What opera have you been listening to, lately?

**Florestan** · November 4th, 2020, 04:26 AM

**Florestan** · November 13th, 2020, 05:29 AM

**Florestan** · November 20th, 2020, 03:03 PM

**Florestan** · November 21st, 2020, 11:30 PM

**Florestan** · November 22nd, 2020, 08:23 PM

**Florestan** · December 17th, 2020, 08:55 PM

First opera I have listened to in a several weeks after getting excited about my new Beethoven symphony cycle (Monteux).

**Florestan** · December 25th, 2020, 04:15 AM

My favorite Sutherland Sonnambula (there are 5) and one of the top three of my 25 Sonnambula recordings.

Conductor Silvio Varviso
Amina - Joan Sutherland
Elvino - Nicolai Gedda
Rodolfo - Ezio Flagello
Lisa - Jeanette Scovotti
Alessio - John Macurdy
Notaro - Andrea Velis
Teresa - Lili Chookasian

**Florestan** · January 17th, 2021, 06:18 PM

**Florestan** · January 18th, 2021, 07:43 PM

**Florestan** · January 20th, 2021, 04:55 AM

**MAuer** · January 20th, 2021, 12:51 PM

Originally Posted by Florestan

This reminded me that the theater in Basel, Switzerland, was presenting something called Barbie in Seville as part of its opera offerings in December. Once I stopped laughing after seeing that listing in Opernwelt, I thought that The Barbie of Seville would make a great title for a comic opera or operatic parody. Maybe Bocelli could sing the role of Don Ken.

**Florestan** · January 21st, 2021, 03:26 AM

**Florestan** · January 23rd, 2021, 05:23 AM

**Florestan** · January 30th, 2021, 06:04 PM

Picked this up for around $26 on a special sale last year. I think the assessment below is a good one.

As the first woman to record Richard Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen, Simone Young has amply demonstrated the breadth of her interpretive powers and shown that she has more than enough stamina and concentration to bring off such a long-range project. Das Rheingold and Die Walk?re were recorded by Oehms Classics in 2008, while Siegfried was given in 2009, and G?tterd?mmerung followed in 2010, yet the excitement and momentum of Young's readings and the splendid playing of the Hamburg Philharmonic give these music dramas a unity and consistency that belie their different dates. Yet for its strengths, this is not a Ring for beginners, due to some weak links in the cast and some minor sound problems resulting from the live recording and microphone placement; no one should expect the quality of a Bayreuth or Metropolitan Opera production, or other classic versions. Instead, this is a worthwhile set that dedicated Wagner fans will appreciate, particularly for the excellence of the orchestral sound. Presented on 14 CDs in paper sleeves and housed in a sturdy box with an informative booklet, this set is a compact presentation that saves on shelf space, if not necessarily on price.

http://alllossless.net/106220-simone...-set-2013.html