Q & A: Brenden Gunnell on the Role of Tristan & New CD Release of ‘The Marshes of Glynn and Song of the Prairies’ by Andrew Downes

(Photo: Michael Cockerham) Brenden Gunnell is standing at the threshold of one of opera’s greatest challenges: Wagner’s “Tristan und Isolde.” After building his career through the major heldentenor repertoire, he now sees Tristan not simply as the next role, but as the culmination of years of careful preparation. At the same time, he is championing lesser-known music with the release {…}

Jul 16, 2026

Q & A: Riccardo Frizza on ‘I Puritani,’ his Royal Opera House Debut, Bellini & ‘Aida’

Riccardo Frizza, the Musical Director and Artistic Director of the Bergamo Donizetti Opera Festival and Honorary Conductor of the Hungarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and Choir, is widely regarded as one of today’s leading conductors, regularly collaborating with the world’s most prestigious opera houses. He has conducted at many of the major theaters in the world Teatro Comunale, Bologna, ABAO Bilbao {…}

Jul 15, 2026

Q & A: Stage Director Fabio Ceresa on Directing ‘Il pomo d’oro’ at This Summer’s Innsbruck Festival

(Photo: Fabio Ceresa) One of the highlights of this summer’s Innsbruck Early Music Festival will undoubtedly be a fully staged production of Antonio Cesti’s opera from 1668, “Il pomo d’oro,” to a libretto by Francesco Sbarra. Written for the Austrian Empress, Margaret Theresa’s 17th birthday in a specially constructed outdoor theater in Vienna, it has been described as the empire’s {…}

Jul 10, 2026

Q & A: Peter Whelan on Händel’s ‘Tolomeo,’ the Caramoor Festival & Early Music

Olivier Award winner, Peter Whelan, is known as one of the most dynamic and versatile exponents of historical performance of his generation. He is currently the Artistic Director of Irish Baroque Orchestra and Curator for Early Music of Norwegian Wind Ensemble. In addition to taking up the role of Artistic Partner with National Symphony Orchestra Ireland in January 2026 and {…}

Jul 9, 2026

Q & A: Composer Carlos Simon on the Creation of the ‘Good News Mass’ Ahead of its Ravinia Premiere

Composer Carlos Simon has built a career at the intersection of the Black church and the concert hall, channeling a Pentecostal upbringing into music written for orchestras, opera companies and choruses. That path has taken the Atlanta native from Composer in Residence at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts to the inaugural Composer Chair of the Boston {…}

Jul 8, 2026

Q & A: Polish Baritone Artur Ruciński on Count di Luna & How Opera is a Bridge to Humanity

(Photo: Karpati & Zarewicz) Polish baritone Artur Ruciński is one of those artists for whom opera has never been merely a display of vocal mastery. For more than 25 years, he has built an extensive Verdi repertoire, returning to its great roles with fresh eyes each time. In Madrid, where Ruciński is performing Count di Luna in Giuseppe Verdi’s “Il {…}

Jul 7, 2026

Q&A: Sascha Goetzel on Creating Opera by the Fjord

(Photo credit: Ozge Balkan) During the week-long program Opera by the Fjord in Bergen, Norway, co-creator and conductor Sascha Goetzel spoke with OperaWire about this unique young artist program. Not only does Opera by the Fjord take young opera singers, it brings together budding orchestra musicians, conductors, and répétiteurs. This year, the program featured performances of Mozart’s “Le nozze di {…}

Jul 4, 2026

Q & A: Carla Lucero on How Opera & Storytelling Meet Social Justice

In a modern world burgeoning with new operas each year, some artists are ensuring their cultures be spotlighted in an industry constantly being innovated. Quinteto Latino and Opera Cultura, are two artistic pioneers with similar missions: spotlighting Latino artists while uplifting communities through diverse storytelling. Quinteto Latino, a wind quintet engaging audiences through education and performing commissioned pieces by Latino {…}

Jul 3, 2026

Q & A: Tanisha Mitchell on ‘Opera Talks’ & Educating Audiences

(Photo: Nicole Austin) Opera has long carried a reputation for exclusivity, an art form perceived as belonging to concert halls and formal dress rather than community rooms and public library shelves. Tanisha Mitchell has spent years working against that perception, building a platform that treats opera not as a rarefied pursuit but as a living tradition worth sharing anywhere an {…}

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