#Norwegian National Opera Chorus

[motionpicturelover]

"Peer Gynt" in Giza (2006) - Bentein Baardson

Films I've watched in 2022 (165/210)

This giant production, with a stage spanning almost 100m x 30m and with the Sfinx and the pyramids as its backdrop was a collaboration between Egypt and Norway during the "Ibsen Year", the 100 year anniversary of Ibsen's death, in 2006.

This is a great feat of a production which really allows the vital character of The Bøyg/The Sfinx (and, yes, it is actually the Sfinx in Ibsen's original play) to appear in all its rightful majesty.

The scene where Peer meets the Bøyg/the Sfinx is one of the pivotal scenes in the play, a real turning point for Peer, and here you get the full effect of what it would've actually been like.

The Cairo Symphony Orchestra - conducted by Christian Eggen - and Cairo Opera Accapella Chorus, as well as soloists from the Norwegian Opera gave life to Edvard Grieg's music, while the cast was an ensemble of Norwegian actors and dancers, and the Egyptian actor Mohamed Wafik Aly Helmy giving voice to the Bøyg/the Sfinx.

The lead actors are a solid group of Norwegian stage actors:

Bjarte Hjelmeland (Peer): Hjelmeland's career has spanned both drama, comedy and musicals as well as including a stint as director of The National Scene in Bergen.

Lise Fjeldstad (Åse): Fjeldstad has had a long and varied career which includes many Ibsen roles, such as Nora ("A Doll's House"), Asta Allmers ("Little Eyolf"), Maja Rubek ("When We Dead Awaken") as well as having toured the world as Åse in "Peer Gynt" with The Norwegian Opera.

Erik Hivju (The Mountain King): Hivju's enjoyed a long career both on stage, in films, and for a period as a member of the regular company of the Norwegian television theatre. He previously played the Mountain King in Baardson's television production of "Peer Gynt" (1993).

Per Frisch (Begriffenfeldt): Frisch has been attatched to The National Theatre in Oslo for decades as well as having played in several big Norwegian films, and was, for a few years, a member of the regular company of the Norwegian television theatre.

Paul-Ottar Haga (The Button Moulder): Haga played the lead role of Peer in Baardson's 1993 television production of "Peer Gynt" for the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation. He's had a long and varied career in both drama, comedy, musicals, films and television.

Speaking of Paul-Ottar Haga as the Button Moulder, this production has him as an ever present figure on the stage, standing in the background, observing Peer as he goes through life. He almost feels like a shadow of Peer, and having an actor who really understands the character - having played Peer himself - in that role, lends the performance extra weight.

I first saw this production when it was televised during the "Ibsen Year" and really loved it. I was incredibly fortunate to come across a second hand DVD of it yesterday and was thrilled to finally see it again. It was every bit as good and interesting as I'd remebered it being.

[betweenthetimeandsound]

Three Minutes to Eternity: My ESC 250 (#29)

#29: Ofra Haza -- Hi (Israel 1983)

“שמעו, אחיי, אני עוד חי ושתי עיניי עוד נישאות לאור רבים חוחיי, אך גם פרחיי ולפניי שנים רבות מספור”

“Listen, my brothers, I’m still alive And both my eyes still look into the light Many are my thorns, but also my flowers And I have countless years ahead of me”

Like with Kan (#31), Hi might be seen in bad taste if it was released today. However, unlike the former, Hi firmly celebrates the Jewish people's survival, and it's in more than just the vivacious and hopeful lyrics.

For the contest in Munich, where a lot of events relating to Nazi Germany occurred (the Beer Hall Putsch, the first concentration camp in Dachau just outside the city, the Munich Agreement of 1938), Ofra Haza and her backing vocalists strolled on stage and happily exclaimed that they were still alive despite all the bad the world has done with them. You wouldn't tell with the minor-key composition--the Israeli national anthem also has this combination--so you could hint at the pain hidden through the song.

Though already brazen in the studio cut, the orchestral version just amplifies it, from the brass to the string section. This happens through a lot of the 1983 songs (including #246 and #97 on this countdown, for example), but for Hi, it adds the sprinkles to a beautiful honey cake. The piano intro is emphasized a lot, followed by the verses, in which it keeps up the momentum. When it gets to the chorus, it just brings Hi to life! You could hear the musical punch it gives, especially compared to the studio cut.

And of course, Ofra's vocals gently carry the song, albeit with a certain bite. She sings of the Jewish people's determination to survive, telling how her grandfather sung this song to her father, and then to her now. Beyond the contest, she showed off her connection to her Yemenite roots; a year later, she released an album of Yemenite Songs which would be her breakthrough. The remix of Im Nin'alu was her biggest hit, though for a long time, I only knew her through her rendition of Yerushalayim shel Zahav (Jerusalem of Gold). It's absolutely beautiful.

Ofra Haza was not the first Yemenite Jew on the Eurovision stage, nor was she the last (three of Israel's four winners were of Yemenite descent) but was probably the most notable of them. Her career afterward mixed parts of her cultural heritage with modern music, which allowed a bridge between her two worlds. Ayelet Tsabari would later write this about her in The Art of Leaving (which I highly recommend):

"...in a world where the actors on TV and the singers on TV were Ashkenazi and the models in magazines were Ashkenazi, there was Ofra, the simple Yemeni girl from Ha'tikva neighborhood whose star shone brighter than anyone's, who made it against all odds, and who looked like me, or like one of my own prettier cousins." (39)

Basically, a lot of reasons why Hi should've won--rousing song, talented singer, beautiful orchestration and a clear connection to the country it's from. I have two more runners-up on this 250, but no other deserves to take the crown more.

Personal ranking: 1st/20 Actual ranking: 2nd/20 in Munich

Final Impressions on:

--1983: Germany's first hosting didn't showcase their world-famous efficiency, as the production was less than ideal. Marlene, their host, went over everything in English, French, and German, which extended the contest to the three hour mark for the first time. Plus she called the Norwegian conductor "Johannes Skorgan", haha. #allora.

But what the production lacked, the song quality more than made up for. I like just over half the songs; even the ones I didn't fancy had their charms (except Opera, haha). The German concert orchestra does a good job in interpreting them--if I did a personal list of favorite orchestrations of all time, I fear that I might overloading on this year when it came to the top.

The glaring flaw was with the winner--Si la vie est cadeau is a descent song on its right, and the verses were especially strong. It just falls flat by the chorus and doesn't convince itself after that (though Michel Bernholc did the orchestration). And as much as I iike French ballads, this one set the contest back quite a bit, which took until the mid 1990s to recover from.

--Israel: Just like their international reputation, Israel seems to be quite polarized in Eurovision. When they send good entries, like Hi, they are really good. But when they send bad entries, they are really bad. Of course, they have some average songs, but they don't stand out as much as those at the extremes. What I can say, regardless, is that they add a bit of spice to the Eurovision party, and we can all appreciate it for doing so.

[joaquimblog]

Final Tosca a Oslo, producció de Calixto Bieio Svetlana Aksenova (Tosca) i Daniel Johansson (Cavaradossi)

Svetlana Aksenova (Tosca) Oslo 2017

Thorbjørn Gulbrandsøy, Claudio Sgura, Ludvig Lindström, Daniel Johansson i Svetlana Aksenova Tosca Oslo 2017 Vittoria! Vittoria!

Què Bieito no faria una Tosca convencional no cal ser una lluminària per saber-ho, però que el director burgalès fos incapaç de commoure i emocionar en una òpera tota ella colpidora, és sota el meu punt de vista, un dels més grans fracassos de la seva immensa carrera operística,.

Ni el text ni la música inspiren a Bieito, a ell l’inspira una idea i es serveix de la immensa popularitat d’una òpera del repertori més estimat per vomitar sobre els personatges i la seva dramatúrgia, tota una altra bilis afegida que res té a veure amb Puccini i el seu reconegut talent musical, ni òbviament tampoc amb el llibret de Giacosa i Illica, que malgrat ser considerat perfecte, sobretot en un segon acte antològic, no cal fer.hi res per tal de fer arribar al públic tota la tensió, la força i el dramatisme que conté. Bieito, que és un reconegudíssim home de teatre, per a mi ha defecat sobre Tosca i l’ha empastifat de tal manera que no hi reconec res.

Tosca no és una diva, no és una dona icònica que pugui escalfar fins al sadisme a Scarpia. És una dona vulgar, una més en el catáleg depredador de Scarpia, que no sabem qui és ni ens importa. Que ningú pensi en un cap de policia, en un militar o un polític corrupte i poderós, no, és un ser anònim sense cap interès que s’encapritxa de Tosca sense que aquest deliri sexual tingui cap explicació en la narració bieitoniana.

Cavaradossi no és un heroi, és una altra víctima anònima que no té la possibilitat ni tan sols de morir dignament afusellat davant de la desesperació de Tosca. Ella no és precipita en lloc, només es desespera en veure que el seu Mario l’han convertit en un ninot alienat.

Scarpia si que mort, en una de les escenes més absurdament ridícules de la història del teatre operístic de les jo en tingui constància. M’estranya tant  que Bieito hagi malmès i desaprofitat tant un segon acte d’aquesta manera, que només ho entenc si amb l’ànsia de no aprofitar res que es pogués entendre com una fidelització a l’original, s’ha passat de rosca.

Qualsevol aproximació als lloc dels fets o les situacions narrades no és ni tan sols pura coincidència.

Acte únic

No hi ha Chiesa di Sant’Andrea della Valle, és clar,  ni res que ho recordi, per tant no hi sagrestano, ni aquest li pot donar a Cavaradossi  “i colori” per pintar, és clar que en lloc hi ha cap constància que aquest sigui pintor, per tant no hi ha quadre, ni per suposat chiave  ni cappella, ni madonna, ni cantoria, ni com és obvi Te Deum, Els personatges ja poden anar dient coses que res del que diuen té cap sentit o transcendència amb el que suposadament fan. És ridícul per tant, que Tosca s’avergonyeix-hi de la revolcada que la despentina “davanti la madonna”. Gran part del diàleg del primer duo entre Tosca i Cavaradossi, amb aquell atac de gelosia tan entranyable dels “occhi neri” no tindria cap sentit i per intentar donar-li una mica coherència al despropòsit Bieito col·loca palplantada en mig de l’escenari una senyora mig nua que no diu res, és clar, i que hem de suposar que és l’Attavanti i que acabarà sent atonyinada per Scarpia en acabar un no sé què,  mentre tot un munt de gent que de cop i volta i sense cap mena d’explicació omple l’escenari, canten “Te Deum laudamus”. En mig de tot aquest no res, Quin sentit té parlar de l’acqua benedetta?, però potser fins i tot podria acceptar aquesta versió tan despullada, si no fos que a Bieito amb tanta deconstrucció li manquen espais i escenes  per omplir, espais buits que ell mateix ha creat i aleshores s’inventa personatges muts amb la pretensió d’inquietar al personal. Hi ha unes minyones contorsionistes que omplen l’escenari de cintes com si fossin teranyines que atrapa a tothom. Hi ha dos nans (potser no es va atrevir a posar dos nens de la cantoria que és el que volia el director) a qui Scarpia prodiga en  carantoines i sàdics pessics i que segurament fora d’escena (així ho fa entendre) li deuen fer favors més lubricants. Aquests nans adults van vestits amb uniforme de col·legi privat, idèntics als nens que haurien de ser escolanets i que ningú sap que hi fan en aquest soterrani tan concorregut, mentre canten el que hom suposa una festa “Doppio soldo… Te Deum… Gloria!  Viva il Re!… Si festeggi la vittoria!”, abraonant-se amb violència sobre el homeless que originalment és un sagristà.

Els tres actes es representen sense solució de continuïtat i per tant no hi ha entreacte. S’acaba el primer mentre Scarpia fueteja envoltat d’un silenci sepulcral (al Liceu la cridòria del públic seria històrica) a l’Attavanti nua mentre tothom va deixant l’escena buida per començar el segon acte que ja us podeu imaginar que no passarà al Palazzo Farnese.

Continua la foscor opressiva, no hi ha ni taules ni cadires, no hi haurà “cena interrotta” ni possibilitat de trobar un ganivet a darrera hora. Tosca escalfa degudament a Scarpia, li treu les ulleres i els hi clava al coll, quelcom que potser si i amb molta sort pot arribar amb la vida d’algú, però se’m fa difícil pensar que uns vidres plans i una muntura lleugera siguin suficient arma letal

És clar que en el segon acte hi passen més coses, i Bieito ens mostra al fons de l’escenari les tortures que li fan al pobre Cavaradossi, I qui el tortura? Dons si, els dos nans del primer acte que ara es dediquen a remenar al pobre tenor de mala manera.

També hi ha quasi de manera permanent, una altra senyora muda, molt ben arreglada i disposada en tot moment a fotre un cop de colze a la seva nova rival per guanyar-se els favors del seu Scarpia..

Cavaradossi en calçotets i amb els pantalots abaixats canta el Vittoria (veure la fotografia de la capçalera) més anticlimàtic que hom pot imaginar. Els “sbirri” porten a Angelotti a qui mataran en escena, tergiversant el llibret però a aquestes alçades de despropòsit oi que ja no importa a ningú?

Tosca per satisfer les fantasies sexuals de Scarpia s’ha de posar un vestit de nit i una perruca rossa, ja que arriba a l’encontre del segon acte amb texans, jersei de llaneta i sabates esportives tal i com anava al primer acte. La cantata aquella que s’escolta a través de la finestra oberta (aquí inexistent) segurament era en un dels escenaris del Sonar i per tant anava informal.

El sadisme habitual en moltes de les produccions de Bieito és normal que aparegui en un segon acte de Tosca, aquí del tot justificat, però part de la força dramàtica que té la tortura de Cavaradossi rau precisament en que no la veus i només l’intueixes. Bieito necessita mostrar-ho, sense adonar-se’n que el rebuig que pretén provocar s’endu per endavant part de la maquinària perfecta d’un segon acte originalment immillorable, convertint-lo en un gran guinyol mancat de tragèdia, fred i amb un distanciament letal.

En el tercer acte que segueix sense interrupció i mentre escoltem clarament les ovelles o les cabres pasturant sota el Castel Sant’Angelo acompanyant la cançó suposadament d’una pastoret (recursos orquestrals de Puccini que fan més nosa que servei al moderns directors d’escena), Bieito fa sortir una altra vegada a la rossa oficial, que en veure a Scarpia obert de cames i mort amb la camissa oberta i la perruca de Tosca tapant-li la bregueta suposadament oberta, li col·loca a sobre les sabates de Tosca, a la manera dels tradicionals canelobres i el barret com si fos el crucifix, estirant-lo com un sac per les cames, se l’endú mentre un nen rosset de l’escolania del col·legi de pagament canta allò de

Io de’ sospiri. Ve ne rimanno tanti Pe’ quante foje Ne smoveno li venti.

Tu me disprezzi. Io me ci accoro, Lampene d’oro Me fai morir!

Aquesta criatureta sembla que és fill de Scarpia i potser de la rossa muda. Una vegada ha acabat i mentre l’orquestra inicia l’interludi amb el tema del adéu a la vida, la criatureta es treu un caramel gegant en forma de cor i amb palet, el comença a llepar de manera molt poc decorosa per a un nen normal, vaja que no llepa només un caramel, oi que m’enteneu?. 

Quan entre Cavaradossi en escena sembla talment la mòmia, amb els braços enganxats al cos i embolicat amb les cintes,que el tenien lligat durant la tortura, en calçotets i ensangonat de cap a peus, fet un “ecce homo” vaja. El carceller que deu tenir fantasies fortes, abans de permetre-li “l’ultima grazia” deixant-lo escriure a la “persona amata”, s’apropa i li besa la ferida del cap de manera poc misericordiosa. Se m’escapen les intencions de Bieito en aquesta escena, la veritat.

Cantar “E lucevan le stelle… ed olezzava la terra…” amb aquella pinta és més que impossible, imperdonable, no pot inspirar a ningú, ni a qui ho canta, ni ha qui ho veu i escolta. Després entra Tosca i ni el veu o no el vol veure, ambdós es posen a cantar separats dos metres l’un de l’altra un duo que hauria de ser passional, però en prou feines es miren, es reconeixen o es parlen, cadascú va a la seva bola. Com dir-li a algú que faci teatre durant l’execució si no n’hi haurà?

Mentre se suposa que entre l’escamot d’afusellament, aquell que l’ha besat sospitosament a la ferida i un dels policies, li pinten la cara de pallasso i li posen una perruca vermella (GIURO!) i l’asseuen al davant de l’escenari amb les cametes penjant al fossat de l’orquestra mentre li col·loquen el cartró que en començar l’obra porta Angelotti i que diu “Your silence will not protect you” en una el·lipsi poc treballada diria jo i aleshores entra tota aquella gentada que ja havíem vist en el primer acte, ara portant retrats de Scarpia, en un recurs que havíem vist en el seu memorable Boris a Munich, allà de manera molt efectiva, mentre Tosca seu al costat de Cavardossi sense precipitar-se al buit. No els cal morir.

No m’interessa gens el que em vol dir Bieito, al menys de la manera que m’ho vol dir, perquè el que explica i com m’ho explica ja m’ho ha dit altres vegades i de manera més efectiva i convincent. Vol explicar una història i tot li grinyola. Ell que és un home de teatre i que sap fer treballar tan bé als actors, no ha estat capaç d’explicar-me Tosca de manera contemporània. Tosca és una òpera verista on tot queda perfectament explicat, tant en el llibret com en la partitura, i malgrat això hem vist mil i una variacions sobre el mateix tema, La variació que ara ens proposa Bieito no m’ha semblat actual, ni contemporània, ni tan sols moderna. M’ha semblat absurda, una vulgaritat mal resolta, provocativa i lluny de ser  genial acaba sent penosa o el que és pitjor, risible.

Mai havia fet un apunt amb tant espai dedicat a la producció, però és que sense la producció aquesta Tosca no és res excepcional.

La millor veu és la soprano Svetlana Aksenova, tot i que la zona més aguda acostuma a ser un crit. La veu és lírica, bonica i amb possibilitats.

Daniel Johansson és un tenor guapot, encara aprent i amb una veu sonora i italianitzant, ho té quasi tot per triomfar, però desafina.

A Claudio Sgura ja el coneixem d’altres interpretacions. El seu Scarpia com el seu Jack Rance, són dignes, no cridats i potser mancats de veritable personalitat i caràcter, però la interpretació que li marca Bieito és la més convincent del tercet protagonista.

Jens-Erik Aasbø és un sonor Angelotti i Pietro Simone un bon sagrestano. El pastoret esdevingut fill de Scarpia, és magnífic.

L’orquestra i el cor sonen esplèndids però el tempo emprat per Karl-Heinz Steffens és en moltes escenes, lentíssim.

Giacomo Puccini TOSCA òpera en 3 actes, llibret de Giacosa i Illica

Tosca – Svetlana Aksenova Cavaradossi – Daniel Johansson Scarpia – Claudio Sgura Angelotti – Jens-Erik Aasbø “Il Sagrestano” – Pietro Simone Spoletta – Thorbjørn Gulbrandsøy Sciarrone – Ludvig Lindström Scarpia’s son Eduardo – Aksel Johannes Skramstad Rykkvin

Norwegian National Opera Orchestra Norwegian National Opera Chorus Director musical – Karl-Heinz Steffens Director d’escena – Calixto Bieito Escenografia – Susanne Gschwender Disseny de llums – Michael Bauer Disseny de vestuari – Anja Rabes Dramatúrgia – Bettina Auer

Norwegian National Opera, 20 de juny de 2017

Avui us he portat aquí aquesta Tosca vocalment poc interessant i a nivell escènic lamentablement provocadora com un exponent del que avui significa per a molts l’òpera. Que al final els norueccs en facin un notable èxit em fa entristir

BIEITO ES CARREGA SENSE CONTEMPLACIONS LA TOSCA DE PUCCINI A OSLO Què Bieito no faria una Tosca convencional no cal ser una lluminària per saber-ho, però que el director burgalès fos incapaç de commoure i emocionar en una òpera tota ella colpidora, és sota el meu punt de vista, un dels més grans fracassos de la seva immensa carrera operística,.

[opera-ghosts]

She was born Johanne Marie Emilie Prieme on August 23, 1874 in Frederiksberg near Copenhagen. At the age of seven she was enrolled at the school of the Royal Danish Ballet at the Royal Theatre that served then, as now, as home for both acting, ballet and opera. The children at the ballet were often used as extras and even as singers when a children’s chorus was needed, and Brun was thus able to make her debut as a singer in Carmen at the age of 10.Johanne Brun quickly made sufficient progress to be granted a debut at the Royal Opera. Her phenomenal ease at the very top of her voice made the choice of The Queen of the Night obvious. Despite a few prior concert appearances, it was the performance of Die Zauberflöte on May 8, 1896 she considered her real debut. Despite a few remarks on Bruns nerves not being quite under control during the first aria, all the critics agreed that here was a singer to expect more from in the future. At the end of the season 1898-99 her contract was renewed, as it was to become each year from now on. The following seasons she sang Leonora in Il trovatore, Desdemona in Otello, Elsa in Lohengrin, Ingeborg in Heise’s Drot og Marsk, and she also sang in the premières of two Danish operas; Lamia by August Enna and Helgensværdet by Axel Grandjean.The Norwegian composer and conductor Johan Svendsen had been house conductor of the Royal Danish Opera since 1883. He had played as a violinist in the Bayreuth orchestra and knew Wagner personally. Since the Danish première of Die Walküre in 1891 Svendsen had had a vision of a Danish performance of the complete Ring cycle, and on January 8, 1902 Brun sang her first Wagnerian part, Sieglinde. Her twin and lover Siegmund was Peter Cornelius, who had changed his voice from baritone to heldentenor, and who later was to sing in Bayreuth and at Covent Garden. Besides singing at the Royal Opera, she was now in general demand in the Copenhagen musical life – especially in the Wagnerian fach. She regularly sang at concerts in the Concert Palais and in the Tivoli Gardens, often joined by her husband, now trying his luck as a baritone – but with little success. His appearances caused a mixture of amusement and pity with the critics, but Johanne Brun was invariably hailed as the supreme Danish interpreter of Wagner’s heroines. And in the years to come she was to create the most demanding of them on the Danish national stage. At the Royal Opera the next seasons saw Johanne Brun in the six performances of the Ring between 1909 and 1912 – the only complete cycles to be given at the theatre to this day – as well as appearances as Venus in Tannhaüser. But in the following seasons Brun found herself in less demand than earlier, and sometimes there were up to eight months between her singing at the Royal Opera. It seems that there were several reasons for this. Her increasing weight problem further inhibited what was apparently never a great dramatic talent on stage, and her voice was reported to be loosing its former flexibility – not surprisingly for a Brünnhilde and Isolde. This meant that she was more or less confined to the Wagnerian repertoire and a couple of dramatic Verdi roles. But soon she was not even considered more than a second choice for even these parts. During the following seasons Brun appeared more and more irregularly at the Royal Opera. Johanne Brun, or Johanna as she was known in Germany, quickly became a favourite with the Nuremberg audience. In November 1917 Brun sang in the first Nuremberg-performance of Eugen d’Albert’s opera Die toten Augen, premièred only a year earlier.

[todayclassical]

January 13 in Music History

1683 Birth of German composer Johann Christoph Graupner in Kirchberg. 

1690 Birth of German composer Gottfried Heinrich Stolzel in Grünstadtl. 

1726 FP of J. S. Bach's Sacred Cantata No. 32 Liebster Jesu, mein Verlangenon the 1st Sunday following Epiphany in Bach's third annual Sacred Cantata cycle in Leipzig 1725-27.

1727 Birth of German composer Johann Christoph Schmugel in Pritzier.

1734 Birth of Croatian composer Luka Sorkocevic in Dubrovnik. 

1762 Death of composer Leonhard Trautsch, at 68.

1775 FP of W. A. Mozart's opera La finta giardiniera 'The Feigned Gardener', at the Opernhaus St. Salvator in Munich. 

1778 Birth of composer Anton Fischer. 

1780 FP of Mozart's "Die verstellte Gärtnerin" singspiel, Augsburg.

1788 Birth of composer Carl Ludwig Cornelius Westenholz.

1795 Death of composer Francois-Joseph Krafft, at 73.

1811 FP of Beethoven's Fifth Piano Concerto, Carl Czerny in Vienna.

1815 Birth of mezzo-soprano Rosine Stoltz in Paris.  

1822 Birth of mezzo-soprano Elise Polko in Leipzig. 

1824 Birth of Polish cellist and composer Ignacy Marceli Komorowski in Warsaw. 

1828 Death of English composer Elizabeth Anspach in Naples, Italy. 

1828 Death of French composer Alexandre-Auguste Robineau, at age 80. 

1838 Death of German composer Ferdinand Reis, at age 53, in Frankfurt. 

1842 Birth of German pianist and composer Heinrich Hoffmann in Berlin. 

1850 Birth of Australian composer Leon Francis Victor Caron. 

1864 Death of American composer Stephen Collins Foster in NYC. 

1870 Birth of Polish composer and conductor Henryk Opienski. 

1873 FP of Rimsky-Korsakov's opera  The Maid of Pskov. 

1882 German composer Richard Wagner completes his opera Parsifal.

1883 FP of George Chadwick's Thalia Overture. Boston Symphony. 

1893 Birth of Czech composer and organist Jan Evangelista Zelinka in Prague. 

1893 Death of soprano Melita Otto. 

1895 Birth of Spanish opera singer Fortunio Bonanova, in Palma de Mallorca, Spain. 

1895 Birth of Austrian composer Abraham Wolfe Binder. 

1896 Birth of tenor Nikolay Pechkovsky in Moscow. 

1898 Birth of Italian baritone Carlo Tagliabue in Mariano Comense. 

1899 Birth of British-American composer and conductor Laurence Powell.

1900 Birth of composer Yasuji Kiyose.

1901 Death of composer Carlo Angeloni, at 66. 

1903 Birth of American tenor Charles Kullman in New Haven Connecticut. 

1904 Birth of English composer Richard Addinsell in Oxford. 

1904 FP of Bela Bartók's tone-poem Kossuth, with parody of the German national hymn causing outrage, in Budapest. 

1906 Birth of composer Maxime Jacob.

1910 First experimental live broadcast of opera. In NYC, from the MET Opera stage, Mascagni's Cavalleria Rusticana and part of Pagliacci, with Enrico Caruso and Emmy Destinn.

1914 Death of Spanish composer Valentin de Zubiaurre y Unionbarrenechea, at age 76, in Madrid.

1917 Birth of Mexican composer Felix Guerrero Diaz.

1917 Death of tenor Albert Niemann. 

1923 Birth of Russian cellist Daniel Shifrin. 

1931 Birth of tenor Erwin Wohlfahrt in Nurnberg. 

1933 Birth of soprano Christiane Sorell in Vienna. 

1935 FP of Roy Harris's overture When Johnny Comes Marching Home the final version, by the Minneapolis Symphony and chorus under Eugene Ormandy. 

1936 Birth of Italian baritone Renato Bruson near Padua.

1936 Birth of composer Ami Maayani.

1938 Birth of Finnish composer Paavo Heininen in Helsinki.

1938 American debut of pianist Rudolf Firkusny. 

1943 Birth of composer William Duckworth. 

1944 FP of Igor Stravinsky's Circus Polka for orchestra and Four Norwegian Moods at the Garden Theatre. Boston Symphony conducted by the composer in Cambridge, MA. 

1945 Death of baritone Alfred Kase. 

1945 FP of Sergei Prokofiev's 5th Symphony. 

1951 Birth of English composer Gary Carpenter in Hackney, London.

1954 Birth of English composer Richard Blackford in London.

1954 Death of composer Roland Diggle, at 69. 

1961 Birth of English organist, pianist and conductor Wayne Marshall. 

1971 Birth of tenor Domonic Natoli. 

1971 Death of French composer Henri Tomasi, at age 69, in Paris. 

1971 Death of English composer Robert Still, at age 60.

1973 Birth of tenor Juan Diego Flores in Lima,Peru. 

1974 Death of Canadian tenor Raoul Jobin in Quebec, age 67. 

1976 Death of soprano Lily Pons. 

1976 American conductor Sarah Caldwell is 1st woman to conduct at NY's Metropolitan Opera. She led the MET orchestra and singers in a performance of La Traviata.

1980 Birth of England based, Polish conductor and organist Krzysztof Czerwinski. 

1980 Death of conductor Andre Kostelanetz, at 78 in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. 

1992 Death of soprano Rachaeli Mori.

1993 Death of Brazilian composer Camargo Guarnieri in São Paulo. 

1994 Death of English musicologist Frederick William Sternfeld, at 79. 

2000 FP of Richard Danielpour's Voices of Remembrance for string quartet and orchestra. Guarneri String Quartet and the National Symphony, Leonard Slatkin conducting in Washington, D.C.

2002 FP of Robert Kapilow's Louisiana Purchase by Louisiana Philharmonic, Baton Rouge, LA.

[gerralk]

My music today, today's albums !

My music today, today’s albums !

Satyricon

Satyricon är ett norskt black metal-band, bildat 1991. Debutalbumet Dark Medieval Times från 1994 är klassiskt inom genren. Satyricon experimenterar mycket med tempoväxlingar, piano, stråkar, körer med mera.

Deep Calleth Upon Deep 2017

https://open.spotify.com/album/3xguVoioTEG1pymeBL0oV3?si=X0X7P8iWS-KJmHWS4ydV2Q

Satyricon with Norwegian National Opera chorus

[youtube=http://www.youtub…

[demoura]

A TOSCA DA OPERA DE OSLO EM DIRECTO PARA COLARES' : outro domingo lírico em STREAMING com a Tosca da Nordske Opera de Oslo dirigida por Calixto Bieito . Gostei *** tendo sempre em conta que na transmissão gratuita para o sofá somos mais benevolentes... O polêmico espanhol desconstruiu a Tosca para o século XXI mas com escrupuloso respeito pelo texto . As marcas estão lá - Cavarradossi é miope usa óculos ( que Scarpia esmaga ) e faz uma instalação com a madonna nua , o sacristão é um sem abrigo , Scarpia é um personagem de televisão de cabelos pintados acompanhado por uma prostituta figurante a maneira de Guth .Roma não está lá e os cenários sao reduzidos a uma caixa negra e abretirada da bagagem da tradição inclui a ausência de intervalos com ganho na intensidade dramática . Os tradicionalistas lamentarão a ausência do salto de Floria Tosca para a morte na cena final .... Vocalmente Daniel Johansson,que não conhecia , impressionou como Cavaradossi . Claudio Sgura’s Scarpia foi outro cantor do elenco a alto nível dramático e vocal . Svetlana Aksenova cumpriu mas ainda falta algo para habitar a Tosca ! . Existem algumas estridências metálicas nos registos mais altos .o seu ‘muori dannato’ didn’t não tem a ferocidade exigida mas cantou ‘vissi d’arte’ COM genuína dignidade ! . Entrevista com Calisto Bieito sobre o controverso final HHH: But they don’t die? CB: Actually, Puccini didn’t want Tosca to die. Allowing her to die is a more commercial ending, where things are resolved – she’s freed from suffering and we get to grieve. But it is possible to disappear or become nothing without dying physically – when you’re without human rights, work, freedom of expression and dignity. There are so many people who fall outside the societal system, even in a country like Norway. I’ve seen this myself when walking from Oslo Central Station to the Oslo Opera House. Elenco Svetlana Aksenova - Floria Tosca, singer Daniel Johansson - Mario Cavaradossi, artist Claudio Sgura - Scarpia, chief of police Jens-Erik Aasbø - Cesare Angelotti Pietro Simone - "Il Sagrestano" Ludvig Lindström - Sciarrone, Scarpia's agent Thorbjørn Gulbrandsøy - Spoletta, Scarpia's agent Aksel Johannes Skramstad Rykkvin - Eduardo, Scarpia’s son Choir - The Norwegian National Opera Chorus Orchestra - The Norwegian National Opera Orchestra Composer - Giacomo Puccini Libretto - Luigi Illica, Giuseppe Giacosa Music director - Karl-Heinz Steffens Director - Calixto Bieito Sets - Susanne Gschwender Lighting - Michael Bauer Costumes - Anja Rabes Dramaturge - Bettina Auer

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Satyricon - Phoenix (live with Sivert Høyem and the Norwegian National Opera Chorus

Just amazing!!!