Opera on WRTI

Join us to hear a very special 1946 recording of Giuseppe Verdi's LA TRAVIATA conducted by the legendary conductor Arturo Toscanini. Pledge at the $365 level on September 29th and we'll thank you with Arturo Toscanini: The Complete RCA Collection, with 84 CDs and 1 DVD. Of course the set includes this 1946 recording! Saturday, September 29th at 1 pm.

Renée Fleming sings the title role of this melodically rich bel canto masterpiece. A femme fatale, renowned for her ruthless pursuit of power, reveals poignant vulnerability when she comes face to face with her long-lost son. Saturday, September 22, 1 to 3:15 pm

It may have been Faust who sold his soul to the devil, but the innocent Marguerite takes the fall in this classic story that dates back to the 1400s; the opera premiered in Paris in 1859. Patricia Racette, Stefano Secco, and John Relyea star in this 2010 production conducted by Maurizio Benini. Saturday, September 15th, 1 to 4 pm.

Synopsis

Rick Rescorla was a British-born adventurer who fought in Vietnam before settling in NY as head of security for Morgan Stanley in the World Trade Center. On September 11, 2001, his extraordinary courage and calmness in a crisis paid off: Rescorla led all of the 2,700 people under his care to safety—literally singing them down the stairs—before heading back into the burning building for one last check. He never emerged.

Who is Carmen? She's thrilling and dangerous, captivating and capricious, and one of the most vivid characters in all of opera. The bold femme fatale is sung by soprano Anita Rachvelishvili who “brought an ample, earthy voice and sensual lyricism to her performance, winning a hearty ovation” (The New York Times). Tenor Thiago Arancam sings Don José, the man who unwisely falls under Carmen's spell. Niccola Luisotti conducts. Saturday, September 1st, 1 to 4:30 pm.

No man is safe from his schemes. No woman is safe from his advances. That's the proud, predatory nobleman at the heart of Mozart's Don Giovanni, considered by many to be one of the greatest operas ever written. Deftly balancing comedy and tragedy with unforgettable music, Don Giovanni has an Italian libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte, and premiered at the Estates Theatre in Prague in 1787.

Puccini’s final masterpiece opens the San Francisco Opera radio season on WRTI under the baton of Music Director Nicola Luisotti. This passionate tale of a princess, whose cruelty masks her fear of love, features some of the composer’s most glorious music, including the stirring anthem “Nessun dorma.” Performed by an outstanding cast, led by Swedish soprano Iréne Theorin, “the world’s reigning Turandot” (Opera Britannia), Leah Crocetto, and Marco Berti, Turandot is melodically rich and colorfully orchestrated. Join us on Saturday, August 18th, 1 to 4:15 pm.

Academy of Vocal Arts alums, and husband and wife in real life, Ailyn Perez and Stephen Costello star as Mimi and Rodolfo in Puccini's tragic, ultra-romantic opera about struggling young artists and the risks of living life on the edge in Paris around 1830.

Benjamin Britten's comedy Albert Herring takes place in the English countryside where meek mama’s boy Albert (tenor Alek Shrader) reluctantly becomes his village’s first May King when no maidens of sufficient virtue can be found. Soprano Christine Brewer stars as the formidable Lady Billows. Saturday, August 4th, 1 to 4:15 pm

Plácido Domingo sings the title role in Giuseppe Verdi’s Simon Boccanegra, a grand-scale study of power and treachery that finds an emotional center in the tender bond between father and daughter. Join us on Saturday, July 28th, 1 to 4:15 pm.

CAST:
Simon Boccanegra: Placido Domingo
Amelia: Ana Maria Martinez
Jacopo Fiesco: Vitalij Kowaljow
Gabriele Adorno: Stefano Secco
Paolo Albiani: Paolo Gavanelli
Pietro: Robert Pomakov
CONDUCTOR:  James Conlon
LA OPERA ORCHESTRA & CHORUS