On April 15, 2020, Swedish mezzo-soprano Kerstin Meyer passed away, at the age of 92. Meyer is remembered as a leading mezzo during the 50s and 60s, singing with prominent companies throughout Europe. After graduating from Stockholm’s Royal College of Music in 1948, Meyer studied at the Opera School, where she won the Christine Nilsson Scholarship to fund studies in {…}
The Royal Swedish Opera is showcasing two major performances on its official website. The first of these that is streaming is Verdi’s “Aida” in a production by Michael Cavanaugh. It stars Katarina Dalayman as Amneris, Christina Nilsson as Aida, Iva Defabiani as Radamès, and Alessio Cacciamani as Ramfis. Pier Giorgio Morandi conducts the performance, which is presented in two parts. {…}
(Credit: Carl Thorborg) The Royal Swedish Opera will be live stream a concert performance of Wagner’s “Die Walküre” on Saturday, March 14 at 3 p.m. local time in Sweden. The performance stars Iréne Theorin, Elisabet Strid, and Greer Grimsley under the musical direction of Constantin Trinks. The company noted in its official announcement that it will open up more daily {…}
(Credit: Peter Hundert I NDR) American conductor Alan Gilbert has been appointed as the new Music Director of the Royal Swedish Opera in Stockholm and will begin in the spring of 2021. Gilbert will combine his new position with the post of Chief Conductor at the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg, the position which he took in the fall of 2019. In {…}
(Credit: Markus Gárder / Royal Swedish Opera) OperaVision will present Giordano’s “Fedora” from the Royal Swedish Opera on Jan. 17, 2020. The Verismo work will star Malin Byström, Daniel Johansson, Ola Eliasson, Marianne Odencrants, Krisitan Flor, Emelie Thoor, Niklas Björling Rygert, Jon Nilsson, John Erik Eleby, Jens Persson, Håkan Ekenäs, Andreas Lundmark, Mikael Fagerholm, and Henrik Hugo, among others. Eugene {…}
(Credit: Monika Ritterhaus) OperaVision will livestream “Der Ferne Klang” live from the Royal Swedish Opera on Oct. 19, 2019. The performance will showcase Agneta Eichenholz, Daniel Johansson, Johan Rydh, Miriam Treichl, Andreas Lundmark, Jeremy Carpenter, Lars Arvidson, Vivianne Holmberg, Marie-Louise Granström, Madeleine Barringer, Ola Eliasson, and Klas Hedlund. Stefan Blunier conducts a production directed by Christof Loy. OperaWire’s review stated {…}
(Photo credit: Monika Rittershaus) As the first new production of the new season, the Royal Swedish Opera offered up “Der ferne Klang” from Franz Schreker, a work not seen on this stage since 1927. Created in Frankfurt in 1912, “Der ferne Klang” is a complex work composed over almost the entire first decade of the 20th century. The success at its {…}
Royal Swedish Opera had a highly successful year in 2018, investing major resources to become an “Opera for All,” according to CEO and Artistic Director Birgitta Svendén. “What we do at the Royal Swedish Opera is important for growth, for creative development, for culture workers, and for free expression.” It was revealed at the company’s Annual General Meeting that “breadth {…}
The production of sound in opera has always been acoustic in nature, with the exception of a handful of contemporary operas which have specific instructions from the composer, Natural sounds produced by voices and instruments are untouched and vocal technique accounts for the ability to project in a concert hall. In modern times, new technology has introduced the possibility of {…}
The Royal Swedish Opera in Stockholm announced the company’s 2019-20 season which will include a German rarity, the company premiere of a Leonard Bernstein operetta and the return of a Wagner opera. As usual, the company invites an impressive group of conductors that will comprise Jean-Christophe Spinosi, Alan Gilbert, Constantin Trinks, John Fiore, and Domingo Hindoyan. Here is the lineup: {…}
On Oct. 6, 2018, the Royal Swedish Opera is set to world premiere the new opera “Tristessa.” The new work visualized by Ann-Sofi Sidén’s films and projections was written by composer Jonas S. Bohlin, who has also written the libretto together with author Torbjörn Elensky. The visual design by Sidén will showcase an absurd, outrageous world dominated by projections and digital {…}