Search - Johann Christoph Bach, Johann Sebastian Bach, Georges Bizet :: Enchantment

Best of Kozena Spotlighted Beautifully on This Generous Two-

Ed Uyeshima | San Francisco, CA USA | 05/20/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"What a treat to have this Whitman's Sampler of the often magnificent vocal work of Czech mezzo-soprano Magdalena Kozena. At over two hours, this personally selected two-disc compilation reflects the wide variety of material she has covered in her nearly decade-long recording career. What continues to impress me about her voice is how lightly shaded her tone can be for a mezzo and how her range moves fluidly from hushed whisper to throbbing fortissimo. Throughout the span of this collection, Kozena complements her considerable vocal gifts with an ability to inhabit the drama of the arias whether inhabiting a specific role or setting a particular mood. It's masterful work for such a relatively young singer.



Her rich Baroque repertoire is highlighted here. The Handel selections, though familiar, are superb. She makes an impressively volatile Cleopatra in Marc Minkowski's 2002 production of "Giulio Cesare", and the focus on this disc is the grand final sequence - "Se pieta di me non senti", "Piangero la sorte mia" and "Da tempeste il legno infranto". She complements this sequence with another impressive Minkowski collaboration, a 2001 performance of Handel's cantata, "Tra la fiamme", where she trills in fulsome Italianate style, as well as a sonorous duet with soprano Annick Massis on the penultimate "De torrente" from a 2000 performance of "Dixit Dominus".



Mozart is also well represented with two pieces performed with plaintive emotion and sharp articulation - Cherubino's Act II arietta, "Voi che sapete che cosa e amor", from "Le nozze di Figaro" and a more recent turn in the travesty role of Sesto on "Deh, per questo istant solo" from his last opera, "La clemenza di Tito". Kozena showcases her impeccable German diction on four majestic J.S. Bach selections, most notably "Vergnuegte Ruh, beliebte Seelenlust" (taken from her luminous "Lamento" disc released last year) showcasing her dramatic acumen and luminous tone. I was particularly enraptured by the opening lament on disc two, J.C. Bach's "Ach, dass ich Wassers g'nug hatte", which puts voice to a sinner's guilt.



The rest of the collection showcases her versatility in other genres with an exploration into late 19th-early 20th century French arias on Gounod's haunting "Nuit respendissante" and Massenet's intoxicating "J'ai verse le poison" from his late-period opera, "Cleopatre". Another high point is her enchanting performance of Respighi's fifteen-minute "Il Tramonto". Not surprisingly, Kozena provides a generous sampling of works from Czech composers performed in her native tongue - Myslevecek's "Che non mi disse", Dvorak's "Dobru noc, ma mila" and "Zalo dievca" and Janacek's melancholy "Seven Moravian Folksongs" - all done with intense feeling. I was fortunate to be able to see her memorable portrayal of Varvara in Janacek's "Kat'a Kabanova" at the Met last year.



Some of the selections truthfully do not show off her talents as well, for example, Britten's gratefully brief "The Highland Balou" in which she applies a rather erratic Scottish brogue, and a breathless turn as Carmen on Bizet's "Les tringles des sistres tintaient", a fiery performance but one done to death by a number of sopranos and mezzos through the years. Regardless, these are minor missteps for this wondrous singer. As a bonus, there is also a video clip of Kozena performing J.S. Bach's "Kommt, ihr angefochtnen Sunder". As one of the first of Deutsche Grammophon's Portrait of the Artist series, this is a terrific compilation of the work from a lovely talent still blooming."