Vespers by Monteverdi, presented by Pinchgut Opera

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https://www.pinchgutopera.com.au

Date Reviewed: 25/03/2021

Written by Irena Begelfor 

Pinchgut Opera, Australia’s premier Baroque opera company, presented Vespers by Monteverdi at The Melbourne Recital Centre on Thursday 25th March. Their vision was to recreate Vespers in its original form, and they certainly achieved it this evening. The audience was transposed back in time, to Cremona, to the year 1607, at the time where Claudio Monteverdi’s haunting music, Vespers was first performed. The majestic music, the crystal sounds of the vocals, and the magnificent uttering of the psalms together lulled people into their own spiritual, creative worlds.

Pinchgut Opera is led by the ARIA Award-winning Artistic Director Erin Helyard. Impressively, he is both a conductor and musician, playing the chamber organ. The orchestra of the Antipodes has a delicate lightness in their sound, and they weave the music in unison, like a musical tapestry. The orchestra is rich with atypical instruments like the Cornetti, masterfully played by Matthew Manchester and John Foster; a remarkable instrument, the lirone which looks like a cello but has 14 strings and sounds like a harpsichord, was played by the very talented Laura Vaughan. 

In fact, each of the orchestral musicians is of the highest calibre. There are 2 violins played by Matthew Greco and Rafael Font Viera; the viola played by Karina Schmitz; Basse de violon, the ancestor to today’s cello, played by Anton Baba; Violone, also a cello sized instrument, by Kirsty McCahon; the large bore tenor sackbut, the trombones of the baroque eras, are played by Ros Jorgensen and Nigel Crocker and one bass sackbut by Brett Page; the theorbo lute played by Simon Martyn-Ellis, and the Harp by Hannah Lane. The operatic singers each come with impressive backgrounds and are each a soloist. The chorus is rich with 2 sopranos, Chloe Lankshear and Anna Sandstrom, both Anna Fraser and Max Riebl sang altos, Louis Hurley and Richard Butler – the tenors and David Greco with Andrew O’Connor the basses.

Pinchant Opera is known for seeking the unheard, the forgotten works from the Baroque and bringing them to life. Indeed, although well known, Monteverdi’s Vespers is rarely performed. I have never been to any of Pinchgut’s events, and now, Pinchgut has an eternal stamp of the highest quality imprinted in my mind. I will be looking out for their next live performance.

 I would say to all of you, go and experience this event for yourself. However, Vespers was a one-only performance in Melbourne. Pinchgut Opera will be back in Melbourne in September 2021, again for a one-only performance of Purcell & Charpentier. Subscribe to their mailing list so that you are informed when tickets go on sale.