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Critical acclaim of Peter Tiboris's most recent performances
are available in pdf format:
Medea Matters
Review of Médée conducted by Peter Tiboris
The New York Times, (New York, New York) [99k]
Preview about upcoming staging of Médée
Classical Domain, (New York, New York) [19k]
"Dreamers and Achievers: The Greeks of New York"
Cover-story in Odyssey (Athens, Greece) [249k]
The U.S. Premiere of Taneyev's Agamemnon
The National Herald (New York) [299k]
The Westsider (New York) [209k]
The U.S. Premiere of Rossini's Ermione
The New York Times [260k]
Peter Tiboris speaks about his experiences with Leonard Bernstein
The New York Times [88k]
Please note: You will need the Acrobat® Reader to view these files.
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the Adobe Web site.
Rossini's Rare Ermione Thrills Under Tiboris
Classics Today
By Robert Levine
June 3, 2003
Ermione was one of the nine "serious" operas Rossini composed for the Teatro San Carlo
in Naples between 1815 and 1822, then arguably the most sophisticated and prestigious
opera house in the world. It starred the stunning Spanish soprano (and fine singing actress)
Isabella Colbran, who was to become the composer's first wife, and the two leading tenors of
the day, Andrea Nozzari and Giovanni David, both of whom were capable of executing florid
music with ease and neither of whom was afraid of high notes. The audience the evening of
March 27, 1819 did not take the opera to its heart and Rossini pulled it from the stage.
One story has it that in his later years he said that it was the one opera he was keeping
"for posterity;" in any event, never during his lifetime did he permit it to be revived.
Its first modern-day performance was at Pesaro in 1987 and it is gaining popularity; San
Francisco, Dallas, and Glyndebourne, among other venues, have mounted successful productions.
Ermione is a remarkable work, filled with thrilling situations, virtuoso vocal lines and innovative
touches. It may just have been these innovations that confused the first audience: A chorus sings
from behind the closed curtain during the downbeat overture, the musical "numbers" are not clearly
delineated, as in recitative-aria-cabaletta; rather, solos are interrupted by recitatives and/or
choruses, dramatic, accompanied recitatives are lengthy and contain odd tempi changes and ariosos,
and so forth. The opera is based on Racine's "Andromache" and concerns the title character's love
for her betrothed, Pirro, who craves Andromaca instead, and Oreste, who loves Ermione. Ermione,
half crazy and in a rage for most of the opera, eventually convinces Oreste to kill Pirro; when
he does she goes even crazier and denounces him. All of this is set against the spoils of the
Trojan War. The overall tone is dark and catchy melodies are few; given the subject matter, one
can be certain that Rossini planned it precisely that way. Were Martha Graham a singer, Ermione
would have been one of her great roles.
June 3rd's concert performance marked the New York premiere of the opera; the New York City Opera
will stage it next spring. The title role was taken by Irina Tsirakidis and she delivered a
take-no-prisoners performance. The bottom of her voice is not integrated into the rest but
otherwise she's a marvel: The top is huge and free, if somewhat clanging, she can sing softly,
her legato is excellent, her coloratura was almost up to the role's nearly-impossible demands,
and she proved herself, even in a concert performance, a riveting actress. New York should hear
more of her. Matching her, ferocious impulse for ferocious impulse, was Barry Banks as Oreste,
small of stature but brilliantly bright of tone, with ringing high Bs and Cs and great ease with
the role's florid music. Another dynamite performance. The splendid Texas-born tenor Bruce Ford
sang Pirro. A favorite in Europe and well-known from recordings, he has an impressive voice -
intense at top, handsomely baritonal two octaves lower, and fluent - but he seemed slightly out
of sorts Tuesday evening. Rounding out the major players was mezzo Victoria Livengood as Andromaca.
The role is the least congenially written of the four but Livengood made an impression; her tone
is a bit nasty, but she got her dramatic points across. A third tenor role, Pilade, a confidant
of Oreste's, was nicely sung by David Adams, and the minor roles were well taken.
The Manhattan Philharmonic and Arcadian Chorale and Richmond Choral Society played and sang
with great passion and accuracy for conductor Peter Tiboris. The audience went understandably
wild at the opera's close. It's a good thing that Rossini did not take Beethoven's advice to
stick to comic operas - his serious works can be stupendous when performed properly. We await
the City Opera's production.
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