A Magnificent Joyce DiDonato at the Teatro Real

Seen and Heard International
by José M. Irurzun

There was a long speech by the artist at the end where she expressed her concerns about the current situation in the world, including what happens in her own country, which was very well received by the audience.

Ms. DiDonato opened with Storgé’s aria from Handel’s Jephta, which served to warm up her voice, and then moved on to a brilliant interpretation of ‘Prendi quel ferro’ from Leonardo Leo’s Andromaca. She was magnificent in the famous ‘Remember me’ which ends Dido and Aeneas, followed by Agrippina’s aria from the eponymous Handel opera. The first half of the concert ended with a moving interpretation of the well-known ‘Lascia ch’io pianga’ from Handel’s Rinaldo.

In the second part she was superb in an aria from The Indian Queen by Purcell and one from Handel’s Susanna. The program ended with a second aria from Rinaldo and Cleopatra’s ‘De tempeste’ from Giulio Cesare.

She offered two encores, the first of which was an aria by Jommelli, where she really shone. She finished with ‘Morgen’ by Richard Strauss.

Accompanying Ms. DiDonato was the excellent Il Pomo d’Oro with its outstanding conductor, Maxim Emelyanichev.