Kidon Choi
HOS: Cocktails & a concert
NewsHighlands Opera Studio is entering its 10th season, and they're ready to throw a party about it. The afternoon will feature performances by star tenor and HOS Artistic Director Richard Margison, as well as alumni singers Adam Luther, tenor, Marjorie Maltais, mezzo (and recent COC Ensemble Studio Competition finalist), baritone Michael Nyby, and soprano Lauren Margison.
Don't miss: Sondra Radvanovsky at Koerner Hall
NewsHer performance of Queen Elizabeth I stayed with me a long time after seeing the Canadian Opera Company's 2014 production of Roberto Devereux, so Sondra Radvanovsky's upcoming recital at Toronto's Koerner Hall is on my absolutely-do-not-miss list.
Short list: this month with the TSO
NewsNovember is a great month for the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, and I figured I'd share a couple of my picks for the coming weeks.
Gems: Millan & Faye's Top 10 Opera Deaths
HumourSinging through tuberculosis, poisonous leaves, or death by high note? Millan & Faye are soprano and opera comedienne Kyra Millan, and pianist and straight man extraordinaire Tina Faye. In this hilarious short, they opera's ten best death scenes in under 5 minutes. I'll admit to laughing out loud at Rigoletto.
Gems: The Operatic Alphabet
HumourOpera comedienne duo Millan & Faye are soprano Kyra Millan and Tina Faye, pianist extraordinaire. In this little short, they go right back to basics with their operatic stylings of...the alphabet. Talk about singing on your consonants.
Aptly named: The Living Spectacle
NewsTonight the Canadian Art Song Project presents The Living Spectacle, a recital of music, new and old, Canadian and otherwise. On paper, it may not look much different from other recitals; I had a chance to see the dress rehearsal of tonight's concert, and not only was it extraordinary in presentation, but it got me genuinely excited about Canadians who make music.
Tools: The Big Book of Variable Income
NewsHow's it going, freelancers? All going according to plan? Said plan made well in advance? In case the answer is "no", or even a hesitant "yes", Rags to Reasonable has a new tool to help: The Big Book of Variable Income.
Aria Guides: Quando m'en vo
How-ToFor our next instalment of Aria Guides, we're sticking with the tried and true pick of divas around the world, "Quando me'n vo" from Puccini's La bohème. It's got everything you really want in an aria: girl tries to make her ex-boyfriend jealous, and she does it by singing sexy lines and shimmering high notes.
In review: The Telephone & The Medium
ReviewThe University of Toronto Opera opened a double bill last night, pairing together two of Menotti's most well-loved works, The Telephone (1946) and The Medium (1945). I saw the first of two casts in what I thought was a beautifully detailed production by director Michael Albano.
Meet the new Atelier lyrique: Myriam Leblanc
InterviewSoprano Myriam Leblanc is from St. Lazare, outside of Montréal, and this is her first season with the Atelier lyrique. She has a background playing the violin, and she has studied choral directing, but her love of singing opera began with a glance at a score of Puccini's La bohème. Videographer Anne Kostalas followed Myriam on a hike at Mont Saint Bruno, where she likes to spend her time when she's not singing.