Antonio Pappano: "ROH is my number 1 job"

.

He's everywhere in the world. Rome, Vienna, US, touring in Japan, recording with Orchestra dell'Accademia di Santa Cecilia, conducting symphonic orchestras or opera.
.

And starting May he'll be on TV too, in a BBC mini-series, Opera Italia!, as part of its A Passion for Opera season, commencing on BBC4 in May.“It’s three one-hour programmes about Italian opera,” Pappano says, “from Monteverdi to Rossini and Donizetti to Verdi, then the final one is Puccini and a little bit of verismo [the Italian school of realists, such as Mascagni and Leoncavallo]. They’re not for opera experts, but we hope they will be interesting to opera-lovers, as well as a way in for newcomers.”

.

Asked by Hugh Canning in an interview for The Sunday Times about his priorities, Antonio Pappano confesses that his #1 is Royal Opera House in London. Next season he'll conduct an opera about the late American celebrity Anna Nicole Smith with Eva-Maria Westbroek singing the title role. "I’m doing two shows in Japan (Manon with Anna Netrebko and Traviata with Angela Gheorghiu&James Valenti), plus a performance of Handel’s Messiah, then concert performances of Bizet’s The Pearl Fishers [with the BBC Cardiff Singer of the World Nicole Cabell and Gerald Finley] when we return. Then comes Anna Nicole and finally the revival ‘triple bill’.” After that there's more work to do. Adriana Lecouvreur, Tosca, Cosi fan tutte, Don Pasquale, Cendrillon. That's what I call a busy schedule! And this will go on and on till 2014 (or 2013, as he says "I can’t remember if I’ve renewed until 2013 or until the end of the 2013-14 season.” ).

.

Read the entire article online, on Times Online website. CLick HERE.

.