Simple, complex, generous, selfish, unattractive, beautiful, lazy and driven Simple, complex, generous, selfish, unattractive, beautiful, lazy and driven

Happy 75th birthday Barbra Joan Streisand.

You know what Venus did to Adonis You know what Venus did to Adonis

Born on this day (assumed) in 1564 playwright and poet William Shakespeare.

Say yes to the dress Say yes to the dress

Gather, cher public, for discussion of today’s broadcast and HD of Eugene Onegin, live from the Met at 1:00 PM.

Only the good die young Only the good die young

Happy 82nd birthday mezzo-soprano Fiorenza Cossotto.

Just a little touch of war quality Just a little touch of war quality

Happy 68th birthday Broadway diva Patti LuPone.

Haydn in plain sight Haydn in plain sight

Although his operas don’t get much love, Haydn often wrote beautifully for the voice.

Asking the musical question ‘Harbor Lights’ Asking the musical question ‘Harbor Lights’

On this day in 1935 Your Hit Parade began broadcasting.

The last time i saw Aluis The last time i saw Aluis

On this day in 1774 Christoph Wilibald von Gluck‘s Iphigénie en Aulide premiered in Paris.

Same steppes, different dancers Same steppes, different dancers

Is there a more gorgeous male voice before the public today than Peter Mattei’s? Has Anna Netrebko ever sounded better?

An American soprano An American soprano

Happy 69th birthday soprano Catherine Malfitano.

Lady With a Repertoire Lady With a Repertoire

“If you’ve overdosed on Der Rosenkavalier in the past week, let’s go back a few years to Richard Strauss’ first operatic hit: Salome.

Quick bright things Quick bright things

Born on this day in 1927 soprano Marie Collier.

Broadcast: Aida Broadcast: Aida

Today’s broadcast of Aida from the Met begins at 12:30 PM, as does the traditional chat.

Plane and fancy Plane and fancy

On this day in 1738 Handel’s Serse premiered in London.

Charfreitagzauber Charfreitagzauber

parterre box revives a classic Good Friday tradition.

Through a glass vaguely Through a glass vaguely

Any production of Der Rosenkavalier that can transform the usually excruciating first half of the third act into a hilarious romp already has my vote.

Il suon de nova voce lusinghiera Il suon de nova voce lusinghiera

Happy 59th birthday soprano Aprile Millo.

“Nicht heut, nicht morgen!” “Nicht heut, nicht morgen!”

But enough about Renée Fleming‘s farewell.

Mountain high, valley low Mountain high, valley low

Be wary of operas that are famous for just one aria or just one famous opinion.

Their sound is gone out into all lands Their sound is gone out into all lands

“Trove Maundy Thursday” offers a recent un-HIP version of Handel’s Messiah.

We are all born mad. Some remain so We are all born mad. Some remain so

Born on this day in 1906 playwright Samuel Beckett.

How do you solve a problem like Medea? How do you solve a problem like Medea?

I was puzzled by my initial exposure to the Medea of Aribert Reimann, a work of 2010.

Mai Tosca alla scena meno tragica fu Mai Tosca alla scena meno tragica fu

The Met promises eight months from now a new production of Tosca and insiders are already betting that Kristine Opolais as the titular Roman diva may well be replaced before opening night.

‘Ja, ja’ land ‘Ja, ja’ land

We leave behind the Vienna of the 1740s, the time of breeches, fans and white wigs.