The Girl with the Pearl Earring
“Thomas Hampson was the undoubted star of the show … he succeeded in creating a real character. His Vermeer was a troubled, distanced person, uninterested in others. His recognition that Griet responded to his art became the basis of his tentative relationship with her. Most of the time he sang softly, yet of all the cast his voice projected most successfully into the theater. At sixty-six years of age, his baritone remains beautiful.”
“Wirth has accompanied Thomas Hampson in recital, and the baritone played the role of Valmont in Les Liaisons Dangereuses for which Littell wrote the libretto. Their intimate knowledge of Hampson’s voice and artistry undoubtedly contributed to their creation of the character of Vermeer, in which they provided the singer with a role that is the perfect capstone to his long career.
Hampson’s Vermeer captured the artist’s self-absorption and disinterest in anything that does not relate to his art. For those who have followed Hampson’s career from the beginning, it was a reminder of why, as a young singer, he made such an impact on the operatic stage and as a song recitalist. To those experiencing Hampson for the first time, it affords the opportunity to experience him in total command of his vocal and dramatic powers.”
“…Hampson gave polished, highly convincing performances. […] Hampson‘s solid and resonant baritone lent majesty, colour and substance to a role that, by definition, is somewhat removed and solitary. It was hard to believe, in fact, that Hampson was acting, so convincing was he in the role of an artist at ease with his gift.”
“Thomas Hampson gibt dem Maler Vermeer seine baritonale Eminenz.”
“With the baritonal eminence of Thomas Hampson, of course, he receives the stage life of a visionary painter who is solely concerned with his work.”