Articles

“First and foremost I think this is where Wagner re-writes the rules of music. That’s the short answer at least!” Stuart Skelton [English National Opera’s Parsifal, opens 16 February 2011]
Ben Hogwood talks to Stuart Skelton who takes the title-role in English National Opera’s Nikolaus Lehnhoff-directed production of Wagner’s Parsifal... After more than a decade of universal critical acclaim, Nikolaus...
Feature Review: In the Mists – a Janáček Festival at The Forge [4-6 February 2011]
In the Mists A Janáček Festival The Forge, Camden Town, London Friday-Sunday, 4-6 February, 2011 The chamber music of Leoš Janáček is less familiar than his operas and orchestral music,...
Magic is the Word: Joseph Kaiser and Die Zauberflöte [The Royal Opera’s Die Zauberflöte – 1-26 February 2011]
Mansel Stimpson talks to Joseph Kaiser the latest Tamino in Covent Garden’s staging of Mozart’s idiosyncratic classic... It was in February 2008 that the Canadian tenor Joseph Kaiser made his...
“Mike Figgis is certainly a very influential guy, and he is very visionary. … I love Donizetti! As a young singer, bel canto is the most reasonable, healthy answer…” Michael Fabiano [English National Opera’s Lucrezia Borgia, opens 31 January 2011]
Ben Hogwood talks to Michael Fabiano who takes the role of Gennaro in English National Opera’s Mike Figgis-directed production of Donizetti’s Lucrezia Borgia... English National Opera is continuing its Donizetti...
The Music Man from Iowa: John Osborn and Il barbiere di Siviglia [The Royal Opera’s Il barbiere di Siviglia – 18 January-8 February 2011]
Mansel Stimpson talks to the singer appearing as Count Almaviva in Covent Garden’s latest revival of Rossini’s popular comic opera The Barber of Seville... He’s not English and there’s no...
Taking on the Challenge: Ailish Tynan and Hansel and Gretel [The Royal Opera’s Hänsel und Gretel – 23 December 2010-7 January 2011]
The Irish soprano is Gretel in Covent Garden’s Christmas revival of Humperdinck’s popular opera... Talking with Ailish Tynan is a delight and not only because of the Irish lilt in...
An Interview with Tasmin Little – Elgar’s Violin Concerto: “I really wanted to feel in the right place to put down what could be considered my version”
2010 marks the centenary of the composition of Sir Edward Elgar’s Violin Concerto written for and dedicated to Fritz Kreisler. The work has a prestigious recorded history, to which has...
Goddess Excellently Bright: Michaela Schuster and Tannhäuser [The Royal Opera’s Tannhäuser, 11 December 2010-2 January 2011]
Taking the role of Venus in Covent Garden’s new production of Wagner’s opera is Michaela Schuster... Most singers who arrive at London’s Royal Opera House are impressed by what they...
An Interview with Charles Dutoit – “I want to enjoy a little less pressure and a bit more flexibility!”
Ben Hogwood talks to Charles Dutoit about his first recording with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra as its artistic director and reveals that he wishes for a little more time to...
“The life of most of them was shortened by Stalin … but this explosion of the 1920s was so powerful… It was like a bomb in culture.” Alexander Raskatov [English National Opera’s A Dog’s Heart, opens 20 November 2010]
Ben Hogwood talks to Alexander Raskatov, the Russian composer of A Dog’s Heart co-commissioned by English National Opera and De Nederlandse Opera... Mikhail Bulgakov may have written his satirical novella...
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