Met's bow

For more than a century it has been eagerly awaited by opera buffs outside New York: the annual tour of the Metropolitan Opera Company. In some cities arias ring triumphantly through well-designed halls; but sometimes they are harder to hear in quarters more attuned to trade shows. Critics have complained performances seemed tired.

No matter. Whatever the city, when the Met was there it was the annual cultural highlight.

But after next year the Met is ending annual tours. Costs are too high, people can see it on TV, and excellent singers are hard to recruit. Besides, regional opera is marching as determinedly forward as A"ida's elephants: more companies, singers, and audience members.

New York is a prime cultural center. But it is not the sole source of culture. High-quality symphony orchestras, opera companies, regional theaters, and dance companies have sprung up across the United States. It is a gratifying trend.

Still, the Met will always have a special place in the hearts of American operagoers. After next year they, like Mahomet, must go to the operatic mountain.