VIVICA GENAUX,
mezzo-soprano
VIVICA GENAUX
mezzo-soprano
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What the critics said...
Of her ORFEO at Los Angeles Opera:
“Musically,
this ‘Orfeo’ is very well done. Genaux, best-known for tackling
the florid music that came just before and just after Gluck (notably Handel
and Rossini), is an unusual Orfeo. She has a distinctive voice with the chocolate
and brandy tone of a big contralto but the agility of a light-voiced mezzo.
Her timbre changes notably in different registers, and her first utterances
Saturday, an acidic cry of ‘Euridice’ against a chorus lament,
were like an ugly slash in a pretty picture. She sounded all wrong. But that
proved a kind of sucker punch. Her incredible flexibility keeps one listening
in a state of incredulity. Gluck’s vocal music isn’t quite as
plain as many singers make it seem; he didn’t want fireworks, but he
expected decorous embellishments of the line. Genaux provides them, and they
are exquisite, especially in the beloved aria ‘Che farò senza
Euridice,’ her voice kaleidoscopically splintering color.”
- Mark
Swed, Los Angeles Times, December 1, 2003
“She uses her instrument with virtuosity; her vocal production is without
effort, her coloratura easy and as sharp as a razor blade, each note full
and the trills effective. ‘Che faro senza Euridice’ was expressive
and rich in color and technical mastery.”
- Noah
Manne, Opéra International, February 2004
“Vivica
Genaux’s multi-faceted Orfeo was impressive throughout, displaying wondrous
flexibility and a wide range of vocal colors, from anguished exclamations
during the opening burial scene to a plangent ‘Che faro senza Euridice’.”
- Carl
Byron, Opera News, April 2004
“[Mezzo-]soprano
Vivica Genaux plays Orfeo and sings with such power and clarity, such devastating
grief and such clarion joy that it is a surprise to learn that she has never
sung the role before (It is also her LAO debut). Dressed in a simple, long
black mourning coat, black trousers and dress shirt, the only touch of dishevelment
a carelessly untied bow tie, Orfeo is ready to brave the furies of hell for
his love.”
- John
Farrell, Press Telegram (Long Beach, CA), December 1, 2003
“Genaux
has excellent diction and good technique. Her interesting, almost androgynous
features make her convincing in a trouser role such as Orfeo.”
- James
C. Taylor, Opera, March 2004
“Grandness
arrives, too, in the form of Orfeo’s looming role in the story, given
just the right balance of heft and gleam by the impressive American mezzo-soprano
Vivica Genaux, Genaux’s shining touch and measured restraint in this
gender-tweaking trouser role added to the general sense of things tilting
towards the irrational.”
- Josef
Woodard, Opera Now, March/April 2004
"Orfeo
ed Euridice, starring the sensational mezzo-soprano Vivica Genaux, turned
out to be the highlight [of the LA Opera season, thus far]. The stage pictures
are stunning, and so are the performances: Genaux, in the trouser role of
Orfeo, sings with honeyed tone, perfectly ornamented phrasing and a penetrating
sense of pathos.”
- Georgia
Rowe, Contra Costa Times (Walnut Creek, CA), December 12, 2003
“The
success of this opera depends largely on the abilities of the artist assuming
the title role and it was sung here by the mezzo-soprano, Vivica Genaux. Tall
and slim, she excels at trouser roles and her agile voice has a wide variety
of dramatic colors. As Orfeo, her embellishments were few but she sang them
gracefully. Her trills were superb with some beginning on the upper note and
some on the lower. She was particularly effective in showing the depth of
Orfeo's grief over the loss of his bride as she sang with power, pathos and
purity of tone.”
- Maria
Nockin, OperaJaponica.org, December 2003
“This
was my first encounter with Vivica Genaux, and it was a very felicitous one.
She has a very nice mezzo timbre and full command of the baroque style, her
ornamentation all done tastefully. Of course, she got a large ovation after
‘Che farò’, the only melody of this masterpiece known to
the audience in the house. She had a terrific debut in the role, and I hope
to see her soon in other operas.”
- Luis
Gutiérrez Ruvalcaba, mundoclassico.com, December 9, 2003
“The
Alaskan-born mezzo Vivica Genaux, singing her first Orfeo, provided focused
tone and fluent line. She is a talented singer.”
- Timothy
Mangan, The Orange County Register, December 1, 2003
“Vivica
Genaux is a mezzo-soprano with much of the richness of a true contralto. Yet
she has a fairly high register, too, and all of it is as smooth as cream and
as sweet as honey. She truly carries the opera, and this young woman plays
a character who is heartbreakingly sincere, calm yet emotionally charged.”
- Carolyn
Wightman, San Martino Tribune, December 4, 2003
“Vivica
Genaux is excellent in this ‘trouser role’ using her distinctive
voice intelligently. Onstage for the entire opera, she performed with remarkable
vocal versatility.”
- Juliet
Schoen, Malibu Times, December 18, 2003
“Mezzo-soprano
Vivica Genaux displayed good control and brought in some highly musical moments,
particularly in the duets.”
- Marc
Porter Zasada, Los Angeles Downtown News, December 8, 2003
“The
evening belonged, however, to mezzo Vivica Genaux, who has set the operatic
world on fire with her best-selling Baroque recordings. Orfeo is a physically
demanding part – almost two hours of nearly uninterrupted singing, and
it’s a role whose entire drama is entrusted to that one voice. Genaux
caressed her notes with care and affection; her trills and musical accents
were superb.”
- Charles
Lonberger, The Beverly Hills Outlook, December 18, 2003
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