
Vivaldi & Others: Gioachino Rossini—The Manic-Depressive Swan of Pesaro
The ‘serious’ Rossini still does not get the appreciation he deserves in the opera world.

The ‘serious’ Rossini still does not get the appreciation he deserves in the opera world.

The highlight was soprano Anastasia Bartoli, who shined in a stellar cast and in an overall enthralling performance.

The brilliant soloists at the Met were underserved by a worn production and subpar conducting.

A consequence of Pergolesi’s posthumous fame: publishers sold works by other composers under Pergolesi’s commercially attractive name.

A nearly all-Hungarian cast delivered the production with a skill that should, in most cases, make the singers internationally famous.

In our nihilistic age, Boito’s Mefistofele may be primed for a comeback.

Faust’s salvation, as with humanity’s, comes only in time.

In this operatic wonder, the characters’ passions are otherworldly in their intensity.

The passion is palpable, but there is a smallness to the sets that cools the fire in the characters’ souls.

The recital left the overall impression of a solid and earnest singer with strong ambitions that may well be fulfilled in the march of time.