This weekend: Chelsea Moor Castle

News

Toronto-area fans of Gilbert and/or Sullivan are in luck this weekend. The North Toronto Players present Chelsea Moor Castle (or the Contract to Marry), a mash-up of music from HMS Pinafore, Pirates of Penzance, Iolanthe, The Mikado, The Gondoliers, Ruddigore and more, by Michael Harms and Barb Scheffler.

Talking with singers: Luca Pisaroni

Interview

Pisaroni is quick to note that, "all operas are difficult to cast." Still, the coloratura bass-baritone Maometto is a notable departure from Rossini's fast-moving mezzos and tenors. "I could lie to you and say 'oh yeah, I love it, it's easy'," he laughs. "It's very difficult because it requires everything from you. There are low notes, high notes, coloratura, long phrases, legato, it's really challenging, all of it."

"Hello, Papagena!"

Humour

That's right. Stuart the Minion spots a fine-looking yellow fire hydrant in New York City, and he uses his best pick-up line, best translated as, "Hello, Papagena! You're beautiful like a papaya."

Creators in Concert: Jake Heggie

News

Heggie will take the piano, along with soprano Talise Trevigne, mezzo Elise Quagliata, tenor Stephen Costello and baritone Joseph Lattanzi. The four singers have been involved in the workshopping and performance history of Heggie's works, and with the in-demand American composer, they'll perform selections from Moby-Dick, Dead Man Walking, Three Decembers and more.

In review: Strauss & Brahms at the Barbican

Review

It's a piece that contains within it all that's needed to pack a punch; Brahms can get a reputation for being un-fun, and less imaginative than some of his contemporaries (like Strauss and Wagner), yet there was always something respectful about his music-first approach to telling a story. The City of London Choir and the Philharmonic Orchestra delivered thrilling waves of sound in those fantastic moments of "Denn alles Fleisch...", and the soloists rang through the Hall like encouraging cries from a mass of bodies.

Opera, faster: the COC's cheeky new app

News

The app is somewhat startlingly named "MyCOC". Now, if you go to the COC's website, you'll see a graphic promoting the app, and it looks slightly less unsettling with the "My" next to their palindromic logo. We at Schmopera are the first to profess our love for Canada's largest opera company, and the fantastic shows they put up. But this seems like the straw that breaks the camel's back (or some other body part) when it comes to marketing with a tricky acronym.

Hidden secrets of the soubrette

Editorial

A soubrette is like a moving target, where casting depends on everything around her; in one house, a soprano may be a Nannetta, and elsewhere she's Alice Ford. The term "soubrette" is more of a convenient appendix tacked on to the larger context of what a singer can do. So, soubrettes, we hope you're taking these roles like the compliments they are.

Revisiting Diagnosis: Diabetes

Interview

A few months ago, we spoke with pianist and composer Michael Park about his new one-act, interactive chamber opera, Diagnosis: Diabetes. Since our interview, Park has seen the workshop premiere of his opera with Vancouver's Erato Ensemble, and received the first audience feedback from the performance. Many listeners were new to opera in general, and even more were there to learn about this unique perspective on experiencing life with diabetes.

Betany Coffland: creating operatic bouquets

Interview

It’s funny what happens when you let go and put out your truth to the world. Good things happen. So, I recommend for all singers at whatever stage of their career, look for passion. Passion is cultivating, inspiring and uplifting and it will only enhance your life and therefore, your art.

Album review: Cloud Light

Review

The Canadian Art Song Project has released its second full-length recording (the first being 2014's Ash Roses), which features the music of Polish-born composer Norbert Palej (currently teaching at the University of Toronto), performed by five important Canadian artists of today. Cloud Light, released this year by Centrediscs, is an album of music "that actively grapples with the modern understanding of art song and demonstrates that it is still a genre capable of the most profound musical expression and innovation."