“You can write an opera about anything. Someone told me to write an opera about a telephone catalogue and I said sure. There are so many stories you could probably find. Of course that wouldn’t be easy at all but if you have a crazy idea, there is always a way out of it. It just makes you work harder. {…}
Overcoming a traumatic experience is an arduous task that really never goes away. It leaves its mark, the smallest stimulus bringing it back with greater potency. Artists don’t always have the luxury of running away from trauma. They not only have to portray it but live it time and time again. And in the case of opera singers, they might {…}
Opera history has shown that some librettist-composer teams are matches made in heaven. Such was the case with Da Ponte and Mozart or Verdi and Boito (and Piave) or even Puccini and Giacosa and Illica. The same can be said for Jonathan Moore and Stewart Copeland. The duo has worked together throughout the years and they are back at it {…}
Ramon Tebar is an up-and-coming conductor who has worked with some of the most acclaimed artists in the classical music world including Roberto Alagna, Joshua Bell, Montserrat Caballe, Joseph Calleja, Gautier Capucon, Plácido Domingo, Angela Gheorghiu, Maria Guleghina, Ben Heppner and Renata Scotto. Aside from his work with these legendary artists Tebar keeps a hectic schedule as he is the {…}
How do you create an image that captures the essence of a person? That is the constant question that photographer Dario Acosta always questions when he is shooting a singer in his New York studio. “Ideally I don’t want to be a part of that world. I want you to look at the photo and not think I was there. {…}
For Javier Camarena, the start of 2017 has been a blending of the past, present and future. His year started with an operatic goodbye and the month of February he will slide into comfortable repertoire that he feels will be his meat and potatoes in the immediate future. And in March, he ventures into unknown terrain that might just prove {…}
Robert Neu was not expecting to be named the new artistic director of the Skylark Opera Theatre. But sure it was hard to not see it coming. The company announced the director’s new position as part of unveiling its new season, which will feature two new productions of opera staples. “Not only does Bob bring us extensive directing and production {…}
How does one discover opera? Is it through recordings, family or through music in schools? The answer is never a simple one and at times it is merely by coincidence. For some it is about discovery and curiosity. That’s Michele Angelini’s story. Discovering Opera “It was the movie ‘Amadeus.’ Specifically June Anderson singing the Queen of the Night,” Angelini revealed {…}
Every major discipline has its proverbial “Mount Everest,” the pinnacle achievement. The moment of “arrival” in which the person can feel a sense of accomplishment that few others, or only the true greats, have accomplished. In the soprano operatic repertoire, Bellini’s “Norma” is often viewed as that proverbial peak due to its taxing and wide-ranging nature. Lili Lehmann, one of {…}