Obscure baroque operas are common now, but this recording of Provenzale’s tragicomedy still wins points for novelty.

Late lamented singer leaves enough money to start the search for the next Turandot.

Opera Australia’s Brünnhilde talks about her rise to fame and fortune and Ring cycles old and new. Continue reading Get unlimited digital access from $4 per month Subscribe Already a subscriber? Log in

Jonathan Holloway's eclectic mix should have something for everyone plus a few fascinating surprises.

This early Prokofiev opera isn’t performed all that often. Although it is a fine, well-written work, it’s devoid of big tunes appealing primarily to those who are interested in sung drama rather than more conventional opera. Of course, we all know that the composer could write fabulous tunes, as the ballet scores and his Third Piano Concerto attest, but he was then in his revolutionary period as a young firebrand. In 2007 when I saw this production in St Petersburg I was impressed by the ‘sung play’ aspect of it all. It was very effective and at two hours, didn’t outstay its welcome. In this story, virtually everybody gambles in some way, not just the foolish Alexei, and the plot, set in a German spa, is an intricate ensemble of desperate or failing people. It’s more akin to Strauss’ Arabella than say, La Traviata, both regarded as top conversation operas, and with this well-oiled ensemble, it’s a delight. The direction is sensible and, happily for those of us watching it on screen, the acting is first class, with none of those close ups of singers glancing nervously at the conductor which mar so many video productions. The singing is marvellous,…

The respected helden baritone falls victim to Alberich's curse giving Warwick Fyfe a chance to steal the Rheingold.

Enjoy a cruise down the French Riviera with Roger Hodgman’s award-winning production. Continue reading Get unlimited digital access from $4 per month Subscribe Already a subscriber? Log in

Growing anti-Semitism in Hungary inspires opera from composer-conductor Ivan Fischer. Continue reading Get unlimited digital access from $4 per month Subscribe Already a subscriber? Log in

When Anna Netrebko released her first solo disc, she was the poster child for a supposedly new breed of opera star: glamorous young singers who photographed at least as fabulously as they sang and whose publicity machines whirred at hyperspeed. Like any sudden sensation, she was greeted by both acclaim and skepticism: was she precisely the new blood opera needed, or an omen of Hollywoodification? Did she really have the voice and stage instincts to back up her superstardom – and how long would it all last? Ten years later, Netrebko has not only fulfilled her early promise, but moved well beyond it. If she’s a poster child now, it’s for singers with staying power, and this new disc of Verdi arias, although timed to celebrate the composer’s bicentenary, is also a milestone for the soprano herself, now slowly but surely moving into heavier repertoire. Never a timid performer, Netrebko opens her program at full throttle, with twenty minutes of Lady Macbeth, before moving into heroine mode with arias from Giovanna d’Arco, I Vespri Siciliani, Don Carlo and Il Trovatore. The Orchestra Teatro Regio Torino under Gianandrea Noseda (who also conducted the soprano’s debut album) are sympathetic partners throughout, but…

Sydney Festival unveils a program of diverse arts and eclectic collaborations.

Big guns go head-to-head in a celebration of two of classical music’s most revered figures. Continue reading Get unlimited digital access from $4 per month Subscribe Already a subscriber? Log in

The finest exponents of the German master's operas from the 1920s to the present day.