What opera have you been listening to, lately?

[Ann Lander (sospiro)]

Also, a brief trip summary.

Operas watched: Tannhauser, Lucia di Lammermoor, Jenufa, Nabucco, La Forza, Oberon, Semiramide, La Favorite, Hoffman, and Andrea Chenier
Concerts: Anja Harteros lieder, Simon Keenlyside & band
Biggest disappointment (relative to expectations): La Forza?
Biggest surprise delight (also relative, what are other ways to say "opposite of disappointment"?): Jenufa
New fan of: Georg Zeppenfeld, Elena Pankratova, Vitalij Kowaljow, Rachael Wilson, Johannes Kammler, and Michael Spyres

What a great list!

[Sonata]

Prokofiev: Betrothal in a Monastery.

Very strange work, very Prokofiev. I am enjoying it but I have to say.....never would have expected I'd be listening to something this quirky when I started listening to opera 7 years ago!

[Soave_Fanciulla]

I am home! Listened to Cariven's Belle Helene twice on the flight (with all the shout-y dialogue bits removed) and once more when dealing with customs/retrieving checked luggage.

Attachment 10535

Also, a brief trip summary.

Operas watched: Tannhauser, Lucia di Lammermoor, Jenufa, Nabucco, La Forza, Oberon, Semiramide, La Favorite, Hoffman, and Andrea Chenier
Concerts: Anja Harteros lieder, Simon Keenlyside & band
Biggest disappointment (relative to expectations): La Forza?
Biggest surprise delight (also relative, what are other ways to say "opposite of disappointment"?): Jenufa
New fan of: Georg Zeppenfeld, Elena Pankratova, Vitalij Kowaljow, Rachael Wilson, Johannes Kammler, and Michael Spyres

Michael Spyres

what are other ways to say "opposite of disappointment"

Unexpected delight?

[Florestan]

I could see me getting two more sets of this opera since there is one out there with Kasarova and one with Didonato/Prina, but for now I am listening to this one, which is also wonderful (Fleming among others):

[Clayton]

Get the PaPe dvd!

[Sonata]

Beverly Sills: Sillsiana


Leontyne Price: Sings Spirituals


Victoria De Los Angeles: Chants D'Auvergne

[Florestan]

Get the PaPe dvd!

Can you link an image, I am not finding it.

[Florestan]

Beverly Sills: Sillsiana

Excellent double CD set with some great tracks. A must have for sills fans and selling used for ridiculously low prices online.

[Florestan]

Just arrived. My first recording with Leontyne Price and my fourth Tosca on CD (the other two being live and studio Callas and Chandos in English).

Now at end of Act II. Leontyne has an awesome voice!

[Sonata]

Verdi: Giovanna D'arco.


One of Verdi's that I know least well. Trying to find a libretto online but no luck. Being on a big vocalist kick I'm really trying to focus on the different details of each singer's voice

[Hoffmann]

I am home! Listened to Cariven's Belle Helene twice on the flight (with all the shout-y dialogue bits removed) and once more when dealing with customs/retrieving checked luggage.

Attachment 10535

Also, a brief trip summary.

Operas watched: Tannhauser, Lucia di Lammermoor, Jenufa, Nabucco, La Forza, Oberon, Semiramide, La Favorite, Hoffman, and Andrea Chenier
Concerts: Anja Harteros lieder, Simon Keenlyside & band
Biggest disappointment (relative to expectations): La Forza?
Biggest surprise delight (also relative, what are other ways to say "opposite of disappointment"?): Jenufa
New fan of: Georg Zeppenfeld, Elena Pankratova, Vitalij Kowaljow, Rachael Wilson, Johannes Kammler, and Michael Spyres

Were all of these in Munich, or did you venture some beyond?

Was Semiramide almost a surprise delight? How was the Tannhäuser?

[Dichteurehalle]

Were all of these in Munich, or did you venture some beyond?

Was Semiramide almost a surprise delight? How was the Tannhäuser?

Were all of these in Munich, or did you venture some beyond?

Was Semiramide almost a surprise delight? How was the Tannhäuser?

All of these were in Munich, though I did also go to Feldafing for a non-opera concert, so good, the highlight of which was the Saint-Saens violin Sonata no 1.

I've got some notes and will try and write up some longer thoughts when I've gotten over this wanting to go to bed at 6pm problem, but for now, my favorites (in chronological order) were Tannhauser, Jenufa, Semiramide, Favorite, and Andrea Chenier. (Maybe more accurate to say top half?) All of them were so thrilling, though I expected them to be fantastic, based on the live streams. Except for the Jenufa, no live stream for that! In retrospect, I'm not entirely sure why I didn't expect it to be amazing based on the Westbroek-Skelton-Mattila cast, maybe vague residual disappointment about the Met's Jenufa. Runners-up for surprise delight were Nabucco and Oberon.

So exhausted, please forgive incoherence, will write much more later!

[Clayton]

Get the PaPe dvd!

sorry, I was having interweb issues yesterday... and cut short this post

From the Aix-en-Provence Festival July 2015



Handel: Alcina
Patricia Petibon (Alcina), Philippe Jaroussky (Ruggiero), Anna Prohaska (Morgana), Katarina Bradic (Bradamante), Anthony Gregory (Oronte), Krzysztof Baczyk (Melisso), Elias Mädler, Lionel Wunsch (Oberto)
Freiburger Barockorchester, MusicAeterna (Chorus of the Perm Opera), Andrea Marcon (musical director) & Katie Mitchell (stage director)

This is the production that convinced me it was a good idea to sell not only my kidney but all my other usuable organs on forward order so that I could buy a new sound system for my picture box.

[MAuer]

This is the production that convinced me it was a good idea to sell not only my kidney but all my other usuable organs on forward order so that I could buy a new sound system for my picture box.

[MAuer]

Delightful music, fantastic cast!