The Greek National Opera has added two more performances to its run of Verdi’s “Otello.” The company announced that audiences would now be able to check out the opera on March 11 and 15 following the already-planned performances on Feb. 27, March 2, 5, and 8; these four performances all sold-out as of this writing. The opera, which is being {…}
The 2022 George London Foundation Competition has announced its winners. The top prize went to mezzo-soprano Megan Moore, Tenor Eric Ferring, and Baritones Blake Denson, Erik Grendahl, and Timothy Murray; each artist took home $10,000. The remaining seven singers were given George London Encouragement Awards of $2,000 each. The final took place on Feb. 25, 2022 with each artist singing {…}
This week audiences will get solo albums by one of the great mezzos of her generation and two baroque albums. There is also a debut album and a new DVD of Offenbach’s masterwork. Here is a look at this week’s new releases. Eden Joyce DiDonato releases her latest album featuring music by Handel, Gluck, Wagner, Mahler, Ives, Copland, and Oscar-winner {…}
The worlds of classical operatic and its temperamental present have a complex relationship when dealing with the upholding and rejection of entrenched classicism in operatic productions. It is a relationship that seems to neither effectively nor fully answer the question of “Who is opera for today?” It appears as if modern opera is stuck in a limbo, where directors valiantly {…}
The Chicago Symphony Orchestra will kick off the CSO MusicNow series on March 14, 2022 with a “Night of Song” curated by composer-in-residence Jessie Montgomery. The program will feature the world premiere of “The Bronze Legacy,” a new commission from Damien Geter; a 2018 song cycle by Dale Trumbore; and world premiere arrangements by Ayanna Woods and Shawn Okpebholo. Geter, {…}
(Photo by Valeri Guérguiev) Carnegie Hall has canceled all performances by the Mariinsky Orchestra with Valery Gergiev scheduled for this May. The Russian orchestra was set to perform on May 3 and 4. In a statement, Carnegie Hall stated that the cancelation was due to recent world events and ongoing challenges presented by COVID-19. The world events in question are {…}
Opera Houses around the world are showing solidarity with Ukraine following Russia’s invasion. Many houses are dedicating performances as well as illuminating the facades of their building with the colors of the Ukrainian flag. The Teatro dell’Opera di Roma noted that the illumination was to confirm its role as “a pole of civil and cultural aggregation of the Capital with {…}
The Bayreuth Festival has announced its 2022 season. The festival will open with a production of “Tristan und Isolde” conducted by Cornelius Meister. The production by Roland Schwab will star Stephen Gould and Catherine Foster in the title roles as well as Georg Zeppenfeld, Markus Eiche, and Ekaterina Gubanova. Performance Dates: July 25 & August 12, 2022 The festival will present {…}
Opera Australia has announced a worldwide search for a new Artistic Director following the departure of Lyndon Terracini AM at the end of 2023. Terracini, whose career began as a baritone, made his Opera Australia debut in a production of “Albert Herring” and would become a mainstay with the company for years there after. In 2009 he was brought on {…}
The Rotterdam Philharmonic is giving Valery Gergiev an ultimatum following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The orchestra released a statement noting, “The Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra and the management of Rotterdam Philharmonic Festivals (organizer of the Gergiev Festival) have taken great notice of the Russian invasion in Ukraine. In the case Valéry Gergiev does not openly distance himself from President Putin’s action {…}
Anna Netrebko and Yusif Eyvazov have postponed tonight’s concert in Denmark and have released a statement regarding the Russian invasion of Ukraine. In a joint statement the couple said, “In light of current events and due to significant concerns for the safety and security of all involved, we are forced to postpone our concert in Arhus tonight. These are very sad {…}