Saturday, January 16, 1999
Russian diva's 'Salome' sets Music Hall ablaze
BY JANELLE GELFAND
The Cincinnati Enquirer
It may not have been coincidence that the ice outside started melting as soprano Ljuba Kazarnovskaya began singing the final scene of Salome in Music Hall on Friday night.
In her debut with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, the Russian diva may have melted a few hearts as well, with her glowing stage presence and voluptuous voice.
Ms. Kazarnovskaya graced the second half of what was originally to have been an all-Richard Strauss program at the CSO. When the orchestra's recording plans changed, Korngold's Sinfonietta was switched from the April 23-24 weekend to this week's first half.
Ms. Kazarnovskaya is one of many Russian singers known to the West only since the collapse of the Soviet Union. Her voice was opulent but refined, although she sometimes swallowed the German text of the famous monologue concluding the Strauss opera.
In her portrayal of Salome, the stepdaughter of Herod who demands the head of John the Baptist, she was more girlish than seductive. If she missed some of the revulsion factor — mainly because the visual effect of Jochanaan's head on a platter was missing — she captured the scene's chill.
Jesus Lopez-Cobos' orchestra was powerful and sensuous, but unfortu nately often swamped the soprano.
Ms. Kazarnovskaya treated the crowd of 1,060 with two Strauss lieder as encores: Morgen and Zueignung. These were beautifully nuanced, radiant choices, and concertmaster Timothy Lees collaborated with a ravishing tone.
Strauss' tone poem Don Juan, played just a year ago by the CSO, also figured in the second half. Mr. Lopez-Cobos, who goes for richness of string tone, reveled in the work's atmospheric moments. The love theme in the oboe (Richard Johnson) was well-phrased, and the horns had a refined sonority, although the piece at times lost momentum.
The concert opened with the four-movement Sinfonietta of 15-year-old Erich Wolfgang Korngold, who was better known for his Hollywood scores of the '30s than his classical pieces.
It was a lush, romantic work, with full-blown themes that seemed destined for Hollywood. Although Mr. Lopez-Cobos was an involved conductor, the orchestra was insecure in a few rhythmically tricky areas, and the scherzo was heavy. The best moment came in the third movement, with its haunting melody and imaginative orchestral touches.
The CSO repeats at 8 p.m. today. Tickets: 381-3300.
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