Photos by Khalid al Busaidi
A night of magic unfolded at the Royal Opera, House of Musical Arts on Sunday as the Muscat Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and Choir graced the stage for a truly unforgettable performance, “A Special Night with Thomas Hampson.” This extraordinary event showcased a meticulously crafted program lasting just one hour but brimming with orchestral masterpieces, enchanting choral harmonies, and baritone solos from the renowned “Ambassador of Song,” Thomas Hampson himself.
Having spent the week leading workshops and masterclasses for young Omani singers, Hampson’s performance was the pinnacle of this artistic collaboration. With mesmerizing arias from the operatic giants Mozart and Verdi, he brought a wealth of experience and passion to the stage.
The ladies looked stunning in their blue and magenta traditional dress with golden tiaras, while the men were imposing in their quasi-military black dress-coats with brocade trimming. It complemented the first Nationalistic Anthem, “Oman Al Riyada” followed by “Biladi Oman”, scored for full orchestra and choir. The choral writing exploited the strong, lower pitched vocal register, giving a powerful unison to this patriotic composition. It was met with resounding applause from friends and family alike!
Thomas Hanson appeared, his communication skills and relaxed stage presence immediately apparent. He was in full and excellent voice for Mozart’s ‘opera buffa’ concert aria for bass voice, ‘Rivolgete a lui lo sguardo’ (Look at him and you will see how it is). The orchestra rose splendidly to the occasion featuring some fine string playing. The second aria, ‘Hai Gia Vinta la Causa’ (You’ve already won the case) heard Hampson’s celebrated, declamatory bass style as Count Almaviva from “Figaro”. Only the piano (Sofia Bardaska) accompanied the opening recitative section, providing an intimate immediacy to his dramatic delivery. When the orchestra re-entered for the aria, the ensemble playing was well synchronised and here credit goes to their guest conductor, the high achieving 44-year-old Lebanese Maestro, Lubnan Baalbaki.
The choir had a chance to shine and project their part-singing with gypsy exuberance and gay abandon in Verdi’s famous and amusing chorus, ‘Chi del gitano i giorni abbella’ from, “Il Trovatore”. It was followed by dark orchestral colours featuring a mournful minor melody from the oboe (Maram Badar al Saadi). Thomas Hampson entered with a passionate performance of the beautiful lyrical aria, ‘Per me giunto...Io morro’ (The death of Rodrigo) from Verdi’s “Don Carlos”. His imploring, pleading bel canto delivery confirmed his considerable vocal control, especially in his high register towards the end.
There was a treat in store with the relatively small orchestra playing two sections from Bizet’s ‘Carmen Suite No.1’. Lush horn playing and warm cello swells in the ‘Prélude’ demonstrated their capability of strong dynamic contrast. The gypsies appeared again in the lovely ‘Aragonaise’ dance with an evocative Cor Anglais melody, pretty flute runs (Murshid Said al Subhi) and lively gypsy fiddles.
The choir excelled in their grasp of Czech language and music with their confident performance of Smetana’s, ‘Proč bychom se netěšili’ Wedding Dance from his Nationalist opera based on Czech folksong, “The Bartered Bride”. They continued with traditional Omani folk style using Arabic scales in, ‘Bi Abi man rabaha nadhari’ arranged by Abdulrahim Alhujeli. The piece started with soloists from the ‘Arabic Ensemble’ on Oud, Nay and Tabla and were joined by the choir in unison, emphasising the lower resonance of the ladies’ voices. They had learnt the material well and sang this 6th century revision by Ibn Zuhair al Hafid with deserved confidence - which stopped suddenly as it reached its dramatic heights.
Hampson returned to sing another Verdi Masterpiece: ‘Pietà, rispetto, Amore’ from ‘Macbeth’. It opened with a tender string introduction and then his despairing, heartfelt interpretation included many unaccompanied phrases with a round and rich timbre. His placing and pitch were impeccable, especially in the acapella sections. A very interesting, ‘Finale Dance’ followed by the twentieth century Persian composer, Mohammad Reza Aligholi. It was a simple, folk-inspired yet highly rhythmical dance using atmospheric orchestral colours such as piccolos and tambourines. It reflected western classical and Eastern European influences and featured a lovely fiddle solo from the Leader, Muaiyad Khalan al Habsi.
Bizet’s beloved, ‘Toreador Song’ from ‘Carmen’ for the Finale was an excellent choice from the baritone repertoire as it included a popular aria, lively rhythms and an inspiring chorus part. The ladies’ choir added a delightful counter-melody above the main theme, sung in French. The audience was overwhelmed by the guest artist appearing with their own, and demanded more. And so the Toreador was asked to fight again.
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