The Makropulos Case in San Francisco

Just now in San Francisco Finnish soprano Karita Mattila kicked ass as Jan·?ek’s 337 year old Elina Makropulos.*

Carmen, Arizona Opera

On Saturday November 13 and Sunday November 14, 2010, Arizona Opera presented Bernard Uzan’s rather different take on Bizet’s Carmen.

Il Viaggio a Sicilia

As I strolled around the corner into Piazza Verdi, my first view of Palermo’s Teatro Massimo Vittorio Emanuele stopped me dead in my tracks and damn near took my breath away.

Karita Mattila: Helsinki Recital

Ondine provides a nice bonus for fans of Karita Mattila in its recent DVD release of a 2006 Helsinki recital with accompanist Martin Katz.

The Forthright Tenor

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704648604575620933227047828.html?mod=WSJ_Opinion_LEFTSecondBucket

Stellan Sagvik: An Interview

Swedish composer Stellan Sagvik is a protean figure with a large and diverse body of work ranging from works for solo flute (most recently written for his wife, Kinga Pr·da), to chamber music — five string quartets, with another on the way, and symphonies, operas and choral music.

Gyˆrgy Kurt·g — Kafka Fragments, London

Can Haiku be improved by staging? Gyˆrgy Kurt·g’s Kafka-Fragmente (op. 24), is a masterpiece of zen-like purity.

Curtain set to go up on Royal Opera House’s £8.3m workshop

http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2010/nov/18/royal-opera-house-workshop

Singing dog adds bite to operatic satire

http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23898746-singing-dog-adds-bite-to-operatic-satire.do

CIM Opera Theater savors the riches in Handel’s “Xerxes”

http://www.cleveland.com/musicdance/index.ssf/2010/11/cim_opera.html