Margaret Kelley

Most opera lovers are familiar with Tatyana in Eugene Onegin and Lisa in The Queen of Spades, but Tchaikovsky also wrote some fabulous music for several other heroines.

Other than Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute), how many operas can you name that begin with the letter Z? Consult our Zagat-style guide to find out more.

Wagner’s Rienzi is an opera that hardly ever gets produced by major companies. On this edition of Opera in Brief, F. Paul Driscoll names its challenges.

So what if the plot is a little bit far fetched? In this edition of Opera in Brief, we explore three show-stopping moments from Verdi’s masterpiece.

In this edition of Opera in Brief, Driscoll explains the dynamic between the main characters in Carmen, and he identifies four memorable interpreters of the fiery gypsy.

Beethoven was never a man of the theater. He struggled to write his first opera against many odds. But Fidelio is worth hearing with fresh ears, writes Midge Woolsey.

Beethoven was never a man of the theater. He struggled to write his first opera against many odds. But Fidelio is worth hearing with fresh ears, writes Midge Woolsey.

Verdi's late opera is often described as an "autumnal comedy," reflecting a certain warmth and color that has the flavor of the composer's age and place in life. Find out why.

"I don’t think Verdi had much of a sense of humor," F. Paul Driscoll, editor in chief of Opera News tells us. Yet he went on to create one of opera's most important comedies.

Quick: name the three one-act operas included in Puccini’s Il Trittico. Give up? Now is your chance to learn with this, the first of a series of introductions to major operas, hosted by Midge Woolsey.

Quick: name the three one-act operas included in Puccini’s Il Trittico. Give up? Don’t worry, you’re not alone. No, we're not talking about Pagliacci – that’s by Leoncavallo. Cavalleria Rusticana isn’t one of them either – that’s by Mascagni.

The seventh annual Opera News Awards took place Sunday night at the Plaza Hotel. Host Midge Woolsey caught up with the winners.

F. Paul Driscoll, the editor in chief of Opera News magazine, gives us the inside scoop on this year's honorees. They are two sopranos, two baritones and a stage director.

Wednesday was a big day for Bach enthusiast Dale Henderson, it being J.S. Bach's 327th birthday as well as the second “Bach in the Subways Day." Watch a slideshow of the event as it played out.

Today at 4:30 pm, hear host Midge Woolsey's interview with baritone Thomas Hampson. He talks about his company role debut as Verdi's Macbeth at the Metropolitan Opera.

Russian Baritone Dmitri Hvorostovsky stopped by the WQXR studios to chat with host Naomi Lewin. Hvorostovsky is currently singing the role of Don Carlo in the Metropolitan Opera's production of Giuseppe Verdi's Ernani. 

A live broadcast of that production will air at 1 pm this Saturday, Feb. 25.

At 27, bass-baritone Shenyang is a powerful voice with an enormous classical music record collection.

Born in 1964, Maestro Long Yu has a lot on his plate. He is currently the artistic director and chief conductor of the China Philharmonic, music director of the Shanghai and Guanzho...

Born in 1953, violinist, composer and professor Chen Yi grew up during the cultural revolution in China, which left its mark on her family life and her music.  At age 13 she was sen...

Just shy of 31, Liang Wang is the youngest person to earn the principal oboist chair in the history of the New York Philharmonic. He studied at the Beijing Central Conservatory before moving to the U.S.