[Magali Léger (Photo from TimeOutNY.com)]
Posted in The Volume by Olivia Giovetti on January 11th, 2010 at 10:49 am
"While happy to send us their suspect pop music, it seems France has been holding out on us with soprano Magali Léger. Doe-eyed, irrepressibly adorable—imagine Audrey Tautou with high Cs—and blessed with Michelle Obama arms, Léger left us somewhat agog after her New York debut last night in an overdue recital.
“Performing with the Ensemble du Monde and its music director, Marlon Daniel, Léger gave the Merkin Concert Hall a preview of April’s Saint-Georges International Festival of Guadeloupe, a four-day event to honor the composer dubbed 'the Black Mozart.' Like Joseph Boulogne, the Chevalier de St. Georges, Léger is a native of the island of Guadeloupe, and perhaps it’s this shared balance between French Caribbean and French Baroque that made her an ideal interpreter for these rarely heard works.”
“Presenting two arias from the same opera, Léger was the embodiment of her last name (French for 'light') with a liberating coloratura that skyrocketed to the upper register effortlessly. Hers was a Riviera soprano, mixing the warmth of sun-baked ochres with the coolness of rippling azures to create an irresistible tone. The connection she fostered with the cozy audience allowed her to shine, even when the orchestra seemed unable to curb its enthusiastic dynamics (which hovered near forte for most of the evening).” [Le Chevalier de Saint-Georges (1745-1799) is the subject of an extensive biographical essay, as well as discussions of his fencing and recordings, at AfriClassical.com]
"While happy to send us their suspect pop music, it seems France has been holding out on us with soprano Magali Léger. Doe-eyed, irrepressibly adorable—imagine Audrey Tautou with high Cs—and blessed with Michelle Obama arms, Léger left us somewhat agog after her New York debut last night in an overdue recital.
“Performing with the Ensemble du Monde and its music director, Marlon Daniel, Léger gave the Merkin Concert Hall a preview of April’s Saint-Georges International Festival of Guadeloupe, a four-day event to honor the composer dubbed 'the Black Mozart.' Like Joseph Boulogne, the Chevalier de St. Georges, Léger is a native of the island of Guadeloupe, and perhaps it’s this shared balance between French Caribbean and French Baroque that made her an ideal interpreter for these rarely heard works.”
“Presenting two arias from the same opera, Léger was the embodiment of her last name (French for 'light') with a liberating coloratura that skyrocketed to the upper register effortlessly. Hers was a Riviera soprano, mixing the warmth of sun-baked ochres with the coolness of rippling azures to create an irresistible tone. The connection she fostered with the cozy audience allowed her to shine, even when the orchestra seemed unable to curb its enthusiastic dynamics (which hovered near forte for most of the evening).” [Le Chevalier de Saint-Georges (1745-1799) is the subject of an extensive biographical essay, as well as discussions of his fencing and recordings, at AfriClassical.com]
1 comment:
I am sitting here listening to Magali on You Tube. She is a powerful and beautiful artist.
Thanks AfriClassical for sharing information on the exceptionally talented woman.
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