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A Gloriously Captivating Voice
GERALD FENECH listens to tenor Jonathan Tetelman singing Puccini
'... a must for all Puccini fans ...'
This disc has two protagonists: Giacomo Puccini's music and the voice of tenor Jonathan Tetelman. Tetelman was born in Castro, Chile in 1988. He was adopted as a baby and grew up in Princeton, New Jersey. He studied at the Manhattan School of Music as a baritone before making a transition to tenor while furthering his studies at the Mannes School of Music.
He appeared as Rodolfo at the Komische Oper Berlin, the English National Opera and the Royal Opera House, and Cavaradossi at the Teatro Regio in Turin, the Opera de Lille, the Liceo Theatre in Barcelona, the Semper Oper in Dresden and Deutsche Oper Berlin. He also appeared as Alfredo at the Royal Opera House, as Pinkerton at the Opera Comedie in Montpellier and as Werther at the Teatro Solis in Montevideo. After singing the Duke in Verdi's Rigoletto at Oper Frankfurt, he was invited back in 2022 to perform 'Loris Ipanov' alongside Nadja Stefanoff in the title role of Fedora, a performance that was described by the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung as 'nothing short than sensational'. To quote:
Tetelman's voice is intense, warmly grounded, full-bodied and with an inescapable euphony that is often arresting and yet, it is at the same time admirably elegant and supple.
His repertoire also includes Beethoven's Ninth, the Verdi Requiem and Elgar's The Dream of Gerontius. With all these engagements, Tetelman soon earned a reputation in the world of opera as a dedicated, distinctive and versatile artist. Indeed, he was soon snapped up by DGG, and his debut album, Arias, was an instant hit. His singing was lauded no end, and with his agile technique, dramatic eloquence and rich palette of vocal colours, this comes as no surprise and is totally deserved.
In this issue under review, Tetelman inhabits a range of Puccini roles that are very close to his heart. For the singer, Puccini is one of the greatest of all composers of Italian opera.
Listen — Puccini: Nessun dorma (Turandot Act III)
(4864683 track 2, 0:00-0:54) ℗ 2023 Deutsche Grammophon GmbH :
Tetelman says:
I listen, I study and enjoy his music daily. There is always something to learn from him, and my mind is forever open to him. Without Giacomo Puccini, opera would not be the same. Grazie Maestro!
Celebrating the best of this composer's music, The Great Puccini is released to mark the one hundredth anniversary of the composer's death in 1924. The album consists of well-known tenor arias such as 'Nessun dorma', 'E lucevan le stelle', 'Donna non vidi mai' and 'Che gelida manina' and popular ensembles from Madama Butterfly, La bohème and Il Tabarro, as well as rarities such as 'Torna ai felici dì' from Le Villi and 'Parigi! È la città dei desideri' from La rondine.
Listen — Puccini: Parigi! È la città dei desideri (La Rondine Act I)
(4864683 track 3, 0:00-0:55) ℗ 2023 Deutsche Grammophon GmbH :
Tetelman has a gloriously captivating voice that will definitely enthrall scores of audiences for decades to come.
Listen — Puccini: Torna ai felici dì (Le Villi Act II)
(4864683 track 15, 3:16-4:05) ℗ 2023 Deutsche Grammophon GmbH :
This album, Jonathan Tetelman - The Great Puccini, is a must for all Puccini fans and opera buffs in general.
Copyright © 27 September 2023
Gerald Fenech,
Gzira, Malta
