Elza van den Heever and the MET Orchestra: A stunning all-Strauss program
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Schmopera's British invasion
EditorialSchmopera is relocating, and starting in February, we'll be based out of London, England. We're beyond excited to get our feet wet in the City's opera scene, and to expand as often as possible to Berlin, Paris, Zürich, Barcelona, Amsterdam, and every other opera house with an airport or train station nearby. From our London base, we'll maintain our status quo of artist interviews, show reviews, and writings on the hot opera topics across the pond.
She's leaving home
Op-edA question often lingers: would I love all of this stuff as much if you didn't already know half of the creative team? In an interesting experiment in journalistic bias, London is a place where there's no shortage of excellent music and theatre, yet in comparison to writing about Toronto, I'll have little personal connection to the artists onstage. Basically, the art that London has to offer will speak for itself, at least to me.
Talking with singers: Alan Held
InterviewCurrently, bass-baritone Alan Held is in Toronto, a common stop for him in recent seasons, to sing the Wanderer in the Canadian Opera Company's production of Siegfried, opening January 23rd. He chats about being patient with big roles, building stamina, and Wagner as bel canto.
Watch & learn: maestros at work
EditorialJust like all the different ways a human voice can sound to our ears, each conductor brings their unique presence to an orchestra. A different posture, a different flow of gesture can bring out a huge variance of sound from the players as they react to what they see. Conducting is much, much more than a clear beat pattern, and we wanted to show our readers just how differently rhythmic information can look.
5 books that should be operas
EditorialOf course, not every work of fiction lends itself well to the addition of music; an operatic Finnegan's Wake might not be boring, but it may miss the point. Authors like John Irving write compelling characters (I could read The World According to Garp a hundred times), but they're developed over the long-haul, over a scope that's not conducive to the way opera tells stories. The same goes for delicious epics, like Harry Potter, The Lord of the Rings, A Song of Ice and Fire, and even Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series.
Don't miss: Dmitri Hvorostovky at Koerner Hall
NewsHvorostovsky has cancelled several February dates for Il trovatore at the Metropolitan Opera, but we all hope he's feeling well enough to sing, at Toronto's Koerner Hall, if only for the selfish pleasure of hearing his voice (and maybe catching a glimpse of that hair).
#COC1617
NewsLast night, the Canadian Opera Company announced their 2016/17 season in style, with the COC Orchestra on the Four Seasons Centre Stage. Brent Bambury, of CBC Radio One, hosted the night, chatting with COC General Director Alexander Neef and Music Director Johannes Debus about the exciting season to come.
Tosca & the NYCO Renaissance
NewsNYCO Renaissance's general director is Michael Capasso, who previously ran Dicapo Opera Theatre, a small New York-based company that has since "disbanded", and which was sued in 2013 by the musicians' unions for failure to pay their artists. Capasso is "thrilled" about directing the revived company, despite any questions of his ability to keep it financially afloat.
Squeezebox at Soundstreams
NewsMacerollo will also play one of over 200 works composed for him by R. Murray Schafer, the "surreal" La testa d'Adriana, with fab soprano Carla Huhtanen. "Dressed in a tattered tuxedo and top hat, he luresthe audience to his side show, the bodiless head of a woman saved at the instant before her death. She is awakened by his music and sings an aria of gurgles, trills, whispers, and pops before subsiding once again into her comatose state."
Spotlight on: James Westman
InterviewStratford-based baritone James Westman is one of Canada's leading stars, performing roles like the Conte de Luna (Il trovatore), Macbeth (Macbeth), Germont (La traviata), and Horace Tabor (The Ballad of Baby Doe) on the stages of the Canadian Opera Company, San Francisco Opera, Chicago Lyric Opera, Florida Grand Opera, Houston Grand Opera, English National Opera, Vancouver Opera, and many more. Busy schedule aside, James insists his work as a singer is easier than his growing up on a farm; he chats about advice for young singers, and the great roles still on his to-do list.