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The Relentless Wheel of Fortune Buenos Aires
Colegio Nacional
04/27/2025 -
Carl Orff: Carmina Burana
Victoria Ratto (soprano), Antonio Franconetti (tenor), Alejandro Spies (baritone)
Ensamble de Percusión del Conservatorio Astor Piazzolla, Marina Calzado Linage (musical director), Coros del CNBA, Lucas Echaniz (chorus master), Javier Escobar (conductor)
(© Claudia Procopio)
Orff’s Carmina Burana (1937) is one of the most enduring works in the orchestral repertoire. It also has many detractors, possibly for this very reason. It was seen with suspicion by the Nazi regime due to its perceived lascivious content and irreverence. However, thanks to its popularity, it was accepted and even gained popularity under the regime, which soon became one of the criticisms of its detractors.
Carmina Burana’s biggest sin is its popularity. The fact that its melodies are simple and repetitive explain the disdain for it among “highbrow” music lovers. But these very qualities also make it addictive. I’m always pleased to witness the public’s reactions to this cantata. Excitement, joy and (as was the case here) a desire to dance could be observed.
This popular work was written by the Bavarian composer Carl Orff (1895‑1982), and its full title is Carmina Burana: Cantiones profanæ cantoribus et choris cantandæ comitantibus instrumentis atque imaginibus magicis (“Songs of Beuren. Secular songs for singers and choruses to be sung together with instruments and magical images”). Its lyrics, mostly in Latin, but also in German and French, are based on 24 songs among a collection of over 250 songs dating from the 11th, 12th and 13th centuries, discovered in 1803 in a Benedictine monastery in Beuren, a small town south of Munich (hence Burana). These songs were written by Goliards – monks, students and travelling minstrels – who satirized the Catholic Church.
Orff was a composer and pedagogue who believed that every person has an innate musical ability that should be nurtured from early childhood. He developed a distinct pedagogical method, and even children’s musical instruments. He had his own concept of “Total Theatre,” involving music, lyrics, stage sets and even dance. When he was given a copy of the Benedictine manuscript, he knew he’d found the perfect vehicle for his methodology.
While most are accustomed to the original version with full orchestra, the present version using a percussion ensemble and two pianos brings out different elements, notably the work’s lineage with Stravinsky’s Les Noces (1923), with which it shares similar instrumentation and folk melodies. This version is a favourite among amateur and student choirs who wish to experience the work without the expense of a full orchestra. Given Orff’s sparse orchestration and heavy reliance on percussion in the orchestral version, not much is lost in adopting the more compact version. Some favour it, as it gives the choir more prominence. That said, one does miss the strings in the soft, languorous passages.
The concert was held in the prestigious Colegio Nacional de Buenos Aires (CNBA), an elite institution, originally founded by Jesuits, attended by the crème de la crème of the Argentine elite, that produced a considerable number of Presidents, Senators, Ministers, Supreme Court Judges, scientists and academicians. Founded in 1863, this neoclassical structure is worth a visit in itself.
Los coros del CNBA sang superbly, with energy and warmth. They gave an electrifying performance, notable for their clear Latin diction and energetic declamation. Almost every word could be understood. One wished there were a projection of the lyrics with translation to show how close Latin is to Spanish (and other modern Romance languages). Carmina Burana always inspires me to brush up my Latin.
The cantata opens with the famous “O Fortuna”, a medieval poem addressing the vagaries of Fate to which we must all submit. It’s then divided into four sections: “Primo vere” (“In Springtime”); “Uf dem Anger” (“On the Meadow”); “In taberna” (“In the Tavern”); and “Cour d’amours” (“The Court of Love”). The first two sections contain poems of nature, pastoral simplicity and the seasons, with Spring awakening love. The third section, humorous and frivolous, replete with drinking songs, deals with wine, gluttony and debauchery. The final section describes passion and love as felt by men and by a young woman on the cusp of yielding to her desire. It extols the sexual feelings that love evokes. Finally, the relentless wheel goes full circle and the opening “O Fortuna” is reprised.
Though the three singers are secondary to the chorus, they play a crucial role in Carmina Burana. Orff opted for three registers, baritone, tenor and soprano, but chose to subject them to their vocal limits, creating an in extremis sensation.
The highest part calls for lyric soprano rather than coloratura, though she must ascend to the stratosphere in “In trutina mentis” and in “Dulcissime.” Victoria Ratto was up to the challenge, sounding ravishingly pure CNBA – with little or no strain – in the uppermost reaches. Through this purity of voice, she conveyed a fresh innocence, sounding appropriately virginal in her long solo “Amor volat undique,” sung with carnal abandon, expressing the troubled torment of a young maiden on the verge of sexual awakening.
The tenor part is most famous for the grotesque scene, “Olim lacus colueram”, where he impersonates a swan being roasted as the main course. Though it’s now fashionable to assign the part to a countertenor, this misses the point of expressing the swan’s torment while on the spit, through the tenor’s singing in falsetto in a tessitura intentionally beyond his normal reach. Lyric tenor Antonio Franconetti performed the falsetto with aplomb without major distortion to his natural voice. He performed equally well in the ultimate segment, “Cour d’amours”, extolling courtly love. His agility and his clear diction were admirable.
The baritone part is the most substantial, and happily, Alejandro Spies had the ideal voice: a virile, expressively high baritone capable of navigating the difficult falsetto in “In taberna,” where he managed to produce brilliant top Gs. For a tenor to go into this much higher voice is a challenge, but for the lower baritone register to do so is truly extraordinary. He managed to convey the rêverie in “Omnia sol temperat”, to amuse as an inebriated monk in “Ego sum abbas,” and to seduce yearningly in “Dies, nox et omnia”. Spies’s Latin and German diction were admirable, essential assets, given he’s the busiest voice in the cantata’s four sections.
The Ensamble de Percusión del Conservatorio Astor Piazzolla was up to the task of substituting for a full orchestra. Indeed, this reduced instrumentation offered such advantages as accentuating the pomp of the bombastic parts and rendering the lyric passages more suave. This chamber setting also helped make the transition between the sections smoother, thus rendering the work more cohesive. In the hands of a lesser conductor, Carmina Burana’s musical vignettes, which are thematically disparate, can seem disjointed. Conductor Javier Escobar was able to deftly transition between segments thanks to his masterful control of the Ensamble de Percusión del Conservatorio Astor Piazzolla and the choirs.
This performance used the geometry of the 450-seat rectangular hall with dexterity. The principal choir was placed at the back of the stage behind the percussion ensemble. Other choirs were introduced in the latter parts of the work, either at the opposite end of the hall behind the audience, or on either side. This generated an interesting geometry of sound and overall balance.
The power of this enduringly popular work is amazing. Smiles permeated the faces of the young people sitting near me, and two nearly broke into dance during the highly rhythmic movements. At the end, the crowd was delirious. If this makes a work suspect, may many more be as lucky!
Ossama el Naggar
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