José Cura-Erika Miklósa-Andrea Rost-Ramón Vargas concert in Veszprém, Hungary

15th VeszprémFest, 13 July 2018

 Report and Photos by Zsuzsanna Suba

The prestigious VeszprémFest where classic music, opera, jazz, folk, pop and rock together are the usual guests in the program celebrated its 15^th anniversary this year. On this occasion after a break of several years the opera returned to Veszprém again in the form of a real opera fest. They invited four world-famous opera singers - Erika Miklósa, Andrea Rost (sopranos from Hungary) and José Cura, Ramón Vargas (tenors from Argentina and Mexico) - to the Festival again, who were the stars in the past 10 years of the festival and participated there with great success: Among them one of the most experienced returning guests was José Cura, who inaugurated the Festival in 2004 with a legendary concert with Zoltán Kocsis. At that time he became an honorary citizen of the town. He returned to Veszprém in 2010 with Ildikó Komlósi, so this recent concert was his third invitation here. However Erika Miklósa celebrated her fourth appearance this year. She sang two operas here in 2006 (The Magic Flute) and 2012 (Don Pasquale), while she performed together with Ramón Vargas in an opera gala in 2008. In addition to this gala, Ramón Vargas sang here with Andrea Rost also in 2005 (Rigoletto). So the Festival greeted these four favourite artists of the audience as old friends here and they sang together on one stage for the first time in Veszprém now. This ensured a special and unforgettable opera night, just as José Cura predicted in an interview before the concert:” You can expect a beautiful energy, because we are very good colleagues, we really love and admire each other, and we feel that on the stage, we will take care and protect each other. I know this orchestra for almost 20 years. To follow the life of people and getting older together is also a great ingredient on tonight’s concert and I think that energy will be very, very special tonight. I’ve being in this job for 40 years now, it is nice when after so long you keep the freshness, the enthusiasm and the wish of doing new things.”

The very ambitious program of the concert was announced well in advance. Thanks to this splendid organisation, all the tickets of 3000 seats were sold out some weeks before the event. The opera evening took place in the spectacularly located, green open-air stage of História Garden at the foot of the Castle Hill in Veszprém. So we knew it would be an exciting and rich evening with three-hour long opera enjoyment. Thanks to the different vocal type and vocal range of the singers we met with a very diverse selection from comic opera through romantic belcanto to dramatic theatre where the singers presented the best of their opera portfolio. We were really fortunate since you just couldn’t encounter such an excellent program in one usual concert! However, this event was also a good opportunity for the singers to take excursions into some unusual repertoires or to form unique duets or even a quartet with each other. The four opera singers were accompanied by the Hungarian State Opera Orchestra with the lead of Balázs Kocsár on the conductor’s podium.

When the concert started, Zoltán Mészáros, the managing director of VeszprémFest came to the stage. He announced that due to some delay in the arrival of the audience to the new plot of the festival, they would leave out the two Intermezzos (Pagliacci and Manon Lescaut) from the program, but all the arias would be performed. Later another unexpected change occurred in the program. When the second half of the concert was due to start with the famous duet of Posa and Don Carlo where José Cura was prepared to sing the part of the baritone, Rodrigo as his honor to his tenor friend Ramón Vargas, he claimed about his score which somehow disappeared during the intermission, perhaps by a souvenir collector or it was just a fatal accident. He presented this bad news to us with his usual charm and humor and asked the score to be returned to him so that they could sing the duet. Though he promised that he would give it back after the duet, unfortunately the score was hidden forever and we missed this special opportunity to enjoy these two singers together on the stage for the first time. I must say that this planned duet acted for me as a calling word not to miss the concert in any circumstances and I hope there will be another opportunity in the future to hear it.

Let’s talk about the concert in more detail!

From the beginning we were surrounded by an atmosphere filled with excitement and amusement since such great singers performed here who were well-known and loved by the audience. They were accompanied by the enthusiastic musicians of the opera orchestra whom the singer also knew well. The organizers placed two giant screens to the two sides of the stage on which the program could be followed from greater distance too. No wonder that the concert was a huge success and a memorable experience in all respects and it proved that opera belonged to the festival in its own right today as well. The evening ended well after midnight and we were only sorry for the lack of encores, which really could not be fitted into the marathon program.

First of all it should be noted, that all the four singers were in superb form and they showed us their best on the stage in charisma, good stamina, high quality and intense, very passionate vocal performance, expressive and devoted presentation. They shared a good balance with each other in their presence on the stage. Perhaps due to the multiplayer, extensive program, José Cura didn’t take over the role of the showman during the evening though maybe some of the public would have expected it. This wasn’t necessary since every number was a showpiece of the given opera repertoire itself and featured high-level performances of exceptional artists. Yet, when Cura appeared on the stage you could sense and observe a secret link between him and the audience and he carried us on his palm from the beginning. We were ready to join him for some unexpected joke, chat or smiling interaction between the numbers but there was no place for this during the show. However when he was present on the stage he amused us with tiny gestures, smiles or body language for example when he escorted his soprano partners to the stage or when he did a good and polite job in adjusting the microphones for his colleagues. He radiated tenderness and protective fondness toward his partners. He just played with his voice easily, depending on what he sang in the baritone, heroic tenor or lyric tenor repertoire. We were thrilled and conquered by the colors, softness, steely strength and juiciness of his fresh and powerful voice and the way he varied his vocal and acting skills during his free and natural performances. He always created unique character and stage atmosphere whether it was a solo or a duet, an old or new piece in his repertoire. While he conjured up his most dramatic vein in his solo arias, the various duets created good opportunities for him to show off his gentle and comic side as well.

José Cura played with his voice and borrowed his dark, warm baritone color and tone of his timbre for some baritone arias in the first half of the concert which started with his Prologue from Leoncavallo’s Pagliacci. We heard the first notes of the aria behind us and then we discovered his figure in the distance. He slowly moved toward the stage while he sang Tonio’s sadly amusing storytelling and greeted some fortunate spectators in their seats on his way toward the stage. He gently silenced the spontaneous welcoming applause of the audience with his hand and finished his jovial and sonorous song on the stage. Then he greeted us with his well-known “Jó estét kívánok! (Good evening in Hungarian) and we finally could applaud and cheer him enthusiastically. Then with a cheerful call -‘I am lucky man!” - he gently escorted Erika Miklósa to the stage. 

The ensuing Mozart block came off very well; the orchestra played the virtuoso melodies superbly where the tiny details could also be heard eminently. Erika Miklósa performed her long term hit, the famous Queen of the Night aria (“Der Hölle Rache..”) from The Magic Flute with her .energetic and rich coloratura soprano beautifully. She was followed by Ramón Vargas in another Mozart solo (”Se all'impero amici Dei" from The Clemency of Titus) who delivered a very passionate, spinto performance too. Both of them were loved and cheered by the audience intensively. Ramón Vargas sang with great pleasure during the whole concert, he was a kind and sympathetic performer as usual who had mobilized everything for our entertainment. He had great stamina in performing in a wide scale tenor repertoire and he also had the rare ability to vitalize stories, form and draw real characters and situations on the stage. He also presented us his very modest personality who was very grateful for our applause. The last number of the Mozart’s block came from Don Giovanni, the duet of Don Giovanni and Zerlina (”Là ci darem la mano”) sang by José Cura and Erika Miklósa. This was the duet we were waiting for impatiently since it represented a real curiosity. José Cura sang Mozart for the first time in his career while he was singing Don Giovanni, a baritone role and huge character which was admittedly his long desire to embody once on the stage. They made a superb duet together. José was a very steady seducer who used his charm, caressing voice, kisses, patience (!), smiles and little titters to conquer his woman knowing that he finally would succeed anyway. Erika was a really great partner in both voice and playfulness. She refused this temptation for quite a while and turned her back on him. But when our Don Giovanni was getting closer and closer to her singing his beautifully soft, warm and balmy words in her ears, she could not resist at all. Zerlina’s answer was of course a joyful approval and they were singing the closing lines together in nice, smiling harmony. We would love to see and hear more from this, a complete Don Giovanni with the adventurer and comedian José Cura in this opera.

Then Andrea Rost came to the stage with her first aria (”Je veux vivre”) from Gounod’s Romeo and Juliet. This aria fitted very well to her voice and temperament and she delivered an enchanted, virtuoso performance. After this, two dramatic arias were presented from Leoncavallo’s Pagliacci. José Cura sang his tearful drama as Canio in the famous ”Vesti la giubba!” and projected his solo with great power and excellent vocal coloring in both the middle and the high range of the aria prompting our bravos from the rows. The role of Nedda was well occupied by Andrea Rost in her memorable solo too (”Qual fiamma avea nel guardo! Stridono lassù”) and she produced well-designed, powerful and exciting trills in the high notes. The first part of the concert was closed by two arias from Donizetti’s belcanto comedy (The Elixir of Love). Ramón Vargas sang Nemorino’s romance (“Una furtiva lagrima”) with great sensitivity and a very fine ending so he harvested big applause, too. The ensuing recitativo of Nemorino and his duet with Adina (”Caro elisir sei mio - Esulti pur la barbara") from the first Finale represented a joyful encounter of the protagonists. Ramón Vargas fell in love with his bottle of wine untiringly while Andrea Rost was in her best elements here with her coloraturas to mock him in newer and newer swings. We gratefully allowed ourselves to be entertained by them and took a break in the intermission in cheerful mood.

The second part of the concert relied on Verdi and Puccini except some pieces from Cilea and Bernstein. The first number was performed by Erika Miklósa from Rigoletto (”Caro nome”) and she proved again with her coloratura that she still gave pleasure to us in this repertoire and we answered to her with plentiful bravo. Then the Miklósa-Vargas duet was introduced to us in the form of the famous duet (”È il sol dell’anima”) of the same opera with lots of fine notes, passion and temperament from both singers.

After this, we left the world of belcanto for the sake of dramatic theatre. First, Ramón Vargas revealed both his dramatic and lyric style to us in Rodolfo’s aria (“Quando le sere al placido” from Luisa Miller) in a beautifully devoted approach. Then José Cura walked to the stage and in a moment he stood in front of us as Otello’s incarnation. His “Niun mi tema”, Otello’s death through his final farewell from Desdemona was performed in a beautiful rendition showing incredible inner understanding, empathy and lonely soul in his fine and unique vocal expression. It was a breathtakingly performed mini-drama and in a class by itself where he compressed and delineated Otello’s whole life in those few minutes. Otello mourned for Desdemona and himself and really died on the stage. Whether his voice suddenly swelled from his inner fire or weakened by his tender thoughts, grief, tears, and pain we were in deadly silence from his first notes to his last breath. He deserved the many bravos which arrived to the stage. Though I know his Otello very well from many performances, this aria represented one of the highlights of the concert for me. Then another personal favorite of mine came from Cilea’s L’Arlesiana (”È la solita storia del pastore”) with Ramón Vargas. I liked him the best in this melancholy, wonderfully performed and heartfelt aria and so did the public too.

Two wonderful duets approached each other in the program and both acted as exceptional opera theatre on the stage without any props and they were loved by the audience very much. In the duet of Alfredo and Violetta (“Parigi, o cara.” from Traviata) José Cura again conjured up a wonderfully light, gentle and juicy tenor tone, with that unique warmth and softness in his voice to comfort and cheer up Violetta. Erika Miklósa responded with equal beauty and sensitivity in both voice and acting. We would have listened to their performance for a long time. The next Cavaradossi-Tosca duet (”Non, la sospiri la nostra casetta” from Tosca) became also an unforgettable fun to follow. In the first part of the duet Andrea Rost’s Tosca kept away herself from her lover Cavaradossi, guided by a kind mixture of jealousy, flirtation or  newer and newer whims so much that she often didn’t look at him and seemed to sing to the other part of the audience who was sitting on the other side of the stage. So after a while José Cura’s Cavaradossi changed his tactic. Instead of approaching, caressing or kissing her gently, he just watched Tosca from a safe distance with a forgiving smile on his face. He beautifully answered Tosca’s chirping, voluble lines with his resonant and ringing tenor and laughed a lot on her woman. They both played the story and dialogue of the duet as it was written in the libretto and music. Thanks to our tenor’s steady vocal endurance in wooing her, later Tosca softened, so they got close to each other with smiles, and moreover, Andrea caressed José’s face with unexpected tenderness while she made her request for the painting. At the end of the duet, our Cavaradossi covered their faces with his hand so that we couldn’t see their final kiss. José Cura sang with plenty of colors and tones and Andrea Rost also showed many faces of her healthy and milky soprano here. Smiling applause, joyful whistles and bravos granted them.

Tosca’s prayer (”Vissi d’arte”) was the next number in a really moving, evoking rendition from Andrea Rost. She debuted in this role only last year indicating her way to move towards the dramatic soprano roles. She owned the character beautifully with her nicely ringing, pure soprano voice. The result was definitely unique and I loved it very much. As she passed through the aria, the impact of Tosca’s struggles in her soul was gradually and convincingly reflected especially in that particular mood as she concluded the aria on the top and in the closing line beautifully. She received huge applause and jubilation. José Cura closed this Puccini selection with a Cavaradossi solo (“È lucevan le stelle”) showing everything he knew about the character and composer. This aria became another pearl of the concert for me. It was a delightful experience to see and listen to his dramatic summary about life and death with his soft, melancholy but sturdy tenor and super-secure high notes. We appreciated this performance well with huge applause and bravos.

The closing part of the concert was eased by lighter songs. Though the duet of Mimi and Rodolfo from La Bohème (“O soave Fanciulla”) is still part of Cura’s concert repertoire, the Rost-Vargas duet variation came to the stage and they gave a smiling rendition to us as well. The next aria in Erika Miklósa’s performance represented a very special treat; Cunegonde’s long aria (“Glitter and be Gay”) from Bernstein’s operetta, Candide. It was the first time I’ve ever heard this aria which had a very jazzy character with harmonious and dissonant, very playful sounds and accelerated rhythms. Erika Miklósa displayed all the difficult and rich musical elements here with bravura, virtuoso performance and flexible voice and she made me curious to know more about this music. She deserved our enthusiastic applause. The closing number of the concert welcomed all the four singers on the stage. Instead of a duet, they formed a unique quartet for singing “Tonight” from Bernstein’s West Side Story. They created a lovely ensemble in which everybody featured different vocal type from mezzo (Rost) and soprano (Miklósa) through melting baritone (Cura) to light tenor (Vargas). It was a really nice conclusion of the long program and we celebrated the wonderful protagonists, our excellent conductor and orchestra for long minutes. They came back to the stage for many rounds to receive our acknowledgment, but it was well after midnight so they couldn’t stay there as long as we wished and there was no chance for extra encores.

This highly successful opera evening of this festive VeszpémFest represented a particular event among summer opera galas which should be repeated in the future. No need to say that a DVD release of the concert would be welcomed by the public very much. It is also nice to know, that José Cura will perform in the newly renovated Hungarian State Opera in Budapest next year, in June 2019 as Andrea Chénier on two nights.