As we continue our exploration through opera in the 21st century, we now turn our attention to a major collaborator whose efforts have often been overlooked throughout history. For most of opera’s history the composer has been recognized as the primary creator, akin to how a director is often given the major authorship of a film. But unless the composers {…}
Over the past few weeks, we have endeavored to shine a spotlight on 21st-century operas. Now we turn to the opera composer, highlighting many of notable artists creating some of most iconic and memorable operas of the late 20th and 21st century. Stay tuned for coming weeks as we spotlight more composers and turn our attention to notable librettist championing {…}
Last week, we kicked off a weeks-long segment of opera quizzes centering on 21st-century works and composers. Here is the second such installment in this series, which will bring us to the end of 2020. We provide a clue, you match it to the opera choices listed. As always, enjoy!
Over the years, this quiz has placed a premium on opera’s repertory staples and its interpreters. Now we will shift gears for a bit, shining a spotlight on 21st century opera and its creators over the next several weeks. For this first installment, we take a tour through some modern works. We provide a clue, you match it to the {…}
Lawrence Tibbett was one of the most renowned baritones at the Metropolitan Opera during the first half of the 20th century. He debuted with the company in 1926 and became a fixture over the next couple of decades until his final performance with the company in 1950. Throughout that time he became a specialist in the works of Verdi, but {…}
Dame Gwyneth Jones is one of the great Wagnerian sopranos in opera history. Her career, which is ongoing as of this writing, has spanned over half a century, with the soprano championing not only the great German operas by Wagner and Strauss but numerous Italian works by Verdi, among others. In recent years she has appeared in more modern operas {…}
With an election coming upon the U.S. and the world in general focusing on their nations’ leaders in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, we turn to a topic that we believe is at the core of opera: politics. On a very personal note, it’s been rather surprising to hear many comments about how opera and politics should not be “mixed {…}
(Credit: Louis Melançon) Jon Vickers is one of the great tenors of the 20th century, renowned for his work in the more dramatic repertory. To celebrate his birthday on Oct. 29, we’ve put together a quiz that probes some of his major career highlights and some of his thoughts and ideals on opera. As always, enjoy!
(Credit: Pavel Vaan / Leonid Semenyuk) Dmitri Hvorostovsky is one of the most beloved baritones of recent memory. Born on Oct. 16, 1962, he would go on to conquer opera houses around the world in a wide range of repertory. Some of his most renowned roles included some of Verdi’s heavy hitters as well as Tchaikovsky’s “Eugene Onegin.” Unfortunately, after {…}
Giuseppe Verdi’s operas represent many of the cornerstone works of the standard repertory. Or more precisely, his middle to late period operas are. Some of his early operas manage to get persistent performances, but many of those initial offerings remain rarities around the world. So for this week’s quiz, we turn our attention to those very operas. We will provide {…}
As we continue our celebration of Hispanic / Latinx Heritage Month, we shift from great operas and composers throughout Latin America and Spain to modern-day opera stars. For this quiz, we provide you with a brief description and you must pick which singer it best applies to. We hope you enjoy!
