馬勒萬歲！威爾第萬歲！

小瓊：秋天即將來臨，美國表演藝術季又要隆重回歸了！在經歷了18個月的麻煩和不確定性之后，許多歌劇院與樂團正在重新開啟工作，為公眾獻上安排周到而精彩的表演。

小薇：而這些形形色色的藝術團體的復蘇新跡象中就包括美國最大的表演藝術組織——大都會歌劇院！

小瓊：事實上，組織歌劇制作絕非易事，復雜的勞資談判更是難上加難。但是，當大都會歌劇院在8月底與其管弦樂團工會達成協議后，就宣布在9月27日新演出季搬演特倫斯·布蘭查德的《骨子里的烈火》之前，舉行兩場特別音樂會。

小薇：我看到，在9月4日和5日，大都會歌劇院的管弦樂隊和合唱團在他們的音樂總監雅尼克·涅杰-瑟貢的指揮下，演奏了馬勒的《第二交響曲》“復活”。

小瓊：是的，當時我就在那里！這是林肯中心達姆羅施公園的一場戶外表演，這是一場免費音樂會，人們通過在線注冊登記取票資格。被系統隨機幸運抽中的2500人可以參加音樂會（因為有兩場演出，所以幸運兒共5000人）。令我興奮的是，音樂會的獨唱家中，有女高音方穎和女中音丹尼斯·格雷夫斯。

小薇：看到方穎能在世界各地歌劇院的大放異彩，這真是太棒了。這也讓中國的音樂愛好者為我們的歌唱家在舞臺上獲得認可而感到自豪！

小瓊：一些具體的統計數字，能讓你看到9月4日的演唱會規模，是如何讓我們想起“過去的美好時光”的。相當擁擠的舞臺上有116名管弦樂隊成員，以及獨唱家和指揮。前面是由100人組成的合唱團，他們在最后的樂章中演唱。

小薇：我看到大都會歌劇院也在幾天后用威爾第的《安魂曲》來紀念“9·11”恐怖襲擊20周年，但這次的演出地點是在歌劇院內。

小瓊：看到人們坐得如此近（當然是佩戴口罩的！），聽到如此具有紀念意義的《安魂曲》，而且還通過公共電視向全美轉播，真是令人激動！每一位參與者的藝術性都向我們指明了前進的道路：向觀眾傳達的勇氣和積極的能量也提供了一種巨大的宣泄渠道。馬勒萬歲！威爾第萬歲！

Joan： Autumn is in the air and the American performing arts season is returning with a bang！ After 18 months of trouble and uncertainty， many companies are getting back to work and providing the public with thoughtful and wonderful performances.

Valery： And these new signs of life include none other than the largest performing arts organization in the United States—the Metropolitan Opera House！

Joan： Indeed， its never easy to organize opera productions. Its even more difficult with complex labor negotiations. But once the Metropolitan Opera House reached an agreement with its orchestra union in late August， they announced two special concerts to take place before the season officially opens on September 27， with Terence Blanchards Fire Shut Up in My Bones.

Valery： I read that on September 4 and 5， the Metropolitan Opera Houses orchestra and chorus performed Mahlers Second Symphony（“Resurrection”） under their Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin.

Joan： Yes， I was there！ It was an outdoor performance at Lincoln Centers Damrosch Park， a free concert where people signed up for tickets in an online lottery. A lucky group of 2500 could attend each of two concerts. What made me so excited were the soloists， soprano Ying Fang along with mezzosoprano Denyce Graves.

Valery： It is so wonderful to see Ying Fangs meteoric rise in opera houses around the world. It also makes Chinese music lovers proud that our singers are gaining recognition on the concert stage too！

Joan： Just to give you some statistics so you can see how the grand scale of September 4 reminds us of the “good old days，” the quite crowded stage had 116 orchestra members along with the soloists and conductor. In front was the 100-member chorus， which sang in the final movement.

Valery： I see the Metropolitan Opera also commemorated the September 11 attack a few days later with Verdis Requiem， but this time inside the opera house.

Joan： It was emotional to see people sitting so close to each other （masked， of course！） and hear such a monumental Requiem， which was also televised to the entire nation through public television. The artistry of everyone involved has shown us the way forward： the courage and the positive energy communicated to the audience also provided a great sense of catharsis. Viva Mahler， Viva Verdi！