Susanna Phillips Graces Vanity Fair For MET Return

The soprano photographed in Santa Fe
(Photo: Erik Madigan Heck)

"A native of Alabama and southern to her core—five years ago more than 450 Alabamians attended her Met debut, as Musetta in La Bohème, a role she reprises this season—Phillips, 32, is a sparkler herself. She is almost six feet tall and a former basketball player: 'You can’t be almost six feet tall in Alabama and not play basketball,' she says, laughing. Then there’s her big, glorious voice—glittering in the upper register, lustrous in the lower. To date, she has made the Mozart repertory particularly her own, both at the Met and at the Santa Fe Opera. 'He’s my musical home,' she says. Phillips will also star this season as Rosalinde in the Met’s sumptuous new Sacher torte of a Die Fledermaus, which debuts on New Year’s Eve. But first, there’s that eagerly awaited Così. 'I’m so excited,' says Phillips, who has collaborated only once before with Levine. 'He never really needed to say anything; he showed you what to do. By the way he used his arms I found myself wanting to make music with him.'" [Source]

What the FACH? Christine Goerke Transitions From Mozart to Strauss

"What the FACH?" is a new addition to the Opera Fresh blog that examines the transition from one vocal category to another of a completely different nature. Up first is a performance of Christine Goerke singing "Come Scoglio" from Così fan Tutte by Mozart in 2001 and the other taken from a 2008 performance that honors her upcoming opening at the Lyric Opera of Chicago in the title role of Elektra by Strauss.

Watch a Cast Rehearsal For L.A. Opera's "Così Fan Tutte"

The clip features an inside look at a musical preparation for the Mozart opera with Aleksandra Kurzak, Ruxandra Donose, Saimir Pirgu and Ildebrando D'Arcangelo, led by maestro James Conlon. Check out a photo gallery of the production by clicking here. The last performance of Così Fan Tutte at Los Angeles Opera will be October 8, 2011.

Fiancée Swapping Sisters In 1790 Vienna

Sisters (Ray Caesar, 2005)


Kiri Te Kanawa, Frederica von Stade, Jules Bastin
"Soave il vento"

The first performance of Mozart's Così fan tutte took place at the Burgtheater in Vienna on January 26, 1790. The subject matter did not offend Viennese sensibilities of the time, but throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries it was considered risqué. The opera was rarely performed, and when it did appear it was presented in one of several bowdlerised libretti. After World War II, it regained its place in the standard operatic repertoire. It is frequently performed and appears as number fifteen on Opera America's list of the 20 most-performed operas in North America.