A Family Affair

Accompanied with great artistry by his beautiful daughter Joana Pons, reknowned baritone Juan Pons gave a most fulfilling recital at the Bruno Walter Auditorium, under the auspices of The New York Opera Society and The Institut Ramon Llull. The mission of NYOS comprises identification, funding and production of premiere performance opportunities, supporting the development of professional artists’ careers and expanding audiences for both traditional and contemporary operatic repertoire. The mission of The Institute Ramon Llull is to promote the culture and language of Catalonia and the Balearic Islands. Both missions succeeded admirably, resting on the broad shoulders of this gifted dramatic baritone. Although known to most of us from his innumerable performances on the opera stage, this recital gave his fans an opportunity to experience his artistry in an intimate situation and in his native tongue.

Although the composers and lyricists were unknown to us and the language sounded quite different from Spanish (as different as Portuguese), the songs were lovely and clearly came from a golden age of song-writing. Whether singing of love, of loss, of death or of war, Mr. Pons invested each one with deep feeling. In spite of using the score, he demonstrated a remarkable ability to connect with the audience.

Following several songs by Antoni Parera Fons (lyrics by Guillem d’Efak), R. Martinez Valls (lyrics by Capdevila and Mora) and J. Ortega Monasterio (lyrics by Tofol Mus), the Pons family ended the recital with two Verdi arias, “Io Morro” from Don Carlo and “Cortigiani, vil razza dannata” from Rigoletto. We could have listened all night long but still felt satisfied and enlightened about a neglected artistic heritage. Thank you NYOS and Institute Ramon Llull.

© meche kroop for The Opera Insider