The voices of four young singers filled the Ford Center’s stage Monday. Each of the featured artists is accomplished in his or her own right, but the Metropolitan Opera in New York City has brought them together for a concert series touring the country—and afforded patrons the opportunity to hear history in the making.
Cecilia Hall, Amanda Woodbury, David Won and Kevin Short are all relative newcomers to the operatic scene, though they’ve proven their worth on stages across the world. Hall and Won are alumni of the Metropolitan Opera’s Lindemann Young Artist Development Program, while Woodbury and Short won the Met’s National Council Auditions in 2014 and 1989, respectively. Tonight the full force of that talent and training was apparent in the artistry with which each performer commanded the stage.
The concert featured 20 pieces in a wide range of styles, artistic periods and languages. Brent Funderburk, who accompanied the artists on piano, also narrated the program. Funderburk’s involvement was refreshing in a setting where, all too often, the pianist is in the background; he served as cohesion for the program and offered up simple but complete contexts for many of the pieces sung.
Though the program was masterfully wrought from beginning to end, there were a few stand-out performances. Baritone David Won stunned with his rendition of “Wie Todesahnung… o du, mein holder Abenstern” from Wagner’s “Tannhäuser,” an ode to the evening star. German is often misunderstood as a harsh language, unsuitable to opera. Won’s performance proved without a doubt that a well-executed German aria can be more beautiful than the most ethereal of Italian singing. The South Korea-born baritone sings with technical brilliance, his timbre darker and fuller than one might expect.
Soprano Amanda Woodbury offered up Donizetti’s “Regnava del silenzio… quando rapito in estasi” with poise and grace. The effortless feel of her notes belied the difficulty of the aria from “Lucia di Lammermoor,” the opera known for its challenging titular soprano role with soaring high notes and the infamously demanding “mad scene.” Woodbury’s performance might well outshine the greatest opera divas of our time.
A rousing Mephistopheles from Gounod’s “Faust” entranced the audience as bass-baritone Kevin Short sang “Le veau d’or,” a piece celebrating the greed of men, which keeps the charismatic spirit of hell in business. The bass-baritone’s voice was well suited to the role: Short achieved a mischievous nature without sacrificing the weight and depth of his voice.
Mezzo-soprano Cecelia Hall charmed with her girlish but conniving Rosina in two numbers from Rossini’s “Il barbiere di Siviglia.” Her duet with Won, a spirited conversation between her Rosina and his Figaro, was one of the best duets of the evening. The two artists sparked off one another in the energetic piece, Won showing his prowess as Hall showcased the versatility and flexibility of her instrument. “Ma bravi! Ma benone!… dunque io son” was one of the triumphs of the concert.
The overall crowd favorites, though, were the last four numbers of the program—selections from American Broadway musicals. Hall took possession of a lesser-known Gershwin song entitled “The Lorelei” with panache, embracing the oddities of the libretto with a grin and jazzy style. Short offered a song from the classic “Camelot” to resounding applause, and Woodbury sang an endearing “I could have danced all night” from “My Fair Lady.”
However, the performance that garnered wistful smiles and overwhelming applause from the audience was David Won’s “Some enchanted evening” from Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “South Pacific.” The simple but evocative song became a work of art in Won’s capable hands, each note hanging in the air like a gust of wind.
The four singers rounded out the evening with a quartet performance of the last few measures of “I could have danced all night,” bowing to the standing ovation of the crowd.
The concert series visits Georgia next, with a performance on Oct. 1 at the Thomasville Center for the Arts.
