Episode 394. Valletti Revisited (French Edition) SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM More than two years and nearly two hundred episodes ago,…
Episode 389. Rescue Mission (Operatic Duets Edition) SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM I have spent the past week planning forthcoming episodes…
Episode 388. Sopranos en détresse, Part Deux SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM A few months ago I published the first of…
Episode 387. Zauberwelt der Oper (Black Diva Edition) SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM I’m on holiday this week, but it would…
Episode 386. David Rendall in Memoriam SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM On 21 July, the opera world lost one of its…
Episode 383. Get to Know Carol Smith SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM If the exceptional Illinois-born contralto Carol Smith (20 February…
Episode 379. Stuart Burrows in Duet SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM So many great singing artists lost to the world of…
Episode 378. Rescue Mission III (Friends Edition) SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Even after I publish a Countermelody episode on a…
Episode 373. Carol Neblett: Girl of the Golden West SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Today is the day that the United…
Episode 367. Bernac Sings Not-Poulenc SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Continuing our exploration of queer pride in classical music, I bring…
Episode 366. Donald Gramm Revisited SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM I’m going all out (literally) for this year’s Pride celebrations, especially…
Episode 364. Grace Bumbry, Proud Soprano (Live Edition) SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM It’s Pride Month, and what better time to…
Episode 358. Elisabeth Söderström Revisited SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM There are very few singers that mean more to me than…
Episode 357. Faust auf Deutsch SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Today I offer three different recordings of excerpts, sung in German,…
Episode 356. Get to Know Irina Arkhipova SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Directly after the disastrous November election in the United…
Episode 354. Get to Know April Cantelo SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Only recently have I become fully aware of the…
Episode 353. Canteloube Originals SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM The composer Joseph-Marie Canteloube is primarily known for his lush orchestral arrangements…
Episode 350. Young Singers I Admire SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Today we celebrate 350 episodes of Countermelody since the inception…
Episode 344. Mady Mesplé Revisited SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM This past March 7 would have been the 94th birthday of…
Episode 343. Over-the-Top Sopranos, French Edition SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM As a follow-up to my Mezzos on the Verge series,…
Episode 341. Robert Massard Revisited SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM A year and a half ago, I posted an episode on…
Episode 330. Martina Arroyo in Duet SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM What better way to start off this Black History Month…
Episode 328. Mezzos in Extremis SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Right after the disastrous US election of November 2024, I published…
Episode 315. Gilda Cruz-Romo SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM While I was growing up, Gilda Cruz-Romo was a fixture on the…
Episode 314. Yi-Kwei Sze Revisited SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM One of the great personal revelations for me in the early…
Episode 309. Get to Know Věra Soukupová SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM As a supplement to my ongoing series on great…
Episode 308. Mezzos on the Verge SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM I am taking a short break before posting the final…
Episode 306. Oralia Domínguez Revisited SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Today (for what I hope are obvious reasons) begins a short…
Episode 295. Requiescat SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Today on Countermelody is the first of two memorial episodes paying tribute to…
Episode 288. Teresa Żylis-Gara Revisited SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Today I revisit the life, career, and sumptuous voice of the…
Episode 287. Meet Hugo Hasslo SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Unless by some miracle you know him already, the Swedish baritone…
Episode 285. Edda Moser Reappraised SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Lately I have been doing a series of episodes on artists…
Episode 281. La Scottissima SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM I began work on this episode on the one-year anniversary of the…
Episode 280. Heather Harper Revisited SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM The beloved Irish soprano Heather Harper died at the age of…
Episode 279. Ernst Kozub Reappraised SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Have you heard of the remarkable German Heldentenor Ernst Kozub? If…
Episode 278. George Shirley Revisited SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM This August I shall be supplementing each new episode published with…
Episode 275. Margaret Tynes (Listeners’ Favorites) SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM On March 7, 2024, the legendary African American soprano Margaret…
Episode 270. Eleanor Steber Revisited SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM I sat in my apartment in Berlin on the Fourth of…
Episode 265. Meet Hana Janků SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Have you ever encountered a singer that no one has apparently…
Episode 264. Rescue Mission (Forgotten Divas Edition) SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM During Black History Month this year I featured a…
Episode 263. Contralto Central SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Finally, the first in my long-promised series on the contralto voice! The…
Episode 262. Sylvia Sass Revisited SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Several summers ago I published my first episode celebrating the artistry…
Episode 261. Thom Baker Introduces Rosanna Carteri (Listeners’ Favorites) SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Today’s episode is one of my Listeners’…
Episode 259. Lawrence Winters Revisited SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM During the first season of Countermelody I presented the great African…
Episode 257. The Marvelous Marvis Martin SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM I have been juggling a number of brand new episode…
Episode 253. Randall Scarlata Introduces Gérard Souzay SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM The French baritone Gérard Souzay was born Gérard Tisserand on 8…
Episode 247. Sarah Pillow Introduces Eileen Farrell SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM The American dramatic soprano Eileen Farrell (1920–2002) was one…
Episode 246. Previn Moore Introduces Camilla Williams & Janet Williams (BHM 2024) SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM As the final entry…
Episode 244. Veronica Tyler (BHM 2024) SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM This Countermelody episode is the last in my miniseries featuring…
Episode 242. Damon Evans Introduces George Shirley (BHM 2024) SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM This week I present a Countermelody mini-series…
Episode 239. Gwendolyn Killebrew (BHM 2024) SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM This week’s “Forgotten Diva” is the mezzo-soprano / contralto Gwendolyn…
Episode 235. Anna Tonna Introduces Teresa Berganza (Listeners’ Favorites VI) SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Today’s Listeners’ Favorites episode of Countermelody is…
Episode 232. Janet Williams and Paul Padillo Introduce Maria Ewing (Listeners’ Favorites III) SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM January 9 is…
Episode 222. Shirley Verrett, Falcon Sfogatissima SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM It is hard to believe that it’s already been 13…
Episode 221. Robert Massard SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM This is an episode I have been planning for years now! This…
Episode 213. Julia Varady SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM A week ago the extraordinary Hungarian-German soprano Julia Varady turned 82. As…
Episode 212. Ian Partridge SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Ian Partridge, the quintessential English lyric tenor, celebrated his 85th birthday in…
Episode 211. Janet Baker @ 90 SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM This past week the opera world was plunged into mourning…
Episode 210. The Mystery of Anita Cerquetti SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Anita Cerquetti (13 April 1931 – 11 October 2014),…
Episode 206. Jerry Hadley SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Jerry Hadley (16 June 1952 – 18 July 2007) is regarded by…
Episode 198. Cesare Valletti SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Today’s episode celebrates the Italian tenore di grazia Cesare Valletti (18 December…
Episode 186. Roberta Alexander in Opera SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Today it is with the utmost excitement that I bring…
Episode 184. Eugene Holmes SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Eugene Holmes (1932 – 2007), baritone supreme, should be remembered as one…
Episode 183. Martina Arroyo SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Last week on Feburary 2, the beloved African American soprano Martina Arroyo…
Episode 182. Dorothy Maynor SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM I lead off my new episodes for Black History Month 2023 with…
Episode 180. Anna Moffo Reappraised SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM The Italian-American lyric coloratura soprano Anna Moffo (1932-2006) is, for many,…
Episode 177. Great Singers at Twilight SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM For the last episode of 2022, I begin a series…
Episode 176. Helen Donath SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Today’s episode is a celebration of the Texas-born, German-assimilated soprano Helen Donath.…
Episode 171. November Birthday Gals SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Tomorrow morning I leave for three weeks and I’ve been desperately…
Episode 170. Oralia Domínguez SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Earlier this year, in an episode entitled “Women of Color Sing Mahler,”…
Episode 169. Grace Bumbry SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Though the great diva Grace Bumbry has often been featured on Countermelody,…
Episode 167. Denise Duval SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Denise Duval, whose 101st birthday we posthumously commemorate on October 23, will…
Episode 166. Dan’s Picks SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM This week I celebrated my birthday, so today is the second of…
Episode 163. Season Four Preview SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Today Countermelody is in limbo: balanced between Seasons Three and Four.…
Episode 162. NYCO Divas: An Introduction SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Today is the final regular episode of Season Three of…
Episode 161. Janet Baker: Subject of the Queen SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM The world changed yesterday with the death of…
Episode 160. Donald Gramm SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Dear ones, I present to you today the extraordinarily versatile bass-baritone and…
Episode 156. Barely Sang at the Met II SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM This week is the conclusion of my presentation…
Episode 152. Patricia Neway SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Today begins a new summer series on Countermelody, celebrating mid-century music-making in…
Episode 150. Poulenc and Bernac (Pride 2022) SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Something about this week’s episode has really gotten to…
Episode 147. The Young Gabriel Bacquier SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Two years ago last month, the great French (bass-)baritone Gabriel…
Episode 145. Teresa Berganza In Memoriam SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM A week ago today the beloved and revered Spanish mezzo-soprano…
Episode 144. Mad about Mesplé SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Two years ago this month, the world lost the great French…
Episode 143. Pelléas Part Deux SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Today I conclude my examination of my favorite opera, Claude Debussy…
Episode 142. The Thrill of Pelléas SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM In (relative) relief over the recent French election result, I…
Episode 136. Puccini en Français SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM This week’s episode is a counterpart to my ongoing exploration of…
Episode 134. Legacy (Black History Month 2022 Postlude) SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM This is the second part of my final…
Episode 131. Happy Birthday, Reri Grist (Black History Month 2022) SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM The great African American coloratura Reri…
Episode 127. Maria Ewing in Memoriam (Black History Month 2022) SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM The exceptional, distinctive Maria Ewing died…
Episode 125. Jon Vickers (Great Canadian Singers) SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Our series saluting great Canadian singers continues with a…
Episode 113. Edda Moser SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM On 27 October the great German dramatic coloratura Edda Moser celebrated her…
Episode 112. Barry McDaniel SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM This past week would have been the 91st birthday of Barry McDaniel…
Episode 108. Christiane Eda-Pierre SOCIAL SHARE SUBSCRIPTION PLATFORM Today’s episode is a memorial tribute to the great Martinique-born French soprano…
Episode 8. Williams & Williams