In the wake of the hundredth anniversary of the death of Claude Debussy (25 March 1918), deSingel dedicated its annual "composers' day" this year to this French composer who gave the world of classical music a different perspective at the beginning of the twentieth century.
As always, it was a feast for music lovers, who unfortunately were not present in as great numbers as had been the case on previous occasions. Unless this observation only applies to the afternoon concerts, because – admittedly – I was only present there myself. And those three concerts were real hits.
The Préludes Book 2 received a stylish and at the same time spontaneous interpretation with pianist Jean-Efflam Bavouzet. He recently released a new Schumann CD on Chandos, but the pianist has repeatedly been awarded for his interpretations of Debussy and Ravel. It was evident that the colourful French tints of Debussy hold no secrets for him. With clarity and finesse, he gave the preludes their own character each time, where appropriate with temperament (La puerta del vino) but especially with melancholy and a feel for nature painting. It was as if you saw the autumn leaves swirling at the window in Feuilles mortes or saw the sad water nymph disappearing into the water in Ondine. Naturalness and perfect technique characterise Bavouzet and I suspect that he also made the Fantaisie for piano and orchestra that was on the programme in the evening a highlight of the day.
That deSingel not only makes a clever programme for its composer happenings, but also brings in the finest performers, was confirmed in the song recital sung by Sophie Karthäuser and Stéphane Degout, with Alain Planès at the piano. The pianistic quality of Planès for this programme may perhaps not be disputed, but the musician came across as an unsympathetic accompanist, more concerned with his own part than a servant of the singing.
Of the two singers, especially Stéphane Degout captivated me. He has the ideal baritone voice for this repertoire and as a fantastic Pelléas interpreter (as we experienced him at the Munt in September 2008) the texts of Stéphane Mallarmé and contemporaries on which Debussy composed his songs seem anchored in his biotope. He takes the listener on a journey through all the nuances of the songs, breathes melancholy and sensuality, all of course accompanied by flawless diction. The sensuality that I had expected from Sophie Karthäuser was somewhat lacking in her performance. The voice apparently has become stronger, has lost some of that fragile and lyrical-soft quality that was so typical of her high timbre. But her voice is crystal clear and with great flexibility and richness of colour she interprets the mysterious and seductive texts of Pierre Louÿs in his Chansons de Bilitis or the playful Mandoline by Paul Verlaine. The recital was a true tribute to Debussy's sensitive, subtle world.
Oxalys, that top ensemble of ours, then treated us to several works from the chamber music repertoire. It began with Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune in an arrangement by Debussy's contemporary Benno Sachs. The nostalgia – which Stéphane Mallarmé, through whose poem Debussy was inspired – so appreciated, sounded with finesse in the precisely tuned instruments that Oxalys allowed to sound beautifully both solo and in ensemble. Toon Fret was allowed to shine briefly in Syrinx for solo flute. In the subsequent Sonata for flute, viola and harp and Six épigraphes antiques, the musicians of Oxalys let us enjoy delightful authentic and refined Debussy.
To love Debussy: this afternoon at the Singel could only deepen this experience. Once again a successful Happening by deSingel!
- WHAT: Debussy Happening deSingel
- WHO: Jean-Efflam Bavouzet, piano, Sophie Karthäuser, soprano; Stéphane Degout, baritone; Oxalys
- WHERE: deSingel Antwerp
- WHEN: Sunday 24 February 2019
