この夏の終わりにはすでにザルツブルク音楽祭の公式HP上で公表されていた記事なのでいささか旧聞に属するが、このブログでは取り上げていなかったので、二か月遅れながら書き留めておこう。ザルツブルク音楽祭芸術監督を務めて来た演出家のスヴェン・エリック・ベヒトルフは、5年の契約期間を終え退任するにあたってのコメントを、音楽祭最終日の8月30日付けの同音楽祭のHP上で公表した。ベヒトルフは当時総裁だったアレクサンダー・ペレイラの招きで2011年から同音楽祭の舞台部門の監督に就任し、ペレイラがスカラ座に移った後2015、2016年の二年間はヘルガ・ラブル・シュタートラー総裁の下、芸術部門全般の責任者としてザルツブルクのもうひとつの「顔」となっていた。もと俳優出身の舞台演出家ということもありドイツ語圏での知名度も高く、音楽面だけでなくドラマ部門も重視する同音楽祭にあっては、同氏がコミットメントした5年間は意義の大きいものとなったことだろう。R・シュトラウスの「ナクソス島のアリアドネ」のオリジナル・バージョンに近いかたちでの上演(芝居「町人貴族」との同時上演)やモーツァルトのダ・ポンテ三部作の新制作上演など、興味深い演出はエンターテイメント性に溢れ楽しめるものだった。原文はもちろんドイツ語だが、英語訳のページのものがわかりやすいので、そのまま転記しておこう。なお2016年10月からの後任はピアニストのマルクス・ヒンターホイザー。
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Sven-Eric Bechtolf (Photo: SF/Luigi Caputo) |
Esteemed Ladies and Gentlemen of the Press!
My time at the Salzburg Festival is ending, as you know, and I would like to give thanks.
First of all, I wish to thank all the employees of the Festival.
They have supported me in the various positions I was fortunate to hold here, sharing their experience and expertise with me. From the beginning, I found a professional and even friendly reception.
I always felt supported in our joint efforts and was given the benefit of many a “lesson”, being a “career changer”, so to speak.
We have achieved much in these five years, and all those involved have every right to be proud of these achievements. Thank you!
I also wish to thank the Festival’s Supervisory Board.
For the trust that was placed in me, but most of all for the passionate interest and true concern for the Festival, which I always felt to be genuine across party lines. Therefore, you will not hear any complaints about politicians from me, on the contrary: I was deeply impressed with the professionalism and human quality of the members of the Supervisory Board and its delegates. My thanks are due to the members of the Supervisory Board, to Landeshauptmann Wilfried Haslauer, to Mayor Heinz Schaden, to the representative of the Tourism Fund, Hans Scharfetter, Member of the State Parliament and Chairman of the Supervisory Board this year, to the representatives of the Federal State of Austria, Section Leader Andrea Ecker and NR Abg. Maria Fekter; and, for the members of the Assembly of Delegates, to Associate Landeshauptmann Astrid Rössler and Johann Bachleitner, this year’s Chairman of the Assembly of Delegates.
I must also thank the Association of Friends. It is the largest and most faithful supporter of the Festival, and economically and emotionally solid as a rock.
As a representative of all the members of the association, I thank Heinrich Spängler.
My gratitude also goes to our sponsors, who never tried to influence the Festival in its presentations, and without whose support the Festival would probably not exist anymore in its current shape. We should never tire of remembering this fact and acknowledging them.
Of course I also thank our wonderful and knowledgeable audience all over the world, which received most of our programmes with such enthusiasm. Please remain faithful friends to the Festival for many years to come.
My thanks are due to the outstanding artists who have performed here in Salzburg during the past five years. It was an honour for us and, as many assured me, an honour for them as well.
My special thanks go to Claudia Mayr, my assistant in the Artistic Director’s Office.
I owe Constanze Albert, the director of the drama office, and all her staff there more than gratitude.
And of course I think Helga Rabl-Stadler. I am convinced that nobody suspects what an enormous workload she shoulders and with what active enthusiasm she serves the Festival! And nobody needs to suspect it, but I want her to know that I know, and that she has my wholehearted admiration for it.
Thank you for a beautiful cooperation, and thank you for a beautiful friendship.
Thank you for a beautiful cooperation, and thank you for a beautiful friendship.
Naturally, in my function as Artistic Director I also thank you, the representatives of the press, for your interest in the Festival and your reporting.
Personally, the extraordinarily positive reaction and support of the audience, the heartfelt recognition of my efforts from my colleagues the artists, and the outstanding economic success of the past years on the one hand, and the vilification – some of which appearing dogmatic to me at times – heaped upon my work by large parts of the German-language press on the other hand have often held me in a state of painful schizophrenia.
Since, however, it is better to part as friends, I would like to share a line from Così fan tutte with you: “Quello che è stato è stato, scordiamci del passato” – or:
What is done, is done – let us forget the past.
What is done, is done – let us forget the past.
Sven-Eric Bechtolf
以下は、同じ日に掲載された2016年ザルツブルク音楽祭のオペラ部門の総括記事のコピー。
Final Report on the 2016 Salzburg Festival: Opera
Opera
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Faust 2016: Philharmonia Chor Wien (Photo: SF/Monika Rittershaus) |
The Festival opened one week later, on Thursday, July 28, 2016, with a world premiere by the British composer Thomas Adès. The Exterminating Angel is based on Luis Buñuel’s film of the same title. Adès himself also conducted the piece, earning standing ovations from the audience at the premiere. Tom Cairns, who also created the libretto, directed the production. The ORF Radio Symphony Orchestra Vienna performed; the cast included Anne Sofie von Otter, Charles Workman, Frédéric Antoun, Thomas Allen and John Tomlinson. After Salzburg, the opera will be shown in London, Copenhagen, and in 2018 in New York. For a contemporary opera, the piece reached the remarkable percentage of 91% of sold seats.
Altogether, 46 opera performances were on the programme: three new productions, two revivals, one restaging, one revival from the Salzburg Whitsun Festival and three concert performances formed the 2016 opera offerings.
Compared to last summer, 12,000 opera tickets more were on sale – a record topped only during the Mozart Year 2006.
With Die Liebe der Danae, an opera was performed which is part of the Festival’s history: it was scheduled to have its world premiere in Salzburg in 1944 – however, due to the events of July 20, 1944, the Festival was cancelled by the Nazis, so that only the public dress rehearsal of Danae could take place. The actual premiere followed only in 1952. Alvis Hermanis directed a fairy-tale production inspired by Art Nouveau style. The audience and critics agreed that in conductor Franz Welser-Möst and the singers Krassimira Stoyanova, Tomasz Konieczny and Gerhard Siegel, the opera had an outstanding cast. 10,659 visitors saw Die Liebe der Danae: 50 percent more than in 2002, when the opera was last featured on the Salzburg Festival’s programme.
Charles Gounod’s opera Faust, on the other hand, made its first appearance on the playbill of the Salzburg Festival on August 10. Reinhard von der Thannen directed and designed stage sets and costumes. Piotr Beczala was celebrated as Faust, as were Ildar Abdrazakov as Méphilstophélès and Maria Agresta as Marguerite. Alejo Pérez conducted the Vienna Philharmonic at the Großes Festspielhaus.
The Mozart / Da Ponte Cycle was completed by director Sven-Eric Bechtolf in 2015 with Le nozze di Figaro. This Festival summer featured all three productions – Le nozze di Figaro (2015), Don Giovanni (2014) and Così fan tutte (2013) – as revivals, the latter restaged at the Felsenreitschule. Ottavio Dantone conducted the Mozarteum Orchestra Salzburg. Julia Kleiter as Fiordiligi and Angela Brower as Dorabella were enthusiastically received. Mauro Peter took on the role of Ferrando and Alessio Arduini sang Guglielmo. Martina Janková and Michael Volle drove the intrigue forward as Despina and Don Alfonso at the Felsenreitschule.
Alain Altinoglu was the conductor of the Vienna Philharmonic for Don Giovanni. As in 2014, Ildebrando d’Arcangelo sang Don Giovanni, while Luca Pisaroni repeated his performance of Leporello. Donna Anna was portrayed by Carmela Remigio, while Layla Claire took on the role of Donna Elvira. Paolo Fanale sang Don Ottavio, Alain Coulombe the Commendatore. Zerlina was embodied by Valentina Nafornita, while Masetto was sung by Alessio Arduini alternating with Iuri Samoilov. Don Giovanni reached a percentage of seats sold of 96%.
Dan Ettinger conducted the Vienna Philharmonic in Le nozze di Figaro, as in 2015. Luca Pisaroni and Annett Fritsch repeated their performance as Count and Countess Almaviva from last summer; Margarita Gritskova sang Cherubino and the servants Susanna and Figaro were portrayed by Anna Prohaska and Adam Plachetka.
All three Da Ponte opera were celebrated by the audience; 94% of seats were sold. More than 25,700 visitors attended the Mozart operas.
Long before its revival, the Salzburg Whitsun Festival’s production of West Side Story was sold out. Cecilia Bartoli in the role of Maria and Norman Reinhardt as her Tony convinced the audience. For the production by Philip Wm. McKinley, 60 tons of steel and acrylic glass were used to construct the sets, turning the Felsenreitschule into a New York street scene. Gustavo Dudamel and the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela not only contributed passionate and hot-blooded South American rhythms, but also accompanied the duets of Tony and Maria with sensitive tenderness.
Anna Netrebko was celebrated in the concert performances of Manon Lescaut, side by side with her husband Yusif Eyvazov, whose Salzburg Festival debut convinced reviewers and audiences equally. Armando Piña took on the role of Lescaut, Carlos Chausson sang Geronte de Ravoir and Benjamin Bernheim portrayed Edmondo. Marco Armiliato conducted the Munich Radio Orchestra.
After the performance on August 7, a Gala Soiree took place at the Salzburg Residenz in honour of Anna Netrebko. The net proceeds of 107,618 Euros benefit the Salzburg Festival’s youth education programmes.
Thunderous applause also greeted Plácido Domingo after the concert performance of Jules Massenet’s Thaïs on August 16. In the role of Athanaël, he won the audience over completely; at his side, Marina Rebeka as Thaïs and Benjamin Bernheim as Nicias were no less convincing. Patrick Fournillier conducted the Munich Radio Orchestra.
An opera rarity provided the vehicle for a brilliant performance by tenor Juan Diego Flórez: Il templario was composed in 1840 by the founder of the Vienna Philharmonic, but fell into obscurity later, despite its great success at the time. Clémentine Margaine sang the role of Rebecca at Flórez’ side. Andrés Orozco-Estrada conducted the Vienna Philharmonic.