NYMAN: “THE MAN WHO MISTOOK HIS WIFE...

NYMAN: “THE MAN WHO MISTOOK HIS WIFE FOR A HAT.” Sarah Leonard, Emile Belcourt, Frederick Westcott, singers; Michael Nyman, conductor. CBS Masterworks MK-44669 (compact disc). Oliver Sacks’ case study of neurological disorder forms an uneasy basis for this one-act chamber opera, introduced in London in 1986. Christopher Rawlence’s libretto treats the anguished protagonist with suitable empathy, and Nyman ingeniously finds a way of interweaving Schumann songs in a logical manner. But the composer’s quasi-minimalist style, used in a series of variations on a rising chord sequence for five strings and harp, proves confining, as does the consistently upbeat and supercilious tone. Except for Belcourt as Dr. S., the investigative neurologist, the cast is unable to lend much genuine singing to its assignments.