Costume designer and painter Michael Stennett has passed away as of June 23, 2020. Born in Farnborough, England, in 1946, Stennett studied painting under Nancy Piper, whose works were regularly exhibited at the Royal Academy. After completing his studies, he became assistant to designer Henry Bardon in 1968, and in the following years, he worked on costumes with The Australian {…}
Santa Fe Opera has announced a new digital performance series that will take place throughout July. The series, entitled “Songs from the Santa Fe Opera,” will celebrate the opening nights of the operas that the company was originally set to perform throughout the 2020 season. “We feel strongly about bringing the joy of opera to our communities during this difficult {…}
Promethean Artists has announced that it will be presenting “Sing for Your Life,” a theater event that spotlights the life of bass-baritone Ryan Speedo Green. The showcase will feature New York Times best-selling author Daniel Bergner reading excerpts from his famed book about the bass-baritone. Meanwhile Green will perform music by Mahler and Rossini, as well as African American Art {…}
George Walker was one of the great Black composers of all time. Born on June 27, 1922, in Washington D.C., his mother Rosa King supervised his first piano lessons when he was but five years of age. By the time he was 14-years-old and a student of Howard University, Walker hosted his first recital. He was then admitted into the {…}
The Opéra de Lyon in France announced it is launching an early September series entitled “Prelude.” The series opens with Danser Encore featuring seven solos with 30 dancers. Performance Dates: Sept. 17-27, 2020 Stefano Montanari conducts and performs Vivaldi’s Four Seasons. Performance Date: Sept. 20, 2020 Daniele Rustioni and Stéphane Degout team up to perform Mahler’s Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen and {…}
(Credit: Elena Cherkashyna) The Amigos de la Ópera de A Coruña, Spain has announced its 2020 season. Here is a look at what the organization has in store. The season opens with “Grandes voces para grandes óperas” starring Sondra Radvanovsky, Carlos Álvarez, Simón Orfila, and Alejandro Roy performing excerpts from Verdi’s “Aida,” “Ernani,” “Otello,” “Nabucco,” “Attila,” and “Macbeth,” Puccini’s “Tosca,” Giordano’s {…}
The 69th Grenada Festival opened its 32-day extravaganza of music with a solemn performance of Mozart’s “Requiem” at the Granada Cathedral. Soloists soprano Katharina Konradi, countertenor Carlos Mena, tenor Xabier Anduaga and bass-baritone Carlos Álvarez joined the Grenada Symphony Orchestra under the baton of conductor Andrea Marcon. The Archbishopric of Granda co-produced the performance with “la Caixa” Foundation. “la Caixa” {…}
In a decision announced by the Utah Symphony-Utah Opera on June 24th, Steven Brosvik, chief operations officer at the Nashville Symphony, has been named President and CEO of Utah’s flagship music organizations. Brosvik has held the position of COO at Nashville for 15 years and will assume his new role on August 17th. Since September 2019, USUO has been lead by interim {…}
On July 18, 2020, the Greek National Opera will be launching their national festival. Led by the Ministry of Culture and Sports, this celebration of arts and culture will be held at archaeological sites around the country. As a display of Greece’s recovery, the festival will be opened with a performance held at the foot of the Acropolis in the {…}
“What could Mahler’s ‘Das Lied von der Erde’ might mean for the people gathered in a beautiful inner yard of Alma Mater Vilnensis on this hot summer evening?” These were my thoughts as I entered the yard of Vilnius University. “Would it inspire them? Would it hit?” That night would be the first large scale classical music event in Vilnius {…}
The Opéra National de Bordeaux in France has announced its 2020-21 season featuring five operas and several recitals and concerts. Opera Paul Daniel conducts a new production of Verdi’s “La Traviata” by Pierre Rambert. Rachel Willis-Sørensen and Elbenita Kajtazi alternate the role of Violetta with Benjamin Bernheim and Kevin Amiel as Alfredo and Lionel Lhote and Anthony Clark-Evans as Germont. {…}
