For years, British composer Thea Musgrave has been a major figure in the classical world. She has been a pioneer of the “dramatic-abstract” in the contemporary musical landscape and has composed over 160 pieces, including 13 operas, 11 choral works, and 21 orchestral works. Musgrave recently celebrated her 90th birthday with a concert that included many of her renown works {…}
Juan Diego Flórez has canceled his performances of “Rigoletto” at the Wiener Staatsoper. The tenor announced is cancelation on Instagram noting “With great regret, I have to cancel my two upcoming performances of Rigoletto at the Wiener Staatsoper. Following my doctor’s orders, I need to rest my voice in order to recover from a tracheitis. I’m sorry for the inconvenience this {…}
Singing Wagner is never an easy feat and he is a composer many singers train years to take on. His music is known for its length and for its technical challenges and in many cases, it is extremely taxing. This week Jennifer Davis takes a major step in her career singing her highest profile assignment to date – Elsa in “Lohengrin.” {…}
Robert Merrill, born on June 4, 1917, is one of the world’s most renowned baritones, making a lengthy career at the Metropolitan Opera throughout the 1950s and 1960s. He was born Moishe Miller and then, later on, was known as Morris Miller. His mother claimed to have had an opera and concert career in Poland and supposedly pushed her son {…}
Cecilia Bartoli, born on June 4, 1966, is one of the most famous opera singers on the planet. The mezzo-soprano, who has also shown an ability to sing a number of soprano roles, was born to professional singers and sang her first public performance at the age of nine in “Tosca” as the shepherd boy. She then went on to {…}
There were a plethora of great Italian mezzo-sopranos dominating the repertoire of Giuseppe Verdi in the mid-1900s. Fedora Barbieri was among those. Born on June 4, 1920 in Trieste, she quickly made her debut in Florence at age 20. She debuted at La Scala at age 22 but marriage derailed her career for two years. She re-emerged in 1945, becoming {…}
Update: Juan Diego Flórez recently announced that he is canceling his participation in this production. The original article follows. This Sunday, June 10, 2018, the Vienna State Opera streams a live performance of Verdi’s “Rigoletto” around the globe. The performance is part of the company’s season-long service straight from its website. Per the official website, the performance will star Juan {…}
Audiences can get a chance to see Mariella Devia as she says goodbye to the stage in a production of “Norma” at the Teatro la Fenice as the showcase will be carried by OperaVision. The production will also star Luca Tittoto as Oroveso, Carmela Remigio as Adalgisa, and Stefan Pop as Pollione. Devia has received strong reviews for her final {…}
For the past three years, the New Amsterdam Opera has been showcasing emerging opera stars and repertoire staples that are no longer performed as frequently in New York. The company has been consistent thus far in the quality of its performances and on June 2, 2018, it presented Donizetti’s “La Favorita” with two radiant leads that should be on the radar {…}
Tenor Rene Barbera has announced via social media his withdrawal from Les Arts production of Mozart’s “La Clemenza di Tito.” The move comes shortly after the departure of conductor Fabio Biondi, with Barbera citing “administrative reasons” as the impetus for his own withdrawal. Barbera’s statement is as follows: “Well folks it has been quite a crazy month and this week {…}
Scarlatti, Purcell, Monteverdi, Dowland, Vivaldi, and Caldara, were popular in early music, but without traditionally played instruments and vocals, could music from the 17th century resonate in the same way today? “HUSH,” an album that is pushing boundaries in the classical music world, was just released by Deutsche Grammophon and is sparking new ideas surrounding innovation and creativity in early {…}