Nadine Sierra, Saioa Hernández, Piotr Beczała, Sonya Yoncheva, Xabier Anduaga & Juan Diego Flórez Lead Gran Teatre del Liceu’s 2024-25 Season

The Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona has announced its 2024-25 season. Opera Josep Pons conducts Shostakovich’s “Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk” with Alexei Botnarciuc, Daniel Kirch, Sara Jakubiak, Ángeles Blancas, and Pavel Černoch. Àlex Ollé conducts. Performance Date: Sept. 25-Oct. 7, 2024 Maria Agresta and Saioa Hernández star in Verdi’s “La Forza del Destino” with Artur Ruciński, Amartuvshin Enkhbat, Brian {…}

Mar 29, 2024

Kristine Opolais, Vida Miknevičiūtė, Tuomas Pursio & Stefan Pop Lead Finnish National Opera’s 2024-25 Season

The Finnish National Opera has announced its 2024-25 season. Premieres Leevi Madetoja’s “The Ostrobothnians”, which is known as Finland’s “national opera” will be directed by director Paavo Westerberg. The cast will include Jukka Rasilainen, Ville Rusanen, Jussi Vänttinen, Johanna Lehesvuori, Maria Turunen, Iida Antola, Päivi Nisula, Tuomas Pursio, Aarne Pelkonen, Ilkka Hämäläinen and Mika Pohjonen. The Orchestra of the Finnish National {…}

Jan 16, 2024

Royal Opera House 2023-24 Review: Elektra

(Photo credit: © ROH 2024/Tristram Kenton) Had a family bust-up over the holidays? Don’t worry – it could be worse. Richard Strauss’ “Elektra,” with a libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal from his 1903 play of the same, took a dysfunctional family of the opera stage to new extremes, boiling up Sophocles’ tale of matricide in the Freudian pressure cooker of {…}

Jan 6, 2024

Opera Profile: Finnish National Opera’s ‘Covid fan tutte’

Photo Credit: Stefan Bremer/Finnish National Opera “Covid fan tutte“ is a reconceptualization of Mozart’s comic opera organized by the Finnish National Opera in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. The story is a farcical reimagining of “Così fan tutte,” focusing on the impact of COVID-19 and the ability of opera singers to perform. Most of the opera takes a satirical look {…}

Jul 20, 2023

Bryn Terfel, Asmik Grigorian & Mark S. Doss Lead New CD/DVD Releases

This week audiences cannot miss debut albums, a world premiere recording, and two acclaim DVD releases A Phoenix Rising Navona Records releases tenor Brian Smith Walters’ first album. The CD is a cross-section of chansons and Lieder spanning five centuries, and Walters navigates them with stunning bravado. Audiences will hear selections from Purcell, Copland, Schubert, Saint Saens, Tchaikovsky, Barber, Wagner, {…}

Jun 21, 2023

Karita Mattila, Waltteri Torikka, Sinead Campbell Wallace, Tuomas Katajala Headline Savonlinna Opera Festival’s 2024 Season

The Savonlinna Opera Festival has unveiled its 2024 slate. First up is Verdi’s “Nabucco.” Rodula Gaitanou conducts the production. Performance Date: July 6 – 26, 2024 Tuomas Katajala and Sinead Campbell Wallace will play Lohengrin and Elsa in Wagner’s “Lohengrin” with Karita Mattila singing Ortrud and Lucio Gallo appearing as Telramund. Rounding out the cast is Timo Riihonen. The opera {…}

May 9, 2023

San Francisco Opera to Present 100th Anniversary Gala

(Credit: Lawrence Morton) San Francisco Opera has announced the program for its 100th Anniversary Concert at the War Memorial Opera House on Friday, June 16. Music Director Eun Sun Kim, former Music Director Sir Donald Runnicles, and former Principal Guest Conductor Patrick Summers will conduct the San Francisco Opera Orchestra and Chorus along with a host of star soloists in {…}

Mar 30, 2023

Anna Netrebko, Sondra Radvanovsky, Benjamin Bernheim & Ludovic Tézier Lead Opéra de Paris’ 2023-24 Season

The Opéra de Paris has announced its 2023-24 Season featuring many new productions and many of the great stars in the world. Alexander Soddy conducts Mozart’s “Don Giovanni” with a cast that includes Peter Mattei, Kyle Ketelsen, Adela Zaharia, Julia Kleiter, Ben Bliss, Cyrille Dubois, John Relyea, Gaëlle Arquez, Tara Erraught, Alex Esposito, Bogdan Talos, Guilhem Worms, Ying Fang, and {…}

Feb 23, 2023

Karita Mattila Blocks Ildar Abdrazakov on Twitter

Following an article in Opern News that alleges Ildar Abdrazakov is close to Putin, Karita Mattila has blocked the bass. The Finnish soprano took to Twitter and said “Just blocked him.” In a follow-up tweet, she said, “See this, folks. We don’t need this guy and his alikes in Arts world. Block this Russian singer is the Right Thing to {…}

Dec 11, 2022

Ambur Braid Leads Canadian Opera Company’s ‘Salome’

The Canadian Opera Company is set to present R. Strauss’ “Salome.” The opera will be performed by Canadian soprano Ambur Braid and will also include Karita Mattila, who once was a great Salome, in the role of Herodias, tenor Michael Schade as King Herod, baritone Michael Kupfer-Radecky in his COC and North American debut as Jochanaan, and, in a role {…}

Aug 12, 2022

Jonathan Tetelman, Asmik Grigorian & Karita Mattila Lead New CD/DVD Releases

This week audiences can hear the debut album for one of opera’s rising stars and a complete recoding of Jenůfa by one of the reigning divas of our time. Jonathan Tetelman: Arias Jonathan Tetelman releases his debut album on Deutsche Grammophon. The new album features arias from the French and Italian repertoire and was Recorded at the Auditorio Alfredo Kraus {…}

karita mattila