When an opera is based on a comedy, one is entitled to expect at least some trace of humour. A modicum of entertainment, at the very least; laughter would be…
RECITAL ETIENNE DUPUIS | Opéra National de Lyon
After a triumphant portrayal of Henri Ashton in the production of Lucie de Lammermoor at the OpĂ©ra Comique, the Canadian baritone treated us to an anthology worthy recital at the…
HAYDN, ADĂMEK, BRAHMS | Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks
Two end-points of a great musical spectrum, the Gasteig brochure called this programme, with OndĆej AdĂĄmek‘s Where Are You? set between them as the unstable hinge. The copy, for once,…
IL TROVATORE | Bayerische Staatsoper
Caruso is supposed to have said that all Il trovatore requires is âthe four greatest singers in the worldâ â a line that has been gently mocked for a century,…
LA FORZA DEL DESTINO | BĂŒhnen Bern
I was extremely excited about this one. Last year, when the new seasons were announced, I saw that both Zurich Opera and Stadttheater Bern were programming La forza del destino…
BRUCKNER 7 | Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France
The Adagio of the Seventh â written in part as a tombeau for Wagner, scored for the first time in Bruckner‘s output with four Wagner tubas â is the longest…
SIMON BOCCANEGRA | MĂŒnchner Rundfunkorchester
There is a snobbery about concert performances of opera that the genre rarely deserves and almost never bears out. Strip away the costumes, the projections, the trapdoors and the directorial…
RECITAL NETREBKO/TEZIER | Teatro Verdi di Busseto
I donât even know where to start. Actually⊠I do. I think Iâve reached the peak. The absolute maximum of what I could hope for as an opera lover. If…
ARIADNE AUF NAXOS | Staatsoper Berlin
Staging Ariadne auf Naxos is no simple task. Beneath its apparent simplicity – modest duration and relatively small forces – the work presents real challenges, not least in balancing comedy and gravity….
INTERMEZZO | Semperoper
Depending on your point of departure, Dresden may not be the most accessible destination in Germany. For those living in Paris, as the author of these lines does, the least…