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"Handel's Wicked Queen" comes to Berkeley, Palo Alto and SF 4/18 - 4/25: Going for baroque
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Dominique LaBelle from Montreal. Handel's Wicked Queen, Athalia, to be performed by Philharmonia Baroque.
Handel’s Wicked Queen, Athalia will be performed in Berkeley, Palo Alto and San Francisco this month. While Berkeley’s First Congregational Church on Channing Way was a serene place for Berkeley Opera’s anniversary, the church will next host the opening weekend of Athalia with the period-instrument orchestra, The Philharmonia Baroque. Reminds me of the Ballet Troupe the Trocaderos with the number Go for Baroque. Or some cool 1960s English rock film where everybody has long hair and velvet jackets and ruffles and lives in a castle where they play their guitars on the sprawling lawn. Takes me to another place in any event. Alternatively there's Wicked from Oz . . . then there's the Wicked Queen going Biblical on ya'll's children.
Here’s Dominque LaBelle from Montreal (where I was born) singing Handel.
Actually finding just the right talent isn’t easy when music was so tailored to fit performers from history. They are no longer around. For example. The music director of PBO describes how Mozart would tailor music to a specific performer the way Shakespeare would for actors. Scripts would have to be rewritten according to one’s singing ability or lack of it, one’s comedic ability, one’s acting skills. If somebody bows out, the piece gets re-tailored like an expensive suit. Nicolas McGegan asks, Do you hire a funny person as the clown? Some in a role could sing, some could not. Do you cut the song, get somebody else to sing it?
Teddy Wang interviews Nicolas McGegan.
Here’s McGegan talking of the making of Sampson. Handel, who went blind, wept through the arias of Sampson where Sampson talks of his blindness. Tenor Thomas Cooley who will be in Athalia sings in this production.
Here's tenor Thomas Cooley . . .
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And the bass baritone will be Roderick Williams . . .
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The performance will also be at Herbst Theater one night, Friday April 24, when I will see these people for the first time. If you love the harpsicord in some Mozart piece at SFO or in Scott Marley’s Riot Grrrl on Mars (all over Youtube under Berkeley opera) . . . and other historic instruments are not even made any longer, this will be particularly fun. Here’s a podcast with the clarinetist Eric Hoeprich who created a clarinet from historic designs. He plays it.
Teddy notes Mozart wrote for clarinet, an extension of the recorder.
Something about Athalia.
'Athalia' is one of Handel's shortest oratorios at just over 2 hours long. The story is based on that of the Biblical queen Athaliah, a wicked queen (the daughter of Jezebel) who orders little children to be killed.
Athalia features powerful 8-part choruses - which will literally blow your socks off, contrasted with some deliciously soothing and lilting arias and some great blustery bass airs.
One of Handel's most richly and varied orchestrations of all his works, Athalia includes recorders, 2 bassoons, 2 horns, 2 trumpets, timpani, 4 violin parts as well as the usual strings and oboes. This will be one work you will not want to miss!
Handel never married and remained extremely private about his personal life. He was wealthy when he died and he’s buried in London at Westminster Abbey. One may visit his home in London where he lived until his death.
Since the 1960s, with the revival of interest in baroque music, original instrument playing styles, and the prevalence of countertenors who could more accurately replicate castrato roles, interest has revived in Handel's Italian operas, and many have been recorded and performed onstage. From Wikipedia.
Here’s countertenor Robin Blaze singing Handel.
The women including Dominique above are sopranos. Marnie Breckenridge . . .
Celine Ricci . . .
So. Feeling wicked? Break the spell . . .
PBO tells me many of their performers also sing with San Francisco Opera and Berkeley Opera.
In closing, Michael Colbruno emails this evening.
Yes, Philharmonia Baroque is the orchestra that I'm involved with. I'm actually on their Board of Directors. I'm thrilled that you're going to see Athalia. I got hooked on them years ago, because NO ONE does Handel operas and oratories like PBO. I just happened to overhear a rehearsal and I was mesmerized. I've been hooked ever since.
Even after years of traveling the world to hear baroque opera, I still haven't found an orchestra or conductor (Nic McGegan) who can play this music better.
April 18 and 19; April 24 and 25.
For more info: Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra
Photos: Courtesy of PBO
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