Photo credit: Guggenheim Museum Lincoln Center’s Fall/Winter programming has been announced. The lineup includes a variety of contemporary and classical works, as well as a series of new collaborations. This article will feature vocal events only. Tenor and drag queen Jasmine Rice LaBeija stars in “보바 Gays Take Lincoln Center!” Korean-American comedians Alex Kim and Kenny Park Yi join LaBejia for {…}
Photo: Pablo Lorente Opéra Royal de Versailles’ “Dido and Aeneas” has, on paper, great musicians, a good stage director, good dancers, and even William Christie. But that was not enough to prevent leaving the theater frustrated. The principal point of frustration came from how poorly conceived the production itself was. This failure is exclusive to good and well-intentioned artists—those from {…}
Les Arts Florissants’ 2020 “Dans Les Jardins de William Christie” Festival opened in Thiré, France on August 22 with a performance of Handel’s “L’Allegro, il Penseroso ed il Moderato,” the composer’s pastoral based on the poetry of John Milton. The production kicked off the annual event that combines the thrilling beauty of Baroque music and the art of gardens. The {…}
Les Arts Florissants has made several performances available online to stream on its YouTube channel and website. Among these videos is “La Finta Giardiniera” which features young singers from Le Jardin de Voix. The concert from Nov. 17, 2019 was directed by William Christie. The company is also showcasing a number of concert performances centering on Gesualdo’s Madrigals. The first {…}
Philharmonie Luxembourg has announced its 15th anniversary season. For the purposes of this article, we will focus on vocal performances. The 2019-20 season will kick off with Esa-Pekka Salonen conducting the Philharmonia Orchestra. Soprano Rebecca Nelsen will be featured vocally. The program will include Berg’s “Lulu” Suite and Mahler’s Symphony No. 9. Performance Date: Oct. 3, 2019 William Christie will lead {…}
William Christie and the word “Baroque” are synonymous in the classical music world. Born on Dec. 19, 1944 in Buffalo, New York, Christie started off his career as an art history major at Harvard University where he was briefly an assistant conductor of the Harvard Glee Club. In 1966, he started studied music at Yale University. From there he taught {…}
The father of opera, as Claudio Monteverdi is often referred to, created the most magical music in the world about the darkest characters that had ever lived. How can we see beauty in horror and why life always juxtaposes the opposites? These questions run through your mind as you listen to “L’incoranazione di Poppea,” an ancient story of lust, seduction {…}
It’s always fun to receive awards. And all five of the major honorees of the OPERA NEWS Awards were beaming on Sunday afternoon, April 23, 2018, during the gala event at The Plaza Hotel in New York City. For the past 13 years, the famed opera magazine has given out accolades to five opera powerhouses. “We always look at a {…}
Handel aficionados will get their dose of their beloved composer on Sunday, March 4, 2018 when the Vienna State Opera live streams “Ariodante” worldwide. The performance is led by baroque specialist William Christie in a production by David McVicar. The cast features Sarah Connolly in the tile role, Chen Reiss as Ginevra, Hila Fahima as Dalinda, Christophe Dumaux as Polinesso, {…}
The Salzburg Festival has announced its 2018 summer festival. This season the festival will showcase eight operas in concert and staged performances. “Die Zauberflöte” will be the festival’s sole Mozart offering starring Matthias Goerne as Sarastro, Mauro Peter as Tamino, Albina Shagimuratova in the role of the Queen of the Night, Christiane Karg as Pamina, and Adam Plachetka as Papageno. Constantinos Carydis conducts Lydia Steier’s new production. {…}
OPERA NEWS Editor in Chief F. Paul Driscoll has announced the 13th Annual OPERA NEWS Awards. The magazine has announced that this year’s honorees will be conductor William Christie, mezzo-soprano Fiorenza Cossotto, tenor Vittorio Grigolo, soprano Hei-Kyung Hong, and soprano Sonya Yoncheva. The honorees will be celebrated in a black-tie gala celebration on April 22nd, 2018 at the Plaza Hotel {…}