Opera Orlando is now accepting applications for its next cohort of singers for the 2024 Summer Institute for the Next Generation of Singers “SINGS!” The SINGS! program is designed specifically for young singers, ages 15 to 20, interested in pursuing a classical singing career. This program provides professional-level training to help young singers navigate and prepare for college auditions, while {…}
Composer Ricky Ian Gordon is set to release his memoir “Seeing Through: A Chronicle of Sex, Drugs, and Opera” on July 23. In “Seeing Through,” Gordon writes with humor, insight, and candor about his life and work. He describes his tumultuous youth on Long Island, his artistic collaborations and obsessions, and the creation of “The Grapes of Wrath,” “27,” “Orpheus {…}
La Filarmonica de Madrid has announced its 2024-25 season. Here are the vocal performances. The Collegium Vocale Gent and Philippe Herreweghe perform music by Bach. Performance Date: Jan. 30, 2025 Teodor Currentzis conducts MusicAterna in Mahler’s Symphony No. 2. Performance Date: March 26, 2025 Fleur Barron and Andrew Staples headline Mahler’s “Das lied von der Erde.” Daniel Harding conducts a {…}
The Jerusalem Lyric Opera Festival released its 2024 lineup. Vera Petrova’s production of Händel’s “Giulio Cesare in Egitto” under the baton of maestro Schmeisse opens the festival at the Tel Aviv Museum of Art. Performers are to be announced at a later time. Performance Dates: July 21 & 23, 2024 The open air opera concert, “Best Arias and Ensembles” features {…}
(Photo credit: Vincent Pontet-OnP) A few years ago, when Bieito’s staging of “Simon Boccanegra” premiered at the Paris Opera, the reviews were abysmal. Few things are as catchy in the opera world as negative consensus. I got to see the same production with a very similar cast last weekend, and, somehow, I think it was one of the most emotional {…}
Photo credit: Agathe Poupeney-OnP Thomas Adès’s “The Exterminating Angel” is one of the most successful contemporary operas of the century. Beyond its many productions—the Parisian one being the best of them all—, the opera quickly entered the symphonic repertoire with a very well-crafted symphonic suite. The opera, based on Luís Buñuel’s homonymous film, follows its source material: more than a {…}
The Philharmonie de Paris has announced its 2024-25 season. Here is a look at the vocal performances. Orchestre de Paris Klaus Mäkelä conducts music by Beethoven, Peteris Vasks, and Tchaikovsky. Lisa Batiashvili is the soloist. Performance Date: Sept. 11, 2024 Stanislav Kochanovsky conducts a program of music by Tchaikovsky, Ravel, and Alexandre Tcherepnine. Golda Schultz stars. Performance Date: Oct. 9, {…}
(Credit: Ken Howard/Metropolitan Opera) The Metropolitan Opera is set to present Puccini’s “La Rondine” for eight performances. The opera, which opens on March 26 will star Angel Blue and Jonathan Tetelman in his Met debut They will be joined by Emily Pogorelc and Bekhzod Davronov as Lisette and Prunier and Maestro Speranza Scappucci will conduct. The opera will be presented for {…}
Opéra Comique has announced its schedule for the 2024-25 season. Auber’s “Le Domino noir” is set to be conducted by Louis Langrée and will be directed by Valérie Lesort and Christian Hecq. The cast includes Anne-Catherine Gillet, Cyrille Dubois, and Victoire Bunel. Performance Date: Sept. 20-28, 2024 George Benjamin & Martin Crimp’s “Picture a Day Like This” is set to {…}
Curtis Institute of Music has announced its 2024-25 season, the 100th anniversary of the institution. Here is a rundown of the vocal performances on offer. First up is “The Comet / Poppea,” a 90-minute adaptation of the Monteverdi opera and George Lewis and Douglas Kearney work. Yuval Sharon directs and Marc Lowenstein conducts the Curtis Symphony Orchestra and Curtis Opera {…}
(Photography: Marco Borggreve) Conductor Karel Mark Chichon has extended his contract to remain Chief Conductor & Artistic Director of the Orquesta Filarmónica de Gran Canaria until the 2026-27 season. He first took on the position in 2017 and under his leadership, the ensemble has become the only Spanish orchestra to record with Deutsche Grammophon. In an official press statement released {…}