Robert Mann made his New York recital debut in 1941, just two days after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Now age 92, he is leading a series of master classes this week streamed online.

The Met's first-ever staging of Donizetti's Maria Stuarda opened on New Year's Eve, with Joyce DiDonato as the doomed Mary, Queen of Scots. "Against many odds, the opera actually meant something," writes David Patrick Stearns.

While Beethoven's "Ode to Joy" finale ushered in the New Year in rousing fashion, this Countdown also saw some surprises and notable shifts.

The year 2012 in classical music saw financial hardships, artist shuffles, disasters, scandals, openings and closings. Here's a brief look back at 2012 according to web traffic on WQXR’s Blogs.

One of its arias became the the most memorable scene in the 1993 film Philadelphia. But far too many opera lovers aren't familiar with Umberto Giordano’s verismo gem, writes Fred Plotkin.

Opera is at its most steamy when passion trumps reason. In this edition of Opera in Brief, we consider three of opera’s sexiest librettos.

The year 2012 saw the passing of singers, composers, violinists, authors and critics, among others who contributed to classical music. Click on the arrows below to scroll through the slideshow.

This glorious city, capital of the nation that gave birth to opera, has long been considered second-tier musically when compared to Milan, Venice and Naples. All of a sudden, though, that has changed.

Launch WQXR's Operavore stream this holiday season and you can enjoy an hour of Christmas and holiday pieces sung by opera stars like Marilyn Horne, Bryn Terfel, Joan Sutherland and more.

Procrastinating holiday shoppers with a taste for grandeur take note: New York City Opera began selling off its old sets this week. View a slideshow of a few highlights.

If Handel's Messiah is the quarterback of holiday music, Bach's Christmas Oratorio is the second-string walk-on. But on Sunday, WQXR gives Bach's underplayed work a starting spot in the lineup.

In this edition of Opera in Brief, we explore three operatic portraits of every day life in the mid 19th century, by Britten, Smetana and Delius.

During the 1960s and '70s, Goodyear and Firestone peddled Christmas albums in their stores, usually for a dollar each, while customers waited to get their tires changed or wheels aligned.

Life imitates art at La Scala, writes Fred Plotkin. "Lohengrin tells the story of a besieged nation whose leadership is fragile and whose freedom is imperiled."

The Rolling Stones brought their 50th anniversary tour to a close on Saturday night at the Prudential Center in Newark, NJ and joining the band was the choir of Trinity Wall Street.

Myra Huang, a pianist who frequently works with opera singers, has been named the head of music at New York City Opera, a part time position.

Blogger Marion Lignana Rosenberg lists the top five performances of 2012, plus five of the best opera recordings. And yes, there’s a lump of coal for those who served up duds.

Mimì and Rodolfo face many adversities in La Bohème – a drafty garret, a creepy landlord, tuberculosis. But all are mere annoyances compared to the L train at rush hour.

When a great operatic chorus is sung by a gifted group of singers, the choristers often play a starring role. Sometimes they even steal the show.

A London-based organization called the Opera Awards Foundation announced plans last month for an annual awards gala. Operavore blogger Fred Plotkin considers potential recipients.