Photo credit: Zani-Casadio The Ravenna Festival does not want for quality venues. In fact, it is able to boast access to some of the most stunning venues in Europe including the Byzantine masterpiece, the San Vitale Basilica, which dates back as far as the 6th century AD. Its visually stunning mosaic frescoes cover the walls and ceiling of the alter {…}
Australian soprano Margaret Josephine Nisbett has died at the age of 94. Born in Preston, Victoria, as a child she performed small concerts at home with her sister and at her local Church of England. She went on to study piano and singing with Thelma Ford when she was nine years old. Her first five years of training saw her {…}
(Photo Credit: James Glossop) Disability is a tricky subject in opera. Oftentimes, it is chastised as something dirty or mysterious or just down right funny. But in truth, it’s rather serious and a complicated theme to get right. A new opera about the perils of mental illness, love, and genuine belief has tried to reframe this with exceptional results. Composed {…}
Raquel Acevedo Klein has announced a series of concerts that she will be presenting in New York. First up will be her multichannel electroacoustic vocal motet, “Polyphonic Interlace,” presented by The Shed in Sonic Sphere on July 19th. The work will also get a performance at the American Composers Orchestra Gala on Oct. 25, 2023 at Fogo de Chão on {…}
(Credit: Keith Saunders) The Sydney Opera House is set to present Damiano Michieletto’s new production of Offenbach’s “Les Contes d’Hoffmann.” The production comes after the Italian director staged “Cavalleria Rusticana” and “Pagliacci” in 2017 and “Il Viaggio a Reims” in 2019 at the famed opera company. In a statement, Michieletto said, “I imagined ‘Les Contes d’Hoffmann’ as a journey through {…}
(Photo Credit Jamie Pham) California-based Pacific Chorale has announced its 2023-24 season. “Pacific Chorale has flourished for nearly six decades, filling a vital artistic role in Orange County and beyond. The range and scope of our programming speaks to the tremendous talent of our gifted singers,” Pacific Chorale President and CEO Andrew Brown said in an official press statement. “We {…}
The Oratorio Society of New York, led by Music Director Kent Tritle, has released its lineup for its 2023-24 season and special concerts for the 150th Anniversary celebrations. The season kicks off with “Bach’s Magnificat and Mozart’s Requiem.” Joining the Orchestra of the Society as soloists are soprano Laquita Mitchell, mezzo-soprano Lucia Bradford, tenor Eric Carey, and bass Adam Lau. {…}
This week Oper Im Steinbruch will open a new production of Bizet’s “Carmen.” The production will feature a soprano in the title role, something that is rarely heard today. And the soprano in question will be Joyce El-Khoury, who is making her role debut. Throughout the past years, El-Khoury has performed a variety of operas that have included the works {…}
(Credit: Guillaume Megevand) Jonathan Nott has extended his contract as artistic and music director of the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande until 2026. Nott began his relationship with the orchestra in 2014 when he was invited to conduct the musicians in a performance of Mahler’s Seventh Symphony. He was appointed as Music and Artistic Director of the Orchestre de la {…}
Photo: © Glyndebourne Productions Ltd. Photo: Tristram Kenton Normally, ‘heritage’ productions make me nervous. The established stagings summon to mind lumbering Zeffirelli-esque spectacles and unwieldy, moth-eaten costumes. Opera houses resting on their artistic laurels, unwilling take artistic risks. The ingrained conservatism in the opera business that could even prove fatal for the art form. But, Peter Hall’s production of Benjamin {…}
The Bayreuth Festival has found a replacement for its production of “Der Fliegende Holländer.” The company said, “the Festival management is extremely pleased that Tomislav Mužek was prepared at very short notice to take over the role of Erik from Andreas Schager, who in turn is standing in for the ill Joseph Calleja in the title role of the new {…}
