FEATURE | Maria Callas In Toronto – A Night On The Town

By Neil Crory on October 15, 2014

"Maria Callas Is Coming!" trumpeted one newspaper headline a few days before the Greek-American soprano was to make her highly anticipated Toronto debut on October 21, 1958. Vocally, the diva was at the peak of her game and the height of her celebrity, so it is perhaps not surprising that an estimated 5,000 to 6,000 opera fans gathered to hear her perform in the cavernous Maple Leaf Gardens - home not only to the Maple Leafs, but also to New York's Metropolitan Opera on tour. So dense were the crowds of fans, the Toronto Daily Star reported, that when she appeared, police had to drive a path through the cheering throngs...

THE VOICE | The Proof in the Pudding is Puccini

By Neil Crory on October 14, 2014

SCHMOPERA | On Pianists, Those Vicarious Opera Singers

By Jenna Douglas on October 9, 2014

THE VOICE | Brush up your Verdi…

By Neil Crory on October 6, 2014

SCHMOPERA | Opera, The Inside Job

By Jenna Douglas on October 1, 2014

CD Review | Wagner: Die Walküre

By Paul E. Robinson on September 23, 2014

Sir Georg Solti was the conductor for the first-ever complete recording of Wagner’s Ring cycle. It was an historic event and Decca Records and producer John Culshaw deserve enormous credit for undertaking the enormous risk involved. Against all odds – EMI producer Walter Legge thought it would be a disaster - the cycle was spectacularly successful. With most of the leading Wagner singers of the day taking part the performance was glorious, and John Culshaw and his team of engineers created a sound world that was far ahead of its time.

CRITIC’S PICKS | 10 Musical Outings You Absolutely Must Do This Week

By Michael Vincent on September 15, 2014

#leanarts Tackles Performing Arts Ills with Startup Methods

By Margaret Lam on September 14, 2014

THE SCOOP | Ottawa Opera company fires American singer over Facebook posts

By Michael Vincent on August 31, 2014

PROFILE | Andrew Ager On His New Opera About the Final Days In Adolf Hitler’s Führerbunker

By Michael Vincent on August 28, 2014