As the title suggests, the show was a blend of performance styles, weaving a loose tale of jealousy and mutual homicide. There were musicians and singers to accompany the flamenco – the violin, guitar, cello and percussion made a punchy and jazzy ensemble. Two cantaores stoked the passion with husky, open-throated singing. The dancers were okay from what I heard, but the sightlines from the top balcony were too shallow. Much of the torso expression and footwork was lost.
Which leaves the opera. The solo piano accompaniment was a constrained and jarring musical contrast. The soprano had a large classically trained instrument, but she couldn't sustain the long vocal lines of Casta diva. The tenor's voice was two sizes too small to be singing Puccini or Pagliacci. Next time I would just seek out flamenco in a more intimate setting.
Monday – The Masters of the Spanish Guitar series at the Basílica Santa María del Pi. The adjacent Chapel of the Purest Blood accommodated an audience of more than a hundred to hear an amplified soloist. Manuel Gonzalez played a concert of greatest hits of the classical guitar repertoire. Most of the material was instantly recognizable and songs I was grateful to hear performed live. Gonzalez was an expressive player with a rich palate of shades of tone. But there were a handful, no, a pocketful of finger faults, so perhaps Lesser Master would be more apt. Still, I was enthralled to hear that music resonate in an ancient rough-hewn stone chapel.
Tuesday – The Barcelona Duo de Guitarra at the Església Santa Anna. The audience entered through a columned cloister into a 30-seat charter house. Guitarists Ksenia Axelroud and Joan Beneham played unamplified music of much higher polish. Their program ventured deeper into traditional and modern repertoire. The duo finished with their own arrangement of four movements from Carmen, translating Bizet's guitar-inspired score back to its original roots. It was a much more rewarding integration of opera than I saw the first night. There was red wine awaiting the audience upon its exit back to the cloister, capping an evening of musical excellence.
