Merola Poorly Served by Virtual Recital

Irina Meachem accompanying Lucas Meachem at the Mill City Museum (screen shot from the video being discussed)

Exactly one week ago today, the Merola Opera Program launched a Virtual Recital Series with a performance by baritone Lucas Meachem entitled I Left My Aria in San Francisco. True to the title, Meachem sang six arias, all of which he had performed in San Francisco during his Adler Fellowship with the San Francisco Opera in 2004 and 2005, preceded by his preparation as a “Merolino” in the Merola Opera Program during the summer of 2003. Last week’s video was live-streamed; but the recording has not been made publicly available.

However, his live-stream recital from Dallas, presented just after the Dallas Opera cancelled its season due to COVID-19, is available for general viewing. Meachem’s accompanist for both recitals was his wife, Irina. In addition, one of the selections from the Merola program is available for public viewing, Meachem’s performance of the aria from Erich Wolfgang Korngold’s Die Tote Stadt known as “Pierrot’s Lied” (Pierrot’s song).

The good news is that this is the selection that situated Meachem in the best possible light. Suffice it to say that production conditions for this Virtual Recital were far from ideal. The video was created in the Mill City Museum in Minneapolis, and the acoustics of the space were far from ideal. Most problematic was that Meachem’s voice almost always overwhelmed his wife’s accompaniment, a major disadvantage where Korngold’s lush scoring is concerned. Furthermore, one can quickly surmise from the Dallas video that neither of the Meachems really knew how to deal with conditions in which the only audience was the video crew. Unfortunately, there is too much chatter and not enough music.

On the basis of what I have been able to see through my own devices, I would argue that the Virtual Recital Series is not yet “ready for prime time,” as they say. I feel I have a certain amount of experience behind this assessment, having patiently followed the progress of the Old First Concerts videos. Video streaming is far from a “plug and play” technology. It requires considerable preparation on both sides of the camera, even if the participants never have an opportunity to experience an actual “dress rehearsal.” That said, there is much to be enjoyed in Meachem’s approach to Korngold. The one feature that would have been appreciated would be subtitles that capture the intense longing behind the words being sung.