Afraid of their own shadows Afraid of their own shadows

Later this month the Met at last revives its striking Herbert Wernicke production of Die Frau ohne Schatten, prompting a Chris’s Cache preview of three live recordings of Strauss and Hofmannsthal’s fanciful if knotty masterpiece.

Queen’s evidence Queen’s evidence

Trove Thursday’s belated contribution to last weekend’s Platinum Jubilee is a broadcast from Aldeburgh of Benjamin Britten’s Gloriana with Christine Brewer and Tom Randle as Elizabeth and Essex, an opera which premiered 69 years ago yesterday.

Mithridates is dead Mithridates is dead

Trove Thursday marks Mozart’s 264th birthday on Sunday with the 14-year-old’s remarkable opera seria Mitridate, Re di Ponto .

The need for speed The need for speed

Beauteous Trinidadian soprano Jeanine De Bique appeared Sunday afternoon with the visiting Budapest Festival Orchestra under Ivan Fischer.

Composer’s intentions Composer’s intentions

A live broadcast of the prologue to Ariadne auf Naxos featuring Julia Varady, a favorite sopranos in a role she sang only rarely.

She wants to be a primadonna She wants to be a primadonna

On Saturday I attended the premiere performance of a new production of Ariadne auf Naxos at the Festspielhaus in Baden-Baden, Germany.  It was Renée Fleming’s debut in the title role…

Rock stars

Scanning this summer’s Mostly Mozart schedule one wondered if New York really needed another Don Giovanni right now?  And one with a non-starry cast where the best-known name was the Commendatore, Kristinn Sigmundsson? 

Ariadne auf English?

Chandos’ Opera In English series continues with a new two-disc set of Strauss’ much-admired Ariadne on Naxos, with the Hofmannsthal libretto translated by Christopher Cowell.  Sir Richard Armstrong conducts the Scottish Chamber Orchestra and a starry if uneven cast led by Christine Brewer in the title role. This reviewer has never fully warmed to the…

the day after the night

Our Own Gualtier Maldè reports: The Met’s orchestra and audience have found a new conductor to love: Daniel Barenboim.  The debutante conductor got a huge ovation before he even lifted his baton.  Lots of applause for Danny B. all night from an adoring audience including a generous amount at his final bow.  There was lots of touchy feely…