Late in the program, Lomelí spoke briefly to the audience about his having heard Luciano Pavarotti sing this repertoire with Nuccia Focile when he was still “a little Mexican boy.” For him, Sunday’s concert was a “dream come true,” and he expressed gratitude to the organizers of the concert. He then proceeded to deliver a melting performance of Donizetti’s “Una furtiva lagrima,” and many in the audience were very likely finding him an exciting new Pavarotti.
The Berkeley Symphony Orchestra accompanied the singers, under the baton of Robert Cole, who has retired from the directorship of Cal Performances but, happily, is engaged in this season’s performances. The orchestra provided an instrumental introduction to each half of the concert — first, Mozart’s overture to Le nozze di Figaro, and second, the “Meditation” from Massenet’s Thais (featuring an expressive solo performance by concertmaster Franklyn D’Antonio).
The concert also served to celebrate Shu Kai Chan’s 90th birthday, made possible by his ASK Foundation. The birthday boy was unable to attend, but his love for Italian opera had prompted him to give a fine present to Cal Performances, the performers, and their audience.
Focile’s solos were staples of the Italian opera repertoire: “O mio babbino caro” from Gianni Schicchi, Liù’s “Tu che di gel sei cinta” from Turandot, Madame Butterfly’s “Un bel di,” and Mimi’s arias from La bohème — all sung with beautiful phrasing, colorful vocal sound, and strong feeling. For his part, Lomelí contributed arias from Rigoletto and La bohème. Both sang their hearts out, providing decibels and theatrical movements more appropriate to a large opera house than to the intimacy of Hertz Hall; problematically, Focile has a tendency to sing sharp on climactic high notes. Yet the audience ate it up, and seemed delighted when the duet of newfound love from La bohème, “O soave fanciulla” (Oh, gentle maiden), was reprised as a delicious encore.