Richard Russell
raruss.bsky.social
Richard Russell
@raruss.bsky.social
150 followers 190 following 93 posts
Twitter refugee. Living a life of opera, music, theater, and kindness. I run an opera company and have a life filled with beautiful sounds. I’m trying to avoid politics here.
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He would have been 90 today. The beauty of his voice and the natural enjoyment of singing was remarkable.

youtu.be/4Nv-GnhNVRo?...
Young Pavarotti Amazing!
YouTube video by Tel Aviv Israel
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It’s the 4th of July and I think I’ll watch Miracle on 34th St.
There have been many consequential Opéra recordings, but there isn’t one that I return to more frequently than this one. Historic and wonderful. #solti #wagner #rheingold
One of the last of a generation, gone. A wonderful, elegant singer and a paragon Rossinian and Mozart singer.

www.nytimes.com/2025/05/15/a...
Luigi Alva, Elegant Tenor With a Lighthearted Touch, Dies at 98
www.nytimes.com
Opera in the Park. Enjoying a beautiful sunny day and Cavalleria rusticana. #sarasotaopera
Good Friday listening. Münchinger’s Matthew Passion and the heartbreakingly beautiful singing of Wunderlich (Ameling, Pears, Prey, and Krause are pretty wonderful too) even if the interpretation is a bit old fashioned. And an impressive Parsifal from Barenboim et. al.
I’m skipping ahead one volume to listen to the lovely Edith Mathis who just passed. She was always a favorite of mine. #schubert #lieder #rip
Just catching up on posting my listening for the last week. Four volumes of the Schubert edition with four superlative artists. I repeated some tracks because I enjoy these so much. #hyperion #schubert #lieder
Reposted by Richard Russell
Some major changes have been made to the initial concept designs for the proposed Sarasota Performing Arts Center. Renzo Piano Building Workshop architects reveal new ideas for the project that still awaits approval from the Sarasota City Commission.
www.heraldtribune.com/story/news/l...
Architects cut back on buildings and find parking for Sarasota performing arts center
Updated concept plans show two buildings combined into one and a medium-sized theater put on hold until decisions are made about Van Wezel hall
www.heraldtribune.com
Happy Birthday Leontyne Price!
It is a good work and worth hearing and seeing if possible. I saw it at Opera Delaware in 2015 and thought it was a significant piece.
Here are two. But there are many, many more.
As I sit on my lanai in Florida with a cocktail, I have to admit often missing winter in New York.
Continuing my Winterreise with Schubert. Margaret Price was such a lovely singer. It was nice to revisit this voice.
I'm so sad to hear about the passing of Paul Plishka. A great bass in his prime and a wonderful character singer in his later years, he sang at the Met for 51 years and nearly 1,700 performances. He was a great colleague and nice man. RIP
This is a really lovely record. A great selection of songs and very well done.
Renata Tebaldi was born #OTD in 1922. I never heard her live but her recordings make it clear that she was one of the greatest. The warmth of her voice and the passion of her singing are magical.
I’m happy that we are producing Pagliacci. It was the 2nd live opera I saw (with Richard Tucker weeks before he died) and one that packs quite the emotional punch.

BTW, the cover of this recording is co-opted from our 2005 production. The pictured tenor, Rafael Dávila, is singing it with us again.
For the record, the reason I don’t return to this often is not because of the performances but given the magnitude of Schubert’s output, skipping some of the earliest works are a bit of a necessity with my limited time.
This is not a volume I return to, but giving it a good listen this time around, it’s interesting to hear some of the early pieces to understand where Schubert came from and where he is going.
I’m trying to catch up on my Schubert listening over the last few days. I always love listening to Brigitte Fassbaender’s unique voice and great artistry.
I needed to take a few days off my Schubert journey. I'm back at it today. The genius of these songs!