There are those who recoil from the very word 'opera', and others who frivolously dismiss the genre as "when a guy gets stabbed in the back and, instead of bleeding, sings".

But as the aficionados who attended the Bermuda Festival presentation of 'A Night at the Opera' at City Hall knew or discovered, as the case may be this is a richly endowed art form which includes some of the most beautiful music ever written.

Opera is also a mistress which demands much and forgives little of those who sing it but there was certainly nothing to forgive in the performance of Bermuda's gifted soprano Marcelle Clamens and visiting artist David Lee Brewer, despite the tenor's confession that he awoke that morning with allergies.

In fact, as they proved throughout, both are stellar performers whose voices are glorious instruments of their art. In Mrs. Clamens, Bermuda has a national treasure of whom far too little is heard, and for whom a place on the international stage would be fitting. Mr. Brewer, on the other hand, is already renowned as a multi-talented international artist, the reasons for which were abundantly clear from the moment he began to sing.

In terms of technique, breath control, range and power, both singers were awe-inspiring. In terms of their stage personalities they were expressive and engaging, and, as the finale revealed, they also enjoy a special professional and personal rapport.

Overall, the strikingly clad Mrs. Clamens combined stateliness with dramatic flair, grace and an illuminating smile, while Mr. Brewer was an instinctive charmer for whom the stage was as natural a home as his own, and from which he embraced the audience with warmth and humour. Both sang with breathtaking artistry and expressiveness.

With the exception of two duets, the artists performed as alternating soloists in a programme which, its title notwithstanding, also included selections from a religious motet, an oratorio, Negro spirituals, and light poems set to music. From the world of opera came selections from 'Tannhauser', 'La Forza Del Destino', 'Turandot', 'Tosca', 'Die Tote Stadt', 'Aida' and 'La Traviata'.

In launching the concert with the uplifting 'Alleuja' (Hallelujah) from Mozart's 'Exultate Jubilate', Mrs. Clamens set the tone for an enthralling evening.

The multi-textured programme contained many highlights. These included Mr. Brewer's opening performance of 'If With all your Heart' from Mendelssohn's 'Elijah', sung from his very soul; his stunning counter-tenor performance of 'Ave Maria', written by Vladimir Vavilov in 1970, ascribed by him to the Baroque period, and subsequently titled by Steven Mercurio; the popular 'Nessun Dorma' from 'Turandot'; and the moving 'O Freund, ich werde Sie mehr wiedersehen' from 'Die Tote Stadt'.

In her feast of plenty, Mrs. Clamens is particularly remembered for her deeply moving interpretation of the Moses Hogan spiritual, 'Deep River'; her tenderly expressive 'Absence' and 'L'ile inconnu' from Berlioz' 'Les Nuits d'été; the ecstatic 'Dich Teure Halle' from Wagner's 'Tannhauser'; and 'O Patria Mia' from Verdi's 'Aida' a vocal roller coaster through the registers, in which her top notes were as ethereal as the lower ones were deep and strong.

For all its riches, it was the finale which brought this concert to such a triumphant end. The lilting 'Libiamo ne'lieti calici' (so-called Drinking Song) from Verdi's 'La Traviata' is one of the best-loved duets in the operatic repertoire, and a real showpiece for tenors. Joyously sung by Mr. Brewer and Mrs. Clamens, it was so rapturously received that when the beaming artists asked, 'Do you want to hear it again?' the answer was a resounding 'Yes'.

And what an encore it was. This time, the singers exchanged their concert mien for a delightfully informal rapport with the audience, in which they joined them in clapping in time to the music. Mr. Brewer hammed it up, and the duo competed to see who could hold the final note the longest. With his arm raised and finger pointed skyward, the contest proceeded until the now-coquettish soprano emerged the winner.

"Now that, ladies and gentlemen, is a diva!" Mr. Brewer declared, as the two happily embraced as artists and friends.

In addition to Mr. Brewer, and Mrs. Clamens as a solo artist, 'A Night at the Opera' also marked the Festival debut of the specially-formed Bermuda Festival Chamber Orchestra. Directed by Ryan Ellis, its accompaniment was spot-on expressive and beautifully rendered. As the piano accompanist, Olga Zeidel was excellent, and the guest appearance by members of the Bermuda Chamber Choir was also a pleasure.