(Credit: Wiener Staatsoper) The Wiener Staatsoper has announced the cast change for Richard Strauss’ opera “Elektra.” Tenor Thomas Ebenstein will take over the role of Aegisth for the presentations on Sep. 19 and Sep. 22, 2020., replacing Jörg Schneider. The opera house did not specify the reason for the cast change. Ebenstein will join a cast that includes Ricarda Merbeth {…}
(Photo Credit: Lizelle de Wit) The COVID-19 pandemic had a huge impact for many opera singers and companies all over the world. Not only were performances canceled left and right, but there were concerns over when and how singers might be able to get back on the operatic stage. As the months passed by, we saw online performances, socially distanced {…}
(Credit: Julien Pohl) Belgian conductor Patrick Davin has died at the age of 58 on September 9, 2020, after suffering a heart attack before one of the rehearsals of the Jean-Luc Fafchamps’ pop-requiem “Is This the End?” at La Monnaie Opera House in Brussels. The former student of Pierre Boulez and Peter Eötvös, Davin was frequently invited to perform works {…}
(Credit: Boris Streubel) The famed German mezzo-soprano Doris Soffel will appear in the role of Klytämnestra in Richard Strauss’ opera “Elektra” at the Wiener Staatsoper on September 8, 2020. Doris Soffel is one of the leading Wagnerian and Straussian singers, having taken on such roles as Kundry in “Parsifal,” Ortrud in “Lohengrin,” and Fricka and Erda in the composer’s iconic {…}
(Credits: Cross/Staatstheater Cottbus official website / Hupfeld/Staatstheater Cottbus official website) The Staatstheater Cottbus has announced its incoming 2020-21 season, featuring several new operatic productions and orchestral works. Here is the look. Premieres – Musiktheater Cottbus The Musiktheater Cottbus will present several new productions. The cast has been announced for the first production of the season, with other casts set to {…}
The Opéra National de Paris has announced that it will reopen its doors to the public after the six-month hiatus. The opera house has confirmed in the press release that the Opéra Bastille will reopen on November 23, with the premiere of the first night of the Ring Festival in the concert form. Per the press release, the fully staged {…}
(Credit: Dusíkovo divadlo official website) Famed Slovakian tenor Štefan Margita and his wife Hanka both tested positive for the novel COVID-19 coronavirus. Margita posted a message on his Facebook profile, stating “Our dear ones, we did not want to burden you with our worries. Yes, we both tested positive for COVID. So you don’t have to learn from the various {…}
Richard Strauss is one of the great composers in opera history. Many of his best works are major staples of the international repertory, including “Der Rosenkavalier,” “Elektra,” Salome,” and “Ariadne auf Naxos,” among others. But Strauss wrote a lot more operas, many of them obscure. While those works will be among those spotlighted in this quiz, we will challenge you {…}
(Credit: holtenau.at) Austrian baritone Rudolf Holtenau has died in Vienna on August 30, at the age of 88. Holtenau, who born in Salzburg, sang a lots of role throughout his career, with an emphasis on Wagner operas. Holtenau began his vocal studies in Linz, and then moved to Vienna where he finished his professional education. He debuted in Klagenfurt, and {…}
(Image source: YouTube) Dutch mezzo-soprano Cora Canne Meijer passed away on August 25, 2020, at the age of 91. Cora Canne Meijer graduated from the Conservatorium van Amsterdam. The mezzo-soprano debuted in 1950 with the Nederlandse Opera (now De Nationale Opera) in the role of Annina in Verdi’s “La Traviata.” During her first year at the Nederlandse Opera, Meijer sang {…}
Jonas Kaufmann has released a new track, “Da unten im Tale,” by Johannes Brahms. Brahms’ song is a part of Kaufmann’s new Album “Selige Stunde,” which is due for release on September 4, 2020. Another track, “Mondnacht,” Op. 39/5 by Robert Schumann is now also available. The album also contains lieder such as Silcher’s “Ännchen von Tharau,” Mozart’s “Sehnsucht nach {…}