For this week’s Word Search, we turn to the world of opera basses. Instructions: You are free to solve the word search directly on your mobile or desktop device; just click the first and last letter of each word for it to appear on the screen. For those using a mobile device, we highly recommend turning it horizontal to maximize {…}
(Credit: Paolo Conserva) The Festival Valle d’Itria is well known for presenting obscure, neglected, or rarely performed works and always explores diverse themes. This year the festival’s theme is “Fiat Lux” meaning a new beginning. Among the program this year are works by Scarlatti and Haydn. There will also be a production of Porporra’s “L’Angelica,” a serenata from 1720. The {…}
On July 19, German tenor Jonas Kaufmann joined the cast of “Tosca” at the Teatro Real de Madrid for two performances. It was the first time since 1999 that he was performing an opera in Madrid so there was great anticipation. Kaufmann given two solo concerts in past seasons but hadn’t sung an opera. The tenor recalled that 1999 experience {…}
Every year the Bard Summerscape presents a rarely performed work that audiences and singers get to discover. The festival has presented works from Dvorak, Korngold, Moniuszko, Weber, and Mascagni to name a few. This year, the festival will present Chausson’s only opera “Le roi Arthus” with a cast of rising stars and veterans. Norman Garrett will take on the title {…}
As we did with the last quiz, we’re going to have some fun with some of opera’s major repertory staples. This week we look at Verdi’s seminal “Rigoletto.” The quiz will not only test your knowledge of its musical passages, story points, as well as some other miscellaneous information. My hope is that this quiz will provide some new and {…}
“Page to Opera Stage” looks at stories – real-life or fiction, old and new – that have inspired operas, and the ways these narratives have been edited and dramatized to fit a new medium. In this instalment, we follow “Salome” with another play adapted into an opera: Frank Wedekind’s duology “Earth Spirit” and “Pandora’s Box” and Alban Berg’s “Lulu.” Austrian {…}
“Opera Meets Film” is a feature dedicated to exploring the way that opera has been employed in cinema. We will select a section or a film in its entirety, highlighting the impact that utilizing the operatic form or sections from an opera can alter our perception of a film that we are viewing. This week’s installment features Pixar’s “Luca.” Pixar’s {…}
The Santa Fe Opera is set to open this week with a new production of “Le Nozze di Figaro” featuring a cast of rising stars. Among them will be Vanessa Vasquez who returns to the company after her debut in 2019. This season she will add the role of the Countess to her repertoire. The Colombian-American soprano first stepped onto {…}
(Credit: Richard Termine) Donizetti’s “Lucia di Lammermoor” is one of the canon’s most renowned and beloved works. And for this week’s quiz, we’re taking a deep dive into the famed work. The quiz will not only test your knowledge of its musical passages, but also its differing versions (the French and Italian) as well as some other miscellaneous information. My {…}
