CANADIAN SOPRANOS EXPLORE EXOTIC SONGS
by Bradley Bambarger, bbambarger@starledger.com

The Star-Ledger – NJ.com
Monday October 06, 2008, 4:19 PM
NJ

Soprano Isabel Bayrakdarian is featured on the new CD "Gomidas
Songs.">"Gomidas Songs." Isabel Bayrakdarian, soprano; Gevorg
Dabaghyan, duduk; Serouj Kradjian, piano; Armenian Philharmonic
Chamber Players, Eduard Topchjan, cond. (Nonesuch). Four stars

Gomidas Vardapet (1869-1935) is the patron saint of Armenian classical
music. (His church name — he was born Soghomon Soghomonyan —
is usually transliterated for recordings as Komitas.) He collated
thousands of traditional Armenian songs and dances; he also composed
new secular and sacred works threaded with the tradition’s haunting
melodic flavor. Although he survived the Armenian genocide of 1915,
he was a broken man after that.

The music of Gomidas has been recorded by artists from violist
Kim Kashkashian and pianist Grigory Sokolov to Djivan Gasparyan,
master of the Armenian national instrument, the oboe-like duduk. But
this labor-of-love disc by Canadian soprano Isabel Bayrakdarian, of
Armenian descent, may receive the most attention. A charming artist
with a warm, gleaming voice and up-and-coming opera career, the
34-year-old Bayrakdarian sounds utterly authentic in these piquant,
touching songs. (She first sang Gomidas for Atom Egoyan’s "Ararat,"
a 2002 film about the Armenian genocide; the director wrote an
introductory note for her album.)

The apt pianist is Bayrakdarian’s husband, Serouj Kradjian, who also
wrote the subtly ornamental string-and-wind arrangements, with the
duduk’s apricot-wood timbre a primary color. The music sounds very
Eastern and minimalist, and mostly sad; only a Rossini-influenced
number strikes a false note. Highlights include the heartbreaking
"Oror" (Lullaby), the sighing romantic lament "Karoon" (Spring)
and more dramatic "Andooni" (Without a Home), a favorite of Debussy
when he heard Gomidas in Paris. Bayrakdarian will sing these songs
at Carnegie’s Zankel Hall on Oct. 20.

Messiaen: "Chants de Terre et de Ciel." Suzie LeBlanc, soprano;
Lawrence Wiliford, tenor; Laura Andriani, violin; Robert Kortgaard,
piano. (Atma). Four stars

The records marking the centenary of French modernist Olivier
Messiaen (1908-1992) have been disappointingly thin, being mostly
multiple versions of his "Quartet for the End of Time." So, this
thoughtfully conceived, beautifully realized recital disc does a
great service. Featuring French-Canadian soprano Suzie LeBlanc, the
program highlights the songwriting of the young Messiaen, when he
was enraptured with his first, short-lived wife and under the spell
of Debussy.

There is an ecstatic quality to the cycles "Trois Melodies" and
"Chants de Terre et de Ciel" (Songs of the Earth and Sky), all
swooning lyricism and moonlit atmosphere. These are deeply French,
high-art songs, crafted like jewels. But they also have an effortless
naturalism, especially with a singer like LeBlanc. The soprano,
in her mid-40s, has specialized in Baroque repertoire, but she has
also explored the folk tunes of her Acadian heritage. Her tone is
silvery, clear and floating (with the barest vibrato), her phrasing
intimate like she’s singing just for you. These qualities are ideal,
as Messiaen’s songs are about romantic faith and spiritual love.

The piano parts are rich, with Messiaen giving impressionistic harmony
a modernist update. The composer’s first wife was a violinist,
and he wrote several pieces for her, including the ravishingly
lyrical "Vocalise" for violin and piano, played lovingly here by
Laura Andriani. Also included is the melodious "Theme et Variations"
for violin and piano, with Andriani taking it at flowing pace while
managing the most poetic close.

The rarity here is "La Mort du Nombre," a dramatic mini-cantata for
soprano, tenor, violin and piano by the 21-year-old Messiaen that shows
the influence of Wagner’s love music through the prism of Debussy’s
"Pelleas et Melisande." Lawrence Wiliford may sound a bit callow next
to LeBlanc, but they entwine intensely enough, the piece ending with
shimmering, love-struck piano.