Gringos in Baja
Adventurers, seekers, do-gooders, speculators, linguists
Various Authors 3:12 p.m., June 24
Classical Music
Verdi is a deceptive bastard
SDO's La Traviata both solid and uneven
The value of a solid production is somewhat undervalued by the experienced opera aficionado. If you’re around opera long enough then you will have a handful of peak experiences by which you judge every other ...
La Traviata's cheap trick
Wait, I'm better. No, I'm not. The end.
Since La Traviata opened at San Diego Opera on Saturday, April 22, I’m going to use it as an excuse to float a theory about the final lines of the opera. Just before Violetta dies ...
Young singers still love opera
Audiences decline, but students keep studying voice
The challenges facing young singers are becoming ridiculous. The art form is in transition, but thousands of students continue to study the art of operatic singing. Why? Why does opera continue to resonate with a ...
Point Loma Opera Theatre's radio operetta
Menotti's The Old Maid and the Thief is cheeky, clever, and sometimes funny
Having gone on an unscheduled rant about opera and higher education let us return to the performance of Gian Carlo Menotti’s The Old Maid and the Thief by Point Loma Opera Theatre. Director, Jordan Miller, ...
A room with a view of ignorance
How many students graduate with no idea what opera is?
The Old Maid and the Thief by Gian Carlo Menotti was originally written for radio broadcast and has now become a staple of opera workshops at colleges and universities across the country. Point Loma Nazarene ...
Elijah could have ended the drought
Mendelssohn's Elijah at First United Methodist Mission Valley
Where was Elijah when we needed him? I would say dead, but Elijah never died. He was taken up to heaven in a “fiery chariot” — ancient aliens. Why did we need Elijah? We needed ...
San Diego Symphony season revealed
The 2017–2018 season at San Diego Symphony
The 2017–2018 Jacobs Masterworks series has been announced by the San Diego Symphony. What wasn’t announced was a new music director. Neither was there any indication of a time table for finding a new director. ...
The Lord passed by the San Diego Symphony
I'll be a witness to the holy sounds of the orchestra playing Bruckner
The crowning achievement of maestro Jahja Ling’s tenure as music director of the San Diego Symphony came on Saturday night with Bruckner’s Symphony No. 8. That is not to say there haven’t been spectacular concerts ...
A deep performance at the La Jolla Symphony
Verdi Requiem has the power to move us
As the text “libera me” hung in the air no one applauded. The tone evaporated and still no one applauded. I was sitting on my hands because I was caught up in the sacred feminine ...
La Jolla Symphony performs Verdi's masterpiece
There is nothing more important for you to do this weekend.
The La Jolla Symphony is doing Verdi’s Requiem this weekend. If you happen to be reading this and have never been to a live performance of the Requiem then I would say there is nothing ...
Is nonprofit the best way to do classical music?
You can't follow the money if the money isn't there...
Is nonprofit status a good thing for classical music? It’s the standard model in the United States, but does that mean it’s the best model? I’ve been watching some content from an entrepreneur named Gary ...
A childlike concert at San Diego Symphony
How do you make Beethoven's Symphony No. 5 fresh and new?
When it comes to concerts of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5, the one turned out by the San Diego Symphony on March 4 was special. Never in my life could I have imagined anyone conducting like ...
Tenor Nicolai Gedda dead at 91
If I ever had a new aria to learn I would listen to Gedda first in order to make sure I was “doing it right.”
Nicolai Gedda’s family has announced that the legendary tenor died on January 8, 2017. He was 91 years old. Gedda was a master of diction. If I ever had a new aria to learn I ...
Falstaff at San Diego Opera
Verdi's final opera is a comedy
Verdi’s only successful comedy, Falstaff, opens at San Diego Opera on Saturday, February 18, 7 p.m. There will be four performances running through February 26. Sir John Falstaff appears in three Shakespeare plays: Henry IV ...
Do not bend the knee to the NFL
Why change a timeless concert for a temporary Super Bowl?
I must take responsibility for not double checking the time of Sunday’s concert at the San Diego Symphony. I along with about a dozen or so others assumed that the concert started at 2 p.m. ...
