During my 40 years of being obsessed with opera, and five years singing in major choral works, I realize it’s a bit odd that Verdi’s Requiem never entered my sphere. I have never experienced it live, nor even owned a recording. Please do not shame me. I am somewhat familiar with a couple of the most famous sections: the driving {…}
The Seattle Symphony Orchestra is set to present a series of concerts featuring two renowned Requiems performed by some of the world’s greatest opera stars. First up, the ensemble will present a program of music by Brahms and Stravinsky. Audiences will hear Brahm’s famed German Requiem with Soraya Malfi and Alexander Dobson as the soloists. The program will also include {…}
The Seattle Symphony has announced its 2022-23 season featuring several international performers. Here is a look at the vocal performance. Enrique Lopez-Yañez conducts José Sibaja and Mónica Ábrego in a program of Latin American music. Performance Dates: Oct. 14 & 16, 2022 Tan Dun conducts his piece “Buddha Passion” with Sen Guo, Huiling Zhu, Kang Wang, Yupeng Wang, Batubagen, and Chen Yining. {…}
(Credit: Lisa-Marie Mazzucco) The Governing Council of the Consorci de L’Auditori i l’Orquestra approved the proposal put forward by the Director of L’Auditori, Robert Brufau to appoint Ludovic Morlot as the new Music Director of the Orquestra Simfònica de Barcelona i Nacional de Catalunya. “With Ludovic Morlot at the helm, the OBC reaches an international level and will defend the {…}
(Credit: Lars Borges) The Seattle Symphony Orchestra has announced its 2020-21 season. Here is a look at the vocal highlights of the season. The first major vocal highlight of the season will be Audra McDonald performing music from “Porgy and Bess,” “Carousel,” and other notable Broadway tuned alongside conductor Andy Einhorn. Performance Date: Oct. 20, 2020 Soprano Nuria Rial will take {…}
Early music enthusiasts in Seattle showed up in full force for a single concert performance of a Baroque pastiche of the Orpheus story featuring world-class early music specialists. How could they resist the intriguing concept and such a stellar line up? Philippe Jaroussky is a major international star (a “rockstar countertenor” as the Seattle Symphony marketing department awkwardly posits) {…}
If you’ve never attended a performance of the Mass in B-Minor, its reputation as one of the greatest works of art in the history of Western civilization can be a little intimidating, and it sets a pretty high bar, even for Mr. Bach. Though I know the work moderately well from recordings, last Thursday night, March 14, 2019, was my {…}