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| Tali Ketzef,Assaf Bènraf,David Goldman,Tamara Navoth (Courtesy Tamara Navoth) |
THE WORLD IS A STAGE - This was no
understatement regarding the concert that took place at the Jerusalem Theatre on
December 21st 2025 to a packed Henry Crown Auditorium. In this, the second of
"The Chorus Line" series, Maestro Assaf Bènraf conducted the
Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra, the Jerusalem A-Cappella Singers and the Jerusalem
Oratorio Chamber Choir. Soloists were Tali Ketzef (soprano), Tamara Navoth (mezzo-soprano), David Goldberg (tenor), Dmitry Lovtsov (baritone) and Ziv
Sabag (tenor). Jerusalem mayor Moshe Lion opened the festive event.
Assaf Bènraf and the musicians took the
audience on a whirlwind opera tour to destinations throughout Europe and into
Restoration England, with opera excerpts from the late 17th- to the early 20th centuries. And what more delightful way to start the evening rolling than
with the Overture to W.A.Mozart's "Marriage of Figaro", performed
with fleet lightness, wit, freshness and charm, its every gesture alluding to the opera's
playful, mischievous plot. This was followed by a splendid reading of the
chorus "Giovani liete fiori spargete" (Young ladies, happily scatter
flowers).
Leaving the world of opera buffa, the
program took the audience to operas based on myth or history, those exploring
profound human emotions, downfall and sorrow, starting with "Ah, se
intorno a quest'urna funestra" (Ah! If around this mournful urn) from
C.W.Gluck's "Orfeo ed Euridice", the choral role's lush, lyrical intensity
interwoven with Orfeo's grief-stricken solo utterances (Tamara Navoth). Navoth's
poised singing and tasteful ornamentation of Dido's Lament from "Dido and
Aeneas" (Purcell) brought out the simplicity of this grand lament,
followed by the choir's gentle request that cupids scatter rose petals on Dido’s
tomb. For me, a highlight of the evening was the chorus introducing the 4th act
of G.Verdi's “Macbeth”, "Patria oppressa" (Oppressed land of
ours), in which Scottish refugees bemoan the misery of their own country.
Expressive, meticulously detailed and with a fine balance between instrumental-
and choral forces, Bènraf conveyed the bleak, menacing scene. This was followed
by a pleasurable performance of the much-loved chorus from Verdi's
"Nabucco" "Va, pensiero" (Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves), a
reminder of Babylonian captivity following the destruction of Solomon’s Temple in
Jerusalem (586 BC). Then, plummeting to the program's gloomiest depths, we
heard the scene from M.Mussorgsky’s "Boris Godunov" that includes
the Holy Fool's aria, a pivotal moment in the opera and a scene heavy in social
commentary and psychological drama. Alongside praiseworthy singing on the part
of the choir (with tenor Ziv Sabag as Shulsky) young Israeli tenor David
Goldberg, commanded fine vocal control, his richly-timbred voice displaying the requisite pathos to portray the Holy Fool lamenting Russia's dark future. An
outstanding and convincing performance of this challenging
material.
There was much enjoyment from the selection
of pieces performed from G.Bizet's "Carmen", beginning with the
Overture, its rousing march style including the Toreador Song. Joined by two
choir member soloists, the chorus "A deux cuartos!" (For two
cuartos!), a foil to the impending grim melodrama, was stirring, presenting festive celebrating of the crowd and merchants outside the bullring. Performing one of the best-known
arias of operatic repertoire, we heard Tamara Navoth (her Carmen a less
promiscuous gypsy than some) singing the Habanera, “L’amour est un
oiseau rebelle” (Love is a rebellious bird), the performance characterized by attentive balance of solo voice, choir and orchestra.
And to the world of light opera, of sweet
sentiments of love and happy endings, starting with "The Merry Widow"
by Franz Lehár. Performing the Vilja-Lied, in which the affluent
widow Hanna delights her guests with a tale about a woodland fairy who
bewitches hunters, soprano Tali Ketzef captured the piece's sentiments of
longing and desire, of nostalgia and hope, her delicate rendition at times
overshadowed by the orchestra. Ketzef and Navoth's voices blended and matched in their fetching performance of "Belle nuit, ô nuit
d'amour" (Beautiful Night, Oh Night of Love), the daintily lilting
Barcarolle from Jacques Offenbach's opéra fantastique "The Tales of
Hoffmann". For the opera's Finale, Ketzef, Navoth, Goldberg and Lovtsov (the latter's voice easeful, resonant and of warm timbre) sang the opening, then to be joined by the choir, with the JSO brass- and percussion sections contributing to the mighty, final tutti. And what more jovial way to end the concert than with soloists,
choir and orchestra raising a glass to indulgence and merriment in the
iconic "Champagne Song" from Johann Strauss II's operetta "Die
Fledermaus"? But it seems that yet another toast was in order, with a
hearty performance of "Libiamo ne 'lieti calici" (Let's drink from
the joyful cups) from G.Verdi's "La Traviata".
It was a sparkling evening of variety and
of first-class, polished performance on the part of the JSO players, choirs and
soloists, indeed, an evening of opera magic, despite there being no staging. Maestro Bènraf
drew together these forces with precision, eloquence and clarity, his lively explanations adding interesting background information as to the works and their times.
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