Janos GerebenSan Francisco,
The superbly melodic operas of Gaetano Donizetti represent a triumph of the human spirit over extreme adversities. Long before syphilis and bipolar disorder drove him into an insane asylum and then early death at age 51 in 1848, he had ...
An Effort to Turn Chinese Classic Into Western Opera
Janos GerebenSan Francisco,
Ethnic support for opera in multi-ethnic San Francisco is a subject worth scholarly research, which is certainly not being offered here. These are only a few broad observations, leading to a point to be made soon.
Italians ...
Frances WilsonLondon,
The way in to the venue is an unprepossessing entrance beside the PeckhamPlex cinema. There’s a bouncer in attendance and some heavy-duty metal barriers such as one might see at a demo. We ascend a grubby narrow concrete staircase and ...
Michael McDonaghBerkeley,
Life is complicated. More than one thing is going on whether we like it or not. This could be a definition of music too because it's a celebration and a leave-taking and we're always doing both. We say hello as ...
Janos GerebenSan Francisco,
San Francisco's Merola Opera Program does a world of good for super-talented young singers about to launch their careers, but this time an event might have given them an incorrect impression about what to expect from music directors.
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Mary NguyenLondon,
Glyndebourne has returned to the Proms for Rossini’s mad opera of disguises and shaved beards, where the smiles and double entendres never seem to end. It is the first time that the BBC Proms have added The ...
A Documentary about Yo-Yo Ma and the Silk Road Ensemble
Michael McDonagh
We all want to be loved. We all want to belong. But what do you do if your house is bombed and everyone in it dies? Do you become bitter, or take the high road? And what do you do ...
A new live recording by the Boston Symphony Orchestra
Lewis Whittington
Conductor Andris Nelsons and the Boston Symphony Orchestra continue their stellar series of performances of the works of Dmitri Shostakovich with their Deutsch Grammophon release “ Shostakovich Under Stalin’s Shadow,” a 2-cd set with their live performances of symphonies ...
Mary NguyenLondon,
Despite how musically rich and sensitive Janáček’s opera Jenůfa is, its grotesque storyline, which includes the murdering of a child, is not. It captures a sample of small-town life in Moravian Slovakia during the mid-1850s, which first influenced Gabriela Preissová ...
With Finnish soprano Karita Mattila leading a magnificent cast, this production of Janáček's folk opera makes for an immersive experience.
Suzanne WeissSan Francisco,
The last time I saw Karita Mattila in “Jenůfa” she played the title role, a young village girl madly in love with the town ne’er-do-well and secretly carrying his child to boot. Now, her gleaming voice burnished with maturity, the ...
