The 2025 lineup for the Ravello Festival has been announced. For the purposes of this article only classical voice concerts are included. Uniting Voices Chicago led by director Josephine Lee is first. Performance Date: July 11, 2025 Mezzo-soprano Annika Schlicht serves as soloist with the Dresden Philharmonic in Wagner’s “Wesendonck-Lieder.” Felix Mottl conducts. Performance Date: August 2, 2025 Tenor Michael {…}
The Gran Teatre del Liceu has announced its 2025-26 season. The season opens with “The Cunning Little Vixen,” featuring Peter Mattei, Anaïs Masllorens, David Alegret, Elena Tsallagova, Alejandro López, Milan Perišić, Sara Bañeras, Angela Brower, Mireia Pintó, Laura Brasó, and Mercedes Gancedo. Josep Pons conducts the production by Barrie Kosky. Performance Dates: Sept. 20-30, 2025 Philip Glass’ “Akhnaten” will star Anthony Roth Costanzo, {…}
Opera Comique has announced its 2025-26 season. Opera The season opens with Offenbach’s “Les Contes d’Hoffmann” with Michael Spyres, Héloïse Mas, Amina Edris, and Jean-Sébastien Bou. Pierre Dumoussaud conducts the production by Lotte De Beer. Performance Dates: Sept. 25-Oct. 5, 2025 Gluck’s “Iphigénie en Tauride” will star Tamara Bounazou, Theo Hoffman, Philippe Talbot, Jean-Fernand Setti, Léontine Maridat-Zimmerlin, Fanny Soyer, and Lysandre Châlon. Louis {…}
Opera Rara is set to stream its March 16 concert featuring Michael Spyres and Marie-Nicole Lemieux. The showcase, which took place at Cadogan Hall on March 10, will be available to stream on Opera Rara’s YouTube for 30 days starting on March 16, 2025. The performance featured several songs by Donizetti, interspersed with works by Berlioz. The two singers were {…}
Welcome back for this week’s look at the latest CD and DVD releases in the opera world. This week audiences will get to experience many of the famed artists of our time in new albums featuring classic works, rarely performed works and rediscovered works. Here is a look at this week’s new releases. Stravinsky: Le rossignol Captured in March 2023, {…}
The International Classical Music Awards has announced the nominations for its 2025 Awards. The winners will be revealed on Jan. 14 and will receive their trophies at the gala at the Tonhalle in Düsseldorf on March 19. Here are the vocal nominees. Baroque Vocal Johann Sebastian Bach: Complete Solo Cantatas for Alto and Bass: J.S. Bach: Cantatas BWV 56, BWV {…}
“Il Trovatore” is one of Verdi’s most popular operas and it is said that to do it justice, all you need are the four greatest voices in the world. The opera certainly packs a punch for all four soloists as it requires agility, legato, and expressiveness throughout their respective ranges. Its story is also known for being “incomprehensible” and hard {…}
The 29th Heidelberger Frühling Musikfestival has released the details of its 2025 season, titled “Liberated Time.” For the purposes of this article only vocal performances are included. Soprano Eleanor Lyons, mezzo-soprano Sophie Harmsen, tenor Benjamin Hulett, and bass Johannes Kammler with the Collegium Vocale Gent present works by Eisler and Beethoven. They are accompanied by the Orchestre des Champs-Élysées under {…}
(Image courtesy of Richard Tucker Foundation) The Richard Tucker Foundation has announced its 2024 gala, scheduled for Oct. 27, 2024. This year’s event will feature the talents of Xabier Anduaga and Michael Spyres, who are presented as a special guest. He is joined by past winners including Jamie Barton (Richard Tucker Award 2015), Stephanie Blythe (1999 Richard Tucker Award), J’Nai {…}
The Opus Klassik Awards have announced its 2024 winners. The Female Singer of the Year went to Anna Prohaska for “Maria Mater Meretrix,” while the Male Singer of the Year went to Konstantin Krimmel for Schubert’s “Die schöne Müllerin.” The Conductor of the Year award went to Klaus Mäkelä for Stravinsky’s “The Rite of Spring & The Firebird,” while the {…}
The Philharmonie Essen has announced its 2024-25 season. Here are the vocal performances of the season. Evelina Liubonko, Sarah Romberger, Thomas Hobbs, and Kresimir Strazanac perform works by Arcangelo Corelli, Francesco Durante, and Georg Friedrich Händel alongside Rias Kammerchor Berlin. Performance Date: Sept. 7, 2024 Graun’s “Adriano in Siria” will star Noah Hellwig, Valer Sabadus, Roberta Mameli, Maayan Licht, David {…}