Жорж Претр (George Priest) |

George Kahunapule

I nā makahiki i hala iho nei, ua ʻike nui ʻia ka inoa o kēia alakaʻi ma nā pepa o nā hale ʻaha mele a me nā hale opera, ma nā uhi o nā moʻolelo gramophone, ma nā ʻaoʻao nūpepa a me nā nūpepa. Ua kapa ʻia ʻo Georges Pretre kekahi o nā mākaʻikaʻi o ka galaxy conductor hou, kahi alakaʻi o ke ʻano hou. Penei ka wehewehe ʻana o kekahi o ka poʻe hoʻohewa i kona helehelena: “ʻAʻole wale ʻo George Pretre he alakaʻi ʻike ʻike ʻole i ʻike pono i kāna hana, akā he mea pena me nā aʻalolo ikaika. ʻO kona ʻano hoʻoikaika kino e hoʻomālamalama i ke olakino… ʻAʻohe pā o ka halo o ke alakaʻi aloha. ʻO Pretre kahi ʻano alakaʻi alakaʻi i hana ʻia i kēia wā me ke kū paʻa ma ka honua; He kanaka ʻauʻau ʻauʻau makemake ʻo ia a he hoe waʻa, he hoa pili judo weliweli. ʻO kona mau maka uliuli ke kumakaia nei i kahi Flemish kumu, a ʻo kāna nani e ʻike ai i kahi Farani maoli.

No ka 'oia'i'o o kēia mau hua'ōlelo, hiki ke loa'a ka hō'oia ma ka mo'olelo o ka mea pena ki'i, 'o ke kumu nui o kona kūle'a, 'oia'i'o, 'o kāna alaka'i alaka'i ko'iko'i a me kāna kālena mele. Ua ʻike ʻia ʻo ia i ka wā kamaliʻi: mai ka makahiki ʻewalu, hoʻomaka ke keikikāne e pāʻani i ka piano, a laila akamai i ka hoʻokani ʻana i ka oboe a me ka pū. I ka makahiki ʻumikūmāhiku, ua lanakila ʻo ia i ka makana mua ma ka hoʻokūkū oboist, a laila, e like me ke kūpono i ka mea hoʻokani mele "hou", ua lilo ʻo ia i hoihoi i ka jazz. ʻAʻole i liʻuliʻu, ua ʻike ʻia ʻo Pretre ma ke ʻano he pu jazz nui. Akā he mau hoʻolālā ʻē aʻe kāna i ʻoi aku ka koʻikoʻi. Ua hele ʻo ia i Paris e komo i ka conservatory, ma ka papa alakaʻi, a… hāʻule. ʻAʻole i pau ka puʻuwai o ke kanaka ʻōpio, ua hoʻokō ʻo ia i kahi hālāwai me Kluytens iā ia iho, a ma hope o ka hoʻolohe ʻana iā ia, ua kākau inoa ʻo ia iā ia ma ke ʻano he haumāna.

Ua aʻo ʻo Praetre i ke akamai o ke alakaʻi ʻana ma ka Hale ʻOpera Marseille, kahi, ma hope o kona puka ʻana mai ka conservatory, ua hana ʻo ia no ʻewalu mau makahiki ma ke ʻano he alakaʻi alakaʻi, a laila ma ke ʻano he alakaʻi lua. E hoʻomaka ana me ka opera a Iber "King of the City of Iz", ua ʻike koke ʻo ia i ka repertoire holoʻokoʻa o ka hale kiʻiʻoniʻoni, huakaʻi pū me ka hui ma nā kūlanakauhale like ʻole a ma ka makahiki he kanakolu ke poʻo i ka hale opera ma Toulouse.

I ka waena o nā makahiki he kanalima, ua hoʻomaka ʻo Pretre i kāna hana mua ma Paris, e alakaʻi ana ma ka ʻOpera Comique i nā keaka All Women Do This na Mozart, Mignon na Thomas a me Capriccio na R. Strauss. A hiki koke mai ka kaulana honua i ka conductor, e ulu mau ana. Hoʻokani ʻo Pretr ma Switzerland, Belgium, Germany, USA, Spain, England, Austria, kahi āna i huakaʻi ʻelua ma ke kono a Karajan iā ia iho; ua lanakila ʻo ia i nā Parisians me ka hana ʻana o Faust ma ka Grand Opera, komo i nā ʻahaʻaina he nui, hui pū i nā hana a me nā ʻahamele me M. Callas lāua ʻo R. Tebaldi, a me nā moʻolelo ma nā moʻolelo. No laila, i ka hoʻomaka ʻana o nā makahiki 1960, ua lilo ʻo Praetre i kekahi o nā alakaʻi alakaʻi ma kona ʻāina.

Aia ma ke kahua o ka mele Palani ka makemake o Pretre. Ua loaʻa iā ia ke kaulana nui ma kona ʻāina hānau me ka hoʻomaka ʻana o nā keaka ʻo Poulenc ʻo The Human Voice and The Lady from Monte Carlo a me ka hana hou ʻana o kāna Gloriana ponoʻī; Aia i loko o ka papa mele a Pretre nā opera a me nā hana symphonic na Gounod, Berlioz, Debussy, Ravel, a me Messiaen. Ma waena o nā ho'okō maika'i loa o ke alaka'i 'o ia ka ho'opa'a 'ana o "Carmen" me ke komo 'ana o M. Callas. He wahi koʻikoʻi nō hoʻi ka mele Lūkini ma kāna repertoire; Ua mahalo nui nā mea hoʻohewa i kāna wehewehe ʻana iā "Eugene Onegin" a me "Prince Igor". Huli ka mea alakaʻi i nā papa mele ʻē aʻe: ʻo kāna repertoire ʻo Mozart, Wagner, R. Strauss, a ma waena o nā hoʻopaʻa leo, ʻo Dvorak's Fifth Symphony, Stravinsky's Symphony of Psalms, he nui nā hana a A. Berg e kū nei.