(Credit: Valentina Sadiul) What makes a master singing teacher? Is it someone who knows the art of singing from both sides of the curtain? Or is it someone who cultivates a singer’s natural gifts, enabling the budding artist to bring out her/his inner voice? Perhaps it is both of these. César Ulloa is Voice Department Chair at the San Francisco {…}
The San Francisco Opera Center and Merola Opera Program have announced their 37th annual Schwabacher Recital Series for 2020. The performances, which are scheduled at San Francisco’s Dianne and Tad Taube Atrium Theater, will feature emerging artists from around the globe. The first concert will showcase a set of performers recently seen as part of the Merola Opera Program. Mezzo-soprano {…}
This weekend features two important performances from one company, including a major world premiere and the revival of the first opera composed by a woman. Other major highlights include a concert with rising stars, a concert of a repertory gem, and a modern opera that deserves great attention. Dell’Arte Opera Ensemble – La Liberazione di Ruggiero This production of the {…}
(Credit: Louise Leblanc) There are a lot of modern works in this weekend’s lineup, but they are mixed in with two repertory staples that feature exciting new productions and unique up-and-coming talent. Here are our Top five operas to see this weekend in North America. Festival Opéra de Québec – The Flying Dutchman The Wagner opera opened last week as {…}
The Merola Opera Program is set to wrap up its Summer Festival with the Merola Grand Finale, a concert at the War Memorial Opera House on August 17, 2019. The concert will feature 29 young international artists selected from who will showcase a dazzling array of opera’s most exciting arias and ensembles. The concert will be conducted by Maestro George {…}
The San Francisco’s acclaimed Merola Opera Program is set to begin its 62nd season with a showcase of the program’s rising stars in the Schwabacher Summer Concert. The first concert of the summer series will showcase scenes from “La Rondine,” “Lucia di Lammermoor,” “Die Schweigsame Frau,” “Faust,” and “Il Trovatore.” The first scene of the program will be selections from Act {…}
The Merola Opera Program has announced a cast change for its April 24 Schwabacher Recital. Per a press release, soprano Patricia Westley is set to appear in lieu of Mary Evelyn Hangley. Hangley has reportedly withdrawn from the recital for personal reasons. Westley, who is slated to take on the role of Selena in the world premiere of Jake Heggie {…}
The Merola Opera Program has announced its 62nd season, which will feature 29 artists from all around the world. This year’s artists will include eight sopranos, four mezzo-sopranos, five tenors, four baritones, two bass-baritones, and one bass to go along with one apprentice stage director, and five apprentice coaches. The sopranos are Anna Duga, Chelsea Lehnea, Anne-Marie MacIntosh, Amber Monroe, {…}
San Francisco Opera Center and Merola Opera Program will present the 36th season of the Schwabacher Recital Series. The series of four recitals will be held in the Dianne and Tad Taube Atrium Theatre in San Francisco between Feb. 13 – Apr. 24, 2019. The program is aimed at introducing gifted up-and-coming artists to Bay Area audiences. Works performed will {…}
It was 1957 and opera was in the midst of a golden age of singing. Kurt Herbert Adler, the second general director in San Francisco Opera’s history, knew that for opera to continue, young talent needed to be fostered and grown. So he sought out the help of tenor James H. Schwabacher Jr., San Francisco Opera’s production coordinator Matthew Farruggio, {…}
On August 1, 2019, the Merola Opera Program of San Francisco will world premiere Jake Heggie’s new opera, “If I Were You.” This also marks the first work commissioned in the program’s long history of artistic development. The Merola Opera Program has announced that “If I Were You” will be conducted by Nicole Paiement, and directed by Keturah Stickann. The {…}