MUSIC REVIEW : An Amplified Pavarotti at the Forum

His signature handkerchief tucked discreetly in the palm of his large hand, Luciano Pavarotti returned to Southern California on Wednesday, the night of the big storm.

The tenor from Modena, Italy, acknowledged the storm just before his second encore, “Donna non vidi mai,” from Puccini’s “Manon Lescaut”--which he dedicated to Whoopi Goldberg, seated down front.

With only a 60-piece orchestra and American soprano Cynthia Lawrence to assist him, Pavarotti gave a performance clearly downsized from the hugely publicized “Encore: The Three Tenors” concert he participated in with Placido Domingo and Jose Carreras last July at Dodger Stadium

Downsized, except, of course, for two, now-ubiquitous elements in the 59-year-old singer’s concert appearances: The large venue--on this occasion, the 17,500-seat Forum in Inglewood--and the use of microphones, amplification and sound engineers.

Clearly, Pavarotti no longer performs concerts in recital halls or medium-sized auditoriums in which “sound-enhancement” is not necessary--his performances at Ambassador Auditorium in 1978 and Pasadena Civic in 1979 may have been his last such appearances locally. Also, except for his operatic engagements, he never seems to sing without microphones.

Aside from the tenor’s large portion, the repertory for this event included orchestral pieces from operas by Mascagni, Verdi and Puccini and soprano arias from Puccini and Lehar, strong showcases for Lawrence’s versatile, all-purpose vocal talents.

Despite glowing reviews from his Metropolitan Opera appearances last fall, the tenor’s vocal condition Wednesday night, though certainly decent, was not the best of his performances here over the last 22 years. Compared to its brightness of yore, Pavarotti’s voice now can seem foggy, unfocused or without core some of the time--still presentable, but on the way to being used-down.

In the second half of this concert, shards of the old ring reappeared, despite the distracting--and distorting--proximity of the microphones. Still, the healthy sound and impassioned delivery that some consider unique to this singer emerged occasionally, to the delight of a well-filled arena.

The Cherry Duet from Mascagni’s “L’Amico Fritz” found Pavarotti and Lawrence in sync both vocally and musically. They were assisted neatly by conductor Leone Magiera, a longtime associate of the tenor, and the orchestra, which was serviceable.

Then after Lawrence, a very solid but undistinctive singer, did yeoman work in two standard pieces--Micaela’s aria from Bizet’s “Carmen” and “My Man’s Gone Now” from Gershwin’s “Porgy and Bess”--the tenor concluded the program with three Italian songs beloved by his fans: “Mattinata,” “La Serenata” and “Non ti scordar di me.”

At that point, the houselights--amazingly discreet and low-key up till then--went up, the large audience responded by standing, the lights went down and the encores began.

First came two arias from “Manon Lescaut,” then “Granada,” followed by the aria from Lehar’s “Das Land des Lachelns,” sung in Italian. The finale ultimo was the Brindisi from Verdi’s “La Traviata.”