Nicole Car Wins Hearts In Her Covent Garden Debut
….meantime at London’s Royal Opera in Covent Garden, Australian soprano Nicole Car has won hearts with her portrayal of Micaëla in Bizet’s Carmen. Making her Covent Garden debut her performance has been described as “the evening’s most complete performance; her luminous soprano proves ideal for Bizet’s soaring lines and she acts with intelligence and immediacy.” The…
Seong-Jin Cho Wins Chopin Piano Competition
Seong-Jin Cho from South Korea has been announced as the winner of the 17th International Fryderyk Chopin Competition recently concluded in Warsaw. The 21-year old student of Michel Béroff at the Paris Conservatoire was in a field of ten finalists drawn from 450 applicants adjudicated by Dmitri Alexeev, Martha Argerich, Philippe Entremont, Nelson Goerner, Garrick Ohlsson and chaired…
Beethoven’s Symphonies Analysed
Gramophone Magazine has packaged its explorations of all of Beethoven’s symphonies by nine leading international conductors – Norrington, Zinman, Jansons, Vänskä, Gardiner, Iván Fischer, Tilson Thomas, Paavo Järvi and Chailly A terrific chance to gain some understanding of these cornerstones of the symphonic repertoire.
Benedict Andrews’ bohème for The ENO Raises Controversy
Australian theatre director Benedict Andrews’ vision of Puccini’s opera La bohème opened at the English National Opera this week. The director has raised controversy again (remember his 2012 imagining of The Marriage of Figaro for Opera Australia?) with his portrayal of Mimi and Rodolfo as heroin addicts. Read the review in The Guardian, in The Telegraph and The…
Yuja Wang Releases ‘Ravel’
It was in July that pianist Yuja Wang dazzled Australian audiences with her performances, described as “dazzling…tender…(and) stylish” (Sydney Morning Herald). She is now poised to release a new recording in Australia, entitled Ravel (available October 23, 2015) on the Deutsche Grammophon label, on which she performs with the celebrated Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich under young conductor Lionel…
Claire Edwardes On Twenty Years Of Ensemble Offspring
It was the year that the ANZAC bridge was opened to traffic; Telecom Australia became Telstra, Paul Keating was Prime Minister and Bob Carr defeated John Fahey to become Premier of New South Wales. Overseas, OJ Simpson was found not guilty of double murder and Braveheart won the Oscar for Best Film. The year 1995…
Shaun Lee-Chen Appointed Concertmaster Of Australian Brandenburg Orchestra For 2016
Perth-based violinist Shaun Lee-Chen has been appointed Concertmaster of the Australian Brandenburg Orchestra for 2016. In announcing the appointment, Paul Dyer, Artistic Director of the Australian Brandenburg Orchestra said “Shaun Lee-Chen is one of the most exciting and inspired violinists of his generation. Amongst the world’s emerging baroque violinists, he is one of the players who’ll pave…
Jessica Pratt Debuts As Semiramide
This month Australian soprano Jessica Pratt will make her debut in one of Gioacchino Rossini’s most challenging soprano parts in the title role of Semiramide in concert performances at the Marseille Opera House conducted by Italian Maestro Giuliano Carella from 18-27 October 2015. She will reprise the role of the Babylonian queen next month in another concert performance at…
Samuel Sakker Profile
Sydney born tenor Samuel Sakker begins his second year on the Jette Parker Young Artist programme at the Royal Opera in Covent Garden. During his time in the UK he has sung alongside some of the world’s best singers, amongst them, Placido Domingo, Joyce DiDonato and Idebrando D’Arcangelo. Earlier this year, Samuel sang at an…