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  • emeraldlulu: Jamie01: your last comment is spot on. From what I understand, they had one day to tech and dress in... 6:06 PM
  • MontyNostry: whoops, would help if I included the link: httpv://www.youtub e.com/watch?v=jKDV sQsDWtY 6:01 PM
  • MontyNostry: New on YouTube: Flo on fire, Franco and Ilva Ligabue (proving she could sing Aida as well as Alice).... 6:01 PM
  • MontyNostry: Part of the thrill of opera is the physical experience of an unamplified voice. I find mic’d... 5:46 PM
  • ianw2: Well, absolute fidelity to the score is a relatively modern invention to begin with, so although he’d... 5:25 PM
  • oedipe: BTW, as we speak, there are about 10000 people in Moskow’s Red Square listening to Anna sing Vespri! 4:48 PM
  • havfruen: The director should then take his ideas to Broadway. 4:30 PM
  • luvtennis: Question Posed: What if a director had an awesome vision for a production of the Ring or Aida but it... 2:58 PM

Claramae Turner 1920-2012

The American contralto, who created the title role in Menotti’s The Medium and introduced the song “I Left My Heart in San Francisco,” died May 18. She was 92. [New York Times] Read more »

Le canard de la semaine

La Cieca would like to introduce a new feature debunking a popular misconception about some aspect of opera. To kick of the series, let us take into consideration Manon Lescaut’s expedition into the “desert” of Louisiana. Read more »

O Engländer! Seid ihr nicht Toren…

As she herself points out, Zerbinetta is perhaps the first woman besides “the inimitable Heather MacDonald” to write a serious critique of Calixto Bieito‘s production of Die Entführung aus dem Serail.

Ariadne auf Naxos

Shattered island

Some rare midweek chatting fodder turns up this afternoon when the Glyndebourne Festival webcasts Ariadne auf Naxos at 6:55pm BST/1:55pm EDT.

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rheingold_1965

Highlight of the gods

Our JJ’s recent reminiscences over at WQXR about the whopping cost of a Ring recording back in the Mad Men era seemed all the more startling to La Cieca when she took a gander at a “new” live Ring offered by our friends at Opera Depot.

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dessay_sf

La nuit d’une étoile

“American tenor Matthew Polenzani sings the title role opposite Natalie Dessay as Antonia, Christian Van Horn as the four villains, Angela Brower as Nicklausse, Hye Jung Lee as Olympia, Irene Roberts as Giulietta and Jacqueline Piccolino as Stella.”

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Iestyn Davies

Deeds of kindness to review

For decades thousands and thousands have attended Handel’s Messiah (usually around Christmas or more appropriately near Easter) making it easily one of the most widely known works of classical music.

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Milton Cross

Cross purposes

We now take you to the Texaco broadcast booth for our weekly discussion of off-topic and general interest subjects.

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