Having already lost tenor Rolando Villazón to throat surgery, the new staging of The Tales of Hoffmann by director Bartlett Sher (South Pacific) has now lost superstar bass René Pape, who was to sing the four villains. Alan Held will step in, while rising tenor Joseph Calleja will take over the title role from Villazón. Anna Netrebko and Elina Garanca remain on board. (So far.)
Tag: 06.17.09
Soprano Ekaterina Shcherbachenko Wins BBC Cardiff Singer Of The World
“It’s 20 years since baritone Dmitri Hvorostovsky won the Cardiff Singer of the World title. No Russian has repeated that success until now.” Six-foot-8-inch bass Jan Martiník took the Song Prize, and 21-year-old bass Giordano Lucà received the Audience Prize.
A £6 Tax To Pay For British Broadband
“A charge of 50p per month is to be levied on all landline telephone bills to subsidise the Government’s plan to bring broadband internet access, and faster download speeds, to every home [urban and rural] in the country by 2012.”