Porgy and Bess at Los Angeles Opera

Premiered at Washington National Opera, director Francesca Zambello’s Porgy and Bess arrived in Los Angeles May 4th, for a run of 12 performances in just 17 days.

On The Town – English National Opera

In a season that will conclude with a new production of Kismet, ENO has once again
come under criticism for the number of non-operatic works on the bill.

Franco Corelli: His Early Cetra Records

I often wonder who decides what records will be used to produce historical vocal issues.

Cesare Siepi: The Salzburg Recital of 1956; Arias from Norma, Faust, Don Carlo

For those who didn’t long ago purchased or exchanged this Salzburg recital via the pirate
connections, this is a fine opportunity to get maybe the best testimonial of this artist.

American Choral Music

The commitment of Naxos to American music is substantial and admirable.

OFFENBACH: Orpheus in der Unterwelt (Orphée aux enfers)

Filmed for television in 1971, this performance of the German translation of Orphée aux enfers (1858) as Orpheus in der Unterwelt breaks the conventional wisdom that some espouse about the weaknesses of opera or opera when conceived for the small screen.

BACH: Cantatas, Vol. 26 (Whit Sunday and Whit Monday)

Among the virtues of hearing Bach cantatas performed in liturgical order—one of the hallmarks
of John Eliot Gardiner’s stunning Cantata Pilgrimage of 2000—is the chance to savor Bach’s range of approach to unified text themes.

Delightful Organ at St Margaretís Palm Desert

Who says an organ recital cannot be jolly good fun?

ROSSINI: Bianca e Falliero

Dynamic brought its cameras to the Rossini Opera Festival in Pesaro, Italy, in August 2005 to
record Bianca e Falliero, one of Rossini’s so-called “serious” operas, and one that had only been rescued from many decades of neglect by the festival itself, in 1986.

Miami “Karenina” a dream come true

Colin Graham’s dream of an opera based on Tolstoi’s “Anna Karenina” extends far into the past.