parterre box

From the House of the Dead From the House of the Dead

Karina Canellakis conducts Janácek‘s final opera live from Amsterdam.

on March 21, 2025 at 12:00 PM
Unreleased cut Unreleased cut

Recent rapturous musings about Huw Montague Rendall and curiosity about Aigul Akhmetshina‘s return to the Met as Rosina in May have prompted the box to share a recent sample of the pair in “Dunque io son.”

on March 21, 2025 at 9:00 AM
More people should listen to Karan Armstrong More people should listen to Karan Armstrong

Never saw her in anything, only on You Tube videos and in a few recordings.

on March 21, 2025 at 6:00 AM
More people should listen to Renée Doria More people should listen to Renée Doria

For me, Renée Doria epitomizes the best of French style – pointed diction, a slightly lemon-y timbre that cuts through any cloying sentimentality…..love her!

on March 20, 2025 at 6:00 AM
More people should listen to Elisabete Matos More people should listen to Elisabete Matos

… as Minnie in La fanciulla del west

on March 19, 2025 at 6:00 AM
Alcina Alcina

The opening night of a new production live from the Teatro dell’Opera di Roma.

on March 18, 2025 at 9:00 AM
More people should listen to Martha Angelici More people should listen to Martha Angelici
on March 18, 2025 at 6:00 AM
Kát’a Kabanová Kát’a Kabanová

Corinne Winters sings the title role in Janácek‘s opera live from Munich.

on March 17, 2025 at 9:00 AM
More people should listen to Pilar Lorengar More people should listen to Pilar Lorengar

She demonstrated impressive artistry in repertoire that ranged from Spanish music to Mozart and Verdi. I only saw her twice at the Met in Mozart but they were both memorable performances.

on March 17, 2025 at 6:00 AM
Laffont Grand Finals Concert Laffont Grand Finals Concert

The conclusion of the Metropolitan Opera’s annual competition, live from New York

on March 16, 2025 at 9:00 AM
Bel Canto Sunday Matinée Bel Canto Sunday Matinée

parterre‘s protean publisher and historical singing authority Nick Scholl sits down with the Bel Canto Boot Camp team to discuss the old school and what makes for good filth

on March 16, 2025 at 9:00 AM
More people should listen to Martile Rowland More people should listen to Martile Rowland

A drama/trauma-tic soprano in the model of Gencer and Olivero, Martile Rowland sang a brilliant Elisabetta in Roberto Devereux (a last minute replacement for Zampieri, another controversial pick) at a concert, did half a Puritani at the Met, and sang the other “Gencer” roles such as Paolina in I Martiri, the title roles in Caterina Cornaro and Linda di Chamounix, and then retired to teach in the midwest somewhere(?).

on March 16, 2025 at 6:00 AM
Beware the ides of March Beware the ides of March

But two weeks remain for readers to stoke the fires of daily discussion over at The Talk of the Town!

on March 15, 2025 at 9:00 AM

A live broadcast from New York – and Lise Davidsen‘s final broadcast before her maternity leave!

on March 15, 2025 at 9:00 AM
Norma Norma

Federica Lombardi is Norma in a performance recorded in Vienna last month.

on March 15, 2025 at 9:00 AM
More people should listen to Joyce Guyer More people should listen to Joyce Guyer

Joyce Guyer’s silvery soprano, impeccable musicianship and beguiling stage presence made her an invaluable member of the Met roster in the late 1990s and early 2000s, appearing most frequently in harmony with others in such assignments as Najade in Ariadne auf Naxos, Woglinde in Wagner’s Ring Cycle and as a Parsifal Flower Maiden.

on March 15, 2025 at 6:00 AM
‘Do’ or die ‘Do’ or die

Hoping to speed up the arrival of spring, parterre box coaxes you to Michael Spyres‘s blazing pira with an in-house sampling of his Manrico from last fall’s Il trovatore in Houston.

on March 14, 2025 at 9:00 AM
More people should listen to Lianna Haroutounian More people should listen to Lianna Haroutounian

Although not exactly unknown, why she isn’t a big star is mysterious to me.

on March 14, 2025 at 6:00 AM
More people should listen to Karina Gauvin More people should listen to Karina Gauvin

I first encountered Karina Gauvin in 2003 in the Boston Early Music Festival’s production of Conradi’s Ariadne. It does not happen often that I encounter an unknown singer with such a gorgeous sheen to their voice. Her performance was a knockout.

on March 13, 2025 at 6:00 AM
More people should listen to Eugenia Burzio More people should listen to Eugenia Burzio

Eugenia Burzio is the most demented soprano on record, for me at least.

on March 12, 2025 at 6:00 AM
Lyric Opera of Chicago 2025-26 Lyric Opera of Chicago 2025-26

Lyric Opera of Chicago has announced its 2025-26 season, its first complete one under its new General Director, President & CEO John Mangum.

on March 11, 2025 at 2:00 PM
Moby-Dick Moby-Dick

A live broadcast from New York

on March 11, 2025 at 9:00 AM
More people should listen to Suzanne Adams More people should listen to Suzanne Adams

Such clean, beautifully poised technique, rich timbre, gorgeous agility…the anti-Melba

on March 11, 2025 at 6:00 AM
More people should listen to Chelsea Lehnea More people should listen to Chelsea Lehnea

A currently active dramatic coloratura who has the voice and technique for Odabella! how often do we see that?

on March 10, 2025 at 6:00 AM