Elza van den Heever and the MET Orchestra: A stunning all-Strauss program

The fab Joyce, hanging out with your opera favourites
HumourIf you’re not following Joyce DiDonato’s YouTube Channel (the Yankee Diva), you should change that. I found this adorable video Joyce made while touring Handel’s Alcina with the English Concert Orchestra. Joyce enjoys (and gets lost) along with opera favourites Alice Coote, Anna Christy, Ben Johnson, and the charming Harry Bicket. So, check this one out, and then catch up on your Yankee Diva.

Schmopera on tour: The Bremen Town Musicians
InterviewI spent the month of November on tour with the COC’s Glencore Ensemble Studio School Tour production of Dean Burry’s The Bremen Town Musicians. We went as far as Manitoulin Island and performed almost 30 shows. While we were way up north, I had the cast sit down for an interview. They even let me put my camera backstage during a show. Below you’ll find the backstage footage, plus a look at an average day on the road with the COC Ensemble Studio.

Talking with Singers: Robert Pomakov
InterviewCanadian bass Robert Pomakov has built himself a pretty enviable career. He’s currently in the middle of a Metropolitan Opera-heavy season, returning in January for productions of Les contes d’Hoffmann, Manon and Don Carlo. He has sung for conductors like James Levine, James Conlon, Riccardo Muti, Yannick Nézet-Séguin and Nicola Luisotti.

Wendy Nielsen: On Teaching Singing
InterviewOriginally from New Brunswick, Canadian soprano Wendy Nielsen has enjoyed a multi-decade career as a singer and as a teacher. Roles like the Countess Almaviva, Fiordiligi, and Donna Elvira are staples of her singing career, which has taken her across Canada, and includes twelves seasons at the Metropolitan Opera.

Tom Diamond: On Directing Opera
InterviewWinnipeg-born Tom Diamond is one of Canada’s busiest, most sought-after opera directors. His work has earned him both Dora (Chan Ka Nin’s Iron Road) and Gemini awards (Bathroom Divas: So You Want To Be an Opera Star? on Bravo!), and he’s in huge demand as an operatic acting coach to young professional singers.

Retta, the opera fan
HumourHappy New Year! I’m starting 2015 off light, with a fun opera find out in the world of general media. Did you know actress/comedienne Retta, who plays Donna on Parks and Recreation, trained as an opera singer? She’s still got some decent chops, too, which she showed off to Conan O’Brien in 2012.

Talking with Agents: Alia Rosenstock
InterviewAlia Rosenstock is an Artist Manager with Dean Artists Management, Canada’s biggest and most successful agency for classical singers. She studied voice at the New England Conservatory and she holds a law degree from Dalhousie University; these days, she’s melding her musical, administrative, and law skills into one very neat job representing Canada’s exciting talent. I asked her what she loves about it.

Chris Enns: Rags to Reasonable
InterviewCanadian tenor Chris Enns is the creator of the new blog Rags to Reasonable: Personal Finance for Artists & Storytellers. It’s great, I’ve already learned things, and Chris is writing about a really important topic for us artsy types. He was nice enough to sit down with me and tell me why he created Rags to Reasonable, and what it can do for today’s generation of professional artists.

Talking with Singers: Jennifer Holloway
InterviewAmerican singer Jennifer Holloway is currently in Toronto, all set to make her Canadian Opera Company debut as Donna Elvira in Dmitri Tcherniakov's production of Don Giovanni, which opens January 24th. She was kind enough to sit down with me and talk about the character of Donna Elvira, about sympathizing with the Don, and about Mozart's sense of feminism.

Talking with Valkyries: Rihab Chaieb
InterviewTunisian-born mezzo-soprano Rihab Chaieb is a graduate of the COC Ensemble Studio (Semele, La clemenza di Tito), and she's currently in Toronto to be a Valkyrie. She sings Waltraute in Atom Egoyan's production of Die Walküre, opening January 31st at the Four Seasons Centre. I asked her about being the production, and what she's learned about the art and the business of opera.