KEY POINTS:
PERFORMANCE
What: Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra
Where: Auckland Town Hall
Reviewer: William Dart
From the moment Teddy Tahu Rhodes let forth with As God the Lord of Israel liveth, it was clear that the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra's Elijah would be an evening to remember.
Conductor Paul Mann was determined to deliver Mendelssohn's oratorio as edge-of-the-seat drama and when the Chapman Tripp Opera Chorus made its first plea for divine intervention, many spines must have tingled.
The strong men's voices were particularly appreciated. The sopranos were not always comfortable in their upper register. Tenor Henry Choo was the first soloist to make an impact, singing his first recitative with the fervour that Mendelssohn's sometimes bland score needs. This led to an exquisitely rendered If with all your hearts, a piece with the lilt of a drawing-room ballad. Soprano Rebecca Ryan and mezzo Zan McKendree-Wright had already introduced themselves in one of Mendelssohn's duller duets, although Ryan would open the second part of the work with a finely phrased Hear ye, Israel.
If Ryan lost her widow's music in the various cuts that were made, then McKendree-Wright fared worse, being denied O rest in the Lord. A pity this, when her Woe Unto Them displayed a rare and effective emotional restraint.
Even Rhodes, the kingpin of the evening, had a few opportunities taken from him. Nevertheless, he was a towering presence, with his steadfast and stirring portrait of the Old Testament prophet. The bass-baritone dealt with the followers of Baal with humour and authority, Lord God of Abraham was a vibrant triumph and the lyricism of For the Mountains shall depart a revelation. Auckland will not experience the likes of this performance for some years.
One could sense Paul Mann's total involvement with Mendelssohn's theatrical confrontations of Good and Evil, putting a swing into Be no afraid and risking satiation in the choral sumptuousness of it all. He may not have had the 396 musicians that Mendelssohn conducted in 1846 but, in the grander moments, with the APO playing its heart out and Indra Hughes brewing up mighty sounds on the town hall organ, one could believe he did.
