Concert Tip of the Week: Estrellas Del Sol

Klassik

Volker Tarnow

February 2014

[Computer-assisted Translation // Excerpt]

He is one of the busiest professional murderers on the big stages, particularly excelling as a strangler (Otello) or a knifeman (Canio in Pagliacci).  José Cura is an excellent, sought-after murderer, and many ladies - not just singers - dream of spending their last hours with him. But he can't kill them all; the Argentinian has other things to do.

And so it happens that he occasionally first conducts Cavalleria rusticana and then sings in Pagliacci after the interval. He studied piano and composition, and spent his first years in Argentina conducting choirs. Cura only switched to singing at the age of 20. Berlin has already seen him in various roles; the Konzerthaus's South America Festival is now presenting him as a lieder singer. In Ginastera's Canción del árbol del olvido and six songs by Carlos Guastavino, the great piano poet, Cura will reveal his irresistible charm, half gaucho and half tango dancer. This time, death is not necessarily to be expected, unless you take these deeply melancholic songs too much to heart.

[…]

Argentine Tenor José Cura Amazes the International Audience in Berlin

Deutsche Welle

21 Feb 14

 [Computer-assisted Translation // Excerpt]

Argentinian José Cura, one of the most celebrated tenors in the world, thrilled the Berlin audience with his interpretation of songs by composers from his country, accompanied by an orchestra conducted by the young Venezuelan Christian Vásquez.  The recital in the main hall of the Konzerhaus, an architectural marvel in the heart of Berlin, was one of the highlight of the “Festival of South America,” which ends this Sunday after ten days of filling the German capital with Latin American rhythms. The concert program consisted of songs for tenor and orchestra by three of the major composers of Argentine classical music: Alberto Ginastera (1916-1983), Carlos Guastavino (1912-2000), and Héctor Panizza (1875-1967).  Cura embroidered the repertoire with the voice and on-stage acting magnetism that becomes one of the great figures in the opera world.

José Cura to Sing with Young Local Soprano

 Spectator

Zuzana Vilikovská

7 Jan 2014

World-renowned tenor José Cura might not be widely known to Slovaks, even though he has already performed here twice. This looks set to change as he shifts from his operatic appearances to performing a March concert in Bratislava with young Slovak soprano Linda Ballová.

“It is an obligation of singers to help the young generation,” Cura said at a press conference in December 2013. “It would be much easier to sing with a well-known singer, but it would be a shortcut.”

Cura added that he hopes to help Ballová fully blossom; and that when she is famous, he will be able to boast that he played a role in this. Cura said it was him who asked Ballová to be part of his concert.

Cura has a wider repertory, but he specialises in French and Italian operas, notably works of Giacomo Puccini and Giuseppe Verdi. Asked about how it is to sing these parts all over again and again, he answered: “Ours is a profession – we are professionals – but it is also a vocation. And there is no way being on the stage and performing for audience, if you don’t love what you’re doing. Because if you don’t love what you’re doing, you just work for money; and if you jut work for money, you are a hooker, and not an artist.”

Cura added that even if it is his 300th performance of Tosca or Otello, he must make the audience believe it is his first. “I will not tell you romantic lies,” he said. “Sometimes it works; and sometimes it doesn’t. If it doesn’t, remember that you are a professional and try to give your best. But if it works, it’s a miracle.”

Here, he likened the singing and the interaction with conductor, orchestra and audiences to a long-time marriage, or making love to one’s wife after 30 years; saying that the result also depends on the partner – here, it means audience. “Sometimes it’s routine, and sometimes it’s magic,” he said.

Cura now also conducts musical works. In Bratislava, he will conduct just one intermezzo.

He also mentioned that he would like to return to sing in Slovakia – maybe to the opera of the Slovak National Theatre (SND) where he has already performed. He went on to praise the new SND building.

“When I was a kid my mum told me I had to wait until I was invited,” he said.

The concert featuring Ballová will take place March 13, in the Aegon Arena NTC at Príkopova 6 in Bratislava. It will be conducted by Argentina’s Mario De Rose, who has worked many times with Cura and thus can perform with few rehearsals. This is also true about Cura and Ballová, as the tenor admitted they would take just a few rehearsals shortly before the concert itself “as is usual now”.

Press Conference

José Cura will sing in his first own concert in Slovakia

Opera Slovakia

Ľudovít Vongrej

2 January 2014

[Computer-assisted Translation // Excerpt]

On Tuesday, December 10, the world-famous tenor José Cura visited Bratislava. The reason for this one-day visit was the press conference for the upcoming concert in March 2014. Along with José Cura, the young Slovak soprano Linda Ballová, who will be a guest of the March concert in the AEGON Arena NTC, also participated.

At the beginning of the press conference, the organizers prepared a surprise in the form of a toast, as José Cura celebrated his birthday on December 5.  A question and answer session followed the toast by artists, organizers and journalists.

This is not the first time Cura has appeared in Slovakia. His previous performances in Slovakia have been connected with the Slovak National Theatre, where he performed at the Kristáľova Pleso (March 5, 2011) and later in two successful performances of Verdi's Otello (February 11 and March 2, 2012). This third performance in Slovakia will be his first full-length concert. He spoke very positively about his previous performances in Slovakia; he considers Slovak musicians to be professional even though they are not written about that much, and he would very much like to come to Slovakia as a conductor or director. "My first experience of working with a Slovak opera company was the opera Otello in the SND. Everything was really excellent, from fellow soloists, from the orchestra, from the choir, the creators of the production, everything clicked, and I would be happy if I could cooperate with the SND opera company more often, because you have a modern theater with good professionals. If I get an invitation, I will be very happy to come.''

The upcoming concert will take place on March 13, 2014 in Bratislava's AEGON Arena NTC at 7:00 p.m. with a second one in Ostrava two days later.

Cura personally chose the young Slovak soprano Linda Ballová as his musical guest and at the same time said that it is the duty of famous singers to promote and support young talented singers. "It is not a problem to prepare a concert with a famous soprano.  It would be very easy. I want to be a part of the development and blossoming of one of the best sopranos in my opinion, and one day when she is famous, I can say to myself: I helped her," said José Cura about the choice of musical guest.

José Cura in Bratislava

Opera Slovakia

Jozef Červenka

15 March 2014

[Computer-assisted Translation // Excerpt]

The unexpectedly beautiful early spring evening attracted a remarkable number of visitors to the monstrous hall of the National Tennis Centre. It is interesting that while the Slovak National Opera Theater, as well as a number of high-quality performances, often struggle with attendance, amplified concerts with opera stars or strange vocal clusters of tenors in sports halls don’t suffer from lack of an audience.  The organizers of the José Cura concert even tagged it as the cultural event of the year 2014 in Bratislava, Slovakia. 

The concert program was dramatically framed quite nicely.  The evening passed as if it was designed to pleasantly pass good time with friends.  Concert attendees did not, unfortunately, have the program available (as noticed by Cura) so the question of "what was that” was undoubtedly the most common one in the audience.  The first part of the concert belonged Leoncavallo (Pagliacci) and Verdi (La Traviata, Otello), the second half belonged Puccini (Turandot, Tosca, Madama Butterfly, La Bohème), operas which are also the most common in José Cura’s career. The orchestra interlude included the prelude to Verdi 's Force of Destiny and Intermezzo from Puccini's Manon Lescaut. All the numbers stayed within the normal repertoire.

This type of concert has its own requirements: one of them is the concert sound.  In this case, it was disastrous. The sound from the speakers which spilled into the arena was underpowered in terms of performance, with the vocal inputs overexposed at the expense of the clarity of the orchestra.  Listening to the sound was not pleasant.  In addition, and paradoxically, the acted drama seemed extraneous, since it requires an elemental concentration that is difficult to achieve in a sports hall.  

José Cure is currently a top singer at the zenith of his career. Although the voice still mesmerizes with dark color and metallic luster, the magic is now confined to the lower notes.  However, Cura still has a feeling for drama, psychological dimension and subtle shades of each character which is reflected in most arias. Linda Ballová [presented] sophisticated and precise singing, with a sense of style, beautiful legato and dramatic persuasiveness, but the inadequate sound system had the effect of making her voice sound tinny in the higher notes.  The South Bohemian Opera Theater Orchestra, conducted by Mario de Rose, gave a decent performance in relation to the nature of the event, but the bad sound system hurt the orchestra most, which ended up sounding more like a band.

José Cura in Ostrava in March

Denik

Břetislav Uhlář

24 January 2014

 [Computer-assisted Translation]

The thoughtful tenor without grand manners looks forward to returning to the Czech Republic.

Argentine opera star José Cura, one of the best tenors in the world, will perform in only a single concert in the Czech Republic this year.

The concert will be on 15 March at the CEZ arena in Ostrava. He will be accompanied by the South Bohemian Orchestra under the director of Argentine conductor Mario de Rose. 

“José Cura certainly doesn’t have grand airs.  For this concert production he has no special requirements.  According to our information, this is a very likable and approachable artist who in his previous appearances in the Czech Republic gained a large and appreciative audience,” said Miroslav Beinhauer, the organizer of the concert in Ostrava. 

The Argentine singer is known for his original interpretation of the heroes of Italian and French operas and innovative concerts thanks to his velvety voice and electrifying stage presence.  He often appears in non-traditional roles in concerts.  “He personally conducts the orchestra for a few numbers and has, at the same time, conducted and sang,” said Beinhauer.

The young Slovak opera singer Linda Ball will be a guest performance in Ostrava.  The singer, who was personally selected by José Cura, displays exceptional dramatic expression and has made numerous appearances at home and abroad.

Press Conference

Recital

After...