This has been suggested as a translation for the title of Le Vin Herbé by Frank Martin. I was curious about this rarity, and after hearing it on Radio 3 I decided to go and see WNO’s staging of it in Bristol, my first visit to the Hippodrome since 2013.
I got lucky with a seat. I turned up on spec and was offered (in exchange for a charitable donation) a seat in a box at the back of the stalls, whose intended occupant had fallen ill, and with it a glass of cava and some nibbles. Though sadly not the chance to show off in the interval where I was, as there wasn’t one.
It’s a brave composer who tackles this subject. Martin’s take on the Tristan legend uses a variant in which the lovers elope, and includes Isoude Les Blanches Mains. It is an austere piece, with much of the action narrated by a chorus and lightly scored for an ensemble of piano and strings. The setting of the words is sensitive to speech rhythm – from time to time you could sense that of the original French through the translation – in a musical idiom that reminded me of Stravinsky in the period of his Mass setting. The set was sparing to match, with expressive use of that WNO speciality, the lighting. The players and conductor were placed on stage in front of an arch on which much of the action took place, emphasising the ensemble nature of the piece, and I admired the stamina of those among them who stood throughout.
So well done to all, especially principals Caitlin Hulcup and Tom Randle and conductor James Southall, and an evening well spent.