Tito @ Glyndebourne – Watch it Now!

If you have any interest at all in Mozart, La Clemenza di Tito, Claus Guth, Glyndebourne, staged opera, sung opera, Richard Croft, Alice Coote, mezzo-sopranos in general, or just about anything to do with music, singing, and opera, stop what you're doing and go to the Telegraph’s website (or Glyndebourne.com) and see this opera. 

You have less than five days now.  According to fellow blogger, dehggial (who has an awesome review of the production) there is a planned DVD release, but: (1) nothing is life is 100% certain; and (2) see it now anyway—you can always buy the DVD later (I know I will). The new Salzburg Tito has its merits; and it will be online at Medici for a while. We can talk more about both of them later. Go watch/listen the Glyndebourne performance now!

Alice Coote Talks about Fate, Cross-dressing, and Mozart

Alice Coote, mezzo-soprano. (Benjamin Ealovega)

…and whether men or women are better kissers.

I mentioned the new podcast from WQXR: He Sang She Sang in a recent post. Each week they spend about 20 to 40 minutes discussing the upcoming Met radio (and HD, when applicable) opera broadcast. 

This podcast is a great companion to the more scholarly (and sometimes less engaging) pre-opera lectures from the Met Opera Guild (those are good too; but sometimes they can be a bit stuffy).

Although this episode is hosted by just the “insider,” He Sang She Sang usually has two or three hosts, at least one of whom is an opera neophyte. This lightens the discussion considerably, and…well the conversation is less stuffy (and sometimes just a bit irreverent.) They talk about the upcoming opera and play some musical excerpts. Almost every week they interview someone involved with the current production—often, and most interestingly, one of the singers.

This episode focuses on Alice Coote, even more than on Idomeneo—and that’s not a bad thing! She gives us her take on Mozart, Idomeneo, fate, saying goodbye, and dressing up as a man—among other things. We also get to hear a few excerpts from the 1996 Met recording. On the podcast website, there’s also a link to a clip from the current production.

Go. Listen. Enjoy. And check out the other episodes. Even if you already know all about the opera under discussion, I am sure you’ll enjoy the conversations, the music, and—yes—the fun.

Sunday Brunch, Expanded Edition – Mezzos in Pants

This is a great U-TOOB playlist featuring one of our favorite opera phenomena: mezzos playing men. This playlist includes Sarah Connolly (a lot), Alice Coote, Joyce DiDonato, Vesselina Karasova, Angelika Kirchschlager, Elina Garanca, Isabel Leonard, Helene Schneiderman, and Kate Lindsey and costars some of our favorite sopranos, too (Miah Persson in at least two!!!)!

And then check out La Clemenza di Tito from La Monnaie for more mezzos in pants. (I have a crush on Swedish mezzo Anna Grevelius as Annio, but I am not sure if I have a crush on her, or on him.)

Sunday Brunch – Malin Hartelius is Vitellia (La Clemenza in Concert)

This is audio only (and not the greatest sound—although pretty amazing, considering it probably was recorded from inside someone’s vest pocket), but it’s so wonderful to have. I don't know how I missed this. I really need work on my soprano-stalking skills.