Talking with singers: Scott Hendricks

Interview

"This is a very good question. Firstly, my current self would tell my younger self to keep studying voice on a consistent basis. This is difficult because we travel so much and we're away from home for weeks and months at a time. Regardless, it's important to make time for touching base with your voice teacher and/or vocal coach."

In review: La traviata at ROH

Review

The broad-strokes architecture of the opera's four sets are a clean contrast against the ladies' luxurious dresses, even against the messy humanity of Verdi's simple, classic tale of love and the opinions of others. Joyce El-Khoury's Violetta comes with easy charisma, and a strong desire to maintain composure and dignity. El-Khoury matured along with Violetta's story, yet somehow retained a young voice, full of the best intentions. Her third-act aria, "Addio del passato" was the highlight of the night.

Tips for pianists: how to tremolo like a pro

How-to

In a case like this, sometimes a slower tremolo yields better results on the piano. If you try for speed, it'll likely sound a bit drier, a bit more percussive; a slow tremolo lets you just sit in the sound that already exists, and your muscles will be relaxed enough to sustain it.

Touring tragedy: Pop-Up Opera's I Capuleti e i Montecchi

News

In March and April, Pop-Up Opera revives their first tragic opera, Bellini's I Capuleti e i Montecchi. The production, sung in Italian and featuring "silent movie-style" English captions, heads across the southern UK, including stops at London's The Vaults, March 20-23.

In review: Fidelio & other first operas

Editorial

Yet it's a fascinating, almost humanizing thing, to hear Beethoven struggle with how to really write for the voice. It's a bit like listening to Verdi's Stiffelio, which was written after Nabucco and Macbeth and Ernani, but before Rigoletto and La traviata; one couldn't argue with Verdi's skills as a composer, but even he, the opera expert, found his slow and steady way to effortless vocal writing.

In review: #COCFlute sparkles

Review

The second act drops us fully into their world as we follow Tamino, Papageno, and later Pamina through their trials to join Sarastro's order, the union of male and female being pivotal to the outcome. The only thing I missed in this concept was the closing of the metatheatrical envelope. Once the second act started, we never saw the concept established in the first act return to complete the idea.

Who's afraid of the aging singer?

Interview

"In later career, there is much less forgiveness for a less than standard performance, whether it is loss in vocal function, beauty, tone quality or whatever, there is much less margin for error. As a young singer, you are perceived as fresh and new, so companies are willing to give you more chances. It is much more challenging to maintain a career as you age than it is to begin. Companies will often hear younger singers in audition again and again, while they often dismiss older artists."

Prove you're an opera buff at the COC's Opera Trivia

News

Opera Trivia is part of the COC's ongoing Opera Insights programs, which offer conversations and events to enhance your opera-going experience at the Four Seasons Centre. Bring your friends, show off your impressive niche intellect, and learn some new fascinating opera factoids. All the programs, including Opera Trivia, are free to attend, but it's highly recommended to register online.

Talking with singers: Rena Harms

Interview

"The first time I saw Madama Butterfly I actually found Cio-Cio San to be a hard pill to swallow. She can come across very weak and silly if one is not careful in her portrayal. Without her own drive and motivation she seems doomed from the start and her plight becomes uninteresting. I think it is important to relate to the audience that it is her inner strength that drives her to make life-changing decisions."

2017 Various Stages Festival presents: In a Grove

Interview

"We hope listeners will take away a sense of the tone of the piece, and a glimpse of what we intend to with it as a whole. Even though we will be somewhat limited in how much we can do spatially at Various Stages to give a sense of the immersive nature of the opera, we hope the audience will have a taste of what’s to come: a powerfully unsettling, haunting experience designed to be both confounding and crystalline, disjunctive yet deeply emotional."