Welcome back for this week’s look at the latest CD and DVD releases in the opera world. Happy Halloween! It’s a week of solo recitals, including numerous showcases of baroque music and rarely performed works from Armenia and Argentina. There is also a perfect Halloween recording featuring one of the most famous mad scenes in opera. Lucia di Lammermoor Euroarts {…}
The Teatro dell’Opera di Roma is set to team up with Rai Cultura for the 2025-26 season. The company will present four operas, “Tosca,” “Lohengrin,” “Tancredi,” and “Falstaff.” “Tosca” will be presented on Nov. 1, 2025, on Rai 3, with Daniel Oren conducting a cast that includes Eleonora Buratto as Tosca, Jonathan Tetelman as Cavaradossi, and Luca Salsi as Scarpia. {…}
(Photo: Khalid Al-Busaidi) On October 14th, 2011, the Royal Opera House Muscat (ROHM) opened its doors for its inaugural season with a production of Puccini’s “Turandot,” with the aim of establishing itself as a “centre of excellence in global cultural engagement.” It is a noble and ambitious aim, for sure, but for a country without a tradition of opera, it {…}
The Teatro Colon de Buenos Aires has announced its 2022 season featuring opera, concerts, and great performers. Opera The season opens with Puccini’s “La Bohème” with Verónica Cangemi, Alexandra Grigoras, Saimir Pirgu, Behzod Davronov, Giuliana Gianfaldoni, María Belén Rivarola, Alfonso Mujica, Armando Noguera, Fernando Radó, Lucas Debevec Mayer, Juan Font, Felipe Carelli, Sergio Spina, and Iván Maier. Alain Guingal conducts the {…}
(Photo: Clive Barda) How does one portray a famous person from history in a work of fiction? Take for example Ambroise Thomas’ opera “Le Songe d’un nuit d’été.” This opera was written to a libretto by Joseph-Bernard Rosier and Adolphe de Leuven, that premiered in 1850 at Paris’ L’Opéra- Comique, and has just been revived by Wexford Festival Opera. It {…}
Following on from last evening’s wonderful production of “Edmea” come psychological thriller, in which the heroine disappeared into the nether regions of her own subconscious, the festival continued with its second opera production – Ambroise Thomas’ “Le Songe d’un nuit d’été,” starring Armenian mezzo Hasmik Torosyan, with a stunning coloratura, as Elizabeth I, French tenor Sébastién Guèze as Shakespeare and {…}
The Teatro Comunale di Bologna has announced its 2022 season featuring several new productions and star singers. Here is a look at this season’s lineup. Puccini’s “Tosca” inaugurates the season with Hugo De Ana directing. Daniel Oren conducts the production which is set to star María José Siri, Roberto Aronica, Mikheil Sheshaberidze, Svetlana Kasyan, Erwin Schrott, Dalibor Jenis, and Claudio {…}
(Credit: Priamo Tolu) The Teatro Lirico di Cagliari has announced its fall 2021-22 season. Here are the vocal and operatic performances of the year. Luciano Acocella conduct the Orchestra and chorus of the Teatro Lirico di Cagliari in music by Helios, Brahms, and Schumann. Performance Dates: Oct. 1 & 2, 2021 Gluck’s “Orfeo ed Euridice” is set to star Victória {…}
On July 3, the Teatro Regio di Parma’s Estate al Parco della Musica will present Orff’s “Carmina Burana.” The oratorio will star Hasmik Torosyan, David Astorga, and Federico Longhi in a version for soloists, chorus, two pianos, and percussions. Sergio Alapont conducts the performance which will also inlcude Giulio Zappa and Dario Tondelli on piano. Martino Faggiani prepared the Coro {…}
The Teatro Regio di Parma in Italy has announced its Estate al Parco della Musica festival. Donizetti’s “Don Pasquale” will highlight the season with Laura Giordano, Antonio Mandrillo, Federico Longhi, and Pablo Galvez. Ferdinando Sulla conducts Pier Francesco Maestrini’s production. Performance Dates: June 30-July 11, 2021 Orff’s “Carmina Burana” will feature Hasmik Torosyan, David Astorga, and Alberto Bonifazio. Giulio Zappa {…}
(Credit: Fay Fox) Wexford Festival Opera has announced that it will present its 70th anniversary festival this October. The showcase, which will take place between Oct. 19-31, will feature live audiences at a reduced capacity. The company will also present performances online for those unable to attend the live showcases. Operas Productions The company will showcase several live opera productions, {…}