The Metropolitan Opera has announced its 2019-20 season with five new productions, a New Year’s Eve gala, and a recital. Here is a look at what to expect. New Productions The season opens with Gershwin’s “Porgy and Bess” in a new production by James Robinson. The production stars Eric Owens and Kevin Short sharing the title role of Porgy and {…}
The Lyric Opera of Chicago has announced its 2019-20 season featuring 10 productions, including four new productions and the Ring Cycle in its entirety. The season will also include one special concert event and one important recital, among other projects. Here is a look at what audiences should expect. Main Stage The season opens with a revival of Rossini’s “Il {…}
“Siegfried” may be the most underappreciated among the operas of Richard Wagner’s Ring Cycle. In many ways, it advances the plot minimally compared to the others and has the feature of being musically distinct within itself because Wagner composed its third and final act 12 years after the first two. Yet crucially, it serves to unite the love duo of {…}
The Lyric Opera of Chicago has announced the participation of several singers in the Renée Fleming 25th Anniversary Concert & Gala. The gala, which is set to honor and celebrate Fleming’s extraordinary commitment to Chicago and her unparalleled contributions to the art form, will see Sondra Radvanovsky, Susan Graham, Lawrence Brownlee, Quinn Kelsey, Željko Lučić, Eric Owens, and Christian Van Horn {…}
It’s somewhat of a cliché for Golden Age thinking to creep into the dialogue of the opera world. How many times have you heard someone make the claim that they don’t make great voices the way they used to? The obvious answer is that they don’t because the world has changed and so have tastes. But sometimes, you’ll find those {…}
The Dutch National Opera has announced its 2018-19 season featuring many operatic classics as well as rarely performed works. The company will continue its Opera Forward series as well as its Holland Festival, which concludes the season. Classics The Dutch National Opera opens its season with Mozart’s masterpiece “Die Zauberflöte” in Simon McBurney’s new production. Kathryn Lewek brings her compelling Queen {…}
The New York Philharmonic has announced its 2018-19 season filled with numerous stars and new music. The new season marks the first for music director Jaap van Zweden. For this article, we will concentrate on the vocal events of the season and the singers who will headline important concerts. Matthias Goerne Artist in Residence Matthias Goerne, one of today’s leading {…}
The LA Philharmonic has announced its 2018-19 season featuring some of the greatest stars in the world. For this season announcement, we will solely concentrate on the operatic and vocal events. Take a look. Baroque The LA Phil kicks off its baroque series with “L’arpeggiata” featuring musical director Christina Pluhar, soprano Céline Scheen, male soprano Vincenzo Capezzuto, and dancer Anna Dego. The concert will {…}
The Lyric Opera of Chicago has announced its 2018-19 season with a number of the greatest stars performing in new productions. The season will also include two important recitals from two of the world’s greatest sopranos. Recitals & Concerts Anna Netrebko returns to Chicago for the first time since 2013 when she performed “La Bohème.” This time she performs some {…}
Gioachino Rossini’s “The Barber of Seville” has always been the gold standard for Italian opera buffa as it is based on the Figaro plays of 18th-century French playwright Pierre Beaumarchais. It seems that the buffa-style laughs and gags endemic to this masterpiece were not enough for Spanish director Joan Font, whose version is currently running at Houston Grand Opera. What {…}
Maestro Gianandrea Noseda is slated for a busy winter season in the US, performing for the first time as the new Music Director of the National Symphony Orchestra and also taking on some performances with the New York Philharmonic. The maestro was granted the post of Music Director back in Jan. 2016 and officially kicked it off in September 2017 {…}
