SINGER BAYRAKDARIAN ILLUSTRATES HOW MUSIC TRANSCENDS LANGUAGE

[Yervant1]

SINGER BAYRAKDARIAN ILLUSTRATES HOW MUSIC TRANSCENDS LANGUAGE

By: Gwenda Nemerofsky

 

Winnipeg Free Press

Sept 14 2012

Canada

 

IF you ever doubted that music could transcend language, Wednesday

night's Manitoba Chamber Orchestra (MCO) concert would have changed

your mind.

 

Guest artist, spectacular Armenian-Canadian soprano Isabel Bayrakdarian

sang in Greek and Armenian. Audience members were provided lyric sheets

with translations, but who wanted to read fussy bits of paper when

Bayrakdarian was onstage? This musical treasure told us everything we

needed to know with her limpid voice, impassioned facial expressions

and graceful gestures. No words necessary.

 

The concert was introduced by the always debonair CBC Radio 2

personality, Bill Richardson. Conductor Anne Manson was at the helm

for this 40th anniversary season opener.

 

Gourmet candy

 

Bayrakdarian began with Five Greek Songs by Maurice Ravel, arranged

by her husband Serouj Kradjian. It was evident from the singer's

appearance that the couple is expecting an addition to their family

soon, but this did not affect her gorgeous voice. The song cycle

resembled a box of gourmet candy, each piece more deliciously tempting

than the last.

 

Song of the Bride was immediately lilting, full of colour and power.

 

Yonder, Near the Church had a somewhat melancholy tenor, rendered with

long seamless phrases that were satisfyingly assertive. Bayrakdarian

is so communicative, possessing a unique style that makes you feel

that she is singing right to you. The soulful Song of the Lentisk

Gatherers displayed her purity of tone, full of emotion and subtle

inflection. And All Merry! was a dance in song form, bursting with

playfulness.

 

The addition of the separate Ravel song, Tripatos was joyous fun,

Bayrakdarian almost laughing as she sang.

 

She also performed 18th-century Armenian composer Sayat-Nova's Four

Songs, arranged by Kradjian. One couldn't help but be struck by

the modern tunefulness of the poignant first song Kani Voor Janim,

Bayrakdarian's voice carrying effortlessly through the hall. Versatile

concertmaster Karl Stobbe matched her emotion in his solo violin

passages in Blbooli Hit, which was steeped in sorrow, his sensitive

playing well-controlled. We felt we had travelled back in time to an

earlier Armenia. The spirited Kamancha was an ode to the Armenian bowed

instrument. Bayrakdarian's weighty voice crafted this beautifully,

deftly shaping phrase endings, imbuing it with personality. You really

couldn't ask for more.

 

The concert ended with Manson and the MCO whisking us off to Dvorak's

Czech countryside in a rousing performance of his elegantly substantial

Serenade for Strings.

 

This is a work that shows the composer's love of the instruments

-- and he gives everyone a chance to shine. Overall, the musicians

made the most of the opportunity, sweeping us up in the introductory

melody with smooth bowing and effective nuance. The tempo di valse

was wonderfully textured, only marred by a few stray violins letting

their colleagues down with squeals and untidy notes. But the scherzo

brimmed with life, violins scampering brightly and the finale was

suitably upright and urgent. A nice start to the season.

 

http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/opinion/columnists/singer-bayrakdarian-illustrates-how-music-transcends-language-169741136.html