Enjoy St. Patrick's Day With Irish Tenor John McCormack

Renée Fleming Presents A Taste Of Winter Wonderland In New Video

With the release of Renée Fleming's new Christmas-themed recording, Decca Classics now releases a video featuring performance clips of selections from the album. "Following her acclaimed performance at Super Bowl XLVIII, America’s favourite soprano Renée Fleming releases her first-ever holiday album, Christmas In New York. The album celebrates the sparkle and sophistication of the beloved Christmas season in New York City, with music conjuring such iconic scenes as the holiday windows lining 5th Avenue, the Christmas Tree at Rockefeller Center and carriage rides in Central Park. A richly collaborative album, Christmas in New York finds Renée Fleming singing with a relaxed intimacy and freedom distinct from her soaring classical voice. Holiday evergreens and nostalgic favorites are both featured with fresh arrangements, joined by a wish list of guests from jazz, pop and Broadway including Gregory Porter, Chris Botti, Kurt Elling, Kelli O’Hara, Wynton Marsalis, Brad Mehldau, and Rufus Wainwright. Highlights include 'Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas,' 'Silver Bells,' 'Winter Wonderland,' 'Sleigh Ride' and 'Central Park Serenade,' a brand new duet by songwriting legend Diane Warren." [Source] To listen to tracks off the album, including the exclusive bonus track available when you purchase the MP3 album, click here. Watch the promotional video, and find some beautiful new publicity photos of Renée Fleming, after the jump.

Renée Fleming Brings Christmas Early With Latest Decca Release

"Christmastime in New York City is a magical and timeless experience beloved by New Yorkers and visitors from around the world. Picture a horse-drawn carriage in snow covered Central Park passing tree lined streets filled with twinkling lights. Come in from the cold, snuggle up by the fire and let these intimate renditions of holiday classics fill your home with Christmas cheer. American soprano Renée Fleming's first-ever holiday album celebrates the beloved and iconic Christmas season in New York City. From Rockefeller Center to the holiday windows lining 5th Avenue, the essence of the city at the most wonderful time of year is captured on Christmas in New York. With guests representing such genres as jazz, pop and classical, this album will appeal not only to Flemings core classical fan base but too all that embrace the holiday season. Joining Fleming for the Christmas celebration are guest artists ranging from Rufus Wainwright and Gregory Porter to Wynton Marsalis and Kelli O Hara. In total, Fleming and her guests have won 16 Grammy awards across multiple categories. Renée Fleming's elegant persona along with the intimate arrangements of holiday classics makes this album perfect for holiday parties, stocking stuffers and as a treasured holiday gift. This sophisticated album is sure to be a perennial favorite. An exclusive recording artist with Decca since 1995, Renee Fleming is known mostly as an opera singer with a career that has encompassed numerous genres and styles. This past February, Fleming became the first classical singer in history to perform the National Anthem at the Super Bowl, which was enjoyed by more than 111.5 million viewers in the US. The release of this album will be supported by Renée Fleming's appearance on the nationally broadcasted Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and local and national holiday events along with a December pledge PBS Christmas special." [Source] The complete track list and release date schedule can be found after the jump.

Joyeux Quatorze Juillet!

Celebrate Bastille Day by listening to Hildegard Behrens interpret

 "Les nuits d'été" of Hector Berlioz.  

Les nuits d'été (Op. 7):
I. Villanelle
II. Le spectre de la rose
III. Sur les lagunes
IV. Absence
V. Au cimetière
VI. L'île inconnue

Happy Operatic Mother's Day Brought To You By Coloratura Fan

Opera Singers Performing Christmas Favorites - Part 2

"It Came Upon a Midnight Clear"
"Coventry Carol"
Eileen Farrell

"White Christmas"
Thomas Hampson

"What Child is This"
Deborah Sasson

"In Dulci Jubilo"
Elly Ameling

"Panis Angelicus"
Luciano Pavarotti

"O Divine Redeemer!"
Renata Tebaldi

"The Trumpet Shall Sound"
Samuel Ramey

"It's the Most Wonderful
Time of the Year"
Plácido Domingo & Leona Mitchell

"Hark the Herald Angels Sing"
Maureen O'Flynn

"Abendsegen" and "Traumpantomime"
Anneliese Rothenberger & Irmgard Seefried

"Joy to the World" sung by Anna Moffo

Opera Singers Performing Christmas Favorites - Part 1

"Stille Nacht"
Dawn Upshaw with Chanticleer

"Still, still, still"
Bryn Terfel

"He Shall Feed His Flock"
"Come Unto Him"
Barbara Bonney

"O, Holy Night"
Denyce Graves

"In the Bleak Midwinter"
Kiri Te Kanawa & Roberto Alagna

"Mary Had a Baby"
Kathleen Battle

"Die Heiligen Drei Könige"
Elisabeth Schwarzkopf

"Lo, How a Rose E'er Blooming"
Renée Fleming

"O Tännenbäum"
Leontyne Price

"The Virgin's Slumber Song"
Joan Sutherland

"I Know That My Redeemer Liveth"
Marilyn Horne

Recommended Gifts For Reading During the Holiday Season

John Fleming of the St. Petersburg Times offers up two operatically tinged books that would make great gifts this holiday season: "The Wagner books continue to get churned out. The most recent to offer something new is Wagner and the Erotic Impulse by Laurence Dreyfus (Harvard University Press, 266 pages, $27.95). 'What is it in the notes and sounds -- in their melodies, harmony, orchestration, rhythm and texture -- that arouse thoughts of sexual desire?' asks Dreyfus of Wagner's music. Another notable opera book is Garry Wills' meditation on two masters of the stage, Verdi's Shakespeare: Men of the Theater (Viking, 225 pages, $25.95)." [Source]

Music Bump: "Praise the Lord" Vespers by Sergei Rachmaninov (Irina Arkhipova, mezzo-soprano)

"The Resurrection of Christ" by Peter Paul Rubens