(Photo: Luciano Romano) In 1770, Naples’ Teatro San Carlo attempted to commission a new opera from the fourteen-year-old Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart while he was touring Italy with his father. Mozart declined, having already accepted a commission from Milan’s Teatro Ducale. The resulting opera, “Mitridate, Re di Ponto,” was never performed at the San Carlo until its 2026–27 season, when the {…}
Riccardo Frizza, the Musical Director and Artistic Director of the Bergamo Donizetti Opera Festival and Honorary Conductor of the Hungarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and Choir, is widely regarded as one of today’s leading conductors, regularly collaborating with the world’s most prestigious opera houses. He has conducted at many of the major theaters in the world Teatro Comunale, Bologna, ABAO Bilbao {…}
On June 29, the Royal Opera House will present a new production of “I Puritani,” featuring Lisette Oropesa in her signature role and led by one of the great Bel Canto conductors working today, Riccardo Frizza. The performance will mark Frizza’s debut on the podium of the Royal Opera House, and it comes as he celebrates 25 years since his {…}
(Photo: Andrea Ranzi) Nicola Campogrande’s “Olympia” world premiere at the Teatro Comunale Nouveau di Bologna joins a small category of operas that attempt to absorb the psychic weather of the digital age without collapsing into either technophilia or dystopian cliché. The work takes its cue from E.T.A. Hoffmann’s famous automaton tale, but it relocates the uncanny into a world of {…}
On April 22, Radio Bartok will broadcast a performance of Liszt’s “Christus.” The concert will feature Riccardo Frizza will Hungarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and Choir in the composer’s oratorio. In a statement Frizza said, “The idea of conducting the ‘Christus’ oratorio for the first time and of doing so at the Liszt Academy, Budapest, in a perfect fusion of Hungarian musical {…}
(Photo: Studio UV – Fondazione Teatro Donizetti) At the beginning of the 1840s, Gaetano Donizetti was the most celebrated Italian opera composer in Europe. After conquering Paris with adaptations of his Italian successes and new works such as “La fille du régiment” and “La favorite,” his life unfolded in constant travel between the continent’s principal musical centers. He composed with {…}
Ennio Morricone’s sole opera “Partenope” will receive its world premiere at Teatro San Carlo. The work will be performed on Dec. 12 and 14 and will be conducted by Riccardo Frizza. The new Teatro San Carlo production will be entrusted to the vision of Vanessa Beecroft who will work alongside Daniela Ciancio and Danilo Rubeca. The cast will include Jessica {…}
The Musicians Foundation will present “Behind the Baton: Insights from a Maestro” on Monday, Oct. 20, 2025. The event, scheduled from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at the United Palace Theater in New York City, will feature Riccardo Frizza, Musical and Artistic Director of the Donizetti Opera Festival, in conversation with opera expert Fred Plotkin. Frizza is in the midst of {…}
Riccardo Frizza has canceled his upcoming performance of “Maria Padilla” at the Teatro de la Maestranza in Seville. The conductor took to social media and said, “Dear friends of Teatro de la Maestranza, with all my regret I have to cancel my debut with ‘Maria Padilla’ in concert form, scheduled for May 2. It was a date I was looking {…}
Back in 2022, the Donizetti Festival in Bergamo featured a production of Donizetti’s “La Favorite” using a new critical French edition and with no cuts (including the whole ballet). For that occasion Ricardo Frizza was the conductor. Now, a few years later, ABAO Bilbao is bringing back that same Bergamo production, in coproduction with Opéra National de Bordeaux, as well {…}
Ricardo Frizza has been named the new Artistic Director of the Donizetti Opera Festival. The news was announced following a Dec. 4 Board of Directors of the Fondazione Teatro Donizetti meeting. The Board unanimously voted to appoint Frizza as the new artistic director. The appointment marks a continuation of the festival’s ongoing success and stability, as Frizza has also served {…}
