Regarding the Puccini story, one of our resplendent writers (Matt Lickona) wanted to know why this hasn’t been turned into an opera. I’m not sure how an opera would work but a staged production of …

The fourth largest opera house in Italy is shutting down its two largest productions of the season, according to a Newsweek report. The fourth-largest opera house in Italy is the Teatro Petruzzelli in Bari, Italy. …

The Guardian is reporting that Puccini’s hideout is up for sale. It’s going for about $535,000. The story goes that Puccini knocked up the very-married Elvira Bonturi and needed a place to hide from her …

With the first of a few benefit concerts for San Diego Opera coming up in a few weeks, let's talk a little bit about what has happened in San Diego and what is happening in …

The struggle at San Diego Opera may have been only the prelude to a much bigger fight at New York’s Metropolitan Opera. There have been several articles regarding the deficits at the Met. The budget …

The San Diego Symphony has announced Martha Gilmer as the new Chief Executive Officer, to replace Edward Gill. Ms. Gilmer inherits one of the healthiest symphonic organizations in the country, which is a testament to …

I just finished a book that claims there is no greatness without an intense amount of thought involved. So, I’ve given it a try and applied this "thinking" thing to art in general and opera …

Summer is full of festivals. They’re everywhere. Ev-er-y-where. Let’s take a look at one of the big ones that begins later this month. By big, I mean gigante. Huge. Titanic. That’s the Bregenz Festival in …

The final concert of the Mainly Mozart Festival was off the chain. "Off the chain" — what does that even mean? From Urban Dictionary: "Out of control, wild fun. Just like when your pitbull gets …

The final Timken Museum Mainly Mozart concert was a rough one for me. There were two pieces of music on the program, Kodaly’s Serenade for Two Violins and Viola and Beethoven’s String Quartet No. 9. …

What would happen if you brought an orchestra together which was comprised of principal players from a slew of different organizations such as The LA Philharmonic, the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, Detroit Symphony, the Cleveland Orchestra, …

The final concert of the La Jolla Symphony season was a good one. The program included Janacek, Haydn, and a new piece for chorus orchestra, soprano, mezzo-soprano, tenor, and guitar by Cary Ratcliff set to …

The lucrative Musical Merit Foundation of Greater San Diego held its 68th annual awards program on Sunday, June 1. The competition includes both instrumental and vocal disciplines. The preceding Thursday was the preliminary round, out …

If there's one thing Jahja Ling and the San Diego Symphony can do, it's play Brahms. Over the past few seasons we've heard all four of the Brahms symphonies and each time the performance has …

The San Diego Symphony concert the weekend of May 16-18 was a mixed bag for me. I'm not speaking of the performance, but the repertoire. The opening piece was Variations on a Theme by Tchaikovsky …

I went to the most recent Opera Wednesdays concert at the La Jolla Community Center. I must say I enjoyed the concert. The setting was just about ideal in my opinion. The room opened onto …

This coming weekend is the penultimate concert in the Jacobs Masterworks Series at the San Diego Symphony. The concert features the Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 3 — the "Rach 3" as it was referred to …

There is something about Debussy's Prelude to the Afternoon of a Fawn that aches with nostalgia. When the piece started at the Jacobs Music Center on Saturday night, I settled in to experience a happy …

San Diego Reader: So one question I’ve never been able to ask any singer and will probably never be able to ask again is what was it like to work with von Karajan, you were …

I was tempted to recite the musical biographies of Emanuel Ax and Christoph von Dohnányi but that is always boring, especially when the musicians are Emmanuel Ax and Christoph von Dohnányi — meaning they’re such …

Tribal Baroque is in town for a handful of "prayformances" in Balboa Park near Casa del Prado Theater, on April 24 from 3-5 p.m., April 26 at 9 p.m., and April 27 from 3-5 p.m. …

Saturday night at the Jacobs Music Center was about the most fun I’ve had at a symphony concert. The buzz before the April 12 concert was alien to those hallowed walls — at least in …

The Project Trio was in town last weekend. I had recommended them sight-unseen earlier in the week. Having now seen them at the Jacobs Music Center on Sunday, I can say they are the most …

Opera Wednesdays are starting this Wednesday at the La Jolla Community Center. As I’ve mentioned before, opera is not dead. The lineup on Wednesday is strong and features a slew of accomplished singers. All of …

It’s time to walk the talk folks. The musical community in San Diego is talking about saving the opera and the death of classical music. The simple solution is to get out there and go …

Opera is dying, opera is dying, opera is dying! Ticket sales are down across the country from San Francisco to The Met. In a recent interview I had with Ferruccio Furlanetto, he mentioned that things …

Last night at the conclusion of San Diego Opera’s orchestral rehearsal for Verdi’s Requiem, Gerry Whitney was honored. Gerry has been with San Diego Opera for 43 years and has been in a ridiculous number …

Part one began our interview, it continued with part two, and concludes here. SB: Last night, for the first time in my life, I watched How Green Was My Valley. Oh my God, it’s a …

Un Ballo in Maschera has opened at San Diego Opera and the reviews are lauding its merits. And indeed they should. Ballo can be great or it can be an ordeal. This Ballo is top-to-bottom …

We started our conversation with some small talk about the weather and Girl Scout cookies. Stephanie Blythe: I spent a week in Rancho Mirage before we came here. Oh my god, I couldn't believe it. …

Stephanie Blythe is in San Diego to sing. It’s what she does, and she does it as well — if not better — than anyone you’ll ever hear. I was able to sit down and …

The Ring Without Words. That’s all I need to write. The Ring Without Words. I’ll add the time and dates as well. Friday, February 28th and Saturday, March 1st, at 8:00 pm and Sunday, March …

Something amazing is happening at San Diego Opera right now. In an opinionated industry, as we discussed with Frank Porretta, there is a consensus regarding soprano Tatiana Lisnic. Every, single person I know who has …

...Continuing with our interview of opera singer Kevin Burdette. San Diego Reader: Are you married? Kevin Burdette: I am. I met my wife while working at a law firm in New York — well, wait. …

Watching Kevin Burdette perform a comedic opera is kind of like watching Jim Carey perform opera — only Kevin sings better. Kevin is a lanky bass from Knoxville who nearly stole the show last season …

The Cabrillo Chamber Orchestra is presenting the "An American Experience" concert next weekend. This showcase of American composers will begin at 8 pm on February the 15th at Crill Hall on the Point Loma Nazarene …

With Pagliacci in the books at San Diego Opera, the San Diego Symphony Orchestra returns to the Jacobs Music Center for a concert off the beaten path this coming weekend. The first rarity of the …

Joshua Bell is a busy, busy, man but he will be coming to San Diego to give a solo recital on Friday February 7th. We all know and love him in San Diego for his …

San Diego Opera's production of Pagliacci opens on Saturday, January 26th. The show starts at 7:00 pm at The Civic Theater. There are only four performances: January 26th, 28th, 31st and February 2nd. Read part …

The last time Frank Porretta sang with San Diego Opera was the last time he sang the role of Duca in Verdi's Rigoletto. His voice has matured into roles such as Andrea Chenier, Calaf, and …

San Diego Opera has a casting problem. They need an actor to be featured in the upcoming production of The Elixir of Love. Why the problem? I mean, the role is paid, it’s a non-singing …

As the opera season is zooming up on us I thought it might be fun to take a look at an older San Diego Opera Production that showed up on YouTube a few months ago. …

We’re going to go Bach versus Bach here in the second match of Germany’s World Cup of Composers: Johann Sebastian Bach (papa Bach) versus his son, Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach. CPE Bach was a classical …

Since the last two concert weekends at San Diego Symphony have been all German affairs, this is the perfect time to start the German love-fest section of the World Cup. The first contest is between …

The first edition of the San Diego Holiday Half Marathon is sold out. However, there will be additional spots up for grabs at Road Runner Sports this Saturday, December 28. The event will take place …

I went to The Nutcracker on Friday night at the Civic Theater. The production was by California Ballet and I have to admit that I was impressed. Of course, I'm not an expert when it …

I'm getting a little weary of praising the San Diego Symphony to the heavens, but they're not giving much of a choice. Last week's "most beautiful sound ever" has now been replaced by the brass …

As beautiful as the Brahms performance was, it was not the primary draw to last weekend’s concerts. The big piece of music was Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9. We weren’t disappointed. The performance was magnificent. The …

Saturday night was the first time I've been able to catch the San Diego Symphony after their return from touring China. The first sound they made was Brahms' Variations on a Theme by Haydn and …

Speaking of Germans, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 is coming up this weekend at Symphony Hall. The orchestra, conductor Ken-David Masur, and the San Diego Master Chorale are all familiar entities, but what about the soloists? …