Jose Carreras Still Got It

Photo courtesy of Goyang Cultural Foundation

Tenor Jose Carreras wrapped up his South Korean recital tour Tuesday with a crowd-pleasing program in Goyang, Gyeonggi Provice, a satellite city of Seoul. (The last public concert he had here was in 2006. In '07 and '08 he came for those fancy, private functions.)

The 63-year-old Catalan took some time to warm up his voice (and it was really, really warm in the concert. I was particularly irritated by the Korean Symphony Orchestra (argh in less than a week after Friday's "Fidelio"), which, conducted by the singer's nephew David Gimenez, kept confusing power with volume and drowned out the vocal.

After intermission, however, Mr. Carreras showed why he's one of The Three Tenors in an impassioned duet with soprano Park Mi-hye. I loved Ms. Park's singing -- even though her lung capacity was slightly lacking (weak volume), her voice was silvery and lyrical.

He wrapped up the evening with "Musica Prohibita" and gave two encores including "Granada."

>>Read about what Mr. Carreras told reporters recently in Seoul

>>Read about the recent Seoul recital of Placido Domingo, the other surviving member of the Three Tenors.

Jose Carreras to Hold Recitals

Photos courtesy of Goyang Aram Nuri

Jose Carreras will hold three recitals across South Korea beginning Friday through May 12 -- not as a stopover of an Asian tour but in order to revisit the local audience.

``Korea is, for an artist, a wonderful pleasure. The tradition and knowledge here for classical music and opera are incredible,’’ the tenor said in a press meeting in Seoul, Wednesday. He was presiding over the jury at a recent Verdi Competition and 70 percent of the contestants were Korean, he explained, and prominent European and American orchestras have many Korean members.

``Going to Korea is something that any artist has to be proud of, and I am very proud to come to Korea. I came to your country for the first time in 1979, 30 years ago, and since then I had a wonderful, wonderful experience. It’s a privilege to come to your country,’’ said the Spanish singer, who, along with Luciano Pavarotti and Placido Domingo, is considered one of the three great tenors of modern times.

``Yes, I keep in touch with Placido as often as we can,’’ he said, despite their different schedules and frequent travels, and plans on visiting him soon in London. ``Our friendship and our professional relationship are still there and I’m very happy to have it,’’ he added. On a more somber note, he said he greatly missed the late Pavarotti. ``We lost one of the most important tenors and singers of the history of opera. Not only that (…) we lost a wonderful friend, a very charismatic person, a very caring friend. It was a tremendous pleasure to not only work with him but to talk to him. He was a sensational guy,’’ he said.

Jose Carreras, center, and sopranos Fiona Campbell and Park Mi-hye

While Domingo, who also recently held an Asia recital exclusively in Seoul, is still active on the opera stage, Carreras said he prefers recitals, though he would accept an operatic role if the conditions are favorable. For the tour here, he will sing popular operatic arias and folk songs including ``Lamento di Federico’’ from the opera ``L’Arlesiana’’ and ``Lejana Tierra Mia,’’ joined by sopranos Park Mi-hye and Fiona Campbell. ``I will be singing `New Arirang,’ and as soon as I heard it I knew I would like Korea,’’ said Campbell about singing the traditional local song on her first visit here.

Meanwhile, Park, who took the stage opposite the tenor several times in Europe, said it was always a great honor to sing with someone who inspires not only with music but also with his personal triumph. In 1987 at the height of his success, Carreras was diagnosed with leukemia, but miraculously overcame the disease.

Fighting Leukemia

``Of course when someone gets a diagnosis for acute leukemia, this is very hard to swallow… You have possibilities: one is to be passive as a patient and let things go, the other thing is to fight with determination,’’ he said. When doctors told him he had ``the possibility of one in a million’’ to recover completely, he had to grab that chance and fight. ``I think this is absolutely indispensable,’’ he added.

(Ma questionne) ``Yes,'' music itself was inspirational -- ``a wonderful shelter,’’ he said. ``Music therapy is something doctors recommend to patients. Music always plays a very important role in our lives, not just for musicians but in the lives of everyone.’’ >>More

>>Read about Im Tae-kyung, a young Korean crossover tenor who also overcame leukemia.

World Stars to Grace Stage in May

South Korean fans will be able to welcome international music icons Jose Carreras, Ennio Morricone, Sumi Jo and Dmitri Hvorostovsky next month.

Jose Carreras will hold a recital tour across Korea May 8-12. One of the three great tenors of the century, alongside Luciano Pavarotti and Placido Domingo, the Spanish singer will grace Kyunghee University’s anniversary celebration in Seoul May 8 and perform at Cheonma Art Center in Daegu May 10, and, May 12, at Goyang Aram Nuri Arts Center for its second anniversary concert in Seoul’s satellite city of Goyang, in Gyeonggi Province.

The crystalline bell sound of his younger days has now taken on a deeper color, and the 62-year-old wowed local fans during his 2005 recital at Seoul Arts Center. Meanwhile, crossover tenor Im Tae-kyung is known for overcoming leukemia, and Carreras, too, has inspired many by conquering the disease and supporting others through his international leukemia foundation.

He will sing popular operatic arias and folk songs, and his partner conductor and nephew, David Gimenez, will conduct the Eurasian Philharmonic Orchestra for the Seoul and Daegu concerts while for the Goyang performance he will lead the Korean Symphony Orchestra, which recently provided the accompaniment for Domingo’s recital.

Tickets cost from 80,000 won to 220,000 won for Daegu (call 053-422-4224) and Kyunghee University (call 1588-7890) and from 40,000 won to 220,000 won for Goyang Aram Nuri Art Center (call 1577-7766).

In 2007, Ennio Morricone made an unforgettable concert debut here by conducting the timeless compositions that appeared in ``Cinema Paradiso,’’ ``The Mission’’ and ``The Legend of 1900.’’ The 80-year-old veteran of over 400 film soundtracks will revisit Korea to give two concerts May 26-27 at Olympic Park.

The Italian composer has been touring the world with the Gyor Philharmonic Orchestra, and will be joined by the Yoon Hak-won Chorale for the Seoul concerts. Esteemed director Park Chan-wook was quoted as once saying, ``While there may be people who have not seen his films, there is no one, in civilized modern society, who hasn’t heard his music. He is the J.S. Bach of today.’’

Details about the program have yet to be announced. Tickets cost from 50,000 won to 160,000 won. Booking in English is available at (02) 3444-9969.

Korea’s feted soprano Sumi Jo and Russia’s foremost baritone Dmitri Hvorostovsky will perform for Seoulites May 28 and 30 at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts, in downtown Seoul.

The concert, most appropriately titled ``Majestic,’’ brings together two of the most talented singers of the world, Jo, whom Herbert von Karajan complimented as having ``the voice from Heaven,’’ and Hvorostovsky, whose silvery voice graced all five of the world’s top opera houses.

Jo will sing the technically exigent aria ``Couplets de Mysoli’’ from the opera ``La Perle du Bresil,’’ among works, while Hvorostovsky will offer not only standard Italian operatic arias but a variation of French and Russian repertoires.

Ion Marin will conduct the Mostly Philharmonic. Tickets cost from 70,000 won to 200,000 won. Call (02) 3461-0976.