Jakub Jozef Orlinski danced in the Linz Music Theater with his voice and his hands

Hardly any cars, but white everywhere you looked. With the masses of snow, an unusual silence had settled over the world on Saturday, the atmosphere of which somehow matched the evening in the Linz music theater. Not just because it led to car-free times: As one of the “Great Voices”, the Polish countertenor Jakub Jozef Orlinski invited people to travel back in time to the early Italian Baroque in the series of the same name with the original sound ensemble Il pomo d’oro.

His latest album “Beyond” brings together works from the 16th and 17th centuries. Common names like Claudio Monteverdi meet little-heard names like Carlo Pallavicino and Orlinski’s compatriot Adam Jarzebski. They invite you to new encounters and discoveries “beyond” the known, which was true for the entire evening. Without any intermittent applause – as pleasant as it was natural this time – the audience experienced one and a half non-stop hours of dramaturgical flow.

And a singer who celebrated this evening barefoot on many levels and made it an experience beyond familiar listening habits. Not only because, as a countertenor, he breaks with perhaps unconscious expectations of gender roles, of “male and female voices”.

Under the spell of the quiet sounds

There is something magical about the supple lightness of Orlinski’s voice, with which he dances through coloratura and high notes, but is also extremely flexible dynamically. Passages full of proud temperament alternate with internalized ones that are subdued to the point of being barely audible.

The art of quiet, delicate sounds – vocal, but also instrumental from triple harp, theorbo, lute, gamba, harpsichord – lay over this evening, which exploited the baroque joy of life and yet allowed transience to shine through. Orlinski repeatedly crouches on the floor, contemplating, listening to the orchestra playing alone. Or lie on your back, as if in a meadow, looking towards the sky. Once, during a short detour into the hall, he casually swings himself onto a parapet. While the nine-piece orchestra Il pomo d’oro – the favorite ensemble of crime doyenne Donna Leon – immerses you in a subtle world of sound on its original sound instruments, which therefore lacks nothing in terms of rhythmically powerful energy.

The fact that Orlinski himself has dedicated himself to dance as a second passion becomes particularly evident towards the end. The breakdancer swings into a handstand as smoothly as he sings. Mischievous wit and humor are also not neglected. He flirts with the guitarist and, smiling mischievously, engages in a coloratura duel with the flautist. After three encores, the evening ends in a standing ovation for the singers and ensemble.

Many people didn’t miss the opportunity to personally get an autograph from the nearby star and patiently joined the long queue in the foyer.

Conclusion: A musically beguiling, extraordinary and harmonious concert performance.

More “Great Voices”: 26-1: Elina Garanca, 7-3: Joyce DiDonato; 25-6: Asmik Grigorian; Info,
Cards: landestheater-linz.at

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