Saariaho: Only the Sound Remains - Dutch National Opera (2017) [Blu-ray]

Спектакль финского композитора Кайи Саариахо "Только звук остается" объединяет две коротких оперы, вдохновленные драмами Но (либретто по пьесам японского театра Но в вольном переводе Э. Паунда): "Всегда сильный" (Always strong, в оригинале Tsunemasa) и "Перьевая накидка" (Feather mantle, в оригинале Hagoromo).

This DVD and Blu-ray derive from the world premiere performances, at the Dutch National Opera in 2016, of Only the Sound Remains, a Japanese-inspired double bill by Kaija Saariaho. Her first opera, L’Amour de loin, has captivated audiences around the world, and she composed Only the Sound Remains with the ethereal tones of Philippe Jaroussky in mind. Appropriately, the French countertenor plays two supernatural characters, an angel and a ghost. The fisherman and priest who encounter them are both sung by baritone Davone Tines, while the production is the work of the celebrated director Peter Sellars.

The Financial Times described the opera in detail: “The ending of Kaija Saariaho’s new double bill for the Netherlands Opera lives up to its name. Her subtle and meticulous blend of live electronics with acoustic sound can create curtains and washes of sound, sensual and evocative in ways that have become her trademark. … Tsunemasa (Always Strong) and Hagoromo (Feather Mantle), 14th-century Japanese Noh theatre works brought to the US … in the early 20th century and later pieced together into English approximations by poet Ezra Pound, form the basis of a libretto for an evening of music theatre co-conceived by Saariaho and director Peter Sellars. Both works … are scored for small ensemble with two singers – baritone and countertenor. Both narrate encounters with the supernatural. … Saariaho uses the Finnish zither-like kantele rather than a Japanese koto in her ensemble, and western flutes in place of the shakuhachi [a Japanese flute], but the Japanese sound-world is a clear source of reference, with pentatonic scales and onomatopoeic percussion deployed generously. Baritone Davone Tines and countertenor Philippe Jaroussky are perfect as the earth/spirit counterparts of the two pieces (ghost and priest for the first opera, fisherman and angel for the second), Tines with his earthy, virile warmth, Jaroussky with his ethereal purity, the music tailored for these two exceptional voices. Sellars, as always, sets out with consummate sincerity and solid stagecraft to convey a highly spiritual message … It is meticulously crafted and superbly performed. Saariaho is in fine form.” Philippe Jaroussky’s performance was summed up by France’s Opéra magazine: “In Hagoromo the voice of the French countertenor blossoms with a wondrous freedom and expressivity,” while the Süddeutsche Zeitung wrote that “Philippe Jaroussky is the noblest and most distinctive of countertenors …