Week of October 8 - October 15, 2015

All links are live!

Great Performances at the Met

This week on Rhode Island Public television,

WSBE:  (Comcast 294, Cox 808, Full Channel 109, and Verizon 478)

 Saturday, October 10, 2015 @ 8:00pm

Sunday, October 11, 2015 @ 3:00am

Monday, October 12, 2015 @ 12:00am  

THE MERRY WIDOW 

Broadway director and choreographer Susan Stroman makes her Met debut with a lavish new staging of Lehar's effervescent operetta. Soprano Renee Fleming adds a new character to her Met repertory as Hanna, the widowed millionairess. Sir Andrew Davis conducts a stellar cast that includes baritone Nathan Gunn as Danilo; tenor Alek Shrader as Camille de Rosillon; and baritone Sir Thomas Allen as Baron Zeta. Broadway star Kelli O'Hara makes her Met debut as the Zeta's wife, Valencienne. The operetta is performed in English. Mezzo-soprano Joyce DiDonato hosts.

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Not only in New York – how the most powerful man in opera took the Met to the world | Music | The Guardian

http://www.theguardian.com/music/2015/oct/02/new-york-metroplitan-opera-house-peter-gelb

Plan to Revive New York City Opera Has Creditors’ Backing

By Michael Cooper

October 6, 2015

http://mobile.nytimes.com/2015/10/07/arts/music/plan-to-revive-new-york-city-opera-has-creditors-backing.html

  

James Levine Withdraws from 'Lulu,' Citing Schedule Demands

Friday, October 02, 2015

By Brian Wise

Metropolitan Opera music director James Levine said Friday that he is withdrawing from the company's upcoming production of Berg's Lulu.

http://www.wqxr.org/#!/story/james-levine-pulls-out-lulu-citing-schedule-demands/

In Praise of Healthy Voices

Friday, October 02, 2015

By Fred Plotkin

Healthy voices are a boon to opera fans, writes Fred Plotkin. He cites three star sopranos who are singing roles that Met audiences have not heard them in.

http://www.wqxr.org/#!/story/praise-healthy-voices/

Plan to Revive New York City Opera Has Creditors’ Backing

By Michael Cooper

October 6, 2015

http://mobile.nytimes.com/2015/10/07/arts/music/plan-to-revive-new-york-city-opera-has-creditors-backing.html

Gotham Chamber Opera Announces It Is Shutting Down

Thursday, October 01, 2015

By Brian Wise

After 15 years of often highly acclaimed performances, the Gotham Chamber Opera has heard its last bravos.

http://www.wqxr.org/#!/story/gotham-chamber-opera-announces-it-shutting-down/

Magical Thinking Stalks New York's Opera World

Monday, October 05, 2015

By David Patrick Stearns

Gotham Chamber Opera's assertion that it didn't know it had a major deficit exemplifies the magical thinking that permeates opera management, writes David Patrick Stearns.

http://www.wqxr.org/#!/story/magical-thinking-stalks-new-yorks-opera-world/

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OPERA ON THE INTERNET 

WITH  

DAVE  D' AGUANNO

This coming Saturday (October 10) gives interested listeners an opportunity to hear Handel's "dramatic oratorio" from 1738: "Saul" as performed this past summer as part of the Glyndebourne Festival. Competing in sheer length with some of Wagner's operas, this particular work is comprised of 86 separate musical numbers (including recitatives).

(www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/)

In a lighter vein, Rossini's version of the Cinderella story -- "Cenerentola" -- will be broadcast on NPR in a performance that took place last November as part of the San Francisco Opera's 2014/2015 season.

(www.wrti.org/)

One of Offenbach's most ambitious works -- "Tales of Hoffmann" -- is on German Radio in a performance from Madrid (June 12, 2015). I've also included (below) a link to a trailer for the recently released DVD (same cast, same run of performances from June 2015)

(www.dradio.de/dkultur/)

video trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=th33FV_XV9g

 Perhaps Weber's most popular opera -- "Der Freischutz" -- can be heard on French Radio in a September 14, 2015 performance that took place in Paris.

(www.francemusique.fr/)

And what opera-listening weekend would be complete without at least one work by Giuseppe Verdi? His "Macbeth" comes to us LIVE from the Vienna State Opera and can be heard on at least 3 separate internet radio stations, Radio 4 (Netherlands) being one of them.

(www.radio4.nl/)

But that's not all! Tomorrow evening (Oct. 8) at 6:55, the Met is offering a FREE live audio-stream of Wagner's "Tannhauser" with Johan Botha in the title role, and with soprano Eva-Maria Westbroek as Elisabeth, both of whom will be appearing in the HD-transmission of this opera which is scheduled for October 31.

(www.metopera.org/)

Also in a FREE live audio-stream from the Met, Tuesday evening (Oct. 13) at 7:25, it's Donizetti's "Anna Bolena" with soprano Sondra Radvanovsky taking on the title role. Current performances of this opera with this same cast have been receiving rave reviews, so this one is probably one that is not to be missed for most opera-lovers.

(www.metopera.org/)

Enjoy!

DAVE

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The Met Saturday afternoon
 radio broadcast season starts again 

December 5.   

(Oh, how will I wait until December??)

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No opera on 
WGBH this week!