The 10th string quartet of Beethoven, depending on which scholarly camp you favor, is either a genial mid-career throwback to the peak of the Haydn classical style or the earliest example of the innovatory, astonishing manner of the late-period quartets. Either way, it’s a remarkable piece of music from a remarkable year (1809), and it was the high point Friday night of the … [Read more...]
Second cast of PBO’s ‘Carmen’ features auspicious debuts
I’ve seen Georges Bizet’s Carmen many times, but the second cast of the recent Palm Beach Opera production offered even a veteran operagoer fresh delights. Chief among them Saturday night was the Polish-born mezzo-soprano Magdalena Wór, who made a magnificent debut with this company, with her rich, seductive mezzo sound, perfectly suited to the role. And her acting as the … [Read more...]
Second cast excellent in PB Opera’s original, stimulating ‘Giovanni’
Like it or not, the cutting edge of European set and stage design came hurtling into Palm Beach Opera for its production of Mozart’s Don Giovanni. Stefano Poda’s creation arrived simultaneously with a cold blast of fresh air. It is visually stimulating and wholly original. The company took a chance on hiring this gifted young Italian director, 39, whose splendid costumes … [Read more...]
Second cast outstanding in PB Opera’s ‘Otello’
Shakespeare’s tragedy Othello was the basis for the libretto Arrigo Boito wrote for Giuseppe Verdi, who at the time Boito approached him about the opera was 71 years old and considered himself retired. But three years later, in February 1887, Otello had its triumphant premiere at La Scala, and this work plus Verdi's final opera, Falstaff, are considered the pinnacle of the … [Read more...]