Roberto Alagna is a renowned French-Sicilian tenor whose career could grace a fairy tale novel. Considered to be the least talented in a large family of musicians, he nonetheless spent his youth busking around Paris cabarets, singing pop music accompanied with his guitar. But his passion, fired by Mario Lanza films, was opera and, largely self-taught, he pursued that dream. {…}
At the age of 21, mezzo-soprano Giuseppina Bridelli made her professional debut in the role of Despina under the baton of Diego Fasolis, since which time she has been on what appears to be a never-ending upward trajectory. Now firmly established as one of the leading interpreters of the baroque repertoire, she is an artist constantly in demand, performing at {…}
Milanese Stefano Secco studied piano and singing with Alberto Soresina, and also graduated in percussion under the renowned Tullio De Piscopo. He has also trained with Franco Corelli, Franca Mattiucci, Leyla Gencer and Renata Scotto. He has performed in opera houses around the world with an expansive repertoire, has made extensive audio and video recordings, and has won a number {…}
The Greek National Opera is currently performing a production of Cherubini’s rarely performed opera “Medea.” The run of the opera is part of the company’s tribute to the centennial of Maria Callas’ birth. Callas was well known for rediscovering “Medea” and made it one of her signature roles. She went on to perform it more than 30 times at the Dallas {…}
It is a very busy time for Brazilian pianist Ramon Theobald, as he is preparing the singers of Paris Opera’s Atelier for their production of Rossini’s “La Scala di Seta.” He works as both pianist and assistant conductor. Amid the intense routine of rehearsals, he found some time to explain further about work as a pianist in an Opera house. {…}
Irish mezzo-soprano Niamh O’Sullivan is due to return to her home city of Cork in early May, where she will be performing Charlotte in Irish National Opera’s nationwide tour of Massenet’s “Werther.” Over the past few years, the young singer has witnessed her profile rise quickly on the European opera circuit, notching up regular performances in Munich and Zurich as {…}
Mike Batt, LVO, has been tremendously successful across many musical genres, but his work in the classical repertoire is hugely underestimated. He has composed, orchestrated, and arranged many pieces and has conducted many of the world’s finest orchestras, including the London Philharmonic, London Symphony, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Berlin Opera Orchestra, Amsterdam Concertgebouw Chamber Orchestra, and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. He {…}
Opera Australia is currently presenting “Madama Butterfly” on the Sydney Harbour with Karah Son. The Korean soprano is one of today’s most sought-after Cio-Cio Sans which OperaWire has called a “tour-de-force whose journey we raptly followed.” She has performed the title role in Tampere, Leipzig, Warsaw, Berlin (Deutsche Oper), Goteborg, and Turin and is set to perform it in San {…}
Photo: Joan Tomàs The Spanish tenor Celso Albelo debuted in the role of Duke of Mantua alongside Leo Nucci in 2006. He has performed since then in major opera houses around the world. For 17 years, he has been singing leading tenor roles. Being the Duke is one of his signature roles. His extensive tessitura–he can sing a stratospheric high {…}
Photo: Caitlin Oldham On March 3, Arizona Opera is set to present a production of “The Sound of Music.” It’s a rare moment when an opera company brings a musical to its stage. The 1959 musical is most famous for its movie adaptation, which won the Oscar for Best Picture and has some of Rodger and Hammerstein’s most iconic work. {…}
Photo: RibaltaLuce Studio The Turin-born conductor Francesco Cilluffo sees himself at home in both the Italian and English-speaking worlds. Having graduated from the city’s Giuseppe Verdi Conservatoire and then the University of Turin, where he completed a thesis on Benjamin Britten, he moved to London, where he studied at the Guildhall School of Music before going on to King’s College, {…}