WWFM - The Sunday Opera (2025)

11/09/2025

We’re finishing our time at Paris’ Theatre des champs—Eylsees with their production of Richard Strauss’ gently romantic comedy of errors “Der Rosenkavalier” on this week’s Sunday Opera (9/14 3:00 p.m.). Veronique Gens heads the cast as the Marschallin whose loveless marriage has caused her to turn her affections to the young count Octavian (Niamh O’Sullivan) but eventually realizes that their affair cannot possibly last.

Octavian is chosen to be the silver rose bearer (hence the title) and to deliver the rose to Baron Ochs’ (Peter Rose) intended, the young Sophie (Regula Muhlemann). Ochs is the Marschallin’s boorish and impoverished cousin who is an insatiable womanizer and is only marrying Sophie for her father, Faninal’s (Jean-Sebastien Bou), money.

When Octavian arrives with the rose, he immediately falls in love with Sophie setting the scene for intrigues, deceptions, romances, and a bittersweet ending.

Included in the cast are Kresimier Spicer and Eteonore Pancrazi as the Italian troublemakers Valzacchi and Annina who originally try to sell their scandals to the Marschallin but eventually turn their intrigues on Ochs in a trap to release Sophie from their engagement. You’ll also hear from Francesco Demuro as the Italian Opera Singer and Laurene Paterno a Sophie’s duenna.

Henrik Nanasi conducts the Orchestra National de France and Maitrise des Hauts-de-Seine.

Stay tuned after the opera for more music by Richard Strauss as Host Michael Kownacky and two of Strauss’ tone poems. His first was MACBETH, Op. 23 which was initially written in 1885, but it wasn’t well received, and he worked on it through 1888 when he wrote our second tone poem, DON JUAN, Op. 20. The result was that Macbeth has a higher opus number which causes some confusion. MACBETH will be performed by Gerhard Markson leading the National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland and DON JUAN by Francois-Xavier Roth leading the SWR Symphony Orchestra, Baden-Baden and Freiburg.

03/09/2025

Unrequited love that leads to tragedy is the theme for this week's Sunday Opera (9/7 3:00 p.m.) in a production of Jules Massenet's "Werther" from Paris’ Theatre des Champs-Elysee.

The poet Werther (Benjamin Bernheim) falls in love with the charming Charlotte (Marina Viotti) during a Christmas ball they attend, but she is betrothed to Albert (Jean-Sebastien Bou) because of a promise she made to her mother on her mother's deathbed. When they return to Charlotte's house, Werther tries to declare his love for Charlotte but is interrupted by the news that Albert has returned, and Werther is despondent.

Over the course of a year, Werther writes of his love to Charlotte, but she is happily married, and once again, on Christmas Eve, she tells Werther that she cannot be with him, and he leaves, determined to commit su***de.

He does and learns a tragic irony as he dies.

The cast also includes Sandra Hamaoui, Marc Scoffoni, Yuri Kissin, Rodolphe Briand, Johanna Monty, Lee Bisset, and Guilhem Begnier. Marc Leroy-Calatayud conducting Les Siecles and members of the choral group Maitrise des Hauts-de-Seine.

Although many of Massenet’s operas are produced regularly, we don’t hear his oratorios nearly as often. To remedy this, we’ll turn to a work from 1880 entitled “La Vierge” (“The Virgin”). It follows the life of the Virgin Mary from the Annunciation to her death. Many see it as the third of his “heroic women” beginning in 1873 with Mary Magdalene and 1875 with Eve.

In this recording, you’ll hear Denia Mazzola Gavazzeni as The Virgin and Chiara Pieretti as the Archangel Gabriel. They’re joined by Amor Perez, Massimiliano Fichera, Camillo Facchine, and Elena Bakanova. Daniele Agiman leads the Orchestra Sinfonica As Harmonae and the Coro J.S. Bach di Milano.

28/08/2025

The Royal Opera House at Covent Garden is once again the home for this week’s Sunday Opera (8/31 3:00 p.m.) as we turn to the second of the operas in Richard Wagner’s Ring Cycle, “Die Walkure.”

The story unfolds after the mortal twins Siegmund (Stanislas de Barbeyrac) and Sieglinde (Natalya Romaniw), who were separated at birth and have no knowledge of each other but fall in love by an act of fate. Their incestuous union angers the gods, forcing Wotan (Christopher Maltman), the king of the gods and their father, to order his favorite Valkyrie daughter, Brünnhilde (Elisabet Strid), to ensure Siegmund's death in a fight with Hunding (Soloman Howard), Sieglinde’s husband. Brünnhilde, however, protects Siegmund, leading Wotan to punish her by putting her into a magic sleep on a rock surrounded by an impenetrable magic fire.

The rest of the cast includes Marina Prudenskaya as Fricka, the goddess of marriage and Wotan’s wife and the other eight Valkyries performed by Maida Hundeling, Katie Lowe, Lee Bisset, Claire Bernett-Jones, Catherine Carby, Alison Kettlewell, Monika-Evelin Liiv, and Rhonda Browne.

Sir Antonio Pappano conducts the Royal Opera House Orchestra.

21/08/2025

We’re back at Covent Garden for this week’s Sunday Opera (8/24 3:00 p.m.) and the Royal Opera House production of Puccini’s “Turandot” featuring Sondra Raadvanovsky in the titular role and Seokjong Baek as Calaf.

Since the opera is very much a part of the standard opera repertoire, the story is well-known. It centers around the rather high-strung princess of the title who believes an ancestor from a thousand years past, Lo-u-Ling, who was r***d and murdered by an invading prince, lives in her, and it is her duty to avenge her murder. As the opera opens, the thirteenth prince fails to answer Turandot’s three riddles and meets his death. Calaf, a deposed prince, sees Turandot and immediately falls in love with her. He then strikes the ceremonial gong three times to announce his desire to attempt to win Turandot.

This was the last work Puccini began, and he didn’t finish it. Some believe that he lost interest in it because he realized that the characters were ultimately unlikeable. He did, however, leave musical sketches regarding his thoughts on the ending, and several have been written over the years. Whatever the reason, Puccini’s contribution to the opera stops about halfway through the third act.

The case also includes Adam Palka as Timur, Calaf’s father and deposed king of Tartary. He is blind and is guided by the only servant to remain with him, Liu sung here by Gemma Summerfield, who is loyal because Calaf once smiled at her. The three court officials who act as a sort of Greek chorus, Ping, Pang, and Pong, are sung by Hansung Yoo, Aled Hall, and Michael Gibson. Rafael Payare conducts the Royal Opera House Chorus and Orchestra.

Pursuant to absolutely nothing, although I could say it’s another story about a man’s all encompassing love for a woman that eclipses everything else – I could say that, we’ll be following the opera with a ballet version of Emily Bronte’s “Wuthering Heights” which was written for the Northern Ballet by Claude-Michel Schonberg who penned the familiar musicals “Miss Saigon” and “Les Miserables.”

The story follows the doomed love of Heathcliff and Kathy and follows the popular film starring Merle Oberon and Laurence Olivier more closely than the novel and is quite enjoyable. It’s performed here by the Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra conducted by John Pryce-Jones.

14/08/2025

We’re staying at the Royal Opera House for this week’s Sunday Opera (8/17 3:00 p.m.) and a double bill of operas by Leonard Bernstein, his 1952 work “Trouble in Tahiti” and the sequel, “A Quiet Place,” written 31 years later in 1983. The story was initially based on the troubled relationship of Bernstein’s parents.

“Trouble in Tahiti” is a forty-five minute one-act that looks at the relationship of Dinah (Wallis Giunta) and Sam (Henry Neill). They try to be a perfect mid-century American couple, but neither feels fulfilled or truly loved. Sam buries himself in his work and handball while forgetting about the pass he made towards his secretary.

Dinah visits her analyst, whom Sam calls a fake, and while there, talks about a dream of a beautiful, imaginary garden she finds in a bleak landscape. Dreaming of the garden brings her solace.

The title refers to a film Dina sees at a matinee that she cannot stand, and ironically, after one last confrontation, Sam suggests they go to see the same film as a sort of truce.

The piece includes a trio that acts as a Greek chorus of sorts sung by Kristy McLean, Guy Elliott, and Peter Edge.

“A Quiet Place” takes up the family’s story some years later, after Dinah has died in a car accident. Sam (Grant Doyle) has been left to bring up Junior (Henry Neill) and a daughter, Dede (Rowan Pierce), in the family home. Junior had fallen in love with Francois (Elgan Thomas) who left Junior and married Dede.

Once again, the family is in turmoil, and that turmoil comes to a head in the garden after reading pages of Dinah’s diary where they seem to feel Dinah’s spirit and try to come together.

The “chorus” has been increased to quartet in “A Quite Place” including Kristy McLean, Guy Elliott, and Peter Edge from “Trouble in Tahiti,” and they’re joined by Heather Lowe.

Nicholas Chalmers conducts both pieces, and he leads Members of the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House.

We’ll fill our time together after the operas with more music of Bernstein. In 1976, Bernstein had the misfortune of agreeing to write a musical with Alan Jay Lerner whose book and lyrics were far from the quality of Bernstein’s music. The show was “1600 Pennsylvania Avenue” which was soundly trounced by critics and audiences alike. Bernstein was angry because he had to continually write music for the show, and that music was edited and compressed without his approval. When the show closed after seven performances, he refused to allow it to be recorded.

After his death in 1990, Bernstein’s estate agreed to a concert adaptation of the score to be adapted and performed. We’ll have the opportunity to hear that adaptation this week, so you’ll be able to hear some of Bernstein’s incredible music that would have otherwise been lost.

The story follows various presidents and first ladies and their time in the White House as well as the servants, Lud and Seena, who served them. The cast of this 2000 recording includes Thomas Hampson and June Anderson who play all of the presidents and first ladies. Barbara Hendricks as Seena, Kenneth Tarver as Lud, and Victor Acquah as Little Lud. Keel Watson and Neil Jenkins round out the cast.

They’re joined by the London Voices and the London Symphony Orchestra conducted by Kent Nagano.

07/08/2025

It’s our third and final look at a treatment of Prevost’s tragic tale of Manon on this week’s Sunday Opera (8/10 3:00 p.m.) with the opera by Giacomo Puccini from the Teatro Regio in Turin. This production features Erika Grimaldi as Manon, Roberto Aronica as des Grieux, Alessandro Luongo as Lescaut, and Carlo Lepore as Gernote.

Since this is the third edition, most will pretty much know the story of the wayward Manon. In Puccini’s version, she meets her tragic end in the desert (wilderness) of Louisiana after being transported to a penal colony in America.

Other members of the cast include Giuseppi Infantino as des Grieux’s friend Edmondo and Didier Pieri in the dual roles of Lamplighter and Dance Master. Renato Palumbo conducts the Teatro Regio Chorus and Orchestra.

We’ve got what we think is a wonderful musical treat following the opera. For some time, we’ve been hoping for enough time to bring you the score of a ballet with which we are particularly taken. We accidentally stumbled upon it one evening on an internet video site in a performance by the Bolshoi Ballet. It’s the score for “Cipollino,” a 1974 ballet by Karen Khachaturian, nephew to Aram.

The story is taken from an extremely popular children’s book by Gianni Rodari about the title character, a young onion, who fights against the political oppression of the egocentric Prince Lemon, rallies the other vegetables and fruit, and with the help of his friends Little Radish and Count Cherry, wins the day.

Besides the charming and rather topical story, Khachaturian’s music is a wonderful mixture of catchy marches and spirited up-tempo pieces. It’s just a joy, and we hope you’ll enjoy it as well. The recording to which we’ll be listening comes from that Bolshoi production with Alexander Kopylov conducting the Bolshoi Symphony.

02/08/2025

Our second look at the story of Manon Lescaut continues from the Teatro Regio on this week’s Sunday Opera (8/3 3:00 p.m.) with Massanet’s treatment of the story by Antoine Prevost. In this one, Manon doesn’t die in the wilderness or desert of Louisiana, she dies of exhaustion on the road to Le Havre to be deported.

Once again, Manon (Ekaterina Bakanova) is a naïve young girl who is on her way to the convent. She’s met by her cousin, Lescaut (Bjorn Burger) as she arrives at Amiens. She never travels further because she sees and immediately falls in love with de Grieux (Atalla Ayan), and when de Grieux writes to his father, the count (Roberto Scanduizzi), de Grieux enlists the help of de Bretigny (Allen Boxer) to abduct his son to make sure that the wedding won’t take place. Manon falls into the clutches of de Bretigny which is eventually the cause of her downfall, being deported as a woman of “Ill-fame.”

Joining them in this cast are Thomas Morris, Olivia Doray, Marie Kalinine, and Lilia Istrali. Evelino Pido leads the Teatro Regio Chorus and Orchestra.

We’ve scheduled more music of Massenet after the opera including his rarely heard Suite No. 1 (which is really his Suite No. 2) as well as another of his numbered suites the Suite No. 6: Scenes de feerie, both played by the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra conducted by Jean-Yves Ossonce. We’ll finish our time together with the ballet from another of his more famous operas, “Thais,” performed by the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields with Neville Marriner conducting.

25/07/2025

We have the first of three different Manons on this week’s Sunday Opera (7/27 3:00 p.m.) with Daniel Auber’s 1884 treatment of Abbe Prevost’s 1731 novel, “Manon Lescaut.” Auber’s work of the three we’ll be airing (the others by Massenet and Puccini) is probably the loosest adaptation of Prevost, but it still ends tragically for its titular character.

Manon (Rocio Perez) has just left the convent where she had been for most of her life. She immediately sees and falls in love with a poor student named des Grieux Sebastien Gueze), but the Marquis d'Herigny's (Armando Noguera) pursues her to make her one of his conquests. Manon is basically forced into the arms of d’Herigny when des Grieux wins a great deal of money which he is cheated out of by Lescaut (Francesco Salvadori), here he’s Manon’s cousin, not brother.

Lescaut eventually enlists in the army to avoid being arrested but strikes an officer as he’s trying to escape. Manon becomes d’Herigny’s mistress to secure his release, but des Grieux appears, there is a quarrel, and d’Henrigny is wounded.

Both des Grieux and Manon are arrested, and Manon is deported to Louisiana. des Grieux follows her, and with the help of friends from their Paris days, they escape, only for Manon to die in his arms in the desert.

They’re joined by Manuela Custer, Guillaume Andrieux, Lamia Beuque, and Paolo Battaglia along with the Teatro Regio Chorus and Orchestra conducted by Guillaume Tourniaire.

Stay tuned after “Manon Lescaut” for another Auber opera, the 36th of his 51 pieces entitled “La Sirene.” In this short, three-act work, the siren is not associated with water. Instead, she is a young mountain girl whose voice enthralls everyone who hears her which enables her to help her bandit brother and her lover escape from the arms of the military. It’s a bit of fun that’s filled with Auber’s lovely music and is probably not an opera with which you’ll be familiar.

17/07/2025

It’s the Opera Comique for the venue of this week’s work by Jean-Paul Rameau: “Les Fetes d’H**e” (“The Festivals of H**e or The Lyric Talents) on the Sunday Opera (7/20 3:00 p.m.). The performance features a cast of nine lead by Wiliam Christie and the Orchestra and Chorus of Les Arts Florissants.

True to most Baroque operas, the work consists of a prologue and three acts, and since this is Rameau, it’s one of his opera-ballets, filled with some of his lovely charming music.

The prologue opens on Mount Olympus where H**e (Emmanuelle de Negri) is being harassed by the unwanted attentions of Momus (the personification of satire and mockery) (Marc Mauilon) until Cupid (Ana Vieira Leite suggest a trip to the Seine to witness the festivities celebrating the arts which make up the next three acts dedicated to Poetry, Music, and Dance.

In the act dedicated to Poetry, Sapho (Lea Desandre) is in love with Alcee (Lisandro Abadie), but their love is being thwarted by Theleme (Antonin Rodepierre). However, after viewing an allegorical play, all ends happily.

The second act takes place in the courtyard of a temple where the daughter of King Lycurgus (Cyril Auvity) named Iphise (Desandre) is in love with the warrior/musician Tyrtaeus (Renato Dolcini). Iphise feels that all is lost when the oracle claims that she must marry the conqueror of the Messenians. Of course, Tyrtaeus does conquer them in a battle seen as a ballet.

Dace takes place in a grove and ornate garden. The shepherdess Egle (Desandre) is known for her dancing abilities, and she is due to choose a husband. Another shepherd named Eurias (Abadie) covets her and becomes enraged when she seems to fall in love with the disguised Mercury (Mauillon), and they overcome Eurias’ wrath for a happy ending with the help of Terpsichore.

There are happy endings all around, and we’re all for that!

After the opera, we’re going to change things up with a Mahler symphony since we have the time, and we’ve had two weeks of Baroque operas. This time it’s his fifth symphony in a performance of the Bamberg Symphony Orchestra combined with the Bavarian State Philharmonic conducted by Jonathan Nott. Although this is one of Mahler’s “middle” symphonies and not one that includes vocals, it does contain a movement that is considered to be a “love song” to his wife, Alma, as a poem he wrote for her scans perfectly. Tune in this Sunday to hear more!

12/07/2025

We’re turning to La Scala for another opera on this week’s Sunday Opera (7/13 3:00 p.m.), and this one is a forgotten one by a popular seventeenth century composer named Antonio Cesti. It’s the 1656 work entitled L’ORONTEA which features the trials of the title character who wants to marry for true love and not duty.

As is usual in most Baroque operas, there is a prologue where Love, who is perpetually cranky, has an argument. This time it’s with Philosophy regarding who has more power over mankind.

Orontea (Stephanie d’Oustrac) is an Egyptian princess who must marry. Her chief advisor Creonte (Mirco Palazzi) insists she marries for the good of the country. However, Orontea has fallen in love with Alidoro (Carlo Vistoli), a young artist who is a political refugee from Phoenicia. Alidoro is travelling with his presumed mother, Aristea (Marianna Pizzolato).

Enter Giacinta (Maria Nazirova) who is disguised as a young man named “Ismero.” When she explains that she had been sent to ambush Alidoro by the Queen of Phoenicia, Orontea must stop herself from killing Giacinta/Ismero. However, Giacinta/Ismero convinces her that she has repented, and in doing so, Aristea falls in love with “him.”

Things do work out for a happy ending when it is revealed that Alidoro is actually the heir to the King of Phoenicia as evidenced by the royal medallion he carries. Aristea is actually the wife of one of the pirates that had abducted Alindoro in his infancy and has raised him as her son. In actuality, he is Floridano and, as a royal, can marry Orontea.

In this performance we’ll hear the La Scala Orchestra conducted by Giovanni Antonini.

Following the opera, more musica of Cesti has been programmed and includes another forgotten work which was written around 1667 for Holy Week celebrations. It’s an interesting treatment surrounding the death of Christ entitled Natura et qutuor elementa dolentia ad Sepulchrum Christi (Nature and the Four Elements Mourn at the Sepulchre of Christ) where Mother Nature and her four “daughters” (earth, air, water, fire) come together to lament the death of Christ. The performers include Alexander Schneider as Mother Nature, Johannes Gaubitz as earth, Joowon Chung as water, Magdalene Harer as air, and Matthias Lutze as fire. They’re joined by the Ensemble Polyharmonique Teatro del Mondo directed by Andres Kuppers.

04/07/2025

We’re returning to La Scala for this week’s Sunday Opera (7/6 3:00 p.m.) and Pytor Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s “Eugene Onegin.” The libretto, based on a verse-novel by Alexander Pushkin about a jaded, cynical, and selfish Onegin whose actions disrupt the lives of just about everyone around him.

Onegin (Alexey Markov) arrives at the Larin home with his friend Lensky (Dmitry Korchak) who is fianced to one of the two Larin sisters, Olga (Elmina Hasan). Onegin can’t imagine why Lensky would favor the outgoing sister when her older and more reserved sister, Tatiana (Aida Garifullina), seems a much better prospect. Tatiana is taken with Onegin, but he rejects her and flirts with Olga in order to upset Lensky, which he does resulting in their dueling. After Onegin kills Lensky, he disappears after destroying Olga’s happiness and breaking Tatiana’s heart.

Several years later, the still self-absorbed and blasé Onegin attends a party at the home of Prince Gremin (Dmitry Ulyanov) only to be surprised that the prince’s wife is Tatiana. Onegin now realizes that he truly loves Tatiana, but Tatiana wants no part of him and rejects him, leaving Onegin to his much deserved despair.

Other members of the cast include Alisa Kolosova, Yulya Gertseva, Oleg Budaratskiy, and Yaroslav Abaimov. Timur Zangiev conducts the La Scala Chorus and Orchestra.

Stay tuned after the opera for more music of Tchaikovsky including his longest program piece, the Manfred Symphony and an arrangement of his Variations on a Rococo Theme for Cello and Wind Quintet.

28/06/2025

It might be difficult for you to get to Milan right now, but this week’s Sunday Opera (6-29 3:00 p.m.) is going to be going there for the beginning of a series of operas from La Scala. We’re beginning with Giuseppe Verdi’s “La forza del destino” (“The Force of Destiny”) in a production starring Anna Netrebko, Ludovic Tezier, and Brian Jagde.

Don Alvaro (Brian Jadge) is a newcomer to Seville, probably from South America. He has fallen in love with Leonora (Anna Netrebko), the daughter of the Marquis of Calatrava (Fabrizio Beggi) who has forbidden the match. The lovers plan to elope, but Leonora hesitates at the last minute, and they are caught by her father who challenges Alvaro. To try to prove Leonora is pure, Alvaro throws down his gun which accidentally discharges, killing the Marquis. This accident sets the wheels of fate in motion.

Through the remaining three acts, Leonora’s brother, Don Carlo (Ludovic Tezier), seeks revenge, and fate deems that he and a disguised Alvaro end up serving together in the Spanish army. Eventually, Carlo and Alvaro have their sword fight which ends outside of the cave where Leonora has been living her ascetic life (as one does). Carlo is mortally wounded, and Alvaro runs off to get a surgeon. Meanwhile, Leonora leaves her cave, recognizes Carlo, and bends down to him to try to embrace her dying brother. However, he stabs her in the heart as he dies, and Leonora pleads with Alvaro to stop blaming God and cursing fate which he does as she dies.

No one is really happy in this opera.

They are joined by Vasiliisa Berzhansaya as Preziosilla, Alexander Vinogradov as Padre Guardiano, Marco Filippo Roman as Fra Mlitone, Hunhong Li as Alcade, Carlo Bosi as Trabuco, and Zhieldo Hyseni as the surgeon. Riccardo Chailly leads the La Scala Orchestra and Chorus.

Stay with us after the opera for more music of Verdi including his String Quartet in E Minor performed by the Enso Quartet and the Ballet from his opera “Jersalem” which was the French language version of “I Lombardi alla prima crociata.”

WWFM - The Sunday Opera