Opera Suggestions

[reckless]

PS I am going to JDD's recital at Carnegie Hall and to the dual Fleming/Graham recital in Boston.

I wanted to get tickets for the Fleming/Graham recital in Los Angeles, but my mom didn't order them with her LA Philharmonic subscription and, by the time they were available to LA Opera subscribers, there weren't enough seats left. I'm hoping I can find some tickets available online in the weeks leading up to the recital.

ETA: I forgot to mention that I'm seeing Placido Domingo's recital at the Hollywood Bowl on Sunday. I can't wait for that.

[kwanfan1818]

Dmitri Hvorostovsky and Family on Vacation

[reckless]

I just got home from the Hollywood Bowl, where the LA Philharmonic performed with Placido Domingo and Ana Maria Martinez. It was a great night of music, but also one of the most bizarre concert programs I've ever witnessed.

Ostensibly, this was the closing event of a week-long festival of music from across the Americas. However, it really seemed like they said, "It's Placido Domingo. He can do whatever the hell he wants." So that's kind of how the program was.

It started with the overture from The Barber of Seville by the Philharmonic followed by Domingo and Martinez singing several opera arias and duets. (I forget exactly what, but they included some Wagner and Verdi who, last time I checked, were not exactly from the Americas.) Then they switched to American musicals, beginning with the LA Philharmonic doing the overture to Candide, followed by "I Could Have Danced All Night" (Martinez), "Some Enchanted Evening" (Domingo), "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" (Martinez), and then a duet between the world's oldest Tony and Maria on "Tonight." After that, the program switched to several Zarzuela pieces, including two from Maravilla, and then closed with a series of somewhat random Spanish-language songs, including Domingo having the audience sing along with him to "Besame Mucho" and "Granada," and a duet that had a brief interlude where Domingo and Martinez did a short tango.

it was a great. albeit somewhat odd, concert. The singers were great and it is amazing at how strong Domingo's voice remains at his age. I get to see him perform again next month in I Due Foscari.

[SaSherka]

I just got home from the Hollywood Bowl, where the LA Philharmonic performed with Placido Domingo and Ana Maria Martinez. It was a great night of music, but also one of the most bizarre concert programs I've ever witnessed.

You got me curious, so I looked up this LA Times review.
A few things have already popped up on YouTube, like PD's Granada & PD+AMM's duet, Jazzed up Besame Mucho, AMM's crazily cadenza-ed Una Voce Poco Fa (Verrry impressed, even though I self-brainwashed to adore JDD's Rosina =))
I am usually hesitant about open-air concerts due to popular programming issues, but we had a very good Boston Lyric Opera collaboration here in Boston a couple weeks ago.

PS. Has the Met season started?

[kwanfan1818]

PS. Has the Met season started?

[SaSherka]

You can refresh a number of times and get a new result

[kwanfan1818]

"Throw your panties up in the air -- it's Jonas Kaufmann!"

Where's Marge_Simpson?

[Marge_Simpson]

I'm here. Why are you asking about my panties?!

[kwanfan1818]

Have you seen Jonas Kaufmann?

[emason]

Have you seen Jonas Kaufmann?

My least favorite opera composer ever - Wagner. Did I buy a ticket to next season's Parsifal? You betcha; for Kaufmann I am putting aside my dislike of Wagner.

[BlueRidge]

Live in HD tix went on sale to the general public today at 10 a.m. (aka folks who don't have an extra $150 for the Met) so I got my tix.

The rich had already bought all the tix at the D.C. location.

So its out to the wasteland that is Northern Virginia for me.

For six shows:
Otello
La Clemenza Di Tito
Aida
Les Troyens
Rigoletto
Guilio Cesare

[SaSherka]

Live in HD tix went on sale to the general public today at 10 a.m. (aka folks who don't have an extra $150 for the Met) so I got my tix.

The rich had already bought all the tix at the D.C. location.

Yep, same story with the only Boston location. It's the same every year, so I wasn't even surprised, plus the quality is better in the newer suburban theaters.
I may have to wait for last-minute HD tickets for myself as I overspent on the Met (2 are HD Saturdays anyway), Celebrity Series (Fleming/Graham; Jurowski w/LPO and Kissin), Boston Symphony opening night and Richard Tucker Gala in NYC and I have yet to buy my JDD@Carnegie ticket. Yep, and I was in a full-blown planning mode for either Munich or San Fran's performances of JDD's Capuleti/Montecchi tonight. Please, stop me

[BlueRidge]

My mother liked to say, "You only go this way once, you might as well make the most of it!"

[BlueRidge]

I saw the Washington Opera's Don Giovanni last night!

I'm about the same with opera as I am with skating so no detailed expert report from me.

I liked it. I thought the singing was good all the way around. I thought Ildar Abdrazakov was very good as Don Giovanni, definitely the most outstanding of the cast members. The Leporello was fine, but Luca Pisaroni was so good in the Met version last year that by comparison it was pretty dull.

Of the sopranos, I liked Zerlina Veronica Cangemi the best. Barbara Frittoli was Donna Elvira here as with the Met. I was interested to hear her live as I've liked her in the Live in HD programs I've seen but I was not that impressed with her voice. She's got the portrayal down though so her performance was convincing. The costume she wore through much of it was kind of so I enjoyed that to; it was some sort of skin tight pants with a bodice and a flowing sort of coat/cape. With high heels, that's what made it.

The production was much better than the Met's claustrophobic sets from last season. It appeared to be set in the 20th Century though some of the costumes didn't really fit with the time period. I always like that. There were a lot of changes of scenery and extras on stage, and dancing and stuff that added a lot to it.

The one thing I liked least was the orchestra. I don't really know what kind of rep the Washington Opera Orchestra has but I was underwhelmed by it. I'll be interested to see how they sound next week for Anna Bolena.

In any case, I had not been to a live opera since the 1980s! And I got a cheap 2nd tier seat which was really excellent. I really enjoyed going.

[emason]

Frittoli was absolutely ghastly, a major disappointment, the night I went to DG at the Met last season. I certainly won't be rushing out to buy a ticket to anything else she is in anytime soon.

[Marge_Simpson]

I am going to JDD's recital at Carnegie Hall and to the dual Fleming/Graham recital in Boston.

I am no opera fan (although I'm certainly susceptible to peer pressure ) but if you would like to meet up for dinner afterward, please let me know.

[LadyNit]

I'm looking forward to Seattle Opera's Fidelio. I lurrrrrve that opera.

[BYTCH]

I didn't realize there was an opera thread!

My biker buddy is up here at the trailer, helping close up for the season. Finding something for us to watch together on TV was a challenge--I refuse to watch football, hockey, or baseball; he won't watch Project Runway, Chelsea Handler, or The Closer.

We compromised and watched the Met's production of Das Rheingold Nothing like Wagnerian opera, he thought it was great.

The subtitles made it possible, he really got into brudderschaft, and all the bass parts.

[SaSherka]

I am no opera fan (although I'm certainly susceptible to peer pressure ) but if you would like to meet up for dinner afterward, please let me know.

I will also be in NYC the weekend before for the Richard Tucker Gala at the Avery Fisher Hall and will surely need to eat at some point! Will def try to peer-pressure you to see JDD at Carnegie Hall w/ me!

In other opera news, went to the concert performance of Gershwin's Porgy & Bess with the Boston Symphony Orchestra on Friday. They miked everyone for the spoken parts and seems like the mics were still on for some/all of the singing parts. The overall result was that the singers, chorus and orchestra sounded evenly great, but I felt cheated as I didn't know what sound to believe.
Not my favorite music and a sizable number of attendees left at intermission, but I am still glad I went.

[kwanfan1818]

Marge_Simpson, definitely go to hear JDD!

I love Fidelio, too. I'm really looking forward to hearing Marcy Stonikas (Sunday matinee only) after her Turandot.