(Photo: Michele Monasta)

The grey skies were still hanging over Wexford, but the festival was still in full swing and brightening up the town. The coffee shops and eateries were all buzzing and the day yet again promised to be an interesting one. It, of course, did not disappoint, but the first concert of the day came as a bit of a surprise.

An Italian tenor, aged just 22, from Martina Franca, Manuel Amati, gave a wonderful recital at St. Iberius’, in which he charmed and delighted the audience with his strong personality and selection of songs and arias from Mozart, Rossini and Tosti among others. Chatting to him at the end of the performance about his future plans, he was pleased to tell me that he is scheduled to perform in “Il Barbiere di Siviglia” and “Il turco in Italia” at Venice’s La Fenice and Milan’s La Scala during the current season. Certainly a name to watch out for!

The afternoon opera was Bizet’s “Doctor Miracle,” a light comedy which had been given a lively and amusing translation, and kept the audience fully entertained. The singers all performed well, particularly the young Polish baritone Simon Mechlinski, who performed so well at last year’s festival, and will sing in this year’s concert performance of Stanford’s “The Veiled Prophet.”

The day ended with Vivaldi’s opera “Dorilla in Tempe,” a sumptuous production awash with the colors of the seasons. Although the singing and orchestra were less compelling and failed to hit the same heights, it still managed to engage with the audience.