Although books have been written about various opera houses throughout the world, no one work has covered more than a relatively small number of the larger, well known companies and houses, and none have made more than brief mention of the smaller houses. No book has comprehensively listed opera repertories. Little, in sum, has been written about any of the smaller companies and houses located in non-English-speaking countries. This is the most comprehensive reference book ever written on opera companies and houses in Western Europe, Canada, Australia and New Zealand--over 300, from the well known to the smaller. Each entry includes a history of the opera house or company, the works (title and composer) and type of productions offered, company staff, world and country premieres, repertory, and practical information on the theater's address, nearby hotel accommodations and how to order tickets. Most entries conclude with a bibliography.

“The last novel where I rooted for every character, and the last to make me cry.” - Marlon James, Elle From the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of The Overstory and the Oprah's Book Club selection Bewilderment comes Richard Powers's magnificent, multifaceted novel about a supremely gifted—and divided—family, set against the backdrop of postwar America. On Easter day, 1939, at Marian Anderson’s epochal concert on the Washington Mall, David Strom, a German Jewish émigré scientist, meets Delia Daley, a young Black Philadelphian studying to be a singer. Their mutual love of music draws them together, and—against all odds and their better judgment—they marry. They vow to raise their children beyond time, beyond identity, steeped only in song. Jonah, Joseph, and Ruth grow up, however, during the civil rights era, coming of age in the violent 1960s, and living out adulthood in the racially retrenched late century. Jonah, the eldest, “whose voice could make heads of state repent,” follows a life in his parents’ beloved classical music. Ruth, the youngest, devotes herself to community activism and repudiates the white culture her brother represents. Joseph, the middle child and the narrator of this generation-bridging tale, struggles to find himself and remain connected to them both. Richard Powers's The Time of Our Singing is a story of self-invention, allegiance, race, cultural ownership, the compromised power of music, and the tangled loops of time that rewrite all belonging.

The newly updated, full-color Rough Guide to Belgium and Luxembourg is the definitive guide to this underrated corner of Europe. Detailed accounts and crystal-clear maps reveal every nook and cranny of both countries, from the best Belgian beer bars to comic shops, chocolate, and carnivals. The Rough Guide to Belgium and Luxembourg is packed with historical context and well-informed insights into the superb sights, museums and galleries of the big cities-Ghent, Bruges, Antwerp, Brussels, and Luxembourg City-but it also departs from the urban centers for the forests and moorland of the Ardennes, the windswept beaches of the north coast, the WWI sites of Flanders, and Luxembourg's remote hamlets. You'll find gorgeous photography and color maps throughout, plus author picks, themed itineraries, and, of course, the lowdown on the best hotels, cafés, restaurants, and shops across every price range, giving you clear, balanced reviews and honest, first-hand opinions. Make the most of your time on EarthTM with The Rough Guide to Belgium & Luxembourg.

"Qu'est-ce que c'est?" (What is it?) mezzo-soprano Celestine Galli-Marie asked when offered the title role in the 1875 premier of Bizet's new opera, Carmen. She was only the first in a long line of performers to ask. In the 140+ years since, each singer has crafted her own portrayal of the inscrutable Gypsy. The famous soprano Geraldine Farrar wrote: "Each one of us probably sees something that the others have not seen--or thinks she does--and that 'something' is her individual Carmen." This book explores the history of operatic portrayals of Bizet's elusive enchantress, tracing the development of vocal and dramatic interpretations from generation to generation around the globe.