7 Comments
Apr 30, 2023Liked by Opera Daily

Thank you for the stories. It’s great learning something new every week

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As a footnote the NYCity Opera did the NY Premiere of a post World War II opera that included a post-apocalyptic Jazz infused Trio to end his opera (in near desolation) as a coda to Strauss. He committed suicide before it was done here.

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May 1, 2023Liked by Opera Daily

Listening to multiple performances of the exquisite "Hab mir's gelobt" was my visual and auditory "palate cleanser" this week. Whenever my hopes for America are overwhelmed by the divisiveness, violence, cruelty and hatred which seem to be running rampant in our homeland, I can now escape into the timeless beauty of "The Final Trio" in Act 3 of Richard Strauss's "Der Rosenkavalier".

These clips from "Der Rosenkavalier" also brought me joy - the waltzes (https://youtu.be/BzH1-xrH36I) and the "Suite" (https://youtu.be/p2LreBJ1JX0).

For a Wikipedia exploration of singers I previously knew nothing about, here are some links:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elisabeth_Schwarzkopf (German, Nazi ties)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Felicity_Lott (English)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anne_Sofie_von_Otter (Swedish)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbara_Bonney (American)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anna_Tomowa-Sintow (Bulgarian).

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May 2, 2023Liked by Opera Daily

You've given us a terrific lineup for this Final Trio from my favorite opera (a place it's assumed as I've grown older). I love that Rosenkavalier is intentionally modeled on The Marriage of Figaro. I love that both contain special ensembles, that both have arias for the leading female roles that are of significant import for the opera and its narrative and character development. Like you, I think this Final Trio some of the most sublime music composed for opera and I am very happy that I live in a modern connected world that has allowed me the opportunity to buy or download probably 75 recordings of this Final Trio! From the famous Lotte Lehmann live performance at the MET before World War II with RisΓ« Stevens and Marita Farell, to the great Karajan recording with Schwartzkopf, Ludwig, and Stitch-Randell, to modern recordings with Te Kanawa and Fleming and Tomowa-Sintow and Lott. Many hours of glorious music.

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