July 9, Friday, 9.30 pm
Asklepion Theatre, Pergamon
TONES OF LOVE
Isabelle Cals,
soprano
Sylvie Valayre, soprano
Nicolai Schukoff, tenor
Jean-Marc Bouget, piano
Programme
MOZART
Così fan tutte - Sylvie Valeyre & Isabelle Cals
Ah guarda, sorella -
Prenderò quel brunettino
BEETHOVEN
Ah, perfido (extrait) - Isabelle Cals
VERDI
Macbeth
La luce langue - Sylvie Valeyre
Otello duo
Già nella notte densa - Isabelle Cals & Nicolai Schukoff
Trovatore
D’amor sull’ali rosee - Sylvie Valeyre
PUCCINI
Turandot
Nessun dorma - Nicolai Schukoff
Tosca duo - Sylvie Valeyre & Nicolai Schukoff
Mario Mario – Son qui
Ah, quegli occhi…qual occhio al mondo
Mia gelosa
Ou Butterfly duo - Sylvie Valeyre & Nicolai Schukoff
Bimba dagli occhi
Vogliatemi bene -
OPERETTE VIENNOISE
Pays du sourire
Wer hat die Liebe uns ins Herz gesenkt - Nicolai Schukoff & Isabelle
Cals
Dein ist mein ganzes Herz - Nicolai Schukoff
Veuve joyeuse duo
Lippen schweigen - Nicolai Schukoff & Isabelle Cals
BELLINI
Norma trio - Sylvie Valeyre & Isabelle Cals & Nicolai Schukoff
Oh! Di qual sei tu vittima
Perfido!
Vanne, sì
Isabelle Cals received her musical education in Paris Opera Centre de Formation Lyrique. She started her career as a Mezzo-soprano. She appeared on stages like Paris Opera, Théâtre des Champs-Elysées, Capitole, Monnaie de Bruxelles, Chorégies d’Orange in roles like Carmen (Mercedes), Don Carlo (Tebaldo) Romeo and Julliette (Stephano) Faust (Siebel), La Clemenza di Tito (Sesto). Then she made a transition to a more lyric repertoire: She performed in The Tales of Hoffmann (Giulietta) in Strasbourg and Graz, in Béatrice and Benedict (Béatrice) in Paris Chatelet under John Nelson, in Benvenuto Cellini (Ascanio) under Colin Davis in Lausanne with London Symphony Orchestra, in Faust (Marguerite) in Salzburg Festival under Valery Ghergiev, in Paris Orchestra with Christophe Eschenbach and in Strasbourg, in Pelléas et Mélisande (Mélisande) in Riga, In Tobias Picker’s Thérèse Raquin in Bordeaux, Caen and Toulon and in The Beautiful Helen (Hélène) in Covent Garden.
In her repertoire also there are works like La Demoiselle Elue (Under James Conlon, Cologne), Roméo et Juliette (Under Colin Davis, Théâtre des Champs-Elysées), Il Tramonto (Louvre Auditorium, accompanied by Quatuor Ysaÿe ), la Chanson perpétuelle (Capitole de Toulouse accompanied by Quatuor Parisii ), Les Nuits d’Eté (Accompanied by Orchestre du Capitole, in Porto and Györ), Sheherazade under François-Xavier Roth. She gives recitals regularly in halls like Nagaoka Lyric Hall, Opéra de Metz, Opéra de Lille.
CD recordings: 2007, Benvenuto Cellini (Ascanio) with London Symphony Orchestra under Sir Colin Davis, 2003, Carmen (Mercedes) under Michel Plasson EMI Records, 2001, Troyens (Ascagne) live with London Symphony Orchestra under Sir Colin Davis, 2001, Manon (Javotte) live in Paris Opera under Jesus Lopez-Cobos, 2000, Thaïs (Myrtale) under Yves Abel.
The productions Isabelle Cals took part last season are:
La Vie Parisienne (Metella) Massy Opera, Don Giovanni (Donna Elvira) Metz Opera, La Voix Humaine , Poitou-Charente Orchestra under François-Xavier Roth, Roméo et Juliette, Berlioz Festival, Côte-Saint-André.
Sylvie Valayre, soprano
I was born in Paris, only steps away from the Bastille, on October 10 like Verdi. When I was four, I had already decided that life was better spent on a stage.
In our home, my two musical brothers and I would listen to all kinds of music. By the end of my teens, I had two passions, music and the theatre, and saw no reason to favor one over the other. What if I went for both? Wouldn’t the scales be in perfect equilibrium? My parents decided for me: No theatre until you graduate from high school! And after that, the path of reason: a master’s in Anglo-American Studies, and then a pre-doctoral dissertation on the golden age of American movies. But you can’t fight nature: As I was getting ready for a Ph.D., I heard a scream inside of me, Edvard Munch loud and Sammy Davis Jr. clear : No! I can’t. I can’t become a professional student. I need to act, play, move, speak, mime, and why not? Sing!
Ah yes, but what? And where? The golden age of American musicals – my favorite? Too late. Theatres? Concert halls? Major attraction, no idea how to get from the hall up onto the stage. Opera houses? Never been there – at age twenty! – except via the roundabout way of operatic movies: Bergman’s Magic Flute, Losey’s Don Giovanni, Zeffirelli’s Traviata and Otello – where I saw M° Placido Domingo for the first time and felt my life would never be the same again – Francesco Rosi’s Carmen – with the same magnificent Domingo.
The die was cast: If I ever managed to use my vocal cords “the operatic way” – a bit of a challenge for someone who loved mimicking Joni Mitchell, Joan Baez, Ella Fitzgerald or Groucho Marx – I had a chance, or so I thought.
I promptly studied enough musical theory and interpretation to be admitted at the Paris Conservatoire. My mentors and professors were the always wonderful and good-humored Christiane Eda-Pierre and Gabriel Bacquier. I also sat in Régine Crespin’s class on occasions, when Christiane Eda-Pierre performed abroad. During those Conservatoire years, however, I felt like a fife trying to imitate the power and grandeur of Notre-Dame’s organ. At the same time, I was lucky enough to attend the master classes of Cathy Berberian, Galina Vichnevskaia, Gino Bechi, Paul von Schilawsky in Florence, and in Montpellier, Giuseppe Di Stefano who later chose me to perform with him in concert at Théâtre du Chatelet, in Paris.
I knew I was a soprano, but what manner of a soprano? A coloratura? A “simple” lyric soprano? A lirici-spinto? A “dramatic” soprano? Or, as some suggested, a light mezzo? Everyone I talked to had a different opinion. What was I to do with an immature range of three octaves?
In 1990, in Verona, I was lucky to meet Italian tenor Sergio Tedesco, who greatly assisted me in bringing my voice to a level of competence and maturity that allowed me to premiere in La Traviata and Tosca within two months of each other. Since the Fall of 2002, I have also benefited from the valuable advice of mezzo-soprano Catherine Green, who has become a very dear friend.
At the beginning of my career, I was immediately offered major parts in Mozart’s operas. Soon after, M° Mstistlav Rostropovitch and M° Galina Vichnevskaia asked me to perform the title role in their production of Rímsky Korsakov’s The Czar’s Bride at the Rome Opera. Then came Mimi in La Bohème, Tosca in Tosca, Magda in La Rondine, Violetta in La Traviata, Norma in Norma, Leonora in Fidelio, Manon in Manon Lescaut, Thaïs in Thaïs, Adina in L’Elisire d’Amore, Liú in Turandot, the Infante in The Dwarf [or The Infante’s Birthday] by Zemlinsky, La Voix humaine by Poulenc, and more.
People who called themselves “reasonable” kept telling me that my repertoire had “too much breadth and too little homogeneity.” It made it difficult for people in the profession to label me into a recognized vocal category. So, who needs to be labeled? Had I been reasonable, I would still be poring over my Ph.D. Besides, my ventures outside the recognized categories led me to a career that lacked nothing but monotony.
In 1995 for the first time, in a production touring the Netherlands, I performed the part of Lady Macbeth, which was to become one of my signature parts.
Starting in 1994, I was performing in all major Italian houses in the most diverse selection of works and parts: La Voix humaine (Trieste, Genova, Naples), Cavalleria Rusticana (Trieste, Bologna), L’heure Espagnole and Le Secret De Suzanne (Trieste), Madama Butterfly (Naples, Venice, Cagliari, Torino), Macbeth (Genova, Cagliari, Torino).
In 1996, with the production of Venice’s Fenice Theatre, I made my début in Warsaw in the wonderful part of Elisabetta in Don Carlo. A few months later in London, I made my concurrent débuts in Nabucco at the Covent Garden Opera, and in the five-acts Italian version of Don Carlo at the Royal Albert Hall, conducted by M° Bernard Haitink.
After London, in 1997, Milan invited me onto the famous stage of La Scala to perform Ponchielli’s La Gioconda. My début in Milan was soon followed by other débuts in other famous houses: Puccini’s Madama Butterfly at the San Francisco Opera, Verdi’s Jerusalem at Carnegie Hall in New York, Nabucco, Aida, and Tosca in the Roman arena of Verona, Nabucco in Zurich, Macbeth in Paris, and Tosca in Berlin.
My constant hopscotch from one country to another was not without flattering rewards. For example, in 1997, the Graz Opera in Austria had asked me to hop on a plane and replace their indisposed soprano in Madama Butterfly. During the dress rehearsal, as I was worried on stage as to whether they would like my Butterfly, they were worrying in the wing as to whether I would accept the monumental part of Salome, which, to my complete surprise, they offered me the moment I walked off stage. It took me months to find the strength to accept the part. Not until 1999 did I return to Graz as Salome, a part that has since brought me so much satisfaction and appreciation.
Then came Aida in Munich and, in 2000, first performances of Madama Butterfly at the Metropolitan Opera, Manon Lescaut at Opera Pacific, Ernani at the Madrid Opera, Aida at Macerata, Tosca in Paris and Tokyo, and Macbeth in Berlin. The year 2001 brought me Tosca, again in Paris and in Chicago for my début there, Macbeth at Brussels’ Théâtre de la Monnaie, and Norma in Macerata.
The year 2002 was equally prolific, as I sung Elektra’s Chrysothemis in Madrid under M° Daniel Barenboim’s baton, Butterfly in Tokyo under M° Chung, and the title part of Salome at the Kennedy Center in Washington. In September and October, I had the privilege of returning to the Metropolitan Opera with M° Placido Domingo and M° James Levine to give my first performance of Andrea Chénier’s Magdalena.
The 2003-2004 season was characterized by some significant first performances: the title part of Turandot in Berlin with M° Kent Nagano; the part of the Empress in Strauss’s Die Frau Ohne Schatten, also in Berlin with M° Thielemann; the part of Minnie in Puccini’s La Fanciulla Del West in Zurich, the part of Amelia in Ballo in Maschera in Torino; Tosca at the Met and in Vienna, Butterfly in Chicago and Naples, as well as Nabucco and La Gioconda in Zurich.
The abundance of 2003-2004 carried over to the 2004-2005 season: Salome in Braunschweig and Athens with the Vienna Philharmonic, and in Rome with the Santa Cecilia Orchestra; Tosca, Nabucco and Fedora in Vienna; Salome in Tokyo; Tosca in Zurich, at the New York Metropolitan Opera, and in Washington, D.C.; and Aida in the Caracalla Therms of Rome, directed by M° Placido Domingo.
Nikolai Schukoff, Tenor
The Austrian tenor, born in Graz, is one of the most promising young voices on the international opera and concert circuit. After his studies at the "Mozarteum" Salzburg, he had his successful debut in May 1996 as "Alfredo" in La Traviata in Gelsenkirchen (Germany). While in Gelsenkirchen as well as in the course of his engagements at the Nationaltheater Mannheim and at the Staatstheater Nuremberg, respectively, he was able to build up a repertoire with various lyric roles. Guest appearances included invitations to the Deutsche Oper am Rhein, Düsseldorf, the "Kleines Festspielhaus" Salzburg, the Opéra de Lyon, the Théâtre du Châtelet, Paris, the Opéra Comique, Paris as well as to the Scottish Opera.
According to his vocal development, Nikolai Schukoff has been adapting his roles towards a more dramatic repertoire. In the fall of 2005, he appeared as "Jean" in a concert version of Massenet's Hérodiade in Munich and, following the advice of Christoph Eschenbach, as "Siegfried" / Götterdämmerung at the Châtelet in Paris in spring 2006. When performing "Siegmund" in a concert version of Walküre's first act at the Philharmonie Berlin in December 2006, he brought the house down. The same happened at the Bavarian State Opera in Munich when he took over "Parsifal" from Placido Domingo in April 2007. Other highlights include his portrayal of "Sergej" in Lady Macbeth von Mzensk at the Grand Théâtre de Genève as well as the operetta galas at the 2007 Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival and also his Lieder recitals with Christoph Eschenbach on the piano, which he presented at the festivals of Ravinia (USA) and Schleswig-Holstein, followed by "Don José" / CARMEN at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris, "Max" / Der Freischütz at the Grand Théâtre de Genève, "Danilo" / Merry Widow at the Hamburg State Opera as well as "Parsifal", "Dionysus" / The Bassarides, "Eisenstein" / FLEDERMAUS and "Erik" / FLYING DUTCHMAN at the Bavarian State Opera in Munich and at the Edinburgh Festival as well as "Parsifal" at the Palace of Arts in Budapest.
Among the future projects: "Parsifal" at the Dresden State Opera, in Hamburg, Munich, Paris and Lyon, "Steva" / JENUFA at the Teatro Real in Madrid, "Pollione" / NORMA at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris, "Don José" / CARMEN at the Festival of Baden-Baden, "Don José" / CARMEN as well as "Pinkerton" / BUTTERFLY in Hamburg, "Jim Mahoney" / MAHAGONNY in Toulouse and "The Prince" / RUSALKA in Gothenburg as well as "Parsifal" in the new production of the 2013 Salzburg Easter Festival, etc.
In 2004, he was invited to sing Janacek's Glagolitic Mass with the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra. In 2005, he appeared with the Orchestra dell'Accademia di Santa Cecilia in Rome under Gustavo Dudamel with Beethoven's 9th Symphony, at the San Sebastian Festival with Mahler's 8th Symphony and, at the Vienna Musikverein, with Schmidt's Das Buch mit sieben Siegeln (including a CD production). He performed Das Lied von der Erde with the Radio Orchestra under Jaap van Zweden at the Concertgebouw Amsterdam as well as with the Philadelphia Orchestra at the Lucerne Festival and at the Berlin Festival and with the London Philharmonic Orchestra at the Royal Festival Hall in London - all under Christoph Eschenbach. Mr. Schukoff also appeared in Mahler's 8th Symphony in Paris-Bercy with the Orchestre de Paris under Christoph Eschenbach and in Beethoven's 9th Symphony with the Gewandhaus Orchestra Leipzig under Riccardo Chailly as well as with the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande under Marek Janowski in Basel, Lausanne and Geneva and with the Radio Symphony Orchestra Berlin, again under Marek Janowski, at the Philharmonie Berlin. In 2008/09 the artist was invited to perform Schönberg's Gurrelieder at the Festival of Saragossa and in Bacelona, followed by Beethoven's Missa Solemnis with the London Philharmonic Orchestra under Christoph Eschenbach, "Siegmund" / Walküre 1st act with the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande under Marek Janowski in Geneva and in Lausanne, Mahler's 8th Symphony in Copenhagen under Ion Marin as well as Beethoven's 9th Symphony in Madrid and at the Festival de Saint-Denis.
Still to follow are Das Lied von der Erde with the Orchestre de Paris under Christoph Eschenbach in Paris, Das klagende Lied with the Orchestre National de France under Daniele Gatti in Paris, Missa Solemnis with the Chamber Orchestra of Europe in Lisbon, Verdi's Requiem with the National Symphony Orchestra in Washington DC under Christoph Eschenbach, "Guido Bardi" in Zemlinsky's Eine florentinische Tragödie with the Orchestra dell'Accademia di Sta. Cecilia in Rome, Pylade in concert performances of Iphigénie en Tauride at the Liceu in Barcelona, Beethoven's 9th Symphony with the National Symphony Orchestra in Washington DC, Missa Solemnis with the Bamberg Philharmonic Orchestra under Christoph Eschenbach, etc.
Nikolai Schukoff has also been working with conductors such as Marc Albrecht, Gian-Carlo Andretta, Christian Arming, Richard Armstrong, Philippe Auguin, Carlo Felice Cillario, Myun-Whun Chung, Alfred Eschwé, Leopold Hager, Gustav Kuhn, Sebastian Lang Lessing, Ioan Marin, Jun Märkl, Sir Yehudi Menuhin, Marc Minkowski, Kent Nagano, John Nelson, Victor Pablo Pérez, Josep Pons, Peter Schneider, Marc Soustrot and Simone Young.
Jean-Marc Bouget, pianist
Jean-Marc Bouget who graduted from National Superior Conservatory of Lyon in piano branch with the first degree, received education in the areas of chamber music and singing as well as literature and history of art. After his career of teaching piano in Grenoble Conservatory and Paris Music School, he received the title of professor in Ecole d’Art Lyrique. He is performing duty in Lyric Workshop of Paris State Opera at present.
Beside his Chamber Music studies, he accompanies lyric artists as Béatrice Uria-Monzon, Natalie Dessay, Léontina Vaduva, Isabelle Cals, Sylvie Valayre in their concerts. He worked with conductors as Michel Plasson, Seiji Ozawa, Lorin Maazel, Evelino Pido in preparation of many lyric productions. He took place in master class education of artists like Christa Ludwig, Ileana Cotrubas, Gérard Souzay, Teresa Berganza as a pianist.
The musician who does not believe in separation of types in performing arts took place in musical theatrical shows which also include works like Sheherazade, « Le Bel été de Colette » « Le Chandelier » . He has played the art critic role in Director Maurice Pialat’s «Van Gogh» (1991) film and has made the soundtrack for some scenes of the film.