(Photo: © Enrico Nawrath) As the final cycle of Bayreuth’s 2023 “Ring des Nibelungen” came to a close, the air remained electric with the sounds of Wagner’s apocalyptic horns and the swirling raptures of the Rhine. Camps came away divided into those either outraged or captivated by director Valentin Schwarz‘s reinvention of the Walsung’s messy journey into oblivion. To be {…}
On May 30, 2023, the Metropolitan Opera revived François Girard’s production of “Der Fliegende Holländer” for the first time since March 2020 when… we all know what happened. While a lot has changed since then, one thing that has remained is that this production still doesn’t match up to Girard’s best work (“Parsifal”) and even less now that he recently {…}
Bass-baritone Tomasz Konieczny is set to present “From Secession to Distortion,” a recital dedicated to song. The recital will be presented on June 5, 2023, at the Kosciuszko Foundation – The American Center of Polish Culture in New York City. Konieczny will spotlight music by Richard Strauss, Mykola Lysenko, Henryk Czyz, and Stanislaw Moniuszko. Konieczny is currently at the Metropolitan Opera {…}
Germany’s Oper Leipzig has announced its 2023-24 season featuring five new productions. Premieres Peter Maxwell Davies’s “Majesty and Madness” will be presented in a production by Marlene Hahn. Samuel Emanuel conducts a cast that includes Marie-Luise Dreßen and Franz Xaver Schlecht. Performance Dates: Sept. 21-24, 2023 Mozart’s “Die Zauberflote” will be conducted by Jonathan Darlington, Ivan Repušić, Christoph Gedschold, and {…}
(Credit: Krzysztof Bieliński) The Polish National Opera is set to premiere a new production of Verdi’s “La Forza del Destino.” The production, which is set to open on Jan. 13, will be directed by Mariusz Treliński’ whose staging is a co-production between the Polish National Opera and the Metropolitan Opera, where it premieres during the 2023-24 season. The production will {…}
The Teatr Wielki Opera Narodowa has announced a recital featuring Tomasz Konieczny scheduled for Dec. 17, 2022. The showcase will feature the famed bass-baritone alongside pianist Lech Napierala. The program will spotlight music by Mykola Lysenko, Richard Strauss, Aleksander Nowak (the Polish world premiere of “Dwuwiersze” to words by Bolesław Leśmian), and Henryk Czyż. Konieczny made his professional debut in 1997 with {…}
(Credit: Enrico Nawrath) And now we have entered the realm of the absurd. Those who read my reviews for “Das Rheingold” and “Die Walküre,” know that I was quite critical of director Valentin Schwarz’s approach, which proved hostile to the original libretto in most of his “creative” choices. But this production of “Siegfried” somehow managed to push beyond those limits {…}
The Bayreuth Festival has confirmed that Polish bass-baritone Tomasz Konieczny will perform in the opening night of “Siegfried.” The company said, “After yesterday’s stage accident, Tomasz Konieczny is on the road to recovery and will sing the Wanderer as planned for tomorrow’s premiere of ‘Siegfried.’ We would like to take this opportunity to expressly thank Michael Kupfer-Radecky, who brilliantly saved {…}
The Polish National Opera has announced its 2022-23 season featuring six new productions and 15 revivals in opera and ballet. Here is a look at the opera productions. New Productions The company will present “Chorus Opera” with Rafał Bartmiński, Anna Terlecka-Kierner, and Dagmara Sokalska as the soloists. The production will feature music by Bizet, Leoncavallo, Mascagni, Moniuszko, Orff, Penderecki, Puccini, {…}
This week audiences will get to listen to three solo recitals from some rising stars and one of opera’s leading lieder singers. There are also two full opera DVDs starring leading singers. Here is a look at the new releases of the week. Mirages: The Art of French Song Champs Hill Records releases baritone Roderick Williams’ new album with acclaimed {…}
(Credit: Janáček Brno Festival) Janáček Brno Festival has announced its 2022 season. For the purpose of this article we will focus on the vocal works only. A double bill of “From the House of the Dead” and “Glagolitic Mass” spotlights Roman Hoza, Gianluca Zampieri, Tigran Hakobyan, Lukáš Bařák, Jan Šťáva, Kateřina Kněžíková, and Jarmila Balážová. Jakub Hrůša conducts a production {…}