"With every note, Calleja [...] communicated the impression that nothing comes more naturally to him than singing. [...] His absolutely secure vocal production with his rapid yet in no way unæsthetic vibrato possesses an unmistakable quality, with a full, virile sound in the lower and middle ranges and a glowing silver bright color in the high notes. Not one tone lacks the capability for dynamic modulation, no intake of breath impedes the position, tension or phrasing. "
RECITAL, OPER FRANKURT: Andreas Schubert , Klassik.com, $ April 2006
REVIEWS: RECITALS & CONCERTS
Reviews of various recitals, concerts and gala.
Oper Frankfurt, Frankfurt, Germany
04 april 2006
· Tatiana Lisnic, sopranoKlassik.com
Bel Canto in Due
Lisnic and Calleja Thrill the Audience in Frankfurt
Only a few months ago, they stood on the stage of the Frankfurt Opera, where, in a series of enthusiastically received performances, they gave vibrant life, both vocally and theatrically, to one of the most stereotypical but also most heartwarming pairs of lovers in all the operatic literature: Mimì and Rodolfo in “La Bohème”. This explains why so many of the members of the audience at yesterday’s reunion with Tatiana Lisnic and Joseph Calleja at their song recital may have enjoyed a pleasant déjà vu sensation when the singing husband and wife presented the love duet from the first act of Puccini’s opera as their third and final encore, even adding a theatrical touch with their ethereal “Amor!” sung from off-stage yet resounding clearly all the way to the back of the second balcony in the sold-out house. Enthusiastic cheers for an evening, which, although hardly a song recital in the usual sense of the term, nevertheless provided a definite highlight of the season. The program, covering some 300 years of music history, offered a varied, largely popular-oriented combination of Italian songs, ballads and arias by no less than 15 different composers, performed in alternating appearances by Lisnic and Calleja, who also crowned the two sections before intermission and at the end of the concert with a fully acted operatic duet. We owe it to the magnificent artistry of the soloists that despite the inclusion of such sentimental tenoreal warhorses as Donaudy’s “Vaghissima sembianza” and Tosti’s “L’alba sepára dalla luce l’ombra” and the generally disapproved semi-staged opera scenes, the level never degenerated from pathos to bathos.
From start to finish, the entire recital was devoted to a concept that is more often honored in the breach than in the observance: bel canto. Both Ms. Lisnic and Mr. Calleja set themselves apart with outstanding vocal culture, which not only brought the individualistic timbre of their voices to full flower, but also united tasteful presentation and stylistic sensitivity to create an atmosphere of universal, elemental musicianship.
With every note, Calleja, the young, meanwhile world-renowned Maltese tenor, communicated the impression that nothing comes more naturally to him than singing. Technically and stylistically his singing is in many ways reminiscent of his great predecessors from the era of the 78 rpm recording and that old school, the spirit of which we so often feel we have already lost today. His absolutely secure vocal production with his rapid yet in no way unæsthetic vibrato possesses an unmistakable quality, with a full, virile sound in the lower and middle ranges and a glowing silver‑bright color in the high notes. Not one tone lacks the capability for dynamic modulation, no intake of breath impedes the position, tension or phrasing. Only under these circumstances should a tenor ever contemplate serenading us with a Tosti: only this way could nobody could accuse him of self-aggrandizement.
Calleja’s vocal potency is more complemented than contrasted by Tatiana Lisnic’s lyric soprano. The program placed her largely in the sphere of languishing, often contemplative, but also humoristic undertones, which not only lightened up the performance ideally, but also made a major contribution toward its leaving far more than merely an emotionally overloaded impression. With fine-grained nuances she presented Lotti’s “Pur dicesti, o bocca bella” and imbued Susanna’s rose aria “Deh vieni, non tardar” with enormous inner feeling. In the operatic scenes with her husband she even surpassed him in appealing theatrical naturalness and also capped this demanding program in the concluding “Bohème” duet with a magnificently creamy high C.
Despite such glorious voices, we mustn’t forget the third actor in this drama. At the keyboard, Julius Drake accompanied discreetly but anything but distantly. He even managed to derive a broad expressive spectrum from pieces that have only limited adaptability to the piano such as the fragile rose aria or Ottavio’s “Dalla sua pace”. He made no attempt to pump up the relative simplicity of “Caro mio ben” with inappropriate intensity of expression, but rather encountered it fittingly with an unpretentious, straightforward presentation.
The vocal excellence of Tatiana Lisnic and Joseph Calleja, impressively proven in a recital totally worthy of radio recording, increased our eager anticipation of the coming seasons, because anyone who carefully studied the program could note that many more appearances of this couple are slated for the Frankfurt Opera. And the list of lovers they could portray is a long one!
Andreas Schubert
(Translation by Donald Arthur)
Frankfurter Rundschau Online
Tatiana Lisnic and Joseph Calleja’s Passionate Song Recital
It doesn’t happen all that often that a popular singer audibly scores at a song recital, but when two singers are so passionate and playful as Joseph Calleja and Tatiana Lisnic, it just might occur. And right in the middle of the duet from Donizetti’s L’Elisir d’amore the dainty soprano’s hand landed quite sincerely on her husband’s well rounded cheek, and he went right on singing in as grandiose a quality as before. He has been compared to the young Caruso, and with the young Pavarotti as well. Both have impressed him and left their mark on his work.
Among the Best
Today the young Maltese tenor, born as recently as 1978, ranks among the best of his generation. His voice is bright and glowing, effortlessly filling the biggest opera houses. And Ms. Lisnic is right there with him. Her lyric soprano may be a bit less pronounced than some of her more famous colleagues, but the young Moldavian artist radiates a warm, dark timbre and great sensitivity of expression.This was particularly advantageous in the Italian baroque works, such as Antonio Lotti’s Pur dicesti, o bocca bella and Antonio Vivaldi’s Sposa son disprezzata, but her Susanna from Mozart’s Le nozze di Figaro also had charm and character. Joseph Calleja’s contribution to the Mozart Year was an energetic Don Ottavio, of the sort that can completely hold his own with Don Giovanni. Mr. Calleja revealed how well sophisticatedly and respectfully he treats the best-known pieces for all his fullness of sound, among other pieces, in Händel’s Ombra mai fu and Gluck’s Che farò senza Euridice. And the audience really listened up to his rendition of Vaghissima sembianza by Stefano Donaudy, Rondine al nido by Vincenzo de Crescenzo and L’alba sepára della luce l’ombra by Franceco Paolo Tosti. Here, too, it was clear that this highly gifted singer has nothing to fear from either large intervals or grand gestures.
Each half of the program concluded with a duet, the first one with the aforementioned one, and the second with the only piece sung in French that evening, Ange adorable from Charles Gounod’s Roméo et Juliette. Here, too, our guests complemented one another magnificently, and Julius Drake accompanied them at the grand piano like a benevolent spirit.
Three encores, one for Tatiana Lisnic, one for Joseph Calleja and, as a parting greeting with kind regards to the Frankfurt Opera, the love duet between Mimì and Rodolfo from La Bohème with a staged exit and a passionate conclusion behind the scenes. Tempestuous applause.Annette Becker
(Translation by Donald Arthur)
Frankfurter Neue Presse
A New Dream Couple
Tenor Joseph Calleja Joined Forces with Soprano Tatiana Lisnic and Pianist Julius Drake in an Enthusiastically Received Song Recital at the Frankfurt Opera
They are not unjustifiably touted as the up-and-coming dream couple on the operatic scene. The young tenor festoons the posters like a pop star, and just a bit smaller beside him the likeness of his wife Tatiana Lisnic. Anyone who reads their biographies starts believing in modern fairy tales again. That’s how unmistakably the Maltese tenor and the Moldavian soprano are on their way to the top of the career ladder: Covent Garden, La Scala Milan, Vienna State Opera and Munich, Semper Opera in Dresden – to mention just a few of the great houses that line their path.
Frankfurt’s operatic audience heard the star tenor (28) at the beginning of the current season as Rodolfo in La Bohème and could obviously remember him well, because something happened that doesn’t normally occur at song recitals in big halls – he filled the house. Both artists felt their best that evening in the great Italian roles. With great sentiment and generously sung roles they fulfilled audience expectations all the way to the Mimì-Rodolfo duet in their encore.
Tatiana Lisnic revealed herself additionally as a delightful coquette, approaching little gems like Pur dicesti, o bocca bella by Antonio Lotti with singular lightness. In the background, a total professional, who knows full well whom the audience is cheering, Julius Drake presided majestically and discreetly at the keyboard.
(Translation by Donald Arthur)
