Page 544 - Media Coverage Book - 75th Aldeburgh Festival 2024

Kathryn Rudge (Sāvitri) and Anthony Gregory (Satyavān)
© Angus Cooke
Sāvitri, a chamber opera lasting around 35 minutes, received a powerfully theatrical staging
and was excellently performed by a cast of three singers and three dancers. The libretto
animates a tale from the Mahābhārata in which the princess Sāvitrī skilfully effaces and
outmanouvers Death into restoring life to her husband, Prince Satyavān. Mezzo-
soprano Kathryn Rudge sang the title role with steely passion, the dark part of her voice
reminiscent of Janet Baker’s portrayal. Tenor Anthony Gregory was a richly tremulous
husband bewildered at his fate, and baritone Ross Ramgobin showed Death to be a darkly
sonorous debater, in and out of the shadows. Members of the Pagrav Dance Company –
Mira Salat, Meera Patel and Parbati Chaudhury – were a delight to watch as they elegantly
articulated the flowing gracefulness of Urja Desai Thakore’s stylish choreography. Their
movements were highly effective as counterpoint to the studied gestures of the singers. A
small ensemble of strings and winds, sensitively conducted by Olivia Clarke, demonstrated
the effectiveness of the early Modernist leanings of the composer.

The abiding image of the evening was Daniel’s encore. He brought out his cor anglais and
played Colin Matthews’s arrangement of the last movement of Britten’s Nocturne. The
sound he made was so soulful one might call it a kind of blue.

Christopher’s accommodation was funded by Britten Pears Arts.