Die Zauberflöte (“The Magic Flute”) is, by any measure, one of the most popular, successful, and well-known operas ever written, delighting adults and children alike.  Yet experiencing Mozart’s The Magic Flute has left countless opera-goers reflecting contentedly on the sumptuous musical feast, but scratching their heads over the plot and characters.  With the help of conductor Ben Manis, Opera for Everyone takes a close look at both Mozart’s musical genius and a narrative journey into a fantastical and dreamlike world.  In this realm of magic and incarnate forces, we try to discover what can be understood, and what must simply be felt and experienced.

Hosted by Pat and Conductor Ben Manis

Of all the love stories ever told, none quite compare to the enduring power of Romeo and Juliet.

Over four centuries ago, English playwright William Shakespeare crafted a timeless story harnessing both the powers of profound love and deep hatred, and his tale of “star-crossed lovers” has become an inspiration to countless artists.  Two and a half centuries later, French composer Charles Gounod and his librettists took Shakespeare’s play as a starting point, and crafted it into an exquisitely beautiful and heart-rending opera.  Join us for an in-depth discussion of how this story plays out as a French grand opéra.

Hosted by Pat and Kathleen

For more cultural and arts commentary by Kathleen Van De Wille, visit Constructive Criticism on Substack.

“The face that launched a thousand ships.”

Helen of Troy, the most beautiful woman in the world, has a problem.  Her husband plans to kill her, but she just wants him to fall in love with her again.  She may just need a miracle to pull it off, but if anyone can do it, she can.  Richard Strauss and Hugo von Hofmannsthal aimed for a light and comic operetta with Die Ägyptische Helena, but delivered a profound and dramatic work of art about the road to repairing broken relationships.

Hosted by Pat, Kathleen, and Grant

For more cultural and arts commentary by Kathleen Van De Wille, visit Constructive Criticism on Substack.

This episode of Opera for Everyone features Luciano Pavarotti as Nemorino and Kathleen Battle as Adina in a 1990 Metropolitan Opera production of Gaetano Donizetti's L'Elisir D'Amore conducted by James Levine. This "Opera Buffa" - comedic opera - premiered in 1832 at Teatro Cannobiana, in Milan. The opera in two acts with a libretto by Felice Romani, is set in a small village in the Italian countryside. The story focuses on a romance between the beautiful young Adina, and Nemorino a shy and insecure man who works on her land. L'Elisir D'Amore is considered to represent the best of the bel canto tradition that reigned in Italian opera in the early 19th century The show-stopping tenor aria “Una furtiva lagrima” in Act II is a favorite aria for many opera lovers.

On this episode of Opera for Everyone we listen to the opera Tosca by Giacomo Puccini. Tosca is an opera in three acts with an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It premiered in 1900 in Rome, Italy at the Teatro Costanzi. The story is based on the French-language play "La Tosca" by Victorien Sardou. It's a melodrama set in Rome in June 1800, where Napoleon's invasion of Italy threatens the Kingdom of Naples' control of the city. The drama - based on real life events - focuses on an escaped political prisoner named Cesare Angelotti, his friend the famous painter Mario Cavaradossi, and Cavaradossi's lover, the beautiful, devout and talented singer Floria Tosca. Tosca is a passionate, dynamic opera fueled by deception, murder, suicide, and love, and it features some of Puccini's best-known and loved arias.

On this episode of Opera for Everyone we listen to the Opera Otello by Guiseppe Verdi, and also continue our conversation with dramatic baritone Lester Lynch, who plays Iago in this production. Otello is an opera in four acts to an Italian libretto by Arrigo Boito. The opera is based on Shakespeare's play Othello. It was Verdi's penultimate opera, and was first performed at the Teatro alla Scala, Milan in 1887. It follows the story of Otello, a moor commanding a military unit in Cyprus, his wife Desdemona, and several of his officers. Iago, an ensign, is jealous of his colleague Cassio who has been promoted to captain by Otello. Iago plots to make Otello suspicious that his wife is in love with Cassio and has been unfaithful. In the end, Otello kills Desdemona and then himself. Iago is unrepentant.

On this episode of Opera for Everyone, we welcome special guest Lester Lynch, who is a baritone opera singer performing with some of the world's leading operas. He discusses his album "On My Journey Now" a collection of spirituals and hymns, as well as his experience as an African-American vocalist and musician. This episode is in honor of the life, work and legacy of Martin Luther King Jr.

Mozart & Salieri is an opera in one act by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov set to a Russian libretto taken almost verbatim from a novella of the same name by Alexandr Pushkin. It's based on the oft-disputed legend that Salieri poisoned Mozart out of jealousy for his genius. The novel occurs in a single afternoon and evening with Mozart dropping by Salieri's apartment in Vienna to play his nearly-completed "Requiem." The two go together to an inn for dinner where Salieri poisons Mozart.

On today's episode we listen to Manon by Jules Massenet, an opera in five acts set to a French Libretto by Henri Meilhac and Philippe Gille. The story is based on the 1731 novel "L’histoire du chevalier des Grieux et de Manon Lescaut" by the Abbé Prévost. The story begins in 1721 with a party of friends including Guillot Morfontain making merry at an Inn. Manon, escorted by her cousin Lescaut, of the Guards, arrives on her way to a convent. She is of the peasantry, but vain as well as beautiful. Guillot leaves his friends, to pay attention to the young girl. He meets with no success, and is finally compelled to retreat. The Chevalier Des Grieux, however, who appears upon the scene during the temporary absence of the cousin Lescaut, is more successful. Although about to take holy orders and become a priest, Des Grieux is charmed and infatuated by Manon's beauty and seeming simplicity; while she, in her vanity, seeks for a higher social position, and is also fascinated by the young Chevalier's manliness. The result is an almost immediate elopement of the pair. Act 2 begins in the couples cozy apartment in Paris. Before Des Grieux can secure his father's consent to their marriage the young man is placed in jeopardy by Lescaut and De Brétigny. The two men are soon pacified; shortly afterwards Des Grieux is seized by six men in the Count's (his father's) employ, and all taken away from Manon. In Act 3 we find Manon under protection of De Brétigny. But she learns that Des Grieux (whom she really loves) is now the priest at St. Sulpice; and she flies from Brétigny to win back her lover. In the second scene there is an interesting and dramatic situation, wherein Manon succeeds in inducing Des Grieux to renounce the priesthood and renew his love with Manon. In the 4th act is seen the interior of the gambling-house in Paris. Des Grieux is unjustly accused of cheating, and he and Manon are about to be arrested where Count Des Grieux appears and release the Chevalier; but Manon, through the effort of Guillot who seeks revenge, is condemned to jail and eventual deportation to the French colony Louisana. In the last scene, as Manon is being marched away to the ship that will take her to Louisiana, Manon again meets her lover Des Grieux, and dies in his arms.

On today's episode of Opera for Everyone we listen to The Magic Flute, also known as Die Zauberflöte, by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. It's an opera in two acts, first performed in Vienna in 1791. In this opera the Queen of the Night persuades Prince Tamino to rescue her daughter Pamina from captivity in the Temple of Wisdom under the high priest Sarastro. Tamino is accompanied on his quest to the Temple of Wisdom by the earthy Papageno, a bird-catcher, who is also looking for true love. Together they learn the high ideals of Sarastro's community and seek to join it. Separately, then together, Tamino and Pamina undergo severe trials of initiation, which end in triumph, and with the Queen and her cohorts vanquished. Papageno fails the trials completely but is nevertheless rewarded with the hand of his ideal female companion, Papagena. Image courtesy of Texas A&M University- Commerce Marketing Communications Photography

If you’ve never experienced an opera by Antonio Salieri, now is your chance. You may have seen the movie Amadeus, or heard that Salieri was the Austrian court composer whose jealousy was whispered to have played a part in Mozart’s early death. And though that rumor is probably a fiction, who could blame him for being jealous of the wunderkind Mozart? A highly accomplished composer in his own right, Salieri was mentored by Gluck, and in turn taught such pupils as Franz Liszt, Franz Schubert, and Ludwig van Beethoven. Enjoy this tragic opera with us, based on the Greek mythological characters Danaus and Hypermnestra.

Ep. 16 I Puritani by Bellini broadcast 11.19.17 by Opera for Everyone

Mozart’s comic yet profound look at human nature and one crazy day in a wealthy Spanish household. The Marriage of Figaro, is an opera buffa (comic opera) in four acts composed in 1786 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, with an Italian libretto written by Lorenzo Da Ponte. The opera's libretto is based on a stage comedy by Pierre Beaumarchais, La folle journée, ou le Mariage de Figaro ("The Mad Day, or The Marriage of Figaro"), which was first performed in 1784. It tells how the servants Figaro and Susanna succeed in getting married, foiling the efforts of their philandering employer Count Almaviva to seduce Susanna and teaching him a lesson in fidelity. The opera is a cornerstone of the repertoire and appears consistently among the top ten in the Operabase list of most frequently performed operas.

One of the top ten most-performed operas in the world, Puccini’s Tosca is considered by some the greatest of operas.  A painter provides refuge for an escaped political prisoner, which begins a chain of events that starts with petty jealousy and ends in a death leap.  Things spiral further and further out of control in this epic confrontation of tyranny and passion, set in the tempestuous era of the Napoleonic Wars.  Join Pat and Greg for an in-depth discussion of the story and the power of this masterpiece.

In this episode of Opera for Everyone we listen to Norma, an opera in two acts by Vincenzo Bellini with libretto by Felice Romani after 'Norma, ou L'infanticide' by Alexandre Soumet. It was first produced at La Scala in Milan on 26 December 1831. The action takes place in ancient Gaul, under Roman occupation, where the Druid priestess Norma has fallen in love with a Roman official named Pollione and has secretly borne him two children. Norma is also the daughter of the Druids' leader, Oroveso. Norma's young acolyte Adalgisa asks to be released from her vows as - unbeknownst to anyone - she's fallen in love with Pollione. Norma agrees to release Adalgisa from her vows, but when Pollione arrives, the truth comes out. Norma realizes that he has betrayed her with Adalgisa, and Adalgisa learns that Pollione had pledged himself to Norma. Norma tells Adalgisa to take the children and go live with Pollione in Rome, but Adalgisa refuses vowing to convince Pollione to return to Norma. Adalgisa is unsuccessful, and as the Druids are assembled in the temple, an intruder is captured and is revealed to be Pollione. The punishment for any outsider entering the temple is instant death, and Norma is prepared to kill him with the sacred dagger. Suddenly, Norma calls for her people, announcing that Pollione won't be killed after all. Instead, there's a new victim, one who has betrayed her country. "I am the guilty one," she says and then calls for the sacrificial pyre to be prepared. In her final words to her father, Norma admits that she is the mother of Pollione's children and asks the shocked Oroveso to protect them. Meanwhile, Norma's bravery revives Pollione's love for her. He steps to her side, and the opera closes as the two walk into the flames together.

This episode of Opera for Everyone features Bizet's Les Pêcheurs de Perles - The Pearl Fishers - which debuted in Paris at the Théâtre Lyrique, on September 30, 1863. It's an opera in three acts with a French libretto by Eugène Cormon and Michel Carré. The opera is a story of how two men's vow of eternal friendship is threatened by their love for the same woman, whose own dilemma is the conflict between secular love and her sacred oath as a priestess. The friendship duet "Au fond du temple saint", generally known as "The Pearl Fishers Duet," is one of the best-known numbers in Western opera.

In this episode of Opera for Everyone we listen to Lakme, an opera in three acts by Léo Delibes to a French libretto by Edmond Gondinet and Philippe Gille. The score, written in 1881-2, was first performed on in 1883 by the Opéra-Comique in Paris. The story is set in British India in the mid-19th century, Lakmé is based on Théodore Pavie's story "Les babouches du Brahamane" and novel "Le Mariage de Loti" by Pierre Loti. The opera includes the popular Flower Duet (Sous le dôme épais) performed in Act 1 by Lakmé, the daughter of a Brahmin priest, and her servant Mallika. The name Lakmé is the French rendition of Sanskrit Lakshmi, the name of the Hindu Goddess of Wealth. The opera's most famous aria is the Bell Song (L'Air des clochettes) in Act 2. Like other French operas of the period, Lakmé captures the ambience of the Orient seen through Western eyes, which was periodically in vogue during the latter part of the 19th century and in line with other operatic works such as Bizet's The Pearl Fishers and Massenet's Le roi de Lahore.[3] The subject of the opera was suggested by Gondinet as a vehicle for the American soprano Marie van Zandt.

On this episode of Opera for Everyone we listen to Turandot, an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini, with an Italian libretto by Giuseppe Adami and Renato Simoni. The opera's version of the story is set in China, and involves Prince Calaf, who falls in love with the cold Princess Turandot. To obtain permission to marry her, a suitor has to solve three riddles; any wrong answer results in death. Calaf passes the test, but Turandot still refuses to marry him. He offers her a way out: if she is able to learn his name before dawn the next day, then at daybreak he will die. Prince Calaf's famous aria "Nessun Dorma" tells the story of Turandot's proclamation that "No one sleeps" so they can discover the name of the mysterious prince. In the end, Turandot doesn't discover his name, and he melts her heart and they are married. The opera was first performed in 1926, and although Puccini died in 1924 shortly before he finished the opera, it was completed by Franco Alfano.

On this episode of Opera for Everyone, we listen to Così Fan Tutte - an opera in two acts with music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and an Italian libretto by Lorenzo da Ponte. It is an "opera buffa" - comedic opera - and is one of the three Mozart operas for which da Ponte wrote the libretto. The other two da Ponte-Mozart collaborations were "Le nozze di Figaro" and "Don Giovanni." It debuted in 1790 in Vienna's Burgtheater. The opera's full name is "Così fan Tutte - ossia La Scuola degli Amanti" which translates to "Thus Do They All - or The School For Lovers." It refers to the storyline where two young men - Guglielmo and Ferrando - agree to a bet with their older and wiser friend Don Alfonso who wagers that women can cheat just the way men do. Don Alfonso plots to have the men tell their fiancees - Dorabella and Firodiligi - that they have been called away on military duty immediately, and begins a scheme to seduce the young women thereby proving his assertion that women will stray, allowing him to win the bet. The surly hotel maid, Despina, plays a key role in Don Alfonso's plot helping him to introduce the ladies to two young male foreigners besotted with the young sisters. The "foreigners" are actually the soldiers in disguise. The plot moves along with the men trying to seduce their own girlfriends, and luckily ends happily with the couples reunited with their true loves.

Don Giovanni is an opera in two acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. It debuted in Prague in 1787. Its based on the legend of Don Juan, a Spanish lothario who was obsessed with the conquest of women. The opera tells the story of Don Giovanni, his man-servant Leporello, Donna Elvira his scorned lover, Donna Anna and Don Ottavio - a young engaged couple, and the Commendatore - Donna Anna's father who is slain by Don Giovanni. Mozart's incredible score paired with a lively libretto by Lorenzo di Ponte make Don Giovanni one of the most performed operas in the world.

The opera Eugene Onegin is based on a beloved Russian lyric novel of the same name by Pushkin. Pushkin presents a vast overview of old Russian society around 1820, which Tchaikovsky’s original score neatly divides into each of its three acts: from the timeless rituals of country life to the rural gentry with its troubles and pleasures and, finally, the glittering imperial aristocracy of St. Petersburg. The opera tells the story of Tatyana, her sister Olga, and their loves Onegin and Lenski. The famous "Letter Scene," gives us an insight into the character when the intelligent and socially awkward young Tatyana pours out her heart to the cold Onegin in a tale of unrequited love. A spectacular birthday ball, a duel follow with a glittering, if conflicted end at a society ball in St. Petersburg where Onegin and Tatyana are reunited.

Carmen is an opera in four acts by French composer Georges Bizet. It is set in Seville, southern Spain, and tells the story of the downfall of Don José, a naïve soldier who is seduced by the wiles of the fiery gypsy Carmen. José abandons his childhood sweetheart and deserts from his military duties, yet loses Carmen's love to the glamorous torero Escamillo, after which José kills her in a jealous rage. The depictions of proletarian life, immorality, and lawlessness, and the tragic death of the main character on stage, broke new ground in French opera and were highly controversial. The libretto is based on a novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée. This show was recorded live in the KHOL Studio on September 3, 2017

Lohengrin is a Romantic opera in three acts composed and written by Richard Wagner, first performed in 1850. The story of the eponymous character is taken from medieval German romance, notably the Parzival of Wolfram von Eschenbach and its sequel, Lohengrin, written by a different author, itself inspired by the epic of Garin le Loherain. It is part of the Knight of the Swan tradition. This show was recorded at the KHOL Studios in the Center for the Arts in Jackson Hole, WY and was originally broadcast on July 30, 2017.

Tannhauser, by Richard Wagner, debuted in 1845 in Dresden Germany, and was subsequently revised twice - debuting in Paris 1861 and again in Vienna in 1875. The opera is based on two German legends; Tannhäuser, the legendary medieval German Minnesänger and poet, and the tale of the Wartburg Song Contest. The story focuses on the struggle between sacred and profane love, and redemption through love, a theme running through much of Wagner's mature work. (Source: Wikipedia) This show was recorded live on July 23, 2017 in the KHOL Studios at the Center for the Arts in Jackson Hole, WY.

Richard Wagner’s style is one of the most distinctive and recognizable in all of opera.  But Wagner wasn’t always the Wagner we’ve come to know. The earliest of Wagner’s operas to be performed in his lifetime was an adaptation of Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure,  Das Liebesverbot, where he is still developing his craft and working on his relationship to German opera.  The result is an opera which does not shy away from Italian styles. It even makes the villain of the piece the one German character among a multitude of Italians bumping up against the moral codes of their city, Palermo, Sicily!  Discover this infrequently performed opera with us, learning about how Wagner became Wagner… and experiencing a lively story of the conflict between personal morality and the enforcement of communal rules.

 Hosted by Pat and Kathleen

For more cultural and arts commentary by Kathleen Van De Wille, visit Constructive Criticism on Substack.

At once a sweeping story about humanity and a deeply personal look at a married couple with unfulfilled aspirations, Die Frau Ohne Schatten is often considered the magnum opus of the famed partnership between composer Richard Strauss and librettist Hugo von Hofmannsthal.  Moving between lofty, other-worldly, and gritty settings, this opera simultaneously puzzles and inspires audiences.  Being human, this opera tells us, is a messy business, but ultimately, the greatest pursuit and prize in all creation.

Hosted by Pat and Kathleen

For more cultural and arts commentary by Kathleen Van De Wille, visit Constructive Criticism on Substack.

One of history’s most infamous women, Lucrezia Borgia has inspired artists, dramatists, and TV show writers for centuries.  Donizetti’s opera follows the play by Victor Hugo, telling of Lucrezia’s effort to find the kind of love that might change her life.  However, it isn’t easy being a powerful woman in Renaissance Italy.  Gaetano Donizetti, a prolific composer in the Bel Canto style, gives us an opera with a fascinating story, and, of course, “beautiful singing.”

Hosted by Pat, Kathleen, and Grant

For more cultural and arts commentary by Kathleen Van De Wille, visit Constructive Criticism on Substack.

“Double, double toil and trouble.” 

Composer Giuseppi Verdi enthusiastically declared that Shakespeare’s Macbeth “is one of the greatest creations of man!”  Harnessing this passionate admiration, he went on to craft the first of his three completed operas based on Shakespeare plays.  Verdi’s Macbeth is full of powerful choral pieces, arias from a royal couple lurching toward self-destruction, and Verdi’s own personal vision of a people yearning to free themselves from despotic oppression.  In the end, Macbeth concludes that life is “a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing,” but to Verdi, the tyrant’s downfall brings soaring triumph to a suffering people, and perhaps something closer to self-determination.

Hosted by Pat & Kathleen Van De Wille

 For more cultural and arts commentary by Kathleen Van De Wille, visit Constructive Criticism on Substack.

One of the world’s most formidable generals and one of history’s most beguiling politicians are joined by two frustrated young men and an irresistible widow in Handel’s Baroque masterpiece, Giulio Cesare in Egitto.  Join Pat, Kathleen, and Grant for a journey through history, literature, and myth in exploring the influences and meaning of this enduring opera.

 

For more cultural and arts commentary by Kathleen Van De Wille, visit Constructive Criticism on Substack.

One of the world’s most beloved operas, Mozart’s  Le Nozze di Figaro, is not only the focus of this episode, but also the inspiration for Elly Uncomposed: A Novel Opera, a magical realist novel by author and retired opera singer, Valerie Niemerg.  Like the opera Figaro, some truly serious and important topics are addressed in Elly Uncomposed, but with a charmingly comical touch.

Join Valerie and Pat for a wide-ranging conversation about her delightful book, stories about her time in professional opera, and an exploration of Le Nozze di Figaro.

A people yearns for freedom.  The power of their prayers, set to Verdi’s incomparable music, have stirred audiences ever since the première of Nabucco in 1842.  The impact of this opera may relate to Verdi’s own struggle to overcome personal tragedies preceding the composition the music.  It also resonates with the passions of the Italian people of his day, and their desire to free themselves from foreign domination.  Drawing inspiration from scripture, Verdi and his librettist created an opera that tells a timeless story, and gave Italians one of their great anthems, Va pensiero.

Hosted by Pat and Grant

Handel’s beloved Messiah, known for its thrilling Hallelujah Chorus, is a long-standing favorite during the Christmas season.  Neither an opera, nor Christmas music, this English-language oratorio was composed for the Easter Season and premièred in Dublin in 1842.  The magnificent text was crafted from the King James Bible by Handel’s friend, Charles Jennens.  Join Pat and Grant for their newly remastered conversation about this enduring Baroque masterpiece.

 

An unscrupulous king pressures a woman to marry him.  She resists, knowing her heart belongs to the man who truly loves her, the chief general in the king’s army. Into this love-triangle, toss in a scheming underling of the king, a sympathetic maid of the woman, a devoted best friend of the general, and you have all the ingredients for a gripping story.  Enhance the whole tale with a magnificent score, and you have a delightful opera, and, in fact, the first fully successful opera by the most prolific composer of the Bel Canto style, Gaetano Donizetti.  Though Donizetti composed 70 operas, only a small number of those are regularly staged these days.  We invite you to meet Zoraida di Granata, and enjoy an early work from a beloved composer.

Hosted by Pat and Janet

Have you ever asked what might be going on backstage at an opera house?  Or wondered about what secrets hide behind those glittering stages?  Drawing on 21 years as a violinist in the Metropolitan Opera, Erica Miner guides her readers through a dramatized version of the opera world in her mystery novel, Aria for Murder, the first in the “Julia Kogan Opera Mystery” series. Join Pat for a conversation with Erica about her experiences in professional opera and the work of crafting them into thrilling works of fiction.

Find Erica at: ericaminer.com

Glittering and gloriously tuneful, Die Fledermaus (“The Bat”) is the most enduring operetta of Vienna’s famous “Waltz King,” Johann Strauss II.  Its plot features revenge, infidelity, disguised identities, and a glamorous ball at its center, given by a wealthy host who requires his guests to keep the party lively.  Toasting “King Champagne,” the characters of this “spirited” operetta recognize the royalty of sparkling wine: the beverage that motivates, infuriates, and ultimately exonerates them. 

 

Hosted by Pat and Rosie

(www.rosiebrooks.com)

 

Masks, both literal and figurative, abound in Verdi’s Un Ballo in Maschera, “A Masked Ball.”  Conspirators feign support of a leader they despise.  A noblewoman must veil both her face and her feelings from her husband.  The governor must put on a disguise to understand his subjects, and his beloved.  The governor’s chief councilor dons a mask to take murderous revenge on him for an imagined betrayal.  Even the setting itself, colonial Boston, is a thin disguise for the original setting, Sweden under Gustav III.

 

Hosted by Pat and guest co-host Michael Severance, long-serving bassoonist and contrabassoonist with the San Francisco Opera Orchestra.

A beloved king becomes reviled by his family and his people as previously hidden dark deeds come to light.  A young woman loses her innocence and freedom through the machinations of the lord of the underworld.  The timeless ancient Greek stories of King Oedipus and Persephone captured the imagination of Igor Stravinsky, a composer unafraid to present drama in new and unexpected formats.  Join Opera for Everyone as we explore the characters, and the powerful music of these two short operas.

Hosted by Pat and Kathleen Van De Wille

There is no secular story nearly so important to the Western tradition as the Odyssey, a timeless tale of heroism, achievement, and loss.  The subject matter of this epic poem has found its way into many works of art, and likely the earliest opera adaptation was Monteverdi’s Il Ritorno d’Ulisse in Patria, first performed in 1639 in the city of Venice.  Monteverdi’s opera tells one of the oldest remembered human stories through the new form of art of which he was one of the pioneers, the opera.  His reimaginings of Greek myth often fused Christian and pagan elements into a beautiful and complex melange, and this is no exception.  At once philosophical and lyrical, Il Ritorno d’Ulisse in Patria comes to us from a very different time from our own, but continues to thrill through its inventiveness and beauty.

Hosted by Pat and Grant

We all know that feeling when we want to marry one rebel leader, but our father wants us to marry the chief rebel leader, but then one day a wandering king disguised as a huntsman starts chatting us up on the moors. With this timeless and relatable set-up (based on a poem by Sir Walter Scott that is credited with starting the Scottish Romantic movement) Rossini crafts an opera that blends romance and political intrigue.  Featuring a druid chorus, a major character unceremoniously killed offstage, and an unexpectedly happy ending, La Donna del Lago (“The Lady of the Lake”) is a wonderful example not only of Rossini's beautiful music, but also of Sir Walter Scott's seldom-read masterpiece.

Hosted by Pat Wright and Kathleen van de Wille

For more of Kathleen's musings on the power and possibilities of story, read and subscribe to Constructive Criticism on Substack.  (Discussed at 1:44:01 on this podcast.)

Meet Maestro Joseph Rescigno–gentleman, author, and opera conductor extraordinaire.  The Maestro joins OFE for this wide-ranging discussion of the how, what, and why of conducting opera.  Drawing on material from his book, Conducting Opera: Where Theater Meets Music, and a lifetime of conducting opera around the world, Maestro Rescigno brings a unique perspective to the theory and practice of operatic composition and performance.  In the second half, we explore Richard Strauss’ unusual and fascinating Ariadne auf Naxos, which hybridizes myth and psychodrama, opera and commedia dell'arte. 

Hosted by Pat

Leos Janacek’s opera about a clever little fox living in the worlds of both animals and humans has many of the charming and amusing elements expected of traditional children’s stories.  However, don’t let this Cunning Little Vixen fool you.  Her story, and the story of the forester who pursues her, are richly layered with issues that may glide over the heads of young opera-goers while leaving the adults in the room pondering as they smile at the sly references.   

Hosted by Pat and Rosie Brooks

Beatrice and Benedick often steal the show in Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing with their sharp-tongued banter, and a romance that is as unlikely as it is inevitable.  Composer Hector Berlioz was captivated by these characters, and turned their story into an operatic romantic comedy in his final completed opera, Béatrice et Bénédict.  As the music soars and sparkles, join us for this “merry war!”

Hosted by Pat, and Kathleen Van De Wille

What does Salvador Dali have in common with opera?  Listen to this episode to find out!

This episode features special guests soprano Elizaveta Ulakhovich and baritone Perry Sook talking about their work and lives as an operatic couple.  Their newest project is a YouTube series that connects their love of opera and their exploration of the visual arts.  Join us for a unique episode featuring romance, creativity, and adventure.

Hosted by Pat and Grant

KHOL in Jackson WY is Opera for Everyone’s home radio station, and Wyoming’s only community radio station.  If you have ever wanted to support Opera for Everyone, please consider supporting KHOL at 891KHOL.org/donate.

June 15 marks the beginning of KHOL’s summer membership drive.

Thank you everyone!

All things must come to an end, but few approach endings with such grace as Marschallin Marie-Therese, the iconic character of Der Rosenkavalier.  At once epic and intimate in scope, Strauss’s masterwork resists characterization, at various points telling the story of the end of a romance, the end of adolescence, and the end of an empire.  Published on the eve of the First World War, this opera masterfully intertwines traditional and modern subjects to produce an epic story of nobility, violence, and the achievement of wisdom. Working together, Strauss and playwright-librettist Hugo von Hofmannsthal created one of the finest stories ever told.

Hosted by Pat and Grant

Riding high on the tide of their smash success, H.M.S. Pinafore, W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan enjoyed celebrity on both sides of the Atlantic.  While engaged in defending the integrity of their work against inferior pirated versions, they hastily completed and premiered a show about a group of inferior pirates.  Pirates of Penzance is almost certainly Gilbert and Sullivan’s most enduringly popular collaboration, giving us memorable tunes and characters such as the steadfast Mabel, the swashbuckling Pirate King, and the Very Model of a Modern Major General.  By turns hilarious, incisive, and thrilling, this masterful operetta is a joy to experience.

Furthermore, in keeping with the spirit of a Gilbert and Sullivan presentation, we have a one-act “opener,” Cox and Box.  This show, though comic and tuneful, pre-dates the famous partnership, and pairs Sullivan’s compositions with a libretto by F.C. Burnand.  It’s a charming farce, with a most unusual lullabye!

Hosted by Pat and Rosie

This extended version of our William Tell show includes everything from the regular length show, plus more history, more music, more explication, and more fun!

Imperial soldiers, determined rebels, a martyred elder, a plucky youth, a noble princess, a cruel oppressor… it’s not Star Wars; it’s Rossini’s final opera, William Tell!  First performed in the aftermath of the Napoleonic Era and inspired by much earlier legends of a medieval Swiss folk hero, this opera is a masterwork of everything we love about opera.  It tells a story that is at once personal, specific in time and place, and yet universal at its core.  Join host Pat, who, with the help of co-hosts Kathleen and Grant, takes a deep dive into this Bel Canto masterpiece which is both utterly Romantic, and yet completely clear-eyed about the struggle of freedom versus oppression and oppression, shaped by the all-important power of love.

Imperial soldiers, determined rebels, a martyred elder, a plucky youth, a noble princess, a cruel oppressor… it’s not Star Wars; it’s Rossini’s final opera, William Tell!  First performed in the aftermath of the Napoleonic Era and inspired by much earlier legends of a medieval Swiss folk hero, this opera is a masterwork of everything we love about opera.  It tells a story that is at once personal, specific in time and place, and yet universal at its core.  Join host Pat, who, with the help of co-hosts Kathleen and Grant, takes a deep dive into this Bel Canto masterpiece which is both utterly Romantic, and yet completely clear-eyed about the struggle of freedom versus oppression and oppression, shaped by the all-important power of love.

An adventurous Renaissance artist’s action-packed autobiography provided compelling inspiration for Hector Berlioz’s first completed opera, Benvenuto Cellini.  Berlioz strongly identified with the notorious Cellini, seeing in him a mirror of his own bravado, skill, and passion… and uses this identification to add to the story.  The result is a relentlessly entertaining opera that is by turns comic, poignant, farcical, political, and romantic.

Hosted by Pat and Kathleen Van De Wille

How do you get from The Opera to The Musical?  Any answer to that question would have to include the powerhouse Victorian English duo of Gilbert and Sullivan and their ground-breaking form of “light opera.”  Hilarious, cheerful, and energetic, they innovated both in opera and satirical comedy.  Not only were they beloved by theater-goers of the late nineteenth century, they remain popular to this day, influencing the creators of drama, film, and musical theater.

This episode of Opera For Everyone focuses on two of Gilbert and Sullivan’s earliest successes, Trial by Jury and H.M.S. Pinafore.  Join us for a close look at these two delightful shows.

Hosted by Pat and Rosie.