As a number of you already know, I am not overly fond of Jose Carreras concerts. Yes, I know it could be considered sacrilege in some quarters, but the truth is I prefer to hear him sing in either operas or recitals. To my ears, microphones tend to distort his voice, giving it a harsh, dry sound, instead of the beautiful warmth that one hears without them. The opportunity, however, to hear Maestro Carreras sing twice in one week -- in his beloved Catalunya -- proved to be an irresistible temptation -- so off I went!

At both concerts, Carreras was accompanied by Isabel Rey, the Spanish soprano, while David Gimenez conducted the Orquestra Filharmonica Nacional de Transilvania. (I’m not making that name up folks!) The concert programs were identical and included: ‘Marechiare’; ‘L'ultima canzone’; ‘O Paradiso’, the best rendition Carreras has given of that in a number of years; ‘Lolita’; the ‘Brindisi’; ‘Musica proibita’; ‘Voce e Notte’; ‘Lippen Schweigen’; a spirited rendition of that wonderful zarzuela duet, ‘El Duo de la Africana’; and ‘T'estimo’. The encores included ‘All I ask of You’, ‘Amigos Para Siempres’, ‘Rosso’ and ‘L'Emmigrant’, that was hard to top. They also did an encore of the ‘Brindisi.’ He rehearsed ‘Granada’ at both rehearsals, but never sang it, much to my dismay.

Carreras was in excellent voice -- rich, warm, and strong. I had first heard Rey when she sang with Carreras at the Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Maryland in 1994. Then, although she clearly had a lovely voice, she was unsure of herself. Now she was a poised and experienced artists. Although the programs were identical, both venues and concerts were very different.

The Girona Concert -- September 12, 1998

Girona, Carreras’s father’s home town, is about an hour and a half northeast of Barcelona by train. It is a medieval town nestled in the foothills of the Pyranees. The "streets" of the old quarter are narrow, steep and cobblestoned. Often no more than steps or alleyways. Although quaint and charming, Girona is a real city, not a medieval museum.

Girona might be a neat, orderly, organized town -- but the concert arrangements were anything but. From beginning to end, confusion reigned supreme! Tickets originally ordered from one source, suddenly had to be re-ordered from another. When we arrived at the cathedral square, we found that the rehearsal, scheduled for 4 PM, had been postponed. They were still setting up. When we returned, dressed for the concert, several hours later -- the rehearsal had only just begun. It was about 7 PM.

The concert was scheduled to start at 9:15. It soon became apparent that the concert was not going to start on time. Originally, we had been allowed to watch from the side of the square, but we were then told to move around the corner, into a little alleyway and behind a barricade. A great place to be when you’re somewhat claustrophobic!

As time past and the crowds grew, it became both uncomfortable and a more than a little bit scary. There were no numbered seats for this concert. Our tickets only entitled us to a section. So when we were finally allowed back into the square, there was a stampede! Fortunately, no one was hurt and someone in our party, who’d been to a few concerts like this recently, knew the drill and managed to secure us a good location on the first set of cathedral steps.

The cathedral steps -- yes, you read that correctly. I’m not sure what I had been expecting to sit on, but it wasn’t the cathedral steps. Even with the souvenir cushion provided by the concert sponsors, the stone steps of the cathedral were cold and uncomfortable. I guess I should have taken up yoga to get in shape for this concert.

Set at one end of the charming, but tiny, cathedral square, the stage was so cluttered -- with cables, chairs, and music stands -- that the string section had to walk down around the front of the stage to get to their seats. The clutter of cables presented a hazard for Carreras, Gimenez and Rey. Carreras came to the rescue, coming on stage at one point, with a large strip of electrical tape! The lights went out periodically, despite all of the cables. But the band played on! The high-point in the evening’s calamities, however, occurred when Maestro Gimenez’s baton flew out of his hand while conducting!

The atmosphere changed dramatically, however, when Carreras sang ‘Rosso’ and ‘L’Emmigrant’ in Catalan. Before ‘Rosso’ had ended, the group in the row in front of us was passing a box of Kleenex amongst themselves. And when he sang ‘L’Emmigrant’, I was practically in tears. Despite the chaos and confusion, Girona was a very special concert.

The Tarragona Concert -- September 15, 1998

While the programs were identical, both the city of Tarragona and the concert differed dramatically from Girona. Like Girona, Tarragona is about an hour and fifteen minutes from Barcelona by train. There the resemblance ends. The train ride south to Tarragona takes you along the bright, blue Mediterranean -- with its white sandy beaches, palm trees and condos. Set high on a bluff overlooking the sea, Tarragona started out as a Roman provincial capital. Now it’s the urban center for Spain’s Costa Durada.

The concert venue for Tarragona was the Camp de Mart -- a natural amphitheater -- just west and below the cathedral precinct. But no sitting on damp wet grass here. The city has turned Camp de Mart into an excellent outdoor concert venue. With comfortable, molded plastic, permanent seating, a stage, lighting fixtures (that worked), and a stylish canvas "fly" over it all to protect both the performers and the audience from inclement weather or stray pigeons.

The rehearsal started on time, the concert started on time, our tickets were numbered, and we had wonderful seats. In short, everything went like clockwork. Once again, Carreras was in excellent voice, as was Isabel Rey. The audience of over 2,800 was enthusiastic. The headline in the next morning’s Diari de Tarragona read "Delirio en Tarragona -- El tenor provoca el delirio entre los 2,800 espectadores". The press coverage was amazing -- major features the day of and the day after the concert in the city’s two daily papers -- and a couple of us were even interviewed by a young reporter for Radio Tarragona!

But there was also something missing in Tarragona. It wasn’t just the spontaneity -- lights going out, batons flying and other assorted mishaps. In Girona I felt as though I was watching a family reunion. It was clear that many in the audience had known the Carreras family for ages -- generations perhaps. The Sunday edition of Girona’s El Punt referred to the concert as historic. Unfortunately, due to my ignorance of Catalan, I’m not sure if it was historic because of the location in the cathedral square or because it was the first time that Carreras had sung there. Either way, there was a very special feeling in the air that night. A special intimacy between Carreras and the audience was in the air that night.