(Credit: Johannes Ifkovits) Piotr Beczala has postponed two upcoming recitals. The tenor announced that he will continue his recovery from vocal issues for another week on medical advice. He said, “Dear friends, we all don’t like this kind of news, but following my doctor’s advice, I am forced to continue my recovery for another week. Tomorrow’s recital at the Kölner Philharmonie {…}
The Copenhagen Opera Festival has announced that Amy Lane will become the company’s new artistic director. Lane will become the first woman and foreigner to lead the festival in this position since its inception in 2009. Lane is currently the Head Staff Director for The Royal Opera, Covent and has been in charge of revivals for Kasper Holten’s production of {…}
The Teatro di San Carlo in Naples, Italy has named Stéphane Lissner its new Sovrintendente. The theater announced that Lissner, who is currently the artistic director of the Opéra National de Paris, will take the post in April, replacing Rosanna Purchia. According to the Naples Syndicate, who voted unanimously for Lissner, the new sovrintendente will also serve as the company’s {…}
The English National Opera has announced the appointment of Annilese Miskimmon as its new artistic director. Currently director of Opera at Norwegian National Opera & Ballet, Miskimmon will begin her position at the ENO on Sept. 1, 2020 and will remain in Oslo until the end of the 2019-20 season. In a statement, Miskimmon noted, “I am honored and delighted {…}
The Boston Opera Collaborative will showcase a number of one-act operas by Boston-based composer Jonathan Bailey Holland on Nov. 7, 2019 at the Room&Board Boston Showroom. The one-night event will show “Naomi in the Living Room,” “The Battle of Bull Run Always Makes Me Cry,” and “Always,” with a number of artists including Britt Brown, Junhan Choi, Lindsay Conroy, Carley {…}
The Brooklyn Art Song Society is set to showcase the second concert of its 2019-20 season. Entitled “Home II: Chants d’Auvergne,” the concert will take place on Nov. 1, 2019 at the Brooklyn History Society in Brooklyn, NY. The event will present the music of Joseph Canteloube’s “Chants ‘d’Auvergne.” The piece will be performed by soprano Maria Valdes and mezzo-soprano {…}
(Credit: Symphony Space Official Website) The German Forum is set to showcase Victoria Bond and Barbara Zinn Krieger’s “Clara” in New York. The new opera will be presented at Symphony Space in New York City on Nov. 8 with another showcase set for Nov. 10 at the Church of the Messiah in Rhinebeck. The opera will feature Christine Reber as {…}
After 57 years, the Vienna State Opera brought Benjamin Britten’s masterwork “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” back into its repertoire. The opera had its world premiere at the Aldeburgh Festival on June 11, 1960, with the Vienna State Opera showcasing the work for the first time in 1962. This chronology implies that the opera house was quick to stage Britten’s masterwork {…}
The family of Jessye Norman has announced the weeklong services and celebrations in memory of the famed artist. The announcements were made through the family spokesperson, Gwendolyn Quinn. The family announced that the funeral is set for Saturday, Oct. 12, 2019, at the William B. Bell Auditorium, 712 Telfair Street, Augusta, GA, with doors open and seating beginning at 12:00 {…}
L.A. Opera’s board of directors has announced that Christopher Koelsch will take over Plácido Domingo’s position as CEO and President of the company eliminating the position of General Director. Koelsch has been the Marybelle and Paul Musco President and CEO of the company since 2012 and previously held the position of Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer since 2010. {…}
(Credit: Bernd Uhlig) The Deutsche Oper Berlin’s current “Nabucco” is a production by Keith Warner, first presented in 2013. It’s not an unconventional production, at least by Berlin standards. Where Berlin opera is often characterized by the most provocative nontraditional productions—Frank Castorf’s recent “Forza” premiere, for instance, provoked a near-riot among its Deutsche Oper audiences—Warner’s “Nabucco,” by contrast, feels tame. {…}