ARTICLES
Ezio Pinza: From Opera Legend to Broadway Star
When we think of musical legends, some names are simply unforgettable. One such name is Ezio Pinza, the celebrated Italian bass whose powerful voice an remarkable versatility transcended opera and Broadway. Born in Rome in 1892, Ezio Pinza’s early life was a far cry from the glamorous world of opera. He was actually studying to become a civil engineer. But as many great stories go, fate had other plans. Encouraged by his father to pursue singing, Pinza enrolled at the Conservatorio Giovanni Battista Martini in Bologna. It didn’t take long for his extraordinary voice to catch attention. By 1914, he made his operatic debut as Oroveso in Norma by Bellini, and from there, his career skyrocketed. Pinza’s career in opera was nothing short of legendary. After World War 1, he performed with some of the most prestigious opera companies in the world, including Teatro alla Scala. His true breakthrough came
Alice Lechner
Teatro Nacional de São Carlos: Lisbon’s Grand Cultural Gem
When you think of Lisbon, the first images that come to mind might be the sun-drenched streets, the iconic trams, or the stunning views ofer the Tagus River. But there’s another treasure in this vibrant city that has been captivating audiences for centuries: the Teatro Nacional de São Carlos, Lisbon’s premier opera house. Located in the heart of the Portuguese capital, this historic venue has been a cultural cornerstone since it opened its doors in 1793. Over the years, it has seen some of the most iconic opera performances in history, from world premiers to breathtaking productions featuring world-class talent. From Royalty to Public Venue The Teatro Nacional de São Carlos was born out of the ashes of the devastating 1755 Lisbon earthquake, which destroyed the city’s original opera house. For nearly four decades, Lisbon’s cultural elite longed for a new venue worthy of the city’s operatic tradition. Their wishes
Alice Lechner
Jussi Björling: A voice of Perfection, A life of Struggle
Known as the „Swedish Caruso”, was born in Stora Tuna, Borlänge, Dalarna, Sweden, in February 1911. He came from a musically gifted family. His father, David Björling, was a trained singer and vocal coach who quickly realized that Jussi and his brothers, Olaf and Gösta, had a natural gift for singing. Under their father’s guidance, the three brothers formed the Björling Quartet, a vocal ensemble that performed across Sweden and even toured the United States in the 1920s. Their father was a strict teacher, ensuring that Jussi developed a solid vocal technique from an early age. In 1926, Jussi’s father passed away, leaving the 15-year-old with a promising voice but an uncertain future. However, that same year, he was into the Royal Swedish Academy of Music in Stockholm, where he studied under the renowned baritone John Forsell. By 1928, he was already performing professionally, and at just 19 years old,
March 2025
Alice Lechner
The Palau de Les Arts has unveiled its 2026-2027 season
València (19 May 2025) — The Palau de les Arts Reina Sofía will present four new opera productions — Carmen, Lohengrin, Simon Boccanegra and La clemenza di Tito — as part of its 2026–2027 Season, a reflection on power, geopolitics and social conflict through a programme spanning from the Baroque world of Riccardo Primo to the post-truth era of Nixon in China. This season once again confirms Les Arts as a leading venue for the world’s most distinguished conductors, with the Orquestra de la Comunitat Valenciana, under the guidance of Sir Mark Elder, working alongside Mikko Franck, Sir John Eliot Gardiner, Thomas Hengelbrock, Philippe Jordan, Antonello Manacorda and Vasily Petrenko. Returning artists include Cecilia Bartoli, Lang Lang, Lise Davidsen, Lisette Oropesa, Eleonora Buratto, Ermonela Jaho, Ricarda Merberth, Ruth Iniesta, Camilla Nylund, Francesco Meli, Charles Castronovo, Davide Luciano, Andrè Schuen, Antonio Poli, George Petean and Gevorg Hakobyan. Among the company’s notable
Blanca Vázquez
Jonas Kaufmann’s Magische Töne: Vocal Magic with the Hungarian State Opera Orchestra
Jonas Kaufmann’s Magische Töne is a compelling journey through lyrical beauty, dramatic intensity, and intimate storytelling. From the opening notes, it becomes clear that this is an album designed not just to showcase a voice, but to create a dialogue between singer, orchestra, and listener. Kaufmann’s voice, warm and radiant yet capable of heroic power, finds its perfect partner in the Hungarian State Opera Orchestra, guided by the attentive and expressive baton of Dirk Kaftan. Kaftan’s conducting throughout the album is nothing short of masterful. He brings a clarity and sensitivity to the orchestral textures that allows Kaufmann’s phrasing to shine, while also shaping the dramatic arc of each piece. Whether in tender, introspective songs or in full-blooded operatic arias, the orchestra responds with nuance and color, accentuating the emotional content without ever overshadowing the tenor’s voice. In the more intimate pieces, Kaufmann demonstrates his trademark ability to combine clarity, warmth, and emotional immediacy.
Carla Coppola
Sondra Radvanovsky’s Puccini Heroines: A Triumphant Celebration of Passion, Power, and Emotion
Soprano Sondra Radvanovsky has long been celebrated for her dramatic intensity and vocal prowess, but in her latest recording,Puccini Heroines, she takes us on a journey through the heart of Puccini’s operatic world with an intimacy and depth that few can match. This album is not merely a showcase of technique; it is a testament to Radvanovsky’s ability to embody character and bring the emotional landscape of Puccini’s women to vivid life. From the opening notes, it is evident that Radvanovsky approaches each aria with both respect for the composer’s genius and her own interpretive insight. Her Mimi (La Bohème) is tender, vulnerable, and achingly human. There is a delicate fragility in her voice that captures Mimi’s innocence and longing, yet Radvanovsky never sacrifices tonal richness or clarity. Each line she sings seems to tell a story, whether it’s a whisper of hope or a lamentation of loss, drawing the
Carla Coppola
The Voice That Shook Opera Houses: Boris Christoff
Few opera singers have left behind a voice as unforgettable as Boris Christoff. Deep, dark, and commanding, Christoff didn’t simply sing—he dominated the stage. Audiences described his performances as electrifying, with a voice so powerful it seemed to vibrate through the walls of the theater. Even today, decades after his death, many opera lovers still consider him one of the greatest bass singers of all time. Born in Bulgaria in 1914, Christoff’s path to opera was anything but ordinary. Before stepping into the spotlight, he studied law and even considered a completely different career. Music, however, proved impossible to resist. After joining a choir in Sofia, his extraordinary talent quickly became impossible to ignore. A scholarship later took him to Italy, where he trained rigorously and developed the rich vocal style that would make him famous across Europe. Under the guidance of renowned teachers, he refined not only his vocal
Alice Lechner
Inside Bayreuth: The Festival That Changed Opera Forever
On a quiet hill in northern Bavaria, in the modest town of Bayreuth, stands a building that does not immediately overwhelm with grandeur. Its exterior is almost austere – brick, restrained, nearly anonymous. And yet, for those who make the pilgrimage each summer, it is nothing less than a temple. This is the Bayreuther Festspielhaus—the Palais des Festivals of Bayreuth—a place where music, myth, and obsession have intertwined for nearly a century and a half. A Vision Born of Restlessness The story begins not with architecture, but with dissatisfaction. In the mid-19th century, composer Ricard Wagner had grown frustrated with the opera houses of this time. They were too ornate, too political, too constrained by convention. Wagner did not simply want to compose operas – he wanted to reinvent the very experience of them. Around 1850, he began imagining a “festival” dedicated entirely to his works, a place where audiences
Alice Lechner
Werther at Gran Teatre del Liceu
The fascinating music of Jules Massenet in his opera Werther, based on the epistolary novel Die Leiden des jungen Werthers by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, dates back to 1886. Following the success of Manon, Massenet attended the Bayreuth Festival accompanied by his publisher, Georges Hartmann, who gave him a French translation of Werther to read during the journey. There, immersed in the music of Richard Wagner and in the spirit of German Romanticism, he conceived the desire to bring the tormented story of the young poet to the operatic stage. Considered the heir to Charles Gounod, Massenet incorporated Wagner’s leitmotif technique into Werther, though filtered through a subtler, more elegant, and distinctly French musical language. The result was a score of profound emotional intensity, in which restrained passion and melancholic lyricism achieve a balance of extraordinary beauty. The enduring fascination of this story lies in its relentless pursuit of the
Blanca Vázquez
Salome at Palau de Les Arts
Despite the immense recognition that Richard Strauss’s Salome (1905) enjoys today, the opera provoked scandal during its early years: it was banned, censored, and even altered in major cultural centres such as London and New York. Strauss’s colleague and friend Gustav Mahler failed to obtain permission to stage it in Vienna, confessing so to Strauss in a famous letter: “Unfortunately, it is the sad truth. The censors reject it! I am moving heaven and earth to prevent this absurd situation, but it is in vain. I cannot express the enormous impression your opera has made on me. It is your masterpiece and confirms what I have long believed: you are a born dramatist.” The fusion of biblical imagery, erotic impulse, and sacrificial violence reveals in Salome a profoundly Dionysian undercurrent, where desire and destruction advance inexorably hand in hand. Strauss transforms this decadent universe into a musical experience of overwhelming
Blanca Vázquez
Wilhelm Furtwängler: The Conductor Who Chased the Soul of Music
In the pantheon of classical music, few figures inspire such reverence – or provoke such complex debate – as Wilhelm Furtwängler. Born in 1886 and passing in 1954, he left behind not only some of the most electrifying performances ever captured on record, but also a legacy woven with brilliance, controversy, and an almost mystical dedication to the inner truth of music. To speak about Furtwängler is to enter the world on a man who believed that sound could reveal the human condition. He did not simply beat time; he shaped time. He did not merely conduc notes; he conjured meaning. A Childhood Fed by Art and Philosophy Wilhelm Furtwängler was raised in an atmosphere steeped in culture. His father was an eminent archaeologist, his mother a painter; the family home was filled with philosophers, musician, and artists. From childhood, he absorbed the idea that art was a moral force
Alice Lechner
Esplanade - Theatres on the Bay, Singapore: Where Modern Architecture Meets the Soul of a Young Nation
Rising like two giant, shimmering durians on the edge of Marina Bay, the Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay has become one of Singapore’s most recognizable landmarks – a bold symbol of a city that dares to imagine, innovate, and reinvent itself. More than just a performing arts center, the Esplanade is a testament to Singapore’s cultural ambition and a beacon of artistic energy for all of Southeast Asia. A National Dream Takes Shape In the early 1980s, Singapore was transforming at breathtaking speed. What had once been a modest trading post was evolving into a global economic powerhouse. But political leaders and cultural thinkers understood that a world-class city needed more than skyscrapers and financial districts – it needed a vibrant artistic heart. Thus emerged the dream of a national performing arts center: a place that would nurture creativity, host international productions, debate, and design competitions, construction began in
Alice Lechner
Giulio Cesare in Egitto at Palau de Les Arts
The music of Giulio Cesare in Egitto enveloped the Palau de les Arts Reina Sofía like a starry veil on February 28. This work, presented under the artistic direction of Jesús Iglesias, is considered one of George Frideric Handel’s masterpieces and one of the most celebrated opera seria of the Baroque period. Premiered in 1724 at London’s King’s Theatre, its libretto, written by Nicola Francesco Haym, combines historical events with dramatic and romantic elements characteristic of eighteenth-century opera seria. Handel was the principal architect of the Italian opera seasons in London: he composed the scores, adapted libretti, and prepared the music for the singers, conducting the performances from the harpsichord, as was customary at the time. For several years he worked with the Royal Academy of Music, producing Italian operas at the King’s Theatre, where he also assumed the responsibilities of a theatrical impresario. Born in 1685 in Halle, Germany,
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Eugene Onegin at Palau de Les Arts
Most biographies devoted to Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky place the beginning of his relationship with Antonina Milyukova in early May 1877, at the very moment when he was conceiving his future opera based on the verse novel Eugene Onegin. According to the composer’s own testimony in his letters to Nadezhda von Meck, the rapid development of that intimacy—and the subsequent marriage—was shaped both by his emotional identification with the heroine created by Aleksandr Pushkin and by his desire not to repeat the literary protagonist’s coldness toward a sincere love. This was compounded by Milyukova’s insistent requests for meetings, accompanied by threats of suicide in the event of refusal. The fact that the operatic idea did not fully crystallize until two weeks after the suggestion made by the singer Yelizaveta Lavrovskaya on May 13/25 allows the choice of subject to be interpreted as a direct reflection of the composer’s personal situation: a
Blanca Vázques
