J.S. Bach’s monumental St. Matthew Passion is an oratorio of astounding beauty and depth. Based the Gospel of Matthew, it recounts the Passion of Christ from the days leading up to the Last Supper, through his arrest, sentencing and crucifixion. Bach’s intricate and harmonically complex writing is a challenge for every member of the ensemble including chorus, orchestra, conductor and soloists and requires, from each, a clarity of the period style but also, and most importantly, a confidence of technique and skill that is singular to Bach’s sacred vocal works.
Saturday evening’s performance also marked my first visit to newly renovated David Geffen Hall, home of the New York Philharmonic, at Lincoln Center. The lobby, with shades of dark blues and purple, is welcoming and cozy but feels less expansive than the former hall. Inside the auditorium, we were greeted with some rather surprisingly, multi-colored seats which gave a rather midwestern-community-theatre feel. The textured walls and detailed millwork throughout the hall appear to be the basis of the much-touted accoustical improvements. The main stage is enlarged using some of the former audience front section and the area behind the stage was also expanded to include ample seating for either a large chorus or penny pinching audience members. No longer the austere grandiosity of the former Avery Fisher, this new Geffen Hall was clearly designed to be everyone’s hall for the people of New York.
Conductor Jaap van Zweden led the ensemble with the conviction and authority of one who understands and holds great reverence for this work and the musical style it requires. He was joined by key members of the NY Phil, an enhanced Musica Sacra and the Brooklyn Youth Chorus. The opening “Kommt ihr tochter” was riveting in its urgency and despair. Throughout the oratorio, and without a baton, Zweden was always in full command, moving the work along with excellent pacing while clearly communicating the intimacy of the most intricate and delicate parts of the score. His support of the recitatives allowed for remarkable expressivity by the singers while urging a forward motion necessary to keep the audience engaged.
Taking on the pivotal assignment of the Evangelist was tenor Nicholas Phan. Phan has a fine, if not particularly beautiful, light lyric tenor with suitable weight and leggiero coloring that should have provided the basis for a successful reading of this role. To be fair, in many respects, this was a solid performance from Phan who managed much of the role with relative ease, forthright expression and a grounded technique. Unfortunately, this is an unforgiving role of punishing length which requires a tenor who can continually sing above and near the passaggio while following a dramatic arch that increases the demands of the tenor toward the end of this 3 and 1/2 hour work. By the end of Part I, Phan was cutting some phrasing short and inelegantly reaching for A’s. By the middle of Part II, this became more common. At the moment after Peter has betrayed Jesus for the third time, the Evangelist is required to sing upward to high B, sweep down and immediately back up to A (“und ging heraus und weinte bitterlich”). Here, Phan gave up on his core and ended up in falsetto as the phrase ascended. Thereafter, he was unable to fully recover the second upward motion and, in doing so, completely lost this key dramatic moment. In the final scenes, Phan worked valiantly to maintain consistency but never really assumed his position as the chief driver of this performance, as the Evangelist should be. That distinction could only be given to the Jesus of bass-baritone Davon Tines who vocal presence, confidence and conviction elevated this often supporting role into a lead performance. Eschewing the standard oratorio black tuxedo in favor of more Christ-like appearance, Tines sported a white, body-length, sleeveless frock over black pants and black elevated (Prada?) boots. Costume aside, Tines voice was full and vibrant throughout the evening, such that he was able to easily imbue the most famous quotes with credible mystery and gravity.
The four soloists, who also doubled as minor characters in the Passion play, were up to the task though not without some exceptions. Soprano Amanda Forsythe displayed elegant baroque vocal style and phrasing but her rather light lyric soprano diminished too easily in the expansive Geffen Hall. Still, she was able to spin out long, crystalline lines in “Aus liebe,” to ravishing effect. Taking on the four alto arias was mezzo soprano Tamara Mumford. Though less stylistically grounded as Forsythe, Mumford’s more generous middle weight mezzo spoke better in the hall and was perfectly suited to the noble lines of “Können Tränen” but was at a distinct disadvantage in “Ach, Golgotha!” where more of a true contralto sound was needed. Disappointed as I was with Phan’s depiction of Peter’s betrayal, I was certain Mumford would save the day with the immediately following number, “Ebarme dich,” an aria of startling beauty and one of Bach’s finest. Alas, Mumford seemed content to just keep pace with the gentle, forward lilt of the orchestra and violin soloist, unable to harness the intricate writing into a coherent expression of this heartbreaking text. The duet for soprano and alto (“So is mein Jesus”) was a wonderful collaboration between Forsythe and Mumford, followed a the thrilling and thunderous chorus (“Sind Blitze, sind Donner”) with the singers of Musica Sacra amply demonstrating why this group, under the direction of Kent Tritle who doubled at the organ, remains New York’s premiere chorus.
Tenor Paul Appleby displayed a full mastery of the style and technique in the two difficult tenor arias. His compact, sweet lyric tenor balanced lyricism and ample resonance to Bach’s challenging lines so much so that I considered whether he might have been better cast as the Evangelist. Appleby sang “Ich will bei meinem Jesus” with stirring conviction and gravity as his voice effortlessly traversed the virtuoso lines, each time increasing the intensity of the repeated, sustained Gs. In “Geduld”, Appleby expertly handled Bach’s jagged writing while melding effortlessly in tender opposition to the vivid viola da gamba playing of Matt Zucker. Bass-baritone Phillipe Sly has a lovely, full voice but was the least convincing as a period stylist, which is unfortunate since Bach uses a bass voice in four arias and numerous character lines. The arias require a broad range for a bass voice that must be deployed intimately while carefully managing Bach’s challenging vocal lines. Sly sang “Gerne will ich” and “Mache dich” with conviction but Bach’s repeated, large interval leaps, ever present in both arias, caused him to lapse too often into uneven tone and inelegant phrasing. Sly was more in his comfort zone in the faster paced “Geht mir meinem Jesum” but was unable, like Appleby, to foment a convincing collaboration with the viola da gamba in “Komm, süßes Kreuz.”
In the end, much credit is assigned to the orchestra and chorus under Zweden’s leadership that made this a most successful St. Matthew Passion. The penultimate chorus and quartet scene (“Mein Jesu! Gute Nacht”) shimmered ever so gently throughout the new hall, an effect that might not have been possible with the acoustics of the former hall. Zweden’s expert handling of the final chorus (“Wir setzen uns”) was nothing short of majestic with all forces united in a solemn farewell.
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