Thomas Hampson, Christian Gerhaher & Florian Sempey Lead CD/DVD Releases

This week audiences get to experience new albums from great baritones and some rising stars. Here is a look at the releases. Così fan tutte The Maggio Musicale releases Mozart’s masterpiece on Naxos. Conductor Zubin Mehta leads the production by Sven-Eric Bechtolf. The recording from March 2021 stars Thomas Hampson, Valentina Nafornita, Vasilisa Berzhanskaya, Matthew Swenson, Mattia Olivieri, and Benedetta Torre. L’Orfeo Opus Arte {…}

Mar 25, 2022

Anja Harteros, Saioa Hernández, Rolando Villazón & Nina Stemme Lead Deutsche Oper Berlin’s 2022-23 Season

The Deutsche Oper Berlin has announced its 2022-23 season featuring seven new productions. Premieres R.Strauss’ “Arabella” will be conducted by Sir Donald Runnicles in a new production by Tobias Kratzer. Albert Pesendorfer, Doris Soffel, Rachel Willis-Sørensen, Elena Tsallagova, and Russell Braun. Performance Dates: March 18-April 6, 2023 Arne Gieshoff and Franziska Angerer’s “Bear” will have its world premiere. Performance Dates: {…}

Dec 30, 2021

Anna Netrebko Withdraws From Royal Opera House’s ‘Nabucco’

(Credit: Julian Hargreaves) The Royal Opera House Covent Garden has announced that superstar soprano Anna Netrebko has withdrawn from the performances of Verdi’s “Nabucco” between Jan. 14 – 23, 2022, due to ongoing travel restrictions across Europe. As a result, Liudmyla Monastyrska will take over the role of Abigaille. Monastyrska joins a cast that includes Alexander Vinogradov as Zaccaria, Vasilisa {…}

Dec 20, 2021

Royal Opera House Cancels Two Performances of ‘Nabucco’ Due to Omicron Variant

(Credit: Sim Canetty-Clarke) The Royal Opera House Covent Garden has been forced to cancel performances of Verdi’s “Nabucco” on Dec. 23 and 28 due to resource challenges caused by the Omicron COVID-19 variant. The two performances were set to star Liudmyla Monastyrska as Abigaille, Alexander Vinogradov as Zaccaria, Vasilisa Berzhanskaya in the role of Fenena, Najmiddin Mavlyanov as Ismaele, Blaise {…}

Dec 20, 2021

Anna Netrebko, Michael Fabiano & Irina Lungu Lead Royal Opera House’s Streams in January 2022

(Credit: Royal Opera House Covent Garden official website) The Royal Opera House Covent Garden has announced five new streams to kick off the new year. For the purposes of this article, we will focus on vocal performances. The opera house will first stream Sir David McVicar’s production of Gounod’s “Faust” from 2019. The opera stars Erwin Schrott as the devil {…}

Dec 17, 2021

Best of 2021: OperaWire’s Top 11 Singers of 2021

After a year and a half of limited performances and shut downs, 2021 marked the year during which performers were able to bring their artistry to the stage and to the audiences. And now 2021 is bringing down its curtain. There were so any memorable moments in the year and there were truly some historical performances. Like previous years, OperaWire {…}

Dec 7, 2021

Best Of 2021: OperaWire’s Top 10 Rising Stars Of 2021

(Credit: Fay Fox/Jaclyn Simpson/Lynn Lane) It’s been a tough 2021. After some hope settled into the opera world with the reopening of most companies around the globe, the end of the year seemed to revert to what we saw for much of 2020 – more lockdowns, more COVID, more cancelations. But despite what seems like a dark ending to the {…}

Nov 24, 2021

Michael Spyres, Golda Schultz, Sabine Devieilhe & Emily D’Angelo Lead Festival D’Aix-En-Provence’s 2022 Season

The Festival D’Aix-En-Provence has announced its 2022 slate featuring a varied repertoire and international stars. The festival will begin on July 4 and is set to run through July 23, 2022. Here is a look at the upcoming season: Mahler’s “Resurrection” will be conducted by Esa-Pekka Salonen in a production by Romeo Castellucci. Golda Schultz and Marianne Crebassa star. Performance {…}

Sep 28, 2021

Juan Diego Flórez & Étienne Dupuis Lead Wiener Staatsoper’s New ‘Il Barbiere di Siviglia’

On Sept. 28, the Wiener Staatsoper is set to open a new production of Gioachino Rossini’s “Il Barbiere di Siviglia.” The production, which will be performed until Oct. 14, will be led by Michele Mariotti, who will be making his Wiener Staatsoper debut. Mariotti was initially supposed to make his debut in 2020 conducting a revival of “Guillaume Tell” and {…}

Sep 21, 2021

Juan Diego Flórez, Joyce DiDonato, Francesco Meli & Corinne Winters Lead Arte.TV’s 2021-22 Season

Arte.TV has announced its 2021-22 season featuring a variety of productions from around the world. Here is a look. The season from the Opéra Comique de Paris with a production of Beethoven’s “Fidelio.” Raphaël Pichon conducts the new production by Cyril Teste which stars Siobhan Stagg, Michael Spyres, Mari Eriksmoen, and Albert Dohmen. Broadcast Date: Oct. 1, 2021 Catalani’s “Edmea” {…}

Sep 7, 2021

Wiener Staatsoper Two Cast Changes for New ‘Il Barbiere di Siviglia’ Production

The Wiener Staatsoper has announced two cast changes for its new production of Rossini’s “Il Barbiere di Siviglia.” In a statement, the company said, that due to illness, two of the originally scheduled performers had to cancel. As a result, Russian mezzo-soprano Vasilisa Berzhanskaya will replace Marianne Crebassa in the role of Rosina, making her house role debut. Étienne Dupuis {…}