Soprano bites ROH conductor

It's the Little Black Dress all over again.

In the wake of Tony Pappano's gripe at cancellations earlier today, soprano Jennifer Rowley has taken to Facebook to set the record straight about her late withdrawal from Robert le diable last year.

You may recall the head-scratching her exit provoked, and the questions it raised about the plausibility of the ROH's official explanation.

 

Here's Jennifer's version of events, in her own words:

"Jennifer Rowley Fan Page

My dear friends and fans,
It is sad and upsetting to me that my name is even associated with this article [ed. - see link below], and that the media continues to report Yesterday's news. Lets set the record straight: I did NOT pull out of Robert le Diable. I was replaced by a conductor who had a singer that HE wanted to sing the role from the beginning, a singer he knew well and had worked with many times previously. My vocal attributes were not what HE was looking for in the role, and thus a light coloratura soprano was brought in. You all know me very well; I am no where near that voice type in any way. My voice type in this role was an aesthetic choice of the house, and my replacement was an aesthetic choice of the conductor. Basta. This had nothing to do with me.

I appreciate the support of each and every one of you, and I love my friends, family, and fans immensely! You are what keeps me going, keeps me learning, keeps me positive, and keeps me striving for greatness! And despite ALL of this, I WILL get there!

A heart felt thank you you you all!

http://­mobile.reuters.c­om/article/­idUSBRE92C0NN201­30313?irpc=932"

 

For anyone not au fait with the story, the conductor was Daniel Oren and the soprano brought in was Patrizia Ciofi - and my own (unofficial) enquiries at the time supported Jennifer's account entirely.

Just to make it clear, the Reuters article Jennifer cites - incidentally the same one I sourced Pappano's quotes from earlier today  - doesn't accuse her of pulling out. But it does summarise the situation rather crudely as a 'musical problem':

"Covent Garden, home to the globally renowned Royal Opera and Royal Ballet companies, has suffered a series of cast changes in recent years, some of them at the last minute. Among the most dramatic was the decision less than a week before curtains went up in December to replace American soprano Jennifer Rowley in the rarely-performed Meyerbeer epic "Robert le Diable" due to a "musical problem"."

Comments

[John]

Well according to this article http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2013/mar/13/royal-opera-antonio-pappano-young-stars Pappano felt she wasn't good enough. That may well be a reflection on her suitability for the role (in their opinion) or a general one on her ability. Either way, did anyone really believe she'd withdrawn? Good for her for speaking her mind. Daniel Oren is a second-rate hack anyway!
*************
Intermezzo replies - He is actually quoted as saying 'IT' wasn't good enough, not 'she' wasn't good enough. The Guardian also claim "Pappano said he personally auditioned her and was confident she was right for the role". That sounds to me more like a question of suitability than general ability, though I agree with you that it could mean either.

Incidentally, the Guardian's headline "Royal Opera music director rails at young opera stars' weakness" misquotes Pappano, and so misses his point. He doesn't complain about young singers, but about "this generation of singers" - meaning all of those who are currently active. Of course we all know what he's getting at - the big names, since those are the only cancellations anyone really cares about.

Yet another example of the press getting it wrong because they don't read, don't understand, don't analyse, and don't think.

[FragendeFrau]

I find this much worse (from the Guardian):

Within a week of the first night, she was dropped: Pappano said he personally auditioned her and was confident she was right for the role, but as rehearsals progressed there was mutual agreement that she wouldn't make it. "It wasn't good enough," he said. "It wasn't good enough for Covent Garden."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2013/mar/13/royal-opera-antonio-pappano-young-stars

Really, Tony P? To publicly broadcast that a singer you hired was 'not good enough for Covent Garden'? 'mutual agreement' between whom?

[John]

The article might be imprecise, but the ROH can hardly complain when they've sent such a mixed message. If Pappano was going to comment upon the Rowley affair, he should have stuck to the party line much more strictly and said "auditions can only tell you so much - she's great but we slowly realised she was miscast and we had to make a decision". Instead he's been quoted in a way which sounds critical of her abilities and made the house look deceitful as a consequence. She should have hired out the Wigmore for an evening of bel canto show stoppers during the run of Robert le Diable and made them all look silly.

[SJT]

"It wasn't good enough for Covent Garden."

And he thought Pelly's staging was?

Not to mention the opera itself....

[amac]

As far as I could see his comments were really aimed at ROH punters - many of whom doubtless complain in droves that they booked to see Kaufman et al but never get what they brought.

He basically seemed to be saying - "not really our fault"
**********
Intermezzo replies - I suspect you're right, but unfortunately the press like to whip up controversy, and they have plenty of fuel when opinions aren't voiced with crystalline clarity.

[Pierrot]

What about the dreadful Brunnhilde of Susan Bullock?some of the worst singing Ive heard in a major opera house.Why didn't they drop her?I guess she's a trouper,not demanding huge fees.I don't think the ROH under Pappano is any longer a major house except on very rare occasions

[Justin Chapman]

One would hope that she paid them.

[Anne Black]

i felt bad for Rowley during this initial affair, but her response now makes her come across as caustic and unpleasant for some reason (maybe the use of CAPS...)- I'm not saying you should shut up when you feel that you have been publicly wronged (and the newspaper article is equally distasteful) but her response to this will now prolong her association with this unpleasant incident.
**********
Intermezzo replies - I don't agree. She is the only person with the guts to say what actually went down. She has been forced into this position. The ROH should feel ashamed, not only for dismissing her, but for failing to own up to their responsibility in the affair. The truth still matters. We shouldn't shoot someone down for standing up and speaking honestly.

[SJT]

Amen to that! Francoise Pollet should have done so when exactly the same thing happened to her at the ROH. In a Meyerbeer opera. With a non-event conductor.

Are we all still looking forward to La Rowley's
"future Musetta"? Is she, I wonder?

[John]

The evidence on her website suggests Jennifer Rowley is a fine singer with a strong voice, good agility and musical flair. She doesn't strike me as an obvious Isabelle (too feisty in tone and manner) and I can understand why the ROH eventually had reservations - but that doesn't excuse their behaviour. To me her response is brave. By the sounds of it, Daniel Oren came with a very fixed conception of the role and was totally unwilling to adapt to what was in front of him, which is a pretty basic part of his job. They should have fired the conductor!
**********
Intermezzo replies - A conductor is perfectly entitled to his opinions on a singer's suitability. But he should be consulted early on, so that any necessary changes can be made with minimal disruption. If the ROH sent Oren a recording of Rowley before signing her up, and he failed to object at that point, then his later action was shabby. But if he was simply presented with a fait accompli by ROH management (their usual style) then I can understand his resentment. The person who has suffered most from this bizarre saga is Jennifer Rowley, but I suspect she is not the only victim.

[Don Alfonso]

I'm constantly amazed that in all these discussions over casting issues at ROH ,the head of casting seems never ,ever to be mentioned by anyone in the press or in most web comments. Does Peter Katona have the original tarnhelm , teflon coated to boot I wonder.

[SJT]

And never utters a word, either.

Slipperier than a barrelful of eels...