Great characters are at the center of all operatic masterpieces, yet opera almost never treads into “operatic biography” territory.
Year: 2011
The Makropulos Case, Grosses Festspielhaus, Salzburg
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Saint-SaÎns’s Samson et Dalila in Antwerp
Bonus features on opera DVDs usually get generic names, such as “Interview” or “Backstage with…”
Gergiev conducts Wagner’s Parsifal
A handsome black steed bows its head, eyes open, peering into the darkness around it.
Risorgimento 150 years after
How the saga of Italian unification in 1861 is being (half-heartedly) celebrated by opera composers.
BBC Prom 21
From the bombastic sweeps of Richard Strauss’ Don Juan, to the
blissful rhapsodies of Walton’s Violin Concerto, and through the rhythmic
surges of Prokofiev’s choral manifesto of socialist realism, conductor Andris
Nelsons fizzed — indeed, almost exploded with energy and zest — and
inspired clarity, control and freshness from the City of Birmingham Symphony
Orchestra, on this their only visit to the Proms this season.
La traviata at the Aix Festival
An appreciation of La traviata plus La clemenza di Tito and Le Nez/The Nose at the Aix-en-Provence Festival.
La Wally, Opera Holland Park, London
Alfredo Catalani’s La Wally is known for its arias, but the full opera is rarely performed. Expectations were high for this production at Opera Holland Park, London.
Die Liebe der Danae, Bard Summerstage
In the modern operatic world, respect for the oeuvre of any given composer, as well as his stylistic development and placement in operatic history, is sacrosanct.