A near-capacity audience flocked to the Reichhold Center for the Arts Saturday evening to hear much-acclaimed mezzo-soprano Denyce Graves in recital with master accompanist Warren Jones.
It was a truly enchanted evening. Even the weather cooperated, providing a gentle breeze under a star-studded sky further enhanced by two planets in rare configuration. The heavens seemed to portend something magical was about to take place — and it did.
The prima donna took the stage wearing a striking flowered gown. At once the audience knew that they were to witness the performance of an exceptionally beautiful woman.
In true classical tradition, Graves sang without electronic amplification, and from the first notes, the audience was enthralled. The Reichhold Center is a tricky place to perform classical music for acoustical reasons. The openness of the performing space will allow an unfocused or undirected sound to get lost.
Miss Graves seemed to fill the night with her music. The level of attention on the part of the audience was nearly hypnotic. Her beautiful, rich, full voice floated on the breeze, reaching the furthest confines of the seating area without ever being strained or forced. In fact, it was her exquisite quiet moments that made the listener most aware of the remarkable control Miss Graves has over her instrument.
The first half opened with three settings of Persian poems set by Santoloquido. These miniatures are exceptionally well-crafted gems with accompaniments which do much to create an exotic, mysterious atmosphere.
These relatively unfamiliar works opened the ears and minds of the audience, preparing them for the unusually high calibre of entertainment to which they were about to be so generously treated.
In the three opera arias which followed (two from Bizet's "Carmen" and one from "Samson et Dalila" by Saint-Saens), the audience became acutely aware of the reasons for the performer's international esteem in these sultry roles.
From that point on, the crowd belonged to Graves. She had won their hearts, and she knew it. The star concluded the first half with a tantalizing and devilish performance of the tour de force transcription of the tone poem "Danse Macabre" of Saint-Saens.
Following the intermission (during which an unusually high level of "oohing and aahing" could be overheard) Miss Graves reappeared in a voluptuous red evening gown which proclaimed unmistakably that operatic leading ladies no longer have to be big girls to have big voices. The crowd was noticeably taken.
Four Brahms lieder opened the second half. Through these art songs, Miss Graves displayed her mastery in this special, smaller art form as well as the power and richness of her darker-toned lower range.
Seven popular Spanish folk songs arranged by Manuel de Falla brought the spotlight to bear equally on the remarkable musicianship of Warren Jones. Mr. Jones played superbly throughout the program, but in these works the entire effect hinges largely on the atmosphere created by way of the complex characteristic rhythms and fiendish technical feats of the accompaniment. Jones reeled these off with panache. He has been rumored to be the artistic successor of Gerald Moore, the original "unabashed accompanist." Saturday's performance gave credence to this acclaim.
Throughout the performance he and Miss Graves were remarkably synergistic. The success of their musical collaboration can only be compared to the joy communicated by a truly first-class ballet duo.
The spirituals which followed were responsible for finishing off both the program and the capture of the hearts of the audience. Miss Graves shared a joyous rendition of "Everytime I Feel the Spirit," a reverent and haunting interpretation of "Give Me Jesus," and a rollicking, fun-filled performance of "Git on Board" in a new arrangement by Evelyn Simpson-Currenton.
The audience was not to be dispersed just yet. They were on their feet and cheering with the kind of enthusiasm unheard at concerts of classical music on St. Thomas. The diva was rewarded with flowers, and her newly won subjects settled down willing to hear anything she might care to sing for them.
With a twinkle in her eye and a seductive grin, Denyce Graves sailed into the "Habanera" from "Carmen." It was perhaps the most sensuous, sizzling performance of any song the audience had ever heard. They went wild. (Could it be red dresses? Denyce Graves seemed to be saying, "If you thought Michelle Pfeiffer was hot in the 'Fabulous Baker Brothers,' get a load of this!")
Miss Graves was presented under the aegis of the Birch Forum with the co-sponsorship of the island's two largest financial institutions, Banco Popular and Chase Bank. Seven additional patrons from the business community provided additional support and some made tickets available to students from our high schools. The island is indebted to all of them.
It was particularly gratifying to see so many young people given the experience of fine classical music performed with such joy and impeccable artistry. Certainly none of them went away believing that classical music is stuffy or boring. Thank you, Birch Forum!
