Wolfgang Sawallisch, Conductor, Dies at 89Hiroyuki Ito for The New York Times Wolfgang Sawallisch, one of the last of the old-school German conductors, who led the Philadelphia Orchestra for nearly a decade and the Bavarian State Opera in Munich for two decades before that, died on Friday at… Feb 24 13February 24, 2013Article at New York Times
June 28, 2008Ben Heppner has jumped through the hoops of two of the hardest roles in the tenor repertory: Wagner's Tristan and Verdi's Otello. He is being called the leading heroic tenor of our times. Now he will put his money where his mouth is -- or his mouth… Jun 28 08June 28, 2008Article at New York Times
Some Voices That Might Carry for a WhileOPERA lovers, myself included, are fond of wringing their hands about the failings of the present generation of singers compared with the great voices of the past. But in 2007, even as we furrow our brows about opera’s increased focus on the visual… Dec 23 07December 23, 2007Article at New York Times
A Star Who Plays Second Fiddle to MusicRichard Termine for The New York Times When a star pianist comes into a huge hall wearing a three-piece orange suit, “self-effacing” is not the description that comes to mind. But when Yefim Bronfman lumbered into Grand Central Terminal in October… Dec 15 07December 15, 2007Article at New York Times
Growing Old Enough to Appreciate YouthPatrick Pfeiffer/Theater Biel Solothurn AN abiding delight of my college years, as I devoured Verdi opera after Verdi opera, was the thought that there was an entire repertory of such gems waiting to be discovered. I did not realize then that I was… Dec 09 07December 09, 2007Article at New York Times
Andrew Foldi, Opera Singer and Educator, Dies at 81Andrew Foldi, a bass who sang character roles for decades at the Chicago Lyric Opera, the Metropolitan Opera and other houses and later directed the Chicago Lyric Opera Center for young artists, died on Nov. 21 in Federal Way, Wash. He was 81. The… Dec 01 07December 01, 2007Article at New York Times
Gudrun Wagner, of Bayreuth Festival, Dies at 63Gudrun Wagner, who as the wife of Wolfgang Wagner, the director of the Bayreuth Festival, played a major behind-the-scenes role in guiding the event, the world’s pre-eminent Wagner opera festival, died yesterday in Bayreuth, Germany. She was 63. No… Nov 29 07November 29, 2007Article at New York Times
A Cultural Critic’s Restless Last Night“If one views the growing work as a blazing pyre, its commentator can be likened to the chemist, its critic to an alchemist,” Walter Benjamin once wrote. “While the former is left with wood and ashes as the sole objects of his analysis, the latter is… Nov 28 07November 28, 2007Article at New York Times
Frank Guarrera, 83, Lyric Baritone at the Met, Is DeadFrank Guarrera, a lyric baritone who sang at the Metropolitan Opera for nearly 30 years, died on Friday at his home in Bellmawr, N.J. He was 83. The cause was complications from diabetes, said his daughter, Valerie Bisquert. With his slender but firm… Nov 27 07November 27, 2007Article at New York Times
A Touch of Lavender Amid an Embarrassment of SuitorsFaced with the challenge of staging a 17th-century play, a director is generally thought to have two options: Stay true to the period or update. With her production of George Farquhar’s “Constant Couple,” written in 1699, at the Pearl Theater… Nov 26 07November 26, 2007Article at New York Times
Polite Entertainment From New York’s House BandMusic lovers in this city are lucky to have an orchestra as good as the New York Philharmonic to complain about. It plays skillfully, it makes lovely sounds, and Lorin Maazel has schooled it to new heights of discipline. All this was demonstrated… Nov 26 07November 26, 2007Article at New York Times
A Flow of Three Composers With a Flavor of the NewRichard Perry/The New York Times It is said that people tend to think of themselves as younger than they really are. This is eminently true of classical music. Randall Hodgkinson’s piano recital at Bargemusic on Friday night would qualify to many as… Nov 26 07November 26, 2007Article at New York Times
You Can’t Hold It, but You Can Own ItART can be defined, provocatively, as an intangible quantity that transforms an ordinary object — a urinal, a soup can, an unmade bed — into something worth many times more than its material value. Tino Sehgal seeks to isolate precisely that… Nov 25 07November 25, 2007Article at New York Times
A Songwriter’s Gamut, Personal and Poignant With Notes in BetweenBlue neon over the stage outlines a craggy face with a sardonic smile that hovers in afterglow even after the light is switched off. The face is that of William Finn, songwriter, and it is an appropriate illustration for a revue of his work, “Make Me… Nov 21 07November 21, 2007Article at New York Times
Berlin in Lights: A Collage of Images and VoicesOne particular focus of the Berlin in Lights festival has been Berlin in the years 1927 and 1928. We’ve had Walter Ruttmann’s abstract documentary film “Symphony of a City” (1927), excerpts from the Brecht-Weill “Threepenny Opera” (1928), and “Berlin… Nov 18 07November 18, 2007Article at New York Times
Tomorrow’s Opera Singers TodayAlek Shrader, a young tenor, has sung in New York on at least three occasions this year: in Rossini’s “Signor Bruschino” at the Gotham Chamber Opera; as a winner of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions Grand Finals; and, starting on… Nov 16 07November 16, 2007Article at New York Times
A Lover Is Dumped, With Bel Canto DramaOpera is drama, so we want to see realistic-looking people on stage. Opera is music, so we want to hear dramatic, compelling voices. These, roughly speaking, are two prevalent schools of thought about opera. And they went head to head in the… Nov 14 07November 14, 2007Article at New York Times
Murder and HymnsImages of metal bars, white on black like Wedgwood patterning, run around the shallow stage where the Actors Company Theater revival of “The Runner Stumbles” is set. The bars sometimes denote a prison, sometimes a church confessional; often the sense… Nov 12 07November 12, 2007Article at New York Times
Some Japanese Tonal Colors for Tales Dressed in KimonosOpera is supposedly a grand form, yet many people devoted enough to present it can realize their passion only on a small scale. New York is rife with small opera companies, ranging from highly professional troupes offering lesser-known works to… Nov 12 07November 12, 2007Article at New York Times
Richard Tucker Night Is Opera’s All-Star GameJennifer Taylor for The New York Times Big opera galas have much in common with sporting events: Fans gather to watch, and compare, feats of physical prowess. This parallel is always particularly clear at the annual gala of the Richard Tucker Music… Nov 06 07November 06, 2007Article at New York Times
