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Concert four: Thursday 16 June 2011

Davide Bartolucci, Leah Crocetto, Hye Jung Lee, Maire Flavin, Enzo Romano Photo © Brian Tarr

Last updated: 17 June 2011

The last of the four preliminary concerts took place on Thursday 16 June and featured singers from Italy, USA, South Korea, Ireland and Uruguay.

The winner of concert four was Hye Jung Lee from South Korea.

View a photo gallery from concert four.

The finalists are: Meeta Raval from England, Olesya Petrova from Russia, Hye Jung Lee from South Korea, Andrei Bondarenko from Ukraine and Valentina Naforniţă from Moldova.

Enzo Romano - Uruguay

È una cosa incredibile (The Italian Straw Hat) - Nino Rota

Beaupertuis is an old man with a young wife, Anaide. She went out to buy gloves hours ago and he is getting suspicious, as she was out all day on Sunday as well, supposedly visiting her cousin, but wearing her best Italian straw hat. He becomes more and more convinced that Anaide has taken a lover - and he can't bear the thought of it. Who'd be a husband, he says, having to suffer his fate in silence?

Non più andrai (Le nozze di Figaro) - Mozart

Figaro teases the young, amorous teenager, Cherubino, who has been ordered to leave Seville and join the army. He tells Cherubino about the realities of warfare: there will be no more dancing with the ladies but instead he will be wading through the mud of the battlefield.

Bottom's dream (A Midsummer Night's Dream) - Britten

Bottom has fallen asleep following Tytania's spell-induced declaration of love for him. He awakes, thinking he is rehearsing the play with his fellow rustics, who seem to have abandoned him. He thinks he has dreamt something mysterious but he is not sure of anything - his senses are confused. But he decides that a ballad shall be made of his dream: and it shall be called Bottom's Dream - because it has no bottom.

La calunnia (Il barbiere di Siviglia) - Rossini

Dr Bartolo is Rosina's guardian, and would like to become her husband. He is in cahoots with Don Basilio, Rosina's music master, who suspects that Rosina and the handsome young Count Almaviva are in love. Here, Don Basilio advises Dr Bartolo to discredit the Count by spreading a rumour about him. In a witty 'patter' song, he describes how calumny can start as a breath of wind and end as a storm of scandal.

Máire Flavin - Ireland

Nobles seigneurs, salut! (Les Huguenots) - Meyerbeer

Urbain is Queen Marguerite de Valois' page, and he brings an anonymous letter asking Raoul de Nangis to attend a secret romantic assignation. This is not however with her - Urbain's mistress has told him to persuade the Huguenot Raoul to marry Valentine, whose father is a leader of the Catholics.

Parto, parto (La clemenza di Tito) - Mozart

The emperor Titus and Sesto are best friends, and in the classic love triangle, Vitellia loves Titus but her love is not returned, and Sesto loves Vitellia. Vitellia, unable to accept that Titus will marry anyone but her, asks Sesto to kill his friend. He loves her so much that he declares he will do even this for her.

Cara speme, questo core (Giulio Cesare) - Handel

Sesto wants to avenge the death of his father, Pompey, who was murdered by Tolomeo. Cleopatra, disguised as Lydia, has heard Sesto discussing this with his mother, Cornelia, and offers to help. Sesto sings of his renewed hope, as the heavens seems to be on his side.

Sein wir wieder gut (Ariadne auf Naxos) - R Strauss

The young Composer is about to present his new opera seria about Ariadne's experiences on Naxos, in the house of the richest man in Vienna. However, a burlesque group has appeared to contribute to the entertainment, and the Major-Domo decrees that they have to combine the two performances. The idealistic Composer sings of how music is the holiest art of all.

Leah Crocetto - USA

Che il bel sogno di Doretta (La rondine) - Puccini

Magda is entertaining friends at her Paris home. The poet Prunier has been talking about love, telling the story of Doretta, who gave up a king's ransom for the sake of love. Magda continues the story and tells how Doretta was kissed by a student and realised that riches are nothing compared to such happiness.

Sombre forêt (Guillaume Tell) - Rossini

The Austrian princess, Mathilde, knows that her beloved Arnold, a Swiss patriot, will arrive soon, and trembles in anticipation of seeing the man she loves. She prefers the lonely forest to the pleasures of the palace as it is the only place that she can reveal her secret longings and desires.

Hear ye, Israel (Elijah) - Mendelssohn

The oratorio, based on episodes in the life of the Old Testament prophet, Elijah, was first performed at the 1846 Birmingham Festival, and the soprano part was written for Jenny Lind. This aria opens the second part. The soprano calls for the people of Israel to heed the Lord's commandments. The Lord brings comfort and strength.

Timor di me? ... D'amor sull' ali rosee (Il trovatore) - Verdi

Manrico has failed in his attempt to save his mother, and has been imprisoned. Leonora comes to the prison to try and save him and hopes that her love for him will see him through.

Davide Bartolucci - Italy

Di Cupido impiegio i vanni (Rodelinda) - Handel

In this story of intrigue in 7th century Lombardy, the cynical Garibaldo pretends to love Eduige and promises to help her get revenge on Grimoaldo, who has spurned her. Alone, he sings that he is only marrying Eduige for selfish reasons. Whereas Cupid uses his arts to inspire affection, Garibalo uses those same arts, but to gain the throne for himself.

Rivolgete a lui lo sguardo (Così fan tutte) - Mozart

This aria was originally written for Act 1 of Così fan tutte, but is normally replaced by 'Non siate ritrosi'. It is sung by Guglielmo (with Ferrando in attendance) on their first attempt in disguise as 'Albanians' to woo each other's fiancées. He tries to impress the girls with their wondrous merits - claiming that they are handsome, rich, strong and excellent singers and dancers.

Bella siccome un angelo (Don Pasquale) - Donizetti

Don Pasquale is looking for a wife, and his friend Dr Malatesta suggests Sofronia, his make-believe sister. He hopes Don Pasquale will fall in love with her and will forget about disinheriting his nephew Ernesto for planning to marry Norina. Malatesta describes Sofronia as beautiful as an angel, fresh, innocent and virtuous.

Una voce m'ha colpito (L'inganno felice) - Rossini

Ormondo ordered his henchman, Batone, to get rid of Isabella, whom Ormondo had failed to seduce, and Batone put her in a small boat and sent her out into a raging sea. Some years later, Ormondo and Batone arrive at the place where her boat was washed up. In this aria, Batone is shocked and confused - he is sure that he recognises this woman who surely could not have survived the fate he administered to her. He cannot believe it and his head is in a spin.

Hye Jung Lee - South Korea

Grossmächtige Prinzessin ... Als ein Gott kam Jeder gegangen (Ariadne auf Naxos) - R Strauss

Zerbinetta is trying to comfort Ariadne, who is in despair because she has been abandoned by her lover. She tells Ariadne that she is not alone: all women go through this experience. Instead of yearning for her lost love, she should be like Zerbinetta, and enjoy the love of many men.

I am the wife of Mao Tse-tung (Nixon in China) - John Adams

The Nixons are attending a performance of The Red Detachment of Women, Mme Mao's famous revolutionary ballet, during their historic visit to China in 1972. Believing that the message of the piece has been misunderstood, Mme Mao angrily sings this triumphant aria, describing how her work during the Cultural Revolution has liberated the people.


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