Recent Stories
“German fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld is a household name; 18th-century French composer Jean-Philippe Rameau isn’t.”
American soprano Aprile Millo rehearses for her role debut as Clara in Porgy and Bess with Opera Orchestra of New York.
The sad fact, though, is that the Met is not doing a great job or, in most cases, even a competent job at this core task.
Perhaps there are not that many people in the world who would look at a CD cover and think “Oh, goody, goody! A libretto by Eugène Scribe I’ve never come across before!”
Jungfer Marianne Leitmetzerin has a rare treat up her engageantes this week, a live performance of Verdi’s I due Foscari featuring baritone-era Plácido Domingo.
“Rely on the flamboyant German soprano Simone Kermes to steal scenes as La Jolie.”
Please don’t stand on ceremony, cher public: jump right into the discussion of off-topic and general interest subjects.
La Casa della Cieca is open this afternoon for a cozy chat during the Met broadcast of La sonnambula starting at 1:00 PM.
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
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.
Grand Tier Grab Bag
My 600 performance life
My 600 performance life
Parterre Box acknowledges Riccardo Muti‘s 600th performance with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra by highlighting two of his favorite singers — under a different conductor.
Parterre Box acknowledges Riccardo Muti‘s 600th performance with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra by highlighting two of his favorite singers — under a different conductor.
Grand Tier Grab Bag
Life imitates art
Life imitates art
With Gustavo Dudamel in the spotlight at Parterre Box this week, Grand Tier Grab Bag foreshadows one of the New York Philharmonic’s upcoming operatic engagements.
With Gustavo Dudamel in the spotlight at Parterre Box this week, Grand Tier Grab Bag foreshadows one of the New York Philharmonic’s upcoming operatic engagements.
In issue #46 of parterre box the queer opera zine (“Spunk”), you will find an endorsement by the legendary Astrid Varnay.
Alan Gordon has mass emailed AGAM again, and La Cieca’s got a copy of the missive.
Ineffable Igor Toronyi-Lalic (pictured, right) either spouts a novel canard or perhaps just froths incoherently. La Cieca will let you be the judge.
Divalicious Diana Damrau sings cuts from her new disc Forever tonight at Le Poisson Rouge, and, you, cher public, can see it livestreamed right here starting at 7:30 PM.
“This summer, [Susan] Graham will cap her season in Paris by making her role debut as Anna in The King and I at the Théâtre du Châtelet (June 13-29).”
La bohème is such a popular romantic opera that hardly anyone ever notices that Mimì and Rodolfo undergo what in modern terms would be called speed dating.
As someone who thinks Verdi is the greatest composer who ever lived and who feels pretty meh about Mozart, I expected to love the Verdi and be bored by the Mozart. I wasn’t far wrong.
Short answer: yes. But let’s begin by dismissing the a blatant canard. One thing that the Metropolitan Opera does not need to do is to scale back the number of performances in a season.
Talk of the Town
The Talk of the Town
A favorite Verdi performance from La Grunowa
A favorite Verdi performance from La Grunowa
I realize Igor Gorin did not sing much Verdi except for a few Papa Germonts, yet this performance of the famous baritone aria from Attila I claim is well-night perfect singing.
I realize Igor Gorin did not sing much Verdi except for a few Papa Germonts, yet this performance of the famous baritone aria from Attila I claim is well-night perfect singing.
The Talk of the Town
A favorite Verdi performance from Ryan Ellerman
A favorite Verdi performance from Ryan Ellerman
Luminous Lucia Popp’s “Caro Nome” beams with Gilda’s youthful passion, displaying Popp’s signature bright, beautiful timbre and magnificent coloratura.
Luminous Lucia Popp’s “Caro Nome” beams with Gilda’s youthful passion, displaying Popp’s signature bright, beautiful timbre and magnificent coloratura.
The Talk of the Town
A favorite Verdi performance from Marina Rebeka
A favorite Verdi performance from Marina Rebeka
While studying Un ballo in maschera for my Vienna role debut next January, I came across this beautiful ‘Ecco l’orrido campo’ amazingly performed by Montserrat Caballé.
While studying Un ballo in maschera for my Vienna role debut next January, I came across this beautiful ‘Ecco l’orrido campo’ amazingly performed by Montserrat Caballé.
The Talk of the Town
A favorite art song performance from Niel Rishoi
A favorite art song performance from Niel Rishoi
Hans Hotter masterfully captures the poignancy of this sublime Brahms Lied.
Hans Hotter masterfully captures the poignancy of this sublime Brahms Lied.
The Talk of the Town
A favorite art song performance from Arrigo
A favorite art song performance from Arrigo
While refined, Lisa della Casa sings “Four Last Songs” deeply alert to the text and with effortless vocalization that sounds fresh and spontaneous.
While refined, Lisa della Casa sings “Four Last Songs” deeply alert to the text and with effortless vocalization that sounds fresh and spontaneous.
From the Mike Richter collection, Act Three of Die Walküre at the Teatro Colón, featuring Hans Hotter and Birgit Nilsson (not pictured.)
“Rufus Wainwright: Why I love composer Olivier Messiaen“
When Norman Lebrecht is declaring on an almost daily basis that classical music is dead, it’s perhaps heartening that four of today’s prominent tenors have recently released what might be called fluff/vanity albums.
La Cieca hears that Indianapolis Opera plans to cancel the fourth and final show of its season, Britten’s Albert Herring, “amid ongoing financial issues.”
“Last year, Freud sold 80 percent of available seats during the 2012-13 Lyric Opera season.”
“Mary Garden, it was announced last night, ate a Christmas dinner consisting of ‘sweetbreads, petits pois, and Maraschino punch’.”
La Cieca (pictured) invites the cher public to join in the fun tonight at La Casa della Cieca during the Met’s broadcast of Andrea Chenier, starting at 7:25 PM.
Masterful mezzo Joyce DiDonato heads the cast of this 2010 performance of Mozart’s Idomeno from the Edinburgh International Festival
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