THE SONGBIRD: Olga Kondina (Ольга Кондина) was born in Sverdlovsk, Russia in 1956. She studied violin and voice and graduated in 1985. After placing well in a few competitions in the mid-1980s (Moscow, Italy, Barcelona), Kondina was engaged as a soloist at the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg. She sang the florid soprano leading roles in popular Russian operas, and in the standard Italian, French, and German repertoire. Kondina has sung across Europe, America, and Japan, often on tour with the Mariinsky company.
THE MUSIC: Meyerbeer's 1859 opera-comique "Dinorah," originally titled "Le pardon de Ploërmel," premiered in Paris with Marie Cabel in the title role of a country girl who has already gone mad before the start of the opera! Why? Her bridegroom disappeared following a storm that interrupted their wedding. "Dinorah" was a popular success for 50 years, partly for the quaint music but also out of the novelty of having a live goat and running water on stage. It was kept in the repertory as a favorite showcase role for starry coloratura sopranos including Adelina Patti, Nellie Melba, Caroline Miolan-Carvalho, Marie Van Zandt (the first to sing it at The Met, in 1892), Amelita Galli-Curci, Ilma de Murska, Luisa Tetrazzini, Maria Barrientos, and Lily Pons. Rightly deemed old-fashioned with the rise of verismo, it faded from opera stages and is rarely revived today. However, its most famous aria "Ombre legere" is still a go-to showpiece programmed in recitals and concerts due to its charming tune and coloratura echo effects as Dinorah sings and dances with her shadow.
16 окт 2024
