Opera is not only a unique genre in terms of aesthetic contrasts; it also, as a ritual representation altar of our civil dynamics, still forms the ideal space in which the brotherhoods and tensions of a collective emerge. In this way, in a performance like the first act of Die Walküre at the Liceu last Friday, there was a resounding boo from part of the audience and also a general ovation of the kind that makes history in little more than an hour and a bit of time. Let's start with the scolding; it was taken by Víctor Garcia de Gomar, artistic director of the Liceu, who before the performance tried to explain why the evening had ended up being castrated. We appreciate that de Gomar showed his face (although, in a decision shared with the musical director, Josep Pons, the latter should have flanked him), but the intervention summarized everything a manager should never do to mitigate a crisis.
Music does not save contradictions, but it can help mitigate anger, and even more so given the prodigious nature of Lise Davidsen's singingApart from apologizing and looking down, when you make the public pay for a concert ticket and you skip an act of it, you have to offer some kind of counterpart to your viewers(and the genius of Wagner and three magnificent performers are not enough). Although metaphors are typical of idlers, we will use one: if someone reserves a tasting menu in a restaurant and thechef, due to lack of foresight, skips the starters or dessert,goes without sayinginvite diners to drinks. De Gomar (and Pons) should have been aware that Liceu subscribers have stoically endured buying tickets at a price that, months later, has been magically reduced by 50% or that they have seen a modifiedcastof leading figures by declining singers as in the case ofLecouvreurExcusing oneself by admitting poor planning (a concert scheduled two years ago!) is not asking for forgiveness, but rather showing too much neglect.
Before taking an interest in the situation of the world's refugees and also in the universe's deaf enjoying Beethoven, a public institution like the Liceu should look after its spectators and subscribers with a coherent proposal, patrimonially stimulating and, above all, free of last-minute surprises.
Music does not resolve contradictions, but it can help mitigate anger, and even more so given the prodigious nature of Lise Davidsen's singing. The Norwegian soprano not only was born with a loudspeaker incorporated into her throat, but she also overcomes the usual metallic timbre of Wagnerian singers with a fleshy-lyrical tonality ideal for Sieglinde. Clay Hilley could have passed as a mere extra, but the Yankee heldentenor rose to the giant's level by injecting courage. Gábor Bretz's Hunding was very notable, though scarcely cavernous.
Perhaps due to a lack of rehearsals, Josep Pons conducted the Gran Teatre orchestra more focused on covering the soloists than on offering a thoughtful reading of this enormous Wagnerian excerpt (despite some lapses in the brass, our conductor has left the ensemble in a much better state than he found it, and this must be celebrated without any amendment). However, now that the theater is in the process of seeking a successor to his work, it is necessary to learn the lesson and ---with the machine ready--- hire a maestro who has opera as a musical frame of reference or seek a conductor consolidated in the traditional repertoire and a series of guest conductors for contemporary or pre-classical music. The possible opening of a new da camera hall for the Liceu in the coming years certifies that a model of multiple directorships would not be a crazy idea and would aesthetically enrich the theater.
But whatever the project in question, the priority of all this is artistic competence. And this means planning things well and serving the menu with all the necessary dishes.
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