Classical / Classical Singing / Opera

Faculté de musique de l’UdeM | An Effective Evening at The Opera

by Alexandre Villemaire

The 2024-2025 season of the Université de Montréal’s Faculty of Music is currently in full swing. Perched on the slopes of Mont-Royal at the top of the famous Vincent-d’Indy Avenue hill, around a hundred people gathered in Salle Claude-Champagne on Saturday to hear the current crop of young singers. It was a great opportunity to discover them in preparation for their production of Hansel und Gretel by Engelbert Humperdinck (1854-1921), to be presented at the end of February. The students were accompanied by pianist/conductor Robin Wheeler and Alona Milner.

A sober evening, presented in gala form without extravagant presentation or complex staging, but not lacking in quality moments. In this operatic evening, several excerpts from works covering a vast spectrum of the operatic repertoire were presented. From German Romantic opera to bel canto, operetta and Baroque opera, it was a seamless transition. This panorama allows us to see the different performers in action, in a variety of styles, lyrical expressions and character incarnations. Verdi’s Witches from Macbeth opened the evening. With piercing eyes, the sopranos and mezzos of this chorus presented a biting, menacing reading of this page of verismo. The few choral numbers that graced the program were among the evening’s most appreciated for their strength and technical precision. The overall sound was enveloping, the articulation just right and precise. A case in point was the excerpt from Mozart’s Idomeneo “Placido è il mar… Soavi Zeffrini”, where the balance of voices between the numerous women’s voices and the five men’s voices was soaring, balanced and complementary to Marie France Eba Koua’s singing.

In terms of individual voices, several performances caught our attention. Among the men’s voices, baritone Élie Lefebvre-Pellegrino stood out for his beautiful, resonant, full, round and slightly brassy low register, coupled with good stage presence. His interpretation of Nilakantha’s aria from Léo Delibes’ Lakmé was assured and committed, as was his performance as Count Almaviva in the duet “Crudel! Perche s’ignora” duet from The Marriage of Figaro with Kevisha Williams. However, his passages in the upper register still need to be stabilized. Fellow singer Théo Raffin offered some of his best stage performances in Don Giovanni’s Leporello (“Sola, sola in buio loco”) and Romeo and Juliet’s Mercutio (“Mab, la reine des mensonges”). In both cases, his interventions were both interpretative and vocal. The only bass in the cohort, Andrew Erasmus delivered the difficult aria “O du Mein Holder Abendstern” from Wagner’s Tannhäuser with finesse and sensitivity.

As for the female voices, Maëlig Querré (mezzo-soprano) made a good impression in her role as Romeo from Bellini’s I Capuletti e i Montecchi. Her agile, assured voice with a sonorous low register complemented Nicole Ross’s Giulietta, who, despite great strength and agility in her high notes, reached the end of her range by the end of the aria. Cloée Morisette and Clotilde Moretti were equally sparkling in an excerpt from Carl Maria von Weber’s Freischütz. Another name to remember is mezzo-soprano Julie Boutrais. She distinguished herself in the duet from Moneverdi’s opera L’Incoronazione di Poppea, performed with Salomé Karam. Playing respectively King Nero and his lover Poppea, the two singers perfectly captured the passionate feelings and intoxication evoked in “Signor, oggi rinasco” as Nero announces to Poppea that she is to be his wife. Julie Boutrais also brought the evening to a close with her warm, embodied voice in Dido and Æneas‘ final aria “When I am laid in Earth”, followed by the final chorus from the same opera. A moment that sent shivers down our spines.

If we have to make one slight criticism of the concert, it’s the lack of detail in the program. A gala-style singing recital featuring a succession of arias, duets, trios and choruses from different periods and styles allows the singers to express themselves in a variety of roles and characters, and at the same time introduces the audience to protagonists and operas with which they may be less familiar. It would be a good idea to provide a little context for these works, to situate them for the audience. The excerpt from the trio “Je vais d’un cœur aimant” from Hector Berlioz’s opera Béatrice et Bénédict is a good example. Maëlig Querré, Maïlys Arbaoui-Westphal and Anne-Sophie Gagnon-Metellus performed this excerpt from a little-performed opus well, and would have deserved a little program note to appreciate it even more.

Latest 360 Content

The Golden Violin Award as told by David Montreuil

The Golden Violin Award as told by David Montreuil

Lost in the Labyrinth at the Yoo Doo Right + Victime Album Launch with We Owe

Lost in the Labyrinth at the Yoo Doo Right + Victime Album Launch with We Owe

OM and YNS Choose Messiah’s Immersion at Notre-Dame Basilica

OM and YNS Choose Messiah’s Immersion at Notre-Dame Basilica

Maestro Nagano at The Holiday Season, With The OSM, Marie-Nicole Lemieux And Le Vent du Nord

Maestro Nagano at The Holiday Season, With The OSM, Marie-Nicole Lemieux And Le Vent du Nord

A Baroque Christmas with Arion | When The Hurdy-Gurdy Awakens The Holiday Spirit

A Baroque Christmas with Arion | When The Hurdy-Gurdy Awakens The Holiday Spirit

Dear Criminals at Théâtre Outremont | Rallumer la flamme

Dear Criminals at Théâtre Outremont | Rallumer la flamme

Rau_Ze at Club Soda | The voice of Montreal Youth

Rau_Ze at Club Soda | The voice of Montreal Youth

Montreal / Nouvelles Musiques 2025: All About The Program

Montreal / Nouvelles Musiques 2025: All About The Program

Joé Dwèt Filé Set The Olympia On Fire

Joé Dwèt Filé Set The Olympia On Fire

Bond symphonique, First and Foremost a Festival of Theme Songs

Bond symphonique, First and Foremost a Festival of Theme Songs

The sparkling magic of Christmas, Yannick Nézet-Séguin… and Antoine Gratton!

The sparkling magic of Christmas, Yannick Nézet-Séguin… and Antoine Gratton!

Schulich | Horatio Quartet wins the Chamber Music Competition 2024-2025

Schulich | Horatio Quartet wins the Chamber Music Competition 2024-2025

Schulich | Christmas classics with the McGill Jazz Orchestra

Schulich | Christmas classics with the McGill Jazz Orchestra

Schulich | Playing in the snow with the Contemporary Music Ensemble

Schulich | Playing in the snow with the Contemporary Music Ensemble

Festival de Jazz – Brazil’s Luedji Luna Brings The Snow to Montreal

Festival de Jazz – Brazil’s Luedji Luna Brings The Snow to Montreal

René Lussier | Trésor de la métalangue, 50 Years of Guitar and Atypical Practices

René Lussier | Trésor de la métalangue, 50 Years of Guitar and Atypical Practices

Ensemble SuperMusique Sets Out to Alarm Sound

Ensemble SuperMusique Sets Out to Alarm Sound

Victime / En Conversation Avec… The Concert Follows The Album

Victime / En Conversation Avec… The Concert Follows The Album

Tyler, The Creator – Chromakopia

Tyler, The Creator – Chromakopia

Jeanne Rochette & l’ONJ Live at Gesù: Classic Songwriting, Classic Jazz

Jeanne Rochette & l’ONJ Live at Gesù: Classic Songwriting, Classic Jazz

Joel Jeschke – Time & Place

Joel Jeschke – Time & Place

Lubalin, from TikTok fame to a live show and a first album

Lubalin, from TikTok fame to a live show and a first album

Thélème/Sting – All we get is life

Thélème/Sting – All we get is life

Jocelyn Gould – Portrait of Right Now

Jocelyn Gould – Portrait of Right Now

Subscribe to our newsletter