Paul Groves News

The Hallé Orchestra and conductor Sir Mark Elder's “magnificent” (Financial Times) new recording of Elgar's oratorio The Apostles, a retelling of Christ's Passion from the viewpoint of His followers, arrives at last in North America, following a cluster of superlative reviews in the UK. The Sunday Telegraph declares it a performance of “such insight, splendour and breadth of interpretive vision that one can't imagine it being surpassed” while Gramophone insists, “a set absolutely not to be missed.” The live performance, recorded in Manchester's Bridgewater Hall in 2012, appears on the orchestra's own Hallé label on 2 CDs, available now from Allegro Classical.

Mezzo-soprano El?na Garan?a makes her New York recital debut in Carnegie Hall's Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage with pianist Kevin Murphy on Saturday, April 6 at 7:00 p.m. The program features lieder by Robert Schumann, Alban Berg, and Richard Strauss, including Schumann's Frauenliebe und -leben and Berg's 'Sieben fruhe Lieder.' Complete program details are below.

Lyric Opera of Chicago and its general director, Anthony Freud, announced the lineup for Lyric's 2013-14 season today. Joseph Calleja, Joyce DiDonato, Nathan Gunn, Thomas Hampson, Ana Maria Martinez, Matthew Polenzani, and Patricia Racette are among those headlining the new season's offerings. These comprise 67 performances of eight different operas, beginning October 5, 2013 and concluding March 23, 2014: new productions of Parsifal, La traviata, The Barber of Seville, and Rusalka (Lyric premiere); a revival of Otello; and new-to-Chicago stagings of Madama Butterfly, Die Fledermaus, and La clemenza di Tito. Lyric's music director, Sir Andrew Davis, will lead three operas, and guest conductors Marco Armiliato, Bertrand de Billy and Michele Mariotti will make their house debuts. Additionally, Lyric will present a new production of Rodgers and Hammerstein's The Sound of Music in the spring of 2014, continuing the company's American Musical Theater Initiative, and Davis will conduct a special Subscriber Appreciation Concert in March featuring Lyric's creative consultant - the star soprano Renee Fleming - with tenor Jonas Kaufmann.

Lyric Opera of Chicago and its general director, Anthony Freud, announced the lineup for Lyric's 2013-14 season today. Joseph Calleja, Joyce DiDonato, Nathan Gunn, Thomas Hampson, Ana Maria Martinez, Matthew Polenzani, and Patricia Racette are among those headlining the new season's offerings. These comprise 67 performances of eight different operas, beginning October 5, 2013 and concluding March 23, 2014: new productions of Parsifal, La traviata, The Barber of Seville, and Rusalka (Lyric premiere); a revival of Otello; and new-to-Chicago stagings of Madama Butterfly, Die Fledermaus, and La clemenza di Tito. Lyric's music director, Sir Andrew Davis, will lead three operas, and guest conductors Marco Armiliato, Bertrand de Billy and Michele Mariotti will make their house debuts. Additionally, Lyric will present a new production of Rodgers and Hammerstein's The Sound of Music in the spring of 2014, continuing the company's American Musical Theater Initiative, and Davis will conduct a special Subscriber Appreciation Concert in March featuring Lyric's creative consultant - the star soprano Renee Fleming - with tenor Jonas Kaufmann.

The 65th annual Festival d'Aix-en-Provence, under the leadership of General Manager Bernard Foccroulle, will feature five opera productions, a selection of orchestral concerts, recitals, chamber music performances, world music programs, and more than 50 events from the 16th annual European Academy of Music. The Festival marks important milestones this year: Giuseppe Verdi and Richard Wagner's 200th birthday anniversaries; Benjamin Britten's centennial; the 50th anniversary of Francis Poulenc's death; and celebrates Marseille-Provence 2013, European Cultural Capital for the year. All events unfold in extraordinary venues, many of them open-air, in and around the picturesque ancient Provencal city: a Medieval archbishop's palace, an 18th century Italian-style theatre, a private courtyard hidden behind doors dating back to the time of Louis XV, and an 11th century Romanesque chapel inside the grounds of a Renaissance castle - as well as a state of the art, 1,350-seat theatre. The official portion of the Festival runs from July 4 to 27, 2013.

The 65th annual Festival d'Aix-en-Provence, under the leadership of General Manager Bernard Foccroulle, will feature five opera productions, a selection of orchestral concerts, recitals, chamber music performances, world music programs, and more than 50 events from the 16th annual European Academy of Music. The Festival marks important milestones this year: Giuseppe Verdi and Richard Wagner's 200th birthday anniversaries; Benjamin Britten's centennial; the 50th anniversary of Francis Poulenc's death; and celebrates Marseille-Provence 2013, European Cultural Capital for the year. All events unfold in extraordinary venues, many of them open-air, in and around the picturesque ancient Provencal city: a Medieval archbishop's palace, an 18th century Italian-style theatre, a private courtyard hidden behind doors dating back to the time of Louis XV, and an 11th century Romanesque chapel inside the grounds of a Renaissance castle - as well as a state of the art, 1,350-seat theatre. The official portion of the Festival runs from July 4 to 27, 2013.

LA Opera announces the 2013-2014 season, including Bizet's Carmen, Verdi's Falstaff, Mozart's The Magic Flute, Britten's Billy Budd, Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor, Massenet's Thaïs, L.A. premiere of Wilson/Glass collaboration Einstein on the Beach.

Orchestra of St. Luke's (OSL) announces the release of the seventh album on its record label St. Luke's Collection: a live recording of Schoenberg and Riehn's masterful chamber arrangement of Gustav Mahler's Das Lied von der Erde. The work was performed to great acclaim in September 2011 by St. Luke's Chamber Ensemble with conductor George Manahan, mezzo-soprano Jennifer Johnson Cano and tenor Paul Groves at Baryshnikov Arts Center (BAC).

Orchestra of St. Luke's (OSL) has just announced the release of the seventh album on its record label St. Luke's Collection: a live recording of Schoenberg and Riehn's masterful chamber arrangement of Gustav Mahler's Das Lied von der Erde. The work was performed to great acclaim in September 2011 by St. Luke's Chamber Ensemble with conductor George Manahan, mezzo-soprano Jennifer Johnson Cano and tenor Paul Groves at Baryshnikov Arts Center (BAC).

Two-time Tony Award-winner and prolific costume designer Martin Pakledinaz died at home this morning, July 8, 2012, after a long illness. He was 58. Pakledinaz has designed hundreds of theater, opera, dance and film pieces during his career spanning more than 30 years.

Fresh from her appearances in Lehar's The Merry Widow at the Opera National de Paris and Berlioz's La mort de Cleopatre with the Hong Kong Philharmonic, as well as a successful run of Australian recitals in Melbourne and Sydney, Susan Graham continues.

On February 16, 2012, Orchestra of St. Luke's (OSL) will welcome back its first music director, the visionary Sir Roger Norrington, in Haydn's Symphony No. 39 in G minor and Mozart's Symphony No. 39 in E-flat Major. Hailed by The New York Times as 'a pianist you want to hear no matter what he performs,' Jeremy Denk will make his OSL debut in Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 1 in C Major.

The Metropolitan Opera and The Juilliard School jointly announced plans today for a semi-staged concert performance of Gluck's Armide, the second collaboration between the two institutions, following last season's acclaimed new production of The Bartered Bride, conducted by James Levine and staged by Stephen Wadsworth.

The Opera Orchestra of New York will present its annual Vidda Award Recital featuring soprano Chiara Taigi at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall on Monday, December 12, 2011 at 8:00 p.m. Joined by Eve Queler at the piano, Ms. Taigi will present a program including works by Bellini, Cherubini, Mascagni, Puccini, Rachmaninoff and Tchaikovsky.

Tanglewood, one of the world's most beloved music festivals and the famed summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra located in the beautiful Berkshire Hills of western Massachusetts, celebrates its 75th anniversary season, June 22-September 2, with a spectacular lineup of musical guests and programs that spotlight Tanglewood's rich tradition of presenting summertime concerts at their best since 1937.

The Opera Orchestra of New York will present its annual Vidda Award Recital featuring soprano Chiara Taigi at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall on Monday, December 12, 2011 at 8:00 p.m. Joined by Eve Queler at the piano, Ms. Taigi will present a program including works by Bellini, Cherubini, Mascagni, Puccini, Rachmaninoff and Tchaikovsky.

To celebrate the 100th anniversary of the premiere of Gustav Mahler's monumental song-symphony Das Lied von der Erde, Orchestra of St. Luke's (OSL) and Baryshnikov Arts Center (BAC) will co-present Das Lied at 100: Mahler by Schoenberg-a performance of Schoenberg and Riehn's masterful chamber music arrangement of the work.

The Met's popular free Summer HD Festival returns for the third year beginning on Saturday, August 27 in Lincoln Center Plaza with Donizetti's Don Pasquale starring Anna Netrebko, conducted by Maestro James Levine.