Vanessa

Much was expected of Vanessa when it premiered at the New York Met in 1958: this was the long-delayed first opera of a lauded American composer, written in his late forties. But it was also a long-awaited attempt to tackle the established European phenomenon of grand opera on new American terms—a big piece designed for big voices, big orchestra and production values to match (the premiere opulently staged with sets by Cecil Beaton). As things turned out, it proved more conventionally European than anticipated. With an original libretto by Barber’s partner Gian Carlo Menotti, the plot unfolds like Chekhov, based around an ageing woman who has withdrawn into the gothic gloom of an old mansion after abandonment by a lover. Years later, an encounter with the lover’s son rekindles her desire, with tragic consequences. Barber’s score follows the standard tropes of opera with sweepingly lyrical set-piece arias, a love duet, a ballet and an offstage choral hymn. But it’s delivered stylishly and with refinement, culminating in a vocal quintet (“To leave, to break, to find, to keep”) that makes a powerful finale. The conservatism of the music caused it to fall out of fashion, but the central role is strong—a gift for a mature soprano of commanding presence. And when Kiri Te Kanawa chose Vanessa for her farewells to the stage during the early 2000s, it prompted an enduring revival of interest.