Italian conductor Francesco Lanzillotta is considered one of today’s most “interesting conductors” having performed a vast repertoire that ranges from Mozart to contemporary music. He has been the Music Director in Varna, and is currently the Music Director of the Macerata Opera Festival in Italy. As he continues to expand his repertoire, he is also becoming one of the most {…}
On Saturday, March 28th, the Academy of Vocal Arts will celebrate its 85th anniversary with BrAVA Philadelphia! For the first time 80 years, The Met Philadelphia stage will showcase some of the best-known singers in the world. The gala will honor the internationally recognized voice teacher Bill Schuman, bestowing upon him the AVA Distinguished Achievement in the Arts Award. Schuman {…}
Ever since 2000, Sir Andrew Davis has served as the Music Director and principal conductor for the Lyric Opera of Chicago. He has led a diverse repertoire from Mozart and Rossini to Tchaikovsky and Stravinsky with the company and has established the orchestra as one of the greats in the United States and the world. He has also led the {…}
(Credit:Loudon MacRae Photography) Composer Stuart MacRae has established himself as one of the most distinctive composers of his generation. He has written a range of orchestral and opera works in his career, with his most recent orchestral work including the symphony “Prometheus,” which premiered in November 2019. He has also composed five operas to date – “The Assassin Tree,” “Remembrance {…}
This article has been updated from the original published on Mar. 6, 2020. In February 2022, PRISM saxophone quartet will present the long-awaited world premiere of “Mending Wall,” a fully staged production that examines the meaning of walls and the questions surrounding identity, community, division, and freedom. The performances will be presented in Pennsylvania at the Bryn Mawr Performing Arts {…}
Editorial note & Update: The March 21st performance of “Annelies” referenced within this article has been postponed. On Saturday, March 21st, Soprano Arianna Zukerman is set to sing “Annelies,” Anne Frank’s Diary in song. She will bring the work to Church of the Redeemer in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, under the baton of church conductor Michael Diorio. As a granddaughter of {…}
(Credit: Valentina Sadiul) What makes a master singing teacher? Is it someone who knows the art of singing from both sides of the curtain? Or is it someone who cultivates a singer’s natural gifts, enabling the budding artist to bring out her/his inner voice? Perhaps it is both of these. César Ulloa is Voice Department Chair at the San Francisco {…}
(photo credit: Damjan Švarc) Virgil Thomson and Gertrude Stein’s opera “The Mother of Us All” recently made a historical debut at The Met Museum in honor of Susan B. Anthony’s life and women’s suffrage movement. The production celebrates a unique collaboration between the NY Philharmonic, Juilliard, and The Met, which features some of today’s visionary young artists working in opera. {…}
The LA Opera announced its 2020-21 season featuring five main stage production, four new productions and a number of second stage productions through its Connects and LA Opera Grand sections. Among the composers featured in the programming are Missy Mazzoli, Verdi, Mozart, Handel, and Rossini. In light of the new season announcement, CEO and president of the house Christopher Koelsch {…}
(Credit: John Hardy) Back in early April 2019, the Opera San José Board of Directors announced that Khori Dastoor would be taking over as General Manager. The announcement was the culmination of a unique relationship that saw Dastoor rise from performer to manager in just a little over a decade. Irene Dalis’ Call Back in 2007, Dastoor was a soprano {…}
Opera on the James, located in Lynchburg, Virginia named singer, director, and teacher, Marco Nisticò General Director this past June. Nisticò summed up his mission on the company’s website, saying, “[Opera] has the capacity to move, inspire, provoke thought, and entertain. It helps us to understand who we are and how we relate to each other. As director of Opera {…}