What opera have you been watching lately?

**Adrian** · June 25th, 2015, 07:20 AM

Last night : Gounod : Faust.

It's on my shelf's for a long time:

Gheorghiu/ Alagna/ Terfel/ Keenlyside / Koch.
If only Jonas had sung Faust.
Emi release 6316119

**Floria** · June 30th, 2015, 01:13 PM

Krol Roger – Szymanowski -ROH
I liked Mariusz Kwiecien but I just couldn't get into this opera.

Medea - Cherubini - Arte
Alexandra Deshorties
This was the first time I have seen it. I could have done without the kids going across the stage on skateboards and the 'golden fleece' which I thought was funny. It looked like a bear skin with a ram's skull attached. Overall I really enjoyed it.

La Boheme Netrebko and Calleja – ROH Fantastic

A couple of concerts on ut. Verona, Paris, and Baden Baden with Anna Netrebko, Elina Garanca, Ramon Vargas, Ludovic Tezier.

Bits and pieces of the Circus La Traviata on ut.

**Soave_Fanciulla** · June 30th, 2015, 06:57 PM

Originally Posted by Floria

Medea - Cherubini
This was the first time I have seen it. I could have done without the kids going across the stage on skateboards and the 'golden fleece' which I thought was funny. It looked like a bear skin with a ram's skull attached. Overall I really enjoyed it.

I've just watched that too (available on Arte, from Geneva). Alexandra Deshorties gave one of the most intense performances I have ever seen. Not the most beautiful singing, but if you want to really understand Medea's despair and anger you should watch this. Not quite sure how such a slight woman manage to kill those adolescent sons though...

**Soave_Fanciulla** · July 4th, 2015, 09:15 PM

I watched an excellent Norma from the Liceu with Gregory Kunde, Sondra Radvanovsky, Ekaterina Gubanova and Raymond Aceto in fine vocal and acting form. If it comes out on DVD it will be the best one out - good production too. Unfortunately it has now been taken down off YT.

**Clayton** · July 4th, 2015, 09:54 PM

that looks like some pretty funky staging*

*The exact definition of funky staging is unclear

**Soave_Fanciulla** · July 4th, 2015, 10:30 PM

Originally Posted by Clayton

that looks like some pretty funky staging*

*The exact definition of funky staging is unclear

Funky yes, but not weird. And the direction was very good. The ending, when Norma is begging her father to care for her children, was genuinely moving. Great respect to the lovely Sondra.

**JohnGerald** · July 5th, 2015, 04:49 PM

Originally Posted by Soave_Fanciulla

Funky yes, but not weird. And the direction was very good. The ending, when Norma is begging her father to care for her children, was genuinely moving. Great respect to the lovely Sondra.

I could not agree more. This is the best Norma I have seen. Even aging tenor Gregory Kunde is good. And Sondra? She nails it!!

**Clayton** · July 6th, 2015, 09:46 AM

I've been bingeing, the cricket starts this week that will occupy seven and a half hours of the day which would otherwise be precious opera time...

Das Rheingold
James Morris (Wotan), Siegfried Jerusalem (Loge), Ekkehard Wlaschiha (Alberich), Christa Ludwig (Fricka), Jan-Hendrik Rootering (Fasolt), Matti Salminen (Fafner), MariAnne Häggander (Freia), Alan Held (Donner), Jean-Mark Baker (Froh), Heinz Zednik (Mime), Birgitta Svendén (Erda), Kaaren Erickson (Woglinde), Diane Kesling (Wellgunde), Meredith Parsons (Flosshilde)
1990

and

Die Walküre
Gary Lakes (Siegmund), Jessye Norman (Sieglinde), Kurt Moll (Hunding), Hildegard Behrens (Brünnhilde), James Morris (Wotan), Christa Ludwig (Fricka), Pyramid Sellers (Gerhilde), Martha Thigpen (Ortlinde), Joyce Castle (Waltraute), Sondra Kelly (Schwertleite), Katarina Ikonomu (Helmwige), Diane Kesling (Siegrune), Wendy Hillhouse (Grimgerde), Jacalyn Bower (Rossweisse)
1989

Metropolitan Opera Orchestra & Chorus, James Levine

magnificent voices, superb sets and some very dodgy make up and costumes (mostly very good though)

Name: Der Ring des Nibelungen - Metropolitan Opera, James Levine 1990.jpg
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Name: Der Ring des Nibelungen - Metropolitan Opera, James Levine 1990.jpg
Views: 128
Size: 54.9 KB

**Soave_Fanciulla** · July 6th, 2015, 10:05 AM

Vinci Catone in Utica from Versailles (on Culturebox). An epic feast of tenors and countertenors. Utterly stupendous singing, dramatic staging (with funny moments), and Riccardo Minasi conducting/violining like a god for three and a half hours. Oh, and some fabulous feathers, so Artaserse fans won't be disappointed.

**Clayton** · July 7th, 2015, 11:11 AM

Continuing with MET Ring cycle

Siegfried
Siegfried Jerusalem (Siegfried), Hildegard Behrens (Brünnhilde), Heinz Zednik (Mime), James Morris (Der Wanderer), Ekkehard Wlaschiha (Alberich), Matti Salminen (Fafner), Birgitta Svendén (Erda), Dawn Upshaw (Waldvogel)
Metropolitan Opera Orchestra & Chorus, James Levine
1990

Wonderful act one
act two Fafner/dragon - Jim Henson has a bad day at the office
Act three Wotan/Erda - spell bound, magical

**Amfortas** · July 7th, 2015, 05:03 PM

Originally Posted by Clayton

act two Fafner/dragon - Jim Henson has a bad day at the office

The dragon has been a stumbling block ever since the 1876 first production, when the neck was mistakenly shipped to Beirut, not Bayreuth.

For whatever reason, producers sometimes do a better job with the Rheingold dragon.

**Clayton** · July 7th, 2015, 06:35 PM

Originally Posted by Amfortas

The dragon has been a stumbling block ever since the 1876 first production, when the neck was mistakenly shipped to Beirut, not Bayreuth.

1876 Lebanon: Some businessman waiting for an important document shipment by express courrier...

What the £$%% is this?

**Clayton** · July 8th, 2015, 08:49 AM

A recent test to show I have life priorities just about right:

I woke up at a quarter to five, so I could watch the final day of the Der Ring des Nibelugen before the cricket is scheduled to start at eleven o'clock (time to spare for interruptions and maybe catch a bit of the pre-match commentary).

Err... actually maybe this proves just the opposite and that I am completely imbalanced...

Oh well

It's working out fine for the moment

...

...

Götterdämmerung
Siegfried Jerusalem (Siegfried), Hildegard Behrens (Brünnhilde), Matti Salminen (Hagen), Anthony Raffell (Gunther), Ekkehard Wlaschiha (Alberich), Hanna Lisowska (Gutrune), Christa Ludwig (Waltraute), Kaaren Erickson (Woglinde), Diane Kesling (Wellgunde), Meredith Parsons (Flosshilde), Gweneth Bean (1. Norn), Joyce Castle (2. Norn), Andrea Gruber (3. Norn)
Metropolitan Opera Orchestra & Chorus, James Levine 1990

I prefer this final day to Siegfried now. The music is the most beautiful and the drama is... um... human(?)

**Soave_Fanciulla** · July 8th, 2015, 09:33 AM

Originally Posted by Clayton

I prefer this final day to Siegfried now. The music is the most beautiful and the drama is... um... human(?)

In the Wagner Gala a couple of weeks ago there were great chunks of this final day. When the orchestra struck up the first chord of Siegfried's funeral march I honestly thought I was going to explode.

**Soave_Fanciulla** · July 8th, 2015, 10:22 AM

Rossini: Guillaume Tell
Andrew Foster-Williams (Tell), Alessandra Volpe (Hedwige), Tara Stafford, Judith Howarth (Mathilde), Michael Spyres (Arnold), Tara Stafford (Jemmy), Giulio Pelligra (Rodolphe), Artavazd Sargsyan (Ruodi), Nahuel Di Pierro (Walther Fürst/Melchthal), Raffaele Facciolà (Gesler), Marco Filippo Romano (Leuthold)
Virtuosi Brunensis & Camerata Bach Choir, Poznań, Antonino Fogliani

The production is a bit drab but Michael Spyres is just amazing in this.