Gioachino Rossini, born on Feb. 29, 1729, is one of the great masters of Italian Opera. He was born in Pesaro and began to compose at the age of 12. He premiered his first opera “La Cambiale Di Matrimonio” in Venice in 1812 when he was just 18. Five years later, he was being engaged to write operas all over {…}
Arrigo Boito, born on Feb. 24, 1842, was what one could consider a Renaissance Man of the 19th century. He was a poet, journalist, novelist, librettist, and composer and many of his works in those diverse disciplines remain fixtures of the operatic canon. He initially set out to be a musician, studying at the Milan Conservatory. He then fought in {…}
Germany’s Theater Magdeburg announced on its social media that it had to cancel its premiere of Verdi’s “Otello” on Feb. 16, 2019, due to the illness of both leading performers, Aldo Di Toro (Otello) and Raffaela Lintl (Desdemona). The theatre performed Puccini’s “La Bohème,” directed by Karen Stone, in its place. Baritone Gocha Abuladze, who was set to perform as {…}
When it comes to contesting which of Verdi’s operas is his greatest, “Otello” usually ranks amongst the top two or three. This work of supreme genius almost never came about as the composer had retired after creating “Aida” in 1871. But with the combined efforts of his Milan publisher Giulio Ricordi and librettist Arrigo Boito, Verdi came out of retirement {…}
Plácido Domingo is undeniably one of the major forces in the history of opera. Born on Jan. 21, 1941 in Madrid, Spain, he spent much of his youth in Mexico. He was very much involved in Zarzuela from a young age as his parents started their own company dedicated to the art form. He studied at the National Conservatory of {…}
After the holidays, it is unsurprising that few opera companies will be in action. Yet there are still a few that are willing to bet on audiences wanting opera right away after the break. Metropolitan Opera The company that never sleeps, literally never stopped performing throughout the holidays, continuing its offerings the night and day after Christmas and showcasing its {…}
Carl Tanner is set to replace Stuart Skelton in “Otello.” The Metropolitan Opera announced via social media that Tanner will sing the Dec. 28 performance replacing Stuart Skelton, who is ill. The performance will mark Tanner’s second outing in the title role. He previously replaced Skelton during opening night. Tanner recently performed the role of “Otello” at the Savonlinna Festival {…}
Francesco Tamagno was born on Dec. 28, 1850, and would go on to become the first singer to perform the title role in Verdi’s “Otello.” He began taking vocal lessons in his youth and was a chorister. In 1873, he began training vocally in earnest and started performing small roles in the local Teatro Regio di Torino. But on Jan. {…}
The Teatro Cervantes de Málaga has added a performance of “Otello.” The theater announced that due to popular demand, there would be a third performance of Verdi’s masterpiece. The performance will be held on May 1, 2019 with subsequent performances on the third and fifth of May. The cast will include Jorge de León in the title role, Carlos Álvarez as {…}
There was a ton of drama in Verdi’s “Otello” on Monday, Dec. 17, 2018. But it wasn’t necessarily always the kind you might be expecting. Tenor Stuart Skelton made his Metropolitan Opera role debut at the house after having to cancel the opening night performance due to illness. He remained ill, but that fact was not given to the audience {…}
Can great singing justify the whole opera production? This season director Amélie Niermeyer presented a new production of Verdi’s masterpiece “Otello” at the Bayerische Staatsoper. In this controversial production any heroic as well as historical context was removed. Instead of a story of an exhausted hero, broken under the pressure of doubts and jealousy, we received a story of a {…}