Friday, March 29, 2024 | Ramadan 18, 1445 H
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EDITOR IN CHIEF- ABDULLAH BIN SALIM AL SHUEILI

Plácido Domingo conducts ROSO

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Placido Domingo, arguably the most famous living tenor in the world,  returned to the Royal Opera House Muscat last week with a stellar performance.  Once part of the immensely popular Three Tenors with Luciano Pavarotti and José Carreras, Placido Domingo reigns today as a solo superstar. He was  accompanied by the Philharmonic Orchestra of Brescia and Bergamo Festival under the baton of the world-renowned conductor, Eugene Kohn.


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Highly acclaimed Albanian-Italian soprano, Ermonela Jaho joined Plácido on stage. They sang arias from famous composers of opera such as Verdi, Wagner and Massenet, as well as popular favourites from around the world including songs from famous Broadway shows such as My Fair Lady.

Maestro Domingo also conducted the Royal Oman Symphony Orchestra (ROSO) in an evening of beautiful music by Beethoven and Tchaikovsky, featuring the young Italian pianist, Beatrice Rana.


During his 2011 visit to Oman, Placido commented: “I think of music-making as one single activity. Whether I am singing as a tenor, or now, occasionally, as a baritone; whether I am singing opera or concert music or zarzuelas or lighter music; whether I am conducting or coaching or even just listening to others perform — all of these things are part of a whole. Of course singing and conducting require a lot of mental, physical, and spiritual commitment. You have to put all your skill and also all of your inner being into your work all the time. Otherwise you cannot do your best.”


Maestro Domingo went on to observe: “Nietzsche said it well: ‘Without music, life would be a mistake’. I simply cannot conceive of a world and a life without music. Music is always with me — I live in it and with it every day of my life.”


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During his first visit to the ROHM for the inauguration five years ago, he commented: “The Royal Opera House in Muscat is a marvellous gem with the proven capacity to mount the biggest Operatic production anyone has ever seen as well as present the highest level of classical music. It also possesses a fabulous acoustic when transformed into the Concert Hall. Since I have now inaugurated both the Opera House and the Concert Hall, I know that it is an engineering work of art. But the most important and valuable asset this house has is the people that run the day to day operations. You have built a tremendous team of individuals, local and international, who have found the perfect harmony that this wondrous Opera House deserves. I have the highest wishes, and I hope to be able to come back soon to continue to participate in this development.”

Last week’s performance at the ROHM by one of the greatest tenors in the modern history of opera  was a real treat to the music lovers of the Sultanate of Oman.


Photo credit: Khalid al Busaidi, ROHM.


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