Berwald: Estrella di Soria

Opera no 95

Berwald: Estrella di Soria

Soloists

I first encountered Berwald on a youth orchestra course when we played his Tragic overture, which is in fact the overture to this opera. I got to know his symphonies - I conducted the Sinfonie Singuliere - and, more relevant for this project, I took part in the British premiere of his opera The Queen of Golconda with the Nottingham University Opera Group.

I like the quirkiness of Berwald’s music. A lot of it is quite straightforward harmonically but he tends to lure you into a false sense of security and then move in a chromatic direction that you were not expecting. It is difficult to place his music in the mainstream tradition - sometimes I am reminded of Berlioz and elsewhere of Mendelssohn, but Berwald has a sound and style all of his own. He has some distinctive fingerprints - little three note rising phrases in the woodwind and a fondness for the interval of a fourth.

Only extracts of the opera are available but there is a good hour of music here. Highlights include a big aria for the soprano (using material familiar from the overture) some lively choruses and some very attractive lighter moments where lyrical music is juxtaposed with rapid patter.  I’d like to hear the whole opera someday though I doubt that it is high on the list of any record company’s repertoire list.