Category Archives: Reviews

Barbara Hannigan “dissolved in swirling sound… a spark of the holy fire”

Posted on February 25, 2015 by barczablog

The title of the movement is “Entrückung”, the text by Stefan George, the score to the String Quartet by Arnold Schoenberg, the concert part of the New Creations Festival curated by George Benjamin, a late-afternoon incarnation of the Canadian Opera … Continue reading →

Posted in Music and musicology, Reviews | 1 Comment

Wagnerian truths, whether on the COC stage or your own electronic device

Posted on February 20, 2015 by barczablog

Ah such a long title. I’m already being Wagnerian. He’s everywhere whether you know it or not, Wagner not precisely über alles, but still ubiquitous. We talked about him inevitably last night in class, discussing the dramaturgy of silent film, … Continue reading →

Posted in Opera, Reviews | 7 Comments

“Don Giovanni or Don JianGhomeshi…?“

Posted on February 13, 2015 by barczablog

The quote in the headline is the witty riposte of Ian Henderson as part of the conversation about Dmitri Tcherniakov’s Don Giovanni. You may have thought of it as Mozart’s Don Giovanni,…? ha! but when a modern opera director gets … Continue reading →

Posted in Opera, Reviews | 1 Comment

Tafelmusik’s Beethoven: the romance continues

Posted on January 26, 2015 by barczablog

Let’s begin by saying I’m not your typical Tafelmusik fan.  Yes I love their work with Opera Atelier under David Fallis & at Messiah time with Ivars Taurins (aka Herr Handel), but I am often frustrated by them.  Tafelmusik could … Continue reading →

Posted in Music and musicology, Reviews | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Some resist seduction by Tcherniakov’s Don Giovanni

Posted on January 25, 2015 by barczablog

Today’s opening of the Canadian Opera co-production of Don Giovanni directed by Dmitri Tcherniakov met with a mixed reception at the Four Seasons Centre. I heard a few boos, saw some empty seats at the end and heard an earful … Continue reading →

Posted in Opera, Reviews | 10 Comments

Opera 5: Modern (Family) Opera

Posted on January 24, 2015 by barczablog

I was invited to think and feel at tonight’s first performance of the Opera 5 program “Modern (Family) Opera”. I laughed a lot, I felt a lot, and my mind’s awhirl. The family theme is approached from two very different … Continue reading →

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Songs of Love and War

Posted on January 22, 2015 by barczablog

The title of today’s noon-hour concert at the Richard Bradshaw Amphitheatre –“Songs  of Love and War”—is  a curious umbrella sheltering a diverse group of songs & composers.  I can only speculate on the rationale for the programme, created for members … Continue reading →

Posted in Music and musicology, Reviews | 4 Comments

Based on a True Story: Big Eyes and The Theory of Everything

Posted on January 18, 2015 by barczablog

A new production of Don Giovanni opens at the Canadian Opera Company next week, followed shortly by Die Walküre.  Neither one bears the epithet “based on a true story”, as so many current films seem to (thinking for instance of … Continue reading →

Posted in Cinema, video & DVDs, Reviews | Leave a comment

Talisker Players: Puttin’ on the Ritz

Posted on January 12, 2015 by barczablog

Talisker Players, that inter-disciplinary nexus for music & text, have made another crossover adventure. “Puttin’ On the Ritz” takes us into the world of Irving Berlin, in a series of songs sung by Bud Roach and Whitney O’Hearn. I’d call … Continue reading →

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Bud Roach: Arias for Tenor and Baroque Guitar

Posted on January 6, 2015 by barczablog

Every now and then a recording or performance comes along to challenge your assumptions, possibly giving you a new way of seeing things.    I’ve been listening to two Bud Roach CDs: 1-Sospiro: Alessandro Grandi Complete Arias, 1626 (recorded in … Continue reading →

Posted in Dance, theatre & musicals, Music and musicology, Reviews | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments