Author Archive
Hampson, Jupiter Quartet eloquent in Adamo premiere, Wolf songs – Apr 27, 2013
The peripatetic baritone Thomas Hampson came to New England Conservatory’s Jordan Hall Friday night with a string quartet in tow and an East Coast [...]
Bicket named Santa Fe Opera conductor – Apr 24, 2013
Harry Bicket was announced Wednesday as the new chief conductor of Santa Fe Opera. The appointment will be effective October 1. Bicket’s first production [...]
Met closes Ring cycle with a grand and satisfying “Götterdämmerung” – Apr 24, 2013
No walls come tumbling down in Robert Lepage’s staging of Richard Wagner’s Götterdämmerung, revived Tuesday evening at the Metropolitan Opera. The twirling planks of [...]
Kissin’s Boston recital moves from cool flame to artistic fire – Apr 23, 2013
At about the two-thirds mark in Evgeny Kissin’s piano recital Sunday afternoon, the performance seemed to turn an invisible corner, and the concert became [...]
Director Alden once again snatches defeat from jaws of victory with clumsy, tedious staging of NYCO’s “Périchole” – Apr 22, 2013
If only Christopher Alden’s gag-choked production of La Périchole had exhibited even a trace of Gallic wit or sparkle, the three-hour farce might have seemed [...]
Met’s Ring cycle reaches crushing speed with superb “Siegfried” – Apr 21, 2013
Richard Wagner’s Siegfried, revived at the Metropolitan Opera on Saturday, had a famously fitful editorial history. Between 1851, when Wagner began sketching the drama [...]
Thielemann, Staatskapelle Dresden and Batiashvili serve up memorable afternoon of Brahms – Apr 16, 2013
There may be older orchestras extant in the world today, but surely there are none with the storied history, esteemed pedigree and international profile [...]
Adolph “Bud” Herseth, legendary CSO trumpet player, dies at 91 – Apr 15, 2013
The brilliant, majestic trumpet timbre that meant the Chicago Symphony Orchestra around the world for over half a century has been silenced. Adolph “Bud” [...]
Even with rough edges, NY City Opera’s “Mosè” reaches sublime heights – Apr 15, 2013
Opera as a public spectacle was born in Venice, as a carnival entertainment, but over the centuries the form became so popular on the [...]
Met’s mixed cast makes for a vocally varied “Walküre” – Apr 14, 2013
The operatic equivalent to Shakespeare’s Scottish play is supposed to be Verdi’s La forza del destino, both of which are believed to bring snafus, [...]
