While Benajmin and Crimp’s colleagues on the contemporary opera scene pander to audiences with trendy and timely topics, the British duo returns to truly universal sources—the archetypal myths that transcend time and culture. “Picture a day like this” is an hourlong chamber opera in the pattern of their first creation, “Into the Little Hill”—a dark retelling of “The Pied Piper.”

“Picture” adapts another, less familiar folktale that appears in various guises across the globe. Its plot is deceptively simple: a nameless Woman’s child dies, and the village crones tempt her with a magical solution. If she can track down a truly happy person by the end of the day and cut a button from their clothes, her son will live again.

Crimp’s libretto is reminiscent of “The Little Prince”—the possible candidates on the Woman’s list recall the string of self-deluded grown-ups that Saint-Exupéry’s pint-sized hero encounters. Initially, they seem happy. But as soon as the Woman scratches slightly beneath the surface, she discovers that their happiness is false.

The episodic format offers Benjamin the opportunity to develop a distinct sound world for each of the five contenders. Actually, two distinct sound worlds—one representing their supposed state of felicity and another once the Woman learns the reality of their situation. There’s a moment during each scene when this “switch” occurs, indicated by a drastic change in style and instrumentation.

She first meets two Lovers, a soprano and countertenor, who seem eternally suspended in erotic ecstasy. Their lines, supported by a rustic consort of recorders, intertwine like Poppea and Nerone’s. Benjamin has a way of staggering and overlapping voices that feels both conversational and lyrical—a stylized naturalism that is particularly effective in this duet.

The parodies of swelling Wagnerian climaxes evaporate as soon as the male Lover offhandedly explains that their relationship is open—something the female Lover didn’t entirely agree to. Sputtering brass and side-drum motives intrude, taken up by countertenor Cameron Shahbazi as he stutters out the word “polyamory.” Shahbazi comes off as a smarmy narcissist, yet simultaneously smooth-talking and seductive.

Following the Lovers, the Woman comes across an Artisan—a button-maker, in fact, whose button-covered suit is sonically simulated with a cabasa rattle. Backed by piccolo birdsong, baritone John Brancy ascends into his falsetto, scaling what resembles a natural overtone series.

It’s a delirious and almost giddy happiness that turns out to be, in his words, “dose-related.” To prevent himself from self-harm, the Artisan is dependent on anti-psychotic drugs, which Brancy bellows for with sinister desperation. The strings’ pricking pizzicato and cut-like col legno strokes are uncomfortably suggestive of razor nicks. Brancy offers a performance that is equal parts terrifying and affecting. He reaches a near-shouted A-flat when he exposes the rope-burn around his neck, the ensemble bursting into a fff chord of suffocating intensity.

Crimp wisely follows this with a comic intermezzo featuring an egotistical young composer. Soprano Beate Mordal’s endless self-aggrandizing is accompanied by flashy Vivaldian string figuration. Her execution is hilariously cocky and braggadocious, especially the cartoonish repetitions of “happy, happy, happy” that mask her character’s inner doubt.

The sequence of contrasting musical moments in Benjamin’s score calls to mind “Bluebeard’s Castle,” with its separate sonic palettes for each of the rooms. And as in Bartók’s opera, the scenes are unified by a kind of ritualistic repetition indebted to the structure of fairytales. The beginning of every scene, for instance, is marked by a muted trio of two trumpets and trombone. Its function is akin to the “Promenade” theme between the movements of Mussorgsky’s “Pictures at an Exhibition.” But the little contrapuntal fanfares the trio plays are stylistically closer to medieval music, establishing an archaic atmosphere.

At the close of every scene is a series of clock chimes played on the tubular bells—a reminder that the Woman has until nightfall to carry out her mission. They always toll on the same two pitches, E-flat and D, which emerge as an idée fixe in Benjamin’s score. This descending half-step is first heard in the Woman’s opening line on the phrase “had died” when she relates the passing of her child. The motive’s association with these words, along with it’s keening, downward motion, would seem to connect it to mourning.

But this isn’t a Wagnerian-style leitmotif tied down to a single concept. Benjamin’s approach to musical meaning is closer to the Symbolist movement. It’s why Crimp is such an ideal match for the composer—both artists deal in the inscrutable and the ambiguous, only gradually revealing the half-lit shapes that hover at the edges of our consciousness.

Benjamin’s sonic symbol, though confined to just a pair of pitches, accumulates a vast constellation of associations as the opera progresses. It’s not simply an emblem of sorrow. Rather, it comes to represent the Woman’s obsessive belief that the resurrection of her child will bring her happiness—a notion that we slowly begin to realize is an impossibility, since no happy person exists in her world.

The opera’s cyclicality is momentarily broken halfway through by a solo passage for the Woman—a number that Benjamin explicitly labels “Aria.” Crimp’s ABA-form text would seem to call for a corresponding da capo setting. Yet Benjamin resists this urge. Instead, he traces a wide-ranging emotional trajectory. Mezzo Marianne Crebassa audibly passes through all five stages of grief. Backed by searing quadruple-stop harmonies, she rails against fate, cursing her lot in bitter, sobbing phrases.

Crebassa’s cathartic wail on “I wanted miracles” marks a complete shift in the aria. Her hushed delivery conveys that hollow numbness one feels after weeping. The vocal writing takes on a folksy quality, reminiscent of an Eastern European funeral lament. It closes with a passage of unexpected and unaffected melodic beauty, enveloped in a dewy cloud of harp and celesta. This finely crafted aria is the highlight of a role that is exquisitely tailored to Crebassa’s instrument. Benjamin takes ample advantage of her earthy bottommost register—her groaning low notes are positively gut-wrenching.

Following a Berg-like orchestral interlude on the E-flat/D motive, the Woman finds herself at the twilit home of Zabelle—finally, a truly happy person who dwells in domestic bliss with her family. Benjamin evokes her Edenic garden in lush textures that teem with instrumental activity. As Zabelle, soprano Anna Prohaska describes her paradisiac life in soaring flights of avian coloratura tinged with folk inflections. It’s a performance of such effortless, inhuman perfection that it borders on the impossible.

Indeed, the side drum ricochets that punctuate the scene—which seem to imitate the shimmer of a mirage—hint that all is not what it seems. Zabelle explains that the tableau is merely an illusion, a kind of frozen vision of times long gone. At some point in the past, a group of men invaded her home, seized her possessions, and kidnapped or murdered her husband and children. The details are left purposefully hazy. But considering the Armenian origins of Zabelle’s name, as well as the genocidal allegory of Crimp and Benjamin’s earlier “Into the Little Hill,” it’s likely that she was the victim of an ethnic cleansing. “I’m happy only because I don’t exist,” Zabelle explains before fading away. Meanwhile, the E-flat/D chimes signal that the Woman has failed her task.

Or has she? In the final scene, as the village crones gleefully mock her for trying the undo death itself, the Woman stretches out her hand to reveal a button. Whose? It couldn’t belong to any of the pseudo-felicitous individuals on her list. Nor to Zabelle, who was merely a memory projected into the present. Could it be the Woman’s, cut from her own sleeve? Perhaps she has attained, not happiness—which is dependent entirely on luck and circumstance—but a form of contentment. Or perhaps she’s achieved some Buddhist transcendence of worldly attachment. Benjamin’s closing music again conjures a verdant garden—a personal Eden or Nirvana where the falling half-step motive is transformed into a pastoral cuckoo call on clarinet.

While the libretto of “Picture a day like this” resembles a fable, there’s no pre-packed Aesopian moral at the end. It’s closer to a Zen koan—a paradoxical aphorism or anecdote that isn’t “solvable” in the sense of a riddle, but is meant to inspire meditation. In an age when sanctimonious creators of opera feel compelled to beat listeners over the head with political platitudes, Crimp and Benjamin show genuine respect for their audiences. Their musical myths challenge and provoke, but ultimately allow spectators to glean their own, deeply personal interpretations.

The post CD Review: George Benjamin & Martin Crimp’s ‘Picture a day like this’ appeared first on OperaWire.

This week audiences will get to hear one of the great tenors of his generation alongside some of the greatest sopranos in one album dedicated to Puccini. There are also world premiere recordings of new works and one debut album. Here is a look.

Robeson

In a statement, Tines said, “This album is my most personal artistic statement to date. I’ve endeavored to compare and contrast my journey as an artist with that of my artistic ancestor and hero, Paul Robeson, the unparalleled singer, actor, and activist. Standing on his beliefs of egality for the disenfranchised led to governmental and public attacks that almost ended his life. This album is the fever dream of the universal journey to battle internal and external persecution in order to find one’s self and decide what you need to say the most now that you’ve survived.”

Bach: Arias for Alto

Zoltán Daragó makes his long-awaited album debut showcasing the countertenor in 11 arias from well-known and lesser-known cantatas by Johann Sebastian Bach. Les Talens Lyriques and Christophe Rousset are featured on the album.

The post Jonas Kaufmann, Anna Netrebko, Davóne Tines, Sonya Yoncheva & Zoltán Daragó Lead New CD/DVD Releases appeared first on OperaWire.

The season opens with Dvořák’s “Rusalka” in a new production by Dmitri Tcherniakov. Dan Ettinger conducts a cast that includes Asmik Grigorian, Adam Smith, Ekaterina Gubanova, Anita Rachvelishvili, and Gábor Bretz.

Performance Dates: Nov. 20-Dec. 7, 2024

Verdi’s “Don Carlo” will be conducted by Henrik Nánási and will star Piero Pretti, Gabriele Viviani, Ildar Abdrazakov, Rachel Willis-Sørensen, Varduhi Abrahamyan, and Alexander Tsymbalyuk.

Performance Dates: Jan. 19-31, 2025

Nadine Sierra and Javier Camarena will star in Gounod’s “Roméo et Juliette” with Gianluca Buratto, Alessio Arduini, and Caterina Piva. Giorgia Guerra directs the production and Sesto Quartini conducts.

Performance Dates: Feb. 15-25, 2025

Ricarda Merbeth stars in the title role of Strauss’ “Salome” alongside Brian Mulligan, Charles Workman, Emily Magee, John Findon, and Štěpánka Pučálková. Dan Ettinger conducts the production by Manfred Schweigkofler.

Performance Dates: March 20-29, 2025

Anna Pirozzi headlines Puccini’s “La Faniculla del West” alongside Martin Muehle and Gabriele Viviani. Jonathan Darlington conducts Hugo de Ana’s production.

Performance Dates: April 16-29, 2025

Ildar Abdrazakov, Sondra Radvanovsky, Luciano Ganci, and Ernesto Petti lead Verdi’s “Attila” in concert with Diego Cereta conducting.

Performance Dates: April 24-27, 2025

Pretty Yende, Ruzil Gatil, Sergio Vitale, Sonia Ganassi, Eugenio Di Lieto, and Marisa Laurito lead Donizetti’s “La Fille du Regiment.” Damiano Michieletto directs and Riccardo Bisatti conducts.

Performance Dates: May 18-27, 2025

Comarosa’s “Il matrimonio segreto” will be directed by Stéphane Braunschweig and conducted by Francesco Corti. The cast will include Sebastià Serra, Anastasiia Sagaidak, Désirée Giove, Antonia Salzano, Maurizio Bove, Francesco Domenico Doto, Yunho Kim, Tamar Otanadze, Maria Knihnytska, Sayumi Kaneko, Antimo DellʼOmo, and Sun Tianxuefei.

Performance Dates: June 11-17, 2025

René Barbera, Roberta Mantegna, Annalisa Stroppa, and Nicola Alaimo lead Donizetti’s “Roberto Devereux” in a production by Jetske Mijnssen. Riccardo Frizza conducts.

Performance Dates: July 16-25, 2025

Puccini’s “Tosca” will return with multiple casts. Edoardo De Angelis directs and Dan Ettinger conducts. Sondra Radvanovsky, Anna Pirozzi, and Carmen Giannattasio star in the title role alongside Jonas Kaufmann, Francesco Meli, Christian Van Horn, and Claudio Sgura.

Performance Dates: Sept. 10-23, 2025

Anna Netrebko, Piero Pretti, and Ludovic Tézier lead Verdi’s “Un Ballo in Maschera” alongside Elizabeth DeShong and Cassandre Berthon. The other cast includes Valeria Sepe, Vincenzo Costanzo, and Ernesto Petti. Pinchas Steinberg conducts the production by Massimo Gasparon.

Performance Dates: Oct. 4- 11, 2025

George Benjamin’s “Picture a day like this” closes the season with Corinna Niemeyer conducting. Marianne Crebassa, Anna Prohaska, Beate Mordal, Cameron Shahbazi, and John Brancy star.

Performance Dates: Oct. 24-26, 2025

Concerts

Dan Ettinger and Maria Agresta lead a program of music by Richard Strauss and Anton Bruckner.

Performance Date: Nov. 30, 2024

Asmik Grigorian and Lukas Geniušas perform music by Tchaikovsky and Rachmaninov.

Performance Date: Dec. 1, 2024

The company will present “Aria di Natale.”

Performance Date: Dec. 5, 12, 18, 2024

Lisette Oropesa and Alessandro Praticò perform works by Ravel, Delibes, Massenet, Bizet, Rossini, Mercadante, and Verdi.

Performance Date: Jan. 9, 2025

Michele Mariotti and Ekaterina Gubanova perform music by Mahler and Brahms.

Performance Date: Jan. 24, 2025

George Petrou conducts Franco Fagioli in music by Rossini, Bonfichi, Mantzaros, Nicolini, Mayr, and Mercadante.

Performance Date: Jan. 30, 2025

Rosa Feola and Iain Burnside take on the music of Rossini, Martucci, Respighi, Debussy, Mozart, and Donizetti.

Performance Date: March 30, 2025

Elīna Garanča and Malcolm Martineau perform in recital music by Brahms, Berlioz, Debussy, Saint-Saëns, Gounod, Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninov, Jāzeps Vītols, Mascagni, Chapí, and Bizet.

Performance Date: May 31, 2025

Luca Salsi and Nelson Calzi perform works by Bizet, Hahn, Martucci, Rossini, Donizetti, and Verdi.

Performance Date: June 6, 2025

Maria Agresta and Marco Armiliato perform a concert featuring works by Brahms, Wagner, and Schumann.

Performance Date: June 28, 2025

Fabrizio Cassi conducts a Rossini concert.

Performance Date: Sept. 18, 2025

Ivano Caiazza conducts Paisiello’s “Don Chisciotte della Mancia” with Tamar Otanadze, Désirée Giove, Maurizio Bove, Francesco Domenico Doto, Maria Knihnytska, Costanza Cutaia, Tianxuefei Sun, and Sebastià Serra.

Performance Date: Sept. 27, 2025

The post Anna Netrebko, Jonas Kaufmann, Sondra Radvanovsky, Asmik Grigorian & Francesco Meli Lead Teatro San Carlo’s 2024-25 Season appeared first on OperaWire.

Fall

Nikola Hillebrand performs alongside Simply Quartet and Musicbanda Franui.

Performance Date: Oct. 4, 2024

Winter

J. S. Bach’s “Das Weihnachtsoratorium” will be conducted by Vinzenz Praxmarer and will star Anna El-Kashem, Stefanie Irányi, Martin Mitterrutzner, and Wilhelm Schwinghammer.

Performance Date: Dec. 8, 2024

Asher Fisch conducts a new production of Puccini’s “La Bohème” with Barbara Lluch. The cast includes Sara Cortolezzis, Raul Gutierrez, Victoria Randem, Tommaso Barea, Liam James Karai, and Jasurbek Khaydarov.

Performance Dates: Dec. 27, 2024-Jan. 5, 2025

Lorenzo Passerini conducts concert performances of Bellini’s “I Puritani” with René Barbera, Marina Monzó, Mattia Olivieri, and Adolfo Corrado.

Performance Dates: Dec. 28, 2024-Jan. 4, 2025

Florian Boesch performs “Die schöne Müllerin.”

Performance Date: Jan. 5, 2025

Michele Spotti conducts the silver konzert with Marina Monzó and René Barbera.

Performance Date: Dec. 31, 2024

Spring 

Asher Fisch conducts a new production of Wagner’s “Parsifal” with Philipp Maria Krenn directing. The production will star Michael Nágy, Falk Struckmann, Brindley Sherratt, Jonas Kaufmann, Georg Nigl, and Irene Roberts.

Performance Dates: April 17 & 20, 2025

Bach’s “St. Matthew Passion” will be conducted by Heinz Ferlesch and will star Annett Fritsch, Katrin Wundsam, Paul Schweinester, Daniel Gutmann, Lukas Enoch Lemcke, and Charles Workman.

Performance Dates: April 18, 2025

Summer 

George Benjamin’s “Picture a day like this” will be conducted by Corinna Niemeyer and directed by Daniel Jeanneteau and Marie-Christine Soma. The cast will include Hicham Berrada, Xenia Puskarz Thomas, Mari Eriksmoen, Beate Mordal Paul Figuier, and John Brancy.

Performance Dates: July 4 & 6, 2025

Asher Fisch conducts a Wagner gala featuring Act one of “Die Walküre” starring Lise Davidsen, Jonas Kaufmann, and René Pape.

Performance Date: July 5, 2025

Florian Boesch, Christel Loetzsch, and Vera-Lote Böcker star in a double bill of Bartok’s “Bluebeard’s Castle” and Poulenc’s “La voix humaine.” Martin Rajna conducts the production by Claus Guth.

Performance Dates: July 11, 13, & 18, 2025

Asher Fisch conducts concert performances of Verdi’s “La Traviata” with Rosa Feola, Kang Wang, Lucas Meachem, and Luca Salsi.

Performance Dates: July 12 & 27, 2025

Camilla Nylund and Helmut Deutsch perform a Liederband recital.

Performance Date: July 16, 2025

Anita Rachvelishvili and Vicenzo Scalera lead a lieder recital.

Performance Date: July 23, 2025

Asher Fisch conducts concert performances of Verdi’s “Rigoletto” with Ivan Ayon Rivas, Ludovic Tézier, Luca Salsi, Julia Muzychenko-Greenhalgh,  Alexander Köpeczi, and Deniz Uzun.

Performance Date: July 19 & 25, 2025

Asher Fisch conducts Verdi’s “Il Trovatore” in a concert performance. The opera will star Piero Pretti, Mattia Olivieri, Pretty Yende, Elisabeth DeShong, and Alexander Köpeczi.

Performance Date: July 26, 2025

The post Jonas Kaufmann, Lise Davidsen, Pretty Yende, Ludovic Tézier & Luca Salsi Lead Tiroler Festspiele Erl’s 2024-25 Season appeared first on OperaWire.

The conductor will perform on Jan. 4 and 5 in a program that includes music by Strauß, Mozart, Ponchielli, Dukas, Lumbye, Bernstein, Berlioz, and Glière. Norwegian soprano Beate Mordal will be the soloist while actor Eirik del Barco Soleglad will host the evening.

In a statement, Milletarì said, “Beginning 2024 conducting this fantastic orchestra is a real pleasure and honor for me. “I’m returning full of joy to lead the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra, composed not only of excellent musicians but also of many people I consider friends. In addition, I am happy to collaborate again with Beate Mordal, an excellent soprano I have known for a long time and with whom it is always a wonderful experience to make music. The program includes pieces typically associated with New Year’s concerts such as the Radetzky March, but also Mozart masterpieces such as “Exsultate Jubilate” and a famous Italian piece like the “Dance of the Hours” from Ponchielli’s “La Gioconda.”

The post Vincenzo Milletarì Conducts Bergen Philharmonic’s New Year Concert appeared first on OperaWire.

Reviewing a new opera is always a hard task. Beyond the many difficulties of reflecting on an extremely elaborate piece of work, after only one or two hearings, there is also a major difficulty for the critic when addressing unavoidable questions like, “is the new work any good?” This often transforms itself into a more dangerous question, “did I like it?”

It is hard to circumvent a subjective level of criticism, so let me be honest from the start. I had a good experience while watching “Picture a Day Like This.” In fact, I liked it so much that I went to see it a second time. Will it be a work for the ages? There, I am no oracle.

What is ‘Picture a Day Like This?’

“Picture a Day Like This” is George Benjamin and Martin Crimp’s fourth collaboration. It is an opera with a parodic tone that takes as its object something mid-way between a medieval morality play and those one-act psychological thrillers like Bartok’s “Bluebeard Castle” and Poulenc’s “La Voix Humaine.” “Picture a Day” has humor, but it is never funny. The music is often intense and even plays with some musical motives, yet it often sounds like an allusion to Stravinsky’s renaissance phase.

The opera depicts the saga of a woman seeking to revive her son, who has died just before the action begins. To do so, she must find a shirt button from a happy person. In the course of her quest, she meets a series of characters who, sometimes despite initial appearances, are never happy. Until she finds Zabelle. Zabelle reveals that she is happy only because she does not exist. The final meeting makes the woman realize that her whole saga has been part of her journey through grief.

Martin Crimp’s libretto is not devoid of charm and presents its ideas with remarkable concision. Crimp moves us seamlessly through skeptical or satirical representations of polyamorous relationships, sexual harassment, drug addiction, and the intellectual shallowness of the art world. Nevertheless, such concision sometimes makes the characters, subjected as they are to parody, seem awfully schematic. The action is often predictable. As is often the case with such Manichean plots, it also lacks psychological intensity.  In no moment during the opera did I feel that the woman was in any peril. There was no danger in her quest and no realization or immense breakthrough. It might be that I simply missed the fun of of it. Only time will tell.

Main Music Asset

To my mind, George Benjamin’s main musical asset is his devotion to the operatic voice. At most moments, his score seems calculated to elevate the talents of his singers. His use of coloratura and the falsettos in the male voices is meant to showcase a certain beauty of tone inside each singer. Sometimes, the singing line is written as an exaggeration of a spoken-word delivery of the text and I can see that being irritating to some. But, it is an interesting way of engaging with a certain tradition of the operatic.

The opera has two main scenes that could each be considered its highlight, by my own criteria. First, is the very dramatic aria “Cold Earth—dead stems,” when the woman almost despairs of her quest. Second, is the transition to the scene in Zabelle’s garden, where the orchestra repeats in a somber mood a musical motif from the woman’s claim for “the door.”

Benjamin knows how to write music for the English language. When I chose my seat to see the opera a second time, I made sure to choose a place where I would not be able to see the subtitles. The text was mostly comprehensible to the extent that operatic singing with melismatic phrases allows.

Benjamin is an opera composer. Let me explain.

There are opera composers, and there are great composers who also compose operas. While the former loves the genre and understands the main technical aspects of how it functions, the latter also enjoys opera in all its possible grandiloquence. Either type is more than welcomed on my ears and many opera composers composed amazing things that were not opera. But, it is evident especially nowadays when we hear music composed by someone that loves opera and understands its functioning.

The opera staging is austere, but aesthetically exuberant. The work of the duo, Daniel Jeanneteau and Marie-Christine Soma, plays a lot with darkness and reflection without ever making the scenario uninteresting. The videos of Zabelle’s subaquatic garden were particularly beautiful. This is one of the few times that video projection in opera ornamented the stage lightning without looking like a cheap trick to avoid paying for craftier scenarios.

More than Excellent

The vocal cast is more than excellent and led by the star mezzo-soprano Marianne Crebassa. With her instrument as beautiful as ever, Crebassa gives the protagonist a tender sense of vulnerability and numbness. Her character is clearly weakened by the circumstances of grief and avoids at all costs descending into any histrionic behavior. Facing harassment, she simply says “no” or asks to leave. Her “operatic” moment is to be confided only to herself and the audience, of course. However, she exposes it to no one else. As a result, she constructs a character that is unashamed of showing her vulnerabilities through her voice. Her low notes were never forced, but timidly sung. Her high notes, with exception of the aria, were unobtrusive. The product of such carefulness was a very limpid and warm voice with language as crystalline as when heard in a long recitative.

John Brancy plays the roles of the Artisan and the Collector with much mastery. Benjamin uses and abuses his baritone voice in the falsetto region, showcasing a sharpening but mesmerizing tone. While both of his characters were men on the verge of severe psychological problems, it was hard to not be impressed by the beauty of his voice.

Beate Mordal and Cameron Shahbazi always sang together. They represented the most humorously narcissistic figures. At first, they incarnated as a pair of lovers who began singing languid and luxurious vocal lines, stressing their inebriating love.  Shahbazi is completely comfortable transitioning from the sharp and rounded sounds of his countertenor register to the lower notes that embody a kind of old-school masculinity that nowadays usually appears only as an object of criticism. Both their vocal and stage chemistry is unerring. In their second appearance, as a composer (Mordal) and her assistant (Shahbazi) the dynamic of their relationship is invert, with Mordal proving that she can also bring to life some of the more objectionable aspects of today’s so-called intelligentsia. Mordal has a tight vibrato and an agile soprano voice, but I was most impressed by the way she captured a certain mode of physical presence, the tight-hipped, short-stepping sexualized repression I see every time I go to a pseudo-fancy event.

Finally, Anna Prohaska sings the insightful Zabelle with much care and attention, especially to the open vowels. I still remember how well the word “day” sounded in her mouth.

Obviously, for this debut, George Benjamin provided the best orchestral reading that the opera has received so far. The Mahler Chamber Orchestra proves why they are one of the most celebrated musical groups nowadays. They play with much attention to the singing lines and with such a diverse range of colors that would have made the opera extremely interesting even as a purely symphonic piece.  I truly want to see “Picture a Day like this” again, in a year or so, to discover if it still makes such a positive impression.

The post Festival d’Aix En Provence 2023 Review: Picture a Day Like This appeared first on OperaWire.

It all kicks off with a production of “Das Rheingold” directed by Barrie Kosky and conducted by Antonio Pappano. The opera stars Christopher Maltman, Christopher Purves, Sean Panikkar, Marina Prudenskaya, Kiandra Howarth, and Wiebke Lehmkulm.

Performance Dates: Sept. 11 – 29, 2023

Next up is “La Forza del Destino” in a production by Christopher Loy. Mark Elder conducts a cast starring Sondra Radvanovsky, Brian Jagde, Igor Golovatenko, and Evgeny Stavinsky, among others.

Performance Dates: Sept. 19 – Oct. 9, 2023

For “L’Elisir d’Amore,” the company will present Laurent Pelly’s production conducted by Sesto Quartini. The cast stars Liparit Avetisyan, Nadine Sierra, Bryn Terfel, Sarah Dufresne, and Boris Pinnkhasovich.

Performance Dates: Sept. 22 – Oct. 5, 2023

That is followed up by the UK premiere of “Picture a Day Like This” by George Benjamin and Martin Crimp. Corinna Niemeyer conducts a production by Daniel Jeanneteau and Marie-Christine Soma. The opera stars Ema Nikolovska, Jacquelyn Stucker, Beate Mordal, Cameron Shahbazi, and John Brancy.

Performance Dates: Sept. 22 – Oct. 10, 2023

“Rigoletto” will be conducted by Julia Jones and Renata Balsadonna. They lead two casts starring Amartuvshin Enkhbat, Simon Keenlyside, Stefan Pop, Saimir Pirgu, Erin Morley, and Pretty Yende.

Performance Dates: Oct. 12 – Nov. 28, 2023

“Jukebox” will be conducted by André Callegaro and Edward Reeve. The opera stars Isabela Díaz, Sarah Dufresne, Valentina Puscas, Veena Akama-Makia, Gabriele Kupsyte, Michael Gibson, Ryan Vaughan-Dabies, Josef Jeongmeen Ahn, Grisha Martiosyan, and Jamie Woollard.

Performance Dates: Oct. 14, 2023

Händel’s “Jephtha” will get a new production by Oliver Mears. Laurence Cummings conducts a cast starring Allan Clayton, Jennifer France, Alice Coote, Cameron Shahbazi, and Brindley Sherratt.

Performance Dates: Nov. 8 – 24, 2023

Damieno Michieletto’s production of “Cavalleria Rusticana” and “Pagliacci” returns with Daniel Oren conducting. Aleksandra Kurzak, Roberto Alagna, and Dimitri Platanias headline the Mascagni work while Fabio Sartori and Anna Princeva star in Leoncavallo’s masterpiece.

Performance Dates: Nov. 30 – Dec. 15, 2023

Anna Stéphany, Hanna Hipp, Anna Devin, and Lauren Fagan star in the title roles of “Hansel and Gretel” as conducted by Mark Wigglesworth.

Performance Dates: Dec. 16, 2023 – Jan. 7, 2024

Christof Loy leads a new production of “Elektra” starring Nina Stemme, Sara Jakubiak, Karita Mattila, Lukasz Golinski, and Charles Workman. Antonio Pappano conducts.

Performance Dates: Jan. 12 – 30, 2024

Ruzan Mantashyan, Angela Gheorghiu, Yaritza Véliz, Saimir Pirgu, Stefan Pop, and Leonardo Caimi headline “La Bohème.” Evelino Pidò and Keri-Lynn Wilson conduct.

Performance Dates: Jan. 24 – Feb. 16, 2024

Ausrine Stundyte, Angel Blue, and Sonya Yoncheva alternate the title role of “Tosca.” They are joined by Marcelo Puente, Russell Thomas, Yusif Eyvazov, Gabriele Vivani, Ludovic Tezier, and Aleksei Isaev. Karen Kamensek, Andrea Battistoni, and Christopher Willis conduct.

Performance Dates: Feb. 5 – 24, 2024; July 1 – 21, 2024

Bryn Terfel, Elisabet Strid, Toby Spence, and Stephen Milling star in “Der Fliegende Holländer.” Henrik Nánasi conducts.

Performance Dates: Feb. 29 – March 16, 2024

The company will present the world premiere of “Woman & Machine” by Eska and Kirsty Housley. Per the official press release, the work is “a ground-breaking binaural opera from Mercury-nominated artist ESKA, Woman & Machine [that] charts her three-month experience in the neonatal unit of King’s College Hospital when her daughter was born at just 26 weeks.”

Performance Dates: March 6 -16, 2024

Asmik Grigorian and Hrachuhi Bassénz star in “Madama Butterfly” as conducted by Kevin John Edusei. They are joined by Joshua Guerrero, SeokJong Baek, Lauri Vasar, Andrè Schuen, Hongni Wu, and Enkelejda Shkoza.

Performance Dates: March 14 – April 15, 2024; July 12 – 18, 2024

Aigul Akhmetshina, Vasilisa Berzhanskaya, Piotr Beczala, Brandon Jovanovich, Olga Kulchynska, Liana Aleksanyan, and Gemma Summerfield headline “Carmen” in a new production by Damiano Michieletto. Antonio Manacorda and Emmanuel Villaume conduct.

Performance Dates: April 5 – May 31, 2024

Donizetti’s “Lucia di Lammermoor” is set to star Nadine Sierra and Xabier Anduaga alongside Artur Ruciński and In Sung Sim. Giacomo Sagripanti conducts. Liv Redpath performs the title role in the final performance.

Performance Dates: April 19-May 18, 2024

Eleanor Burke and Harriet Taylor each direct a new production of Martinu’s “Larmes de Coucteau” and Harbison and Yeats’ Full Moon in March.” The operas star Valetina Puscas, Veena Akama-Makia, and Kamohelo Tsotetsi. Edward Reeve conducts the Britten Sinfonia.

Performance Dates: April 24 – May 4, 2024

Daisy Evans directs a new production of Vivaldi’s “L’Olimipiade.”

Performance Dates: May 13 – 25, 2024

There will be a farewell gala for conductor Antonio Pappano.

Performance Dates: May 16, 2024

Antonio Pappano leads David McVicar’s “Andrea Chénier” with Jonas Kaufmann, Sondra Radvanovsky, and Carlos Álvarez.

Performance Dates: May 30 – June 11, 2024

Alexander Soddy conducts “Così fan tutte” with Golda Schultz, Samantha Hankey, Daniel Behle, Andrè Schuen, Jennifer France, and Gerald Finley.

Performance Dates: June 26 – July 9, 2024

The season comes to a close with the Jette Parker Artists Summer Performance.

Performance Dates: July 20, 2024

The post Jonas Kaufmann, Sondra Radvanovsky, Sonya Yoncheva, Angel Blue, Asmik Grigorian Headline Royal Opera House’s 2023-24 Season appeared first on OperaWire.

Beate Mordal, Astrid Nordstad, Sakarias Fredriksen Tranvåg, Aleksander Nohr, Bernt Ola Volungholen, Petteri Lehikoinen, and Simen Bredesen star in “Wonderful Bernstein!” Karen Kamensek conducts.

Performance Dates: August 20-26, 2022

Wagner’s “Parsifal third act” will be conducted by Asher Fisch and will feature Yngve Søberg, Franz-Josef Selig, and Daniel Brenna.

Performance Dates: August 27-Sept. 2, 2022

Missy Mazzoli and Royce Vavrek’s “The Listeners” will be conducted by Ilan Volkov and directed by Lileana Blain-Cruz. The work will star Nicole Heaston, Frøy Hovland Holtbakk, Eirik Grøtvedt, Simon Neal, Håvard Stensvold, Tone Kummervold, Martin Hatlo, Johannes Weisser, Cecilie C. Ødegården, Anne-Marie Andersen, Ingunn Kilen, Megan Gryga, Ørjan Bruskeland Hinna, Mihai Florin Simboteanu, and Kjersti Kongssund star.

Performance Dates: Sept. 24-Oct. 9, 2022

Daniel Cohen conducts Rossini’s “Il Barbiere di Siviglia” with Jetske Mijnssen directing and Gurgen Baveyan, Angela Brower, Michele Angelini, Marco Filippo, Clive Bayley, and Jens-Erik Aasbø starring.

Performance Dates: Oct. 2-29, 2022

The Children’s Monster Opera will be conducted by David Maiwald and directed by Gunnar Bergstrøm.

Performance Dates: Nov. 10-16, 2022

“Dissimilis-40 Years of Defying Borders” will be performed. 

Performance Dates: Nov. 23 & 24, 2022

Emmerich Kálmán’s “Die Csárdásfürstin” will be conducted by Stefan Veselka and directed by Hanne Tømta. The work will star Agneta Eichenholz, Eli Kristin, Audun Iversen, Magnus Staveland, Frøy Hovland Holtbakk, and Lina Johnson.

Performance Dates: Nov. 25, 2022-Jan. 18, 2023

Strauss’ “Elektra” will be conducted by Petr Popelka and directed by Ole Anders Tandberg. The cast will be led by Gun-Brit Barkmin, Anna Larsson, Elisabeth Teige, Magnus Staveland, and Yngve Søberg.

Performance Dates: Jan. 21-Feb. 10, 2023

Tchaikovsky’s “Eugene Onegin” will be conducted by Patrik Ringborg with a cast that includes Iurii Samoilov, Svetlana Aksenova, Edgaras Montvidas, Jens-Erik Aasbø, Stephen Milling, and Astrid Nordstad.

Performance Dates: Feb. 11-March 12, 2023

Ravel’s “L’Enfant et les sortilèges” will be directed by Gunnar Bergstrøm.

Performance Dates: March 25-30, 2023

Verdi’s “Un Ballo in Maschera” will be conducted by Edward Gardner and Aage Richard Meyer. Karolina Sofulak directs with Matteo Lippi, Yngve Søberg, Claudio Sgura, Marita Sølberg, Tone Kummervold, and Frøy Hovland Holtbakk starring

Performance Dates: March 25-April 29, 2023

Berlioz’s “La Damnation de Faust” will star David Kim, Julie Boulianne, and Nicolas Courjal. Edward Gardner conducts.

Performance Dates: March 30 & April 1, 2023

Puccini’s “Tosca” will be led by Xian Zhang and Eivind Gullberg Jensen and will star Ewa Vesin, Marita Sølberg, Daniel Johansson, Yngve Søberg, and Claudio Sgura.

Performance Dates: May 4- June 24, 2023

Mozart’s “Così fan tutte” is set to be conducted by Tobias Ringborg and directed by Katrine Wiedemann. The opera stars Frøy Hovland Holtbakk, Kari Dahl Nielsen, Magnus Ingemund Kjelstad, Eirik Grøtvedt, Birgitte Christensen, and Audun Iversen.

Performance Dates: May 21-June 23, 2023

The post Angela Brower, Gun-Brit Barkmin, David Kim & Michele Angelini Lead Den Norske Opera’s 2022-23 Season appeared first on OperaWire.

The Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra has canceled all performances until at least Jan. 13, 2022.

Among the canceled performances is Bach’s “Christmas Oratorio” that was supposed to star soprano Beate Mordal, mezzo-soprano Marianne Beate Kielland, tenor Fabio Trümpy, and baritone Sebastian Noack alongside conductor Jan Willem de Vriend.

The Bergen Philharmonic has shut down following the decision of the government of Norway to limit the number of spectators for indoor performances. Per the official government statement, a maximum of 50 people is allowed at indoor events with fixed allocation seats.

Den Norske Opera has also canceled all performances until Dec. 31, 2021.

Norway is undergoing a major wave of COVID-19, and health officials have warned that the country could face up to 300,000 COVID-19 daily cases during the incoming Omicron wave.

The post Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra Cancels Performances Following Decision by Government of Norway appeared first on OperaWire.

Postponed from last year, owing to COVID restrictions, Kaija Saariaho’s new opera “Innocence” finally received its world premiere at this year’s Festival d’Aix-en-Provence, and it did not disappoint.

The libretto, written by Sofi Oksanen, interweaves two narratives which relate to a school shooting. One focuses on the students and their teacher who were present at the time of the massacre. The time frame shifts fluidly between reflection and a visual presentation of the events of that day. The second is set in the present day at a wedding in which the family of the shooter is celebrating their innocent son’s marriage. But the heavy hand of fate intervenes, forcing the family to confront the events of the past when the waitress at the celebratory dinner recognizes them: her daughter was one of the victims killed by their other son. As the opera develops the two narratives merge seamlessly into a single strand, which take a number of surprising twists, raising questions about the guilt and innocence of all involved.

It is also a narrative which has embedded within it numerous themes, in which the complex nature of guilt, and how it affects even those distantly related to the incident, are central. It explores the process of mourning and the need for honesty in confronting trauma, and cleverly relates how self-deception, secrets and lies are used to redefine our relationship with the past.

The opera has 13 characters, but it is not dominated by a single figure. Rather it is constructed so the events can be seen from multiple perspectives, through the eyes of all those involved, even down to a student hiding in the toilet trying to protect themselves from the shooter, too scared to open the door to another student who was to become a victim; an act destined to create another level of trauma and guilt.

Saariaho’s Complex, Masterful Score

Saariaho has the ability to draw listeners into her soundscape, and so it is with “Innocence.” From the brooding darkness of the opening bars the audience finds itself being dragged into the unfolding nightmare. The work is scored for an orchestra of substantial size employing a wide range of instruments, allowing for a variety of orchestral sounds and textures, which Saariaho used to explore and support the drama, however, it rarely takes centerstage, that is left to the singers.

With 13 characters to write for, she decided to introduce a variety of forms of expression, ranging from spoken, semi-spoken and folk idiom to sprechgesang and lyric, in which certain voices were amplified. The characters at the wedding party were provided with traditional singing parts as per a normal opera, while the students and teacher were provided with other forms. The interplay of the voices presented in such different ways alongside the colorful orchestral accompaniment made for an engaging and absorbing experience, which importantly, worked exceptionally well in intensifying the drama. A further level of complexity was added by having the shooting take place in an international school, so that the libretto contained at least nine different languages, each with their own rhythms and accents, to which Saariaho marries her musical tapestry.

The London Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Susanna Mälkki produced a fine reading of the score which captured its subtle instrumental details, and skillfully developed its colorful textures, while carefully exploring the interplay of orchestra and voices. It was certainly not a reading which insisted on being noticed, yet was successful in promoting the onstage drama.

The Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir under the direction of Lodewijk van der Ree produced a beguiling sound which moved between text and sound, and complemented the drama perfectly.

Stones’ Visually Gripping and Insightful Direction

Aided by scenographer Chloe Lamford and costume designer Mel Page, the director Simon Stone opted for a naturalistic presentation with a restaurant, kitchen, utility room, toilets, a stairwell, a study room and a classroom. Lamford created a large rotating cube incorporating two levels, with the wedding party on the lower level and the international school on the upper. It was an effective and imaginative staging which allowed the drama to move seamlessly without interruptions for set changes – which took place out of public sight while the cube rotated. As the narratives combined so the rooms within the cube altered so that by the end, the whole cube had become the school. Moreover, it was possible to present both narratives simultaneously; while a scene may be set in the restaurant, it was also possible to watch the students going about their business at school on the upper level.

In the program notes, Stone explained that his approach was focused on exploring the scars caused by the shooting, and the need for those involved to confront their trauma, “to reopen past wounds to help heal them.” To this end, he encouraged the singers and actors to present their disparate and deeply felt emotions with a raw and penetrating clarity, in which the confrontation scenes between the waitress and the father, and then with the mother stood out as being particularly well-crafted. This did not mean that Stone underplayed the actual bloody events themselves. On the contrary, the sheer terror of the students fleeing the gunman, and the dead bodies which were allowed to lie on the stage with blood splattered across the walls, made it very clear as to what was occurring and the horror it entailed.

The Wedding Party

Initially, the wedding party seemed to be a typical celebratory dinner, in which a little anxiety could be discerned; normal on such occasions. However, below the surface exists the deep trauma brought about by the shootings, one which the presence of the waitress forces into the open, resurrecting memories and guilt, which in turn precipitates the unraveling of lies, deceptions and self-deceptions.

Mezzo-soprano Magdalena Kōzená was cast as the waitress. In what was a fiery performance she carefully crafted the deep pain and suffering experienced by her character. Yet, it was not a flat portrayal, but one in which she captured an array of nuanced emotions, ranging from anger, rising anxiety, delusion and denial, resentment and bitterness. Her singing was wonderfully moulded, full of sharp accents, dynamic shifts and colorful shadings.

Soprano Sandrine Piau created a compelling portrait of the mother-in-law, who had simply not faced up to the actions of her son, even wondering if it was too late to call him and invite him to the wedding reception, and accusing the waitress’ daughter of causing the her son’s actions. It was a finely honed performance, in which Piau subtly inflected the vocal line with emotional depth and anxious accents.

The father-in-law was a typical middle class father and husband who tried to do his best for his family. Yet, he is aware of why there are so few people at the wedding, aware of his wife’s delusions and the problems of not telling his daughter-in-law the truth. He was played by bass-baritone Tuomas Pursio, who produced a good singing performance in which he moulded the vocal line neatly to fit the character’s fairly calm personality, who when pushed was able to confront the truth of his own role in the tragedy.

The groom played by tenor Markus Nykänen produced an excellent performance. His character undergoes a significant change over the course of the wedding reception. Calm and happy at the beginning, distraught and hollowed out by the end. He is not the innocent everybody believes him to be! His singing displayed a high degree of expressivity and emotional honesty which allowed him to successfully develop his character.

The innocent bride was played by soprano Lilian Farahani. This was supposed to be her happy day, the day she had found the family she longed for, having spent her childhood as an orphan growing up in Romania. She knew nothing about the family secret, until the waitress’ intervention. Farahani’s bright youthful voice was perfectly suited to the bride’s joyful demeanor. Even when confronted with the family’s secret, she remained supportive. Only when a further more devastating secret was revealed does her world finally collapse.

The Priest was played bass-baritone Jukka Rasilainen. He sang with precision, but was too underpowered to be completely effective.

The International School

The context of an international school added an extra dimension to the shooting, with the students coming from all parts of the world. They are the primary victims of shooter’s frenzied attack, but they also carry part of the guilt, for as the narrative unfolds it becomes clear that they had banded together to bully and humiliate him.

Soprano Lucy Shelton was the teacher who witnessed the unfolding events and acts as a narrator, relaying her impressions and her own sense of guilt to the audience. She made a good impression, presenting her lines in a way which was similar to sprechgesang, which worked well and added to the vocal textures of the work.

Markéta is the waitress’ daughter and one of the shooter’s victims. She is a carefully drawn figure; excellent at her studies, very studious, good at writing songs, maybe a little bit of a loner, but not unpopular. Vilma Jää, a Finnish folksinger-songwriter played the part. She possesses a high, flexible soprano, which she used to create the most remarkable lines through the interpolation of herding calls once used by the shepherds of Karelia, which occasionally gave her voice an almost disembodied sound. At the final curtain, she received loud applause, such was the quality and impact of her vocal skills.

Soprano Beate Mordal performed well as Lilly. She was the ring leader in the bullying incident and eventually slaughtered by the shooter.

Julie Hega playing the spoken part of Student 3 sympathizes with shooter after his humiliation, and planned the killings with him. It was a substantial role which displayed her ability to develop a truly believable and ultimately confused character.

Simon Kluth, Camilo Delgardo Diaz and Marina Dumont also impressed in smaller acting roles, in which their fear during the shooting, and the depth of their trauma were convincingly essayed.

Ultimately, this was not a work about a school shooting; it could have been about any traumatic event. This was about the consequences: the guilt, the self-deception, the lies and about coming to terms with what had happened, about confronting the past and trying to carve out future lives. The fact that the work has such a tense and strong narrative as a backdrop meant it is also a gripping piece of theatre.

Without doubt, “Innocence” is a painful work to watch for there is a lot of pain on view; lives are lost and survivors’ lives are destroyed, as they are pushed to their emotional limits. Yet in the epilogue the surviving students talk about their futures with optimism, and Markéta, the dead daughter of the waitress, encourages her mother to stop dwelling on the past, to stop buying her her favorite apples and birthday presents, and to move on.

Over the coming seasons, “Innocence” is scheduled for performances at Covent Garden, Amsterdam, Helsinki, San Francisco and the New York Met. It is a production not to be missed.

The post Festival d’Aix-En-Provence 2021 Review: Innocence appeared first on OperaWire.