T-5: Never ever invite the Statue to dinner.

Wow! Two posts in less than a month! That is quite the accomplishment, at least for me. This time there isn’t much to complain about. Actually, there is nothing to complain about! Incredible. Either I have been really content lately or nothing significant has taken place. Both explanations are fine with me. So, without any further ado, let’s talk about Statues, shall we?

DO I REALLY HAVE TO WARN YOU ABOUT SPOILERS THIS TIME? I SERIOUSLY DOUBT IT…

Even if you are not at all familiar with the world of opera, chances are that you have seen Don Giovanni in some form, at some point in your life. Maybe not as Don Giovanni, but in his many other incarnations from books to the cinema – it is, together with Romeo and Juliet, probably the second most popular hero in our western tradition. The incorrigible libertine, the seductive Casanova, the mysterious Don Juan has been an obsession of both sexes; let’s be honest with each other: Men envy his many conquests and try to be like him and ladies do dream about him, even if they do not admit so to anyone… I could go on explaining why this particular character is so captivating, but I won’t.

Instead, I’ll jump straight to the point and start discussing (with myself) the operatic incarnation that W. A. Mozart created together with his buddy Lorenzo Da Ponte of this intriguing character. The premise of this opera is rather simple: said Don tries first to seduce Donna Anna à fails (?) à kills her father à tries to seduce Donna Elvira (his ex-wife) à runs away from her à tries to seduce Zerlina (a lovely maiden on her wedding night) à fails à tries to seduce Donna Elvira’s housemaid à fails à invites the Statue of Donna Anna’s father to dinner (!!!) à ends up in Hell. A number of characters are also involved in this lovely plot – namely Leporello, his servant, Don What’s-his-Name, Donna Anna’s fiancé and Masetto, Zerlina’s husband – and let us also keep in mind that the above plot happens during one night and one alone…

Let’s start with the discrepancies (I always wanted to do that): This is supposed to be the guy who has successfully seduced more than 1.000 ladies of all ages and statuses across Europe? Well, he sure does fail a lot during this fateful night… Also, if he kills Il Commendatore on that same night, how is it possible to invite his statue, which has already been erected at the cemetery? When did they inter the guy? There is a huge problem here, but we’ll go with it, because that is what makes the opera so great! Add to that the fact that the scenes in which he disguises himself as his servant are not at all convincing – I mean, wouldn’t Donna Elvira realize she is not with her husband, but his servant? It is rather curious.

There is also one really stupid character; that’s right, the Don What’s-his-Name (Ottavio. If I think about it, his name is a disgrace to another Octavian, but that is an entirely different blog entry! That was a spoiler for what lies ahead, by the way). Let’s see: if you compare him to Don Giovanni, he is weak. If you compare him to Masetto, he comes off as unmanly. If you compare him to the Commendatore, he really doesn’t strike you as the scary kind of guy. He hates violence, has no idea how to confront his own fears – least of all how to confront his fiancé’s fears – and he sings some really cheesy tunes. Truthfully, it is only those cheesy tunes that save this particular character. Thankfully, his is a minor role in the entire plot and so we can easily put him out of our minds and concentrate on more important stuff: the two ladies and the Statue!

First comes Donna Anna (although, since Don Giovanni was married to Donna Elvira, she should take precedence, but let’s follow the script here and not take things chronologically). It’s really strange, but to me, Donna Anna was always an elusive figure, that doesn’t really gain much substance. But there is also a certain ambiguity in her character. No one really knows – except for herself and the Don – what happened between the two of them that fateful night. Modern interpretations of the opera have even suggested that she invited the man herself and then, to uphold her honor, she cried “rape”. But what if she truly did invite him and then cry rape? She becomes automatically the perpetrator of her father’s murder. She is guilty of involuntary manslaughter! So, the act of pleasure seeking ends up badly, severely damaging her and her future. The request then she makes of Don Ottavio to avenge her father is essentially her own attempt at salvation and forgiveness. Don Ottavio doesn’t carry out his oath, of course, because he is quite incapable of doing that. But, this is opera, so the punishment will come and it will be severe. Of course, one has to ask oneself why Don Giovanni should be punished, if we accept that Donna Anna invited him in the first place!? If she didn’t invite him and he truly wanted to rape her, then fine, he deserves the punishment, but let’s be honest – we all like the other idea more, right? [A truly devious mind might even argue that the murder of the father was planned by the daughter, because she was certain he would come to her defense… But we do not have devious minds around here, now, do we?]

Then comes the ex wife. There had to be an ex, of course. Now she is something entirely different! Here you have a woman with a mission! She is truly, madly, deeply in love with Don Giovanni and because she is so in love, she tries desperately to save him from himself. In the process she ends up saving Zerlina, but that is also part of the game. Donna Elvira is a magnificent creature, in my opinion. She is willing to sacrifice everything for an ungrateful husband. She ends up empty, obviously, and her only recourse would be to join a monastery, but she has great potential. It is the stupidity of man and Don Giovanni in particular that simply makes it impossible for her to be happy. Also, Donna Elvira is the only person in the whole plot, who actually foresees the unhappy end the Don will suffer in a splendid aria in the second act, where she describes with great accuracy the fires of Hell ascending. Donna Elvira is not mad – as many productions like to portray her. She is merely deceived by none other than the God of Love himself. She cannot be faulted for failing in her mission.

And finally comes the Statue. I love everything about the Statue, plain and simple. The Commendatore before his death is simply a man who wants to defend his daughter and his family’s honor. But after his death, he becomes so much more: He is Death incarnate, he is the right hand of Justice, he is the representative of Hell on Earth and he sings "Don Giovaaaani!" in the most sonorous bass line that was ever written. I never quite understood why he comes from Hell, maybe he doesn’t, but I always felt that he is not godsend. I could be wrong, but I have an argument to support my theory: it is in his constant pleading with Don Giovanni to request forgiveness, in his vain attempt to save the libertine from eternal damnation, that I see him as a soul trapped in those same flames that will devour the protagonist. For some strange reason, he wishes to spare his mortal enemy the agony he is suffering. All in vain, of course. The Don is a narcissist above all and the last thing that would cross his mind would be to ask for forgiveness. So they both end up in Hell, probably sharing a hot tub…

This all then is supposed to be a “dramma giocoso”, a happy drama! Mozart had a weird sense of humor, that much is well known and documented. But where is the joyfulness in the plot? By the end of it you have two dead people, a servant with no master (who instead of relishing the fact that he is free, decides to find a new master), an ex wife who will probably take up the habit, a failed relationship and most definitely a failed future marriage and the happy-go-lucky-newlywed peasant pair that really doesn’t care much about anything else other than pleasing their carnal desires. Happiness? Joy? Definitely not. Not even the illusion of them! Only Justice (?) for a man who was so self-conscious it killed him.

Of course, there is a “but”. This is Mozart! Divine, elegant, melodic, dramatic Mozart. Don Giovanni is not just about an intriguing character, it is about the music involved in it. Treatises upon treatises have been written about it; about how the protagonist never sings an actual aria, or about the ambiguous musical setting of almost every scene – there is metatext to be found in everything here! And there is excitement. I always get really edgy when the dinner scene begins. It is the frivolity of the wine song that is contrasted with the Statue’s ominous “Don Giovanni” exclamation that turns the tables literally. Or the really inspired ensemble scenes, where no voice is redundant. It is passionate music, with a touch of irony and even pain that was composed here. Was Mozart sympathizing with his libertine? Who knows? Fact is, this opera is not just an all time classic, but it is probably the greatest contribution to the myth of the Don Juan. And I am definitely loving this version the most. Which is why, when talking to Statues, I remain respectful and graceful and never ever invite them to dinners…

    

T-6: Unrequited Love, Duty and a suicidal Poet in the French version of Goethe

I suppose that by now those who follow this blog ardently must have realized that I am not really very good at keeping my New Year’s Resolutions, which is why for 2014 I made none to speak of. Considering that last year I promised myself I would at least finish the opera count-down, it saddens me to admit that I was unable to do so. Obviously, otherwise this would not be No. 6 on the list, but an entirely different entry altogether. It is for two reasons that this is so: Reason No. 1 is a significant lack of time on my part. I have begun an entirely new chapter in my life, away from everything familiar and the everyday struggles of getting used to a new lifestyle do drag on considerably. Reason No. 2 is a lack of an inspiring title. It has always been, to the chagrin of my teachers at school, a huge problem of mine that I cannot write anything – short or long – if the title doesn’t fit. Occasionally, and only because I am being pushed by deadlines, I deliver texts for the odd publication here and there. But, even though I know the operas on the list, I cannot continue with the count-down, when I don’t have a title. It is a terrible problem, but one I cannot control or overcome. Therefore, with an extremely heavy heart and an even worse title to begin with, I give you my first contribution to 2014 – and no, it is not an opera by Richard Strauss, despite it being a Richard Strauss year! (Finally, because all this Wagner-Verdi craze of 2013 was really getting on my nerves… Especially the Wagner part!)

SPOILER ALERT! EITHER READ THE BOOK OR WATCH THE OPERA BEFORE VENTURING FURTHER ON! ALTHOUGH, COME TO THINK OF IT, YOU PROBABLY KNOW WHAT HAPPENS ALREADY, EVEN IF YOU DO NEITHER…

A French opera based on a German novel authored by one of the most important authors of European history, can either be better than the book or worse. I am not particularly fond of the French in general, but I do grant them that they have some kick ass composers and they are pretty much the only reason why I would learn French, should I ever decide to learn another foreign language. Apart from French music however, I do not really want to have many dealings with France or its people – which is why I am probably going to end up either marrying a French guy, or having to live and work in France at some point in my life, just to prove me wrong, as is Life’s want…! Back to the opera, though, I am obviously talking about Jules Massenet and his version of Goethe’s “The Sorrows of young Werther” (now there’s a catchy title!)

The premise of the story is rather simple and easily explained: said “young Werther” is a poet/dreamer/nature lover/childish person who falls in love with kindhearted/duty bound/honorable/nurturing Charlotte, who marries Albert (no descriptive adjectives for him). Said “young Werther” commits suicide. End of story. By the way, this has got to be the shortest plot description I am ever going to make here! It most definitely is the shortest so far…

Ok, so now we know what happens. It doesn’t really sound appealing, right? I mean, you have an egotistical protagonist who commits suicide with Albert’s gun, just because he can’t have Charlotte. Charming! Well, it is not so simple. One of the musical arguments I have with my mother is about French opera. She claims that there are no real memorable melodies in it. Well, I beg to differ. And “Werther” is one of the many examples that affirm my opinion. There are a number of scenes that include some of the most beautiful and expressive melodies ever written. Yes, admittedly they are typically French, in that they are filled with pathos and melodrama and gravity and all the things that make French music different from Italian or German music. It doesn’t really flow, nor does it have a “beat”, but this pathetic style is in itself beautiful and strangely fits the characters of this particular work extremely well.

And that brings me to the second point that makes this opera interesting: the characters. Granted, the whole plot in the opera revolves around Werther and Charlotte, they have the most to sing and the entire last act is dominated by them. And granted, too, one might even argue that neither character undergoes a major change. Perhaps that is most true for Werther. His sole purpose in life is to woe Charlotte and be an artist. However, it is clear that the second part is rather unimportant to him from the moment he meets her. The tragedy in their case is a result of both Charlotte’s sense of duty and Werther’s weak character. This weakness is evident in the fact that he only fights for her when she is alone with him and never when Albert is present. He takes the easy way out. He asserts his power only in front of Charlotte and then immediately regrets doing so. Werther is no fighter. He doesn’t really know how to fight. In reality he is the typical egotist. And because he also is an artist, he needs someone to both inspire and commend him. Charlotte, in his mind, is that Muse he needs, but she turns out to be a dark one.

In truth, this opera is concentrated on Charlotte. She is the one that has to suffer for everything. Let us consider this for a moment: Indeed, the two of them would make a brilliant couple if Albert were not in the middle. Why? Because Werther, as an artist, is unable to care for himself and Charlotte is a successful housewife, taking on the role of the mother to her little siblings early on, with her mother’s passing. She would take care of the artist and be his inspiration at the same time. And it would please her too, because she is the kind of person that lives to serve others. But, there is the small hiccup called Albert and Charlotte’s oath to her dying mother that she would marry him. So, this idyllic idea cannot be realized. Charlotte does love Albert, but that love is not a carnal love; it is a love borne from duty. Werther is the wakeup call for her sexuality, but she cannot give in to that, because she feels bound by duty.

And then there is the final act. Up to that point the opera pretty much follows the events of the book by condensing them of course to the absolute essentials. It is this final act that really makes the opera better than the book however and the reason is this: in the book, Werther shoots himself with Albert’s gun and dies about a day later (on Christmas day) with Charlotte’s siblings all around him. The last thing he experiences is the touch of children’s lips on his face, which is according to his love of children and his own self – the child that is trapped inside a grown-ups body. But Charlotte is not present in the scene, so the romance is not really concluded. The opera takes a different approach to that and for the better: Werther shoots himself with Albert’s gun again on Christmas day, but this time Charlotte finds him and the two of them spend some truly tragic moments together, with sublime music to make things even worse. And there is also the outrageous request that Werther makes of Charlotte, which is the absolute crowning of his egotism and proves once again that Charlotte is a victim of her own sense of duty: he asks that she visit his grave every single day, for the rest of her life, to weep for him and remember him and their unrequited love. Of course we all know that Charlotte is going to do that, driving herself mad with guilt probably and most definitely ruining her marriage with Albert. So, in the opera’s end, Werther gets what he wants only he is not there to live it!

I cannot exactly explain why this particular opera makes it into my Top 10. Perhaps it was the truly emotional performances of Vesselina Kasarova in Munich that make it so special to me. I saw the production with her three times and each time I was moved to the core by it. It is a brilliant production (thank God the production has been recorded, not in Munich unfortunately and not with Kasarova, but still it is worth it). It is an extremely delicate staging, with constant references to Goethe’s text as well scribbled all over the walls. I am glad someone took the trouble to upload it on YouTube (you will find them if you search for "Massenet - Werther Le Bastille 2009) and I do urge you to find them! I do believe that, should you take the time to watch it from beginning to end you will understand what I mean about this particular work. Also, I feel obliged to the insightful analysis we made of Goethe’s text during my bachelor studies in Greece in an extremely interesting seminar. It really opened a new perspective on the opera for me, which might explain as well my particular affection for this work.

 Hopefully I have not made your first days of 2014 bleaker than they should be with this little homage to Massenet. I promise that there is some laughter again further down the list… So, Happy New Year everyone and don’t forget: it’s Richard Strauss Year, so indulge yourself in his music as much as you can, without feeling any guilt whatsoever!     

T-7: Olympian Love Games and Metamorphoses – Cavalli’s tribute to ancient Greek myth

“Summertime… and the living is easy…” Gershwin did not compose that piece having me in mind, unfortunately! I can only wish that my summertime was easy. For a second year I am depraved of holidays; I have to organize my departure for the coming autumn; I have to juggle various issues at work, which become more surreal every day. At least, the relative peace and quiet that we have had for the past weeks is a small compensation to the fact that I cannot be enjoying cold mojitos on the beach. And it is precisely this peace that brings me back to the list. I will admit that I am very much out of practice. The words come out with extreme force lately, but that is the result of the burnout I am suffering from. Anyway, you didn’t come here to listen to me complaining, you came to be entertained and I promise you, I will do my best to accommodate even the toughest among you!

Moving – extremely slowly, I’ll admit – towards the top of the list, I realized that there is a lot of baroque opera in it; which would probably mean that I would have to change the title of the list to “My Top 10 baroque operas”, but I have already written about two (!) 19^th century pieces, so that somewhat compensates for the lack of modernity in the list. And I can only promise that further down we will come across some later works. This being said, my number 7 is, surprise-surprise, from the baroque period…

SPOILER ALERT! ANY FURTHER READING YOU UNDERTAKE WITHOUT CHECKING OUT THE WORK FIRST, IS YOUR OWN MISTAKE! YOU HAVE BEEN DULY WARNED!

Among the students that Claudio Monteverdi had, was one guy named Francesco Cavalli. His surname creates some rather funny associations these days, what with Roberto Cavalli being a famous fashion designer. I know not whether the two are distant relatives, but if they are, I am not entirely convinced that the original Cavalli would disprove of Roberto. This assumption is based solely on Cavalli’s music and not any particular information from the composers’ life. Cavalli (Francesco, not the other one), is, without a doubt, Monteverdi’s most famous student today. And rightly so. His music is vibrant, at times pompous, exuberant, yet also deep and profound; I would go as far as calling it “witty” in the English 18^th century meaning of the word. If Monteverdi – in his three surviving operas – presents a sincere and very well thought out version of mankind, Cavalli takes his master’s lessons to a new height, by perfectly balancing comedy and drama in one, never forgetting that he is still composing for a rather eclectic audience back in his day.

His opera “La Calisto” (I will stick with this spelling of the name throughout, and not use the “Callisto” version of the name, which however is closer to Greek original orthography, since the name essentially means “the most beautiful”) is the perfect example – and it happens to be one of my favorites too. Back then, when it first premiered, it was not well received. It ran for a very short time, landing an unfortunate spot in the list of genius compositions that were well ahead of their times. Thankfully, this brilliant piece has been rediscovered and brought to life once again.

The plot is, not surprisingly, rather packed and the number of people appearing on stage is that of 13! Quite an accomplishment! As is the norm, the plot is also inspired by a number of ancient Greek myths – with no twist. The way they myths are, is the way they are portrayed in the opera. The librettist, Giovanni Faustini, did not make any huge alterations to his original material, taken from Ovid. He simply used what already existed and added some comic relief in the secondary characters, as is tradition.

Essentially the beginning of the story makes reference to the devastating effects of Phaethon’s ride with the Valkyries… uhm, no, wrong mythology, it was the Chariot of the Sun he used, not Grane. Well, Phaethon has scorched the Earth with his inability to control the flaming chariot and Jove, accompanied by Mercurio, pays a visit to the troubled lands to bring life back to the joint. Of course, where Jove goes, trouble in the form of a love affair is soon to follow; and obviously that is the case here as well. Jove falls head over heels for Calisto, the daughter of Lycaon, that wretched king who served Jove his own son and was turned into a wolf to pay for it… Oh, isn’t Greek mythology just so uplifting and fun? Anyway, Calisto is a virgin (…) and she is an ardent follower of Diana, daughter of Jove and goddess of the hunt. Just how ardent a follower she is, becomes obvious to the audience very soon. Since Calisto does not want to part with her virginity, not even for the Father of the Gods, Jove necessarily turns to deceit and comes up with one, maybe even his best ever, disguise that results in a number of troubles. Jove assumes the appearance of his own daughter to seduce his object of desire and since there is nothing wrong with making out with your head goddess, Calisto succumbs (shouldn’t there be a law that forbids Jove to take up the forms of his own children? Never mind!) It is unclear how much of Diana’s appearance Jove truly takes, because Calisto ends up pregnant… Which begs the question of how in the name of Hades did Jove manage to do something like that, if there was no penetration involved!? Don’t you just love that? Of course, once the real Diana shows up and Calisto starts talking of their kisses and embraces and the gods know what else, the real Diana realizes that her follower has broken her [hymen]oath and sends her packing. Which, by the way, is a rather hypocritical reaction on her part, because she too is secretly in love with a mortal and should, in theory, understand her subjects’ predicament – at least she should have given it a little bit more thought! I mean, why would Calisto act like that, if there was no reason? Ah, well, it’s opera and clearly Diana does not care much that there is an impostor running around, impersonating her. Well, she should, because her little secret love affair is revealed that way to her daddy, who of course doesn’t care much, because he is who he is. Back to the plot then, Diana is caught in a desperate fight with her own emotions, because it is rather obvious she is in love with the shepherd Endymione. But she has to remain chaste, otherwise why send Calisto away if she is to have sex? At some point, of course, Giunone (Hera) has to appear as well, chasing her unfaithful husband. And in the end, the Queen of the Gods gets her way. Calisto is turned into a bear (eventually so is her son, but that is not significant here). Jove, who clearly doesn’t really care as to what happens to his mistresses after he has had his share with them, simply rectifies the fallen human by promising her a radiant position in the stars – and lo and behold, Ursa Major is born on the night sky! A lovely way to immortalize someone and at the same time a constant reminder to Giunone of her husbands’ infidelity. As for Diana and Endymione, after the latter is kidnapped by some ancient Greek lowlife that plays a secondary role in the opera, Diana rescues him and they mutually agree that their relationship needs to remain platonic, therefore Diana places him in an eternal sleep on a rock up in the mountains, so that every night, when making her rounds as the Moon, she can observe and kiss him, without ever turning the thing into something carnal.

That’s just about that for this particular opera. Sex, sex and only sex seems to be the subject matter. But, it is being served with such splendor and passion, that one can only sit back and enjoy. Also, this opera includes a number of issues that would reappear in the distant future, e. g. gender roles and associations in society and the importance of sex in relations, to name just a few.

The myth of Calisto, I would argue, is probably the first transgender myth in the western world [theoretically speaking, I suppose that researchers have already pointed something like this out, but I am not aware of any of those studies, so if anyone knows something, do let me know please!]. Granted, the homosexuality portrayed here is extremely complicated, since it is a male disguising himself as a female, but remains in essence a male, so questions of heterosexuality and homosexuality clearly arise. But this is also the quintessential matter that brings both comedy and drama to the stage and opens the way for the likes of Richard Strauss and Hugo von Hofmannsthal to do exactly the same some 4 centuries later! Also, immediately after revealing his true nature to Calisto (not the way he does with Semele, though), Jove is not portrayed as wanting more of her. The way he gives up to his wife, is the key to understanding this particular god. It is embarrassing for him to be seen as Diana of course, but once the disguise has served its purpose, the right order of things can finally return and Calisto has to pay for her beauty.

Another question arises then as well: Calisto is worshipping Diana – but how much of that worship changes into love, driven by sexual passion, after her encounter with Jove/Diana? And in the end, is she in love with Jove or are her emotions conflicted? There is no satisfactory answer to either question, in my opinion, but that is the beauty of it. Apparently, back in the ancient times, it was simply an honor to get laid by one of the gods, so what happened after, didn’t really matter. Also, what is extremely interesting is, how it is always the Gods at fault and never the mortals! It is Zeus who always finds a way to cheat on his wife and what happens to the – mostly married – victims of his passion is known to us very well. Yes, they might suffer for a while, but in the end, being the lover of a god, has its upside as well. For Calisto this meant a place in heaven, literally!

So, is this a comic opera? Yes and no. There are three parallel plots that have various degree of comedy in them and those intertwine throughout the opera. The first is the love affair between Calisto and Jove; the second between Diana and Endymione and the third the courtship of Linfea with said lowlife (Satirino, Pane and Sylvano). The names in parenthesis are the Three Stooges of the play and Linfea a spinster, who is a reluctant follower of Diana, in desperate need of base and filthy sex. The comedy that arises from the interactions of those four characters is legendary, because Linfea is conflicted as well about what it is she truly wants. The fact that she gives in at the end, simply verifies that sex rules! Those four are there to make the audience laugh, period. But the other two stories, the major ones, are a different thing altogether.

Jove’s affair with Calisto begins as something funny. Calisto’s rebuttals to Jove’s advances are comic. And Calisto’s approach to the real Diana also cause laughter; but up to a point. Because once Calisto is exiled from Diana’s group of followers and left alone, the scene changes into something very dramatic. This is a woman who, in the past, has lost her family (Lycaon and co.), then loses her chosen family through deceit, her lover and her child, all in one moment of weakness! Jove’s decision to render her immortal through the stars is a small compensation for all of that. And it does not really speak for a lieto fine.

As far as Diana’s affair with Endymione goes, well, that is completely sad, from beginning to end. The audience knows that the goddess cannot change who she is, not even for her one true love. She is, by Nature, a protector of virginity and a huntress; two roles that are rather conflicting in themselves. Diana’s almost hatred for men is notorious, but even she cannot hate every man. However, she cannot degrade herself by breaking her own code. The solution of the eternal sleep then is the only logical one she can choose: at the same time, this solution gives her the opportunity to be with her lover until the Twilight of the Gods – famously brought to them by either Xena, the Warrior Princess or Richard Wagner, take your pick!

In the end, what makes this opera so incredibly appealing to me, apart from the grand plot, is Cavalli’s music. It is his ability to portray both humor and pain in the same breath and his incredible sense of theatricality. His recitatives really move the action forward and their rhythm is also why the comic effects are so successful. Timing is everything and he masters it completely. As for the dramatic moments, they are never over the top; quite the contrary, they are served with sincerity and real affection towards the characters, an accomplishment very few composers of his time can claim any right to. It is not surprising to me that this opera was not well received back then. Both the libretto and the music are only wearing the mask of their times; but underneath it they break the boundaries of what was accepted back then in subtle ways, making it hard for his contemporaries to grasp the magnificence of this piece.

A quick note, right before I leave you and that has to do with staging the opera. I have seen three times (all within a year) the most splendid production of this opera in Munich. It was a production by David Alden, that is being picked up this season again and I can only tell you that I will be there, yet again, to witness it! Hopefully, the Bavarian State Opera will either live stream it for the rest of the world or decide to make a DVD of it, because it is a truly witty production that keeps the audience on the edge of their seats, successfully combining the comedy with the drama, while serving at the same time the music and the plot. High theater at its very best, which is a rarity these days…  

Ελληνικός Ραδιοτηλεοπτικός Τάφος*

For months now I have suffered from a serious case of writer’s block for various reasons. And while I know exactly what I want to write about – mainly continue the list – I cannot put myself to doing it. The words simply do not flow as they used to and that frustrates me, like I cannot begin to describe how much. Also, it has been a very long time since I last expressed any public view whatsoever regarding the state Greece is in and most particularly culture and education – the two segments of civilization that are of importance to me. And while my writing is still stifled and the words refuse to reveal themselves to me obstinately, today I cannot remain silent; for a crime has been committed and despite the fact that my voice is hardly ever heard (or even agreed with for that matter), my sense of justice has taken over the best of me and it forces my hand. What will come of it, I do not know. [I might lose my job, but that is of no importance, considering that my current position will be over in less than two months time, so it is not such a huge deal at the moment.]

I spoke of a crime and obviously I must name it (for my non-Greek readers, that is, because the Greek readers already know from the title what I will be writing about). Yesterday afternoon – May 11^th, 2013 – the Greek government, applying a unique measure that has absolutely nothing to do with Democracy and in order to fulfill its obligations towards our European lenders, announced that the National Radio and Television Broadcasting Service of Greece (EPT), a stately funded institution (we, the people also pay for it a rather small fee for its service), was to be shut down. Just like that and – what is even more shocking – on the very same day the announcement was made. Which meant, that by the end of the day the radio stations and television channels, as well as any other institution associated with EPT, would cease its operations, whatever they may have been!

For my non-Greek readers, I will try to explain in as quick a manner as possible what EPT was (past tense). EPT was the National Broadcasting Service that from the radio, eventually expanded over to the television, internet and social media functions of Information, News, Culture and Education. It consisted of a number of radio stations all over Greece, each dedicated to a different kind of either news or culture; three state wide broadcast television channels (ET1, NET and ET3) with different objectives and goals in their programming; a magazine; a webpage; the obvious social network connections; an orchestra; a choir; technicians to keep everything in working order and probably a gazillion of other things as well, which I am unaware of. In total, those parts amounted to 2.656 individuals – from reporters to musicians to technicians to the cleaning staff – who as of today are essentially, unemployed.

I would love to go on about the way they ended up on the streets – namely through the personal choice of our Prime Minister, who, in order to please our European lenders and achieve the set goal of firing some 2.000 people from the public sector by the end of June had to do something, otherwise we wouldn’t get the loan… But I will not, because I refuse to meddle with politics, even by criticizing such an abomination of a choice. And I refuse to do so, because, despite my little life experience I know that much: in today’s world, people are only viewed as numbers and those numbers need to procure money for the rich; when they stop doing so they need to be laid off. At least, that is the very blunt and least detailed explanation. But, please, couldn’t they have come up with a better idea?

I am not going to say that everybody in Greece in general and in EPT in particular is a saint. It would be the biggest lie in the world! I live here, I have the distinct ………………… [deliberately left like that, in case you were wondering] of working in the public sector, I have seen things that will make your hair jump and I know that there are a lot of worthless people in important positions that simply cannot be moved, because they know somebody in an even higher place. But shutting down the National Broadcasting Service is a crime. No matter what. And it is not only a crime because 2.656 people and their families are laid off, no. I am convinced that not everybody in there was worth it – but that amount of people must have been small, hell, even if only half of those 2.656 people were worth it, they at least should have been allowed to stay. The way I hear, currently Greece is the only nation on the planet that does not have a National Broadcasting Service. Fabulous! Just great! We are even worse than North Korea! The crime of shutting down a news service goes way further.

Firstly, it is a distinct violation of the right to free speech which every individual has from day one. You shut down the National Broadcasting Service and all you have left are the private channels, each serving a different master and with different obligations to different political and financial parties. Let’s make one thing clear: I am not saying that EPT was unbiased or that at no time in the past, news were influenced by the governing body. But, believe me, after seeing the crap the other news channels feed us every single day, the little amount of government propaganda EPT did was harmless. At least there you knew who they served and why.

Secondly, EPT has always held up some standards regarding its programming – and here I am going to start reminiscing incessantly. When I was a kid (not so long ago, mind you) I literally grew up watching the children’s program of the 90’s which consisted of “Little House in the Prairie” (loved it and it made me want to read the books, which I did when I became a teen), “Carousel” (a Brazilian children soap opera that took place in a school that had the greatest teacher of them all, Ms. Jimena, who was not only beautiful, but extremely kind – I know that every child my age back then wished to have her as their teacher), “The Chronicles of Narnia” (the four installations made by the BBC of four of the seven books – the doll Aslan is a joke by today’s standards, but for someone who adored the books that series was incredible; I have the DVD’s and occasionally still watch them), “The Teacher” (an exceptional French series, that I would kill to see again, because it is probably the best series ever made, period!), an installation of the “Adventure” series by Enid Blyton (I think it was the “Adventure” series, but I am not very sure any more) which was fun and enjoyable and did actually make the books come to life (huge fan of Blyton’s books, by the way – nowadays children do not even know who she was), and not to mention the Greek productions for children and adults made back then that unfortunately will not resonate with my non-Greek readers and therefore I refrain from mentioning them. I learned great lessons back then through all those programs and the best thing about them was I actually watched them together with my parents, because even they found them interesting and qualitative.

Then, of course, there were the documentaries: EPT had always a huge arsenal of extremely interesting documentaries to present, from “Lonely Planet” to fictionalized versions of the life of Dostoyevsky and what have you. Also, they produced themselves extremely interesting documentaries about all kinds of things, many of which have received numerous international awards (the documentary series “Exantas” is one example). By the way, one of the last documentaries I saw some months ago was a report on “El Sistema”, brilliantly done and executed by our Greek reporters.

And then, there was the music. I watched my first opera on the established Sunday matinee program of ET3, which was then moved to the afternoon, to a more appropriate time slot. They broadcasted concerts of classical music from all over the world, not only through the television, but also through their radio channels, most importantly – for classical music – the 3^rd. That radio channel was on non-stop in our house every single day; in fact, it was the only radio station we ever listened to with undying devotion!

Also, the sports. I am a huge sports fan – I do not enjoy doing them myself, but I love watching them. Football, basketball, tennis, water sports, athletics and figure skating… I still remember the final of the 2004 Euro Championships where Greece upset Portugal and won the Cup – it was on NET. Every single basketball event – from European Championships to the World Championships – where Greece always in the past years has a team to speak of was shown there. Every May it was Rolland Garros time! Water sports and athletics; the Olympic Games obviously! And figure skating… I will never forget the numerous times I cried watching exceptional artists dance on the ice in competitions, bringing a moment of beauty in our tormented everyday lives.  

Finally the nations’ archives. It is incredible once you realize that right now, Greece’s modern day history of the past century is in danger. EPT has one of the most concise and complete audiovisual archives in the country. Not only that, but during the past years, an effort was made to digitize everything and spread it – for free – to the public via the Internet. I have seen old shows there, shows from before I was born. I learned about people I was interested in through old documentaries. I explored those archives whenever I had the chance and the time and they were marvelous! If anyone wants to destroy our nation that is the way to do it: destroy the archives. Right now, they – whoever “they” are – have total access and control over them. That archive contains Greece’s cultural heritage of the 20^th century and we are about to lose it. The cultural implications of such a loss are magnanimous, to say the least and impossible to calculate at this moment. Should it happen, it will be a crime against humanity and those responsible for it, should face trial.

I am so overwhelmed by all these happenings, that I am uncertain whether I have said enough. Probably not. And also, probably, my entry is not as powerful as I would like it to be, nor does it make its’ point. But, what I want to stress out is this: despite the fact that often I was irritated by a lot of things that had to do with EPT – from the wrong announcement of a music piece on the radio, to the complete overhaul (without any warning) of their program when I really needed it to be a different way, to the censored kiss from “Deep Space 9” in the year 2008 (I think) – I appreciated its existence in my life. And I never could have imagined a life without it. Well, I’m living that life right now – and so are 10 million others just like me…

How is this going to play out? Mind you, the government has already announced a new form of EPT coming to existence, sometime in the future. But I already dislike the name of it, so I probably won’t care much about it. And even if they restore the old EPT to the way it was yesterday, with all its problems and downsides, it wouldn’t be the same. Not only that, but they would make themselves even greater fools than they already are. Well, I never voted for anyone in the current parliament, nor am I ever going to, but it is rather disturbing to see yourself represented by such idiots to the world. No wonder everybody thinks Greeks are stupid and lame. Still, I remain an optimist and pray that the world in general will come to its senses and our lives will get better. Maybe. One day.

*Greek Radio-television Tomb

Antonio Vivaldi concert in Thessaloniki

The Thessaloniki State Symphony Orchestra has invited the great Romina Basso for one unique concert, dedicated to Antonio Vivaldi! The concert takes place on Friday 17th May 2013 at 21.00, at the Concert Hall of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. The program includes concertos for strings and selected arias from important operas of the great baroque master! The Orchestra is conducted from the harpsichord by Markellos Chrysikopoulos, while the T.S.S.O.'s concert master Simos Papanas is leading the strings.

T-8: Handel’s second take on Ariosto or “Cry, baby, cry!”

Recently (and happy belated New Year all around, by the way!), I was asked by a conductor – who shall remain anonymous, for his own discretion – what it was that appealed to me so much about baroque opera. And I explained that thanks to baroque opera and its Affektenlehre, I had a life-changing experience; a revelation, if you want to call it that. And here, finally, after many many months of silence, I will attempt to describe the opera that caused this. Of course, one might ask: “Why, on Earth, is a life-changing experience on spot number 8, rather than number 1?” Well, if the answer to that question isn’t obvious… let me make it obvious: Clearly, an even stronger experience lies in the first spots of the list! And let me make yet another warning, before we move on to the actual spoilers: Though I am a mediocre writer, not a genius, but at least I know my way around the written word, and can write about pretty much anything, when it comes to describing an extremely personal experience that involves a lot of emotions, the words simply fail me. That is probably what will happen in this case as well, so, I would beg of you, dear reader, to be less criticizing about this entry, than of any other.

WARNING: SPOILER ALERT! IF YOU DO NOT WANT ME TO BREAK THE SPELL ABOUT THIS PARTICULAR OPERA, CHECK IT OUT BEFORE READING ON!

In case the title of the entry isn’t making it clear to everyone about which opera I am talking about, here it comes: it’s Ariodante! For some reason, the first five years of the 1730’s for Handel, drew inspiration from Ariosto’s brilliant epic “L’ Orlando Furioso”. Within three years he composed three operas based on episodes from that poem, with his first one – “Orlando” – being a flop, because the composer decided to stretch the boundaries of opera seria and music to the extremes, thus alienating his audience and his company! Obviously, “Orlando” is considered a groundbreaking composition by today’s musicologists… But, and even though I have seen a pretty awesome production of this particular opera, “Orlando” is not my concern here. In my mind it falls under the category of light entertainment, despite its’ mad scene and sci-fi themes.   

Let me start by summarizing the plot in a simple and concise way: Act 1 plays out in the castle of the King of Scotland. His daughter, Ginevra, is courted by the Duke of Albany, Polinesso, a real badass and a noble knight, Ariodante. Needless to say, Ginevra despises the first one and is in love with the second. Thankfully, Ariodante reciprocates the feeling and because the King is also happy with this union, preparations are being made to marry the happy couple. Of course, Polinesso has other plans, and he uses the blind love of lady-in-waiting Dalinda, to make sure Ariodante gets out of the way. This unhappy woman is on her turn being courted by Lurcanio, Ariodante’s brother. Just as his sibling, Lurcanio is honorable and noble and he too truly loves Dalinda, but, as is the case, she sends him packing… Anyway, Act 1 concludes with dance and relatively happy music, as the lovers prepare for the wedding that is to take place on the next day. Act 2 then begins outside a secret passage to Ginevra’s apartment, where Ariodante is waiting, unable to sleep. At this point Polinesso comes and mocks him, telling him that Ginevra is only pretending to love him and that, in truth, she prefers the Duke. Ariodante doesn’t believe him, but when the Duke enters the Princesses’ apartment and is welcomed with… warm feelings, the world shatters around Ariodante. Lurcanio also chances by this scene – which begs the question of how secret this passage to Ginevra’s apartment truly is – and tries to convince his brother not to commit suicide. He takes the latter’s sword away and leaves him alone in his desperation – which is yet another extremely clever thing to do, right? Ariodante disappears into the night, with thoughts of suicide still circling in his head. The next morning arrives and the news of Ariodante’s death reach the King of Scotland. He fears for his daughter’s wellbeing, but Lurcanio arrives and accuses Ginevra of infidelity, thus explaining the sudden urge of Ariodante to leave the country and perish at sea. Again, how it is possible to find a ship in the middle of the night ready to disembark, get on it, then have witnesses to the ship’s destruction in a storm, eludes me, but that is opera seria for you! Anyway, the King is flabbergasted by this accusation, but unfortunately he has to uphold the law and therefore places Ginevra under arrest, without explaining exactly why he is doing this. Ginevra, is of course innocent and understands nothing. She only knows that Ariodante is dead and she is being accused of a crime she didn’t commit, because – and here comes the clue – the “Ginevra” Ariodante thought he saw the previous night, was in fact Dalinda, dressed up as Ginevra. The act closes with Ginevra having nightmares. The third Act then begins by the seashore, where – surprise, surprise – the tormented hero is washed out by the sea, because not even the gods are willing to let Ariodante perish. He does demand an explanation from them, but they remain mysteriously silent; only dropping Dalinda in his path, who is being chased by two bad guys, intent on killing her. They obviously work for the Duke. Ariodante sends them packing, Dalinda is thankful and reveals everything and a rejoicing Ariodante takes the unhappy woman with him and they go to the palace. There, Polinesso appears as Ginevra’s champion against Lurcanio, hoping thus to win both the woman and the throne – not necessarily in that order. Again however, since Polinesso is in the wrong, Lurcanio subdues him, at which point a mysterious knight in shining armor appears wanting to defend Ginevra’s honor as well. But, Polinesso does the right thing in the end and just before he draws his last breath manages to confess the whole plot to the King’s confidante. The mysterious knight is none other than Ariodante – where he got the armor I do not know, because he wasn’t wearing it when he emerged from the sea! Happily the King declares his daughter innocent and leaves with Ariodante to the dungeons to free her. Lurcanio and Dalinda linger a while behind and in their sweet final scene we see that there is hope for them yet. Ariodante is reunited with Ginevra, their torments are past and all happily sing and dance of the joys of chaste and honorable love that defeats all evil! Happy endings all around us!       

Well, that was that. The very simple plot, that is so see-through we know from the very first bar what is to happen. Good guy vs. bad guy; good guy wins and marries the trophy wife. End of story. So, what’s so special about this particular rendition of the all-to-familiar tale? Obviously, the music. It has a very dark and highly ironic character and the drama and pain of every hero is described magnificently through every aria. From Ginevra’s very first arioso, to Lurcanio’s and Dalinda’s final duet, no character is left undefined. And while one could even compartmentalize the heroes according to their music – Ariodante, Lurcanio, Ginevra and the King being the righteous ones, as opposed to Polinesso and Dalinda representing deceit – every individual has his own voice. The characterization is simply fantastic, with both the libretto and the music working towards a common goal: representing human passions in the most realistic of ways (no, it is not verismo yet!).

Still, even that, some might argue, has been achieved in a much better way by other composers. So, again, what is it that makes this opera so important to me? Apart from the fact that all art is a totally subjective kind of thing, it is the main protagonist of this particular story that is so very intriguing. Obviously he is the dream guy even I would accept to marry… He is honorable, valorous, truthful and a courteous lover. He is not interested in power and is reluctant to accept it – which makes him all the better. And – in my dreams of course – he is also extremely good looking! * Side note to self: Though many counter-tenors have sung this part, curiously, it is the mezzos that actually bring it to life for me. And when those mezzos have the looks of a Vesselina Kasarova or a Joyce DiDonato… well… I’d flip for them for sure! * And then, there is this tiny (ehem) little (ehem ehem) aria he sings at the beginning of act 2, that simply blows my mind away every single time I hear it.

In order to explain this feeling, I must make a digression. Before my experience with Ariodante in Munich, I had seen a number of operas since my childhood – even some one might consider slightly odd for a kid, like Lucia di Lammermoor (twice) or The Turn of the Screw. And I loved every crazy part of it – especially the death scenes. I mean, what can be more hilarious than the protagonist being stabbed to death and singing and singing and singing, without dying and then, eventually, drawing a last breath. Hilarious! No matter the music! So, this (mis)conception of mine made it impossible for me to feel during the opera. I simply expected the death scene, in order to delight in its absurdity. I never ever expected to be blown away by an opera, to be moved to tears by a hero, simply because I only saw the (tragi)comedy in the drama.

Enter Ariodante and his “Scherza infida”. That was that. The most simple of arias – because it is simple in every way – turned my whole world upside down. The simplicity of the orchestration, the numb melody on the bassoon (a brilliant choice by Handel by the way), the breath like accompaniment on the strings throughout the first section, the dynamic, elegiac tone of the second section, the – usually – very slow performance rhythm the conductors choose for it; all these things amass to an unexpected explosion of emotions in the attentive and open listeners’ soul. Add to that the truly sublime performance of Ann Murray that night and you can only begin to understand what I went through for fifteen minutes! I was a wreck, literally, when she finished. I couldn’t move, I was crying and applauding at the same time, I wanted this to never end, I wanted to stay in that moment for ever. And Ariodante wasn’t even dying in that scene! Hell, no, he returned triumphant and victorious; but not before singing yet another gripping piece of music: the sublime “Numi! Lasciarmi vivere?” a violent and accusing arioso towards the unkind gods, who refuse to allow the hero to perish. In Ariodante’s case, of course, the gods know better… Just as the listener does. Tragic irony in its best form. Simply glorious.

So, yes, a life changing experience at the opera house it was (hm, I should refrain from playing “Angry Birds: Star Wars” so often, I’m channeling Master Yoda…) An experience which, apart from opening my eyes to a whole new world and my ears to the magical world of baroque opera altogether, has had the added effect that I cannot go to the opera anymore and not cry. Even in comedies… I get crying at “La Traviata”, but crying at “Le nozze di Figaro” shouldn’t happen, right? Oh, well, I don’t care. And why should I? Opera is, after all, the greatest art form mankind has ever produced – and the goal is exactly that: to move people to tears and laughter, through the combination of music and word. There’s no shame in crying when something is so divinely said. And God knows Handel had mastered the trick of moving people to tears, whenever he felt like it…    

Ωδή στη Θεσσαλονίκη

…για να γιορτάσει η Θεσσαλονίκη και τα επόμενα 100 της χρόνια πάλι με την Κρατική της Ορχήστρα…

της Κατερίνας Καϊμάκη

Αισίως (;) μπήκαμε και στον Δεκέμβριο του 2012. Αυτό σημαίνει ότι σε πολύ λίγο καιρό και αυτός ο χρόνος θα είναι μια ακόμα σελίδα στην ιστορία αυτού του πλανήτη με, ομολογουμένως, πολλά και σημαντικά γεγονότα να το στιγματίζουν για μια αιωνιότητα με διφορούμενες απόψεις, που μόνο οι μεταγενέστερες γενιές θα μπορέσουν να κρίνουν με αντικειμενικότητα (;!).

Για την πόλη της Θεσσαλονίκης το 2012 υπήρξε επίσης σημαντικό από πολλές απόψεις. Η σημαντικότερη ίσως όλων, η συμπλήρωση των 100 χρόνων από την απελευθέρωσή της το 1912 και η ενσωμάτωσή της στην μητέρα Ελλάδα, τερματίζοντας μια υπερβολικά μεγάλη περίοδο κατοχής από δυνάμεις του μακρινού  παρελθόντος. Και παρόλο που οι εορτασμοί δεν κάλυψαν ολόκληρο το 2012, για πολιτικούς και οικονομικούς λόγους πάντα, οι εκδηλώσεις που έγιναν τελικά ήταν μάλλον αρκετές και αντάξιες της περίστασης.

Τι μένει λοιπόν από το να κλείσουν και αυτοί οι εορτασμοί με μία τελευταία σημαντική εκδήλωση, που μπορεί να μην εξυμνεί αμιγώς την Θεσσαλονίκη ως πόλη, αλλά με τον τρόπο της να την συνδέει με μεγάλες στιγμές της παγκόσμιας ιστορίας, αφήνοντας παράλληλα και μια παρακαταθήκη για το μέλλον; Αναφέρομαι στην συναυλία που πρόκειται να πραγματοποιηθεί την Παρασκευή 7 Δεκεμβρίου στην Αίθουσα Τελετών του ταλαιπωρημένου Αριστοτελείου Πανεπιστημίου Θεσσαλονίκης, από την επίσης ταλαιπωρημένη Κρατική Ορχήστρα Θεσσαλονίκης. Για την ταλαιπωρία του Α.Π.Θ. δεν θα μιλήσω καθόλου, καθότι δεν είμαι αρμόδια. Βέβαια, ούτε και για την Κ.Ο.Θ. είμαι αρμόδια να μιλήσω, αλλά θα το σχολιάσω λίγο το θέμα.

Πρώτα πρώτα όμως πρέπει να αναλύσω την σημασία της συγκεκριμένης συναυλίας και πώς αυτή συνδέει την πόλη μας με την παγκόσμια ιστορία. Η συναυλία αποτελείται από δύο μόνο κομμάτια: το Πρελούδιο και Φούγκα του Johann Sebastian Bach σε ενορχήστρωση Δημήτρη Μητρόπουλου και την 9^η Συμφωνία του Ludwig van Beethoven. Το πρώτο κομμάτι, που θα λειτουργήσει και σαν εισαγωγή της συναυλίας ακούγεται σπάνια, λόγω της εξαιρετικά μεγάλης ορχήστρας που απαιτεί. Δεν παύει όμως να είναι ένα εντυπωσιακό μουσικό πόνημα, το οποίο αποκτάει ακόμα μεγαλύτερη αξία, αφού είναι ενός σπουδαίου Έλληνα που τολμάει να καταπιαστεί με το έργο ενός εκ των πέντε σπουδαιότερων Γερμανών συνθετών στην ιστορία της μουσικής. Βέβαια, εδώ κάποιος θα μπορούσε να καγχάσει ειρωνικά, ειδικά αν αναλογιστούμε ότι αρχικά το πρόγραμμα που είχε δημοσιοποιήσει η Κ.Ο.Θ. ανέφερε ως πρώτο κομμάτι το έργο του Αιμίλιου Ριάδη Επίκληση στην Ειρήνη. Από μια άποψη ο Ριάδης θα ήταν μια πιο κατάλληλη επιλογή για την συγκεκριμένη επέτειο, αφού και ο ίδιος ήταν ένας από τους σημαντικότερους Θεσσαλονικιούς συνθέτες. Η καλλιτεχνική διεύθυνση όμως αποφάσισε να αλλάξει το έργο – όπως άλλωστε είναι και δικαίωμά της – για άγνωστους σε εμάς λόγους και επέλεξε τελικά τον Bach/Μητρόπουλο. Εκφράζουμε την ελπίδα ότι ο Ριάδης θα ακουστεί σε μελλοντική συναυλία και γιατί όχι να μην γίνει και κάποιο πιο εκτενές αφιέρωμα στον τόσο αξιόλογο αυτό συντοπίτη μας.

Επιστρέφω όμως στο θέμα του Μητρόπουλου, το οποίο η συγκυρία το μετατρέπει σε ένα ακόμα σύμβολο, σίγουρα παρά την θέληση των δημιουργών του. Η τωρινή πολιτική κατάσταση δεν μου επιτρέπει να αγνοήσω την βαθύτατη ειρωνεία που διαπερνάει την συγκεκριμένη επιλογή. Όμως γιατί πρέπει να το δει κάποιος αρνητικά, επειδή αυτή την στιγμή η Ελλάδα και η Γερμανία δεν έχουν τις καλύτερες των σχέσεων; Θεωρητικά και εάν ο λαός μας λειτουργούσε με περισσότερη λογική και λιγότερο συναίσθημα, η άποψη που θα έπρεπε να επικρατήσει είναι η εξής: τόσο ο Bach, όσο και ο Μητρόπουλος είναι δύο ιερά τέρατα της παγκόσμιας Ιστορίας – ο καθένας στο είδος του. Δηλαδή πλέον ανήκουν στην σφαίρα της παγκόσμιας κληρονομιάς και δεν ανήκουν σε κανέναν, ούτε και πρέπει να αξιοποιούνται εθνικιστικά. Επίσης, το γεγονός ότι ο Μητρόπουλος, αντί να συνθέσει κάτι εξ ολοκλήρου δικό του – κάτι που μπορούσε να κάνει εξαιρετικά και είναι κρίμα που σταμάτησε να συνθέτει – αποφάσισε να επεξεργαστεί ένα ήδη υπάρχον έργο, δεν μειώνει σε καμία περίπτωση ούτε τον έναν συνθέτη, ούτε τον άλλον. Στον πολιτισμένο κόσμο, η επεξεργασία και αναδημιουργία ενός έργου τέχνης από κάποιον άλλον, όσο δεν είναι φτηνή αντιγραφή και παρουσιάζει και καινούργια στοιχεία, θεωρείται φόρος τιμής σε εκείνον που το σκέφτηκε πρώτος, αλλά αναδεικνύει και τις συνδυαστικές ικανότητες εκείνου που το επεξεργάστηκε. Επομένως το συγκεκριμένο κομμάτι στην συγκεκριμένη συναυλία θα πρέπει απλώς να μας θυμίσει ότι οι άνθρωποι επιτυγχάνουν πολύ περισσότερα μέσα από την σύμπραξη και πως – ειδικά στην Τέχνη – δεν υπάρχει παρθενογένεση.

Οι συμβολισμοί γίνονται ακόμα πιο έντονοι όταν αναλογίζομαι το δεύτερο έργο της βραδιάς: την πολυαγαπημένη 9^η Συμφωνία του Beethoven. Θα σταθώ σε δύο μόνο, γιατί και ο χώρος είναι περιορισμένος και η υπομονή εξαντλείται εύκολα. Ο πρώτος αφορά την χρήση του ίδιου του έργου στην ιστορία της ανθρωπότητας από την πρεμιέρα του, μέχρι σήμερα. Δύο είναι τα σημαντικότερα σημεία που πρέπει να αναφέρω: με την κατάρρευση του Τείχους του Βερολίνου και την ενοποίηση των δύο Γερμανιών, επιλέχθηκε η συγκεκριμένη συμφωνία, για να γιορταστεί το γεγονός αυτό. Ένας Αμερικάνος, ο Leonard Bernstein, κλήθηκε να διευθύνει την ιστορική αυτή εκτέλεση στο Βερολίνο. Μάλιστα, για την περίσταση έγινε και μια επέμβαση στο κείμενο της Ωδής του Schiller, όπου η χορωδία αντί να εξυμνεί την Χαρά, εξυμνούσε την Ελευθερία (Freude – Frieden). Και το δεύτερο σημείο είναι η ίδια η χρήση της «Ωδής στην Χαρά» ως Ύμνου της Ευρωπαϊκής Ένωσης. Πολλοί είναι αυτοί που πιστεύουν ότι αυτή η επιλογή πρέπει να αλλάξει, ειδικά στην περίοδο που διανύει η Ε.Ε. Όμως εγώ πιστεύω ότι αυτό δεν θα ήταν σωστό, όχι γιατί θα μας πει τίποτα ο Beethoven, αλλά γιατί θα μπορούσαμε απλώς να αναλογιστούμε τα λόγια της Ωδής και να προσπαθήσουμε να τα κάνουμε πραγματικότητα. Με το να αλλάξει ο Ύμνος της Ε.Ε., δεν αλλάζει η Ένωση. Όμως με την καλύτερη μελέτη του κειμένου που περιέχει ο Ύμνος, μπορεί και να υπάρχει ελπίδα για το μέλλον…

Ο δεύτερος συμβολισμός μπορεί να είναι και λίγο παρατραβηγμένος και να θέλει πολλή φαντασία για να ερμηνευθεί, αλλά ως αιθεροβάμων πλάσμα που είμαι, τέτοιου είδους σκέψεις μου προκύπτουν αραιά και που. Αυτή λοιπόν η σκέψη συνδέει τον Beethoven με την Κ.Ο.Θ. και την ίδια την πόλη της Θεσσαλονίκης. Όλοι, λίγο πολύ, ξέρουμε ότι ο συνθέτης έχασε εντελώς την ακοή του και υπέφερε σοβαρά από αυτήν την κατάσταση, όχι μόνο γιατί η επικοινωνία του με την κοινωνία έγινε σχεδόν αδύνατη, αλλά και γιατί δεν μπορούσε να ακούσει πλέον τις ίδιες του τις συνθέσεις όταν εκτελούνταν. Η ένατη συμφωνία του, που έμελλε να είναι και η τελευταία του, συντέθηκε σε κατάσταση απόλυτης κώφωσης, γεγονός εκπληκτικό από μόνο του. Μέσα στην απόλυτη σιωπή, ο Beethoven έπλεξε τον ύμνο της αδελφοποίησης των ανθρώπων, μια τόσο αναγνωρίσιμη μελωδία που είναι πλέον σίγουρα κομμάτι του γενετικού υλικού του ανθρώπινου γένους. Το ακόμα πιο εκπληκτικό είναι πως, όσες φορές και να την ακούσουμε, ποτέ δεν χάνει την δύναμή της να συγκινεί τον ακροατή της. Αυτό από μόνο του κάνει το έργο κάτι παραπάνω από κλασικό – το μετατρέπει σε έργο θεϊκής έμπνευσης, που ξεπήδησε μέσα από βαθύτατη θλίψη και πόνο.

Πώς λοιπόν συνδέονται η Κ.Ο.Θ. και η Θεσσαλονίκη με την περίπτωση Beethoven; Απλά, εάν ποτέ η πολιτική κατάσταση της χώρας οδηγήσει την Κ.Ο.Θ. σε πτώχευση, τότε και η Θεσσαλονίκη θα γίνει ένας δεύτερος Beethoven. Θα έχει την μουσική στο κεφάλι της, αλλά δεν θα μπορεί να την ακούσει. Θα κουφαθεί και θα χάσει την ανθρωπιά της. Φήμες για τον προϋπολογισμό της ορχήστρας που εγκρίθηκε για το 2013 από το κράτος λένε ότι τα χρήματα είναι τόσο λίγα, που μπορεί να χρειαστεί να μειωθούν δραματικά οι συναυλίες της ορχήστρας ανά έτος. Και ακόμα και αν οι περισσότεροι από τους κατοίκους της Θεσσαλονίκης μπορεί να μην πηγαίνουν στις συναυλίες της ορχήστρας της πόλης τους, η έλλειψη έστω και μιας τακτικής συναυλίας της, θα γίνει σίγουρα αντιληπτή από όλους. Γιατί είναι πράγματι αλήθεια ότι όταν αυτό που έχουμε μπροστά μας το χάσουμε, τότε πραγματικά εκτιμούμε την αληθινή του αξία. Και η Κ.Ο.Θ. ανήκει σε αυτή την κατηγορία πραγμάτων συναισθηματικής και – ναι – εθνικής (αλλά όχι εθνικιστικής) αξίας.

Μια Θεσσαλονίκη χωρίς την Κρατική της Ορχήστρα θα ήταν σαν μια Θεσσαλονίκη χωρίς τον Θερμαϊκό κόλπο και το Λευκό Πύργο ή χωρίς την Καμάρα και τα κάστρα της. Θα μετατρεπόταν αυτομάτως σε μια πόλη με ανδρείκελα, τα οποία απλώς θα διεκπεραίωναν την καθημερινότητά τους με όποιο τρόπο διέθεταν και δεν θα απολάμβαναν την ζωή τους. Γιατί η Κ.Ο.Θ. είναι πολύ περισσότερα από ένα ακόμα μουσικό συγκρότημα. Είναι μια μεγάλη οικογένεια που έχει ανάγκες, για να μεγαλώσει σωστά τα παιδιά της. Και τα παιδιά αυτά δεν είναι άλλα από το κοινό της, το οποίο εδώ και πενήντα πέντε χρόνια την ακολουθεί πιστά, την χειροκροτεί και την ενθαρρύνει, ενώ ταυτόχρονα ανανεώνεται συνεχώς, φέρνοντας σπουδαία έργα της παγκόσμιας διανόησης λίγο πιο κοντά στους ανθρώπους της πόλης.

Για όλους τους παραπάνω λόγους και για να μπορέσει η Θεσσαλονίκη να γιορτάσει τα επόμενα 100 της χρόνια πάλι με την Κρατική της Ορχήστρα, ας κατακλύσουμε όλοι μας την Αίθουσα Τελετών του Α.Π.Θ., για να στηρίξουμε τους μουσικούς της πόλης μας, αλλά και να αποδείξουμε ότι η Τέχνη έχει πράγματι  την ικανότητα να ενώσει τους λαούς μέσα από την κοινή γλώσσα της Μουσικής. Και μακάρι η Μουσική αυτή να μην σωπάσει ποτέ, ώστε όλοι μας να απολαμβάνουμε τα χαρίσματά της, τα οποία τόσο απλόχερα μας δίνει, κάθε φορά που παρακολουθούμε μια συναυλία της Κρατικής Ορχήστρας Θεσσαλονίκης και όχι μόνο…

 

Θεσσαλονίκη, 4 Δεκεμβρίου 2012