“One of the most impressive moments is the confronting and terrifying imprecation of the Captain, who is facing his demise and the destruction of his ship. The map has proven to be a fake, and he inveighs against his passengers: ‘I curse you all, you, with your certainty, your fantasies, your vainglory. Your maps to nowhere are your maps to hell!’ This is a powerful musical episode with the voice extended to the absolute extremes of the range, recalling some of the great operatic curses of the past, notably by Verdi and Wagner. It is a moment that could effectively be excerpted as a stand-alone aria. Here, it was sung with intensity and total vocal commitment by Simon Lobelson”
