San Francisco Classical Voice

Some concerts are planned, created, marketed. Others just happen, because they have to. Such was the event last Friday evening at First Congregational Church in Berkeley. Soprano Judith Nelson, a distinguished and beloved specialist in Early Music, and a leading citizen of the hopping Early Music community in the Bay area, celebrated her 60th birthday with a solo recital.

Nelson's birthday present to herself, and us, was a wonderful program of early baroque songs and ensembles, beautifully and whimsically accompanied at the harpsichord by Susan Harvey. Harvey was a superb colleague throughout the evening, and she deserves to be mentioned here at the beginning of this article. She was constantly engaged with the singer(s), attentive, articulate, expressive. A very beautiful job of accompanying and partnering.

The crowd of friends and musical luminaries did not fill the hall, but the cordial energy of the audience certainly did. Nelson presented the program simply, stayed near her music stand (more about that in a moment) and simply sang. The effect was charming and naive, even though her sound was sometimes a bit dwarfed by the size of the room. It is a larger hall than many of the composers on the program might have wished or expected.

The first half of the recital was entirely Italian: Monteverdi, Sigismondo, Strozzi, and Sances. One remarkable high point of the Italian group was a scena by Luigi Rossi, "Lamento della Regina di Svetia" (The Lament of the Queen of Sweden) in which the queen bemoans the death in battle of her husband, King Gustavus. (Later in the program, in reference to another song, Ms. Nelson mentioned the influence of Robert Burton's The Anatomy of Melancholy on the artistic life of the Baroque. This "mad scene" is a typical result. Nelson sang it with drama and clarity.)

One sweet musical and personal highlight was Monteverdi's "Bel piacer," sung in duet with tenor Jeffrey Thomas. The two savvy singers, obviously old friends offstage, had vocal fun with the sounds and affects of the duet, bringing a myriad colors and gestures to their singing. It was some of the most interesting singing of the evening. I've been listening to these two wonderful singers for 20 years. Seeing and hearing them together it was clear to me why they are so admired.

Other Italian gems on the program included Monteverdi's wonderful "Quel sguardo sdegnosetto" (That disdainful glance), and the brief but ravishing "Forse vien fuor l'Aurora" (Could it be the dawn arrives?), an exquisite miniature attributed to Sigismondo.

The concert's first half ended with a trio: Nelson was joined by Anna Carol Dudley and Susan Rode Morris in Rossi's "Fan battaglia" (Make battle). It was a rather soprano-ish battle, well sung, I wished only for some more textual sparkle.

Such was the family reunion atmosphere of the evening that the three additional vocal soloists were not actually billed as such in the program. Nelson introduced Jeffrey Thomas, but called her two soprano colleagues to the stage without introduction, saying "You all know who they are." I find it likely that everyone in the audience did know.

After intermission the remainder of the program was entirely English, and mostly Purcell. In "Pursuing Beauty" Nelson sang with crystal diction and eloquent expression. The chestnuts "Sweeter than Roses" and "Dear pretty youth" were direct and charming. Anna Carol Dudley came to the stage once again for Purcell's duet "Two daughters of this aged stream."

Then the least charming title of the evening provided the most charming musical experience: Purcell's "Ah, cruel bloody fate." The drama of the music seemed to ignite Nelson a bit, it animated her to a subtle vocal richness lacking in some of the other pieces.

Nicholas Lanier's "Hero's lament on the death of Leander" was another major mad scene, a fabulously complex aria for voice and keyboard. It was only in this song that Ms. Nelson rose to the dramatic energy of the music and moved a step away from her ever-present music stand.

I must now get this off my chest: it was disappointing to see a singer of this stature deliver an entire solo recital with a big black music stand between her and us. Surely there was at least one item on the program-"Bel Pastor" or "Sweeter than Roses" perhaps-which Nelson knew well enough to sing without benefit of printed music. During the Lanier scene, Ms. Nelson stepped slightly to the side, used her arms and torso to express her sound, and sang with her whole body. The effect was wonderful.

One last mad scene ended the printed portion of the program: Purcell's delightful "Bess of Bedlam." It was lovely, every note in place, every phrase turned. I still wished for a memorized performance, and a bit more bedlam.

By way of encore, Soprano Randal Wong (whose edition of the Strozzi "L'Astrato" Ms. Nelson had sung to open the concert) came to the stage for a lovely Haydn duet. I'm sure it has a title, but the soloists' announcement did not reach the back of the hall.

Flowers and family members joined Nelson onstage after the encore, and Jeffrey Thomas assumed his alter ego of conductor, leading the audience in a somewhat historically informed rendition of "Happy Birthday."

(David Gordon was a concert and opera singer for 30 years. He is a voice teacher and performance coach in Oakland, CA, and is Education Director and Vocal Coordinator of the Carmel Bach Festival. david@spiritsound.com)

©1999 David Gordon, all rights reserved