In September, mezzo-soprano Teresa Iervolino got a call from the Bayerische Staatsoper to perform “La Cenerentola” on short notice. The mezzo, who was already scheduled to perform at the house later in the month immediately said yes and began her season earlier than expected. A rising star in the opera world, Iervolino has already made her name performing Bel canto {…}
Originally hailing from New York City and born to a family of music lovers (her mother is the second oboist in the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and her father an avid operatic aficionado), the bubbly and affable soprano Melanie Spector is a shining example of the benefits of musical exposure as a child, and the long-term advantages of increasing access to {…}
(Photo: Armati Bacciardi) It is that time of year again when the temperatures start to drop and the nights start to draw in, which also means it is time to head off to Wexford for its annual opera festival, which will run from October 21st to November 6th. After two years of disruption caused by the measures aimed at controlling {…}
Arizona Opera’s upcoming production of “The Falling and the Rising” is an operatic story of the unique service of those in the military who face danger, often paying the price of a great sacrifice. Staff Sergeant Ben Hilgert, serving in the Soldiers’ Chorus of the U.S. Army Field Band, is the visionary of the piece. His passion to tell this {…}
(Photo: Noah Shaye) OperaWire: What was the first opera you saw? Raffaele Pe: Rossini’s “Il Barbiere di Siviglia” in Parma, when I was 11. OW: What was the last opera you appeared in? RP: Vivaldi’s “Giustino” in Drottningholm, Stockholm. OW: What role are you currently performing? RP: Apollo in Mozart’s “Apollo et Hyacinthus” in Venice OW: In which opera are {…}
New York City has a rich operatic scene, teeming with innovative companies on the creative forefront of the genre’s development as an artistic form. Led by General Director Matt Gray, the itinerant opera company American Opera Project, is a seminal player, pushing the creative hand of opera ever forwards. In this ongoing series dedicated to the artists, composers, and companies {…}
Look at most books about opera legend Maria Callas and you’ll recognize some iconic representation of the famed diva. But glance at the cover for “Cast a Diva: The Hidden Life of Maria Callas” by Lyndsy Spence and you’ll find something else. Instead of seeing the soprano look back at the reader, what we get is a black and white {…}
Paola Prestini’s first grand opera, “Edward Tulane,” makes its world premiere on October 8th as the first work by a woman to be commissioned by Minnesota Opera as part of the company’s New Works Initiative. Based on the novel, “The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane,” by Minnesota author and two-time Newbery Medalist Kate DiCamillo, Paola Prestini collaborates with librettist Mark Campbell to honor {…}
Once considered lost since its premiere in 1924 Warsaw but miraculously rediscovered in 2017 by German Musicologist Dr. Diana Matut while digging through the archives of Yale University Library, the Yiddish-language opera “Bas Sheve” (the first known opera in the Yiddish language) finally received its North American premiere at the 2022 Ashkenaz Festival. Dubbed one of the “largest and most {…}
