James McCracken was one of the most essential American dramatic tenors of all time. Born on Dec. 16, 1926, McCracken started his musical experiences as a child in a church choir. During the Second World War, he sang in the Blue Jacket Choir in the U.S. Navy. His professional debut came at the Central City Opera in 1952 as Rodolfo {…}
Verdi’s “Otello” gets a revival at the Metropolitan Opera starting on Dec. 14, 2018. The production will not only feature the debut of famed conductor Gustavo Dudamel but will also see the return of Bartlett Sher’s production. The cast will be headlined by Stuart Skelton in what will be his fourth role at the Met Opera. He made his debut {…}
The Bayerische Staatsoper will live stream the Dec. 2 performance of Verdi’s “Otello” via its Staatsoper.TV. The free transmission will kick off at 7 p.m. local time (1 p.m. EST and 10 a.m. PST) and is set to feature Jonas Kaufmann in the title role. Anja Harteros will star as Desdemona and Gerald Finley will round out the cast as {…}
Per the Met’s press office DiGiacomo has always been scheduled to perform the Dec. 28 performance. Sonya Yoncheva will no longer perform the Dec. 28 performance of Verdi’s “Otello” at the Metropolitan Opera. The soprano’s team announced via Twitter that she would no longer appear in the performance. The soprano is slated to be at the Opéra de Paris for New {…}
If you wanted to list off the greatest baritones of the 20th century, Tito Gobbi will land somewhere on that list. Born on Oct. 24, 1913, the baritone actually started his career studying law. But a family friend suggested that he study singing. So he moved from Padua, where he was studying, to Rome. In 1935, at the age of {…}
Giuseppe Verdi is Italy’s composer. Few composers have ever attained the legendary status of the man from Busetto, who created a plethora of operas throughout his career that remain fixtures of the standard repertoire today. Born on Oct. 9 (or was it 10?), 1813, Verdi would become the textbook example of how to achieve everlasting greatness when you put in {…}
Ramón Vinay is one of the greatest dramatic tenors to ever live. Born on August 31, 1911 in Chile, the tenor would actually kickstart his career as a baritone in Mexico in 1938. His tenor debut came in 1943 and he would go on to perform all around the world at such houses as the Metropolitan Opera, Royal Opera House, {…}
Mario Del Monaco is one of the singers that often springs to mind when people talk about the Golden Age of Singing. Born on July 27, 1915 to an upper-class family in Florence, he graduated from the Rossini Conservatory in Pesaro. It was there that he met Renata Tebaldi, with whom he would form an operatic “dream team” later in {…}
Last year, rising Verdi star Russell Thomas spoke to OperaWire about his strategy for easing into such a titanic role the title role in Verdi’s “Otello.” “I always thought if I would try to take on such a monumental task, the first outing would have to be in concert so I can focus only on the singing and not have to {…}
Opera is home to some of humanity’s most infamous villains: manipulative characters who lie, cheat, and steal, pillage and murder, and generally ruin the loves of the innocent, unsuspecting heroes and heroines that we all know and love. But conflict and tension form the bones of most great art, and opera would not be opera without the Iagos, Scarpias, and {…}
Russian Baritone Sergei Leiferkus, born on April 4, 1946, is recognized for his unique vocal quality. If you haven’t heard him before, then you should, because he has one of the most individual sounds you’ll ever hear. In fact, here’s an excerpt from a role we will talk about in a bit. In any case, the baritone enjoyed a solid {…}