(Photo: Cory Weaver/San Francisco Opera) The titular heroine of Jules Massenet’s iconic opera was San Francisco Opera’s third production of the Fall season. Manon shines. She enchants. She endures. She also puzzles. One moment she is devoted to love, the next to money, status, and pleasure. What are we to make of her as she dies in the arms of {…}
(Photo: Cory Weaver/San Francisco Opera) San Francisco Opera is set to preset Massent’s “Manon.’ The opera will open on Oct. 15 and will be conducted by Caroline H. Hume Music Director Eun Sun Kim. Vincent Boussard’s 2017 production will be revived. Soprano Amina Edris will sing the title role alongside tenor Pene Pati as Des Greiux. They will be joined {…}
Pene Pati was knighted May 11, 2026 as a “Knight of the Arts,” an honor given by the French government to those who have made a significant contribution to the arts. Pati has performed at many of the leading opera houses in the world including the Paris Opera, Staatsoper Berlin, Opéra Comique, Teatro alla Scala, Teatro San Carlo, and in {…}
(Photo: Toni Suter) Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart wrote “La clemenza di Tito” in 1791, the year of his death, to celebrate the coronation of Leopold II, Holy Roman Emperor, as King of Bohemia. The libretto, adapted from Metastasio, celebrates the Roman Emperor Tito as a magnanimous and forgiving ruler; this was particularly apt for the enlightened monarch Leopold, who governed through {…}
The Gran Teatre del Liceu has announced its 2026-27 season. Shirin Neshat directs Verdi’s “Aida” with four sopranos taking on the title role. Anna Netrebko, Anna Pirozzi, Olga Maslova, and Ewa Plonka star alongside Ekaterina Semenchuk, Ksenia Dudnikova, Fiorenza Cedolins, Yusif Eyvazov, Piotr Beczała, Arsen Soghomonyan, Artur Ruciński, Igor Golovatenko, Ariunbaatar Ganbaatar, Riccardo Fassi, George Andguladze, Manuel Fuentes, Alexander Köpeczi, {…}
(Photo credit: Watson, Leedom, Gibson, Filip) Les Grandes Voix | Les Grands Solistes announces 2026-27 season. Here’s a look at the vocal performances. A concert version of Mozart’s “The Marriage of Figaro” stars Huw Montague Rendall, Emöke Baráth, Lauranne Oliva, Adrien Fournaison, Eva Zaïcik, Diana Montague, Jennifer Courcier, Raphaël Brémard, and Nicolas Brooymans. Francesco Corti conducts B’Rock Orchestra. Performance Date: {…}
(Photo credit: Kirschbaum) Klangvokal Music Festival Dortmund announces its 2026 season. The season opens with Jean-Philippe Rameau’s “Les Boréades.” Reinoud Van Mechelen, Gwendoline Blondeel, Lisandro Abadie, Tomáš Král, Robert Getchell, Philippe Estèphe, and Lore Binon make up the cast. The Belgian period ensemble a nocte temporis acommpanies. Performance Date: May 22, 2026 Tenor Pene Pati presents the concert, “Neapolitan Canzoni” {…}
(Photo: Jean-Louis Fernandez) I first heard Samoan tenor Pene Pati a year ago in Munich in “La bohème,” an opera I’ve seen so often that I make every effort to avoid it. But this time was different; I was completely disarmed by this beautiful lyric tenor’s voice, his charm and his authenticity. Endowed with brilliant high notes, a beautiful timbre, {…}
Welcome back for this week’s look at the latest CD and DVD releases in the opera world. This week, Decca celebrates Pavarotti while many artists release solo albums. There are also some historical performances that audiences will not want to miss. Songs of Passion The new album is a collection of vocal and instrumental music by John Dowland and Henry {…}
Mercury Studios has acquired the global rights, excluding premiere rights in France and Germany, to “Tenor,” a new feature documentary chronicling the extraordinary rise of Samoan tenor Pene Pati. The film, which is directed by award-winning New Zealand filmmaker Rebecca Tansley and will be released internationally in 2026, combines performances with intimate storytelling. It narrates Pati’s journey from his roots {…}
Pene Pati is set to make his North American Solo recital debut at the Park Avenue Armory. The recital will take place on Sept. 24 and 26 and will feature works by Gabriel Fauré, Henri Duparc, Lili Boulanger, Roger Quilter, Benjamin Britten, and Richard Strauss. Ronny Muchael Greenberg will accompany at the piano. Pati is the first Samoan tenor to {…}