Pimpinone review – hot-to-trot comic opera from the underperformed Telemann
Spare a thought for Georg Philipp Telemann. Friend to Bach and Handel, and godfather to Bach's son Carl Philipp Emanuel, he penned more than 3,000 works including 29 extant operas. Yet, for all his fecundity of invention and consistent quality, we hear his sparkling music far less often than he deserves. If people are unsure where to begin, how about Pimpinone?
First performed 300 years ago in Hamburg, its three acts were intended as comic intermezzi for a production of Handel's opera seria Tamerlano (total running time a gruelling five hours!) With an easy to follow plot and laugh-out-loud musical numbers, it would have come as welcome light relief, assuming people stuck around to listen.
The Royal Ballet and Opera's staging, with singers, conductor and director drawn from its Jette Parker Artists programme, reveals a work that's on the slight side, but one with plenty of charm and sexual politics not a million miles from our own time, hence its interest beyond the recording studio.
The work is subtitled 'The Unequal Marriage Between Vespetta and Pimpinone or The Domineering Chambermaid', which pretty much sums it up. In Act I, working-class Vespetta – the name means little wasp – lands a job as housemaid to Pimpinone. Gifts aside, by Act II she's ready to quit until he offers to marry her. In Act III, after much comic quarrelling, he grudgingly grants her some genuine freedoms.
Sophie Gilpin sets it in the 1960s, bringing a modern slant to issues of equality and female emancipation. It works well. Vespetta is first discovered performing as part of a festive bash at Pimpinone's pad. With lights and tinsel, she's literally done up like a Christmas tree (witty set and costumes by Anna Yates). Isabela Díaz has great fun with her lively opening aria, slipping into flats to soothe sore feet. A playful actor, her bright soprano with attractive upper extension does the rest. Pay rises, prenups and miniskirts attend her shimmying up the greasy pole of social mobility, and we root for her all the way.
Grisha Martirosyan is her nice-but-dim Pimpinone complete with porn tash and dubious taste in multicoloured shirts. His thrusting baritone has depth and power at the top, and he's funny too, especially in the panting syncopations of his hot-to-trot opening aria. Later on, he reveals a nice line in comedy falsetto, while Díaz shows off her nimble technique in a pair of teasing vocal minuets (though both might have sung more softly at times).
Peggy Wu conducts a crisp performance with players drawn from the English National Opera Orchestra. Continuo pickups might have been quicker off the mark and more imaginatively decorated, but otherwise her approach, like Gilpin's, allows Telemann's neatly revived confection to shine.
At Linbury theatre, London, until 17 May
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Guardian
2 days ago
- The Guardian
David Watkin obituary
In 2013 David Watkin, who has died aged 60 from complications caused by the autoimmune disease schleroderma, recorded the six Suites for solo cello by JS Bach. The following year his illness compelled him to step back from a distinguished performing career to become head of strings, and later professor of chamber music, at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland in Glasgow. When the CD set of the Suites was released in 2015, it proved to be an instant success, winning awards from Gramophone – which this year rated it as one of the 50 greatest Bach recordings – and BBC Music Magazine. His rhythmically alive, tonally beautiful and scholarly playing was realised by using a baroque bow by John Waterhouse and two historic cellos, one by Francesco Rugeri from around 1670 for the first five Suites, and a five-stringed instrument by the Amati brothers, Antonio and Girolamo, for the Sixth Suite. As well as teaching, he continued to conduct such ensembles as the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Academy of Ancient Music, Swedish Baroque Orchestra and Scottish Chamber Orchestra. Born in Crowthorne, Berkshire, David came from a musical family. His parents, Christine (nee Horney) and Ken Watkin, were violin teachers, and his elder brother, Simon, gravitated to the viola. When the family were living in Beckenham, Kent, he began taking cello lessons with a local teacher, eventually enabling the family to play quartets by Haydn and Mozart. When David was nine, the Watkin family moved again, to Pembrokeshire, where his mentors were Bridget Jenkins and the recitalist Sharon McKinley. He became the star cellist of the West Glamorgan Youth Orchestra, and went on to be a member of the National Youth Orchestra, and its principal cellist for two years. At 15 he won a scholarship to Wells Cathedral school, where he studied the cello with Margaret Moncrieff and Amaryllis Fleming. There he encountered historically informed recordings directed by Nikolaus Harnoncourt and Frans Brüggen, and a friend's father made him a baroque cello. Vocal lessons from the tenor Kenneth Bowen led to his seriously considering a career as a singer. His gap year was spent as a lay clerk, singing in the choir at St Catharine's College, Cambridge, where he went on to take a music degree (1984-87). He continued cello studies with William Pleeth and played in the Cambridge Baroque Camerata. As a full-time performer he led the cello sections of the Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique, English Baroque Soloists, Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Philharmonia Orchestra and Scottish Chamber Orchestra. Other ensembles he conducted included the Malta Philharmonic and Manchester Consort, and he had a stint as assistant conductor at Glyndebourne. While working with John Eliot Gardiner in the Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique, he and three colleagues – Peter Hanson, Lucy Howard and Gustav Clarkson – felt they should adapt the orchestra's authentic styles for Romantic music to quartet playing. Thus in 1993 the Eroica Quartet was born. Watkin adopted a transitional approach with this ensemble, playing with an endpin: until the mid-19th century cellists had held the instrument unsupported between their legs. The quartet's recordings of Beethoven, Mendelssohn (the quartets and the original version of the Octet), Schumann, Debussy and Ravel brought fresh perspectives to listeners. Characteristic of their approach for the Mendelssohn quartets was studying the bowings and fingerings adopted by Ferdinand David, the first performer of the composer's Violin Concerto, for his own ensemble, and the selective application of vibrato for expressive effect. Tours took them to France and the US, and they gave Beethoven cycles in the UK and abroad. With various colleagues, Watkin recorded concertos and sonatas by Vivaldi and sonatas by Boccherini. He and the fortepianist Howard Moody recorded three sonatas by Beethoven (1996), and to the book Performing Beethoven (2011) he contributed an essay on those works. In an article in the journal Early Music (1996) Watkin pointed to how Corelli allowed for the possibility of violin sonatas being accompanied by a string bass without a keyboard, by filling out the chords indicated by the numbers of the figured bass, and extended the principle to recitative passages in opera. As a teacher he aimed to lead students to think for themselves. An extract from a masterclass on Bach given at Kings Place, London, in 2017 can be seen on YouTube. In choosing Watkins' Bach recordings for its 50 best, Gramophone commented on the 'warm, expansive, generous and friendly' character of the playing, and many found the same qualities in him as a colleague. In 2002 Watkin married Sara Burton, and they had two sons, Noah and Sandy. They separated, and he is survived by his partner, Lisi Stockton, his sons, his parents and Simon. David Watkin, cellist, conductor, musicologist and teacher, born 8 May 1965; died 13 May 2025
Daily Mirror
5 days ago
- Daily Mirror
Myleene Klass' floral maxi dress is perfect for the races and still in stock
Myleene Klass' floral dress is so beautiful she had people stopping her on the street to ask where it's from, and it's the perfect outfit to wear for race days like Royal Ascot There's nothing quite like a day at the races, and with Royal Ascot approaching (not to mention plenty of other race days on the horizon), the search is on for the perfect race day outfit. Luckily we spotted the perfect dress for the occasion on none other than Myleene Klass, with her £59 Together Floral Print Frill Detail Maxi Dress from Freemans being an instant hit. Myleene shared several snaps of herself wearing the dress to the Royal Ballet and Opera on Instagram, saying: 'I can't tell you how many times I was stopped and asked about this stunning dress.' The floral maxi dress is a great pick for a day at the races, in keeping with the formal dress code whilst still being breezy and floaty enough for the scorching summer temperatures. Myleene's Floral Print Maxi Dress is available in sizes 8 to 24, and has a subtle V-neckline that bares a little skin without being revealing. The ruffle details on the sleeves and tiered flowy skirt give it a romantic, feminine look, and it has a flattering silhouette thanks to the elasticated waistband, which keeps you comfortable whilst accentuating your shape. If you prefer a more top-to-toe ruffle design, Omnes' £79 Missy Dress in Floral Red is a great alternative, with a bold pink and red colour combination and diagonal ruffles across it. Alternatively New Look's Blue Floral Print Ruffle Trim Midi Dress has ruffle tiers with additional frill details on the bust and straps, and is currently on sale down from £45.99 to £34.49. For a more streamlined silhouette, Never Fully Dressed's Floral Sofia Dress is £129 and has a sleek slip-style design with a subtle pastel floral print across it. Although it's ideal for formal occasions like Royal Ascot or even a summer wedding, you could just as easily wear the Freemans Floral Print Maxi Dress with some sandals and a raffia bag on holiday, or throw on a jacket and trainers for a day at the park. Myleene opted to style hers with some statement gold jewellery including a chain belt, and matching white heels and a clutch bag for her sophisticated evening at the opera. Freemans shoppers have also been praising the dress's look, with one saying: 'The dress is a smidge big on the top for me but is very floaty and comfy. I got a few compliments when I wore it and it's very light weight. Perfect for summer days and afternoon teas.' Another wrote: 'I say just perfect great length and was so nice at the wedding I was at, lovely colours.' One did, however, mention: 'Comes up big, so have returned & ordered smaller size.'
Cambrian News
10-06-2025
- Cambrian News
Amiri Harewood's inspiring piano recital captivates Dolgellau music fans
Dance was the inspiration for both Granados' Valses Poéticos and Bach's Partita No. 5 in G Major, BWV 829. Less well-known than his Goyescas of 1911, Granados' Valses Poéticos of the 1890s is a delightful set of eight short pieces with an Introduction and Coda, and the tempo markings indicate the variety of moods traversed – Melodioso, Tempo de Valse noble, Allegro umorístico, Allegretto elegante and so on. Amiri achieved all these contrasts beautifully, as he did the 'galanteries' (Bach's term) of the dances (such as allemande, sarabande, minuet and gigue) that make up the Partita. Positioned thus, Bach seemed as novel and exploratory as his historical successors, for example in writing a minuet in which 'two-time' seems to predominate. Amiri's accuracy and delicacy of touch in all this were remarkable (the double fugue of the Bach gigue has been described as 'finger-busting'), and set up great anticipation of the second half.
