Marina Rebeka, Cecilia Bartoli, Juan Diego Flórez, Ismael Jordi, Marigona Qerkezi & Marina Monzó Lead Teatro de la Maestranza’s 2025-26 Season

The Teatro de la Maestranza has announced its 2025-26 season. Two casts will perform Mozart’s “Don Giovanni.” Alessio Arduini and Jan Antem star alongside Ekaterina Bakanova, Bryndís Guðjónsdóttir, Marco Ciaponi, Pablo Martínez, George Andguladze, Luis López, Julie Boulianne, Karen Gardeazabal, David Menéndez, Emmanuel Franco, Marina Monzó, Montserrat Seró, Ricardo Seguel, and Yoshihiko Miyashita. Iván López Reynoso and Mariano García Valladares {…}

May 15, 2025

Sondra Radvanovsky, Cecilia Bartoli, Piotr Beczała, Elina Garanča, Benjamin Bernheim & Sabine Devieilhe Headline Palau de la Música Catalana’s 2025-26 Season

The Palau de la Música Catalana has announced its 2025-26 season. Here is a look at the vocal performances. Adolf Gassol conducts Puccini’s “Madama Butterfly.” Performance Dates: Sept. 6 & Dec. 6, 2025 Puccini’s “Tosca” will be performed. Performance Date: Sept. 11, 2025 Julia Kleiter joins the Orquestra Simfònica del Vallès and Andrés Salado for G. Ortiz and Tchaikovsky. Performance {…}

May 7, 2025

La Monnaie 2024-25 Review: I Grotteschi

(Photo: Matthias Baus) One of the highlights, if not the highlight, of La Monnaie’s 2024–25 season must be its world premiere of Monteverdi’s new opera “I Grotteschi,” a mammoth work, lasting almost seven hours, not including intervals, performed over two evenings. Rafael R. Villalobos as Scenario, Director & Costume Designer conceived and created the production, using extracts from the Monteverdi’s {…}

Jan 29, 2025

Fundación Juan March, Madrid 2025 Review: Countertenor Xavier Sabata & Harpsichordist Dani Espasa Recital

Performing Baroque vocal music with only harpsichord accompaniment is an artistic act of the purest and most challenging kind. Stripped of the varied timbres and dynamics of an orchestra, both the singer and harpsichordist are placed under an intense spotlight. The harpsichordist must rely on their basso continuo skills and creativity to construct a dynamic foundation, while the singer, deprived {…}

Dec 2, 2024

Frederica Von Stade, Philippe Jaroussky, Franco Corelli, Asmik Grigorian & Nicole Car Lead Cyber Monday New CD/DVD Releases

Welcome back for this week’s look at the latest CD and DVD releases in the opera world. It’s about the holidays so this week there is a new Christmas album as well as a final recording by one of the great mezzos of her time, a re-release of a classic recording, a new recording of Massenet’s work, and many baroque {…}

Jun 21, 2024

Adriana Bastidas-Gamboa, Anastasia Bartoli, Xavier Sabata, Kathrin Zukowski & Seth Carico Lead Oper Köln’s 2024-25 Season

Oper Köln has announced its 2024-25 season. Premieres Marc Minkowski conducts Haydn’s “The Creation” in a production by Melly Still. The production will star Kathrin Zukowski, Sebastian Kohlhepp, Alex Rosen, Giulia Montanari, and André Morsch. Performance Dates: Oct. 5-20, 2024 Allison Oakes stars in Strauss’ “Elektra” alongside Lioba Braun, KS Dalia Schaechter, Astrid Kessler, Martin Koch, Karl-Heinz Lehner, and Insik {…}

Jun 6, 2024

Göttingen International Händel Festival 2024 Review: Il Trionfo del Tempo e del Disinganno

(Photo: Alciro Theodoro Da Silva) Productions of Handel’s 1707 oratorio “Il Trionfo del Tempo e del Disinganno” in its first version (HWV 46a) are by no means rare. A conversational piece with plenty of contrasting moods and emotional tension but little in the way of physical action, it is often presented as a concert performance, although successful staged productions are {…}

May 26, 2024

Festival de Torroella de Montgrí Announces 2024 Season

The Festival de Torroella de Montgrí in Girona, Spain has announced its 2024 season. Here is a look at the vocal performances. Sunhae Im, Núria Rial, Xavier Sabata, and Juan Sancho star in Händel’s “Il Trionfo del Tempo e del Disinganno.” Dani Espasa conducts. Performance Date: August 3, 2024 William Christie conducts Purcell’s “The Fairy Queen” with Paulina Francisco, Georgia {…}

May 10, 2024

Aida Garifullina, Sondra Radvanovsky & Jonathan Tetelman lead Festival Internacional Santander’s 2024 Season

Spain’s Festival Internacional Santander has announced its 2024 season. Here is a look at the vocal performances. Aida Garifullina opens the season with James Gaffigan conducting a program of Rimsky-Korsakov, Rachmaninoff, and Tchaikovsky. Performance Date: August 3, 2024 Lucia Caihuela and Il Fervore perform baroque works. Performance Dates: August 4 & 5, 2024 Sondra Radvanovsy and Jonathan Tetelman perform a {…}

Apr 24, 2024

Saioa Hernández, Levy Sekgapane, Piotr Beczała & Ariel Hernández Lead Orquesta y Coro Nacionales de España’s 2024-25 Season

The Orquesta y Coro Nacionales de España has announced its 2024-25 season. Here are the vocal performances. Ciclo Sinfónico David Afkham conducts Beethoven’s “Fidelio” with soloists Eleanor Lyons, Maximilian Schmitt, Peter Rose, Werner Van Mechelen, Elena Sancho, Roger Padullés, Matthias Winckhler, and Joaquín Notario. Performance Dates: Sept. 20 & 22, 2024 Pablo González conducts a program of music by Prokofiev, {…}

Nov 22, 2023

Festival Perelada Announces 2024 Easter Festival

The Festival Perelada has announced its 2024 Easter Festival. The festival will take place between March 28 and 30. For this article, we will highlight the vocal performances. The oratorio “San Giovanni Battista” by Stradella will be conducted by Dani Espasa. Xavier Sabata, Giulia Semenzato, Luigi De Donato, Juan Sancho and Marta Almajano star. Performance Date: March 28, 2024 Maëlys {…}