September 18, 2020
Lyric Family Favorites: January 22
On January 24, 1835, Vincenzo Bellini’s I puritani received its world premiere in Paris to a crowd that could not contain their excitement. Though it was the last opera he wrote, Bellini truly ended his career on a high note with this work. Packed with vocal fireworks from start to finish, I puritani requires masterful singing and superb style, which tenor Lawrence Brownlee certainly brought to Lyric’s 2018 production, brilliantly conducted by Enrique Mazzola, Lyric’s music director designate. As you listen to this excerpt of Brownlee as Arturo, relive the thrill of his Lyric triumph—and imagine the wild roars of appreciation when this aria was heard for the very first time in Paris over 185 years ago.
Lawrence Brownlee in Bellini's I puritani
Renée Fleming sings at Inauguration Day Mass
The beloved soprano performed “Ave Maria” and “America the Beautiful”
Lyric's Special Projects Advisor Renée Fleming has sung at the Super Bowl, on Broadway, on Oscar-winning movie soundtracks, and in countless opera performances internationally. On Wednesday, she added the distinct honor of performing at the Mass attended by President Joseph R. Biden Jr. and Vice President Kamala Harris, just hours before they were inaugurated.
Ryan Opera Center At Work: “Simple Child” performed by Katherine DeYoung
Katherine DeYoung sings “Simple Child”
The story of a dust bowl-era family in pain
In the latest release from Lyric’s Ryan Opera Center At Work series, first-year soprano Katherine DeYoung performs the heart wrenching aria “Simple Child,” from Ricky Ian Gordon and Michael Korie’s 2007 opera The Grapes of Wrath.
Week of January 25: Streaming opportunities
So many operas, so little time!
This week check out The Metropolitan Opera’s “Antiheroes Week,” watch Hearing in Color’s multimedia event Kababayan, see a new digital short from LA Opera, and more.