Renée Fleming Previews The Set Of "Bel Canto" For LOC

Soprano Renée Fleming was the inspiration for
Ann Patchett's diva in her novel Bel Canto.

"In this interview with Chicago Tonight's Eddie Arruza, Renée Fleming visits the set of Bel Canto, a new opera by composer Jimmy López and librettist Nilo Cruz, that she has curated for the Lyric Opera of Chicago, and which will be premiered on December 7, 2015." Watch the video interview, the LOC announcing the world premiere of the opera, and a behind-the-scenes photo, after the jump. "Ann Patchett's best-selling novel Bel Canto took the literary world by storm — now, in a new work curated by Lyric's creative consultant, Renée Fleming, this riveting story inspired by a real-life event becomes a powerful opera. Superstar American diva Roxane Coss has flown to Peru to sing at the vice president's home for a visiting Japanese mogul who is an opera buff. Dignitaries of every nationality are there — but an international crisis explodes when terrorists storm the mansion and take everyone hostage. Isolated for months, unlikely alliances form between captors and captives as fear and anger mingle uneasily with desire and even love. Music is the one universal language — but can it draw forth the humanity that exists in us all? An extraordinary international cast is led by Danielle de Niese, who caused a sensation as Lyric's Cleopatra in 2007. Sir Andrew Davis teams up with Kevin Newbury (Anna Bolena) for this world premiere with a libretto by Pulitzer Prize winner Nilo Cruz and music by Jimmy López, a native of Peru and 'one of the most interesting young composers anywhere today.' Chicago Sun-Times" [Source] For more information about the opera, click here.

The Team Behind Bel Canto: (back row left to right) LOC General Director Anthony Freud; Curator, Creative Consultant, and Soprano Renée Fleming; Conductor Sir Andrew Davis; (front row left to right) Director Kevin Newbury; Composer Jimmy López

Opera-Loving Catholic Cardinal Edward Egan Of NYC Dies At Age 82

Cardinal Edward Egan listens to opera tenor Bryan Hymel
at the Waldorf-Astoria in October 2014

"Cardinal Edward M. Egan, a stern defender of Roman Catholic orthodoxy who presided over the New York Archdiocese for nine years in an era of troubled finances and changing demographics, died on Thursday in Manhattan. He was 82. Joseph Zwilling, a spokesman for the Archdiocese of New York, said Cardinal Egan died of cardiac arrest at NYU Langone Medical Center. As archbishop of New York from 2000 to 2009 — the spiritual head of a realm of 2.5 million parishioners, an archipelago of 400 churches and a majestic seat at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Manhattan — the cardinal was one of America’s most visible Catholic leaders, invoking prayers for justice when terrorists struck on Sept. 11, 2001, and escorting Pope Benedict XVI on his historic visit to the city in April 2008. In February of 2009, the pope announced that Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan of Milwaukee had been selected to replace Cardinal Egan in New York on April 15, concluding a reign that had not been popular with many Catholics but had come to grips with hard decisions on church finances and had walked the line of Catholic doctrine against winds of change. But a month before retiring, Cardinal Egan seemed to soften his stance on the centuries-old requirement of priestly celibacy by suggesting the church would someday have to consider allowing priests to marry. 'I think that it’s going to be discussed; it’s a perfectly legitimate discussion,' he said on the Albany radio station Talk 1300. He added: 'I think it has to be looked at. And I am not so sure it wouldn’t be a good idea to decide on the basis of geography and culture not to make an across-the-board determination.'" New York residents know that Cardinal Edward Egan was known for his strong Catholic faith, but few had the knowledge that it was his love of opera that carried on a tradition of bringing operatic talent of the highest level to St. Patrick's Cathedral. Annually at services for Christmas Eve Midnight Mass visitors can hear the likes of Susan Graham, Renée Fleming, Hei-Kyung Hong, James Valenti, Danielle de Niese, Carl Tanner, Joyce DiDonato, Stephen Costello, Ramón Vargas, Maureen O'Flynn, Marcello Giordani, and Michael Fabiano. In 2007/2008, the Archdiocese of New York celebrated its Bicentennial with many celebratory Masses and events. Edward Cardinal Egan hosted a much-heralded concert featuring various choirs and stars from the Metropolitan Opera. [Source, Source, Source] Read more biographical information about Cardinal Egan here.

Danielle De Niese Dubbed "Opera's Coolest Opera Singer"

Life Is A Stage: The soprano photographed by Sven Arnstein

"The world's coolest opera singer is headed our way which will delight Ireland's loyal circle of music fans and Danielle de Niese, has every excuse to bring lots of luggage and fab gowns. The trouble with YouTube is everything is filmed these days, so you really 'can't wear the same dress twice', explains the lyric soprano who has been described by the BBC as the 'most sought-after singer on the planet'. Indeed, the New York Times described her voice as 'seductive enough to woo gods as well as mortals.' Chatting to her over the holidays, I discovered that Danielle's diary is booked up five years in advance and she is excited about performing with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra at Dublin's National Concert Hall on January 15. Opera is such vibrant territory for great socialising in Ireland - just ask the legions who descend on Wexford - and you can expect lots of drinks' invitations to be going out this week, held to mark her return to Dublin. This lady has the best fashion connections. Donna Karan designed the gown for her fairytale wedding to Gus Christie who is the third-generation boss of the famous Glyndebourne Festival. Danielle wears Vivienne Westwood because she loves the designer's mix of modern and baroque and says the gowns 'feel as comfortable as pyjamas'. If the soprano is escorted on stage by security, it's because she's wearing her Van Cleef and Arpels jewels. Off stage, Danielle likes to walk Caesar, her Portuguese water dog who is actually related to the Obamas' dog, Bo." [Source] Watch a video of the singer's photo shoot after the jump.

A Soubrette Dilemma: Where Have All The Pretty Voices Gone?

Kathleen Battle sang the soubrette role of
Despina in Mozart's Così fan tutte during
January 1982 at the MET.
(Photo: Winnie Klotz/Metropolitan Opera)

When people talk about opera sopranos, many immediately conjure up the caricature of a Rubensian figure wearing viking horns with the vocal amplitude of an diaphone foghorn. Fortunately for audiences these high voices come in all shapes and sizes. On the more petite end of the spectrum is a specialized fach known as the soubrette. Often categorized as light and lyric, this voice type is more likely to caress the listener's ear drum rather than penetrate it. The last century has seen a radical shift in the characteristics of this genre. Marcella Sembrich was a late 19th-century Polish soprano who often made appearances onstage as Zerlina (Don Giovanni), Susanna (Le Nozze di Figaro), and Rosina (Il Barbiere di Siviglia). These roles were a sharp contrast to her typical fare of dramatic coloratura roles of Lucia (Lucia di Lammermoor) and Elvira (I Puritani). This fascinating cross-pollination of repertoire certainly brought a radiant sound and identity to her characterizations in the opera house. At the end of her career, the soprano taught at the Curtis Institute in Philadelphia where one of her students, Eufemia Gregory, would go on to teach another famous soubrette of the 1970s & 1980s: Judith Blegen. It was in the latter half of the 20th-century that sopranos really began to give the vulnerable and sweet women in the soubrette repertoire their own distinct sound that didn't always carry over to other vocal categories. They were interpreters from around the globe like Rita Streich, Mattiwilda Dobbs, Norma Burrowes, Reri Grist, and Patrice Munsel, starting to emerge as leaders in this repertoire. But the silky floating tones of a coquette didn't mean she could not be strong in her own right. These roles became more crafted and unique under the domination of singers like Edith Mathis, Helen Donath, Elly Ameling, Judith Blegen, and Kathleen Battle. This group was heavily influenced with the stereo advancements in the recording industry which begged for a delicate immediacy from a voice in front of a microphone

Vocal Spectrum: Anna Netrebko as Adina* [top]
and Lady Macbeth** [bottom]. (Photos: Ken
Howard* & Marty Sohl**/Metropolitan Opera)

that didn't need to carry over a wave of 4,000 audience members in the opera house. Did all this saccharine give way to a more vanilla tone in the 1990s when voices seemed to be more precise and pointed than brilliantly sensuous in the likes of Sylvia McNair, Dawn Upshaw, Barbara Bonney, and Heidi Grant Murphy? This latter group of ladies was distinctly musical, possessed superb instruments, and sang musically. But something was lacking in the timbre of the sound that seemed to bloom in the previous generation. As opera crosses into its fourth century in existence, have interpreters of the soubrette roles become even more watered-down with a non-distinct sound lacking lushness and identity leaning more toward an early music style by sopranos like Danielle de Niese and Mojca Erdmann? Society today favors an individual who can "do it all" and this may lead to the demise of the specialized singing in soubrette repertoire. Take for instance superstar soprano Anna Netrebko who sang the role of Adina in Donizetti's L'elisir d'Amore at the Metropolitan Opera in January 2014 and then took on one of the heaviest soprano roles in opera,  Lady Macbeth in Verdi's Macbeth at the Bayerische Staatsoper in June 2014. This blurring of lines can produce dramatic reinterpretations of roles by bringing new colors, not to mention volume, to a character in opera and certainly harkens back to the old-school voices that could tackle multiple ranges of repertoire. Read more about soubrettes and listen to audio samples of 20 sopranos in soubrette repertoire after the jump.

Danielle De Niese Celebrates Music With World's Biggest Stars

All-Time High: The soprano sings an American classic tune while up in the sky.

"One of the biggest names in the opera world, soprano Danielle de Niese sang live in the studio for BBC Radio 3’s 'In Tune' earlier this year and was one of the presenters of the 2014 BBC Proms." Soprano Danielle de Niese joined fellow classical musicians trumpeter Alison Balsom and violinist Nicola Benedetti to celebrate the joy of music and raise funds for charity. They are joined by mega-stars like Elton John, Emelie Sandé, Kylie Minogue, Pharell Williams, Stevie Wonder, and the original Beach Boys member Brian Wilson. "BBC Music is delighted to share with you this extraordinary version of the Beach Boys' masterpiece, 'God Only Knows,' to celebrate our love of music. With the 80-piece BBC Concert Orchestra at its heart and 27 ridiculously talented musicians from a wide range of genres, this 'impossible orchestra' represents the talent, diversity and musical passion found every single day throughout the BBC. The single is also in aid of this year's BBC Children in Need campaign....The BBC has launched BBC Music and to celebrate has released the single 'God Only Knows,' featuring a dazzling array of musical stars, to raise money for BBC Children in Need. Pharrell Williams, One Direction, Stevie Wonder and Emeli

Sandé are among the 27 artists who joined the BBC Concert Orchestra to record the track and film showing the breadth of the BBC’s music output and its relationship with musicians. The unveiling of BBC Music marks a celebration of brilliant musical talent in this country and beyond, and showcases the BBC’s ongoing support for music programmes, partnerships and ground breaking music initiatives." Learn more about BBC Music by clicking here. The video, details about where to buy the single, and more photos, after the jump. [Source, Source, Source]

Glyndebourne Opera Festival Celebrates Its Own Royal Couple

Love birds: Gus Christie and Danielle de Niese in the manor. (Photo: Dan Bum Forti/The Telegraph)

"They are stars in their own opera. A Donizetti, perhaps. Some sort of teasing pact seems to have been agreed between them: she won’t interrupt when he is trying to make a point. But expecting Danni de Niese to moderate her enthusiasm is like expecting water to run uphill. As a kittenish all-singing-all-dancing Cleopatra in Handel’s Giulio Cesare, she took Glyndebourne by storm in 2005. Then she laid siege to the affections of its owner as he watched her from the wings. After a courtship spanning several cities, wherever in the world she was singing, they married in 2009. Their love story has become as much a part of the Glyndebourne legend as that of his grandfather, John Christie, who built the first opera house in 1934 for his beautiful Canadian wife, the soprano Audrey Mildmay. England’s Taj Mahal, Danni calls it. The idea that another soprano might take up residence once seemed fanciful but 'history has repeated itself,' Danni says." [Source]

Danielle De Niese Gives Glyndebourne "Don Pasquale" Tour

Danielle de Niese stars in Donizetti's Don Pasquale at the Glyndebourne Festival this season. Watch a backstage video tour of the final rehearsal after the jump. Click here to read an article in The Guardian where Miss de Niese "...reveals how she became one of the world's most sought-after sopranos."

Faye Dunaway and Danielle de Niese in "Master Class" Preview

The above photo was tweeted by Faye Dunaway today. "Just edited scene with Liam Dunaway O'Neill and Danielle de Niese. They are electric." For more information, click here and here.

Danielle de Niese Contemplates the Role of Music in Society

Soprano advocating for the Arts

"There are so many serious issues affecting our nation and our world; from the Occupy Wall Street movement, to the Republican GOP nomination debates, the economic crisis in the Euro Zone, the uprisings in the Middle East, the moral tragedy of the little Chinese girl left to die on the road...So what on earth could an opera singer say that would have relevance for you and what you're going through at the moment? We can all afford to do a little soul-searching about the choices we make and the way we live our lives, but sometimes searching one's soul doesn't provide the answers we seek. I could ask myself, for example, why I work hard to bring music and opera to schoolkids who have yet to be exposed to classical music when there are so many bigger problems with our education system. With basic education budgets being chipped into all the time, should we care at all about getting kids to try classical music, which can seem so 'optional' in comparison to English or mathematics? I can only answer this question based on the influence of music in my own life, so for me, the answer is a resounding YES." Read the full article here.

Danielle was also named one of Marie Claire's "Women on Top Awards 2011." Check out the piece here.

Decca Launches Microsites: Kurzak, de Niese and Calleja

Click on photos to launch a microsite promoting an artist's new release on Decca:

To the Manor Born: Danielle de Niese at Home in Glyndebourne

"The 32-year-old Australian-American soprano not only stars at Glyndebourne, the privately run opera house in southern England, where we are meeting, she lives there too. In December 2009, De Niese married Gus Christie, third-generation owner and executive chairman of Glyndebourne Festival Opera. They live in the 17th-century country house adjoining the auditorium, where this summer she will sing the role of the beautiful, unattainable Adina in a revival of a 2007 production of Donizetti's light-hearted L'elisir d'amore, of which all 16 performances have already sold out. Nestling in the Sussex Downs, Glyndebourne is a rural idyll. For much of the year the predominant sound is of sheep in the surrounding fields. But for four summer months it is an internationally renowned opera house, overrun by black-tie audiences, many of them bankers and city types who think nothing of spending £250 (Dh1,508) on an opera ticket. Today in the quiet pre-season period, De Niese could be forgiven for keeping her door shut. And yet she has agreed to have lunch with me in one of the in-house restaurants, today being used as the canteen for staff and performers. De Niese makes an unlikely lady of the manor. The daughter of Sri Lankans who emigrated to Australia, she spent her early years in Melbourne and, aged 9, was the youngest winner of Young Talent Time, a TV show. Shortly after, she moved with her family (she has a younger brother) to Los Angeles, where she became a guest host on a live show for teenagers called LA Kids. Given this precocity, it comes as no surprise to discover that De Niese was only 15 when she made her professional opera debut with the Los Angeles Opera. She later went to the Mannes College of Music in New York."

"What does De Niese make of Glyndebourne's dyed-in-the-wool English traditions of behaviour and dress? 'When I first came to England [six years ago], it was like coming back to something I knew,' she says, as we plunge into our food. 'I spent my first ten years in the Commonwealth. I come from cricket, crumpets, cucumber sandwiches, the Queen.' The alliterative picture she conjures up makes me laugh and I ask if that is what defines English culture for her. Not at all, says De Niese. 'That would be like saying French means eating escargots, Italian is pasta, American is cheeseburgers. It goes deeper. What I see as especially English is the charm — everyone is so polite. Being restrained is part of the charm. And I love the sense of humour — it takes me back to Australia. The English are great at making fun of themselves.'"

"'Why do the English use the word pants for underwear? I was in the gym, where I do boxing, so I had to take my wedding ring off. It wasn't till afterwards that I realised I'd forgotten to put it back on. I told Gus I'd left my ring in this guy's pants. They weren't his actual pants. The word ‘pants' comes from ‘pantaloon', doesn't it?' While De Niese is earnestly recalling the incident, I can't help wondering what a blast of fresh air this classless woman, a product of talent, not privilege, must have injected into the social milieu of the Christie clan. If Christie had consciously set out to update Glyndebourne's image, he could not have done better."

"Although De Niese has been doing most of the talking, she has finished eating far ahead of me. To help me catch up, I ask her about the dazzling earrings, bracelet and long gold necklace she is wearing, all with matching white-and-grey mother-of-pearl. She has, she explains, a 'relationship' with French luxury jeweller Van Cleef & Arpels, meaning she wears their most expensive products on public occasions. So what is the value of today's assemblage? For the only time in our conversation, De Niese falters. A mere £19,000, she says, 'but these are for keeps.' This distinguishes them from the jewels she wears for photo shoots and big social events. 'When I'm wearing millions of dollars to the theatre [on loan], they like to have bodyguards in my dressing room. In places where there is already high security, like when Gus and I were invited to Buckingham Palace, the guards don't need to be there. But they do have their uses. When I arrived at St James's Palace to see Prince Charles and Camilla, I put the heel of my shoe through my Donna Karan dress. It was so funny to see the guards trying to thread needles.'"

Read the whole interview here.

(Photos: Chris Dunlop/Decca)

Diva Débutantes Spice Up New Releases on Decca, DG & Sony

Among the sopranos making their debut recordings in the coming months, there are sprinklings of returning favorites like Diana Damrau and Danielle de Niese. Click on the images to enlarge. Enjoy!