MUSIC REVIEW : Rattle Brings ‘Damnation’ to Life

Since the last two Los Angeles Philharmonic presentations of “La Damnation de Faust”--in 1973 and 1980--took place outdoors at the Hollywood Bowl, it made much sense, for this first week of subscription concerts in 1994, to bring Berlioz’s “dramatic legend” inside, to the welcoming acoustic of the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion.

More important, it was a good idea to entrust this revival to the enthusiastic leadership of Simon Rattle, returning to our orchestra Thursday night after an absence.

The 38-year-old conductor from Liverpool, now music director of the City of Birmingham Symphony, has displayed here a number of times his penchant for making lengthy works seem rational and coherent, even brief. He did as much at the first of three performances (ending Sunday afternoon) of “Damnation.”

The work has been staged as an opera, sometimes even successfully, yet it remains a piece eminently effective in a concert setting where the audience can picture its own inner, visual representations of earthly delights, of Pandemonium, of Heaven and of creatures inhabiting these locales.

With often exquisite soft-playing by the Philharmonic, a rich palette of choral sounds from the Los Angeles Master Chorale and high-quality singing from the principals--Frederica von Stade, Vinson Cole, Gilles Cachemaille and Hector Vasquez--the sound-scape this time around could match even the most fervid visual imaginings.

At their most impressive, massive musical climaxes--of the kinds called for in this score--are the result of contrast, and depend on how quietly the symphonic and/or choral apparatus can op erate.

Thursday, the Philharmonic and L.A. Master Chorale excelled at both ends of the dynamic spectrum, without approaching inaudibility at the one extreme or raucousness at the other. The Chorale’s long tradition of stylish Berlioz singing, one begun decades ago under the guidance of the French-born Roger Wagner, has been reinstated under the leadership of current director Paul Salamunovich.

Stade, as expert, poignant and text-conscious a Marguerite as she is in her more famous operatic roles, dominated the second part of the performance, producing touching music through radiant tone and subtle word-pointing; only occasionally did her high notes emerge more dry than limpid.

As Faust, Cole husbanded his abundant resources of tone cannily and became vocally expansive when appropriate. Cachemaille’s many virtues include a healthy baritone sound capable of heft or slenderizing, a seductive word-delivery and the uncluttered intelligence to make every vocal utterance part of an elaborate but direct characterization. Vasquez utilized his brief opportunity as Brander to maximum effect.

Even so, several of the evening’s best moments came in the orchestral playing: a transparent, pristine yet solid re-creation of the “Marche Hongroise”; as delicate and multifaceted a Dance of the Sylphs as can be imagined; any number of inspired solo lines from our Philharmonic principals. Rattle gets the credit--for making it happen, or for letting it happen. Either way, the achievement is real.

Next week: Mahler.