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L_arabellaeuro

Dresden still spellbound by Strauss

Proposed by Richard Strauss had a special bond with the city of Dresden lasting several decades. His legacy still resonates in the Saxon capital. Among the celebrations marking the 150th anniversary of his birth the Semper Opera House staged Arabella, with top stars Anja Harteros and Thomas Hampson in the lead roles. The performance was a homage to the German composer, over half of whose operas premiered on this prestigious stage. “Richard Strauss is one of the...

Published onthe 14 of November
L_arabella-en

Timeless Arabella

In a letter dated 1927, Richard Strauss begs Hugo von Hofmannsthal to write him a new libretto: “You can even make me a second ‘Rosenkavalier’ if you don’t have anything better in mind.” This was to be the starting point of Arabella, the work with which the two accomplices would try to match the success of Der Rosenkavalier. The composer never imagined that this new work would mark the end of his collaboration with the man he called his “Da Ponte.”...

Published onthe 11 of November
L_enlevement-au-serail-en

The Abduction from the Seraglio, or the Art of Synthesis

At the age of 24, just freed from his tyrannical employer, Archbishop Colloredo, Mozart set off to win over the Viennese public by realizing his dream of writing a grand opera in German that would rival Italian opera. The Abduction from the Seraglio was a triumph from its opening night, becoming Mozart’s most popular work in his lifetime. Nothing seemed able to slow the success of this singspiel, which travelled all over Germany before continuing its triumphal career in Europe. The...

Published onthe 15 of October
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When Chagall and Malraux shook up the Palais Garnier opera house

On the 23rd of September 1964, exactly 50 years ago, the French Ministry of cultural affairs André Malraux was inaugurating the new Palais Garnier opera house’s ceiling, made by Marc Chagall – and hiding the original ceiling of the Parisian edifice created by Jules Lenepveu. This work didn’t leave indifferent and aroused strong polemics still vivid nowadays. This anniversary gives us the opportunity to revisit the passionate history of the Garnier Opera’s...

Published onthe 23 of September
L_operalia14

Stars are born at Operalia

Article presented by In partnership with: Operalia is a pinnacle for aspiring opera performers and can be a launchpad for illustrious careers in the field. The singing contest is staged every year in one of music’s world capitals. This prestigious competition took place recently in Los Angeles, where Placido Domingo, its founder and president, is also music director of the LA Opera. Among some 1,000 entrants, just a dozen get to the finals. Being among them...

Published onthe 19 of September
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Interview with french soprano Anaïs Constans, third prize winner of Operalia 2014

Each year since 1993, the Operalia contest has been aiming to split and highlight the greatest voices of tomorrow among the young talents of today. And if currently the opera singing contests increase so much that we can sometime question their relevance, Operalia and its judging panel contributes to start up concretely their laureates’ careers. Placido Domingo, Operalia project manager, sees in it the opportunity to “offer to others the same good fortune whose he benefited...

Published onthe 06 of September