This week on Rhode Island Public television:
WSBE: (Comcast 294, Cox 808, Full Channel 109, and Verizon 478)
Saturday, February 3, 2018, 8:00pm
Sunday, February 4, 2018 3:00am
Monday, February 5, 2018 12:00am
GREAT PERFORMANCES AT THE MET
Tony Award winner Susan Stroman helmed and choreographed this production of Franz Lehár's "The Merry Widow," which features a fresh translation from Jeremy Sams. Renée Fleming stars as a wealthy widow who's wooed by an old flame (Nathan Gunn), but for reasons that may not have much to do with love.
Length: 150
http://www.metopera.org/Discover/Synposes-Archive/The-Merry-Widow/
Give WQXR morning hostr Jeff Spurgeon three minutes and he'll give you an entire opera. Listen as Spurgeon breaks down Puccini's "Tosca" in a New York minute (or three).
Listen 3 minutes
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NEWS FROM AROUND THE
WORLD OF MUSIC
Musician sues Royal Opera House over ruined
hearing
A renowned viola player,
Chris Goldscheider, is suing the Royal Opera House for ruining his hearing and
his career during rehearsals of Wagner's Die Walkure.
Can listening to classical music change
your life?
Clemency Burton-Hill
explains how she was inspired to write her new book, A Year of Wonder, and why
listening can be a powerful act of ‘soul maintenance’.
![]() |
Sousan Askander |
A Syrian classical musician in exile in
Germany
The Syrian National
Orchestra for Arabic Music was renowned throughout the Middle East. But when
war broke out many of its members had to flee.
Violinist Sousan
Askander, from Aleppo, ended up as a refugee in Germany.
Royal Opera boss Kasper Holten steps down
The Musician of Mosul
Ameen Mokdad plays many
different instruments and also composes his own music. He is from Mosul in
northern Iraq and when the city was occupied by militants from the so-called
Islamic State Group in 2014, he played his cello on the roof in defiance of
their occupation, despite the risk.
The Best Classical Releases of January 2018
The year has only just
begun and already some incredible classical recordings have hit the shelves.
Here's what's new in classical music. Jan 30, 2018
The 2018 Classical Grammy Winners
Classical music is
well-represented at the Grammys, but the nominees are usually found at the
bottom of a massive list. We did the hard work for you, and put them front and
center. Jan 28, 2018
Hungary: ‘Porgy and Bess’ With a White Cast
Stirs Controversy
Watch: Sonya Yoncheva Sings 'Vissi D'Arte'
from 'Tosca'
Watch an excerpt from
the Met's final dress rehearsal for their new production of "Tosca,"
featuring Sonya Yoncheva's title role debut. Jan 26, 2018
David Salazar_Operawire Editorial: Is It
Time To Change How Opera Reviews Are Done? And Is It Possible?
Listen to a Post-WWII Broadcast Featuring
the Music of Jewish 'New Americans'
In the years following
World War II, WNYC broadcast a program called "Music by New
Americans," which featured performances by Jewish musicians who came to
America to begin life anew. Jan 26, 2018
Listen 28 min Queue
Beethoven's Fifth Symphony, With Chopin's
Flair
Beethoven's Fifth in
the style of Chopin is more magical than we thought it could be. Jan 23, 2018
How Beethoven Helped Kobe Bryant Get an
Academy Award Nomination
What do NBA superstar
Kobe Bryant and animator Glen Keane have in common? A love for Beethoven and,
now, an Academy Award nomination. Jan 23, 2018
Watch Marbles Waltz to Tchaikovsky
Watch Tchaikovsky’s
“Waltz of the Flowers” come to life with this balletic marble run. Jan 22, 2018
20 Essential Chopin Recordings
With thousands of
Chopin interpretations out there, it can be hard to know where to start. Here's
our list of essential Chopin recordings. Jan 21, 2018
Ray Chen's Sarabande Serenade
The violinist shared
Bach's introspective and stirring Partita No. 2 in D minor. Jan 19, 2018
Ray
Chen's Sarabande Serenade
How Do You Explain Harmony to a Child ...
or Herbie Hancock?
In a feature for Wired,
musician Jacob Collier explains the concept of harmony five different ways: for
a child, a teen, a college student, a concert pianist and ... Herbie Hancock.
Jan 18, 2018
Great Minds Think Alike: Kanye West Vs.
Beethoven
A new concert puts the
two artists side by side. Let's see how their artistry and careers compare. Jan
18, 2018
That Viola Kid's Top 5 Classical Artists on
Instagram You Should Be Following
That Viola Kid recommends
five classical artists on Instagram who will put beautiful music and images
into your social media feed this year. Jan 18, 2018
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As
we enter the month of February (taking us a little closer to springtime), opera
lovers whose tastes might be a bit more adventurous than usual will want to
check out the next offering on Operavision on Friday (Feb. 2). It's a video of
Irish composer Donnacha Dennehy's new opera "The Second Violinist."
This is an Irish National Opera performance which will be available for several
weeks afterwards, just in case you happen to miss it on Friday.
Then
on Saturday, it's back-to-normal (one might say) with a live performance from
Vienna of Bizet's "Carmen." Tenor Piotr Beczala can be heard in the
role of Don Jose. Check it out on ORF (Austria).
At
the same time, the Met will be broadcasting a LIVE performance of Verdi's
"Il Trovatore" which can be heard on several internet radio stations.
If
you happen to prefer a bit of Richard Strauss instead, Swedish Radio is
broadcasting a performance of "Ariadne auf Naxos" from Goteborg.
A
bit of a novelty these days, Weber's 1823 opera "Euryanthe" will be
featured on German Radio in a performance direct from Dresden.
Even
more of a rarity, Zemlinsky's "Der Kreidekreis" ("The Chalk
Circle"), one of his "late" operas (1931), can be heard in a
LIVE performance from Lyons on French Radio. This one is being broadcast on
Sunday (Feb. 4).
How
about a little Bellini, if the Zemlinsky opera is of little interest to you?
Also on Sunday, there's a LIVE performance from Lyric Opera of Chicago of
"I Puritani."
Wagner
enthusiasts need not despair, since the Met will be airing "Parsifal"
on Monday (Feb. 5), starting at 5:55 p.m. -- yet another of its series of free
LIVE audio-streams that are offered throughout the Met's regular season.
Enjoy!
DAVE
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THE MET SATURDAY AFTERNOON
RADIO BROADCAST AT
1:00PM ON WQXR
Il
Trovatore
VERDI
Armiliato;
Rowley, Rachvelishvili, Lee, Kelsey, Kocán

GO TO
THEN CLICK ON
WQXR 105.9 FM
NO OPERA ON
WGBH THIS WEEK!