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Sunday Morning Opera: The War to End All Wars

November 11, 2018November 9, 2018 20th Century US, Classic Hollywood, CULTURE, HISTORY, Music, OPERA, Simon Keenlyside

Simon Keenlyside recorded an album of song, dedicated to those who fought in World War I.

Sunday Morning Opera: Don Giovanni

October 28, 2018October 27, 2018 Barihunks, Baritones, Bryn Terfel, CULTURE, Dmitri Hvorostovsky, MAIN PAGE, Met, Music, Opera, OPERA, Sherrill Milnes, Simon Keenlyside, Thomas Hampson

My obsessive love affair with opera began on the afternoon of May 6, 1978 when Sherrill Milnes walked onto the stage in Atlanta, where

Sunday Morning Opera: Simon Keenlyside

September 2, 2018September 1, 2018 Baritones, Bryn Terfel, CULTURE, Music, OPERA, Simon Keenlyside

The only possible way to describe the voice of Simon Keenlyside, who has a birthday this week, is elegant. Nothing else works. I love

Sunday Morning Opera: My Very Favorite Aria Smackdown

August 5, 2018August 4, 2018 Baritones, Bryn Terfel, CULTURE, Dmitri Hvorostovsky, Erwin Schrott, Met, Music, Opera, OPERA, Sherrill Milnes, Simon Keenlyside, Thomas Hampson

This is the key to my heart. I love this piece of music. On Saturday, May 6, 1978 in Atlanta, with the Metropolitan Opera

Sunday Morning Opera: Su può, si può

May 13, 2018May 12, 2018 Baritones, CULTURE, Dmitri Hvorostovsky, Met, Music, Opera, OPERA, Sherrill Milnes, Simon Keenlyside

Today is Mother’s Day. My mother’s very favorite aria was Su può, si può. This is for her. My first exposure to live opera

Sunday Morning Opera: Baritones and Stress

October 29, 2017 Barihunks, Baritones, Beverly Sills, Bryn Terfel, CULTURE, Dmitri Hvorostovsky, MAIN PAGE, Music, Opera, OPERA, Sherrill Milnes, Simon Keenlyside, Thomas Hampson

You may have noticed I’ve been on autopilot the past week or so. There are reasons. Things were so iffy last night I was

Sunday Morning Opera: The Knightly in Opera

August 13, 2017August 14, 2017 Barihunks, Baritones, Bryn Terfel, Dmitri Hvorostovsky, Opera, OPERA, Sherrill Milnes, Simon Keenlyside, Thomas Hampson

Yesterday, I created a list of the most chivalrous men in history. What better way to celebrate chivalry than with opera? One of the

Sunday Morning Opera: Simon Keenlyside

August 6, 2017August 3, 2017 Baritones, CULTURE, Music, OPERA, Simon Keenlyside

There is only one word that describes Simon Keenlyside: elegant. His birthday was on Thursday. I won’t mention his age since he and my

Sunday Morning Opera: I Need a Drink

July 30, 2017July 30, 2017 Baritones, CULTURE, Dmitri Hvorostovsky, Erwin Schrott, FAITH, Music, Opera, OPERA, Proverbs Challenge, Sherrill Milnes, Simon Keenlyside, Thomas Hampson

I need a drink, badly. You will notice a crisp, new Pink Flamingo. There’s a reason for the change and my craving for something

Sunday Morning Opera: My Met Top 50

May 21, 2017May 20, 2017 Barihunks, Baritones, Beverly Sills, CULTURE, Dmitri Hvorostovsky, Erwin Schrott, Leontyne Price, MAIN PAGE, Met, Music, Opera, OPERA, Sherrill Milnes, Simon Keenlyside, Thomas Hampson

We opera fans are a strange bunch of fanatical and very insane individuals. We’re as bad as baseball fanatics. Quite often we are one

Sunday Morning Opera: The Ultimate Baritone Smack-down

March 5, 2017March 5, 2017 Baritones, CULTURE, Dmitri Hvorostovsky, Music, Opera, OPERA, Sherrill Milnes, Simon Keenlyside, Thomas Hampson

I have resisted temptation long enough. In honor of the 225th or the 56th birthday Gioachino Rossini, I’m just going to do it. Deal

Sunday Morning Opera: I Want to Hold Your Hand (sort of)

January 15, 2017January 7, 2017 Barihunks, Baritones, CULTURE, Dmitri Hvorostovsky, Erwin Schrott, MAIN PAGE, Music, Opera, OPERA, Sherrill Milnes, Simon Keenlyside, Thomas Hampson

This is my favorite duet. Don Giovanni: There I’ll give you my hand, There you’ll say yes: See, it is not far, my love,

Sunday Morning Opera: Cheesy Songs & Baritones

November 20, 2016November 19, 2016 Baritones, Beverly Sills, CULTURE, Dmitri Hvorostovsky, MAIN PAGE, Music, Opera, OPERA, Sherrill Milnes, Simon Keenlyside, Thomas Hampson

The best baritone crooning is cheesy. I doesn’t matter who the baritone is, it just needs to be a little cheesy. (I’ve added 1

Sunday Morning Opera: Largo al Factotum

November 13, 2016November 12, 2016 Baritones, CULTURE, Dmitri Hvorostovsky, Music, Opera, OPERA, Sherrill Milnes, Simon Keenlyside, Thomas Hampson

This post is dedicated to President-Elect Donald Trump. I suspect he is beginning to feel like Figero, with everyone wanting something from him. Figero

Sunday Morning Opera: Là ci darem la mano Smackdown

November 6, 2016November 5, 2016 Baritones, Classic Hollywood, Classic TV, CULTURE, Dmitri Hvorostovsky, Erwin Schrott, MAIN PAGE, Music, Opera, OPERA, Sherrill Milnes, Simon Keenlyside, Thomas Hampson

This is my very favorite duet. Period. And – a special treat!

Sunday Morning Opera: Sex, Violence & Politics

October 23, 2016October 22, 2016 Baritones, CULTURE, Dmitri Hvorostovsky, HISTORY, MAIN PAGE, Met, Music, Opera, OPERA, Simon Keenlyside

Anyone who loves opera knows it is all about sex, violence, and politics, only very well sung. Verdi excelled in all three. Giuseppe Fortunino

Sunday Morning Opera: Keenlyside’s Giovanni

October 9, 2016October 8, 2016 Baritones, CULTURE, Met, Music, Opera, OPERA, Sherrill Milnes, Simon Keenlyside

Simon Keenlyside is back at the Met, doing Giovanni. I like his Giovanni. Heck, I like his Mozart, period. His Mozart is just plain

Sunday Morning Opera: Self-Indulgent Baritone Fix

September 25, 2016September 24, 2016 Baritones, CULTURE, Dmitri Hvorostovsky, MAIN PAGE, Met, Music, OPERA, Sherrill Milnes, Simon Keenlyside, Thomas Hampson

My favorite baritone appears to be morphing into a crooner of the Robert Goulet ilk. Some might think that is an insult, but if

Sunday Morning Opera: Il Balen Del Suo Sorriso Smackdown

August 21, 2016August 20, 2016 Baritones, CULTURE, Dmitri Hvorostovsky, MAIN PAGE, Met, Music, Opera, OPERA, Sherrill Milnes, Simon Keenlyside, Thomas Hampson

When I was working on today’s post, I noticed something interesting. There are many great baritones, yet very few of them, have a recording

Sunday Morning Opera: O du mein holder Abendstern

March 13, 2016March 12, 2016 Baritones, CULTURE, Dmitri Hvorostovsky, Met, Music, Opera, OPERA, Sherrill Milnes, Simon Keenlyside, Thomas Hampson

One of the greatest baritone arias ever is O du mein holder Abendstern from Tannhauser. Enough said. Like a premonition of death, darkness covers

Sunday Morning Opera: Keenlyside Returns

August 9, 2015August 8, 2015 Barihunks, Baritones, MAIN PAGE, Met, Opera, OPERA, Simon Keenlyside 1

Anyone who is a baritone freak the way your humble blogger is, okay, let’s call it what it is, a baritone junkie, knows that

Sunday Morning Opera: The Eternal Male

August 2, 2015August 1, 2015 20th Century US, American, Barihunks, Baritones, Classic Hollywood, Cochise County Cowboy War, Cultural Illiteracy, CULTURE, Dmitri Hvorostovsky, Doc John Henry Holiday, Gunfight at the OK Corral, Historial Ignorance, HISTORY, James Bond, MAIN PAGE, Met, Movies about Wyatt Earp, Music, OK Corral, Opera, OPERA, PERSONAL, Racism, Senior Citizen, Sherrill Milnes, Simon Keenlyside, Star Trek, TOMBSTONE, Wild West, WYATT EARP

Late one evening, I was working on a novel, and going back and forth with some guy on Twitter, about conspiracy theories. It was

Sunday Morning Opera: The Metropolitan Opera’s Disgusting New Racism

July 12, 2015July 11, 2015 Barihunks, Baritones, Beverly Sills, Bigotry, Cultural Illiteracy, CULTURE, Dmitri Hvorostovsky, Erwin Schrott, MAIN PAGE, Met, Music, Opera, OPERA, Racism, Sherrill Milnes, Simon Keenlyside, Thomas Hampson 5

The world knows I’m an opera freak. I’ve been that way since 1978. I started thinking about the ‘greats’. It dawned on me that

Wie Todesahnung… O du, mein holder Abendstern’

June 7, 2015June 6, 2015 Barihunks, Baritones, CULTURE, Dmitri Hvorostovsky, Met, Music, Opera, OPERA, Sherrill Milnes, Simon Keenlyside

Like presentiment of death, twilight covers the lands, it shrouds the valley with blackish raiment; the soul that yearns for these heights is fearful

A New Year’s Opera Gala

December 31, 2014December 30, 2014 Barihunks, Baritones, CULTURE, Dmitri Hvorostovsky, Erwin Schrott, Jonathan Estabrooks, Music, Opera, OPERA, Sherrill Milnes, Simon Keenlyside

We can never have enough opera or enough of our wonderful baritones barihunks. Traditionally, in opera houses throughout the world, on New Year’s Eve,