Opera Review: 'Silent Night’

Opera Review:
'Silent Night’ by composer Kevin Puts and librettist Mark Campbell
Minnesota Opera
Released on Naxos

Ten years after the premiere ‘Silent Night’ by composer Kevin Puts and librettist Mark Campbell, this long awaited commercial recording comes out on NAXOS.  For many, this work, with its endearing score and storyline, represents a revitalization of the genre’s former glory. In addition to receiving a Pulitzer Prize in 2012, ’Silent Night’ has been performed in over twenty different opera houses around the world. Now, in this performance from Minnesota Opera (home of its world premiere) with its great recorded sound, we’ve come full circle.

Based on the movie ‘Joyeux Noel’ by Christian Carion, ‘Silent Night’ tells the true story of the fighting soldiers (German, French and Scottish) in World War I who laid down their weapons on Christmas Day in 1914. This event, known as the ‘Christmas Truce’, was seen as the most appealing symbol of peace during the holiday, despite the dinning carnage of war.

In comparing the new recording to its world premiere performance in 2011, Puts and Campbell made subtle revisions with little editing and tweaking that ultimately weld the score for the better. However, not so subtle in the recording is the diction and accents performed by the choruses and soloists of MNO. Particularly with the men in the Scottish division.  Although you may admire the American singers and their dedication to getting the accent down pat, it could also be seen as overkill.  (Think Mike Myers’ Shrek).  But this is a minor quibble in an otherwise amazing performance.

In the cast, we have tenor Miles Mykkanen as Nikolaus Sprink, the emboldened German soldier who runs onto the battlefield singing a Christmas carol, inspiring the truce.  Mykkanen’s lyrical, heart on sleeve performance well conveys the mood of a peace longing humanity, especially shown in his semi-aria “Tout a fait conscients” as he and his wife seek asylum in the French camp.   Soprano, Karin Wolverton as Sprink’s wife Anna Sørensen (who was also in the premiere), represents a warm light amidst the cold and cruel climate of conflict.  From her glowing “Dona Nobis Pacem” a cappella solo during the truce, to her dark to light “Irgendwo, irgendwann” aria, Wolverton adds the needed luster that puts it all together.

Another compassionate character is French Lieutenant Audebert, beautifully sung by baritone, Edward Parks.  In the longing “Je Perdu ta Photo” aria, Parks resonates like a young Gabriel Bacquier, putting across a French-like melancholy to keep us all grounded.  Other great performances come from baritones Troy Cook as the iron willed Father Palmer and Audebert’s aide-de-camp Ponchel, appealingly sung by Andrew Wilkowske, (Both of whom were in the original cast).  Solid Baritone, Joshua Jeremiah gives a rugged and needed imperialism in playing German Lieutenant Horstmayer, which works very well opposite the mediating Scottish Lieutenant Gordon played by baritone Christian Thurston. Tenor, Christian Sanders gives a justly harrowing performance as Jonathan Dale, who’s hate against the Germans for killing his older brother speaks volumes of one’s inner aversion.

The chorus and orchestral forces of the Minnesota Opera give first rate performances, exceptionally led by conductor Courtney Lewis. Everything clicks here. From the harsh brass D natural that opens the opera, leading to the chilling battle scene, the tear jerkingly beautiful ’Sleep Chorus’, the amusing interplay between the soldiers across the battlefield resulting in the truce, the haunting dirge as the men bury their dead, and the quiet snow fall after the soldiers have left, ending the opera with that same D natural, presented mellifluously in the harp and strings.

’Silent Night’ is THE opera of the early 21st century.  A masterpiece that appeals to anyone from anywhere and holds its own among the masters.  As Richard Strauss and Hugo von Hoffmansthal made their mark a century ago with their collaborations, so do Puts and Campbell with this opera and more to come.  In short, this recording is a must!

- The Off-Kilter Critic