The Venice Baroque Orchestra’s presentation of Andromeda liberata,
by Vivaldi and others, was the first early-music event I’d heard at
Zankel Hall, and, as others have hinted, Baroque bands take to the
space like cats to leftover Thanksgiving turkey. You don’t have that
feeling of listening through the wrong end of the telescope: the music
is full, present, vibrant. For many reasons, this was a very good night. Only the time-stopping aria "Sovvente
il sole" sounds like top-drawer Vivaldi, but it’s a beautifully crafted
score that actually builds romantic suspense as Andromeda and Perseus
work through their relationship issues. Andrea Marcon’s orchestra was,
as expected, a potent mix of precision and swing. Simone
Kermes, who sang Andromeda, is an unusual and powerful talent — a lyric
soprano with an edgy, forceful way of shaping a phrase and an obvious
urge to make the scenery nervous, if not to chew it outright. Ruth
Rosique stepped in at the last moment as Cassiope and showed a gleaming, pure
voice. Marijana Mijanovic, Enrico Onofri, and Max Cencic were also
strong. It was great to hear the audience getting involved in the show
as it went on. Early on, some righteous ignoramus actually shushed his
neighbors after an aria, but by the end people were cheering after
every number. Overall, the evening passed
what my friend Jason Royal calls the Zankel Subway Rumble test: I only
noticed the N / R train once. There’s an excellent DG recording to match.