by Jarrett Hoffman
It’s not an easy time for opera, to state the obvious — any new production is an achievement in itself. Immense creativity is required to prevent the spread of COVID-19, and as a result, things are bound to look and feel different from the norm.
That was the case with Oberlin Opera Theater’s pre-recorded double-bill of Gian Carlo Menotti’s comedy The Telephone and Francis Poulenc’s tragedy La voix humaine, which brought together impressive performances with sometimes inventive, sometimes puzzling decisions from director Jason Aaron Goldberg. The production, which premiered on November 6 on the Oberlin Stage Left series, remains available to watch through November 13.
Over the years I have been fortunate to hear a number of impressive double bass recitals. But when I started listening to Derek Zadinsky’s debut solo recording, 
What does an artist want you to experience when you listen to her CD? Harpist Yolanda Kondonassis is very clear about that in the liner notes for her latest recording. She wants you to be transported to “somewhere you’ve never been, but of which you might have dreamed.”