KLASSIKOM=Innovations in classical music

Originally five brothers, now four, the Wooten Brothers made their mainland China debut. The brothers arrived in Shanghai, but their guitar didn’t.

On stage, Victor Wooten went out of his way to thank Frank, who had lent them electric guitars that were exactly the same as the ones they normally play. He kept saying that China was a “cool place”, “one of the coolest places”, and that Chinese people were “wonderful cool people”. The band certainly knew how to work the audience. For the encore, they launched into an explosive rhythmic game, punctuating the breaks with “Shanghai” to keep the crowd fired up.

The concert paid tribute to John Coltrane, James Brown, video games, and even Mozart, Whitney Houston, banjo king Béla Fleck, and perhaps Herbie Hancock. When musicians reach this level, genres no longer seem to matter. Everything becomes part of the same musical language, and they can move effortlessly between them.

What a way to wrap up my JZ Festival experience this year. I stood for more than two hours, but thankfully I had worn comfortable sneakers.

Filmed on October 31st, 2026.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit klassikom.substack.com

How hard is it to get a visiting orchestra to feature Chinese music on a concert programme in China?

Very hard, though far from impossible.

Almost none of the overseas orchestras and opera houses passing through Shanghai’s trendsetting venue arrive with Chinese works in their luggage. That is what makes last night’s concert by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra at the Shanghai Oriental Art Centre special.

Of everything happening during the period of the China Shanghai International Arts Festival, it may be the one programme that holds the Chinese, the Shanghainese and the international in a single evening: an orchestra from London, in a Shanghai hall, rendering British and Russian composers and, more importantly, a Chinese one.

Tan Dun’s double bass concerto Wolf Totem is a piece I had long wanted to hear live since its premiere in 2015 and never had the chance to, until a kind invitation made last night possible. Among Tan Dun’s works built on emblems of Chinese civilisation, including Nu Shu, Buddha Passion and the Martial Arts Trilogy, Wolf Totem adds something precious to the niche double bass repertoire. Catchy melodies and refined orchestration give both the solo instrument and the orchestra a rich regional and ethnic colour. The soloist was Jason Henery, principal bass of RPO.

Vasily Petrenko brought the orchestra to Shanghai in 2024, when the programme also carried works by Tan Dun and Guan Xia, and he keeps Chinese music held high this time too. The British, Russian and Chinese pieces pay tribute to the native cultural identities of the orchestra, the conductor and the audience in turn. The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra’s programme is bold in design and generous in spirit, something I wish the Berliner Philharmoniker and Wiener Philharmoniker attend to.

The RPO otherwise played Butterworth’s A Shropshire Lad as a starter and, in the second half, Stravinsky’s Petrushka (ver. 1947).

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit klassikom.substack.com

The 2026 Operalia taking place at the Shangyin Opera House hosted by the Shanghai Conservatory of Music was indeed a battle of the baritones. Over half of the a dozen or so finalists are from the low male voices.

We ask Peter Katona, casting director of the Royal Ballet and Opera, about what he listens for when he judges young singers at Operalia.

Asked why so many baritones reached the finals, he sees no particular reason. What counts for him is a genuine personality. A polished aria or a few well rehearsed tricks is not enough, because the singer must carry a whole role in its dramatic context. He looks for mind, soul, warmth, strength and energy, joined to a voice.

On operas by Chinese composers, he admits he had few chances to see them in Germany and Britain. New work at British houses, he says, is chosen for contemporary subjects and musical developments, with a focus on Central Europe. He is struck by how strong the interest in European music is in China, probably at the cost of homegrown cultures.

He then recalls Mr Dai Yuqiang, a Chinese tenor promoted in London years ago as a possible successor to Pavarotti. At Covent Garden Dai sang Tosca and Calaf in Turandot superbly but stumbled over the musical detail of La Bohème. When they met again at Operalia in Beijing about twelve years ago, Dai said he was grateful for the experience but that Chinese singers then lacked sufficient education and detailed guidance in the West.

Katona says the picture has changed greatly.

This concludes the three-episode interview with Peter Katona in Shanghai during Operalia.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit klassikom.substack.com

Peter Katona, casting director of the Royal Ballet and Opera, has sat on the Operalia jury since the first edition in Puerto Rico in 1999 and has missed only a Covid year. In Shanghai he explains what sets Plácido Domingo’s travelling competition apart. Its finalists, and even its semifinalists, are still recognisable names ten, twenty or thirty years later. For a casting director, he says, the person he gets to know matters more than the person who wins.

Asked about the new Shanghai Grand Opera House, which he visited a few days earlier, Katona calls the building extremely impressive. He singles out its three performance spaces, especially the hall facing the river with an open window. The challenge now, he says, is to give it life and quality. That takes a resident company, productions of its own, money, know how, talent and a public willing to fill the seats. Covent Garden would love to perform there, but the practical and financial hurdles are enormous.

He also describes the jury room, which he says has no drama. Jurors do not discuss or haggle, and they vote independently. Each singer is scored from five to ten, the marks are added up, and nobody may ask a colleague to revise a score. One singer can receive a ten from one juror and a five from another, and the total simply stands. This year the baritones were the strongest group, and a few different votes could have changed the picture.

To be continued...

Interviewed on November 1st, 2026 at Ruijin Hotel Intercontinental in Shanghai.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit klassikom.substack.com

Peter Katona, casting director of the Royal Ballet and Opera in London, explains what his title covers at Covent Garden. Speaking in Shanghai, where he sits on the jury of Operalia on November 1st at Ruijin Hotel before the final, he describes a job that stretches from tonight’s performance to a schedule set years ahead: building seasons, sharing one stage with the ballet, choosing the repertoire and engaging conductors and singers.He recalls one of the worst afternoons in the Royal Opera House’s living memory, when a bank holiday matinee of Don Carlos by Verdi lost its soprano that morning and played three acts without her. He also tells of a La Traviata in which the Violetta stopped after Act Two. The conversation follows his path from a German opera family and a youth spent writing record reviews to Covent Garden, and explains why precise planning and sound casting must work together.To be continued...

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit klassikom.substack.com

For American tenor Andrew Turner, Operalia is undoubtedly a high-pressure environment, but one in which the excitement of storytelling and the love of singing should ultimately prevail.

Having recently completed his apprenticeship at the Wiener Staatsoper’s Opera Studio, Turner sees the competition as an opportunity to connect with some of the world’s leading opera professionals. He also has particular praise for pianist and coach Nino Sanikidze, whose warm, reassuring manner made him feel immediately welcome, relaxed and confident from their very first session. Even during the quarter-final audition, her encouraging words and supportive presence helped him feel at ease on stage.

For Sanikidze, who has been working at Operalia since 2008, preparing singers for the competition is less about making last-minute artistic changes than understanding each individual’s needs. By the time they arrive, the contestants have already done extensive preparation with their own teachers and coaches. Her initial sessions are therefore designed to get acquainted with their voices, preferences and musical intentions, going through practical details such as tempi and cuts to ensure that she can provide the most effective support when they face the jury. The aim is to make each singer feel understood and musically supported at a particularly important moment in their career.

What sets Operalia apart, Sanikidze believes, is its combination of artistic exposure and tangible career opportunities, reflecting the vision of its founder, Plácido Domingo.

Beyond the prestige of competing and the possibility of winning prizes, the event brings together up to 40 outstanding young singers and gives them the rare opportunity to perform before an influential international jury. More importantly, it functions as an exceptionally practical audition for major opera houses and their young artist, ensemble and fest programmes, with opportunities suited to singers at different stages of professional development.

Having known Plácido for nearly 25 years, dating back to her own time as a young artist in Washington, Sanikidze describes him as an exceptionally generous supporter of young singers.

Remembering the limited opportunities available when he was starting out, Plácido has made it his mission to create opportunities for the next generation. This support extends beyond the artistic platform: once selected, all 40 participants have their travel and accommodation expenses covered by Operalia. In an industry where the costs of vocal lessons and international travel can be a considerable burden, this practical assistance is no small matter. As Sanikidze explains, Plácido’s intention is not simply to open doors for young artists, but also to help them walk through those doors without worrying about the financial obstacles, allowing them to concentrate fully on their craft and give their best.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit klassikom.substack.com

The winner of Operalia is, among others, Emma Marhefka from Pennsylvania, who bags home three trophies, a Rolex and loads of prize money from Shanghai tonight.

Here’s the exclusive interview at the back stage.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit klassikom.substack.com

The Dagger Society, an iconic blockbuster dance first performed in Shanghai in 1959, returned to its birthplace last night.

The Dagger Society was a secret society with Triad roots. In 1853 its members under Liu Lichuan occupied Shanghai’s walled Chinese city and held it until 1855, with the Hall of Rising Spring in Yuyuan Garden as their headquarters. Qing forces and French troops besieged them, and the uprising ended in early 1855 after the French breached the city wall. Chinese histories describe it as a popular uprising against Qing rule and foreign aggression, and that is the story told by the 1959 ballet of the same name.

The dance, with music by Shang Yi, returned to its birthplace on Friday night. The Shanghai Opera House, whose predecessor produced the work, staged a reimagined production at the Majestic Theatre as part of the 25th China Shanghai International Arts Festival. The work had been absent from the stage for 28 years, since its Hong Kong performances in 1998, and from mainland China since 1977.

Zhang Chengjie conducted the Shanghai Opera House Orchestra from the pit. The new edition keeps Shang Yi’s core melodies, with a fresh arrangement for a symphony orchestra by Sun Chang that gives the Chinese orchestra writing extra fat. The overture, opened by the suona, has long outlived the stage. It became a fixture of Hong Kong martial arts films, from King Hu’s Dragon Inn in 1967 to Tsui Hark and Stephen Chow, and is often heard as a hero makes an eventful entrance.

The Dance of Archers is the ballet’s signature number, captured in this reel.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit klassikom.substack.com

This is a Chinese language programme with bilingual subtitles.

Baritone Zhang Gonghao has just completed his doctorate at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music, where he studies with Liao Changyong. Liao is a member of this year’s jury and won Operalia in 1997. In this interview Zhang says the competition’s arrival in Shanghai matters greatly to students who see Liao as both a role model and a goal.

He sang “Per me giunto” from Verdi’s Don Carlo, the aria Liao performed in the 1997 final, out of admiration. His second aria was “Mein Sehnen, mein Wähnen” from Korngold’s Die tote Stadt, one of his favourites, which Plácido Domingo selected.

He was most nervous on learning he had been chosen, with a home audience in the hall and judges from around the world. Liao’s advice steadied him: enjoy the stage, because nerves or no nerves he would sing the same few minutes. Before going on, Zhang clears his mind, keeps his heart rate steady and imagines the practice room. He also credits his pianist, Artem, and the coaching he received on working with an orchestra.

Away from competitions he prefers art songs, especially Chinese ones such as “Youlan Cao” and “In the Mountains”. He says watching Liao prepare at performances in Germany and elsewhere has taught him a great deal.

After the interview, Zhang advanced to the semifinals and then to the final, which takes place on 1 November. He is one of three Chinese baritones among the 12 finalists, alongside Li Zihao and Wang Jiazhou.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit klassikom.substack.com

This is a Chinese language programme with bilingual subtitles.

Baritone Li Zihao is in the second year of a master’s in opera at the Central Academy of Drama in Beijing, where he studies with Sun Jian, best known for the opera The Savage Land by Jin Xiang, hailed at the best Chinese opera ever written. In this interview he traces his path from the piano at seven or eight, through children’s singing lessons, to the moment his changing voice led his teacher to say he would probably become a baritone.

On Operalia, he describes the competition as very famous in China and explains that Plácido Domingo founded it to give young singers a place to grow and begin their careers. He mentions the final’s prize for zarzuela, which Domingo set up in memory of his parents. Li has studied Spanish pronunciation with Spanish teachers, and he finds that Spanish arias sit close to Spanish dance music in style. Singing them lets the body sway and drive the voice, which keeps a singer from going stiff on stage and, in his view, brings only benefits.

After the interview, Li advanced to the semifinals and then to the final, which takes place on 1 November. He is one of three Chinese baritones among the 12 finalists, alongside Wang Jiazhou and ZhangGonghao.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit klassikom.substack.com