In Milan’s Duomo on 22 May, Riccardo Frizza will conduct Verdi’s Requiem, exactly 150 years after Manzoni’s death, and 151 years after Verdi conducted the premiere.
How extraordinary is Mariella Devia. In 2006 she gave her final performances as Lucia di Lammermoor at La Scala, leaving the public astonished that she was saying goodbye to the role after witnessing the perfection of her voice at 58. The day after her 65th birthday she sang Norma for the first time — a…
Maria Callas in scena – Gli anni alla Scala (Maria Callas on Stage – the La Scala Years) runs from 15 September to 31 January at La Scala’s museum, which is housed in the same building as the theatre. The Italian theatre designer, Margherita Palli, has overseen the exhibition which contains 14 of La Divina’s…
“Silence – Recording in Progress” reads the sign, as Maria Callas arrives at La Scala to record Il trovatore in 1956. More than any other theatre, Callas is linked with the great opera house in Milan. She recorded many of the ‘studio’ recordings there when the theatre was closed for the summer break, and gave…
More than a gift to their own coffers, Warner Classics in releasing Maria Callas Live is giving fans of La Divina and lovers of opera a meticulously restored collection of some of her finest performances to treasure. It is timed to commemorate the 40th Anniversary of her death in Paris on 16 September 1977. The…
Q&A in italiano When did you start singing? When I was a girl. Why did you start singing? For my own personal enjoyment. Which singer inspired you most when you were young? No one. Which singer do you most admire? The good ones. What’s your favourite role? More than one… all the masterpieces. What role…
On Anna Bolena “It’s like nothing I’ve ever done before! You’re practically shouting in the lower register for half the opera. [Donizetti] wants that nasty, chesty voice — he wants it to sound uncomfortable!” “It’s asking so much of the nerves, the body, the emotion. There’s so much hatred! I never thought I could be…
This was very much Anna Netrebko‘s Anna Bolena. True, it is the title role, but the other characters have to work quite hard too. Her face was emoting from every review, and so here’s a round-up of what the critic’s had to say about Anna as Anna at the Met. Anne Midgette’s review for The…
Last night in the glamorous foyer of the La Scala Theatre (Ridotto dei Palchi ‘Arturo Toscanini‘) the Amici della Scala awarded an Honorary Membership of the society to Italian theatre designer Luisa Spinatelli. She is one of several Italian designers who, outside of ‘la moda’, continue to make their mark in theatre and cinema. Spinatelli has…
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