Opera Album Review: A Grand Opera from Late in Gounod's Career Gets Its First Recording Ever by Ralph P. Locke

Gounod was no mere purveyor of gentle sentiments. This 1881 opera, superbly performed, shows plenty of drama and grit. The post Opera Album Review: A Grand Opera from Late in Gounod's Career…

SOURCE: The Arts Fuse at 11:24am on November 13, 2019☆⚑

Opera Album Review: Offenbach's "La Périchole," by an All-French Cast, Combines Zest and Elegance by Ralph P. Locke

This is one of the zippiest, most life-affirming opera recordings I have heard in a long time. Well, this puts it a bit too blandly, because the work's social satire also targets the smug se…

SOURCE: The Arts Fuse at 7:54pm on September 26, 2019☆⚑

Opera Album Review: A Renaissance-Toned Opera by Saint-Saëns, Finally (and Finely) Recorded by Ralph P. Locke

One of Saint-Saëns's most important operas, Proserpine, has recently been given its world-premiere recording, and the result is a revelation. The post Opera Album Review: A Renaissance-T…

SOURCE: The Arts Fuse at 12:33pm on September 17, 2019☆⚑

Opera CD Review: Now Hear What Berlioz and Wagner Admired " Gaspare Spontini's "Olimpie" in a Stupendous New Recording by Ralph P. Locke

This world-premiere recording of the 1826 Paris version of Gaspare Spontini's Olimpie makes a powerful case for a composer much admired in his own day. The post Opera CD Review: Now Hear Wha…

SOURCE: The Arts Fuse at 10:12pm on July 12, 2019☆⚑

Opera Review: A Sumptuous New Recording of Korngold's "The Miracle of Heliane," Centerpiece of This Summer's Bard Music Festival by Ralph P. Locke

Once much-performed, then banished from the stage by the Nazis, this is a fine new recording of an opera by the man who would become one of Hollywood's leading composers. The post Opera Revi…

SOURCE: The Arts Fuse at 8:04am on May 1, 2019☆⚑

Opera CD Review: Wagner's "Die Meistersinger," Sung in Italian, Beautifully, with Conversational Ease by Ralph P. Locke

A 1962 concert performance from Radio Italiana, now on CD, shows how delightful Wagner can sound without barking and slow wobbles. The post Opera CD Review: Wagner's "Die Meistersinger," Sun…

SOURCE: The Arts Fuse at 9:10am on March 12, 2019☆⚑

Opera Review: Beyond the "Barber of Seville" " New Recordings of Two First-Rate Forgotten Operas by Rossini by Ralph P. Locke

Beethoven reportedly told Rossini to stick to writing comic operas. But new recordings of two of Rossini's major serious operas bring great pleasure to the listener"and let us hear some sple…

SOURCE: The Arts Fuse at 9:54am on February 17, 2019☆⚑

Classical Music Commentary: Poetic Narratives in the Concert Hall, and a New Recording of Dvořák's "The Spectre's Bride" by Ralph P. Locke

A reflection on the whole tradition of combining longish narrative poems to music, especially for performance in a concert hall by large forces (e.g., singers and orchestra). The post Classi…

SOURCE: The Arts Fuse at 9:54am on January 20, 2019☆⚑

Book Review: "Chopin and His World""A Kaleidoscopic View of His Works, His Life as a Polish Exile in Paris, and Even His Remarkable Hands by Ralph P. Locke

Chopin and His World establishes multiple new starting points for further studies of one of the world's greatest composers, yet it can be read with pleasure by people who merely(!) love the …

SOURCE: The Arts Fuse at 10:12am on January 2, 2019☆⚑

Classical Music Commentary: Best Opera and Vocal Recital Recordings, 2018 by Ralph P. Locke

A list of the most memorable opera and vocal recital recordings of the year.

SOURCE: The Arts Fuse at 11:04am on December 22, 2018☆⚑

Classical CD Review: Best Opera Recording of the Year " Or Is it Best Musical? by Ralph P. Locke

None of the opera recording I have reviewed this past year beats this Cradle for dramatic vitality, musical imagination, and ongoing political relevance.

SOURCE: The Arts Fuse at 2:48pm on December 11, 2018☆⚑

Classical Music Review: "Widma" " An Imaginative Polish Experiment by Ralph P. Locke

This recording challenges our settled sense of what art music, in conjunction with colorful spoken and sung verse, can accomplish.

SOURCE: The Arts Fuse at 9:32am on November 25, 2018☆⚑

Opera CD Review: A Magnificent 1841 French Grand Opera Comes Alive Again by Ralph P. Locke

Yes, the first-ever recording of a opera that is as wonderful as Berlioz and Wagner said it is.

SOURCE: The Arts Fuse at 9:36am on November 14, 2018☆⚑