BROOKLYN ACADEMY OF MUSIC'S 1991 OPERA SEASON
The Harry Kupfer production of Gluck's ``Orpheus und Eurydike'' opens the 1991 season of the Brooklyn Academy of Music's (BAM) Opera. There are performances tomorrow night and Friday night at 8 p.m., and Sunday afternoon at 2 p.m. Next comes the New York premi`ere of Philip Glass's ``Hydrogen Jukebox,'' with text by Allen Ginsberg. Ann Carlson recreates her Charleston Spoleto Festival staging, with production design by Jerome Sirlin. The six performances are on May 7 (7 p.m)., May 8-11 (8 p.m.) and May 12 (2 p.m.).
The third opera in the series will be the New York premi`ere of John Adams's new opera, ``The Death of Klinghoffer'' (based on the Achille Lauro cruiseship hijacking), to have its world premi`ere in Brussels in March. As with Adams's first opera, ``Nixon in China,'' the libretto will be by Alice Goodman, and the production by Peter Sellars. Kent Nagano will conduct. The dates for ``Klinghoffer'' are Sept. 5 (7 p.m.), Sept 7, 9, 11, and 13 at 8 p.m.
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Finally, a recent recording of ``Orfeo'' in Italian featuring Jochen Kowalski and conducted by Hartmut Haenchen, can be found on Capriccio 60 008-2 (2 CDs). It is a performance of the 1762 Vienna Version with the Paris Version ballet music added as a welcome appendix. The performance is marred by a problematic boy soprano as Amor, but it fully captures Kowalski's unique timbre and compelling, passionate performance style.
