Schubert's lieder as chamber opera

'It's not exactly a concert, but an operatic episode in two acts," says young Israeli soprano Alma Moshonov.

By MAXIM REIDER
'It's not exactly a concert, but an operatic episode in two acts," says young Israeli soprano Alma Moshonov, of Schubert Plus, which she premiere this week with her uncle, opera tenor Gabi Sadeh. The piece consists of two duets and 23 lieder by Schubert, familiar to all music lovers. "There is a story here about a young girl and a more mature man," says Alma. "Not exactly a love story, but an encounter between two strangers, between two life stories. It happens in a café, where a girl writing a letter to the lover who abandoned her meets this man, a waiter. The songs they sing create a dialogue, a story." Alma Moshonov, whose parents are actors Moni Moshonov and Sandra Sadeh, currently resides in New York. The idea for the opera belongs to Alex Kagan, the composer and stage director, who has worked with leading Israeli playwrights such as Hanoch Levine, Nissim Aloni and Yehoshua Sobol before moving to Germany where he stages chamber operas. "After listening to so many lieder (art song) concerts around the world where a singer stands by the piano with a faint half-smile on the face, I saw that the genre in performance has become static. After all, mine is a theatrical background. I also feel that these excellent texts got lost in Schubert's music." Pianist Bart Berman, who is also the music director of the piece, and clarinet player Mor Levine, accompany the performance. Concerts at Shtriker Conservatory Tel Aviv on Saturday and Monday at 20:30 and December 21 at 12:00. Details at (03) 546-6228.