First performed in 1846, “La Damnation de Faust” remains one of Hector Berlioz’s most audacious and elusive works: neither fully opera nor oratorio, but a hybrid “dramatic legend” that defies conventional staging and genre. Drawing on Goehte’s “Faust” while filtering the story through Berlioz’s intensely Romantic imagination, the piece moves with feverish speed from pastoral lyricism to infernal spectacle, {…}
The San Diego Opera has announced its 2025-26 season. The season opens with Leoncavallo’s “Pagliacci. ” Yves Abel conducts a cast that includes Jonathan Burton, Hailey Clark, and Kidon Choi. Christopher Mattaliano directs. Performance Dates: Oct. 31-Nov. 2, 2025 Rossini’s “The Barber of Seville” will star Dean Murphy, Minghao Liu, Stephanie Doche, Patrick Carfizzi, and Craig Colclough. Yves Abel conducts the production by {…}
Yves Abel has renewed his contract as Principal Conductor of the San Diego Opera. Abel has held his position since the 2020–21 season, and his current contract runs through the 2026–27 season. His new five-year extension will see Maestro Abel in the San Diego Opera orchestra pit through the 2031–32 season. In a statement, Abel said, “The San Diego Opera {…}
French-Canadian conductor Yves Abel has extended his contract as Principal Conductor of San Diego Opera until July 2027. Abel first made his company debut in 2013 and became principal conductor in 2020. The conductor is the former chief conductor of the Nordwestdeutsche Philharmonie, Germany and the former principal guest with the Deutsche Oper Berlin. He recently conducted “Carmen” at Wiener {…}
(Photo: ROF/Amati Bacciardi) Without memories we are nothing but an empty shell. They define our sense of self. It is only through memory that we can make any sense of what is around us. It allows us to rationalize and contextualize tragic events, to enjoy the present, and to project the consequence of our actions into the future. Yet, memory {…}
(Photo: Half way through the first act of Teatro Comunale di Bologna’s production of Donizetti’s “Lucrezia Bogia,” a chorus of booing and shouts of “Shame on you” rang out from sections of the audience, which was met by enthusiastic applause from other parts of the theatre. Following the interval, some members of the audience voted with their feet and did {…}
(Credit: Marco Borggreve) The Teatro Lirico di Cagliari is set to present Mascagni’s “Messa di Gloria” for its Christmas Concert. The concert, which will be performed without an audience will be streamed on Dec. 22 on Videolina and live streamed in collaboration with Gruppo L’Unione Sarda. Yves Abel will conduct the rarely performed piece with the Orchestra and Chorus of {…}
San Francisco Opera and San Francisco Chronicle will celebrate the start of the company’s 97th season with the latest edition of Opera in the Park. The free event will “bookend an action-packed weekend” for San Francisco Opera, according to the press release. The season will open with Gounod’s “Romeo and Juliet,” the Opera Ball, and the BRAVO! CLUB Gala on {…}
(Credit: Marco Borggreve) San Diego Opera has announced that Yves Abel will be the company’s new Principal Conductor starting in 2020-21. The contract is set for three years with the maestro set to conduct a double bill opera in his first year, a French work in 2021-22, and another opera in 2022-23. “It is a great joy and honor for {…}
The San Diego Opera has announced its 2018-19 season, which will feature a number of repertory staples as well as major debuts from international artists. The season opens with Mozart’s “Le Nozze di Figaro,” starting on Oct. 20, 2018. The cast will include John Moore, Nicholas Brownlee, Caitlin Lynch, Sarah Shafer, all in their company debuts. Other cast members will {…}
On Thursday, the Canadian Opera company has just announced its 2017-18 season which features six opera spanning from October 5, 2017 to May 26, 2018. The works selected for the new season feature mainly staples of the canonical repertoire though there is one rare work making an appearance this season. Jane Archibald is this season’s artist in residence. The announcement {…}