Here’s to Nordica

It was a pleasure to hear and watch the Nordica Trio March 6 at Portland’s First Parish Church Noonday Concert. The three talented members are Graybert Beacham (violin and viola), Karen Beacham (clarinet) and Cheryl Tschantz (piano). Their combination of instruments is an interesting one, with each player having time for brief solos (Graybert played the viola at this concert).

The first number was Sonata for Clarinet and Piano in E-flat, by Camille Saint-Saens (1835-1921), followed by Trio in E-flat For Piano, Clarinet and Viola, by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791). It was in three movements.

The program information told us that the trio takes its name from the Maine-born operatic soprano, Lillian Nordica. Born Lillian Norton in Farmington, Madame Nordica made her operatic debut in Brescia in 1879. Her fame quickly spread, and she made appearances in all the principal capitals in Europe and America. She was known in Europe as the Yankee Diva.

The recital hall at the University f Maine at Farmington is named Nordica Auditorium in her honor, and this was where the members of the Nordica Trio first met to rehearse and discuss the idea of forming a chamber music ensemble. So it was fitting that they adopted the name Nordica. The group was formed in 1994.

The Portland Conservatory of Music, in collaboration with the church, gives free Thursday concerts from 12:15 to 12:45 except in the summer months. They are much appreciated.

And ‘Lucia’ …

Last Saturday’s opera broadcast was “Lucia di Lammermoor” by Gaetano Donizetti (1797-1848), the Italian composer who wrote the famous opera set in Scotland.

The character of Lucia was sung by soprano Natalie Dessay. After her superb performance, and after her mad scene solo, the applause at the Metropolitan Opera was prolonged. The opera was led by conductor James Levine.

The Metropolitan Opera Guide, which I receive, wrote, “The title role is sung by one of its greatest recent interpreters, Natalie Dessay. The soprano received extraordinary acclaim for her gripping performance. The character of Lucia has become an icon in opera and beyond. The insanity that overtakes and destroys her, depicted in opera’s most celebrated mad scene, has especially captured the public imagination.”

The male singers were outstanding, too, Edgardo was sung by Guiseppe Filianoti, Enrico by Mariusz Kwiecian, and Raimondo by John Belyea.

I was pleased to have a libretto for this opera. Our libretto, printed around 1906 by the Oliver Ditson Co., even included the music of all the principal arias, too, which I was excited about. Many of the arias are familiar.

And Di Stefano …

We just read in the March 7 Boston Herald obituary section this headline: “At 86, Giuseppe Di Stefano, tenor, sang with Callas.” It was datelined Rome, and said that Di Stefano, one of the greatest tenors of the 20th century and a celebrated singing partner of soprano Maria Callas, died March 3.

His wife said that he died at home, north of Milan, at age 86, from injuries sustained in a November 2004 attack at his family’s villa in Kenya. His unidentified assailants struck him on the head during the attack. He awakened from a coma, after two surgeries, but never fully recovered.

He was born in Sicily in 1921, made his debut in 1946, in Massenet’s “Manor,” and went on to sing at the world’s top opera houses, including Milan’s La Scala, New York’s Metropolitan, and in Vienna and Berlin. His last performance was in Rome in 1992.

He was known for his powerful voice, and also for his duets with Maria Callas, who performed and recorded with him several times in the 1950s, through her final tour in 1973. He sang at the Met in 112 performances from 1948 to 1965, making his debut in Verdi’s “Rigoletto” as the Duke.

And now comes quite a coincidence, in our family, whose members enjoyed the “Lucia” opera so much. On the very day that that opera was broadcast at the Met, our son Ray found in the Brunswick Salvation Army store a CD of Callas and DiStefano singing “Lucia di Lammermoor,” and bought it for me.

On the cover of the accompanying booklet, the famous opera singer Callas is pictured, and there are two other pictures of her inside, and also one of the conductor of the performance in Florence, Tullio Serafin. There was one problem, however: the CDs of the opera were missing from the jewel case. So we didn’t get to hear DiStefano or Callas. We do, however, have the program, which includes a synopsis of the opera and the Italian and English words. The program itself is a treasure to have.

And sole …

Since today’s column has an Italian background, I decided to look for an Italian recipe. Here it is, from Florence Brobeck’s “Cook It In A Casserole,” 1943.

ITALIAN FILLET OF SOLE

1 pound fillets of sole

1 sliced onion

Parsley

1 cup white wine, or white grape juice with squeeze of lemon

Salt and pepper

Boiled spinach (about 2 cups)

Cayenne pepper

4 tablespoons cheese, grated

1 cup white sauce

Remove the skin from the fillets and boil gently for 10 minutes, with the wine and seasonings. Cover well. When tender, remove and place in a baking dish on a layer of cooked spinach that has been minced and tossed in butter with 1 tablespoon grated onion.

To the white sauce add 1/2 cup of the broth from the fish kettle, a dash of cayenne and tablespoon of grated cheese. Pour this over the fish, sprinkle lightly with grated cheese and brown in a 375 degree oven.

Ramblings