In just a few days, the World Cup will be upon us. Not everyone in the opera world is a major fan of the beautiful game, but there is one artist who is a pretty big fanatic. As you may have guessed from the title, his name is Plácido Domingo. He has performed a plethora of tournaments and has been {…}
It’s the summer, which means that a ton of people are going to be spending quality time at the movies. And Wagner’s “Der Ring des Nibelungen” is about to open at the San Francisco Opera, among other places, as well. And then there is the whole business about Wagner being the greatest influence on musical composition in movies. So we {…}
It’s International Wine Day, a holiday that celebrates arguably the classiest and most sophisticated drink of all. Opera is obsessed with wine (and alcoholic beverages in general). Everywhere you look, you’ll find one composer or another giving their characters a fun diddy to sing about drinking. But how well do you truly known your drinking songs?
As fate would have it, “Cavalleria Rusticana” and “Pagliacci” are more famously known as “CavPag.” The two works both premiered in middle May, two years apart (“Cavalleria Rusticana” premiered on May 17, 1890 and “Pagliacci” arrived in theaters on May 21, 1892) and have become virtually inseparable. A quick look at their corresponding histories shows many uncanny similarities and differences. {…}
Mozart’s operas feature some of the most nuanced, human-like characters in all of the operatic repertory. And if his characters were real humans living and breathing today, in the year 2018, chances are they’d have a smartphone attached to the palm of their hand, filled with apps that they’d use to navigate the twenty-first-century world around them. From Snapchat to {…}
“Wozzeck” is, for many, the crowning achievement of Alban Berg’s career. While the opera premiered on December 14 1925, Berg actually saw the premiere of the play upon which he based the opera on May 5, 1914. We chose to celebrate that day because it was from that initial experience that the opera germinated in the composer’s mind. So here {…}
Mozart’s “Le Nozze di Figaro” had its world premiere on May 1, 1786, and is widely considered one of the greatest operas of all time. Aside from Mozart’s iconic music, the characters of the story are what make it so unforgettable. Whether it be the power-hungry Count or the brilliant Susanna, or the impetuous Cherubino, these characters are brimming with {…}
William Shakespeare, the great Bard, was baptized on April 26, 1564, and many have attributed his birthday to April 23 of that year. He would die on that same day, April 23, 1616, after becoming arguably the most influential writer of his day. To this day he remains in that pole position, though not without a slew of controversies over {…}
Earlier this week was siblings day, an opportunity to celebrate that unique and strange bond. Afterall, siblings are that kind of bond that features a wide range of challenging emotions. From hate to love, we’ve all heard those stories of fiercely close siblings and coldly distant ones. We’ve seen stories of conflicts between brothers and sisters, but we’ve also heard {…}
Franco Corelli. The tenor, who was born on April 8, 1921, is arguably one of the most lauded in opera history. His high notes are legendary, as are his movie looks. In celebration of his birthday, we offer up this quiz to see how well you know one of opera’s iconic leading men.
We spend a lot of time on this site talking about dead composers. And for good reason. Opera wouldn’t exist today if it wasn’t for those great artists of the past. But it’s also important sometimes to shine a spotlight on the artists making headway in today’s conservative opera culture. I call it conservative because despite having more talent in {…}