Michael Tilson Thomas steps in at the last minute for James Levine
Lewis WhittingtonPhiladelphia,
Metropolitan Opera maestro James Levine cancelled his appearances with the Philadelphia Orchestra due to ill health. San Francisco Orchestra conductor Michael Tilson Thomas (and all around good guy) graciously stepped in for Levine, on very short notice, and nonetheless made ...
Don't count this punchy, jazzy opera out -- it delivers a blow in ways that most opera-goers would grade a well-placed hit.
Suzanne WeissSan Francisco,
“Champion” packs a punch. If Grammy-winning jazz trumpeter Terence Blanchard’s opera is not a complete knockout, it may be due to a flabby libretto by Michael Cristofer with words that don’t live up to the power of the highly-listenable score. ...
Fears of the death of opera under director Simon McBurney turn out to be exaggerated, as witnessed in his rendition of Mozart's final operatic work.
Nicholas MarloweLondon,
Simon McBurney has returned to the English National Opera to direct the first revival of his production of Mozart's last great opera, which McBurney originally staged at the Coliseum in 2013. When his name was announced, there was a tendency ...
Mary NguyenLondon,
In mid-December, St John's Smith Square was alight with their 30th annual Christmas Festival. The final performances of the festival included masterpieces that one would expect to see during the festive season including Bach's Mass in B minor and Handel's ...
Mary NguyenLondon,
Last week St John's Smith Square was alight by their 30th annual Christmas Festival. The final performances of the festival included masterpieces that one would expect to see during the festive season including Bach's Mass in B minor and Handel's ...
In this double-bill of one-acts, Getty's take on Poe's gothic tale is more muddled than macabre, and an unfinished Debussy work gets a tortured reconstruction.
San Francisco,
An opera based on a Poe short story had its American premiere at the War Memorial Opera House recently. With great expectations it was born and, four performances later, mercifully it died. Whatever prompted San Francisco Opera to present Gordon ...
Mary NguyenLondon,
Back in 2003, Naomi Matsumoto came across an edited score at the Marciana Library in Venice. It was a handwritten score, which seemed to have been written in the 17th century with no mention of a composer or ...
Mary NguyenLondon,
"La Forza del Destino," (The Force of Destiny) is hard to stage. Verdi's marvellous music, including a grandiose overture, is one of his best, yet it strays from being a must-see opera for new audiences. This week, the English National ...
Lewis WhittingtonPhiladelphia,
The Academy of Vocal Arts’ mounts Mozart’s "Don Giovanni" every few years and it always seems to show them at their best. Their 2011 production, directed by the Tito Capobianco, and had the lusty Don Giovanni, in flagrante delicate all ...
Wagner's homage to the everyday tradesman of a German town, though long and at times pedantic, ends up a jolly celebration.
Suzanne WeissSan Francisco,
I don’t know why, but every time I hear the four mighty chords that begin Wagner’s “Die Meistersinger,” tears come to my eyes. Perhaps it’s the sheer grandeur of this music. But this is not the grandeur of the gods ...
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