A Recipe for Success on the Opera Stage
Julia Child, whom I was fortunate to know, liked to say that the key to successful cooking was 85 percent shopping. By this she meant that the accomplished chef or home cook was someone who understood...
View ArticleClassical Clicks: Sondheim Plans a New Musical for 2017
Here, at the WQXR offices, we read about, watch and listen to a lot of classical music. We created The Whole Note as a place to share content that has captivated us from around the web. We hope they...
View ArticleLA Opera Presents 'Moby-Dick'
This Saturday at 1 pm, tune in to hear Jake Heggie's Moby-Dick from the LA Opera. Called a "whale-tale with staying power" by the Los Angeles Times, this production stars Jay Hunter Morris as the...
View ArticleEverything Sounds Better in Yiddish
I am old enough and was interested in theater and opera at a young enough age, that I was able to catch the tail end of an extraordinary era in New York City in which entertainment was not only...
View ArticleMeryl Streep Explains Our Fascination with Florence Foster Jenkins
This Friday, Florence Foster Jenkins, a film about a tone-deaf opera singer starring Meryl Streep and Hugh Grant, opens. WQXR host Elliott Forrest sat down with both stars prior to opening day to...
View ArticleDirector Stephen Frears on 'Florence Foster Jenkins'
Director Stephen Frears talks about his latest film “Florence Foster Jenkins” about a New York heiress (played by Meryl Streep) who is determined to become a professional opera singer and performer,...
View ArticleFlorence Foster Jenkins
This Friday marks the release of a new movie starring Meryl Streep as soprano Florence Foster Jenkins. Long before American Idol and the Amateur Hour, Jenkins sang about as badly as anyone had ever...
View ArticleDiane Kruger's Tense Psychological Thriller, Stephen Frears on 'Florence...
Attorney Rabia Chaudry, a friend of "Serial" podcast subject Adnan Syed and his family, tells his side of the story. Meryl Streep stars as a socialite determined to become a professional opera singer...
View ArticleClassical Clicks: Itzhak Perlman Serenades the Mets
Here, at the WQXR offices, we read about, watch and listen to a lot of classical music. We created The Whole Note as a place to share content that has captivated us from around the web. We hope they...
View ArticleSingular Voices: Barbra Streisand
For the next few months, one of the themes I intend to address in this space is the voice. More precisely, I will consider singular voices. By this I mean, first and foremost, voices that indelibly...
View ArticleListen: Verdi's 'Falstaff' from LA Opera
This Saturday at 1 pm listen to Verdi's Falstaff from the LA Opera, starring Roberto Frontali in the title role. James Conlon conducts this comic masterpiece, inspired by Shakespeare's play, The Merry...
View ArticleNational Sawdust Broadens Its Scope in Second Season
National Sawdust, the Williamsburg-based art and music venue that quickly established itself as one of the more ambitious and enterprising presenters in the city, announced its second season Monday...
View ArticleReview: Couples Are Reunited in Bracing 'Cosi fan tutte'
Mozart operas can always be a fresh experience in a good performance, though how often do you encounter a seriously alternative reading that's so fully realized on its own terms — as was the Cosi fan...
View ArticleFrom Sayão to Saudade: Brazil's Contributions to Opera
In 2012, I published an article in this space about opera and the Olympics. While watching some of the splendid athletic achievements in Rio this past week, I thought to myself that Brazil, a large and...
View ArticleClassical Clicks: Do Opera Prodigies Exist?
Here, at the WQXR offices, we read about, watch and listen to a lot of classical music. Our favorite stories from this week include an assessment of a reality television star, a week with maestro...
View ArticleReview: 'Idomeneo' at Mostly Mozart Festival Seeks Converts
Difficult as it is to imagine a Mozart opera in need of rehabilitation, Idomeneo — the composer's 12th, written at age 24 — has an increasing number of militant champions who claim that it would easily...
View ArticleVerdi's 'Luisa Miller' from San Francisco
This Saturday at 1 pm, Michael Fabiano and Leah Crocetto star in Verdi's Luisa Miller, a heartrending opera about a young woman torn between family loyalty and love. Crocetto sings the role of the...
View ArticleRemembering Italian Soprano Daniela Dessì
In our day, because of social media and all manner of electronic communications, news can rapidly spread around the world. On Aug. 20, people who work in or care about opera learned of the passing of...
View ArticleBroadway Scam Centers Around Soprano Kathleen Battle
Kathleen Battle is preparing a long-awaited return to the Metropolitan Opera this November, but a fraudulent Broadway project has her in the headlines right now.The soprano’s name is at the center of a...
View ArticlePiotr Beczala and Nadine Sierra Star in 'Lucia'
Tune in Saturday at 1 pm to hear Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor from San Francisco, starring soprano Nadine Sierra in the title role and tenor Piotr Beczala as Edgardo. Nicola Luisotti conducts this...
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