Pole Piotr Beczala will sing a series of arias in the cycle of the Mozarteum Argentino, at the Teatro Colón
With an impeccable career 30 years behind him, Piotr Beczala labi one of the most important lyrical tenors of the moment.
Inevitable figure in the casts of the biggest cinemafamous for his impeccable technique and the promise of his interpretations, the Polish tenor arrived in Buenos Aires to make his debut this Saturday, May 7 at the Teatro Colón at the opening of the 2022 season of the Mozarteum Argentino, in a recital with pianist Camillo Radicke.
During his first visit to South America, Piotr Beczala was enthusiastic about singing in Colón. In turn, he admitted from New York talking to Clarion: “I am very interested in history, and I know that almost all important artists have performed there. I heard legends about the beauty of the roomthe acoustics, and singing there is a dream come true ”.
From sheet music to stage
Piotr Beczala has to sing of the most important cinemas in the world.
Born in December 1966 in Czechowice-Dziedzice, Beczala trained in his home country before beginning his career in Austria. He quickly became a regular figure in the casts of major European theaters and at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York. one of their musical homes.
As usual, Beczala choose for this debut a representative program of its repertoire both in the field of opera (with arias by Verdi, Puccini, Tchaikovsky or Gounod) and in chamber music (songs by Rachmaninoff, Leoncavallo, Tosti and Donaudy), including, of course, Polish music, from whom taimtim. diffuser.
-How can you overcome the challenge of dealing with opera aria in a recital, outside the context of a stage production?
-Of course harder than inside the opera. but when I have a good connection to the pianist on stage, I try to be in character for three or four minutes.
It helps a lot that the aria has a nice musical introduction; I prefer for example And they made the star shineI always prefer that the pianist plays a little more music in the introduction, to put not only me in the situation but also the audience, to prepare in their imagination what is going to be.
Piotr Beczala, a Polish tenor, is far from lukewarm in condemning Russia’s aggression on Ukraine.
Beyond Verdi
Initially focused on Mozart, Bellini, Donizetti and lyrical roles In the works of Verdi, Janácek, Strauss and others, for several years the tenor was added to his repertoire roles as were the male leads of Lohengrin (Wagner), Aïda (Verdi) and Turandot (Puccini).
Beczala, the first Polish artist to sing lead in Bayreuth, the Wagnerian mecca, recently released an album I will winalong with arias from the post-Verdi Italian repertoire (Puccini, Mascagni, Leoncavallo, Cilea and Giordano), in the seeming projection of his career towards a new direction.
-Do you think your voice could evolve towards a heavier repertoire?
-Towards Verdi and verism, sure, Wagner is extremely dangerous. Lohengrin is connected to the Italian repertoire, so it’s not too Wagnerian. I keep it in my repertoire, I’ll sing it at the Met, in Paris … But I don’t think I’m going to expand my repertoire in Wagner’s direction, because I don’t think it’s a future for my kind. of voice and because I want to expand it towards Italian.
-What musical or stage directors marked you?
-Many. I love working with David McVicar, and all the productions I’ve done with him have been wonderful. We are with Nello Santi Rigoletto Y Ballo in maschera; Singing according to that “old school” (in the best sense) of Verdi’s interpretation of music was a great joy, I remember every performance and every rehearsal, and it was a kind of knowledge that a person will carry for a lifetime.
Piotr Beczala is eager to meet and sing at the Teatro Colón.
-Have you ever felt pressure from agents or theaters to perform roles or some energetic performances?
–Nobody can take me to sing a role I don’t like, I myself chose them. In some seasons, I do more new roles than others, it depends a lot on my career situation. In a year I have three new roles, and that’s fine, that implies more publicity, because when you make a new production it has more impact than when you make a revival.
-What do you think of when playing a character in an opera?
-One part of my brain is in character, and the other there is a kind of astral body near me that controls every aspect, for example if I saw something unexpected happen on stage. There is a balance between completely playing the character and completely losing myself to the music, but at that moment a part of you has to control it. Hard to describe.
Thank God we don’t see the public on the show, in this way can focus on interpretation. You have to create this schizophrenic division, but it’s easier when you’re well prepared, when you know the role well, the technical aspects, where to go, where your partner is on stage …
There are some functions where unexpected things happen, and that’s where that controlling part should be more present.
-What advice would you give to a young singer?
Have patience. Unable to push the race, say “now I will win here or that contest and my career will start”. It can happen, but even then it takes a lot of patience to choose the right repertoire, listen to the right advice, to form knowledge about the repertoire and the possibilities of one’s repertoire.
This is a very long process. I was very lucky in my beginning to get in touch with great singers who took the time to explain everything to us. And I try to do the same when a singer needs advice.
In war and peace
In mid -April, after a series of performances by Tchaikovsky’s Evgeny Onegin at the Metropolitan Opera House, Beczala participated in a special concert organized by that institution. for the benefit of the victims of the war in Ukraine. As a native of a neighboring country, Beczala was not lukewarm about Russia’s offensive and its consequences on the world of music.
-What do you think is the cancellation experienced by artists like Anna Netrebko or Valery Gergiev, or even composers like Tchaikovsky and Musorgsky?
–It seems like a total mistake to remove composers from programsThis is an excessive political reaction. This is a very difficult situation. As a Pole, I suffer so much, because I have never seen such a situation: more than two million people have fled from Ukraine to Poland, and people are leaving their houses and apartments with them.
Y there is only one responsible person, and his last name is Putin and not Pushkin. Everything to do with Putin’s vision is at stake. In times of peace it is just an opinion, but when people are suffering it is a completely different situation. Just a few months ago it was impossible to imagine such a scenario. It’s so sad really.
Information
Piotr Beczala (tenor) and Camillo Radicke (piano) will perform this Saturday, May 7, at 8 pm, at the Teatro Colón, in a gala organized by the Mozarteum Argentino.
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Source: Clarin
