Word: dammed
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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There was, however, some slight jumbling of words and one can forgive such blunders in light of the fact that van Dam performed the 75-minute work without break and from memory. It is surprising, though, that a singer who is used to performing lead roles in four-hour operas would have such problems, especially for a standard work like Winterreise, which he obviously knows inside-out and has even recorded in the past. The tempi tended to be on the slower side, but none of the songs dragged. Pianist Maciej Pukulski was effective in keeping the organic structure...
...Sunday, that singer was bass-baritone José van Dam, who performed the cycle at Jordan Hall as part of the FleetBoston Celebrity Series. He brought a considerable amount of necessary pathos to the work, yet was dignified in his delivery. The 62-year-old Belgian singer is known throughout the world for his performances in various operatic productions, from Mozart to Messiaen (he created the title role in the latter’s St. François d’Assise), as well as his appearances with many of the world’s finest orchestras. He also proved...
...single, unrelenting lament. The singer is so tortured that by the end, his meeting with a stone-faced organ grinder does not have nearly the chilling impact that it should. And while this work is all about excessive emotions, an excessive display can hurt its credibility. Van Dam never overplayed the Werther-like persona of the narrator. He avoided the indulgent self-pity that lends itself easily to the work. The cycle as a whole, while overwhelmingly dark, has moments of repose, fragmentary glimpses of life that end as soon as they begin...
...songs like “The Post,” Van Dam highlighted the contrast between the cheerful opening and the abrupt change of mood in the second stanza. Each utterance of “Mein Herz” (“My Heart”) encompassed the emotional spectrum, from optimism to anguish. At his finest moments, he was able to take a semi-strophic song, like the opening “Gute Nacht” (“Good Night”), and turn it into a compelling narrative, making the music speak differently each time it reappeared...
...Actually, we have to go pick up our medals right now,” van Dam added...