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One last time

Tomorrow may be the last chance to hear Placido Domingo sing as a tenor. PHOTO COURTESY OF SHEILA ROCK/NEW YORK METROPOLITAN OPERA

Those wanting to hear Placido Domingo sing as a tenor had better get their tickets fast as this is probably the last time he'll sing as one in Taiwan. The internationally acclaimed tenor will give a one-off concert in Taipei tomorrow night, where he will perform with Argentinean soprano Virginia Tola.

The news that Domingo is switching from tenor to baritone took the opera world by surprise when it was announced in January in Britain's Opera magazine. And if the Two Tenors and Baritone lack the snappy ring of the Three Tenors that many have become familiar with, audiences will have to get used to it when he steps out on to the stage at Berlin's Staatsoper in 2009 to reveal his new voice.

"He last came to Taiwan in 2002, and probably won't be back" until after he's switched to baritone, said Enid Chen (陳盈蓁) a spokeswoman with New Aspect Cultural and Educational Foundation (新象文教基金會), in a telephone interview.

The evening will begin with Domingo, who will sing arias from operas including Wagner's Die Walkuere and Cilea's L'Arlesiana. Tola will use her nuanced voice to sing arias from Rossini's Barbiere di Siviglia and Puccini's Tosca. The opera stars will also team up to sing from Verdi's Otello.

Concert notes: What: Placido Domingo Where: National Concert Hall (國家音樂廳), 21-1 Zhongshan S Rd, Taipei (台北市中山南路21-1號) When: Tomorrow at 8pm Details: Tickets are NT$1,500 to NT$12,000 and are available through NTCH ticketing. (As of press time, NT$1,500 to NT$4,000 tickets were sold out)

The second half of the program will see the opera stars pick up the pace and perform a selection of musical numbers taken from Lerner and Loewe's My Fair Lady and Bernstein's West Side Story.

Eugene Kohn will also return to Taipei with Domingo and Tola to conduct Taiwan's National Symphony Orchestra. Kohn last appeared in Taiwan in 2001 with Domingo and the respected American soprano Kallen Esperian.

Unlike previous concerts, tickets for Domingo's Taipei venue are in short supply. As a result, the best seats are going for NT$12,000, an aatonishing price for Taipei, though not unheard of at other venues around the world.

When asked about the high ticket prices, Chen said, "before, concerts [in Taipei] were held outside, with a lot more seats. So the ticket prices were lower. This time, only 1,500 people [will] have a chance to listen to him."

The fact that as of Tuesday tickets in the NT$1,500 to NT$4,000 range had already sold out attests to Domingo's popularity in Taiwan. "He always sells out," Chen said.

Indeed, though Chen estimates that Domingo has performed over 3,300 shows in his 40-year career, this will only be Domingo's fifth performance in Taiwan. "We invite him every year, but his last performance was in 2002," Chen said.

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