
Amelia
Conte, abbiatemi pietà.
Riccardo
Così parli? a chi t’adora
Pietà chiedi, e tremi ancora?
Il tuo nome intemerato,
L’onor tuo rispetterà.
Amelia
Ma, Riccardo, io son d’altrui –
Dell’amico più fidato –
Riccardo
Taci, Amelia.
Amelia
Io son di lui,
Che darìa la vita a te.
Riccardo
Ah crudele, e mel rammemori,
Lo ripeti innanzi a me!
Non sai tu che se l’anima mia
Il rimorso dilacera e rode,
Quel suo grido non cura, non ode,
Sin che l’empie di fremiti amor?
Non sai tu che di te resteria,
Se cessasse di battere il cor!
Quante notti ho vegliato anelante!
Come a lungo infelice lottai!
Quante volte dal cielo implorai
La pietà, che tu chiedi da me!
Ma per questo ho potuto un istante,
Infelice, non viver di te?
Amelia
Ah, deh soccorri tu, cielo, all’ambascia
Di chi sta fra l’infamia e la morte;
Tu pietoso rischiara le porte
Di salvezza all’errante mio piè.
E tu va – ch’io non t’oda – mi lascia:
Son di lui, che il suo sangue ti diè.
Riccardo
La mia vita, l’universo,
Per un detto...
Amelia
O ciel pietoso!
Riccardo
Di’ che m’ami.
Amelia
Va, Riccardo!
Riccardo
Un sol detto –
Amelia
Ebben, sì, t’amo.
Riccardo
M’ami, Amelia!
Amelia
Ma tu, nobile,
Me difendi dal mio cor!
Riccardo
M’ami, m’ami! oh sia distrutto
Il rimorso, l’amicizia
Nel mio seno: estinto tutto:
Tutto sia fuorchè l’amor!
Oh, qual soave brivido
L’acceso petto irrora!
Ah ch’io t’ascolti ancora
Rispondermi così!
Astro di queste tenebre
A cui consacro il core:
Irradiami d’amore,
E più non sorga il dì!
Amelia
Ahi sul funereo letto
Ove sognava spegnerlo,
Torna gigante in petto
L’amor che mi ferì!
Chè non m’è dato in seno
A lui versar quest’anima?
O nella morte almeno
Addormentarmi qui?
Ahimè – s’appressa alcun.
Riccardo
Taci...
Libretto by Antonio Somma, after Augustin Eugène Scribe
Riccardo
I am with you.
Amelia
Great God!
Riccardo
Be calm!
What do you fear?
Amelia
Ah, leave me –
I am a victim, sobbing before you –
save at least my name –
or shame and suffering
will kill me.
Riccardo
I leave you? No never;
I cannot, because within my breast
an eternal love burns for you.
Amelia
My lord, take pity on me.
Riccardo
You speak so to one who adores you?
You ask pity? You are still trembling?
Your name shall never be sullied,
nor honour.
Amelia
But Riccardo, I am another’s –
I belong to your dearest friend –
Riccardo
Do not say it, Amelia.
Amelia
I belong to him
who would give his life for you.
Riccardo
Ah, cruel woman, and you remind me,
you repeat it to me now!
Do you not see that if remorse
corrodes and cuts my soul,
I cannot hear, nor heed its cry,
so long as my soul is full of love?
You do not know what would be left of you
if your heart should cease to beat!
How many sleepless nights, I have longed for you?
How long I have struggled in my anguish!
how many times have I prayed to heaven
for that pity which now you ask from me!
But in spite of all this, have I ever known
a moment’s peace without you?
Amelia
Ah, heaven, comfort the anguish
of one who lies between disgrace and death:
Merciful God, shine Thy light on the gate
of salvation, guide my erring step.
Go, now – let me not hear you, leave me.
I belong to him who gave his blood for you.
Riccardo
My life, the world,
for one word –
Amelia
Merciful heaven!
Riccardo
Tell me you love me –
Amelia
Riccardo, go!
Riccardo
One word –
Amelia
Yes, I love you –
Riccardo
You love me, Amelia!
Amelia
But you, in your nobility,
protect me from my heart!
Riccardo
You love me, you love me!
Oh, let remorse, friendship, be destroyed
within my breast: let all be dead,
all except my love!
Oh, how sweet the thrill
which fills my heart!
ah, let me hear you
speak those words again!
star of this darkness,
to whom, I dedicate my heart,
shine your lovelight on me,
then day need never come again!
Amelia
Ah, on this melancholy bed,
where I yearned to quench it,
this love returns, more overpowering,
this love which wounded me!
Why is it not granted me
to pour out my soul to him?
Or, if not, at least to sleep
forever here, in death.
Alas! Someone is coming.
Riccardo
Be quiet…
Translation © http://www.murashev.com; reproduced with kind permission
Amelia
Morrò, ma prima in grazia
Deh! mi consenti almeno
L’unico figlio mio
Avvincere al mio seno.
E se alla moglie nieghi
Quest’ultimo favor,
Non rifiutarlo ai prieghi
Del mio materno cor.
Morrò ma queste viscere
Consolino i suoi baci,
Or che l’estrema è giunta
Dell’ore mie fugaci.
Spenta per man del padre,
La man ei stenderà
Su gli occhi d’una madre
Che mai più non vedrà!
Libretto by Antonio Somma, after Augustin Eugène Scribe
Amelia
I shall die, but I beg you,
let me at least
clasp to my breast
my only son.
You may deny this last favour
to your wife,
but do not refuse the prayer
of a mother’s heart.
I shall die but may his kisses
comfort me into the beyond,
now that the last of my
fleeting hours arrives.
He will reach out his hand
to close the eyes of his mother
struck down by his father,
and he will never again see her!
Translation by Emanuela Guastella, reproduced with kind permission from Chandos Records
Gabriele
Cielo pietoso, rendilà,
Rendila a questo core,
Pura siccome l'angelo
Che veglia al suo pudore;
Ma se una nube impura
Tanto candor m'oscura,
Priva di sue virtù,
Ch'io non la vegga più.
Gabriele
Merciful heaven, restore her to me,
Restore her to this heart,
As pure as the angel
Who watches over her innocence;
But if a cloud of impurity
Obscures the whiteness of her soul,
If virtue is lost to her,
May I never see her more.
Translations by Richard Stokes © author of The Book of Lieder (Faber, 2005) and The Complete Songs of Hugo Wolf (Faber, 2021)
Desdemona
Ave Maria, piena di grazia, eletta
Fra le spose e le vergini sei tu,
Sia benedetto il frutto, o benedetta,
Di tue materne viscere, Gesù.
Prega per chi adorando a te,
Si prosta,
Prega pel peccator, per l’innocente,
E pel debole oppresso e pel possente,
Misero anch’esso, tua pietà dimostra.
Prega per chi sotto l’oltraggio piega
La fronte e sotto la malvagia sorte;
Per noi, per noi tu prega, prega
Sempre e nell’ora della morte nostra,
Prega per noi, prega per noi, prega.
Ave Maria …
Nell’ora della morte.
Ave! … Amen!
Libretto by Arrigo Boito, after William Shakespeare
Desdemona
Hail Mary, full of grace, chosen
are you among brides and maidens;
O blessed one, may the fruit be blessed
of your maternal womb, Jesus.
Pray for those who prostrate themselves
before you, adoring,
pray for the sinner, for the innocent,
for the weak and oppressed and for the mighty,
also for the wretched, display your mercy.
Pray for those who bow their heads beneath
outrage and evil destiny;
for us, pray for us,
always and in the hour of our death,
pray for us, pray for us, I pray.
Hail Mary …
at the hour of death.
Ave! … Amen.
Translation © LSO Live; reproduced with kind permission
Count Loris Ipanov
Amor ti vieta di non amar.
La man tua lieve, che mi respinge,
Cerca la stretta della mia man;
La tua pupilla esprime: ‘T’amo!’
Se il labbro dice: ‘Non t’amerò!’
Libretto by Arturo Colautti, after Victorien Sardou
Count Loris Ipanov
Love forbids you to not love.
Your soft hand which rejects me
seeks the tight grip of my hand.
Your pupil expresses ‘I love you
even if your lips say: ‘I won’t love you!’
Translation © Pentatone; reproduced with kind permission
Part two
Tosca
Vissi d’arte, vissi d’amore,
Non feci mai male ad anima viva! …
Con man furtiva
Quante miserie conobbi, aiutai …
Sempre con fe’ sincera,
La mia preghiera
Ai santi tabernacoli salì.
Sempre con fe’ sincera
Diedi fiori agli altar.
Nell’ora del dolore
Perché, perché, Signore,
Perché me ne rimuneri così?
Diedi gioielli
Della Madonna al manto,
E diedi il canto
Agli astri, al ciel, che ne ridean più belli.
Nell’ora del dolor,
Perché, perché, Signor,
Perché me ne rimuneri così?
Libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa
Tosca
Art was my life, love was my life,
I never hurt a living soul! …
Secretly,
how many times did I help the unhappy …
Ever with sincere faith
did my prayer
rise to the holy altars.
Ever with sincere faith
did I lay flowers upon the altars.
In my hour of grief
why, oh why, Lord,
why must this be my reward?
I gave jewels
for Mary’s cloak,
and gave my song
to the stars, to the sky, making them more beautiful.
In my hour of grief
why, oh why, Lord,
why must this be my reward?
Translation by Emanuela Guastella, reproduced with kind permission from Chandos Records
Federico
E’ la solita storia del pastore …
Il povero ragazzo volvea raccontarla,
E s’addormi.
C’è nel sonno l’oblio,
Come l’invidio!
Anch’io vorrei dormir così
Nel sonno almeno l’oblio trovar!
La pace sol cercando io vò:
Vorrei poter tutto scordar.
Ma ogni sforzo è vanno..
Davanti ho sempre di lei
Il dolce sembiante!
La pace tolta è sempre a me …
Perché degg’io tanto penar?
Lei! … sempre mi parla al cor!
Fatale vision, mi lascia!
Mi fai tanto male! Ahimè!
Libretto by Leopoldo Marenco
Federico
It’s the usual story of the shepherd …
The poor boy wanted to tell it,
but fell asleep.
There is oblivion in sleep,
How I envy him!
I, too, would like to sleep like this –
within sleep to find oblivion!
I only want to find peace:
if only I could forget everything.
But all struggles are in vain.
I still see before me
her sweet visage.
But all struggles are in vain.
Why must I suffer so much pain?
She! … How she always spoke to my heart!
Fatal vision, leave me!
You hurt me so much! Oh poor me!
Translation © www.aria-database.com; reproduced with kind permission
Uzh polnoch’ blizitsya,
A Germana vsyo net, vsyo net.
Ya znayu, on pridyot, rasseyet podozren’ye.
On zhertva sluchaya, i prestuplen’ya
Ne mozhet, ne mozhet sovershit’.
Ah, istomilas’, isstradalas’ ya…
Ah, istomilas’ ya gorem.
Noch’yu i dnyom tol’ko o nyom
Dumoy sebya isterzala ya
Gde zhe tï radost’ byvalaya?
Ah, istomilas’, ustala ya.
Zhin’ mne lish’ radost’ sulila,
Tucha nashla, grom prinesla.
Vsyo chto ya v mire lyubila
Schast’ye nadezhdï razbila.
Ah, istomilas’, ustala ya
Noch’yu i dnyom, tolko o nyom
Dumoy sebya isterzala ya,
Gde zhe tï radost’ bïvalaya?
Tucha prishla i grozu prinesla.
Schast’ye nadezhdï razbila.
Ya istomilas’, ya isstradalas’.
Toska grïzyot menya i glozhet.
The midnight is near,
But German is not here.
I know he will come, and reassure me.
He is a victim of chance, and he is not capable
Of crime, not capable.
I am tired, I am woeful…
I am tormented by woe.
Day and night
I torture myself thinking about him.
Where is my happiness?
I am woeful, I am tired.
Life promised me only joy
But a dark cloud came and brought storms.
It took away all my hopes
And all that was dear to me.
I am woeful, I am tired.
Day and night
I torture myself thinking about him.
Where is my happiness?
A dark cloud came and brought storms.
It took away all my hopes
I am tired, I am woeful.
Sorrow is eating me alive.
Translation by Anastasia Belina-Johnson © Naxos
Reproduced with kind permission from the sung text of Naxos recording Russian Songs and Arias (Naxos 8.572893). Please visit https://www.naxos.com/catalogue/item.asp?item_code=8.572893
When I have sung my songs to you,
I’ll sing no more.
’Twould be a sacrilege to sing
At another door.
We’ve worked so hard to hold our dreams
Just you and I.
I could not share them all again,
I’d rather die.
With just the thought that I had loved so well,
So true,
That I could never sing again,
Except to you.
Text by Ernest Charles
O lovely night! Thou sweet and gentle maiden,
Binding the world with dreams so silently,
Thy voice is soft, thy breath is heavy laden
With garden scents and mem’ries of the sea;
Come not with tears,
But charm them into flight,
O lovely night!
O lovely night!
O lovely sleep! Thou angel bright and tender
Who with thy magic ev’ry heart dost own,
Lo! All the world in passionless surrender
Bows to thy will and worships at thy throne.
Give thou repose
To darkened land and deep,
O lovely sleep!
O lovely sleep!
Text by Edward Teschemacher
L’alba separa dalla luce l’ombra,
E la mia voluttà dal mio desire.
O dolce stelle, è l’ora di morire.
Un più divino amor dal ciel vi sgombra.
Pupille ardenti, O voi senza ritorno
Stelle tristi, spegnetevi incorrotte!
Morir debbo. Veder non voglio il giorno,
Per amor del mio sogno e della notte.
Chiudimi, O Notte, nel tuo sen materno,
Mentre la terra pallida s’irrora.
Ma che dal sangue mio nasca l’aurora
E dal sogno mio breve il sole eterno!
The dawn divides the darkness from the light,
and my sensual pleasure from my desire.
O sweet stars, the hour of death is now at hand:
a love more holy sweeps you from the skies.
Gleaming eyes, O you who’ll ne’er return,
sad stars, snuff out your uncorrupted light!
I must die, I do not want to see the day,
for love of my own dream and of the night.
Envelop me, O Night in your maternal breast,
while the pale earth bathes itself in dew;
but let the dawn rise from my blood
and from my brief dream the eternal sun!
Translation © Susannah Howe; reproduced with kind permission
1. Ricordi ancora il dì che c’incontrammo
Ricordi ancora il dì che c’incontrammo,
Le tue promesse le ricordi ancor …?
Folle d’amore io ti seguii … ci amammo,
E accanto a te sognai, folle d’amor.
Sognai felice, di carezze a baci
Una catena dileguante in ciel;
Ma le parole tue … furon mendaci …
Perchè l’anima tua è fatta di gel.
Te ne ricordi ancor?
Te ne ricordi ancor?
Or la mia fede, il desiderio immenso
Il mio sogno d’amor … non sei più tu:
I tuoi baci non cerco, a te non penso …
Sogno un altro ideal; non t’amo più.
Nei cari giorni che pasamo ineieme
Io cosparsi di fiori il tuo sentier;
Tu fosti del mio cor l’unica speme
Tu della mente l’unico pensier.
Tu m’hai visto pregare, impallidire,
Piangere tu mhai visto innanzi a te
Io sol per appagare un tuo desire
Avrei dato il mio sangue a la mia fè.
Te ne ricordi ancor?
Te ne ricordi ancor?
Or la mia fede, il desiderio immenso
Il mio sogno d’amor … non sei più tu, etc.
.
.
2. Nei cari giorni che passammo insieme
Nei cari giorni che passammo insieme,
io cosparsi di fiori il tuo sentier:
Tu fiosti del mio cor l’unica speme,
Tu della mente l’unico pensier.
Tu m’hai visto pregare, impallidire,
Piangere tu m’hai visto innanzi a te;
Io sol per appagare un tuo desire,
Avrei dato il mio sangue e la mia fè.
Te ne ricordi ancor?
Te ne ricordi ancor?
Or la mia fede, il desiderio immenso …
Text by Carmelo Errico
1. Do you still remember the day that we met
Do you still remember the day that we met,
do you still remember your promises?
Crazy from love I followed you, we were enamoured with each other
and I dreamed next to you, crazy with love.
I dreamed, happily, of caresses and kisses,
a chain fading away into the sky;
but your words were misleading,
because your soul is made of ice.
Do you still remember?
Do you still remember?
Now my faith, my immense desire,
my dream of love isn’t you anymore;
I don’t search for your kisses, I don’t think of you.
I dream of another ideal; I don’t love you anymore.
In the dear days that we spent together
I scattered flowers at your feet;
you were the only hope of my heart,
you were the only thought in my mind.
You watched me beg, turning pale,
you watched me cry before you
Only to satisfy your desire, I
had given my blood and my faith.
Do you still remember?
Do you still remember?
Now my faith, my immense desire,
My dream of love isn’t you anymore, etc.
Translation © Madeleine Gotschlich; reproduced with kind permission from lieder.net
2. Through the days dearly passed together
Through the days dearly passed together,
I strewed flowers across your path:
you were the only hope of my heart,
you the only thought of my desire.
You forced me to beg you, you turned me pale,
you saw me crying in your presence;
Only in order to fulfil a desire of yours,
I would have offered my body and soul!
Do you still remember?
Do you still remember?
Now you are no longer my faith …
Translation © Mario Giuseppe Genesi; reproduced with kind permission from lieder.net
Io ti seguii come iride di pace
Lungo le vie del cielo:
Io ti seguii come un’amica face
De la notte nel velo.
E ti sentii ne la luce, ne l’aria,
Nel profumo dei fiori;
E fu piena la stanza solitaria
Di te, dei tuoi splendori.
In te rapito, al suon de la tua voce,
Lungamente sognai;
E de la terra ogni affanno, ogni croce,
In quel sogno scordai.
Torna, caro ideal, torna un istante
A sorridermi ancora,
E a me risplenderà, nel tuo sembiante,
Una novella aurora.
I followed you like a rainbow of peace
along the paths of heaven;
I followed you like a friendly torch
in the veil of darkness,
and I sensed you in the light, in the air,
in the perfume of flowers,
and the solitary room was full
of you and of your radiance.
Absorbed by you, I dreamed a long time
of the sound of your voice,
and earth’s every anxiety, every torment
I forgot in that dream.
Come back, dear ideal, for an instant
to smile at me again,
and in your face will shine for me
a new dawn.
Translation © Susannah Howe; reproduced with kind permission
Catarì, Catarì,
Pecchè me dici
Sti parole amare;
Pecchè me parle
E ’o core me turmiente, Catarì?
Nun te scurdà
Ca t’aggio date ’o core,
Catarì, nun te scurdà!
Catarì, Catarì, che vene
A dicere stu parlà
Ca me dà spaseme?
Tu nun’nce pienze a stu dulore mio,
Tu nun’nce pienze,
Tu nun te ne cure.
Core, core ’ngrato,
T’aie pigliato ’a vita mia,
Tutt’è passato e
Nun’nce pienze cchiù!
Catarì, Catarì
Tu nun o saie ca ’nfino int’ ’a na chiesa
Io so’ trasuto e aggio priato a Dio,
Catarì
E ll’aggio ditto pure a ’o cunfessore
I’ sto’ a suffrì pe chella lla’! I’
Sto a suffrì, sto a suffrì
Nun se po credere
Sto’ a suffrì tutte li strazie
E ’o cunfessore ch’e’ persona santa
M’ha ditto: figlio mio, lassala sta’, lassala sta’!
Text by Riccardo Cordiferro
Catarina, Catarina,
why do you say
such bitter words;
why do you speak
and torment my heart, Catarina?
Do not forget
I gave you my heart,
Catarina do not forget!
Catarina, Catarina, what meaning
do your words hold,
words that leave me shuddering?
You do not think of the pain I feel,
you do not think,
you do not care.
Ungrateful, ungrateful heart
you have taken my life,
all has passed
and I am in your thoughts no more!
Catarina, Catarina
you do not know that I even went into a church
and prayed to God,
Catarina
I confessed to a priest
that I was suffering for you!
I was suffering, I was suffering,
suffering beyond words
I was suffering every punishment and pain
and the priest, a saintly man,
turned to me and said: my son, let her go, let her go!
Translation © Nicholas Cornforth; reproduced with kind permission
Bed! Bed! I couldn’t go to bed!
My head’s too light to try to set it down!
Sleep! Sleep! I couldn’t sleep tonight!
Not for all the jewels in the crown!
I could have danced all night!
I could have danced all night!
And still have begged for more.
I could have spread my wings
And done a thousand things
I’ve never done before.
I’ll never know
What made it so exciting;
Why all at once
My heart took flight.
I only know when he
Began to dance with me,
I could have danced, danced, danced all night!
Text by Alan Jay Lerner
Danilo
Lippen schweigen,
’S flüstern Geigen:
Hab mich lieb!
All die Schritte
Sagen: Bitte,
Hab mich lieb!
Jeder Druck der Hände
Deutlich mir’s beschrieb.
Er sagt klar, ’s ist wahr, ’s ist wahr,
Du hast mich lieb!
Hanna
Bei jedem Walzerschritt
Tanzt auch die Seele mit,
Da hüpft das Herzchen klein,
Es klopft und pocht:
Sei mein! Sei mein!
Und der Mund, er spricht kein Wort,
Doch tönt es fort und immerfort:
Ich hab’ dich ja so lieb,
Ich hab’ dich lieb!
Hanna und Danilo
Jeder Druck der Hände
Deutlich mir’s beschrieb.
Er sagt klar,
’S ist wahr, ’s ist wahr,
Du hast mich lieb!
Danilo
Lips are silent,
violins whisper:
love me!
Every step
says: please
love me!
Every hand-clasp
shows it clearly.
Now I know, it’s so, it’s so,
you love me!
Hanna
At each step of the waltz,
my soul joins in the dance,
my eager heart leaps,
knocks, and pounds:
be mine, be mine!
And my lips say no word,
yet still it echoes on and on:
I love you, oh, so much,
I love you!
Hanna and Danilo
Every hand-clasp
shows it clearly,
now I know
it’s so, it’s so,
you love me!
Translation © archive.simonkeenlyside.info; reproduced with kind permission
Artist biographies
Barbican’s Artist in Spotlight, Norwegian soprano Lise Davidsen has been hailed ‘opera’s newest star’ (The Economist) and has taken the classical music world by storm ever since winning the much-coveted Operalia competition in 2015.
This season, Davidsen’s highlights include a triple appearance at the Metropolitan Opera as Eva in Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg, the title role of Ariadne auf Naxos, and as Chrysothemis in Elektra; a double appearance at the Wiener Staatsoper as Ellen Offord in an all-star performance of Britten’s Peter Grimes, as well as Sieglinde in Die Walküre; and Leonore in Fidelio at Maggio Musicale in Florence. On the concert platform, she joined the Orchestra de Paris for Strauss Op 27 and was featured as the soprano soloist in the Boston Symphony Orchestra tour. In June this year she makes her debut with the Berliner Philharmoniker and Kirill Petrenko with Zemlinksy’s Lyric Symphony.
Recently announced as the star of BBC’s Last Night of the Proms, Davidsen’s highlights this summer include a double appearance at the Bayreuth Festival: Elisabeth in Tannhäuser and Sieglinde in Die Walküre in a new production of Wagner’s Ring Cyle and appearances in recital at the Bergen, Turku and Peralada Festivals. UK audiences can see Davidsen take on the Royal Opera House stage next season with one of her signature roles: Elisabeth in Wagner’s Tannhäuser as well as a role debut as Elisabetta in Verdi’s Don Carlo.
In August 2020, she was one of the first stars featured by the Metropolitan Opera as part of their celebrated series: Met Stars Live in Concert. Davidsen’s rendition of Grieg’s En Svane and Ved Rondane was then broadcast together with the New Year Speech of King Harald V of Norway. In May 2021 she was awarded Female Singer of the Year by the International Opera Awards.
‘It’s been a long time since a singer has generated as much buzz,’ wrote Gramophone in the review of her debut album for Decca, which debuted at number one in the 2019 UK Classical charts. Since then, she has released two further solo albums on the label to equal acclaim: an orchestral recital of Beethoven, Wagner and Verdi, and a stunning Grieg recital with Leif Ove Andsens.
A phenomenal talent in the tradition of great Italian tenor voices, 29-year-old British-Italian Freddie De Tommaso shot to prominence when he won the First Prize, the Placido Domingo Tenor Prize and the Verdi Prize at the 2018 Viñas International Singing Competition in Barcelona. In December 2021, he jumped in as Cavaradossi in Royal Opera’s production of Tosca after the original tenor became unwell, thus becoming the youngest tenor to perform the role on the iconic stage and the first Brit since 1963.
An exclusive artist with Decca Classics and the first tenor to be signed to the label since Jonas Kaufmann, his debut album Passione debuted at number 1 in the Classical charts and recently won the BBC Music Magazine Award for Best Newcomer. His next album Il Tenore will be released on 24 June this year.
The current season includes a series of exciting appearances: at Teatro alla Scala in Milan as Maurizio in David McVicar’s production of Adriana Lecouvreur; at the Wiener Staatsoper as Don Jose in Carmen and Macduff in Macbeth; at the Royal Opera, Covent Garden as Cavaradossi in Tosca and Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly; at Semperoper Dresden as Pinkerton in a new production of Madama Butterfly and at Bayerische Staatsoper as Macduff.
Concert highlights include the First Night of the Proms with Verdi’s Requiem, a work he also performs at Teatro di San Carlo Napoli; Riccardo in Un Ballo in Maschera as well as a solo recital at the Verbier Festival; and his debut at the Arena di Verona in Italy as Alfredo in La Traviata.
Engagements in the 2022/23 season include Rodolfo in La bohème and Cavaradossi in Tosca at the Royal Opera House and his debut at the Staatsoper unter den Linden as the Italian Tenor in Der Rosenkavalier and Alfredo in La Traviata as well as a much-anticipated return to Teatro alla Scala and Wiener Staatsoper.
Described by The Daily Telegraph as ‘in a class of his own’, James Baillieu is one of the leading song and chamber music pianists of his generation. He has given solo and chamber recitals throughout the world and collaborates with a wide range of singers and instrumentalists including Benjamin Appl, Jamie Barton, Ian Bostridge, Allan Clayton, Annette Dasch, Lise Davidsen, the Elias and Heath Quartets, Dame Kiri te Kanawa, Adam Walker, and Pretty Yende. As a soloist, he has appeared with the Ulster Orchestra, English Chamber Orchestra, and the Wiener Kammersymphonie.
James Baillieu is a frequent guest at many of the world’s most distinguished music centres including Carnegie Hall, Wigmore Hall, Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Vancouver Playhouse, Berlin Konzerthaus, Vienna Musikverein, Barbican Centre, Wiener Konzerthaus, Bozar Brussels, Pierre Boulez Saal, Cologne Philharmonie, and the Laeiszhalle Hamburg. An innovative programmer, he has curated many song and chamber music festivals including series for the Brighton Festival, Wigmore Hall, BBC Radio 3, Verbier Festival, Bath International Festival, and Perth Concert Hall.
James Baillieu was prize winner of the Wigmore Hall Song Competition, Das Lied International Song Competition, the Kathleen Ferrier and Richard Tauber Competitions. In 2016 he was shortlisted for the Royal Philharmonic Society Outstanding Young Artist Award.
James Baillieu is a Professor at the Royal Academy of Music, a coach for the Jette Parker Young Artist Program at the Royal Opera House, a course leader for the Samling Foundation, and is head of the Song Program at the Atelier Lyrique of the Verbier Festival Academy. He also is International Tutor in Piano Accompaniment at the Royal Northern College of Music and is highly sought after for masterclasses worldwide.
Lise Davidsen's Artist Spotlight continues...
Vocal Masterclass
Part of Lise Davidsen Artist Spotlight
with Lise Davidsen
