On Feb. 26, ROCO will present the world premiere of “Earth” by Aaron Jay Kernis. The new opus is a reflection upon the fundamental environmental crisis of our time and was created in collaboration with poet and agricultural researcher Kai Hoffman-Krull. “Earth” tells the story of a farmer’s life through vignettes exploring the incremental changes of the seasons and how {…}
When she was a child, Lillian Groag’s family treated opera as if it were pop music. So it’s no surprise that by the time she was but five, she was already attending her first opera and falling in love with the art form. “By 10 I knew the words of all the big 10 which I wailed around the house {…}
Elsa Dreisig credits Mozart with being the composer who first inspired her to become a professional singer. And over the past years, the soprano has dominated his works singing his operas around the world. After two successful albums, Dreisig decided to pay tribute to the famed creator with an album devoted entirely to arias from his operas particularly the three {…}
Photographer credit: Dario Acosta Mezzo-soprano Krysty Swann is currently performing the role of Mayme in “Intimate Apparel” at Lincoln Center Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater. The opera is one of Ricky Ian Gordon’s latest works and features a libretto by Pulitzer Prize-winner Lynn Nottage that is based on her play. The production officially opens on January 31st, after a two-year pause {…}
The Brandon, Vermont Chamber of Commerce describes the home of BARN OPERA as “the quintessential New England town.” It sits in the middle of the state, closer to the border with Upstate New York than that of New Hampshire. A beautiful, yet simple, old white church, complete with a clock tower and a sky-piercing steeple, sits in the center of {…}
To celebrate its 10th anniversary, the Royal Opera House Muscat recently opened its 2022 season with a historical production of “Rigoletto.” The version of the Verdi opera marks the final production that legendary director Franco Zeffirelli created for the opera stage before his death in 2019. It’s also a historical occasion because it marks the first time that audiences in {…}
(Photo: Nicola Dal Maso, RibaltaLuce Studio) Back in 2018 OperaWire interviewed Italian soprano and baroque specialist Francesca Aspromonte to talk to her about her newly released CD “Maria & Maddalena,” her love for the baroque repertoire and her desire to expand her repertoire into other areas. Since then she has gone on to cement her reputation with a string of {…}
(Credit: Gregor Hohenberg) This past fall soprano Aleksandra Kurzak released a new album, “Mozart Concertante.” It was a departure from the work that she had recently done for Sony Classical, which was dedicated to the Romantic repertoire and which was in line with the repertoire she is currently performing all over the world. In many ways, this album represents a {…}
(Photo credit: Tatiana Mazzola) For Iván Ayón-Rivas, 2021 was a breakout party. Selected by OperaWire as one of the 10 rising stars of 2021, the Peruvian tenor also took home top honors at Operalia before finishing out the year with his opera debut at the Teatro alla Scala. That ascension to opera’s peak was years in the making. Ayón-Rivas began {…}