The mystery of the human voice

The mysteries of the human voice are endless paths, lost in a thousand and one trails of what Gerard Mortier called "sensualization of the soul." I was thinking this on Monday, while Bruno de Sá sang several arias from Baroque opera on the stage of the Palau de la Música, alongside Ensemble 1700, conducted by Dorothee Oberlinger. Both the ensemble and the conductor are quite versatile, both in instrumental pieces and vocal accompaniment, including Oberlinger's virtuosity on the recorder.

In case anyone doesn't know him yet, Bruno de Sá is not a countertenor, but a sopranist. Unlike countertenors, who use what is known as head voice (from the cranial resonators) to perform mezzo-soprano or contralto repertoire, sopranists sing soprano repertoire. And they can do so through the falsetto or with a modal voice, resulting from endocrinological characteristics that make them naturally possess a soprano voice.

De Sá rose to fame almost four years ago with a hit album (Roma transvestite) published by Erato and accompanied by Il Pomo de Oro. The surprisingly good result has now been confirmed, thanks to an invitation from Ibercamera, which has brought the Brazilian singer to Barcelona to offer a predominantly Baroque concert. And this is welcome, because De Sá's forays into other repertoires, such as Romantic bel canto, are not convincing. He even sang Don Elviro (sic) in performances at the Komische Oper Berlin in Don Giovanni last April.

On the Palau stage, De Sá displayed wit and communicative ability in some pages included in Roma transvestite, such as Di che sogno, o che delirio, from the opera Griselda by Alessandro Scarlatti, with its chopped notes. This among various arias by Bononcini, Händel and Barsanti.

The Brazilian soprano confirmed the strength and quality of her instrument, which is broad and generous in its register, although the lower notes tend toward a certain opacity that will need to be addressed to make them more audible. The voice, as is often the case, is not large, but it projects adequately. And the expressiveness is well-mannered.

If he doesn't get carried away by commercialization and marketing and remains attentive to the evolutionary process of his voice, Bruno De Sá's career could end up being one of achievements within a specialty and repertoire that generates quite a few followers everywhere.