Mandle Cheung: Realizing the Dream to Conduct
Most classical-music lovers derive pleasure by attending performances of their favourite works. Some dream of making music themselves. They might learn to play an instrument…
Joseph So
From this author
Mandle Cheung: Drawn to Conducting
Most classical music lovers derive pleasure by attending performances of their favourite works. Some dream of making music instead of just sitting in the audience…
Review | Franco Fagioli Dazzles Toronto Summer Music With The Last Castrato
At the relatively young age of 44—still considered youthful for an opera singer—Franco Fagioli is decidedly on top of the countertenor world. Since winning the…
CD Review | Gerald Finley & Lise Davidsen, The Flying Dutchman
Wagner: Der fliegende Holländer Lise Davidsen, soprano; Gerald Finley, bass-baritone; Brindley Sherratt, bass; Stanislas de Barbeyrac and Eirik Grøtvedt, tenors; Anna Kissjudit, mezzo-soprano; Orchestra and…
CD Review | Freddie De Tommaso, Puccini, Decca
Puccini Freddie De Tommaso, tenor; London Philharmonic Orchestra; Edward Gardner, conductor Decca, 2024 At the improbably young age of 31, British-Italian tenor Freddie De Tommaso…
CD Review | Strauss: Ein Heldenleben; Mahler: Rückert Lieder
Strauss: Ein Heldenleben; Mahler: Rückert Lieder Sonya Yoncheva, soprano; Orchestre symphonique de Montréal; Rafael Payare, conductor Pentatone, 2024 Following their successful release last year on…
Concert Review | COC Ensemble Studio’s Don Pasquale: A Performance of Great Promise
The Canadian Opera Company’s (COC) Ensemble Studio is a major training ground for opera singers of the future.
Review | Mark Fewer Shines in Esprit Orchestra’s Richter and Ligeti Evening
To lovers of new music, Esprit Orchestra needs no introduction. Founded in 1983 by conductor Alex Pauk, the orchestra has been at the forefront of…
Concert Review | Igor Levit Gives Stunning Toronto Recital
There are many great pianists in this world, but there’s only one Igor Levit. Typical hyperbole in music journalism, you say? Levit’s recent Koerner Hall would suggest otherwise.
Book Review | Solomea: Star of Opera’s Golden Age (Courageous Heart Productions, 2023)
Given Solomea Krushelnytska’s exceptional career, it’s unfortunate that she is largely forgotten today. That is changing, thanks to a new biography written by Andriy Semotiuk, her grandnephew.
