The Metropolitan Opera has fired the veteran British stage director John Copley after receiving a complaint about “inappropriate behavior in the rehearsal room.” According to the New York Times, Copley was directing a revival of his 1990 production of Rossini’s “Semiramide” when a member of the chorus reported that the director made sexually charged remarks in rehearsal. The Met immediately {…}
“Opera Meets Film” is a feature dedicated to exploring the way that opera has been employed in cinema. We will select a section or a film in its entirety, highlighting the impact that utilizing the operatic form or sections from an opera can alter our perception of a film that we are viewing. This week’s installment returns to Quentin Tarantino’s {…}
Everyone knows “La Bohème,” even people that know nothing about opera. Arguably the most famous opera of all time, next to Bizet’s “Carmen,” Puccini’s masterwork is renowned for its celebrated melodies and unforgettable characters. The opera had its world premiere on Feb. 1, 1896, with Arturo Toscanini in the pit. Legend has it that Puccini opted to write the opera {…}
Three years before he premiered “La Bohème,” Puccini gave the world “Manon Lescaut.” The opera, based on the novel by Abbé Prévost, premiered on Feb. 1, 1893, and put Puccini in the public eye as a serious opera composer. The work differs quite greatly from the “Manon” of Massenet, the Tuscan maestro himself comparing his interest in the subject matter {…}
The Philadelphia Orchestra has announced its 2018-19 season with numerous vocal guests. For this article, we will only focus only on the vocal highlights. The season opens with Yannick Nézet-Séguin leading the orchestra in Nico Muhly’s suite from his recent opera “Marnie” alongside pianist Andre Watts in Grieg’s Piano Concerto and Rachmaninoff’s Symphonic Dances. Performance Dates: Sept. 14-16, 2018 On {…}
Juan Diego Flórez’s “Werther” has been announced for DVD. The new DVD, which was recorded live in April 2017 from the Opernhaus Zurich, will be released by Accentus Music. The performance also stars Anna Stephany as Charlotte and Melissa Petit as Sophie. Cornelius Meister conducts Tatiana Gurbaca’s new production. When the production opened, it was hailed, particularly for Flórez, who {…}
Charles Gounod (1818-1893) is probably best known for his opera “Faust” or perennial arrangement of Bach’s “Ave Maria,” which countless choir boys have crooned with cherubic innocence if not perfect intonation. In fact the pious Parisian composer was extraordinarily prolific having written twelve and a half operas (“Maître Pierre” was not completed), six oratorios, three ballets and countless masses, motets and {…}
Anna Netrebko has confirmed she will be performing “La Forza del Destino” at the Covent Garden under Antonio Pappano. The soprano noted in a recent interview with Opera di Voci that while she believes the role is for a spinto soprano, Pappano convinced her to do it. In the interview, Netrebko also noted that she was thinking of doing “Don {…}
On Feb. 9 the American Opera Projects, in collaboration with Symphony Space, will present the world premiere “Six. Twenty. Outrageous.” The opera, based on three Gertrude Stein plays, tells the story of an expedition that turns into an erotic adventure to a presidential election party that goes prophetically and horribly wrong. The work was composed by Daniel Thomas Davis with a {…}
Met Assistant General Manager Robert Rattray has passed away at the age of 67. Per sources, he suffered a stroke on Sunday, Jan. 28, 2018. He was appointed to the position in 2014, replacing Sarah Billinghurst. Prior to that appointment, he had already accumulated over 40 years of experience in the world of classical music management. He had been Joint {…}
The renowned Italian mezzo Claudia Carbi has died. The mezzo, who was born in Cremona in 1923, sang at most leading Italian opera houses and specialized in early music, chamber music, and oratorio. Among the theaters, she sang at were the Teatro Comunale di Bologna, Carlo Felice di Genoa and the Teatro Manzoni di Milano. Throughout her career, Carbi recorded a {…}