“To be an artist is to believe in life.” This is the Henry Moore quote that flashes across the screen as Sing Your Own Song: An Opera Love Story begins. By using this quote, the independent documentary, directed by Anne… Continue Reading
When it comes to introducing kids to opera, most people ask, “Which operas are kid-friendly?” This is certainly an important question to ask, and nothing beats the experience of seeing an opera live for the first time. Still, it is… Continue Reading
In our last post, we talked about famous operas that were originally books, books that may now have been lost to the contemporary mind. Today, we’ll talk about the same phenomenon from a slightly different perspective. These books are famous… Continue Reading
In the arts, it’s incredibly common for one work to be based on another work from a different genre (which is then based on another work, and another, and maybe even another!). Opera is a great example of this; we… Continue Reading
There has been quite a stir in the world of opera criticism; Norman Lebrecht, known for his somewhat controversial blog Slipped Disc, reported that Canadian music critic Arthur Kapitainis quit his freelance position at the National Post. The Post inexplicably… Continue Reading
This week in the operatic world, news has been going around that soprano Angela Gheorghiu missed her entrance in a production of Tosca at the Vienna State Opera. As one can tell from the video clip below at 3:54,… Continue Reading
We musicians can be a brainy bunch. However, we musicians are also a well-rounded bunch, and rightly so. In order to be good colleagues and to tell honest stories, we must have an understanding of the world around us. Furthermore,… Continue Reading
Rachel Tedder is an American freelance singer, writer, English teacher, and jack-of-all-trades living in Germany. Her favorite hobbies are arranging and singing a cappella mash-ups and plotting world domination. She is a classically trained singer and a passionate defender of… Continue Reading
There’s no denying it: opera singers are a misunderstood bunch. Singers revel in sharing posts, comics, and videos about how misunderstood our craft is. Even though we know what we do is beautiful and engaging, others tend to scoff at… Continue Reading
The Figaro Murders, Laura Lebow’s debut novel, is a work of historical fiction focused on the life of Lorenzo da Ponte. While he is now known for his work with W.A. Mozart on famous operas such as Le nozze di… Continue Reading