April 12, 2011
April 7, 2011
March 27, 2011
More Sony CD releases from Metropolitan Opera archives
“The next batch of releases in [Sony's Metropolitan Opera archival CD] series . . . comes in early May [2011]. Among the offerings, available for the first time on official (nonpirated) recordings, will be a 1960 broadcast of Beethoven’s 'Fidelio,' starring Birgit Nilsson and Jon Vickers, with Karl Böhm conducting; and Wagner’s 'Walküre,' from 1968, with Nilsson as Brünnhilde, Vickers as Siegmund, Leonie Rysanek as Sieglinde, Thomas Stewart as Wotan, Christa Ludwig as Fricka and the Croatian conductor Berislav Klobucar.”–New York Times
Also to be released are recordings of Le nozze di Figaro and Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg.
Le nozze di Figaro:
Broadcast of January 28, 1961
Conductor: Erich Leinsdorf
Artists:
Lucine Amara
Roberta Peters
Mildred Miller
Kim Borg
Cesare Siepi
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Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg
Broadcast of January 15, 1972
Conductor: Thomas Schippers
Artists:
Pilar Lorengar
James King
Theo Adam
Benno Kusche
Ezio Flagello
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CD, amazon.co.uk
February 16, 2011
February 14, 2011
February 10, 2011
The Magic Flute
I wouldn’t know how to answer the question “What is the best recording of The Magic Flute?” because there are so many of them. I’d say that the one I like the best is from Vienna of the 1950′s with Hilde Güden, Wilma Lipp, Léopold Simoneau, and Walter Berry, conducted by Karl Böhm. It does not contain the dialogue, but that is a plus in my opinion since I am not interested in hearing the dialogue when I listen to a recording. The Double Decca recording comes at a good price, but without a libretto.
February 1, 2011
February 1, 2011
Los Angeles Opera announces 2011-12 season
Washington National Opera announces 2011-12 season
Lincoln Center in New York has announced their 2011-2012 Great Performers season.
Find All of Your Favorite Artists, Composers, and more at ariama.com
Lyric Opera of Chicago has announced its 2011-2012 season.
January 24, 2011
January 24, 2011
The people at Welsh National Opera have announced their 2011-2012 season, so they say. One has to do a certain amount of clicking around on their site to glean information, and there does not appear to be any information on the casts. Maybe some people will go to the opera to hear just anybody, but I can’t imagine doing that. If Welsh National Opera can’t announce their season properly, they should not announce it at all, IMHO. A lack of regard for identities of the singers is a lack of regard for the audience.
January 16, 2011
January 16, 2011
The Royal Opera House was unable to raise the safety curtain for a performance of Il Barbiere di Sivigila, reports Intermezzo.
December 23, 2010
Sony & the Metropolitan Opera
On January 25, 2011 (January 17 in Germany!), Sony will be issuing recordings of some Metropolitan Opera performances of the mid twentieth century. They will include:
Gounod: Roméo et Juliette. Performers: Jussi Björling (Tenor), Nicola Moscona (Bass), Bidu Sayao (Soprano),
Mimi Benzell (Voice), John Brownlee (Baritone), Claramae Turner (Alto),
Thomas Hayward (Tenor).
Conductor: Emil Cooper. Date: 02/01/1947
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Gounod: Romeo Et Juliette / Bjorling, Sayao, Brownlee, Cooper, Metropolitan Opera, arkivmusic.com
Puccini: La Bohème. Performers: Clifford Harvuot (Baritone), Carlo Bergonzi (Tenor), Laurel Hurley (Soprano),
Norman Scott (Bass), Licia Albanese (Soprano), Mario Sereni (Baritone).
Conductor: Thomas Schippers. Date: 02/15/1958.
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Puccini: La Boheme / Albanese, Bergonzi, Schippers, Metropolitan Opera, arkivmusic.com
Puccini: Tosca. Performers: Leontyne Price (Soprano), Franco Corelli (Tenor), Cornell MacNeil (Baritone).
Conductor: Kurt Adler. Date: 04/07/1962.
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Puccini: Tosca / Price, Corelli, MacNeil, Adler, Metropolitan Opera, arkivmusic.com
Rossini: Il Barbiere di Siviglia. Performers: Jerome Hines (Bass Baritone), Giuseppe Valdengo (Bass Baritone), Lily Pons (Soprano),
Salvatore Baccaloni (Bass), Giuseppe Di Stefano (Tenor).
Conductor: Alberto Erede. Date: 12/16/1950.
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CD, amazon.co.uk
CD, amazon.de
