Orchestra & Chorus of Teatro La Fenice

La straniera (The Foreigner) had a triumphant premiere on February 14, 1829 at La Scala,Milan. Bellini wrote to his librettist Felice Romani that the audience was enthusiastic “beyond belief,” and that the success surpassed that of Il pirat

When Leyla Gencer died at age 79 in 2008, the obituary in The Guardian (UK) called her “the greatest Turkish opera singer of the 20th century and a singing actor of formidable power and individuality.” Beloved of her fans, who called her “t