Performer: Hibla Gerzmava

For whatever reason Fabio Luisi chose Verdi's Requiem for his inauguration concert with the NHK Symphony Orchestra, Tokyo, it turned out to be an apt and poignant choice.

Tragic love, deceit, retribution... and Plácido Domingo. Despite its darkness, the Wiener Staatsoper's revival of Simon Boccanegra makes for an enjoyable evening. 

Musically, a rewarding Forza, but Homoki's staging is best forgotten.

An icy female ruler, three chaotic cabinet ministers, questionable hand-holding - it could only be Puccini's last opera in a revivial of Serban's gorgeous 1984 production.

Simon Keenlyside returned to the Met after absence and led a delightful cast of Don Giovanni at the Met.

Little mark of Shakespeare's drama or Verdi's passion behind Bartlett Sher's exsanguinated, highly-stylized Otello for The Metropolitan Opera.