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Yannick Nézet-Séguin conducts Leah Hawkins, Karen Cargill, Matthew Polenzani, and Dmitry Belosselskiy in a performance from this fall
Stephen Milling, Bryn Terfel, Elisabet Strid, Toby Spence, and conductor Henrik Nánási star in a broadcast from London recorded earlier this month
On this day in 1970 tenor Nico Castel made his Metropolitan Opera debut as Don Basilo in Le nozze di Figaro
Yannick Nézet-Séguin conducts Elena Stikhina, Maria Barakova, Brian Jagde, Igor Golovatenko, Patrick Carfizzi, and Soloman Howard in a broadcast from New York
Yes, there were other Giocondas if not of quite the same distinction. Chronologically…
On this day in 1879 Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin premiered in Moscow
Puccini’s schmaltziest, most melodic, most dramatically limp, most cynical, most obscure mature work
The first of two Requiem broadcasts this Holy Week:Myung-Whun Chung conducts Angela Meade, Annalisa Stroppa, Fabio Sartori and Riccardo Zanellato in a live broadcast from Venice
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
Tra voi belle
Tra voi belle
Following the announcement that she’ll make her Met debut next season, Grand Tier Grab Bag brings Italian soprano Erika Grimaldi to your attention with a duet from Manon Lescaut.
Following the announcement that she’ll make her Met debut next season, Grand Tier Grab Bag brings Italian soprano Erika Grimaldi to your attention with a duet from Manon Lescaut.
Grand Tier Grab Bag
León in winter
León in winter
Ahead of his performance in Les pêcheurs de perles with Washington Concert Opera, Parterre Box features the unusually elegant Anthony León performing Mozart.
Ahead of his performance in Les pêcheurs de perles with Washington Concert Opera, Parterre Box features the unusually elegant Anthony León performing Mozart.
Grand Tier Grab Bag
Assai più vale il soglio
che un genitor perduto
Assai più vale il soglio
che un genitor perduto
Parterre Box highlights a busy few months of Verdi performances for Marina Rebeka and Ludovic Tézier with an exciting sample of their debuts in Nabucco.
Parterre Box highlights a busy few months of Verdi performances for Marina Rebeka and Ludovic Tézier with an exciting sample of their debuts in Nabucco.
Grand Tier Grab Bag
Women’s liberation
Women’s liberation
Parterre Box highlights two recent Verdi Requiems of interest with a pair of Libera mes from Asmik Grigorian and Anna Netrebko.
Parterre Box highlights two recent Verdi Requiems of interest with a pair of Libera mes from Asmik Grigorian and Anna Netrebko.
Grand Tier Grab Bag
Ash and you shall receive
Ash and you shall receive
Bellini and Donizetti may be top of mind these days, so Parterre Box offers two budding belcantisti, Beth Taylor and Dave Monaco, in a duet from Rossini’s La cenerentola.
Bellini and Donizetti may be top of mind these days, so Parterre Box offers two budding belcantisti, Beth Taylor and Dave Monaco, in a duet from Rossini’s La cenerentola.
Grand Tier Grab Bag
When her ship comes in
When her ship comes in
Anticipating the titanic arrival of Lise Davidsen‘s Isolde in New York in March, Parterre Box is thrilled to share a bit of her debut opposite Clay Hilley recorded in Barcelona last week.
Anticipating the titanic arrival of Lise Davidsen‘s Isolde in New York in March, Parterre Box is thrilled to share a bit of her debut opposite Clay Hilley recorded in Barcelona last week.
And what a luxury it is to experience this musically outstanding Parsifal with a cast of this caliber!
Happy 55th birthday mezzo-soprano Daniela Barcellona
Having relished last week’s American Symphony Orchestra “once-in-a-liftetime” Gurrelieder (my third, in fact), I wanted to keep enjoying Schönberg’s lush early epic.
Born on this day in 1950 mezzo-soprano/soprano Maria Ewing
Speranza Scappucci conducts the Metropolitan Opera opening night of Puccini’s wistful opera with Angel Blue, Jonathan Tetelman, Emily Pogorelc, and Dekhzod Davronov
La forza del destino concluded its run at the Metropolitan Opera with a significant cast change.
On this day in 1964 the Jule Styne-Bob Merrill musical Funny Girl opened on Broadway
Susan Graham will lead a four-performance run of A Little Night Music at Lincoln Center in June.
Talk of the Town
The Talk of the Town
The René Jacobs Giulio Cesare is so overrated
The René Jacobs Giulio Cesare is so overrated
George Frideric Handel (born 341 years ago on Monday) composed over 40 operas including many masterpieces, but his Giulio Cesare is the one that everyone knows best.
George Frideric Handel (born 341 years ago on Monday) composed over 40 operas including many masterpieces, but his Giulio Cesare is the one that everyone knows best.
The Talk of the Town
The 1946 La traviata is so overrated
The 1946 La traviata is so overrated
For all his undeniable precision and discipline, I still find Toscanini’s tempi rushed and unyielding and his lack of rubato a chilly turnoff.
For all his undeniable precision and discipline, I still find Toscanini’s tempi rushed and unyielding and his lack of rubato a chilly turnoff.
The Talk of the Town
The 1957 Anna Bolena is so overrated
The 1957 Anna Bolena is so overrated
While the three leads do sing the material well, there has been a glut of recordings since then which are more complete and at least as well sung.
While the three leads do sing the material well, there has been a glut of recordings since then which are more complete and at least as well sung.
The Talk of the Town
The Solti Ring Cycle is so overrated
The Solti Ring Cycle is so overrated
It was many decades ago that I first listened to the Solti Ring Cycle.
It was many decades ago that I first listened to the Solti Ring Cycle.
The Talk of the Town
The 1959 Aïda is so overrated
The 1959 Aïda is so overrated
Karajan’s 1959 Aïda was once treated like gospel, a wall of plush Vienna Philharmonic sound and star power that critics dutifully genuflected before.
Karajan’s 1959 Aïda was once treated like gospel, a wall of plush Vienna Philharmonic sound and star power that critics dutifully genuflected before.
The Talk of the Town
The 1973 La bohème is so overrated
The 1973 La bohème is so overrated
The Solti recording of Bohème is completely miscast.
The Solti recording of Bohème is completely miscast.
Born on this day in 1910 soprano Magda Olivero
On this day in 1920 the first performance of Tchaikovsky‘s Eugene Onegin at the Met
Yannick Nézet-Séguin leads Nadine Sierra, Benjamin Bernheim, Samantha Hankey, Frederick Ballentine, and Will Liverman in a broadcast from New York
On this day in 1977 soprano Ileana Cotrubas made her Metropolitan Opera debut as Mimì
Natalie Dessay debuts as Madam Rose in Paris in 2025
Maria Callas’s official debut in opera was as La Gioconda in 1947 at the arena in Verona.
Birthday Celebrations of Musical Theater composers: