https://operawire.com/opera-houses-mourn-the-death-of-maurizio-pollini/
Opera houses are mourning the loss of legendary pianist Maurizio Pollini, who died at 82 on March 23, 2024. In a statement, the Teatro alla Scala said, “La Scala mourns the loss of Maurizio Pollini, one of the great musicians of our time” while the Teatro La Fenice said, “It hurts our hearts to write about his passing… yes, because {…}
https://operawire.com/maggio-musicale-announces-cast-change-for-tosca/
The Maggio Musicale Fiorentino has announced a cast change for its production of “Tosca.” The company said that the role of Mario Cavaradossi will be performed by Piero Pretti (May 24, 26; June 3, 6) and Vincenzo Costanzo (June 8). They will replace Francesco Meli who was originally announced. Pretti is a well-known tenor who is set to perform at {…}
https://operawire.com/artist-of-the-week-celso-albelo/
This week, the Teatro La Fenice revives Puccini’s most popular opera, “La Bohème” with Celso Albelo in his role debut as Rodolfo. After 20 years performing around the world at some of the greatest theaters in the world, the role debut also represents the first time the Spanish tenor takes on an opera by Puccini. In anticipation of his debut {…}
https://operawire.com/artist-management-zurich-to-represent-sara-jakubiak/
Artist Management Zürich has announced that it will be representing soprano Sara Jakubiak. This season, the soprano will appear in a production of “Elektra” at the Royal Opera House followed by her debut as Sieglinde with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. She will also appear in “Ariadne auf Naxos” at the Teatro La Fenice in Venice. She appeared with such companies as the {…}
https://operawire.com/best-of-2023-operawires-staff-on-the-best-performances-of-the-year/
And we’re back. And as has become the tradition here at OperaWire, we have asked our writers to select their choices for the opera performances that truly marveled them in 2023. So without further ado, here are our writers’ picks. Enjoy! Joao Copertino This year, in my opinion, the best performance was Aix-en-Provence’s “Picture a Day Like This,” a world premiere {…}
https://operawire.com/opera-national-de-lorraine-announces-cast-change-for-don-pasquale/
The Opéra National de Lorraine has announced a cast change for its production of “Don Pasquale.” The company revealed that Marco Ciaponi will take over the role of Ernesto from Michele Angelini who is ill. Last season, Ciaponi famously stepped in for tenor Juan Diego Flórez at the Vienna State Opera in “La Fille du Régiment.” He has stepped into {…}
https://operawire.com/best-of-2023-operawires-top-ten-rising-stars-2023/
It’s been a tough year. Economic hardship. War. Increased social fracturing around the world. In the opera world, we’ve seen numerous companies cutting back on productions or simply canceling their seasons. But that doesn’t mean that there isn’t anything to celebrate. And as we end 2023, here’s a look at some of the young singers who saw their careers shine whether {…}
https://operawire.com/obituary-conductor-julian-kovatchev-dies-at-63/
On Nov. 12, Conductor Julian Kovatchev died at the age of 63. Born in 1955 in Sofia, Sofia-Grad, Bulgaria, Kovatchev studied violin and at the age of five he made his first public concert. After his first music studies in Sofia, his family moved to Germany, near Salzburg, where he studied with Franz Samohyl at the Mozarteum and got his degree {…}
https://operawire.com/q-a-soprano-francesca-aspromonte-violinist-boris-begelman-on-the-creation-of-unalma-innamorata/
“We met on the job around 10 years ago, for a few projects over some years. The first time not a word, the second a few, the third ‘Hey, would you like to do a concert program together’ and the fourth… was the last and here we are! It took me many hours in the kitchen, but I got him {…}