This week, two divas release new albums dedicated to Beethoven and French opera. Here is a look. Elle Marina Rebeka will release her fourth solo album and her second for Prima Classic. The new album will celebrate the diversity of the female roles in some of the greatest French Opera Arias of the canon including Charpentier’s “Louise,” Gonoud’s “Romeo et {…}
The Teatro Colón de Buenos Aires is also streaming operas for audiences around the world during this time of social distancing to contain the spread of COVID-19. Every Sunday evening at 8 p.m. local time, audiences can connect to the company’s official YouTube or Facebook page to watch past performances. The famed company kicked off its slate with a showcase {…}
Playwright and librettist Terrence McNally has died of the Coronavirus at the age of 81. McNally was born November 3, 1938 in St. Petersburg, Florida and went on to study at Columbia University as a journalism major. After graduation, he moved to Mexico to focus on his writing. He would then go on to become stage manager of the Actors {…}
The Philadelphia Orchestra has announced its 2020-21 season featuring a number of important soloists. For this article we will focus on vocal performances. Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis is set to be conducted by Yannick Nézet-Séguin with a cast that includes Jennifer Rowley, Karen Cargill, Rodrick Dixon, and Eric Owens. Joe Miller directs Refik Anadol’s Visually striking designs. Performance Dates: Oct. 9-14, {…}
In continuation of the 2019-20 Great Performances Series, PBS will present the Live in HD broadcast of “Akhnaten” from the Metropolitan Opera on Sunday, April 5, 2020 The broadcast will kick off at 12 p.m. EDT. The cast includes Anthony Roth Constanzo in the title role alongside J’Nai Bridges as Nefertiti, Dísell Lárusdóttir as Queen Tye, and Zachary James as {…}
Sir John Tooley, cherished musical administrator, died on March 18, 2020. Born in Rochester in 1924, Tooley served as assistant adjutant during World War II; he later joined the Ford Motor Company, where he furthered his experience in administration before he was appointed as secretary to the Guildhall School of Music and Drama from 1952 to 1955. After this, Tooley {…}
(Credit: © Wiener Staatsoper/Axel Zeininger) Former Vienna State Opera Chorus Director Ernst Dunshirn passed away on March 17. He was 85-years-old. Dunshirn was born on Feb. 6, 1935 near Vienna and studied conducting and church music in Vienna and France. From there he went on tours with the Vienna Chamber Choir before eventually working as choir director with such organizations {…}
The Pensacola Opera has announced its 38th season featuring two works. The season will open with Bizet’s “Carmen,” written by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy. The work, based on Prosper Mérimée’s novella features some of the most popular melodies in opera. The work will star Elise Quagliata in the title role, Adam Diegel as Don José, Luis Alejandro Orozco as Escamillo, and Bizhou {…}
The Boston Lyric Opera will stream a recording of Bellini’s “Norma” from its final dress rehearsal. The company announced that the opera will be streamed starting Sunday March 29 at 3 p.m. The recording was captured on March 11 by 99.5 WCRB Classical Radio Boston and its Grammy Award-winning Lead Sound Engineer Antonio Oliart Ros. The recording is set to {…}
On March 14, 2020, Mercury Opera concluded its run of Puccini’s timeless “La Boheme.” Due to the situation regarding the spread of COVID-19, this production was offered up via live stream; this review is the result of that viewing experience. This production translated the drama into the relatively-modern setting of New York City in 1979, in a time when the {…}
(Credit: Patrick Allen) This May, soprano Natalya Romaniw and Lada Valesova will release a new album on Orchid Classics marking rising singer’s first album and the latest collaboration between the soprano and pianist. Romaniw has been called the “British Anna Netrebko” and has garnered praise for her stellar turns in Puccini’s “Madama Butterfly” and “Tosca.” She has performed all over {…}