The Teatro La Fenice is set to celebrate the New Year with its annual gala performance. The concert, which is set to be performed four times from Dec. 29 through Jan. 1, will feature soloists Freddie De Tommaso and Federica Lombardi and will be conducted by Daniel Harding. Audiences not in Venice will be able to watch the performance on {…}
UPDATE: The Royal Opera House has announced that Gwyn Hughes Jones will replace Freddie De Tommaso as Cavaradossi. Freddie De Tommaso has canceled his final performance of “Tosca” at the Royal Opera House on Dec. 21. The tenor took to social media and said, “I am very sorry to have to tell you all that I have come down with {…}
After a bumpy 2021, which still had numerous COVID cancelations, 2022 saw opera companies almost return to normalcy. There were setbacks like cyberattacks, a war that has destroyed a country, and companies losing funds from government agencies. But in all, it also showed how opera companies could unite through benefit concerts and through sheer artistry. And after releasing our favorite {…}
The Festival Castell Peralada has announced its 2023 season. Jakub Józef Orliński sings a concert with Il Giardino d’Amore in a program of Händel and Vivaldi. Performance Date: April 6, 2023 Vivaldi’s “La Giuditta” is set to star Serena Saenz, Xavier Sabata, and Thomas Walker with Dani Espasa conducting the Vespres d’Arnadi. Performance Date: April 7, 2023 The Cantoria is {…}
Freddie De Tommaso’s new album “Il Tenore” is topping the classical music charts. The album has topped the Classical Artist Chart and the Classical Specialist Chart, marking the second time that the tenor has accomplished said feat (his 2021 album “Passione” had similar success). Per an official press statement, De Tommaso’s rendition of “Nessun Dorma” has close to 1 million {…}
Undeniably the big story of this production of the Royal Opera House’s “Madama Butterfly,” as directed by Moshe Leiser and Patrice Caurier, was that revival director Daniel Dooner would work to create a dialogue around the work’s most problematic aspects. Such a program involved extensive instruction workshops designed to teach the cast playing Japanese characters how to move, act, laugh, {…}
(Credit: CraigGibson) Originally having trained as a baritone, Freddie De Tommaso is an Anglo-Italian tenor from Tunbridge Wells who went from working in his Father’s High Street Italian restaurant to some of the great opera houses of the world. He studied at the Royal Academy of Music and his star was launched when he won the Plácido Domingo Tenor Prize {…}
The Teatro San Carlo has announced its 2022-23 season. Here is a look at the performances. Opera The season opens with Verdi’s “Don Carlo” starring Matthew Polezani, Ernesto Petti, Ailyn Perez, Michele Pertusi, Elina Garanca, and Alexander Tsymbalyuk. Juraj Valcuha conducts the production by Claus Guth. Performance Dates: Nov. 26-Dec. 6, 2022 Lorezno Passarini conducts concert performances of Verdi’s “Rigoletto” {…}
This week audiences will get to hear the second album by one of the rising tenors in the opera world as well as world premiere recordings and a DVD recording of a Wagner work. The Paper Lined Shack Supertrain Records is set to release Jeff Beal’s titular song cycle performed by the brilliant soprano Hilá Plitmann and Eastman Philharmonia and {…}
The Santa Fe Opera has announced its 2023 season and revealed its 19th world premiere slated for 2024. The company noted that in 2024, the company has commissioned a new opera by two of America’s most exciting talents, composer Gregory Spears and former US Poet Laureate and Pulitzer Prize-winner Tracy K. Smith titled “The Righteous.” The 2023 Season The Santa Fe Opera’s 66th Festival {…}
(Credit: Brescia Amisano / Teatro alla Scala) The Teatro alla Scala has announced its 2022-23 Season featuring opera, recitals, and symphony concerts. Opera The season opens with Mussorgsky’s “Boris Godunov.” The production will be directed by Kasper Holten and conducted by Riccardo Chailly. The work will star Ildar Abdrazakov, Lilly Jørstad, Anna Denisova, Agnieszka Rehlis, Norbert Ernst, Alexey Markov, Ain {…}