The two days in Berlin yielded some finalists, as expected. Nevertheless it was a little disappointing. But this year we are in Frankfurt for the first time - on Monday and Tuesday coming up and a good many of the best will be auditioning there. Meanwhile in Gothenburg on Thursday there were a couple of terrific sopranos but unavoidably at theirs stage we have to wait to see what the soprano picture looks like by the time we have finished with Amsterdam and Frankfurt. And there should also be rich pickings in Munich and Vienna in June.
Today we have an excellent list in Amsterdam where we are hosted by the Dutch National Opera whose new director is Sophie de Lint who is also on our jury for the finals in Gütersloh in October. We are looking forward to seeing her, as well as Rosemary Joshua who is director of the Opera Studio at DNO, also Damià Carbonell Nicolau who is the new Head of Artistic affairs. This is a great team!
View from the Gothenburg Opera House!
In Gothenberg it was a treat to see a revival of Stephen Langridge's production of Le nozze di Figaro, with splendid designs by George Souglides. The standout in a largely Swedish cast was the Cherubino, the Norwegian Adrian Angelico. And Rory McDonald presided in the pit with the formidable combination of energy and precision.
Walking along Herengracht 8:30 pm Friday May 17 2019
Yesterday evening Ines Koring, Sophie Joyce and I, after a quick cocktail with Rosy Joshua, enjoyed a really excellent and relaxed dinner in the terrific Restaurant Harmsen. It is in Utrechtsestraat half a block from Herengracht, and you can buy unique boots from a store in the same block, as well as other stuff not available legally in London. But don't try to bring it home!
Now for a long day of auditions. It looks promising!
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