Buzzing in conversation, an increasingly larger group of people sat around the circular West Side Community Gardens, their proximity one another as close as it was to the numerous flower beds growing around them. A wind octet and string bass were perched on the Northern side of the central circle with conductor Geoffrey McDonald waiting patiently as more and more {…}
Christopher Allen has won the Solti Conducting award. Penny Van Horn, Board Chair of The Solti Foundation U.S. and Elizabeth Buccheri, Artistic and Awards Committee Chair, announced that the Foundation’s eighth grant would be awarded to Allen, the Resident Conductor for Cincinnati Opera. “We are most pleased to announce Christopher Allen will receive this year’s Solti Conducting Award,” stated Ms. {…}
Renee Fleming spoke out about her rumored retirement from the opera stage. During an interview with PBS Night Hour, the diva said she would not be leaving the stage and said the New York Times’ article was “a very exciting headline” but in reality, she was saying goodbye to the Marschallin and to the bulk of the repertoire that she had {…}
The Metropolitan Opera gala passed and while this would have been a great place to share the backstage pictures of the week, we did that in an earlier post. So what did the major stars do after the big gala event? Check it out. Leah Crocetto showed off pictures while on vacation in Mexico and she took a picture in {…}
The weekend has a number of operatic classics being offered even though many companies are in the midst of ballet season. Take a look as there is something for everyone. Austria The Vienna State Opera is in Ballet mode but will present Tchaikovsky’s “Eugene Onegin” with Olga Bezsmertna, Christopher Maltman, Pavol Breslik and Mika Kares. Czech Republic The Prague National Opera {…}
This Sunday, Megan Elizabeth Cook will live-stream her capstone recital for her Certificate in Opera! The live-stream will start at 3:00 p.m. CST, and go until 4:30 p.m. The live-stream will be on Facebook and up for the public to watch. Streaming from the DePaul University Concert Hall in Chicago IL, the soprano will begin her repertoire list with Benjamin {…}
Jules Massenet and Gabriel Fauré were born on the same day three years apart. May 12, 1842, brought us the former and three years later, his impressionist counterpart was born. The two were prominent French composers of their time, though one is better known for his orchestral works and the other for his opera. Fauré did compose two operas and {…}
It is yet another busy opera weekend across North America, with the Metropolitan Opera’s 2016-17 season, the longest running in the country, coming to a close. Here is a rundown of the companies and works they will be presenting on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. As with last weekend’s edition, we will list the companies and corresponding productions. For more information {…}
Deutsche Grammophon has announced the release of Wagner’s “Lohengrin.” The hotly anticipated DVD features Anna Netrebko and Piotr Beczala in their role debuts from the Semperoper Dresden. It will also feature Evelyn Herlitzius and Tomasz Konieczny and George Zeppenfeld under the direction of Christian Thielemann. When the opera premiered in 2016, Opera News noted, “The results were flabbergasting- this was {…}
How do you balance three different careers? That is the question that Dolora Zajick is asking herself as she steps into a new phase of her career. “I’m running my organization, I’m singing and I’m composing. And I’ve got to find a way to reorganize myself so I can do everything I want,” she told OperaWire during a conversation in {…}
Madame Tussaud’s. The Cotton Club. The Bronx Zoo. The West Side Community Gardens. The Museum of Natural History. What do all of these have in common? On Site Opera. The organization, which is the brainchild of Eric Einhorn and Jessica Kiger, has either performed at all of these venues, among others or is slated to showcase an opera in the {…}