The Passion of Opera

This was my first time attending Beethoven's Missa Solemnis  in a live performance, a work so often overshadowed by the Beethoven's Sympthony No. 9 , not only throughout history, but on the very night the two premiered simultaneously. Once again, Anne Midgette of the Washington Post offers an insightful review that focuses a great deal on the nature of the work itself; I will focus more on the performance. General information: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Missa_solemnis_(Beethoven) Missa solemnis | Ludwig van Beethoven Soprano | Julia Sophie Wagner Mezzo-Soprano | Daniela Mack Tenor | Vale Rideout Bass | Kevin Thompson Violin | Nurit Bar-Josef Conductor | Julian Wachner Washington Chorus & Orchestra Presented in the Concert Hall of the Kennedy Center ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ The ensemble for the evening was led by Julian Wachner, who conducted with an eco...

I am very pleased to see to see that the blog has surpassed 20,000 lifetime views and sits as of this moment at 20,005. I am looking forward to continuing to post into the future. It's been up and down at points with my school commitments and sometimes a lack of things about which to write. Still, the reviews of operas in Vienna, the profiles of versatile singers, and recent reviews in Virginia have definitely been highlights. Looking forward I will be putting up a review of Leonardo [not da] Vinci's Artaserse , performed in Köln by an all-star cast of countertenors and other male vocalists,  as well as hopefully reviewing a few other DVDs or broadcasts by the end of September. Once I arrive in London I will definitely be reviewing opera performances that I see at the ROH. I am definitely committed for the future! In the meantime, I will leave you with this performance of 10,000 people singing Ode to Joy from Beethoven's Symphony #9  in Japan as a reaction the 2...