Spoleto Festival USA General Director Nigel Redden Retires After 35 Years

https://operawire.com/spoleto-festival-usa-general-director-nigel-redden-retires-after-35-years/

The Spoleto Festival USA General Director Nigel Redden announced his retirement in a statement Thursday, September 24. Redden cited the cancellation of the 2020 season and “the enforced isolation of the past several months,” as his reasons for departure after 35 years at the Festival’s helm. Redden went on to say, “The Festival continues to mean an enormous amount to {…}

Special Features

Sarai Elizabeth Cole & Rebecca L. Hargrove Discuss the Black Community’s Love-Hate Relationship With ‘Porgy and Bess’

https://operawire.com/a-look-at-the-black-communitys-love-hate-relationship-with-porgy-and-bess/

***Editorial Note: This article has been modified from its original version. (Credit: Ken Howard / Metropolitan Opera) “Porgy and Bess” is arguably America’s most celebrated and beloved opera. Following its premiere in 1935, the opera by George Gershwin about an African-American community in Charleston, South Carolina has become a mainstay of opera houses across the world, receiving major productions at {…}

Behind the Scenes, Interviews

Q & A: Marlon Daniel on the Chevalier de Saint-Georges & Systematic Racism in Classical Music

https://operawire.com/q-a-marlon-daniel-on-the-chevalier-de-saint-georges-systematic-racism-in-classical-music/

Few artists have dedicated themselves to championing the works of composers of African and African American descent the way that conductor Marlon Daniel has. A Chicago native, Daniel has performed new works by such composers as Fred Onovwerosuoke, Dominique Le Gendre, and Adolphus Hailstork, among others. He also founded the Festival International de Music Saint-Georges in Guadaloupe and was the {…}

Interviews, Stage Spotlight

Q & A: Raehann Bryce-Davis on Music Video, Race Relations & Inclusivity

https://operawire.com/q-a-raehann-bryce-davis-on-music-video-race-relations-inclusivity/

In March Raehann Bryce-Davis was in Los Angeles performing “Roberto Devereux” when the COVID-19 Pandemic struck and all performances were canceled. The world changed and Bryce-Davis was left without work. The mezzo-soprano, who is one of today’s leading rising stars in the opera world, was forced to rethink her career like many other singers. In the midst of the pandemic, {…}

News

Obituary: Actor & Philanthropist Edgar Foster Daniels Dies, Aged 88

https://operawire.com/obituary-actor-philanthropist-edgar-foster-daniels-dies-aged-88/

It has been announced that Broadway actor and philanthropist Edgar Foster Daniels has died of natural causes on July 31, 2020, at the age of 88. Born in 1942, in Raleigh, North Carolina, Daniels’ parents owned and operated the News and Observer Publishing Company, which published several local newspapers. Developing a love for acting early in life, Daniels attended the {…}

News

Nadine Koutcher, Joel Prieto & Karah Son Highlight Teatro Municipal de Santiago’s 2021 Season

https://operawire.com/nadine-koutcher-joel-prieto-karah-son-highlight-teatro-municipal-de-santiagos-2021-season/

The Ópera Nacional de Chile at the Teatro Municipal de Santiago has announced its 2020-21 season. Here is a look at the opera and concert performances scheduled. Opera in Concert Nadine Koutcher and Patricia Cifuentes star in the title role of Donizetti’s “Lucia di Lammermoor“ alongside Ivan Ayon Rivas and Dario Schmunck as Edgardo. Paolo Bortolameolli conducts the production, which {…}

Opera Wiki

Composer Profile: Scott Joplin, ‘Father of Ragtime’

https://operawire.com/composer-profile-scott-joplin-father-of-ragtime/

Scott Joplin was one of America’s most renowned black composers, garnering the title of “King of Ragtime.” Born in 1868 as the second of six children to an ex-slave from North Carolina and a freeborn woman from Kentucky, his birthday and place of birth remain points of contention to this day. He grew up in Arkansas and learned basic music {…}

News

Spoleto Festival Presents ‘Omar: Collaboration in Conversation’

https://operawire.com/spoleto-festival-presents-omar-collaboration-in-conversation/

Spoleto Festival has released a behind-the-scenes video on their upcoming work “Omar.” Originally slated for its world premiere at this year’s festival, the work is based on the 1831 autobiography of Omar Ibn Said, a Muslim scholar who was taken from West Africa to be a slave in the Carolinas. “Omar” is created by Grammy Award-winner Rhiannon Giddens, and co-composed {…}

News

Natalie Dessay, Diana Damrau & Marina Rebeka Lead Konzerthaus Dortmund’s 2020-21 Season

https://operawire.com/natalie-dessay-diana-damrau-marina-rebeka-lead-konzerthaus-dortmunds-2020-21-season/

(Credit: Sony Classical/Baden-Baden/Tatiana Vlasova) The Konzerthaus Dortmund in Germany has unveiled its 2020-21 season. For the purposes of this article, our focus will be on vocal or operatic performances. The season opens with Haydn’s “Die Schöpfung” with soloists Robin Johannsen, David Fischer, and Florian Boesch. The Collegium Vocale Gent and Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra is led by Philippe Herreweghe. Performance Date: {…}

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Spoleto Festival USA General Director Nigel Redden Retires After 35 Years

Sarai Elizabeth Cole & Rebecca L. Hargrove Discuss the Black Community’s Love-Hate Relationship With ‘Porgy and Bess’

Q & A: Marlon Daniel on the Chevalier de Saint-Georges & Systematic Racism in Classical Music

Q & A: Raehann Bryce-Davis on Music Video, Race Relations & Inclusivity

Obituary: Actor & Philanthropist Edgar Foster Daniels Dies, Aged 88

Nadine Koutcher, Joel Prieto & Karah Son Highlight Teatro Municipal de Santiago’s 2021 Season

Composer Profile: Scott Joplin, ‘Father of Ragtime’

Spoleto Festival Presents ‘Omar: Collaboration in Conversation’

Natalie Dessay, Diana Damrau & Marina Rebeka Lead Konzerthaus Dortmund’s 2020-21 Season