A concert for Ukraine: The Met sings for the peace.

The heinous nature of the war has caught us totally unprepared. Unable to imagine another war in Europe, almost 30 years after the Yugoslavian wars, Vladimir Putin's evil 19th Century imperialist ambitions has slapped in our Western faces and led Russia to invade Ukraine. Despite U.S. previsions, not even Russians and Ukrainians could imagine that the menace of war would finally be fulfilled. Three weeks later of the beginning of hostilities, two million refugees have escaped to the European Union, while the Ukrainian people ressists the Russian army amidst their bombed and now ruined cities, with an increasing number of casualties, both civil and militar. 

As well as the political, economical global spheres have responded with stronger and stronger sanctions against Russia (putting the Russian people in the razor's edge), the musical world has also reacted. Opera houses, orchestras worldwide have shown their solidarity with Ukrainian people, through musical galas in their honor and charity collecting for the ailing, destitute Ukrainians, which need any kind of help. On the other hands, the two most popular Russian operatic stars, the soprano Anna Netrebko and the conductor Valery Gergiev, have been fired from most of their scheduled performances throughout the Western world. 

The Met, which has also cancelled all of its agenda with Netrebko, as well as it is said to be their new Lohengrin co-production with the Bolshoi Theatre, has joined this wave of solidarity. After the moving anecdote of the Chorus singing the Ukrainian anthem after a Don Carlo performance, the opera house has scheduled A Concert for Ukraine, whose program is detailed here:

National Anthem of Ukraine

Vladyslav Buialskyi , baritone

“Prayer for Ukraine” by Valentin Silvestrov

Adagio for Strings by Samuel Barber

“Va, pensiero” from Verdi’s Nabucco

Four Last Songs by Richard Strauss

    Lise Davidsen, soprano

Finale from Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9, Op. 125

            Elza van den Heever, soprano

            Jamie Barton, mezzo-soprano

            Piotr Beczała, tenor

            Ryan Speedo Green, bass-baritone

The Metropolitan Opera Chorus and Orchestra conducted by Yannick Nézet-Seguin.

Vladislav Buialskyi at the Met Opera.

After an opening address by the manager Peter Gelb, the evening started with the National Ukrainian Anthem, sung by Vladyslav Buialskyi and the Chorus, in a passionate performance. The Chorus has been the main protagonist, singing a deeply moving performance of the delightful, lullaby-like "Prayer for Ukraine" by Valentin Silvestrov. This was followed by the famous Barber's Adagio, in which the Met's strings played so devotedly that gave the melancholic touch. 

(To listen to these three pieces, in a cloudy, dusty morning -we had a dust storm last night in Spain, so we had an unusual orange dawn-, walking through an industrial park in my way to volunteer for packing goods for Ukraine, could be a startling, extremely sad, moving, cathartic experience)

Then, the Orchestra and Chorus went on with Verdi's Va Pensiero from Nabucco. This piece about the nostalgia of an enslaved people (Jews in Egypt), which became a symbol of the Risorgimento in the still-to-unify 19th Century Italy, and recently played in the Odessa Opera, is one of the most beautiful operatic hymns to freedom. Here, both sounded superb, as they are quite familiar with the piece, the orchestra playing with Verdian passion, and the chorus with a beautiful singing, making the audience to shed a tear.

Lise Davidsen, one of the most important emerging operatic stars, sang the Last Four Songs by Richard Strauss. Her voice is still impressing because of her amazing volume, her dramatic tone, with that old school taste, which sometimes makes us feel as if we were listening one of the greatest singers of the past, as if that glorious days weren't gone. Her amazing high notes, alongside her robust, rich-toned middle register resulted in a great rendition. Orchestra played very well here, the beautiful violin and woodwind in Beim Schlafengehen and in Im Abendrot. Nézet-Seguin's conducting sounded as enrapturing as the music, being alongside the Nabucco chorus, their best moment in the night.

The final piece was the Finale of the Beethoven Ninth Symphony. The Ode to Joy, the official anthem of the European Union, and one of the most beautiful odes to liberty, as it has inspired freedom in everyone listening to it. What was really amazing here was the First-class singing. When Ryan Speedo Green started to sing "O Freunde", his powerful, stamina singing promised a glorious ending. He really astonished with his enormous dark bass voice, in one of the best performances of this part heard recently. Piotr Beczała sang his brief part with a lyrical heroicism, inspired by the moving athmosphere in the hall. The chorus was the real protagonist, singing with all their soul, making vibrant and heartbreaking every line of Schiller's text. The orchestra was right, with the woodwind shining by their own merit, but globally they had their ups and downs, despite making a spectacular final tutti.

This concert has been broadcasted nationwide and worldwide, and due to its success, it is being streamed in the Met Opera website for one week. The Ukrainian ambassador for the UN was present.  Gelb himself stated that this concert was being broadcast in the national Ukraine radio. In the luxurious hall of the Met, a great success took place. In the social media, there were many positive reactions, of people who were in tears while enjoying this uplifting event. 

In Ukraine, all the magic of this concert gave a brief moment of relief and happiness, to a people which is in the verge of destruction amidst the horrors of war, for sure.

My reviews are not professional and express only my opinions. As a non English native speaker I apologise for any mistake. 

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