Recent Stories
Diva November meets Wagner December when Chris’s Cache this week offers Régine Crespin as both Elisabeth in Tannhäuser and Senta in Der Fliegende Holländer via a pair of American pirates from the 1960s.
On this day in 1905 Richard Strauss‘s Salome premiered in Dresden.
On this day in 1925 the George S. Kaufman / Irving Berlin musical The Cocoanuts opened at the Lyric Theatre starring The Marx Brothers.
For those who relish 17th and 18th century vocal music, the annual visits to the Morgan Library by the singers and instrumentalists of the Boston Early Music Festival invariably guarantee delight
Born on this day in 1864 soprano Sibyl Sanderson.
As the focal point of the The Far Country, Eric Yang anchors the production with a cool steadiness that only occasionally betrays a sense of urgency beneath his patient countenance.
On this day in 1960 soprano Eileen Farrell made her Metropolitan Opera debut in the title role of a new production of Gluck’s Alceste.
On this day in 1960, Galina Vishnevskaya made a guest appearance with the Metropolitan Opera, singing Madama Butterfly in Russian.
Tell us: What’s your favorite Verdi performance?
Hasten thee to feed another quarter of conversation for The Talk of the Town!
Grand Tier Grab Bag
Grand Tier Grab Bag
Don’t cry because it’s over
Don’t cry because it’s over
Grand Tier Grab Bag hearkens back to the days when Sondra Radvanovsky — who is singing no Verdi at all next season — seemed like the Verdi soprano of reference.
Grand Tier Grab Bag hearkens back to the days when Sondra Radvanovsky — who is singing no Verdi at all next season — seemed like the Verdi soprano of reference.
Grand Tier Grab Bag
Rizzin’ to the occasion
Rizzin’ to the occasion
Parterre Box features the Met’s current Eugene Onegin, Iurii Samoilov, in a performance of Rossini ahead of a return to Pesaro this summer.
Parterre Box features the Met’s current Eugene Onegin, Iurii Samoilov, in a performance of Rossini ahead of a return to Pesaro this summer.
Grand Tier Grab Bag
When they go low
When they go low
Nostalgic for bass month, Parterre Box offers excerpts from two young basses to watch: Giorgi Manoshvili and Patrick Guetti.
Nostalgic for bass month, Parterre Box offers excerpts from two young basses to watch: Giorgi Manoshvili and Patrick Guetti.
Grand Tier Grab Bag
Nailin’ the coughin’
Nailin’ the coughin’
Rosa Feola, still scheduled for a run of performances as Violetta in New York this spring, is the subject of this week’s Grand Tier Grab Bag.
Rosa Feola, still scheduled for a run of performances as Violetta in New York this spring, is the subject of this week’s Grand Tier Grab Bag.
Grand Tier Grab Bag
Landing the plane
Landing the plane
With Nixon, Klinghoffer, and Andris Nelsons on the mind, Parterre Box offers a recording of the Boston Symphony Orchestra’s recent John Adams outing.
With Nixon, Klinghoffer, and Andris Nelsons on the mind, Parterre Box offers a recording of the Boston Symphony Orchestra’s recent John Adams outing.
Grand Tier Grab Bag
Le galant tireur
Le galant tireur
American tenor Charles Castronovo performs a bit of Weber’s Der Freischütz ahead of the opportunity to hear Berlioz‘s take on the score at Carnegie Hall next week.
American tenor Charles Castronovo performs a bit of Weber’s Der Freischütz ahead of the opportunity to hear Berlioz‘s take on the score at Carnegie Hall next week.
On this day in 1935 the Metropolitan Opera presented a new production of Die Walküre featuring the company debut of soprano Marjorie Lawrence as Brünnhilde.
Step aside, Texas: “Everything is bigger at Aida” is the motto of the Met’s second attempt at retiring Sonja Frisell’s colossal production.
Premiere of a new production from the Bayreische Staatsoper.
On this day in 2009 the Metropolitan Opera presented a production of Les Contes d’Hoffmann that went through six major cast changes during the rehearsal period.
Arts Council England, as a global policy trendsetter, may have sounded the death knell for the international opera industry as we know it.
Alma Deutscher’s quest for beautiful music permeates the score of her Cinderella from the hushed opening of the Overture.
Born 99 years ago.
Talk of the Town
The Talk of the Town
A favorite Verdi performance from Leyla Gender-Bender
A favorite Verdi performance from Leyla Gender-Bender
Stiffelio has always been the dark horse of early Verdi operas.
Stiffelio has always been the dark horse of early Verdi operas.
The Talk of the Town
A favorite Verdi performance from Lou Ann Darras
A favorite Verdi performance from Lou Ann Darras
I have very few opportunities to see real-life opera divas, but when Natalie Dessay chose to debut her first Traviata at Santa Fe, there was no way I was going to miss it.
I have very few opportunities to see real-life opera divas, but when Natalie Dessay chose to debut her first Traviata at Santa Fe, there was no way I was going to miss it.
The Talk of the Town
A favorite Verdi performance from Astyanax
A favorite Verdi performance from Astyanax
The air held a real charge that night in SF’s War Memorial Opera House.
The air held a real charge that night in SF’s War Memorial Opera House.
The Talk of the Town
A favorite Verdi performance from Ivy Lin
A favorite Verdi performance from Ivy Lin
This is one of those rare performances that makes you believe that everything Verdi was greater Way Back When.
This is one of those rare performances that makes you believe that everything Verdi was greater Way Back When.
The Talk of the Town
A favorite Verdi performance from Mister Snow
A favorite Verdi performance from Mister Snow
Nothing prepared me for the Soviero experience
Nothing prepared me for the Soviero experience
The Talk of the Town
A favorite Verdi performance from Tildy Diva
A favorite Verdi performance from Tildy Diva
A well-known Met Aïda with a starry cast from 1967 is TildyDiva’s Favorite Verdi Performance
A well-known Met Aïda with a starry cast from 1967 is TildyDiva’s Favorite Verdi Performance
Of course the Met premiere of The Hours grabbed most of the attention last month!
On this day in 1962, the Metropolitan Opera presented Ernani starring Carlo Bergonzi, Leontyne Price, Cornell MacNeil and Giorgio Tozzi, conducted by Thomas Schippers.
One wonders whether an obsession with metrics and measurement has the potential to create arts organizations that are more preoccupied with finding systems that quickly and efficiently tick the Arts Council’s boxes than with creating meaningful, impactful art.
On this day in 1990 the Metropolitan Opera presented a new production of Rossini’s Semiramide.
Wrapping up Diva November, Chris’s Cache offers two sacred works that couldn’t be more unalike.
On this day in 1937 the Metropolitan Opera opened its season with Tristan und Isolde.
“Opera needs a reset. We think there needs to be a fundamental shift in the ecology.”
On this day in 1942 the Metropolitan Opera presented a new production of Lucia di Lammermoor.
×
Sign up for Parterre’s free newsletter.
Exclusive opera reviews, commentary, and top reads
delivered to your email weekly…ish.