![]() And Puccini wrote brilliantly for the orchestra, and I think he would have loved hearing a performance like this one. The orchestra is, of course, a very important character in Tosca – it provides dramatic impetus, gives support to the singers, and increases the tension building on the stage. ![]() I had the pleasure of working for the Met for nearly 15 years, saw many Toscas, and attended all the rehearsals for every performance, and I can honestly say that I never heard the orchestra sound like this. It was stunning, and a hint of what was to follow. The Italian baritone Ambrogio Maestri was a smarmy, wormy, sadistic Scarpia in a role seemingly made for him.īut it is The Philadelphia Orchestra in this performance that makes the first indelible impression – right at the very beginning of the opera, with a slashing orchestral iteration of Scarpia’s theme. Her voice is lustrous, with power and delicacy, and her acting is persuasive.Īzerbaijani tenor Yusif Eyvazov, as Mario Cavaradossi (and the real-life husband of superstar soprano Anna Netrebko), did advanced studies with Franco Corelli and soprano Ghena Dimitrova, and he sang with a ringing tenor voice in the Act I love duet, and later with a painfully-resigned sadness in the last act aria é lucevan le stelle. Rowley is considered one of today’s finest Toscas. It didn’t take long to see and hear why Ms. Yannick’s first choice for the title role, however, the Bulgarian Soprano Sonya Yoncheva, had succumbed to an ear infection, and had to be replaced at the last hour by Jennifer Rowley, who had just sung the role at the Met, and at many other venues, including the celebrated Semper Oper in Dresden. ![]() The Philadelphia Orchestra stole the show.
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