daniel smith

Closing night of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Cosi’ fan tutte (They’re All Like That) – a huge success. It’s time for me to get packing for my next destination! I feel like I’m always packing my bag :P Life on the road living out of a suitcase for months is making me miss my permanent home’s [...]

Opening Night. Ball gowns and Tuxedos. The sun comes up as I arrive home. A huge success and all performances have completely sold out. Cosi’ fan tutte is quite a long opera at 3.5hrs but the score is perfect. This production, conducted AND directed (yes, both) by Maestro Gelmetti brings to the public the most [...]

Hello! Here in Italy, there are many ways of saying Hello :) Buongiorno (pronounced bwon-jor-no) or Salve (pronounced sal-ve) are the most common polite ways to say Hello or Ciao (pronounced chow) is informal, more like saying “Hi”. Buongiorno is used to say “Good Day”, “Good Morning”, or “Good Afternoon” mostly. Buonasera (pronounced bwo-na-se-ra) is [...]

Before my very eyes, the Teatro dell’Opera di Roma’s 2007 production of W.A. Mozart’s Cosi fan tutte is gradually unfolding into a complete opera. The orchestra are performing, the singers, the actors, the chorus, the set, the costumes, lighting and all are present. Stagehands are constantly darting in and out of the set making last [...]

Last night I had the absolute honour and privilege to see an extraordinary human, Maestro Ennio Morricone, in concert. After performing some of his music from The Mission on countless occasions, to hear him conduct this music live, I have no words to describe how I felt. The Orchestra of Santa Cecilia here in Rome [...]