DiDonato inspires inmates through song

Op-ed

"It reminds them that that part of them is perhaps not lost in a place that is dehumanizing a lot of the time" the two-time Grammy Award-winner said in an interview with The Today Show on NBC. "The first day I was there... my instinct was 'Don't make eye contact, don't make eye contact' and forty-five minutes later I was staring into the eyes of these inmates and we were singing to each other."

Spotlight On...who?

Editorial

If you know an artist - even better, an up-and-coming artist - with some wise words to share about the opera life, please introduce us! You can email us at [email protected], and let us know a bit about what they're up to.

Something Blue: The Bachelor Opera

Humour

Something Blue: The Bachelor Opera is another misguided love story, unpacking everything that's totally bizarre about reality dating & marriage shows. Joiner sings the role of the Bachelor, and soprano Jessica Fishenfeld is his new - and perfect - bride.

One World Symphony gets "Defiant"

Editorial

Defiance is truly the theme of this programme. Beethoven defied his deafness, Chaplin and Obama the violence and hatred of their times, and composers like Margaret Allison Bonds and Valerie Capers (the first blind composer to graduate from Juilliard) produced their work defiantly amid the racism, ableism, and sexism that pervaded their lives.

International Opera Awards 2016: nominate your top picks!

News

The International Opera Awards raises funds for almost 50 bursaries for aspiring artists. It's super easy to submit your nominations, and it's a great chance to push lesser-known gems into the spotlight.

Rags to Reasonable: new look, new resources

News

In case you're not already following him on Facebook and Twitter, we'd love to introduce you to Christopher Enns, Canadian tenor and the founder of Rags to Reasonable. R2R offers financial advice catered to artists and their unpredictable incomes, and Chris is a certified financial planner and coach who can help you get money-smart without making you feel money-stupid.

Michael Fabiano: the "profound effect" of ArtSmart

Interview

When it comes to young people with little to no extra-curricular activities in their daily schedules, it's a major discovery to see that students are eager to stay after school for their private sessions. "Lots of the kids are genuinely excited to be able to stay after school and wait for a lesson," says Fabiano. "To be able to focus on something every day, and to wait an hour to do their lesson, is good for them because it keeps them in the incubator environment."

4 shows to perk up the post-holiday blues

Editorial

The holidays are great - but after roughly a month of wavering between buzzed and hungover, and eating like a complete idiot, it's nice to get back to some semblance of a schedule where businesses are open and you can trust their hours of operation.

4 New Year's resolutions for opera fans

Humour

If you're going to an opera for the first time, and you don't know the plot ahead of time, fantastic! You may be tempted to get a head start on the action to come, by reading the synopsis included in most programmes; try to resist the urge. It's a chance to experience an opera in a fresh way, to be surprised and shocked and saddened at all the right moments.

Canadian singers & their great reputations

Editorial

Perhaps it's because we border the behemoth that is the United States, and perhaps it's because we're far-removed from the operatic centre that is Europe. In any case, it drives Canadian singers to meet the perceived standards of the "biggest and best". Maybe we underestimate the quality of training available at home, and thus we head out into the world in over-prepared hordes.