Opera Scotland

Turandot 1952Covent Garden Opera

Read more about the opera Turandot

This two week visit to Glasgow by the Covent Garden company gave Scottish audiences their first opportunity to see two new works - not just the Festival of Britain commission, Billy Budd, but also a fascinating late work by Vaughan Williams, The Pilgrim's Progress. The season opened and closed weith Turandot.

The schedule for the fortnight was:

Week commencing 17 March: Mon 17  Turandot;  Tue 18  Pilgrim's Progress;  Wed 19 Salome;  Thu 20  Magic Flute;  Fri 21  Aïda;  Sat 22 mat  Bohème;  Sat 22 eve  Tosca.

Week commencing 24 March: Mon 24  Aïda;  Tue 25  Salome;  Wed 26  Magic Flute;  Thu 27  Bohème; Fri 28  Billy Budd; Sat 29 mat  Tosca;  Sat 29 eve  Turandot.

When Reginald Goodall's later career is so indelibly associated with Wagner, apart from occasional forays into Beethoven and Bruckner, to find him in charge of such varied works earlier in his career may seem strange.  But a jobbing conductor and music staff member had to conduct what was offered.

Edgar Evans could as often be seen in character roles, but here his keenly-focused voice was able to cut through the heavy orchestration.  Twenty years before, when the company had first played Turandot, Parry Jones had sung Pong.  He now switched to the other tenor member of the trio, Pang.

Cast details are from a copy of the programme for 17 March in the OperaScotland collection.