The Queen of Spades - P. Tchaikovsky
Saturday, June 7th, 1pm
Tchaikovsky’s macabre thriller, set against the backdrop of Tsarist Russia, is back in the Met’s atmospheric staging. Soprano Sonya Yoncheva makes her highly anticipated role debut as Lisa, the young woman who embarks on a deadly love affair with the gambling-obsessed officer Hermann, sung by tenor Brandon Jovanovich. Baritone Igor Golovatenko reprises his moving portrayal of Lisa’s fiancé, Prince Yeletsky, alongside mezzo-soprano Violeta Urmana as the spectral Countess and baritone Alexey Markov as Count Tomsky. Keri-Lynn Wilson conducts the sweeping score.
La forza del destino / Giuseppe Verdi
Saturday, June 14th, 1pm
From La Scala in Milan, Italy. Anna Netrebko (Donna Leonora); Ludovic Tézier (Don Carlo di Vargas); Brian Jagde (Don Alvaro); Vasilisa Berzhansaya (Preziosilla); Alexander Vinogradov (Padre Guardiano); Marco Filippo Romano (Fra Melitone); Fabrizio Beggi (Marchese de Calatrave); Hunhong Li (Alcade); Carlo Bosi (Maestro Trabuco); Xhieldo Hyseni (Surgeon); La Scala Chorus and Orchestra; Riccardo Chailly, conductor. Approximate length: 3 hours, 20 minutes
Eugene Onegin / Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Saturday, June 21st, 1pm
From La Scala in Milan, Italy. Aida Garifullina (Tatiana); Alexey Markov (Onegin); Dmitry Korchak (Lensky); Elmina Hasan (Olga); Alisa Kolosova (Larina); Yulya Gertseva (Filippyevna); Dmitry Ulyanov (Prince Gremin); Yaroslav Abaimov (Triquet); Oleg Budaratskiy (Zaretski); Huanhong Li (Captain); La Scala Chorus and Orchestra; Timur Zangiev, conductor. Approximate length: 2 hours, 45 minutes
L’Orontea / Antonio Cesti
Saturday, June 28th, 1pm
From La Scala in Milan, Italy. Stéphanie d’Oustrac (Orontea); Mirco Palazzi (Creonte); Francesca Pia Vitale (Silandra); Hugh Cutting (Corindo); Luca Tittoto (Gelone); Sara Blanch (Tibrino); Marianna Pizzolato (Aristea); Carlo Vistoli (Alidoro); Maria Nazarova (Giacinta); La Scala Orchestra; Giovanni Antonini, conductor. Approximate length: 2 hours, 55 minutes
Concierto
Sundays, 2pm
Concierto is the first classical music program to specifically target Latino listeners. Host Frank Dominguez presents classical music in English and in Spanish. Music by Spanish and Latin American composers such as Enrique Granados and Astor Piazzolla is alternated with classical favorites performed by Hispanic artists such as conductor Gustavo Dudamel, pianist Gabriela Montero, guitarist Manuel Barrueco, and singer Placido Domingo. Through its bilingual presentation, Concierto provides an entry point for Latinos interested in learning more about classical music. It also appeals to Hispanics already familiar with classical music by celebrating the diversity of their culture and its contributions to classical music.
Britt Fest Juneteenth Celebration
Thursday, June 19th, 10am
We’re enjoying more performances from Summer Music Festivals this week on Played in Oregon, with works by ALL contemporary composers, from a Juneteenth celebration concert with the Britt Festival, and pianists Stephanie and Saar’s Makrokosmos Project. Works by Valerie Coleman, Adolphus Hailstork and more.
Let Freedom Ring: A Musical Celebration of Juneteenth with Lara Downes
Thursday, June 19th, 11am
On a day when America commemorates the emancipation of enslaved people in our country, Let Freedom Ring: A Musical Celebration of Juneteenth with Lara Downes will feature the music of Black composers from Florence Price to Bob Marley, and performers like Jessye Norman and the Kanneh-Mason family in an exploration of musical heritage and a celebration of freedom. In this one-hour special, Lara takes listeners on a unique journey through musical heritage and the celebration of freedom.
Modern Notebook Special: Juneteenth
Thursday, June 19th, Noon
This special edition of Modern Notebook with Tyler Kline features a mix of music for Juneteenth, including Shelley Washington’s “BLACK MARY,” inspired by the Black American historical figure Stagecoach Mary; music by Courtney Bryan including her “Secondline for Black Love;” Nia Imani Franklin’s re-imagining of Aphrodite as “Afro-Dite;” and Alice Coltrane’s “Prema.”
Plus works by Nathalie Joachim and Shawn E. Okpebholo inspired by historical moments in Black History; and the Piano Concerto No. 1 by Adolphus Hailstork, whose music draws on the composer’s experience as an African American and his own love of jazz and blues music.
Also featuring music by Anthony R. Green, Carlos Simon, Rhiannon Giddens, George Lewis, and Jessie Montgomery; and performances by Ensemble Pi, fivebyfive, harpist Ashley Jackson with The Harlem Chamber Players, PUBLIQuartet, saxophonist Jeffrey Leung, cellist Seth Parker Woods, pianist Stewart Goodyear with the Buffalo Philharmonic, baritone Will Liverman, and more.
UpFront Soul - Juneteenth Special
Thursday, June 19th, 8pm
We'll celebrate Juneteenth in style this week (we do celebrate Juneteenth every year on UpFront Soul) with music from Roberta Flack, The Nat Turner Rebellion, and Aretha Franklin, plus Gil Scott-Heron, Joan Armatrading, and Sweet Honey in the Rock, and we'll also hear powerful words from Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
- Sam Cooke "Havin' a Party" from Live at the Harlem Square Club 1963 on RCA
- Charles Earland "Message from a Black Man" from Living Black!
- The Winstons "Amen Brother"
- Anthony Joseph "The Gift" from The Rich Are Only Defeated When Running For Their Lives
- The Winstons "Color Him Father"
- Aretha Franklin "Amazing Grace" from Amazing Grace
- Ben Branch and The Operation Breadbasket Orchestra "Precious Lord Take My Hand" from The Last Request on Chess
- Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. "We Shall Overcome"
- 1968 Featuring Rasheed Ali "Black Power Revolution" from 1968: Soul Power
- Eddie Harris "Exodus" from Artist's Choice
- Curtis Mayfield "We The People Who Are Darker Than Blue" from Curtis
- The Voices Of East Harlem "Right On Be Free (Remastered Album Version)" from Right On Be Free
- Nancy Dupree "What Do I Have" from Ghetto Reality
- The Freedom Singers "Calypso Freedom" from Voices of the Civil Rights Movement Black American Freedom Songs 1960-1966 Disc 1
- Sweet Honey In the Rock "Ella's Song" from Breaths
- Joan Armatrading "The Messenger" from The Messenger
- Olodum Brazilian "Nkosi Sikilel I-Africa" on 1989
- South African Freedom Committee "Mandela"
- Hugh Masekela "Mandela Bring Him Home" from Hope
- Gil Scott-Heron "Johannesburg"
- Nat Turner Rebellion "Tribute to a Slave"
- Max Roach, Abbey Lincoln "Freedom Day" from 1960 - 2010: Candid 50th Anniversary
- Roberta Flack "Go Up Moses" from Quiet Fire
- Joan Armatrading "Back to the Night" from Back to the Night on A&M