Les Troyens at Carnegie Hall
New York Times“DiDonato cast a spell, ending the aria on a thread of sound, her Dido a shell of her former self — but what an exquisite shell it was.”
“Joyce DiDonato made her only appearance with the Met Orchestra this season: The crowd showed rapt silence for (and then vociferous approval of) her intense, searching performance. Like Goerke and Jovanovich, DiDonato fully understands the art of concert opera. With keen declamation and eloquent gestures, she enacted both Didon’s proud greeting of and tribute to her people, before her fateful meeting with Énée; and then her rage, thirst for revenge, and eventual resignation after the destiny-compelled hero deserts her… With glowing demi-teints, she aced what seems to me emotionally the key transitional line of the later scene… DiDonato’s soft singing retains its immaculate tonal finish.”
“DiDonato again proved her exceptional ability to connect with an audience. Regal or passionate, wounded or vengeful, she only needed a few stanzas to fully bring to life Didon’s complex character. Every sound was imbued with a special vibrancy”
Bachtrack