Guardian Music — Placido Domingo to play lead role in special performance of opera that will use real-life locations in Italian city of MantuaIt is one of the great tales of lust, love and seduction, in which a curse and a plot to murder spiral into a devastating fin... more info

Guardian Music — Royal Albert Hall, London"Plácido Domingo – baritone", we read in the programme for the Royal Opera's Prom of Verdi's Simon Boccanegra. It comes as a bit of a jolt, even though our knowledge that he is now planning to sing Verdi's Rigoletto and At... more info

Guardian Music — Five decades into his brilliant career as one of the world's great tenors, Plácido Domingo – now a baritone – is working as hard as ever. Catch him while you can, says this devoted fanPlácido Domingo's name means Placid Sunday, which is not wha... more info

Guardian Music — Italian bass renowned for his portrayal of Mozart's Don GiovanniDuring the 1950s and 60s, Cesare Siepi, who has died aged 87, was the most sought-after of Italian basses, renowned for his Don Giovanni, a role he undertook in most of the world's major... more info

Guardian Music — This singer is set to be the face of the Nina Ricci fragrance. Why even bother writing songs? Because they're great, that's whyHometown: Kent.The lineup: Florrie (vocals, drums, songs).The background: Florrie is a one-woman Mini Viva. Whatever happen... more info

Guardian Music — Millennium Centre, CardiffCensorship forced Verdi to turn Victor Hugo's king in Le Roi S'Amuse into the Duke of Mantua, but James McDonald's portrait of a philandering president in a 1960s White House could hardly be more explicit. Welsh National Ope... more info

Buffalo News, New York — Nickel City Opera, Buffalo's new opera company, has upped the ante for its second production, Verdi's “Rigoletto.” The tragic tale of a jester bent on revenge could not be more different from Rossini's “The Barber of Seville,” which we saw la... more info

Topix — 'Tis the season for famous baritones to take on new challenges at the Welsh National Opera. more info

Guardian Music — Iconoclastic stage designer who always started from the idea, never the visual, and defended his ideas with ferocityFor some, opera describes private passions, voicing individual desires and tragedy. For others – especially directors and designers ... more info

Guardian Music — One of the greatest Italian opera singers, noted for her versatile and distinctive voiceGiulietta Simionato, who has died aged 99, was one of the greatest Italian opera singers of her generation. She was a beautiful woman and a vivid actor. Like her ... more info