Saturday, November 13, 2010

The Makropulos Review

Vec Makropulos at San Francisco Opera. There's  more editorializing than I usually indulge in, but whatever. If it's not clear, Mattila is simply amazing. If you heard reports that her voice was frayed from all those Salomes, forget it. She sounded fantastic, fresh and glorious with plenty of bloom and easy, unforced volume.

I didn't get into a discussion of the fact that Vec Makropulos doesn't easily translate to either The Makropulos Case or The Makropulos Affair,  which are the usual titles in English. Apparently it means something more like "the Makropulos thing," and probably refers to the formula.

Lastly, Patricia Racette told me last year that EM is among the roles she'd like to sing. I'd love to hear that. All I can tell you is that it would be different from what Mattila is doing with it. I have already heard both of them in another iconic Janacek role, Jenufa, in which Racette was heartbreakingly perfect. Mattila sang beautifully but could not shed her glamor to truly become Jenufa.

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