On Wednesday it was UoT Opera’s turn in the RBA. Pretty much the whole graduate programme appeared in a series of duets, trios and larger ensemble numbers staged by Mabel Wonnacott. The theme was “love” (well it had to be that or “death”.. this is opera). It was a French and German programme so there was fairly mainstream stuff like the Antonia/Hoffmann duet from Les contes d’Hoffmann and “Hab mir’s gelobt” from Der Rosenkavalier but also rarer material like “Doute de la lumière” from Thomas’ Hamlet.
My review
Photo credit: Michael Cooper
Ajdad – Ancestors (Echoes of Persia) is a new CD from the Amir Amiri Ensemble. I had a chance to hear them play at Alliance Française on Friday night as well as listening to the CD which provided some extra perspective. It’s always interesting to watch musicians. Most of the music on the CD is composed by Amir Amiri with a couple of arrangements of other composers’ work. Amiri’s roots are in the classical Persian tradition but he goes well beyond that with quite strong Arabic influence as well as Turkish, Kurdish and Western classical elements. In a sense it’s a nod to what was once a more integrated musical culture that to some extent has been fractured by the political divisions of the last 100 years or so. 
operaramblings 