Hvorostovsky and Orbelian at the LA Opera
Dmitri Hvorostovsky and Constantine Orbelian get their 2006 show on the road with a gala concert for LA Opera on Sunday, January 15
Last summer Russian baritone Dmitri Hvorostovsky and Constantine Orbelian, leading his Moscow Chamber Orchestra, gave an inspiring series of joint concerts honoring a number of so-called Russian “Hero Cities.” Each of these cities had played a crucial role in the victory of Russia and its allies over Nazi Germany in World War II, exactly 60 years ago. These concerts featured Dmitri Hvorostovsky singing songs from the War period which helped to sustain the morale of the military and civilians during that horrendous time, songs still well known and beloved in Russia by both young and old. The response to these programs in Russia was unprecedented, culminating in a triumphant outdoor gala in St. Petersburg.
With their shared canny sense of showmanship, Dmitri and Constantine have brought virtually the same program to the U.S. this month. Audiences in Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., San Francisco, New York, and Miami will all get to hear the music that proved so successful in Russia last summer.
Juding from the premiere concert in Los Angeles at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion sponsored by LA Opera on Sunday, January 15, the artists can look forward to large and enthusiastic audiences wherever they perform. In addition to seemingly every expatriate Russian in the L.A. area (and there are a lot of them), the usual crowd of opera fans showed up en masse. Everyone in the audience lived and breathed with the program of Russian opera arias and war songs from beginning to end.
Hvorostovsky looked splendid and sang this repertoire as only he can. Orbelian, with the augmented Philharmonia of Russia, provided his uniquely sympathetic accomaniments and added a number of stirring orchestra interludes. The wonderful Oakland-based Pacific Boys Choir and the Russian folk ensemble Style of Five gave the final gilding to the already heavily gilded lily.
The next performances took place at the Kennedy Center in Washington on January 18 and Davies Hall in San Francisco on January 22 to great acclaim. Tonight, January 25, New Yorkers get their turn in Avery Fisher Hall, and then Miamians at the Jackie Gleason Theatre on January 31. Dmitri rejoins the traveling Russian ensemble for a final re-creation of this concert in London at the Barbican on February 17. This program has turned out to have such universal appeal that it may yet rival the success of “The Three Tenors.” No, signed t-shirts are not yet available.
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