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 Adam Fischer conducts “Rusalka” at Brussels’ “La Monnaie”

he capital of the European Union, Brussels is the center of European politics. Since it takes only two hours from London and Paris by high-speed train Taliys and Europe Star, Brussels is very popular among tourists. The opera house of Brussels “La Monniae” is well known as a high quality stagione theater. This season Adam Fischer made his debut at the “La Monniae” and conducted Dvo?ák’s “Rusalka”.

The original plot is similar to “The Little Mermaid” by Andersen. The water nymph Rusalka loves a prince and asks the witch Jezibaba to become human. The prince loved her at first, then he changes his mind and is attracted by a foreign princess. The director of Bayreuth’s new “Parsifal”, Stefan Herheim turned the famous tale into the psyco-thriller like the cinema “Angel Heart”.

The beginning is already unusal. The curtain was raised long before Adam Fischer came on the podium. There is a café, metro station entrance, a big church window. People come and go on the street in the rain. It seems like a typical winter in Brussels. A middle aged man came out from the metro exit. This is Vodnik, the water man. He tries to open the door of his apartment, but he drops the key. Then, the music starts misteriously and the same scene changes to the fantasy wold of Vodnik.

In this production, Rusalka is a street girl. The prince is the alter ego of Vodnik. The foreign princess is actually Vodnik’s wife. The scene goes back and forth between the reality and fantasy of Vodnik. In the third act when Rusalka was casted away from her original world, Vodnik stabbed his wife with the knife. At the end Vodnik was arrested by the police.

The singers are in general high level. On the premier day, Doris Stoffel sang a very impressive witch Jezibaba- Olga Gurykova was a cold Rusalka. Burkhard Fritz sang a heroic prince. Willard White took the center of the production.

This production would never be success without the symphony orchestra of the Monnaie conducted by Adam Fischer. The music was synchronized with the scenes and maximized the stage effect. The stage designed by Heike Scheele was very realistic and the technical crew, who executed very complicated stage effects flawlessly, are also worthy of praise.

If someone expected “The Little Mermaid”, he might be upset, applause by the audience lasted long and the production got very good critics by the German newspapers. This is a good example of “Regietheater” production.

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 Adam Fischer started his first new production with “Fidelio” at the Budapest opera

Born in Budapest, Adam Fischer grew up in an apartment just meters away from the beautiful opera house. There he sang one of the three boys in “The magic flute” when he was young, however, he seldom conducted at the Hungarian State Opera. One year after he was appointed General Music Director, Adam Fischer stood at the podium of the orchestra pit with his first new production, “Fidelio”, and the piece led to his first success in this major opera house.

Instead of a prison, the director, Balázs Kovalik set the stage in a city where surrounded by wall, like old Berlin or current Palestine. He built a wall at the front of the opera house to emphasise the difficulties of people behind the wall, and expressed the overwhelming joy of liberation using bright pastel color.

The scene was vertically divided into three dimensions. At the bottom was Leonore’s emotion. She wears a red dress and expresses her true identity and feelings. The play took place above, where Fidelio is disguised as a young man played by an actor. Above is symbolic, where angels or roman soldiers appear.
Separating the role of Leonore and Fidelio had advantages in this production. In the second act when Pizzaro came down to the prison to kill Florestan, the music is difficult for Leonore to sing and act, therefore regular production lack action at the climax of the opera. In this production, Fidelio jumps down from the wall and struggles with Pizarro when she revel her real identity. This scene made the trumpet signal more dramatic.

On the contrary, the final scene was just like a cold shower. Everybody is wearing bright color clothes singing in joy. Just like when the Berlin wall collapsed, liberated people celebrate innocently, despite the difficult road ahead. At the end, they made a huge rainbow flag of piece.

Unfortunately, the symbolic dimension of the production confused the audience. The director Kovalik projected Fidelio as Jesus Christ. Fidelio appears in the costume of Jesus Christ, carries the burden of the cross, and when Fidelio faces Pizarro, the execution of Christ was about to take place. These images were so strong they overshadowed all other messages. Audiences and critics argue about the Christianity and ignored the liberation. As a result, the premiere audience was divided into much applause and strong boohs.
 

On the other hand, everybody was enthusiastic about the music. The guest singer Thomas Moser sang a convincing Florestan. Tünde Szaboki took over the role of Fidelio from an indisposed Evelyn Herlitzius, but was not just a replacement. She showed that Hungarian domestic singers are no less than international stars. Other supporting singers including Béla Perenz (Pizarro), Attila Fekete (Jaquino), and Zita Varadi (Marzelline) were well received.

But the real hero was the Orchestra led by Adam Fischer. From the beginning of the Fidelio overture to the end never loses the concentration. The orchestra played the Leonore Overture No.3 after the duet was one of the most memorable performances that are in no way inferior to the Vienna State Opera.

Adam Fischer will conduct two more new productions this year at Budapest. In March there is Haydn’s “L’anima del filosofo” and Handel’s “Xerexes” in May.

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Internationale Haydntage 2008

The International Haydntage started in 1989 and it counts 20 times this year. Just like dress rehearsal of Haydn year 2009, the Haydntage management reviews the programme of the past 20 years.

The opening of the Festival was the early oratorio “The return of Tobias” by Adam Fischer and Haydn Orchestra. Since the Haydnsaal does not have air conditioning, late summer heat made everybody difficult to concentrate during the long piece, but the Orchestra, Vienna Chamber Choir and all soloists (Andrea Brown, Lisa Larsson, Elisabeth Kulman, Markus Schäfer, Florian Boesch) gave an exceptional performance.

On the 9th September, Adam Fischer’s 59th birthday was the 20th anniversary Gala concert, featured the two famous Haydn symphonies “The surprise” and “The military”. Many of local politicians and cerebrates came to the performance including Austrian state president Heinz Fischer.

The final matinee was the based on the theme “Haydn and Schubert”. The orchestra played Schubert’s overture in Italian Suite, followed by the two violin piece, Haydn violin concerto No. 1 and Rondo for Violin and Orchestra by Schubert. The original soloist Fanny Clamagirand cancelled and the young Corinne Chappelle took her place.

After the intermission the orchestra played “the Miracle” symphony and two encore piece “Overture to the marriage of Figaro” and the Adagio from the farewell symphony by Haydn.

The entire program of Haydn year 2009 is already announced during the festival. Adam Fischer and the Haydn Orchestra have several performances in late May around the death day of Haydn, as well as in September during extended International Haydntage 2009.

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Bayreuth by the Blue Danube – “Wagner in Budapest” 2008

 
Wagner’s “The Ring of Nibelung” is one of the biggest challenges not only for the performers and production team, but also crews and management responsible for logistics. The sixteen-hour-performance takes four evenings but for this reason, even the large opera houses including Vienna and Bayreuth Festival always have a day off after “Die Walküre” and “Siegfried”. Wagner lovers think that a serious Ring cycle needs at least six days to complete.

The third annual “Wagner in Budapest Festival” challenges this “common knowledge“, and performed the entire Ring cycle in four consecutive days with the best cast in the world. Adam Fischer was the driving force of this giant project.

The co-production of the Palace of Arts and Hungarian Radio, they had already performed half of the Ring last year. Following the premiere of “Siegfried” on 7 June and “Götterdämmerung” on 14 June, the challenging Ring cycle started on 19th June.

The concept of the production remains the same. Music takes a central role in this production. With minimum stage set, the singers were in concert dress and tails. There is no violent action that may disturb the singers singing, however, good singers are just like good story tellers. Their voice, facial expression and minimal movement are enough to express the emotion of the character.

The director, Hartmut Schörghofer remained the principal; using multi-media technology to express Wagner’s idea and not add peculiar directorial interpretations. Since the Ring is so long, there are some scenes difficult to understand, for example the first act of “Götterdämmerung”, but in general the production is loyal to the text. From the beginning scene of swimming Rhine maidens to the finale of the burning Walhalla, some are realistic, others are very comical, the screen behind the singers created the Wagner’s world. Although this kind of approach does not always get good reviews from German critics, it was welcomed by hard-core Wagnerians.

Musically, it was dream co-starring the current best Wagner singers. Christian Franz’s sarcastic Loge, somewhat guileless bad guy Alberich of Hartmut Welker, and the majestic Wotan of Alan Titus were at the center of “Das Rheingold”.

“Die Walküre” was really perfect casting. Danish tenor Stig Andersen sang a tragic hero Siegmund. One of the best dramatic sopranos, Evelyn Herlizius was a sensitive and delicate Sieglinde. They were chased by the strong Hunding of Walter Fink and his dogs. Finnish baritone Juha Uusitalo acted the mighty king of the Gods, and Susan Bullock sang a lovely Brünnhilde.

In “Siegfried” the title role of Christian Franz dominated. Alan Titus’s Wanderer and Michael Roider’s Mime supported very much, but the final duet by Siegfried and Herlizius’s Brünnhilde was exceptional.

In “Götterdämmerung”, the cold Hagen of Matti Salminen made a strong impression. Susan Bullock’s Brünnhilde was a little light voiced, but she sang a marvellous finale.
Not only international casts, Hungarian singers were no less capable of the Ring. Besides Judith Németh who is already a well known Wagner mezzo, there are many young singers who we can expect to hear a lot in the future. For example, Gabi Gál who sang the voice of the woodbird in beautiful intonation. MR Chorus (Choirmaster: Kálman Strausz) was so dramatic that their voices filled the concert hall.

Adam Fischer and the Hungarian Radio Symphony Orchestra did not lose concentration during those four days. Of course it is long and there were some mistakes because of fatigue, but detailed interpretation expressed Wagner’s world clearly.

Applause by enthusiastic Wagnerians got louder day by day, and there was so many bravo calls even before the first act of “Götterdämmerung”. After the final note disappeared, there was a long silence, and then the clapping started. When the all singers came on the stage, thunderous applause broke out. All casts including actors and dancers were celebrated. When the choir and orchestra came on stage thej audience responded with the biggest longest applause.

Not only Hungarian critics, the international media celebrated this Ring cycle. Some even wrote that Budapest is “Bayreuth by the Blue Danube” and will be a strong rival of Bayreuth Festival. Local fans are so proud and even saying “The Budapest Ring is better than current Bayreuth or Vienna.” Although everyone has his own favourite singer, everybody agrees that without Adam Fischer, this would never happen. Many of the hard-core Wagnerites praised Adam’s achievements and look forward to coming back next year.

In “Wagner in Budapest” Opera Festival 2009, there will be two complete Ring cycles each in four days. First cycle is on 11-14, June. The second cycle will be on 18-21, June. In addition there are two performances of “Parsifal” on 26 and 28, June. This is the revival of the 2006 production. The casts are not announced yet, but Judith Németh, Linda Watson, Christian Franz as Siegfried in “Götterdämmerung”, Tomasz Konieczny, László Polgár, Alan Titus, and John Treleaven are expected to appear. The cycle ticket is already on sale at the box office of the Palace of Arts.

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 “Bluebeard’s Castle” at Vienna

 Adam Fischer was on the podium of another famous orchestra, the Vienna Symphony Orchestra in April. The program was Mozart’s Linz Symphony and Bartok’s opera “Bluebeard’s castle” (concert version, sung in Hungarian).

The German mezzo-soprano Iris Vermillion sang Judith and the American James Johnson was Duke Bluebeard. They both sang well but their Hungarian was not convincing. Since the Viennese do not speak Hungarian, it was not an issue for most of the audience. The problem was with the orchestra. Since the Vienna Symphony is a concert orchestra, they are not familiar with Bartok’s masterpiece. In this masterpiece the orchestra must express the emotion of the characters more than the singers, but this orchestra played as they would a symphony, without emotion. It seemed like only the conductor know the story.

It was different from Hungarian orchestras, but with their paramount technique, they won bravo calls from a satisfied audience.
 

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Budapest Spring Festival with the Bamberg Symphony Orchestra

For the past few years, Adam Fischer has been one of the important guest conductors of the Bamberg Symphony Orchestra. He appears on its podium almost every year. This time, he invited the orchestra to his home town Budapest. As a part of the Budapest Spring Festival, they performed at the Bartok National Concert Hall on 20th of March.

The concert started with Haydn’s two choral works; " Svanisce in un momento " from "Il ritorno di Tobia" and the Madrigal "Der Sturm". The Hungarian Radio Choir sang beautifully as usual.

Next was Mozart’s Prague Symphony. Dynamic and lively but still elegant, the orchestra played everything perfectly. Strings without vibrato made a warm and interesting tone. Solo flute and oboe showed the high quality. We seldom hear this kind of perfect Mozart at a concert.

After the intermission they played Dvorák’s Symphony No. 8. Adam Fischer and the Bamberg Symphony Orchestra played this piece last October at its home in Bamberg. Beginning with lyrical G-Minor theme followed by the flute solo, the orchestra played very cheery first movement. In the lyrical third movements, the strings and oboe solo described the beautiful scenery of Bohemia. The finale started with rather slow tempo, but later progressed dramatically. Rich string section of the orchestra played the slow variation theme very romantic. By contrast the wild brass instruments were prominent in the coda.

It was a superb concert that not only audience, but also the musicians had fun.

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100th anniversary of Palau de la Musica – Haydn Orchestra Spanish Tour

The second largest city in Spain, Barcelona is the capital of Catalonia. The city is famous for Art Nouveau architecture, for example the famous Sagrada Familia by Antoni Gaudi, and the UNESCO world heritage site Palau de la Musica. On 9th of February 2008, Barcelona invited Adam Fischer and the Austro-Hungarian Haydn Orchestra, cerebrating the 100th anniversary of this beautiful concert hall, with Haydn’s masterpiece “The Creation”.

Since it was a closed performance, only the VIPs of the Catalonia government and few lucky persons attended. But through the news program of the local TV station, many citizens watched the performance. The concert started with the national anthem by the resident organization Orfeó Català, followed by “The Creation” with the soloists, Veronica Cangemi, Roberto Sacca, and Thomas Quasthoff.

The star singer Thomas Quasthoff was a frequent guest of Haydn Orchestra in early 1990s. He appeared in the TV production of “the Creation for children” in 1992. It has been almost 16 years since his last time with the Haydn Orchestra, but he was really amazing. His low voice was so beautiful that nobody can sing like him. His voice made an interesting contrast with the lyrical tenor of Roberto Sacca.

Although German is not their mother tongue, Olfeò Català, the powerful chorus was one of the highlight of the concert. The Haydn Orchestra under the baton of Adam Fischer was true to its name of “Haydn Specialists”. Not just accompanying the soloists and choir, the orchestra played with refinement and character. The performance was a lanmark achievement in the history of the beautiful concert hall.

Next day the Haydn Orchestra and Adam Fischer traveled to the Spanish capital Madrid and repeated the performance at the national concert hall. Compared to Palau de la Musica in Barcelona, this hall is modern and has very beautiful acoustics.

Because of the traveling from Barcelona, the orchestra and soloists were a little tired, and the performance without intermission was a test of their endurance. However, the enthusiastic audience rose to their feet and the orchestra got a storm of applause. This year’s Spanish Tour was a great success.

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London Philharmonic Guest Performance

Not only European continent, Adam Fischer is also popular in the UK. On 25th January he was on the podium of the Royal Festival Hall with the London Philharmonic Orchestra.
The opening piece was a dramatic Leonore Overture No.3. The virtuoso flute solo was so beautiful and it warmed up the atmosphere.

After the overture came Bartok’s Violin Concerto No.2. Since this concerto was technically very difficult, the soloist Shlomo Minz was very nervous. Although he showed his technique, he could not express his musicality.

After the intermission was Dvorak’s “From the new world”, Adam Fischer played this symphony last September with the Haydn Orchestra. The London Philharmonic is much larger than Haydn Orchestra and they are very good at romantic symphonies. The result was much better than last year. The London Philharmonic showed flexibility and capability with this symphony.
 

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New Year Concert 2008 at Budapest with Haydn Orchestra

When the Austro-Hungarian Haydn Orchestra was founded in 1987, Hungary was still a communist country and the border between Hungary and Austria was part of the Iron Curtain. 20 years later, both Austria and Hungary have joined the EU and signed the Schengen agreement. Since last December, there is no more passport control on the border. That was the dream of Adam Fischer.

Celebrating New Year as a Schengen country, the National Concert Hall in Budapest invited the Haydn Orchestra. The program was Joseph Haydn’s masterpiece “The Creation”, a very beautiful piece suitable for the beginning of the year.
Prior to the concert, Adam Fischer and the orchestra performed excerpts from “The Creation” for a young audience. Adam Fischer himself explained the story and the Haydn’s idea. For example, he offered three different interpretations of the Lion and asked the audience to decide which the orchestra should play. The young audience was so excited that some imitated conducting movement. They might be the musicians of the future.

The concert in the evening was long sold out. When the top level soloists, Veronica Cangemi, John Mark Ainsley and Florian Boesch, and Adam Fischer came on the stage, the audience applauded so loudly and it was already a festive atmosphere.
Following the famous “Chaos” introduction of beautiful string pianissimo, the Hungarian Radio Choir sang “Und es ward Licht” in powerful fortissimo. The big contrast expressed the greatness of God’s work. There were many interesting ideas by Adam Fischer. During the No.15 Aria of Gabriel in second part, the solo flute played at the second floor. It sounded just like a bird singing.

The Hungarian Radio Choir took center role of the oratorio “The Creation”. In the famous choir piece, No. 13, ”Die Himmel erzählen die Ehre Gottes”, the choir had shown the triumph of light over dark. And in the finale the Chior, the soloists and the Haydn Orchestra created powerful effect. When the piece was finished there was short silence, followed by storm of applause.

The Béla Bartok National Concert Hall wants to make the New Year concert a tradition. The plan is to invite world top orchestras and conductors and perform “The Creation” every year. Next year’s plan is not officially announced yet, but probably Adam Fischer will conduct the London Philharmonic Orchestra.

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