Frederick Ballentine in Recital at Seattle Opera

This year, for the first time since I aged out of the Bravo Club, I bought season tickets to the opera. The season is one unlike any other ever programmed by Seattle Opera – or any other opera company for that matter. Seattle Opera’s Fall 2020 season is entirely online. It kicked off with a semi-staged performance of Cavalleria rusticana highlights (available online by subscription through October 16). Last weekend they posted the second event, a recital by Frederick Ballentine.

Frederick Ballentine

My preference for low voices is common knowledge. So even though the lead roles usually go to tenors, I’m not usually very interested in them. But Frederick Ballentine is one tenor who really caught my eye (ear? Let’s say both). The first time was his Seattle Opera debut, when he stepped in as a last-minute replacement in the role of Don Jose on opening night in Carmen. Not only did he sound great, but he had great chemistry with his just-met costar. Most recently, he basically owned McCaw Hall as the title character in Charlie Parker’s Yardbird, the last program opera fans were able to attend in person.

Recital vs Production

Unlike Cavalleria, which was only available to paid subscribers, Ballentine’s performance is free. Also unlike Cavalleria, the performance is recital style. Ballentine recorded onstage at McCaw Hall with pianist David McDade, but there were no sets and the music was not from a single opera. For this event, Ballentine chose a selection of art songs by Puccini, Bizet (including the Flower Song he rocked in Carmen) and Rachmaninoff.

Although the pageantry and spectacle of a full production is a major part of the appeal of live opera, I’m finding that I like the pseudo-intimacy of the recital format when performances are recorded. Over the summer, soprano Mary Elizabeth Williams made her recital feel like a home visit. Even though he was on stage, Ballentine also made his recital feel more personal than performative.

Frederick Ballentine in Recital

He let his personal style show (love the septum ring!) and confirmed his hunkentenor status with a jacket that could barely contain those biceps. But even more, his personality really shone through both in his introductions to the music and in his song selections. He apologized to McDade and thanked him for rising to the challenge of Rachmaninoff. When someone describes themselves as extra and then draws attention to the talents of the other artist on stage, that tells me something. And I know there are people who think artists should stick to entertaining, but those people miss the point of art. I appreciated that Ballentine used his platform to remind people to vote and to dedicate a song to the memory of Breonna Taylor.

My issue with tenors is that strained throat tone that reminds me of a trick with rubber bands and paper clips. Ballentine doesn’t have that. If the tenor is the counterpoint to the soprano, then Ballentine is like the mezzo-tenor. Is that a thing? It must be, because Ballentine has it. At one point, Ballentine mentioned that he’d rather sing Carmen than Don Jose, and ever since then I’ve been obsessed with what that would sound like. Somebody stage a gender-flipped or all-male Carmen, please!!

The Details

Frederick Ballentine in Recital
Available Oct. 2–Oct. 23
Free on YouTube

I embedded the recital video above, but since it will disappear Oct. 24, here is another video with Frederick Ballentine singing.

Ah what the heck. Here’s one more.

{I purchased a Seattle Opera Fall Season subscription for full access to digital content generated during the pandemic.}