Decadent genealogies Decadent genealogies

Arnold Schoenberg’s Gurrelieder and Giacomo Puccini’s Turandot are, in their different ways, the final decadent flowering of a musical tradition at its twilight.

By the beautiful sea By the beautiful sea

On Sunday afternoon, husband-and-wife duo Roberto Alagna and Aleksandra Kurzak presented a charming program of operatic favorites from the patio of the Château de la Chèvre d’Or in Èze, France.

Discomfort zone Discomfort zone

Roberto Alagna’s physical and vocal embodiment of Don José lent his particular narrative a complication I hadn’t anticipated.

Double jeopardy Double jeopardy

Headlining the Met’s current revival of both Cavalleria Rusticana and Pagliacci, Roberto Alagna was operating on all cylinders Monday evening.

As if they never said goodbye As if they never said goodbye

Handsome singing by Roberto Alagna and extremely heavy makeup on Barbara Frittoli highlight these excerpts from Adriana Lecouvreur in Monte Carlo.

Oil, be seeing you

>Today at noon from the Bayerische Staatsoper, a live telecast of the premiere of Halévy’s La Juive.

Pinkerton’s secret Pinkerton’s secret

La Cieca would have taken him for a leg man, but Roberto Alagna has other ideas.

Chat: Madama Butterfly Chat: Madama Butterfly

Welcome, cher public, to the real-time chat for this afternoon’s Met broadcast and HD of Madama Butterfly, starting at 1:00 PM.

Wrecking ball Wrecking ball

Sir Richard Eyre’s new Manon Lescaut at the Met Friday night demonstrated no particular aptitude for opera.

Il core vi dono Il core vi dono

With February 14th falling on a Sunday, there will be no Valentine’s Day Met performance this year.

Uomo non vidi mai Uomo non vidi mai

From the Met: “Jonas Kaufmann has canceled his performances in this season’s new production of Puccini’s Manon Lescaut due to illness.”

For the birds For the birds

A “lone voice in the wilderness” booed Barbara Frittoli’s calamitous Nedda.

Cid; vicious Cid; vicious

In his first appearance on the stage of Paris’ Palais Garnier, Roberto Alagna, as the newly knighted Rodrigue, was confronted with a profound dilemma.