The winner of the 2014 Lady Fairfax Scholarship sets his sights on the States. Continue reading Get unlimited digital access from $4 per month Subscribe Already a subscriber? Log in

Young Aussie soprano is ray of light in a generally bleak year for Australian opera.

John Bell’s shocking Nazi-infused Tosca gets a far from shabby revival.

The Russian mezzo who founded one of the great vocal competitions has passed at the age of 75.

Frédéric Chaslin refuses to conduct in light of unsympathetic management response.

Organ and imagery shed mutual light on two very different worlds. Continue reading Get unlimited digital access from $4 per month Subscribe Already a subscriber? Log in

Limelight’s Editors offer their top picks from this year’s feast of culture.

Limelight Featured Recording – November 2014 Maria Callas was one of the very greatest artists of all time – a woman whose life mimicked her art and vice versa to such an extent that she captured a public’s imagination above and beyond the bounds of most opera singers. She was fortunate to fly her highest at a time the gramophone record was coming of age, straddling the 78, to mono LP, to stereo era. But, and it’s a big but, her fortunes over the years have been mixed. Her legacy has been nipped, tucked and generally madeover a bit like an aging celeb going under the knife – it can sound fine across a crowded record store but up close and personal it’s a fright.  The 1997, 2000 and 2002 EMI remasters focused on removing tape hiss but took a degree of life and immediacy with it. Many fans were up in arms, screaming about artificial enhancement and false ambience. With the subsequent demise of EMI, Warner Classics have become keepers of the flame as far as the Callas recorded legacy is concerned and what we have here is their first back-to-basics attempt to put the record straight. Let me say…

Kate Champion's 'full-fat' dance aims to challenge the accepted norms of body image in performance.

Gale Edwards’ savvy Bohème shows young love failing to survive Hitler’s springtime.

We talk to Melbourne Symphony Orchestra’s Bassoonist to find out where did it all begin? Continue reading Get unlimited digital access from $4 per month Subscribe Already a subscriber? Log in

Are Australians in danger of overlooking some of the best music-making in our own backyard? Continue reading Get unlimited digital access from $4 per month Subscribe Already a subscriber? Log in