Italian composers in Paris
OPERA GALA
City of Athens Symphony Orchestra & Choir
For centuries, Paris has been the most prominent city in Europe for arts and avant-garde. The city, known for its lively music scene and talented musicians, attracted many prominent Italian composers: Before the Revolution, Cherubini and Spontini made their way there, and during the 19th century, Donizetti, Rossini, Bellini, and Verdi followed suit. The Paris Opera, which dominated the European stage at the time with large-scale productions, inaugurating a new genre, the so-called “Grand Opéra”, a hallmark of the Parisian music scene, is the main attraction for these composers. Today, the new star of the international scene, conductor Alessandro Bonato, walks down the famous Boulevard des Italiens in Paris alongside other great performers, among which soprano Catherine Hunold, the impressive Sister Beatrice in Dimitris Mitropoulos’ opera of the same name, tenor Dmitry Korchak and bassist Riccardo Fassi, who triumph in the most important lyric theatres. The audience will enjoy Arias and ensembles from operas by Spontini, Cherubini, Rossini, Donizetti, and Verdi.
