Although it was only 7 p.m., many domestic and foreign audiences quickly moved to Ho Guom Theater (Hang Bai, Hanoi) to enjoy the August Symphony Concert by international and Vietnamese artists.
The event was held on the occasion of the 78th anniversary of the successful August Revolution (August 19, 1945 - August 19, 2023), National Day September 2 and Traditional Day of the People's Public Security Force (August 19) organized by the Ministry of Public Security in coordination with other units.
By showtime, nearly 800 spectators at the Hoan Kiem Theater had witnessed a night of international-class concerts, with rich and impressive musical experiences both visually and aurally.
The Sun Symphony Orchestra performs under the baton of conductor Olivier Ochanine (Photo: Organizing Committee).
This is also a rare concert in recent years, with the participation of talented world artists such as violin "angel" Caroline Campbell, three golden opera voices Oliver Johnston (UK), Corinne Winters (USA) and Dao To Loan (Vietnam) and the Sun Symphony Orchestra (SSO).
In the magnificent auditorium of the Ho Guom Theater, the audience who love the Capital's symphony music was truly sublimated in emotion. Under the guidance of the famous French conductor Olivier Ochanine, the classical instruments blended together to create magnificent, majestic sounds. It has been a long time since the audience had such a truly classy musical experience.
In preparation for the first international concert, Music Director - Principal Conductor Olivier Ochanine has prepared an extremely diverse 3-movement repertoire, with many types of music, from famous operas such as Carmen , Beethoven's Destiny symphony to Broadway film scores that are very familiar to the audience.
The space of Ho Guom Theater is classy with a modern sound system (Photo: Organizing Committee).
The concert's prelude, the clear, smooth and highly technical singing of tenor Oliver Johnston, took the audience back to the setting of Spain in 1875, when the famous French composer and pianist Georges Bizet wrote the climax of the opera Carmen .
Following the Carmen suite, soprano Corinne Winters, who has been highly praised by The New York Times (USA), performs the most popular arias (songs taken from musicals, associated with specific characters in operas) in famous operas by Verdi and Puccini.
She also had a "super sweet" duet with Oliver Johnston, in an excerpt from Verdi's charming La Traviata - one of the most staged operas in the world.
Artists Oliver Johnston, Corinne Winters, and Dao To Loan perform with the Sun Symphony Orchestra (Photo: Organizing Committee).
Joining the three international artists is the proud representative of Vietnam - Dao To Loan - a versatile soprano from the Vietnam National Opera and Ballet. Puccini's rare humorous Gianni Schicchi , a version of Verdi's tragic La Traviata and Kálmán's Csardasfürstin, through Dao To Loan's clear, soaring, wide-range chamber voice, in the splendid stage space, amplified the impressive beauty of the immortal melodies.
Many audiences expressed their pride in the performance of artist To Loan today, when placed next to famous international artists, there seemed to be no distance. In particular, after the excerpt La Traviata was performed with so much emotion, the audience gave the Vietnamese female artist a long round of applause that lasted for many minutes.
The next four arias were taken from three of the most beloved Italian operas, sung by all three artists. The SSO also had a solo performance, with the beautiful and thrilling Madrilène from Massenet's Le Cid, and Oliver Johnston's singing of the piece in English brought a fresh approach to this much-loved aria. The first movement ended with the classic O Sole Mio , which left the audience in awe.
The second movement of the concert pushed the audience's emotions to a climax, when it brought one of the most famous works in the world - Beethoven's Symphony No. 5 , with a performance by the SSO Orchestra.
Foreign audiences attentively listen to the August Concert (Photo: Organizing Committee).
The final movement is a completely different touch, with the most beloved film and Broadway music, performed on the violin of Caroline Campbell. The world-famous artist opens the final movement with themes from the familiar opera Carmen , adapted from the original by the famous violinist Pablo de Sarasate, but with a different and energetic style.
Artist Caroline Campbell performs on stage with emotional sublimation (Photo: Organizing Committee).
Next, she takes the audience "deep" into the lyrical tones of Romeo and Juliet , through a duet with a cellist in the role of Romeo. Audiences who love the music of Saint-Saëns must have seen an extremely interesting combination of Danse Macabre and Pirates of the Caribbean , through the delicate violin of the talented female artist.
Immortal movie soundtracks such as My Heart Will Go On, The Sound of Music and West Side Story performed by the American female pianist also moved the audience.
At the end of the program, all four artists and the Sun Symphony Orchestra (SSO) performed the piece No One Sleep , as a special gift to thank the audience for their enthusiasm at the concert. This was a truly sublime moment for not only the artists but also the audience.
Dao To Loan is proud to perform with international artists (Photo: Organizing Committee).
Sharing after the show, female artist Dao To Loan tearfully said: "Being chosen to sing with the best orchestra in Vietnam today, performing with famous international artists, for me this is an immense pride.
From now on, with the addition of the Ho Guom Theater, which in my opinion is a cathedral of classical music, I believe that there will be more opportunities to attract not only domestic singers and audiences, but also international friends and artists to perform.
Musician Duc Trinh - Chairman of the Vietnam Musicians Association shared his feelings after the success of the show: "With a program consisting of many international classics performed by both domestic and foreign singers and artists, it can be said that tonight is a night for very professional people, and for the audience who love classical music. It can be said that this is a night that brings together all the quintessence of music, and gives us a night of top-notch performance."
He also expressed his pride in what the capital's new art destination has brought to music lovers in Vietnam, affirming that it has been a long time since Hanoi had a high-class theater like this.
"It has been more than 100 years since the Opera House was built, and now there is a theater of this era that is worthy of international standards. This is truly a great joy for the public and artists. I think this is a new beginning, a new page for the history of Vietnamese music. This theater will open that new page," the musician especially emphasized.
General To Lam, Politburo member and Minister of Public Security, presented flowers to thank conductor Olivier Ochanine and the artists (Photo: Organizing Committee).
The endless applause, the emotion of both the performers and the audience, the magnificence and the special sound and light levels of the Hoan Kiem Theater… many factors made the August Symphony Concert extremely impressive, from which the audience had more expectations for the sublimation of the Capital's academic music art.
Source link
Comment (0)