The Teatro San Carlo is set to present Verdi’s “Nabucco” in a production by Andreas Homoki. The production will be shown from Jan. 18 to 31, 2026 and will be conducted by Riccardo Frizza. Ludovic Tézier will take on the title role alongside Marina Rebeka as Abigaille. They will be joined by Piero Pretti as Ismaele and Michele Pertusi as {…}
Welcome back for the first edition of 2026’s CD and DVD releases from around the opera world. The year kicks off with star-studded new releases including a new Verdi recording and an Offenbach opera that features some of today’s greatest performers. Luigi Gordigiani: Romantic Florence – Songs For Voice And Piano Dynamic releases mezzo-soprano Marina Comparato’s latest album. She is {…}
The Arena di Verona has announced its 2026 season. The season will open with a new production of Verdi’s “La Traviata.” Michele Spotti and Francesco Ivan Ciampa conduct the new production starring Martina Russomanno, Gilda Fiume and Rosa Feola. The casts also include Yusif Eyvazov, Galeano Salas, Francesco Meli, René Barbera, Adam Smith, Amartuvshin Enkhbat, Mihai Damian, Youngjun Park, Ludovic {…}
(Credit: Monika Rittershaus) “La Forza del Destino” has always been considered a transitional work in Giuseppe Verdi’s output, bridging the purely romantic operas of his early period and the mature works where his musical language became more dramatic, direct, and personal. It was composed on a commission from the Imperial Theatre in St. Petersburg, where it premiered in 1862. The {…}
(Photo: Brescia e Amisano) It is rather curious that one of the most emblematic titles in the operatic canon has been staged so rarely on such an iconic stage as Teatro alla Scala: “Norma” by Vincenzo Bellini, which had its world premiere there in 1831 with Giuditta Pasta in the title role. That said, the few times it has returned {…}
The Teatro alla Scala is set to stream Bellini’s “Norma” on La Scala tv. The stream will be showcased on July 4, 2025, and will star Marina Rebeka in the title role, Freddie De Tommaso as Pollione, Michele Pertusi as Oroveso, and Vasilisa Berzhanskaya as Adalgisa. Fabio Luisi will conduct the new production by Olivier Py. “Norma” has not been {…}
(Photo: Dario Acosta) The winners of the 2025 Premio Illica have been announced. The lifetime achievement award was given to Pier Luigi Pizzi, while Michele Pertusi was recognized with the Male award in Lyric singing. The Female award for Lyric singing was given to Eleonora Buratto. The award for journalism and music criticism was given to Angelo Foletto while Giovanni {…}
Ibermúsica has announced its 2025-26 season with concerts being held at the Auditorio Nacional de Música de Madrid. Here are the vocal performances. Le Concert d’Astrée with conductor Emmanuelle Haïm will feature Emöke Baráth and Carlo Vistoli. Performance Date: Dec. 3, 2025 The Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra will be led by Daniel Raiskin and will feature pianist Noelia Rodiles and bass {…}
The Philharmonie de Paris has announced its 2025-26 season. Here is a look at the vocal performances. Andris Nelsons conducts the Gewandhaus Orchester Leipzig in Brahms’ Deutsche Requiem with Christian Gerhaher and Julia Kleiter. The program includes Mendelssohn’s Symphony No.5. Performance Date: Sept. 3, 2025 Riccardo Chailly condcuts the Teatro alla Scala Orchestra and Chorus in excerpts from Verdi’s “La {…}
The Opéra National du Capitole de Toulouse has announced its 2025-26 season. Opera Hervé Niquet conducts a production of Massenet’s “Thaïs” with Stefano Poda directing. Rachel Willis-Sørensen, Tassis Christoyannis, and Jean-François Borras star. Performance Dates: Sept. 26-Oct. 5, 2025 Thomas Dunford conducts Handel’s “Theodora” in concert with Lea Desandre, Véronique Gens, Hugh Cutting, Laurence Kilsby, and Alex Rosen. Performance Date: {…}
(Credit: 2024_Copyright: Markenfotografie) On Feb. 12 and 13, 2025 the Semperoper Dresden is set to present Verdi’s “Requiem.” The evening will commemorate the Feb. 13 and 14, 1945 bombing of Dresden, the most destructive bombing of World War II which saw 1,500 tons of explosive bombs and 1,200 tons of firebombs dropped by more than 800 British airplanes, later joined {…}
