by Jessie Tannenbaum "A statue has never been erected in honor of a critic." —Jean Sibelius A memorial service for Paul J. Pelkonen will be held on Sunday, June 30, at 12:00pm at the Daniel J. Schaefer Funeral Home, 4123 Fourth Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11232. All who loved Paul are welcome. Please, no flowers. Paul loved small, local opera companies, in particular the Regina Opera Company, based in his neighborhood of Sunset Park. We encourage you to honor Paul's commitment to "critical thinking in the cheap seats" with a donation to Regina Opera Company. Please donate via Paypal (please put "In ..read more

by Jessie Tannenbaum Paul J. PelkonenApril 12, 1973 – June 12, 2019 It is with great sadness that we announce that Paul Pelkonen died suddenly yesterday of cardiopulmonary arrest, at his home in Brooklyn. Paul lived a life full of joy, and dedicated his life to sharing with others the joy he found in music. We hope that Superconductor brought joy to everyone who reads this.   Paul and Emily at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, Dec. 23, 2018 A lifelong Brooklynite, Paul was a proud alumnus of Fordham University and the journalism school at Boston University. The only things he loved more ..read more

The Philharmonic unlocks David Lang's prisoner of the state. by Paul J. Pelkonen The climactic confrontation of David Lang's prisoner of the state. Photo by Chris Lee © 2019 The New York Philharmonic,The New York Philharmonic ended its Lincoln Center season this week with prisoner of the state, a new opera from the pen of contemporary composer David Lang. Mr. Lang, whose unconventional list of stage works include battle hymns (set deep within the bowels of the U.S.S. Intrepid and an opera created entirely from whispers, seemed like an ideal choice for this endeavor. This new opera, co-commissi ..read more

The Philadelphia Orchestra at Carnegie Hall. by Paul J. Pelkonen Beatrice Rana onstage at Carnegie Hall with members of the Philadelphia Orchestra in the background. Photo by Paul Vincent. Yannick Nézet-Séguin and the Philadelphia Orchestra returned to Carnegie Hall on Friday night for the last of their appearances this season. For this program, Mr. Nézet-Séguin chose a pair of mostly forgotten and badly neglected early works by prominent Russian composers Igor Stravinsky and Sergei Rachmaninoff. These Russian rarities flanked the more familiar Third Piano Concerto by Serge Prokofiev with solo ..read more

Bernard Labadie unveils his visionary OSL Bach Festival. by Paul J. Pelkonen Bernard Labadie (right) leads the new Orchestra of St. Luke's Bach Festival. Photo by Dario Acosta."Tonight, we are in church." These words were spoken by Orchestra of St. Luke's president James Roe as he introduced Thursday night's program, Music of the Spirit, at Zankel Hall, the subterranean mid-sized venue that is part of the Carnegie Hall building. Bach was a man of deep religious conviction but the bulk of his church music, (aside from the major choral works like the Passions and the Mass in B minor) remains unk ..read more

The Met tones down La Damnation de Faust. by Paul J. Pelkonen Susan Graham (left) and Marcello Giordani (right) in a tender moment from the Met's 2008 staging of La Damnation de Faust. Photo by Ken Howard © 2008 The Metropolitan Opera.If you were planning  on seeing the Metropolitan Opera's unique and visually mind-blowing production of Berlioz' La Damnation de Faust next season, you are out of luck. In an e-mail sent to subscribers (and obtained by Superconductor) the Met has announced that the company's presentations of the hybrid opera-oratorio will not be seen in its staging as originally ..read more

Dido and Aeneas are laid in earth. by Paul J. Pelkonen The nocturnal court of Carthage: Dido (Danela Mack) flanked by her handmaidens. Photo by Kevin Condon for The Death of Classical.When it comes to performing operas in innovative locations, it is hard to beat the catacombs deep within Brooklyn's Green-Wood Cemetery. Last night, before a packed house, The Angels' Share offered the premiere of its season-opening staging of Dido and Aeneas. Written by Henry Purcell in 1688, this is the oldest English-language opera to have a place in the repertory. A performance at The Angel's Share is a th ..read more

Yannick Nézet-Séguin leads the MET Orchestra at Carnegie Hall. by Paul J. Pelkonen There comes a time in the career of an opera singer where, through either good fortune or exceptional skill, they rise from the ranks of the roster and ignite as a genuine operatic star. For the  Isabel Leonard, 2018-19 at the Metropolitan Opera was that year, where the mezzo-soprano rose to the occasion in three major roles: Marnie, Melisande and Sister Blanche in Dialogues des Carmelites. On Monday night, Ms. Leonard capped a season which featured performances as Marnie, Melisande and Sister Blanche with a pe ..read more

Amore Opera throws Verdi's Masked Ball, by Paul J. Pelkonen A throne of games: Tenor José Heredia (center, prone) dies at the end of Un ballo in Maschera/ hoto by Ashley Becker © 2019 Amore Opera.The Amore Opera ended its tenth season on Sunday afternoon with a performance of Un Ballo in Maschera. Of Verdi's mature operas, Ballo is unique. It is closer to French comic opera in style than anything else the composer wrote, even if it follows the musical conventions of Italian opera with only a sprinkling of French flavor in its score. The text is in Italian, and the musical style is late Verdi ..read more

The New York Philharmonic revives John Corigliano's Symphony No. 1. by Paul J. Pelkonen Composer John Cortigiano: his Symphony No. 1 was played at the New York Philharmonic for the first time in 27 years. Photo © Sony Classical.The New York Philharmonic is in the middle round of “Music of Conscience,” a season-ending three-week festival celebrating works written with the purpose of correcting great social injustices. This week featured the very necessary return of John Corigliano’s Symphony No. 1, subtitled Of Rage and Remembrance. Commissioned by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and last heard ..read more