The 'Requiem' at the Liceu

PalmaIt is impossible to find the ideal adjective to qualify the monumental spectacle offered by the Gran Teatre del Liceu with such a spectacular Requiem by Verdi. Seeing the great orchestra and the chorus on stage was already a clear omen of the dimensions of what was to come. An impression that increased exponentially when Lise Davidsen, Aigul Akhmetshina, Freddie de Tomasso, and Christian Van Horn appeared, together with the conductor of this great and exquisite multitude, Nicola Luissoti, a Verdian specialist who in some way and undoubtedly became another of the great protagonists of the apotheotic evening. Absolute control, millimetric tempos, precision in every indication, but, above all, passion, which he conveyed from the first moment and maintained throughout such an explosive and gigantic score, this “opera in ecclesiastical robes,” as Hans von Bülow defined it, not precisely as a compliment, although today it certainly is.

The confirmation that everything that was assumed to happen took place just upon hearing the calm first notes of the orchestra, but that everything would be much better than any previous conjecture became evident with the first intervention of the chorus, the introductory Kyrie, of infinite transparency. That was not all. Verdi's Requiem went on gaining merit with each new intervention of any of the protagonists, who were all at the same level. Chorus and orchestra became the perfect wrapping for four soloists of undeniable solvency and prestige, who exhibited it from the Kyrie eleison, Christe eleison, with which they began their intervention. An intervention that gave way to the overwhelming Dies irae, and from there everything headed upwards and to infinity, as for example and subsequently with the powerful Tuba mirum

Lise Davidsen, at all times, showed each and every one of her virtues, which even if it seems impossible, improve with every new performance. Thus, the filati sounded as they should, like a stretched thread and without the slightest hindrance, of excellent neatness and a duration that made it clear it could be even longer. For her phrasing or power, there are no adjectives either. Freddie de Tomasso shone with the demanding Ingemisco, while the mezzo Aigul Akhmetshina, with an opaque but subtle and powerful voice, without having it easy, showed delicacy in each of her interventions. Christian Van Horn, the bass who never disappoints, but quite the contrary, fulfilled with excess and with the ease that he always seems to sing with. To round off such a majestic performance, what better than an immaculate Libera me,performed by Lisa Davidsen and the choir, which we will also never forget.