Musica ensemble off to fiery start

Some of the piece is amusing. "No, I don't mean that," the narrator says, referring to freedom of speech, after an instrumental explosion. "I mean freedom of responsible patriotic speech." The music is ingenious, but it definitely played second fiddle to Aveson's brilliant, devastating satirical performance. This piece would play very differently in Dallas, say, and in any case, one-dimensional agitprop on any complex issue is disturbing. The means of persuasion would be the same on any side of the issue, and agitprop can't be art.

"The Sultan Is Pregnant" is a work Israeli composer Eitan Steinberg created in 2002 for his vocalist-wife, Etty Ben-Zaken. It's a new fable about war and peace, love and sacrifice, in the style of "The Arabian Nights." The music, engaging, expressive, and craftsmanlike, suggests Kurt Weill operating in Middle-Eastern styles. Ben-Zaken, electronically amplified, sang in English, Hebrew, and Arabic in a vivid, throaty cabaret baritone; her staging was simple, imaginative, and effective.

Davidovsky's "Sefarad: Four Spanish-Ladino Folkscenes" sounded like a contemporary masterpiece. "Sefarad" is the Hebrew name for Spain; the texts come from the period in the Middle Ages when Christians, Muslims, and Jews coexisted, more or less peacefully, in that country. The music combines influences from all three cultures in Davidovsky's own immensely sophisticated compositional voice; the writing for the chamber ensemble glistens.

Unfortunately, the Tsai Center was plunged into darkness for that piece, so the audience couldn't follow the printed poems, but it was nonetheless clear that baritone David Evitts, in a part of staggering difficulty, was giving a dropdead demonstration of musicianship, vocal resourcefulness, and imaginative response to text.

The playing of the superb Musica Viva instrumental ensemble, under the skillful directon of Richard Pittman, was precise, elegant, and fiery -- as it was all afternoon.

Boston Musica Viva
Richard Pittman, music director
At: Tsai Performance Center, Sunday afternoon