La Cieca
James Jorden (who writes under the names "La Cieca" and "Our Own JJ") is the founder and editor of parterre box. During his 20 year career as an opera critic he has written for the New York Times, Opera, Gay City News, Opera Now, Musical America and the New York Post. He has also raised his voice in punditry on National Public Radio. From time to time he has directed opera, including three unsuccessful productions of Don Giovanni, a work he hopes to return to someday. Currently he alternates his doyenne duties with writing a weekly column on opera for the New York Observer.
According to Gay City News, our editor JJ loved Angela Gheorghiu‘s Violetta, and he was more than a little enthused about Herr Jonas Kaufmann. Le public have spoken, and they want their video to stream quickly and reliably. So save this bookmark and visit frequently: it’s the parterre box page at Google Video. Here’s a…
By La Cieca
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So now Google offers a video sharing service too — a little more trouble to upload, but the playback seems to be somewhat smoother than YouTube. This is a Google video; let La Cieca know what you think.
By La Cieca
This week on “Unnatural Acts of Opera,” La Cieca presents what you might call an “ultragala” performance of La traviata — the four acts performed by four different celebrated interpreters of the role of Violetta. For the first act, Anna Moffo is the courtesan, in a 1964 performance from La Scala. Gianni Raimondi is her…
By La Cieca
La Cieca’s faithful spy L’incredibile reports from the Met’s Samson prova that Clifton Forbis is “the most committed artist in this role since Jon Vickers,” up to and including singing the Act 1 B-flat full out over the chorus. (“Quite a contrast to Jose Cura‘s attitude.”) It doesn’t hurt, L’inc adds, that Forbis boasts “Popeye…
By La Cieca
La Cieca hears that one of our most popular and beloved mezzo-sopranos is going to drop the “mezzo” part and push up into a higher Fach. Wouldn’t it be a tragedy if this American artist were to show such poor judgment? A quick look-in at Academy Records this evening revealed a tantalizing assortment of CDs…
By La Cieca
La Cieca is just so excited about the new youtube capability that she wants you, cher public, to get in on the act. Do you have a favorite operatic video clip you would like to share with the world (well, with the readers of parterre.com, which amounts to everyone in the world that matters)? Just…
By La Cieca
La Cieca can’t, at this stage, direct her questions to the source of this item, but at least one Met insider at the Met is whispering that Placido Domingo will cancel some (if not all) of his performances in Alfano’s Cyrano de Bergerac beginning Thursday. UPDATE: The cover (who sang the closed dress rehearsal on…
By La Cieca
Stephen Costello is ear-candy too: here he is singing “Torna ai felici di” from Puccini’s Le villi. Care to hear him sing the whole opera? Then tune in on Sunday, January 29 to a webcast from wrti.org featuring The Academy of Vocal Arts’ production of Le villi as the second half of a double bill.…
By La Cieca
Fanny Brice burlesques an operatic diva. [kml_flashembed movie=”http://video.google.com/googleplayer.swf?docid=-4886971964734781240″ width=”400″ height=”326″ wmode=”transparent” /]
By La Cieca
“Her quirky personality shines through once she gets to know you . . . . In the home, she is very sweet and quite affectionate, however she is not clingy or needy for your undivided attention at all times . . . . She’s not a hyper or noisy girl, but she has a wealth…
By La Cieca
As a supplement to this week’s podcast of Faust, a video of Alfredo Kraus singing “Salut, demeure” in 1972.
By La Cieca
Dear Liz Smith reports today: “THE NEW pope, Benedict XVI, is getting a reputation for slightly eccentric behavior. He likes to disguise himself as a simple priest and go out at night back to his former apartments in a little zone tucked behind St. Peter’s Square. He often goes to his old room and stays…
By La Cieca
La Cieca is both delighted and heartbroken to announce that, on the occasion of Madame Vera Galupe-Borszkh‘s twentieth Annual Farewell Recital, the celebrated “Traumatic Soprano” will, at long last, take the “F” word literally. Madame Vera will say “addio senza rancor” to New York once and for all when she returns to the Thalia Theatre…
By La Cieca
Two legendary artists are captured in the freshness of vocal youth in this week’s podcast. Richard Tucker and Victoria de los Angeles star in a production of Gounod’s Faust from the New Orleans Opera, February 26, 1953. Unnatural Acts of Opera
By La Cieca
This just in from musicalamerica.com: “Marilyn Horne’s manager at Columbia Artists Management Inc., has confirmed that Ms. Horne has been diagnosed with localized pancreatic cancer.” A source at the Marilyn Horne Foundation adds: “Marilyn Horne has been diagnosed with localized pancreatic cancer, which, allowing for recent significant breakthroughs in treatment, offers an excellent prognosis for…
By La Cieca
As several of you have informed us, some of the archived podcasts are currently unavailable for download. The host for these files, libsyn.com, has been experiencing some technical problems but they assure La Cieca that all should be well in a day or so. In the meantime, here’a another youtube video to keep you amused.
By La Cieca
One more tribute to Birgit Nilsson. “Isolde’s Narrative,” 1967.
By La Cieca
So, this is what La Cieca read on the website of the Italian newspaper Il Mattino: Roberto Alagna . . . sta male a causa di crisi ipoglicemiche e non potrà cantare per almeno tre mesi . . . . A dare la notizia lo stesso cantante accompagnato dalla moglie, il soprano Angela Gheorghiu, che…
By La Cieca
Join La Cieca in a special edition of “Unnatural Acts of Opera,” recalling some great moments from magnificent Birgit Nilsson. Part 1 includes selections from Die Walkuere, Lohengrin (with Astrid Varnay), Siegfried (with Hans Hopf), Goetterdaemmerung and Parsifal (with Helge Brilioth), plus “I Could Have Danced All Night.” In Part 2, Nilsson is heard in…
By La Cieca
La Cieca has heard (from a number of sources in New York and elsewhere) the sad news that Marilyn Horne is quite seriously ill. We’re not going to dwell on the exact diagnosis , but rather we’ll simply express the hope that “General” Horne will emerge victorious through the strength of purpose and good humor…
By La Cieca
Now (as always) La Cieca is on the prowl for tips on opera-related gossip. We’re talking future casting, hirings and firings, onstage and backstage misbehavior, random acts of charity, deliberate acts of skulduggery, and, well, all those wonderful things that make opera seem like it belongs in the same world with Lindsay Lohan. In order…
By La Cieca
UPDATED January 12: The legendary Swedish soprano Birgit Nilsson died on December 25, it was announced yesterday. She was 87. La Cieca will present a special episode of “Unnatural Acts of Opera” tonight in salute to Mme. Nilsson. Birgit Nilsson as Isolde, Metropolitan Opera, 1971 Once Birgit Nilsson was negotiating a contract with Herbert von…
By La Cieca
Soprano Mariella Devia — who La Cieca thought was such a sweet ingenue type — turns tigress for the title role of Lucrezia Borgia (Donizetti). This live performance from 2003 also features Daniela Barcellona (Maffio Orsini), Marcelo Alvarez (Gennaro) and Michele Pertusi (Don Alfonso, Duca di Ferrara) under the baton of Renato Palumbo. The Prologue…
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