Photo Credit: IMG Artists/Frederica von Stade/Robert Millard (2005) This year was exciting for many reasons but one of them stands out. On Monday, March 10, 2025, the documentary about Frederica von Stade, “Flicka: A Love Letter,” first created in 2023, was screened at the National Opera Center in New York City. Combining archival footage of performance clips, Brian Staufenbiel’s “Flicka” gave {…}
Yes, you can be a conductor and a mother. But no one told me that. The classical music world rarely talks about women on the podium who are also mothers. I want the next generation to know that it’s possible—even if it’s exhausting. When I was 21, I decided I wanted to be a conductor at the highest level. Inspired {…}
Almost every year, a multitude of operas are premiered, some of which never really get publicly highlighted as they should due to certain operas taking the limelight, funds, and critical attention. Thus, in this three-month series entitled, Opera History Flashbacks, we’ll be taking a look at three historically important years and the operas that were premiered during those years. If {…}
This week, the Royal Opera House is set to unveil a new production of “The Makropoulos Case,” a rarely performed Janáček work. The opera plays with the idea of immortality and has historically been a vehicle for a great diva. This week, the London company does just that, but also brings Katie Mitchell, a director who has been known for {…}
The sudden death of Pierre Audi in May this year lent a moving note to the presentation of the Birgit Nilsson Prize in Stockholm on October 21. The prize, which has been awarded every three years since 2009, now went to the Festival d’Aix-en-Provence, where Audi had been artistic director since 2018 – a deeply fitting tribute to a man {…}
Earlier this summer, I returned to Cooperstown to help celebrate the 50th anniversary of The Glimmerglass Festival, a place that, quite simply, changed the course of my life. Standing once again on their majestic campus, I was inspired to reflect on my own journey as a performer and as a person, as well as the impact the Festival has had {…}
(Photo credit: Chuck Gilmore) Southern Appalachia is typically acknowledged as the heart of traditional American folk music, from old-time string bands to bluegrass, and haunting ballads, but there are more connections to opera and classical singing than one might realize. Pioneers like Cecil Sharp, Maud Karpeles, and John Jacob Niles collected folk songs throughout southern Appalachia, such as “The Lover’s {…}
Photo Credits: Sabine Toepffer Almost every year, a multitude of operas are premiered, some of which never really get publicly highlighted as they should due to certain operas taking the limelight, funds, and critical attention. Thus, in this three-month series entitled, Opera History Flashbacks, we’ll be taking a look at three historically important years and the operas that were premiered {…}
(credit Yunchis Artyom5) This week the Metropolitan Opera’s “La Boheme” returns to the stage with a young cast of rising stars. Among them will be Juliana Grigoryan, who will sing her first lead role at the Metropolitan after debuting in 2024. The Armenian soprano will sing the role of Mimi, which she has already performed at the Ravenna Festival and {…}
