Cosí fan tutte programme book 2023

from CD, but this was my first time to encounter it live. I vividly remember his way of
handling the string sound in the sorrowful prelude, the rhythmic spring of the waltz
and polonaise, and the tragedy of the opera’s conclusion. When we launched Irish
National Opera in 2018, Kenneth was high on the list of people I wanted to work with.
I offered him a choice of Puccini’s Madama Butterfly in 2019 or Bizet’s Carmen
in 2020, and he opted for Carmen because he felt this was a score that he could
usefully bring his interest in historical research to bear on. His meticulous approach
was evident from the first rehearsal. He was steeped in the ideals of historically
informed performance practice, but there was not the slightest hint of doctrine about
his music-making. His approach was always collaborative and collegial.
The 2020 performances were scuppered by the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic.
But, wonderfully, we managed to bring the team back together two years later, and
Kenneth’s goal of viewing the opera through a classical rather than a romantic lens
did eventually get realised. He created wonderfully lithe, transparent orchestral
sounds. He revealed the full texture of the score with apparently effortless ease, and
he allowed space for the singers to shape phrases as Bizet notated, without having
to constantly battle to be heard. He reversed the layout of the first and second violins
in the pit, and divided the four double basses, two on each side of the orchestra.
His motivation was to increase orchestral clarity by responding to his analysis of the
acoustic characteristics of the Bord Gáis Energy Theatre.
It was an honour to have had this collaboration with him, and a personal pleasure
to get to know himself and his husband Jan. Kenneth was always upbeat, positive
and encouraging – not for nothing was he a major teacher of conducting in the
Netherlands. He enriched his colleagues as well as his pupils. He will be sorely missed.
I speak for everyone at INO when I say we feel a great sense of loss when we think with
fondness of his joie de vivre, his continual curiosity and his unending drive for making
music. We extend our deepest sympathy to Jan, for whom his loss is unimaginable.
FERGUS SHEIL
ARTISTIC DIRECTOR
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