Jonas
Kaufmann
An Evening
with Puccini
From La Scala, Milan • FILARMONICA DELLA SCALA
CONDUCTOR JOCHEN RIEDER
3
PROGRAMMe
Giacomo Puccini (1858 -1924)
Preludio sinfonico A - Dur
LE VILLI
Ecco la casa … Torna ai felici dì – Prelude and La Tregenda
EDGAR
Orgia, chimera dall’occhio vitreo – Edgar Prelude to Act III
MANON LESCAUT
Donna non vidi mai
Intermezzo
Ah! guai a chi la tocca! … No! pazzo son! Guardate!
TOSCA
E lucevan le stelle – Prelude to Act III
MADAMA BUTTERFLY
Intermezzo
Foto © Brecia Amisano – Teatro alla Scala
LA FANCIULLA DEL WEST
Una parola sola! ... Or son sei mesi
SUOR ANGELICA
Intermezzo
TURANDOT
Nessun dorma
ENCORE
4
5
Dear Opera
lovers,
A
Jonas Kaufmann is perhaps the greatest tenor on the
world stage today and his performance at La Scala, on
the 14 June, 2015, was hailed as a triumph by all who
were fortunate enough to be present at Italy's world
famous opera house.
Through the unique and powerful medium of cinema,
audiences in more than 40 countries can now come
together and enjoy this joyful and momentous event. Arts Alliance believes passionately that art and culture
should be enjoyed by everyone. Working with our equally
enthusiastic network of cinema partners we produce and
present the widest range of outstanding events, from
world-class artists, bands, opera and ballet, to the finest
theatre companies, museums and galleries. These events
draw together audiences from around the world, offering
the chance to share the thrill and excitement of live
performance, gallery exhibitions and one-off events. I hope you enjoy Jonas Kaufmann in concert and we
look forward to bringing you many more special events
in the future.
Nick Varley
Chief Executive, Arts Alliance
Photo © Brecia Amisano – Teatro alla Scala
rts Alliance is delighted to welcome you to this
special screening of Jonas Kaufmann: An
Evening With Puccini.
6
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THE OPERAS
LE VILLI
This hybrid of opera and ballet premiered at Milan’s Teatro
Dal Verme on 31 May, 1884. It was Puccini’s first stage
work. Set during the Middle Ages, Le Villi tells the legend of
the eponymous fairies that, upon witnessing the death of a
heartbroken soul, force the heartbreaker to dance until their
own demise. Roberto has pledged his love for Anna, but whilst
traveling away from home a siren seduces him. Anna’s despair at
Roberto’s absence proves her undoing and following her death,
her father calls on the Villi to exact their revenge. Upon hearing
the fate of his betrothed Roberto seeks forgiveness but is destined
to dance in the forest until he dies, his body lain at Anna’s feet.
The composer was unhappy with the first version of his opera
and revised it twice, in 1888 and again in 1892, premiering it at
Hamburg, with Gustav Mahler conducting.
EDGAR
Loosely based on Alfred de Musset’s play La Coupe et les
lèvres, Puccini’s three-act opera premiered at La Scala on 21
April, 1889. It remained an on-going work-in-progress for the
composer (it was originally conceived in four acts) until he finally
gave up on perfecting it, even declaring the work ‘irredeemable’,
although he never blamed his librettist Ferdinand Fontana,
suggesting it was ‘more my fault than his’. The story unfolds in
medieval times and like Wagner’s Tannhäuser, it features a knight
torn between the attractions of lustful indulgence and the appeal
of true love. Edgar leaves wanton Tigrana for innocent Fidelia,
but cannot resist his former lover’s temptations. His indecision
ultimately leads to the trio’s undoing and it is only at the point
of her death that Edgar realises what Fidelia truly meant to him.
Orgia, chimera dall'occhio vitreo gives voice to those feelings.
MANON LESCAUT
Adapted from the 1731 novel L’histoire du chevalier des Grieux
et de Manon Lescaut by the Abbé Prévost, with a libretto penned
by no less than five writers (authorship of it was so confusing
that the title page of the original score didn’t feature a writing
credit), Puccini’s third opera premiered at Turin’s Teatro Regio
on 1 February, 1893. It was his first major success. Moving from
Amiens and Paris to Le Havre and, finally, New Orleans,‘Manon
Lescaut charts the emotional journey of young love, giving way
to the realities of life and how easily idealism can be dashed.
Des Grieux adores Manon, even when she elopes with the
ageing Geronte. He keeps track of her and, after upheavals and
hardship, they are together again in the new world, only to be
undone by the hardships of poverty. Donna non vidi mai captures
the impulsiveness of young love, while Ah! non v'avvicinate!... No!
no!... pazzo son is imbued with world-weariness and desperation.
TOSCA
Puccini’s first venture into ‘verismo’ and based on Victorien
Sardou’s 1887 play of the same name, Tosca unfolds at the
start of the 19th century, as the Kingdom of Naples' control of
Rome comes under threat from Napoleon’s invading army.
E lucevan le stelle is sung by the painter Cavaradossi in the hour
leading up to what he believes will be his execution. The opera
premiered at Rome’s Teatro Costanzi on 14 January 1900.
Unlike his first two productions, Tosca’s opening night was a
magnificent event, attended by Queen Margherita and the Italian
Prime Minister. In the years since, responses to the opera have
been varied. Most infamously, the American critic and musicologist
Joseph Kerman described it as a "shabby little shocker''. Millions of
opera-goers would passionately disagree."
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Giacomo Puccini
1858 -1924
LA FANCIULLA DEL WEST
Like Madame Butterfly, Puccini’s three-act opera was based
on a play by American writer David Belasco. It premiered at
the New York Metropolitan Opera House in 1910. The roles of
Dick Johnson and Minnie were created for Enrico Caruso and
Emmy Destinn who performed under the auspices of conductor
Arturo Toscanini, who described the opera as “a great symphonic
poem”. Set during the California Gold Rush, we are introduced
to Minnie, the owner of a saloon, who falls in love with Dick,
initially unaware that he is actually the outlaw Ramerrez. The
aria Una parola sola!... Or son sei mesi unfolds at the moment
that Dick reveals who he really is and confesses his love for
Minnie. Although it has not made its way into the pantheon of
the most popular performed operas, La fanciulla del West is
widely admired for its harmonic language and for furthering the
complexity of the Italian operatic form.
TURANDOT
Puccini’s final opera was left unfinished, with two scenes
completed by Franco Alfano, based on ideas the composer
had sketched out before his death on 29 November, 1924. It
premiered at La Scala on 25 April, 1926. The story was inspired
by the epic 12th-century poem ‘Haft Paykar’ by Nizami. Set in
China, at the narrative’s crux are a series of riddles that will
determine the future of two people. Prince Calaf has fallen in love
with Princess Turandot. To win her hand he must answer three
riddles correctly. A wrong answer to any will result in death. He
succeeds but Turandot refuses to marry him. So he poses a test
for her: if she is able to learn of his name before dawn, he will
willingly die. Nessun dorma is sung in the final act, in the dead of
night, as Calaf ponders his fate.
U
nlike the majority of artists
throughout history who struggled
to gain recognition during their
lifetime, Giacomo Puccini achieved
spectacular success almost immediately.
And he enjoyed it, taking on the role
of playboy with an almost unrestrained
abandon. Regarded by many as second
only to Verdi in Italian opera, his work
became increasingly rooted in the postRomantic opera tradition of verismo,
basing a narrative within a recognisably
‘real’ world.
Puccini was born into a musical family.
Three generations of men, beginning with
his great-great grandfather, were maestro
di cappella of the Cattedrale di San
Martino, in Lucca. Puccini’s grandfather
had also written a number of operas, a
tradition that continued with his father. After
graduating from the Pacini School of Music
in 1880, Puccini continued his studies at
the Milan Conservatory. His graduation
composition, a mass, is regarded as the
culmination of his family’s association with
the church. Though never published, Puccini
occasionally lifted themes from the work,
using the Agnus Dei in his opera Manon
Lescaut and the Kyrie in Edgar.
Puccini’s first opera, Le Villi, received its
premiere in 1885 and played at La Scala
the following year, to moderate success.
His second opera, Edgar (1889) failed to
engage with critics and he would revise it
time and again over the next two decades.
His third opera, Manon Lescaut (1893),
changed the young composer’s fortunes.
Following its premiere in London, George
Bernard Shaw was quoted as saying
“Puccini looks to me more like the heir of
Verdi than any of his rivals”.
The composer’s reputation and fortune
were guaranteed by his next two operas. La
bohème (1896) is arguably his most popular
opera – a swooning, deeply romantic tale
of love and death. Tosca (1900), Puccini’s
most notable verismo work to date, also
won over audiences wherever it played.
And although Madama Butterfly (1904)
was initially drubbed by critics, Puccini’s fifth
version of the opera, which was completed
in 1907 and is now regarded as the
standard version, is a perennial favourite.
His last three completed works, La
fanciulla del West (1910), La rondine
(1916) and the trilogy of one-act operas
Il trittico: Il tabarro, Suor Angelica, and
Gianni Schicchi (1918) were nevertheless
received rapturously. Puccini was diagnosed
with throat cancer whilst working on
Turandot, and following his death in 1924
it was completed – from the composer’s
notes – by Franco Alfano. It was premiered
at La Scala in 1926.
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Giacomo Puccini
Ecco la casa
(Le Villi)
Ecco la casa.
Dio, che orrenda notte!
Strane voci m'inseguon.
Le Villi... Evvia!
Son fole!
No, delle Villi me non perseguita la vendetta fatal!
Tu sol m'insegui, rimorso, vipera infernal!
Vipera dal veleno infernal! Torna ai felici dì
dolente il mio pensier,
ridean del maggio i fior,
fioria per me l’amor!
Or tutto si coprì
di lugubre mister,
ed io non ho nel cor
che tristezza e terror! Ecco la casa
(Le Villi)
Here is her house.
O God, what a horrible night!
Weird voices pursue me.
The Wilis... Away with them!
They are Imaginings!
No, the fatal vendetta of the Wilis
does not pursue me!
Thou alone, remorse, dost plague me
viper of Hell!
Viper of the poison of hell
My anguished thought
returns to those happy days
when May was gay with flowers
and love blossomed for me
Then everything was blackened
by lugubrious mysteries
and now in my heart there is
naught but sadness and terror!
Orgia, chimera dall’occhio vitreo
(Edgar)
Orgia, chimera dall’occhio vitreo,
dal soffio ardente che i sensi incendia, tu a me, dell’alta notte nel glauco mister silente, invan ritorni...
Non più dai tuoi sguardi
ammaliato sarà il mio cor!
Né più m’avvince a te la voluttà.
Ma il terror del domani!
un vigliacco terror che l’onor mio combatte e vincere non può!
O soave vision di quell’alba d’april,
o vision gentil d’amore e di splendor! Orgia, chimera dall’occhio vitreo
(Edgar)
Orgy, you empty-eyed chimera
with a fiery breath that sets the senses on fire,
you return to me in vain in the dark,
silent mystery, in the depth of the night.
Your stares will no longer
affect my heart!
And your sensuousness will no longer capture me.
But I am terrified of tomorrow;
a vile terror which my honour
is unable to fight!
O sweet vision of that April dawn,
O gentle vision of love and splendour!
Nell’abisso fatal, dove caduto io or son, rimpianta vision,
te il mio pensiero evòca sempre ancor! Sovra un sereno ciel si dilegua il profil, dolcissimo, infantil,
Dell’angiol che m’amò...
In this fatal abyss into which I have fallen,
longed for a vision,
I think of you all the time!
In a serene sky is outlined a profile,
the sweetest picture
of the angel who loved me!
Donna non vidi mai
(Manon Lescaut)
Donna non vidi mai simìle a questa! A dirle: io t'amo,
a nuova vita l'alma mia si desta. «Manon Lescaut mi chiamo!» Come queste parole profumate mi vagan nello spirto
e ascose fibre vanno a carezzare.
O sussurro gentil, deh! non cessare!... Donna non vidi mai
(Manon Lescaut)
Never have I seen such a woman!
To tell her: I love you,
awakens my heart to a new life.
"My name is Manon Lescaut."
How those fragrant words
linger in my spirit
and caress hidden chords.
O gentle murmur, pray never cease!
Ah! non v'avvicinate!... No! no!...
Ah! non v'avvicinate!... No! no!...
pazzo son!
pazzo son!
(Manon Lescaut)
(Manon Lescaut)
Ah, don't come any nearer!
Ah! non v'avvicinate!...
For, while I live,
Che yivo me, costei
on one shall snatch her away from me!
nessun strappar potrà .!..
No! I am crazy! Look at me,
No! no!... pazzo son! Guardate, how I weep and implore you, how I weep,
com'io piango e imploro... com'io piango, see, how I plead for pity!
guardate, com'io chiedo pietà!
Hear me! Take me on
Udite! M'accettate
as a cabin boy or in some even meaner duty
qual mozzo o a piu vile mestiere,
and I shall come gladly
ed io verrò felice! Accept me, Ah, see
M'accettate! Ah! guardate, I weep and beg you!
io piango e imploro! Take my blood... my life!
Vi pigliate il mio sangue... la vita! I implore you, I beg for compassion
V'imploro, vi chiedo pietà! I shall not be ungrateful!
Ingrato non sarò! 12
E lucevan le stelle
(Tosca)
E lucevan le stelle
ed olezzava la terra
stridea l'uscio dell'orto
e un passo sfiorava la rena.
Entrava ella, fragrante,
mi cadea fra le braccia.
Oh! dolce baci, o languide carezze,
mentr'io fremente
le belle forme disciogliea dai veli!
Svani per sempre il sogno mio d'amore
L'ora e fuggita
e muoio disperato!
E non ho amato mai tanto la vita!
tanto la vita!
E lucevan le stelle
(Tosca)
The stars seemed to shimmer
The sweet scents of the garden,
The creaking gate seemed to whisper,
And a footstep skimmed over the sand.
Then she came in, so fragrant,
And fell into my arms!
Oh! sweet kisses, oh, languorous caresses,
While I, trembling, was searching
For her features, concealed by her mantle.
My dream of love faded away, for good!
Everything's gone now.
I'm dying hopeless, desperate!
And never before have I loved life like this!
And never before have I loved life like this!
Una parola sola!... Or son sei mesi
Una parola sola!... Or son sei mesi
(La fanciulla del West)
(La fanciulla del West)
Una parola sola!
Just one word!
Non mi difenderò... sono un dannato! I'll not defend myself. I'm a scoundrel!
Lo so, lo so!
I know, I know!
Ma non vi avrei rubato! But I wouldn't have robbed you.
Sono Ramerrez:
I am Rammerrez:
nacqui vagabondo,
I was born a vagabond,
era ladro il mio nome
thief was my name
da quando venni al mondo.
from the day I came into this world.
Ma fino che visse mio padre, But while my father lived,
io non sapevo.
I never knew it.
Or son sei mesi
Six months ago
che mio padre morì...
my father died.
Sola ricchezza mia,
The only means to support per la madre e i fratelli, alla dimane, my mothers and brothers
l’eredità paterna: una masnada
was my father's legacy: a gang
di banditi da strada! L’accettai.
of highway bandits! I accepted it.
13
Era quello il destino mio!
That was my destiny!
Ma un giorno But one day
v’ho incontrata... Ho sognato
I met you... I dreamed
d’andarmene con voi tanto lontano,
of going far, far away with you
per redimermi tutto in una vita
and putting everything right
di lavoro e d’amore... by a life of love and honest work...
E il labbro mio And my lips
mormorò una preghiera ardente:
murmured a fervent prayer:
Oh Dio! O God!
ch’ella non sappia mai la mia vergogna! May she never learn of my shame!
Il sogno è stato vano!
The dream was all in vain!
Ora ho finito... Now I've finished...
Nessun dorma!...
Nessun dorma!...
(Turandot)
(Turandot)
Nessun dorma!...
No man will sleep!
Tu pure, o principessa,
You too, O Princess,
nella tua fredda stanza
in your virginal room
guardi le stelle
are watching the stars
che tremano d’amore e di speranza! that tremble with love and hope!
Ma il mio mistero è chiuso in me,
But my secret lies hidden within me,
il nome mio nessun saprà!
no one shall discover my name!
No, no, sulla tua bocca lo dirò, Oh no, I will tell it only to your lips,
quando la luce splenderà!
when daylight shines forth
Ed il mio bacio scioglierà il silenzio and my kisses shall break the silence
che ti fa mia!
that makes you mine!
Dilegua, o notte!... tramontate, stelle! Depart, O night! Set, you stars!
All’alba vincerò!
At dawn I shall win!
Encore
Teatro alla Scala
Photo © Brecia Amisano
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On directing
B
rian Large is an award-winning director who has filmed some of the
greatest stars of opera and many of the most acclaimed productions
of the last few decades. He talks here about bringing ‘An Evening with
Puccini’ to the screen.
What originally attracted you to the opera world?
I was trained as a musician and wanted to be a concert pianist and a conductor.
I was drawn to opera because of a love of theatre. I wanted to make the perfect
marriage of the music and theatrical worlds.
The performance seems to have a narrative progression, even though the
arias are from a variety of operas.
Yes, that's true. There are some directors who might wish to take a different
approach to such a concert, even thinking of it as one would a football match,
with movement happening everywhere. But I felt that it was important to focus
on the way that Jonas Kaufmann was performing, and how he interacts with
the orchestra and his conductor. I wanted to convey his commitment to singing
and these very different arias – some that are more tuneful, others less so;
some are lyrical, others very dramatic. And while we are watching him perform
these stories, I wanted to capture his emotions, which present us with a specific
storyline in the context of this performance.
There are certain moments when I remain focused on Jonas after he has
stopped singing. I not only wanted to capture his emotions, but the way he
communicated them to an audience. These emotions – what he might be
thinking about how he just interpreted a piece – remain after he has stopped
singing. It is important to register these. For instance, at the end of the Tosca
aria, he's so intense. It would be criminal to just step away and not record
that mood.
How easy was the editing?
Everything was mapped out to the music. All the shots and the cutting between
them were dictated by the harmonies and key changes within the music, and in
the poetry of the libretti. Things fell into place because of my knowledge of the
music and previous experience of working at La Scala.
I first visited the opera house many years ago. I was a student and managed to
get a gallery place. I'll never forget that moment of standing there as the curtain
went up and the performance of Verdi's Otello began. It's one of the reasons why
I chose to shoot the stage from that high angle. I wanted to give a viewer who
had never had the chance to go to La Scala the incredible impression I had when
I first went there.
Did you set up the cameras for this performance?
Yes. On this occasion we had 13 cameras and they were all located specifically
for this performance. Whatever I'm doing, the set-ups always have to cater to
that particular project. With opera, we have to take into account the scenery
as well as the singers. And with this performance everything was put in place to
ensure that we captured the best results on a visual and dramatic level.
We even employed a Cinéma vérité aspect with one backstage camera, in order
to follow the artists out on to the stage. But it had to be done discreetly and in a
way that didn't feel mechanical or happen too often. However, I feel it involves
the viewer in what it must feel like for Jonas, having sung Manon Lescaut, to
walk back up to the stage and face an audience of 2000 appreciative faces. We
are able to witness their passion for his wonderful talent and, in turn, we see his
warmth and the sense of gratitude he exudes at their appreciation. It was also
important for me that we saw the human side to Jonas.
He is ranked as one of the great tenors. Where do you think his
appeal lies?
He is a singular talent with a truly wonderful voice. He uses it as a painter
would a palette of vocal colours, only painting with sound and pure emotion.
It's a God-given voice that displays remarkable versatility in terms of emotion
and encapsulating the full dramatic spectrum, as well as possessing the qualities
of a baritone.
Jonas has film star looks and real acting talent, but what makes him special
is his naturalness. He has a down-to-earth quality that can be seen in his
appreciation for his audience, but also in his generosity as a colleague. He's a
lovely man. •
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La Scala
O
ne of the pinnacles of an opera singer’s career is to perform at La
Scala, Milan’s legendary theatre, which has played host to some of the
world’s greatest voices since it opened on 3 August, 1778. That night,
audiences watched the premiere of Antonio Salieri's two-act Europa riconosciuta.
The next time it was performed was over 225 years later, in 2004, when the
theatre re-opened after an extensive, three-year renovation. With Riccardo Muti
conducting, the event emphasised the theatre’s rich history, whose opulence today
showcases the grand neoclassical designs of architect Giuseppe Piermarini.
The theatre was built on the site of the church of Santa Maria alla Scala, hence
its name. It was intended that 3,000 people would fill the many boxes, stalls and
balcony areas for each performance, and it was illuminated with more than 1,000
oil lamps. (The venue was also populated with buckets of water, just in case a fire
broke out.) A 1907 restructure brought the capacity to just below 2,000.
La Scala came into its own with the advent of Rossini, whose La pietra del
paragone premiered there in 1812. It soon became the appointed home of
Italian opera seria. Other Rossini works performed there included Il turco in
Italia, La Cenerentola, Il barbiere di Siviglia, La donna del lago, Otello, Tancredi,
Semiramide and Mosé. Bellini and Donizetti subsequently became favourites
before Giuseppe Verdi dominated the second half of the 19th Century and
became the composer most closely associated with the theatre. With his passing,
Giacomo Puccini took over his mantle, bringing opera into the 20th century and
offering audiences a world of sweeping, lyrical romanticism.
In addition to the countless principal conductors and musical directors, such
as Arturo Toscanini (1898-1908 and 1921-29), Victor de Sabata (1930-53),
Riccardo Muti (1986-2005), Daniel Barenboim (2007-14) and its current guiding
light Riccardo Chailly, La Scala has played host to the finest singers. Enrico
Caruso, Maria Callas, Luciano Pavarotti, Renata Tebaldi, Plácido Domingo,
Giuseppe Di Stefano and Mario Del Monaco, amongst the many greats, have
performed there. And now it’s the turn of Jonas Kaufmann. An Evening with
Puccini highlights the importance of La Scala and its standing as a landmark in
opera’s grand legacy. •
Photo © Brecia Amisano – Teatro alla Scala
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21
Puccini & Cinema
O
pera has a long and rich relationship with cinema. There are the countless film
adaptations that run the gamut from the traditional to more radical fare. The
best of them include Powell and Pressburger’s glorious The Tales of Hoffman
(1951), Hans-Jurgen Syberberg’s experimental Parsifal (1982), Joseph Losey’s stunning
Don Giovanni (1979), Francesco Rosi’s hugely popular Carmen (1984), the many Franco
Zefferelli productions – of which 1982’s La Traviata is perhaps the finest – and Ingmar
Bergman’s sublime The Magic Flute (1975).
Opera has also been a mainstay of many a classic film soundtrack. It is unlikely that
the famous helicopter scene in Apocalypse Now (1979) would have had the same impact
if Wagner’s Ride of the Valkyries had not been accompanying the attack. Nor would
Malone’s death scene in The Untouchables (1987) be quite as powerful if it weren’t
played out to the strains of Leoncavallo's Vesti La Giubba. But what of Puccini’s contribution
to cinema?
The composer’s first encounter with the nascent art form was less than auspicious. Al
Jolson, Buddy DeSylva and Vincent Rose’s popular song Avalon, which the Puccini estate
took to court in 1921 and from which they were awarded royalties due to the tune’s
similarity to E lucevan le stelle, first appeared in the forgettable Joe E. Brown and Ginger
Rogers vehicle You Said a Mouthful (1932). It also featured in a range of films over the next
two decades, from the forgotten western King of the Lumberjacks (1940) to such classics
as It’s a Wonderful Life (1946), Dark Passage (1947) and East of Eden (1955). As for the
aria that inspired the song, it was best used in Sidney Lumet’s gritty cop drama Serpico
(1973) and Sylvester Stallone’s Rocky Balboa (2006), the surprisingly good fifth sequel in
the boxing franchise.
Puccini’s swooning romanticism, tempered by a fatalism that gives his work such tragic
weight, has offered directors the perfect soundtrack for accentuating the heightened drama
of a scene; or even offering a counterpoint to the action. Manon Lescaut’s gorgeous Sola
Perduta Abandonnato was arranged for guitar and helped reinforce a theme of longing in
James Gray’s Two Lovers (2008). By contrast, Meir Zarchi’s notorious 1978 rape revenge
shocker I Spit on Your Grave made extraordinary use of the aria in one of the film’s most
uncomfortable scenes.
The tragedy at the heart of Madame Butterfly became both soundtrack and theme to
Adrian Lynne’s hugely popular mainstream thriller Fatal Attraction (1987). In the same
year, La Boheme channelled the blossoming romance – certainly more promising than the
opera’s – in Norman Jewison’s Moonstruck. La Boheme was also used to stunning effect in
Werner Herzog’s epic Fitzcarraldo (1982) and was the source material for Baz Lurhmann’s
intoxicating exercise in sensory overload, Moulin Rouge (2001). Madame Butterfly,
meanwhile, has underpinned the passions of Michael Caine’s adulterer in Woody Allen’s
Hannah and Her Sisters and Bob Hoskins' minder in Neil Jordan’s Mona Lisa (both 1986).
More perversely, the opera featured on the soundtrack of Oliver Stone’s Natural Born
Killers (1994).
Tosca’s most visible presence in recent cinema was a production of the opera at the open
air theatre in Bregenz, Austria, providing the perfect backdrop for the best scene in the
otherwise disappointing Bond film Quantum of Solace (2008). While a production of
Turandot, this time at the Vienna State Opera, offered up a thrilling set piece in the recent
Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation (2015). That opera’s most famous aria, Nessun Dorma,
has probably adorned more key scenes in films than any other piece of music. It helped
heighten the wickedly supernatural drama of The Witches of Eastwick (1987), added class
to the on-pitch antics of Bend It Like Beckham (2002), underpinned the high stakes at play
in the otherworldly, monochromatic thriller Suture (1993), and gave voice to the anguish
experienced by Javier Bardem’s paraplegic in the Oscar-winning The Sea Inside (2004).
The aria’s finest use on screen was in another Oscar-winner, The Killing Fields (1984),
accompanying a speech by President Nixon and footage showing the plight of Cambodians
under the yolk of Pol Pot’s brutal regime.
O Mio Babbino Caro, the most popular aria from Puccini’s one-act comic opera Gianni
Schicchi, may not be as well known as Nessun Dorma, but its place in film history is secure
thanks to two films. It emphasises the yearning of Jack Nicholson’s Mafia hitman, who
desires a love greater than life, in John Huston’s brilliant gangster drama Prizzi’s Honor
(1985). In the same year, the themes that dominate Puccini’s best-loved operas and the
breath-taking beauty that marks his work found their cinematic ideal in Merchant Ivory’s
E.M. Forster adaptation Room with a View. The Italy we see portrayed in the film just
wouldn’t look the same without the music of that country’s most romantic composer. •
22
Jonas Kaufmann
J
onas Kaufmann was born in Munich and studied singing
at the Munich Academy of Music and Theatre. He
began his career at the opera houses of Saarbrücken
and Stuttgart, and later became a member of the Zurich
Opera. Since his debut at the Metropolitan Opera in New
York in 2006, he sings main parts at the world’s leading
opera houses, including La Scala, Paris Opera, Wiener
Staatsoper, Bayerische Staatsoper München and the Royal
Opera House in London. His exceptionally wide repertory
includes Italian, French and German opera as well as French,
English and German Lied, oratorio and operetta. Kaufmann's
versatility is documented on a number of CD’s and DVD’s
in performances of such works as ‘Don Carlo’, ‘Tosca’,
‘Adriana Lecouvreur’, ‘Werther’, ‘Carmen’, ‘Lohengrin’,
‘Die Walküre’, ‘Parsifal’, ‘Königskinder’ and ‘Ariadne auf
Naxos’. His solo albums are bestsellers; the ‘Berlin album’
with popular tunes of Franz Lehár, Imre Kálmán, Robert Stolz,
Richard Tauber and others even made it into the pop charts.
Kaufmann has been selected several times as ‘Singer of
the Year’, by the classical music magazines ‘Opernwelt’,
‘Diapason’ and ‘Musical America’ as well as by the juries
of ‘Echo-Klassik’ and the inaugural ‘International Opera
Awards’ (London 2013). Kaufmann has also been acclaimed
for his lied recitals (Schumann, Schubert, Wagner, Mahler,
Strauss, Liszt, Duparc, Britten etc.). His partnership with pianist
Hemut Deutsch, with whom he worked as far back as his
student days in Munich, has proven itself in countless concerts
including one on October 30 2011, on the stage of the
Metropolitan Opera in New York. This was the first solo recital
given at the Met since Luciano Pavarotti’s back in 1994.
Photo © Julian Hargreaves – Sony Classical
24
jochen Rieder
Born 1970, Jochen Rieder initially took up positions as conducting
assistant and Kapellmeister at German State Theaters in Karlsruhe and
Bremen. In 2001, he became a permanent ensemble member of Zurich
Opera, where he remained until 2014.
Over the years, a long and intense musical friendship has been
established with star-tenor Jonas Kaufmann. Together, they have
performed at many of the world’s finest venues. Their joint Australian debut in August 2014,
with concerts at the Sydney Opera House and Melbourne‘s Hamer Hall, was hailed as a
sensation. In Spring 2015, a concert tour included stops at the most prestigious concert
halls of Europe: the Philharmonic Halls of Berlin, Cologne, Hamburg, Munich, the Stuttgart
Liederhalle, Baden-Baden’s Festspielhaus, Vienna’s Konzerthaus, the KKL Lucerne and the
Théâtre des Champs-Elysées in Paris.
In autumn 2014, ‘You Mean the World to Me’ which features Jonas Kaufmann and the
Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin conducted by Jochen Rieder, was released by Sony
Classical. Both the CD and accompanying DVD were recorded in the concert hall of Berlin‘s
legendary Nalepa Strasse Broadcasting House. Since the summer 2014, Jochen Rieder has
been active as a freelance conductor focusing on opera as much as on the popular works
of the great orchestral repertoire, symphonic rarities and contemporary music.
Brian Large
Brian Large studied at the Royal Academy of Music, before graduating
from the University of London with doctorates in Music and Philosophy.
He joined BBC2 at its inception in 1965, where he became responsible
for directing regular music and opera programmes. In 1970, he was
appointed chief opera producer. Since then, he has directed operas
at venues around the world. He has received a Peabody Award and
recognition from the Royal Television Society for his filming of the
Chéreau/Boulez production of Der Ring des Nibelungen, The Three Tenors World Cup
concert and Stiffelio from Covent Garden. His 1992 film Tosca, shot in the Rome settings
that Puccini stipulated, was screened live in 106 countries and earned him his second
Emmy. The French government named him a Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in
1985 and in 1991 he was appointed Fellow of the Royal Academy and Music.
25
Filarmonica della Scala
First Violin
Francesco De Angelis
Francesco Manara
Laura Marzadori
Eriko Tsuchihashi*
Duccio Beluffi
Rodolfo Cibin
Alessandro Ferrari
Agnese Ferraro
Alois Hubner
Fulvio Liviabella
Kaori Ogasawara
Andrea Pecolo
Gianluca Scandola
Enkeleida Sheshaj
Dino Sossai
Gianluca Turconi
Corinne Van
Eikema Estela
Sheshi Evgenia
Staneva Francesco
Tagliavini Elitza
Demirova Claudio
Mondini Francesca
Monego Enrico Piccini
Second Violin
Giorgio Di Crosta*
Pierangelo Negri*
Daniele Pascoletti*
Anna Longiave
Anna Salvatori
Emanuela Abriani
Damiano Cottalasso
Stefano Dallera
Silvia Guarino
Stefano Lo Re
Paola Lutzemberger
Antonio Mastalli
Roberta Miseferi
Roberto Nigro
Gabriele Porfidio
Alexia Tiberghien
Elena Aiello
Cristina Ardizzone
Suela Piciri
* prima parte
Viola
Simonide Braconi*
Danilo Rossi*
Matteo Amadasi
Giorgio Baiocco
Carlo Barato
Maddalena Calderoni
Marco Giubileo
Gonzalez Cardaba
Olga Joel Imperial
Francesco Lattuada
Emanuele Rossi
Giuseppe Russo Rossi
Luciano Sangalli
Rosaria Mastrosimone
Federica Mazzanti
Fabio Merlini
Eugenio Silvestri
Adriana Stoica
Monica Vatrini
Double Bass
Giuseppe Ettorre*
Francesco Siragusa*
Roberto Benatti
Attilio Corradini
Omar Lonati
Roberto Parretti
Emanuele Pedrani
Claudio Pinferetti
Alessandro Serra
Gaetano Siragusa
Antonio Lipari
Chiara Molent
Daniele Pisanelli
Cello
Sandro Laffranchini*
Alfredo Persichilli*
Massimo Polidori*
Martina Lopez
Jakob Ludwig
Alice Cappagli
Gabriele Garofano
Simone Groppo
Tatiana Patella
Cosma Beatrice Pomarico
Marcello Sirotti
Massimiliano Tisserant
Clare Ibbott
Gianluca Muzzolon
Andrea Scacchi
Piccolo
Giovanni Paciello
Flute
Marco Zoni*
Claudia Bucchini
Enrico Giacomin
Serena Zanette
Oboe
Fabien Thouand*
Augusto Mianiti
Gianni Viero
Cor Anglais
Renato Duca
Clarinet
Mauro Ferrando*
Fabrizio Meloni*
Christian Chiodi Latini
Denis Zanchetta
Pierluigi Capezzuto
Bass Clarinet
Stefano Cardo
Davide Lattuada
Bassoon
Gabriele Screpis*
Valentino Zucchiatti*
Maurizio Orsini
Nicola Meneghetti
Double Bassoon
Marion Reinhard
Cornet
Jorge Monte De Fez*
Danilo Stagni*
Roberto Miele
Stefano Alessandri
Claudio Martini
Stefano Curci
Piero Mangano
Alberto Prandina
Trumpet
Francesco Tamiati*
Gianni Dallaturca
Mauro Edantippe
Nicola Martelli
Trombone
Daniele Morandini*
Torsten Edvar*
Riccardo Bernasconi
Renato Filisetti
Giuseppe Grandi
Tuba
Brian Earl
Javier Castano Medina
Timpani
Brian Barker*
Percussion
Gianni Arfacchia
Giuseppe Cacciola
Antonello Cancelli
Gerardo Capaldo
Francesco Muraca
Harp
Luisa Prandina*
Olga Mazzia*
Dahba Awalom
Piano
Lorenzo Bonoldi
ARTS ALLIANCE PRODUCTIONS PRESENTS IN ASSOCIATION WITH SONY CLASSICAL “JONAS KAUFMANN: AN EVENING WITH PUCCINI” A BRIAN LARGE FILM
MARK FOSTER MASSIMILIANO SFORZINI ARTIST MANAGENT BRUCE ZEMESKY ALAN GREEN CO-PRODUCERS FRANCESCA ZAMBELLI
ANTONIA FARRUGIA SAVERIA RAIMONDI WRITTEN BY BRIAN LARGE AND THOMAS VOIGT DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY LUCIANO BARESI CONDUCTOR JOCHEN RIEDER
MUSIC BY GIACOMO PUCCINI EDITOR STEVE EVELEIGH PRODUCED BY BARRY CLARK-EWERS DIRECTED BY BRIAN LARGE
EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS STEVE LAPPIN