Hrůša conducts a flawed Don Giovanni in Bamberg

By Mark Valencia, 04 December 2017

Loading, please wait...

See full listing

Reviewed at Konzerthalle Bamberg: Joseph Keilberth Saal, Bamberg on 1 December 2017

Mozart, Don Giovanni (konzertante Aufführung)

Jakub Hrůša, Conductor

Christian Gerhaher, Don Giovanni

Simona Šaturová, Donna Anna

Layla Claire, Donna Elvira

Sophie Karthäuser, Zerlina

Tareq Nazmi, Leporello

Martin Mitterrutzner, Don Ottavio

Božidar Smiljanić, Masetto

Goran Jurić, The Commendatore

Bamberg Symphony

Czech Philharmonic Choir of Brno

Petr Fiala, Choirmaster / chorus director

At half mast: Simon Boccanegra revived in Vienna

Orsolya Gyárfás, 19th April

Marco Armiliato's conducting thrills and Federica Lombardi's radiant Amelia stands out in the Wiener Staatsoper's latest revival of Simon Boccanegra.

***11

Anna Netrebko shines in Vienna’s timeless Tosca

Laura Servidei, 18th April

In a world where opera productions often stray into the abstract, the Wiener Staatsoper’s Tosca offers a refreshing return to tradition – and Anna Netrebko delivers a splendid performance.

****1

Weinberg’s The Passenger at Dutch National Opera

Clare Varney, 17th April

Tobias Kratzer's 2024 Munich production makes its way to Amsterdam, proving that Weinberg's opera has the power to transfix.

****1

Frauenliebe und -sterben: Kratzer’s triple bill at Staatsoper Hamburg

Mengguang Huang, 15th April

Director Tobias Kratzer engineers a haunting pasticcio of Schumann, Bartók and Zemlinsky, tracing the domestic sphere’s shift from romantic surrender to the blood-soaked secrets of a century-spanning house.

****1

Diamonds and steel: Anna Pirozzi rules in La Scala’s Turandot revival

Laura Servidei, 12th April

Visually enchanting and meticulously staged, this centenary revival confirms Livermore's production as a modern classic.

****1

Art imitates art in ETO’s bracing new Pagliacci

Dominic Lowe, 10th April

Divorced from Cavalleria rusticana, English Touring Opera’s contemporary take on Leoncavallo’s masterpiece ticks all the boxes.

****1

More reviews...

Mark Valencia

Mark has worked in arts journalism for four decades, both as a writer and as a French-English translator. Nowadays he focuses his energies on reviewing opera and music. Mark also writes for Opera magazine and for Musical America as a correspondent for Europe and the UK.