RING Intermission Chat with musicians Paul Rafanelli and Jeannie Wells Yablonsky

March 5, 2021·11 min·1 clip

Hear bassoonist Paul Raffinelli and violinist Jeannie Wells-Jablonski share their memories of Seattle Opera's 2005 Ring Cycle.

This episode features musicians Paul Raffinelli and Jeannie Wells-Jablonski reflecting on performing Wagner's Ring Cycle with Seattle Opera. Raffinelli is a bassoonist whose first Ring was in 1995, while Wells-Jablonski is a violinist whose initial experience was a partial cycle in 2000. Both performed in the company's 2005 production discussed here. Wells-Jablonski's first engagement involved only *Das Rheingold* and *Die Walküre* during the 2000 summer season. She describes the Ring as one of the most challenging endeavors in her career, surpassing even solo concertos. Some violinists equate playing one opera to performing four distinct violin concertos in a single night. That 2000 production was conducted by Armin Jordan, whom she recalls as an amazing human being. Maestro Jordan emphasized a specific interpretive approach to Wagner's music. He instructed the musicians to play Wagner in a very light, impressionistic manner, comparing it to the style of Debussy. Jordan maintained a supportive demeanor even when musicians made mistakes during rehearsals. Paul Raffinelli expresses a personal nostalgia for the experience of performing the complete cycle. A key insight is the re-framing of Wagner's dense orchestration as requiring lightness and impressionistic color. The comparison to Debussy directly challenges common perceptions of Wagnerian weight. The supportive rehearsal atmosphere under Jordan left a lasting positive memory for Wells-Jablonski. The physical and mental demand of the music is underscored by the violinists' concertos analogy. For these orchestral players, the Ring represents a pinnacle of both technical difficulty and artistic collaboration. Raffinelli's simple statement of missing the work speaks to its profound personal and professional impact. The tone is warmly conversational and reflective, as two colleagues share personal anecdotes. The style is anecdotal and educational, offering a behind-the-scenes look at orchestral life. This episode is ideal for opera enthusiasts, Wagner fans, and anyone curious about the musician's perspective inside a major production. Listeners seeking a highly structured analysis or debate on the operas' themes might find it too brief and personal.

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