David Adam Moore as Stanley Kowalski(Photo @dabva)
The Teatro Colón has announced its 2019 season, which will include barihunk David Adam Moore as Stanley Kowalski in Andre Previn’s A Streetcar Named Desire, in what will be the South American premiere of the opera. Moore has had great success with the role at both the Lyric Opera of Chicago and the Virginia Opera.
The opera is based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning play by Tennessee Williams and has become a showcase for barihunks, including Gregory Gerbrandt, Dan Kempson, Rod Gilfry, Ryan McKinny, Teddy Tahu Rhodes and Jordan Shanahan.
A Streetcar Named Desire was premiered at the San Francisco Opera
in 1998 with Rod Gilfry as Stanley and its become one of the most
popular contemporary American operas in the repertory. It has gone on to
see performances in New Orleans, Kentucky, Carnegie Hall in New York San Diego, Washington D.C.,
San Francisco (Merola Opera), Cleveland, Chicago, Santa Barbara,
Honolulu and Virginia Opera. It had it European premiere in Strasbourg
in 2001 and its U.K. premiere in 2003, with subsequent performances
throughout Europe and in Tokyo.
The Teatro Colón cast will also include Sarah Jane McMahon, Eric Fennell, and Victoria Livengood. Performances run from May 7-14, 2019
Michael Todd Simpson in WNO's Carmen(Photo Credit: Scott Suchman)
The Washington National Opera will open its 2015-2016 season on September 19th with a new staging Bizet's Carmen featuring barihunk Michael Todd Simpson as Escamillo. Simpson is returning to the company after successful performances as Alvaro in Florencia in the Amazon and Gaylord Ravenal in Show Boat. Simpson has sung Escamillo at The Met, Seattle Opera and the Glimmerglass Festival.
He'll be joined by thrilling heroic tenor Bryan Hymel as Don José. Clémentine Margaine as Carmen and Janai Brugger as Micaela. They will alternate with a cast that includes Aleksey Bogdanov as Escamillo, Rafael Davila as Don José, Géraldine Chauvet as Carmen and Jacqueline Echols as Micaela. Also in the cast is fellow barihunk Kenneth Kellogg who will sing Zuniga.
After his run as Escamillo, Simpson returns to his current home of Seattle to sing Cecil in Donizetti's Maria Stuarda. He then heads off to Dallas to sing Gaylord Ravenal in Show Boat with the Dallas Opera.
Erwin Schrott as Jean Procida in Les vêpres siciliennes
Last month we chose the performance of Verdi's Les vêpres siciliennes at Covent Garden as the production that we'd most like to see during the Verdi bicentenary. The cast was lead by barihunk Erwin Schrott as Jean Procida, along with an amazing cast that includes tenor Bryan Hymel as Henri
andsoprano Lianna Haroutounian as Helene under the baton of Antonio Pappano.
The opera is now being screened worldwide during the month of December for opera lovers across the globe to enjoy. You can find a performance close to you by clicking HERE.
Les vêpres siciliennes is in five-acts and was originally
written in French for the Paris Opéra. It was translated into Italian
shortly after its premiere in June 1855. The libretto was written by
Eugène Scribe and Charles Duveyrier from their work Le duc d'Albe, which was written in 1838 and offered to Halevy and Donizetti before Verdi agreed to set it to music in 1854.
The story is loosely based on a historical event, the Sicilian Vespers
of 1282, using material drawn from the medieval Sicilian tract Lu rebellamentu di Sichilia.
After its June 1855 Paris premiere, an Italian libretto was quickly
prepared using a new title because Verdi realized that it would have
been impossible to place the story in Sicily. Based on Scribe's
suggestions for changing the location, it became Portugal in 1640 while
under Spanish control. This version was first performed at the Teatro
Regio in Parma on December 26, 1855.
Schrott can next be seen in his signature role of Dr. Dulcamara in Donizetti's L'elisir d'amore at the Vienna State Opera, Teatro Real in Madrid and Metropolitan Opera in New York.
Baltimore Ravens kicker Justin Tucker has some major accomplishments under his belt for only being 23 years old. In 2011, while playing for the University of Texas, he kicked the game winning field goal against arch rival Texas A&M University as the clock expired. A year later, he won a Super Bowl ring as the undrafted kicker of the Baltimore Ravens. Tucker also kicked a 47-yard field goal in double-overtime to win the AFC championship against the Denver Broncos.
Tucker hasn't just made a name for himself with his legs, he also has a serious set of pipes. A music major at the University of Texas, Tucker claims he can sing opera in seven different languages (English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Latin and Russian). He showed off his Italian skills recently by singing "Deh vieni alla finestra" from Mozart's Don Giovanni for Dr. Pepper's "1 of a Kind" web campaign, which debuted on YouTube last week.
Tucker's musical training is actually in recording technology and he records hip-hop and dubstep beats. He even did some freestyle rapping for the Dr. Pepper video. Tucker’s
relationship with Dr. Pepper started last year after he posted a picture of a can he
was drinking from on Instagram after a game in San Diego with the message, "Nothin like a frosty cold Dr. Pep after a road win!"
We want to thank all of our readers for a successful year and to all of you who bought our 2012 Barihunks Charity Calendar. Our goal on this site is to support young artists and to support the art form of opera. We sell tee shirts, CDs and calendars on this site and give every penny of profit to support baritones, who we feel have wrongfully lived in the shadow of tenors and sopranos for too long. We love that this site has brought baritones to the forefront of numerous discussions about opera. Our favorite comment of the year came from a composer who told us, "Thanks to your site, I'm now writing leading roles for baritones."
It's time to celebrate our our "Top 25 of 2012."
1. HOTTEST PHOTO: DOUGLAS WILLIAMS - DELETED AT ARTIST REQUEST
2. MOST POPULAR: DUNCAN ROCK
When we asked readers to email us with suggestions for our "Top 25" feature our inbox was filled with messages titled "Duncan Rock." The star of "Don Giovanni: The Opera" at London's Heaven nightclub, proved that he's not just a hot body by winning the £10,000 Chilcott Award given to a “major young artist with the potential to make an international impact.” He gets an outrageous number of hits on our site and we look forward to following his career in years to come.
3. HOTTEST NEWCOMER(S): VASIL GARVANLIEV, GORDON BINTNER & AUBREY ALLICOCK
Vasil Garvanliev
There are few singers who photograph better than Canadian Vasil Garvanliev, who
we discovered while he was singing at Opera Atelier. Of course, Opera
Atelier has become famous for their sexy, provocative marketing
campaigns that often features models in various states of undress. We've always maintained that with Garvanliev on the roster, they don't need to hire models. He made the role of Caspar in Weber's Der Freischütz sexy, which is an accomplishment in itself.
Aubrey Allicock
There are few premieres in 2013 that we're anticipating more than the world premiere of Champion
at Opera Theatre of St. Louis. Aubrey Allicock
will star as bisexual boxer Emile Griffith in an opera written by jazz great Tereence Blanchard
with a libretto by playwright Michael Cristofer and co-starring mezzo
Denyce Graves. Allicock became an instant fan favorite at the Opera Theatre where he played Mamoud in The Death of Klinghoffer in 2011 and the Mad Hatter in Alice in Wonderland
in 2012. We're pretty sure that Allicock is going to look pretty hot in any shirtless scenes playing Griffith.
Gordon Bintner
Canada seems to churn out hot, young talent at an almost incomprehensible rate. Gordon Bintner just finished his first year at the esteemed Merola Opera Program in San Francisco and charmed audiences with his Golden Voice and Golden Boy looks. He recently won $5,000 as the winner of the Canadian Opera Company’s Ensemble
Studio Competition and another $1,500 for taking home the coveted People’s Choice Award. Bintner performed Non più andrai from Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro and Sibilar gli angui d’Aletto from Handel's Rinaldo.
4. BEST OPERA(S): DER FREISCHÜTZ AT OPERA ATELIER AND L'ELISIR D'AMORE IN GRAZ
Graz's Elixir was co-produced with Valencia and Madrid and the sets look
like a beach party on a Mediterranean beach resort, with giant cans of
beer, bars, beach balls, lifeguards, cheerleaders, shirtless boys,
women in bikinis and a foam party. Best of all, it featured the Tyrolean barihunk Andrè Schuen who frolicked around shirtless much of the time. The innovative Graz production featured sets by Paolo Fantin and costumes by Silvia Aymonino, with energetic directing from Damiano Michieletto.
Vasil Garvanliev backstage
As with any Opera Atelier production, they managed to create a
sensuous production that brought Weber's often stodgily
performed piece to life. Robert Harris of the Toronto Globe & Mail wrote, "The point of the
Wolf’s Glen scene is to shock and amaze, and the sight of a dozen
seemingly naked bodies, rushing across the stage, waving banners,
writhing in torment, haunting Max (and us) certainly did the trick. But
did so in a way that never overwhelmed the production, instead
heightening its spooky, frightening ambiance."
5. BARIHUNK FEAST: ERWIN SCHROTT, DMITRI HVOROSTOVSKY & ILDAR ABDRAZAKOV AT TENOR CHARLES CASTRONOVO'S CD RELEASE PARTY
Schrott, Hvorostovsky, Castronovo and Abdrazakov (Photo Credit: Charles Martin)
This year's barihunk feast occurred offstage when Erwin Schrott, Dmitry Hvorostovsky and a newly toned and buff Ildar Abdrazakov showed up to tenor Charles Castronovo's CD release party at 54 Below. Castronovo's CD "Dolci Napoli" is availableonline.
6. BEST READER SUBMISSION: BELTRAN IRABURU
Beltran Iraburu
We keep saying that our best posts come from readers and 2012 was a record year for submissions, but few could top the smoking hot 37-year-old
Spanish baritone Beltrán Iraburu. He earned his Master's degree in Musicology from the University of
Valladolid in Spain before studyng in Milan. He's performed throughout Spain with a number of opera companies, as
well as singing the complete set of Monteverdi's madrigals with La
Capilla Real de Madrid. He is currently living and working in Paris.
7. HOTTEST TEE SHIRT MODEL(S): ZACHARY GORDIN & DAN KEMPSON
Zachary Gordin
Few singers caused quite the sensation that Californian Zachary Gordin created sporting his BARIHUNK tee shirt. In fact, the photo landed him an offer to sing in Australia next year. The gym buff was probably the hottest Monterone in Rigoletto and Silvio in Pagliacci ever when he took on those roles at the Sacramento Opera this year. He'll be singing at San Francisco's Old First Church Concert Series in "Season of Love" on January 19th along with soprano Cathleen Candia.
Dan Kempson's chose to model his BARIHUNK tee shirt with his chest showing and he ended up making men and women swoon across the globe. Other than Duncan Rock, Kempson received the most gushing praise from readers for our "Top 25" feature. Kempson, another former Merola graduate, has the brains to match his voice and is destined for a long, successful career in this business. [Pictured at top of this post].
8. BEST FEATURE ON BARIHUNKS: MÄNNER MAGAZINE
"SHOW ME YOUR SIXPACK"
We continue to receive a generous amount of press, but nothing outdid the photo-filled spread in Germany's largest gay periodical, MÄNNER magazine. We weren't nuts about being called a fetish site, but who could argue with the intelligent article about sex and opera, as well as all those delicious photos? By the way, every photo is also featured in our calendar.
9. BEST "BARI-CHUNK TO BARI-HUNK" TRANSFORMATION: CHRIS CARR
Chris Carr: before and after Sparticus
Any singer who has ever encountered barichunk to barihunk Michael Mayes has probably been dragged into a gym against their will and came out a few weeks later ripped to the nines. Chris Carr shared his before and after photos and became an inspiration to other singers. We received this email from a soprano,"Just saw the Chris Carr photos. I'm skipping the bagel shop, hitting the gym and committing to losing 35 pounds." Chris also performed in a master class this year with our favorite diva Joyce DiDonato.
10. BEST BARIHUNK DRAG QUEENS: SETH CARICO & MICHAEL MAYES
Michael Mayes (L) and Seth Carico (R)
Michael Mayes doesn't just look good in muscle shirt and gym shorts, he wears a dress well, too. We couldn't stop laughing when we saw barihunks Michael
Mayes and Seth Mease Carico show up to a promotional event for Mark
Adamo's "Lysistrata" at the Fort Worth Opera Festival looking like a cross between a Ukranian
mezzo-soprano and a Wal-Mart shopper from Nacogdoches, Texas. Mayes and Carico are two of the greatest guys in the business and stunts like this is why they are beloved by their colleagues.
11. BEST SOLO CD: SIMON KEENLYSIDE'S "SONGS OF WAR"
Simon Keenlyside in The Tempest and his new CD "Songs of War"
We can't say it better than review Stephen Pritchard from The Observer, "Despite the title, most of the songs in this admirable collection are
anything but warlike. There is no place for patriotic bombast here;
instead, these polished miniatures yearn for a vanished pastoral England
and express nobly romantic notions of love, fidelity and the human
spirit. Vaughan Williams, Butterworth, Gurney, Ireland, Warlock and
Somervell are all represented, but Simon Keenlyside and Malcolm
Martineau do not limit themselves to England's whimsical finest, finding
room for astringent examples from Ned Rorem and Kurt Weill as well.
It's a beautifully judged recording, exquisitely sung; poignant but
never sentimental."
12. BEST COMPLETE OPERA: DON GIOVANNI
Let's face it, without Mozart's Don Giovanni, we would have a lot more spare time on our hands at Barihunks. How often do we find three gorgeous barihunks cast together in this opera as Don Giovanni, Leporello and Masetto? This recording featured the rich bass-baritone of Luca Pisaroni as Leporello, with his crystal clear diction, warm tone and perfect comic timing. Ildebrando D’Arcangelo brings a darker sound that we often hear as Don Giovanni along with rhythmic precision and an Italianate sensuality AND sexuality that is lacking in many performances. The addition of Konstantin Wolff as Masetto is luxury casting in an already delightful recording that belong in any music collection.
13. BEST MOVIE RELEASE: KASPER HOLTEN'S "JUAN"
Christopher Maltman in JUAN
If you live in the U.K., you're in luck because Kasper Holten's truncated and updated version of Don Giovanni, Juan, was FINALLY released on DVD. Unfortunately, if you live in the U.S. the DVD has Region 2 encoding and won't play on most equipment. However, we figured out how to make it play on a Mac and we can now enjoy Christopher Maltman's bum along with everyone across The Pond.
14. BEST HOMEMADE VIDEO: "THE MOST WONDERFUL MEMES"
Another Canadian who we're unabashedly crazy about is our calendar's Mr. July Jonathan Estabrooks. He's one of the most creative and interesting performers around. He travels with his video camera and hosts "A Singer's Life" on YouTube (you really should subscribe). His video of "The Most Wonderful Memes" went quasi-viral, garnering over 14,000 views in its first eight days. We tried to start an online movement to get him on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, which was one of his goals. It hasn't happened yet, but we're not giving up. If anyone can make opera appealing to the next generation, it's Estabrooks. ELLEN, IF YOU'RE READING THIS, PLEASE BOOK HIM!
15. OUR FAVORITE HUMANITARIAN HUNK: CHRISTOPHER HERBERT
Christopher Herbert: all-around good guy
Christopher Herbert just can't seem to pass up helping out a noble cause. He played a huge role with "Sing for Hope," whichwas "founded by opera singers with a desire to lift their voices for
social change, Sing for Hope mobilizes world-class artists – from
classical musicians to photographers to Broadway performers – who donate
time and talent in volunteer service programs that benefit schools,
hospitals and communities."
On November 10th, he pitched in again singing "Quoniam" from Bach's B Minor Mass with the "Music at Trinity Wall Street" series.The Hurricane Sandy relief concert benefited the
Mayor’s Fund to
Advance New York City, which is gathering donations to provide essential
living supplies to New Yorkers in need – including food, water,
blankets, baby supplies and other emergency items. You can still donate by visiting www.nyc.gov/fund.
16. BEST BARIHUNK DOCUMENTARY: PHILIPPE SLY "IN DREAMS, EN RÊVES, IN TRÄUMEN"
We were mesmerized by this 15-minute documentary about the making of Philippe Sly's first studio
album with renowned pianist Michael McMahon. The film was lovingly produced by his brother Mathieu Sly, who appears to be as gifted a filmmaker as his brother is a singer.
Another Canadian and another singer from the Merola Opera Program, Sly becomes a member of the prestigious Adler Fellowship Program at the San Francisco Opera where he will make his mainstage debut as Guglielmo in 'Così fan tutte' under music director Nicola Luisotti. He also will tour Canada in recital with the Debut Atlantic Series.
17. OUR FAVORITE WAGNERIAN: GREER GRIMSLEY
Greer Grimsley as Wotan
Fans of the late, great Wagnerian soprano Birgit Nilsson used to say, "You just HAD to hear her live to believe that voice!" Well, the same can be said of the world's reigning Wotan, Greer Grimsley. An imposing man with an imposing voice, he will undoubtedly leave a lasting impression on your eyes and your ears. People on both coasts are excited about
Grimsley's 2013 schedule as he showcases his heralded portrayal of
Wotan in Richard Wagner's Ring Cycle. On May 4th, he'll open in the Ring Cycle at the Metropolitan Opera before returning to Seattle on August 4th to reprise the role. Seattle Opera's award-winning production is inspired by the natural
beauty of the Pacific Northwest and has been a sold-out success in 2001,
2005 and 2009. Order you tickets online. By the way, we're going to be there!
18. BEST HUNK OVER 60 (MAKE THAT 70!): SAMUEL RAMEY
Samuel Ramey as Attila
In March 2012, Samuel Ramey turned 70 and he's still singing! One of the most beloved singers in the business, he shows no sign of letting up. Although he's traded in barihunk roles like Attila and Don Giovanni for age appropriate roles like Pope Leo I in Attila, Basilio, Sarastro and Timur, he's still a hot ticket for opera lovers. He'll be singing Timur in Puccini's Turandotat the Met in January and the title character in Bartok's Bluebeard's Castle in Omaha in April. Many of our readers consider him the original barihunk for his portrayal of Mefistofeles in Boito's opera, as well as his Attila.
19. HOTTEST UNDERWEAR MODEL: TIMOTHY MCDEVITT
Timothy McDevitt: Will Calvin Klein be calling?
Timothy McDevitt recently took some gorgeous photos with professional photographer Charles Quiles whose work is definitely worth checking out. We love it when professional photographers see opera singers as underwear models, because if THAT doesn't change the image of opera being a bunch of fat ladies with horns, nothing will. The increasingly buff singer has had a busy year since graduating.
He just wrapped up performing in Jonathan Dawe’s COSÌ FARAN TUTTI (They’ll All Do It!) a prequel to Mozart's Cosi fan tutte. Highlights for McDevitt from earlier this year include Philip Glass' Les Enfants Terribles with the North Carolina Opera, Virgil Thomson's Four Saints in Three Acts
with the Mark Morris Dance Group at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, and
appearances at the Swiss Ball and Lotus Club in New York. 20. OUR FAVORITE DIVAS: JOYCE DIDONATO, SUSAN GRAHAM & ANNA CATERINA ANTONACCI
Joyce DiDonato
We get asked all to often if we only like baritones. The short answer is "NO." However, we do feel that baritones have been historically overlooked and under-appreciated. After decades of attending the opera, it dawned on us that the best eye candy on stage was almost always the baritone. With that said, there are three female singers who we practically worship for both their amazing voices and incredible presence on stage.
Joyce DiDonato is our "Honorary Barihunk" and her quote from Twitter graces our homepage. Nothing she does is anything short of spectacular. On her latest disc "Drama Queens," she sings Semiramide who conquers Asia and parts of Africa after her husbanddies, Mary Stuart who in a Catholic fervor plots to kill the English monarch, Fredegund who strangled her rival and succeeded her as queen and Cleopatra who reigned over Egypt for 21 years. She imbues every character with her luscious mezzo and great dramatic purpose. What's not to love?
Gorgeous, statuesque and blessed with unbelievable dramatic instincts, Susan Graham can dominate a stage regardless of who is singing opposite to her. Her Dido's in both the Berlioz and Purcell operas are unmatched in our time and arguably of any other time. One could also make a claim that her Iphigéniein Gluck's Iphigénie en Tauride is probably unsurpassed in the history of opera. For an American, her French lieder has more luster and shine than any French singer we can think of.
Anna Catarina Antonacci
You only have to see her once on stage and you'll never forget Anna Catarina Antonacci. Undefinable as a mezzo or a soprano, she inhabits roles the way Maria Callas and Leonie Rysanek did a generation or two before her. Remarkably, she's earned this reputation while singing a heavy dose of baroque and bel canto operas, which are often not known for featuring great singing actresses.
21. OUR FAVORITE TENORS: NOAH STEWART, ED LYON & GLENN SEVEN ALLEN
Noah Stewart
If there's one question that we admittedly get tired of it's, "Why don't you feature tenors." Somehow the whole "bari" part of barihunks gets lost on some people. We also frequently get emails from tenors who say, "Somehow I'm going to get on your site." And occasionally we sneak one onto the site.
So who are our favorites?
Let's start with Noah Stewart, one of the nicest guys in the business and a MAJOR talent to be reckoned with. His debut recording NOAH made him the first black musician to top the U.K. classical charts. Another Merola graduate, he's gone on to become a fan favorite at the Michigan Opera Theater. He's prompted a few opera glasses to be raised with shirtless portrayals of Nadir in Bizet's Les Pecheurs de Perles and Radames in Verdi's Aida.
English tenor Ed Lyon
Let's face it Ed Lyon almost single-handedly tempted us to start blogging about Hunkentenors. We love him for being an out gay man and unafraid to pose without his shirt on. The British singer got his first big break when baroque specialist William Christie cast him in Handel's 'Hercules' at the Barbican. We particularly love him because he shares our view about where opera needs to go. He told Time Out magazine, "Telly and cinema have made a big impact on the way we view other forms.
The idea that opera is just fat people getting up to sing is a complete
fallacy. The days of park and bark are over - we don't just waddle up
and sing from where we're standing, we also have to act convincingly."
Glenn Seven Allen
OK, we confess! Glenn Seven Allen is one of those tenors who we were dying to find an excuse to post. We snuck him in our post about the aforementioned Tim McDevitt's performance in COSÌ FARAN TUTTI. Equally at home in opera or a Broadway stage, Allen originated the role of Giuseppe in Adam
Guettel's The Light in the Piazza, a role for which he was
responsible during the initial year of the show's Tony-winning
Broadway run.
22. & 23. WORST OPERA AND WORST DIRECTOR: DON GIOVANNI/MICHAEL GRANDAGE
Michael Grandage and his dull Don Giovanni
One of our tenets at Barihunks is to keep everything positive. We feel that singers work too hard and spend too much money and time training only to get torn apart on blogs. However, we admit that every so often we want to be bitchy and pithy like our respected counterparts at Parterre Box. We've decided to hold our tongues until our year end list, but we have some doozies to get off of our chests.
Our first gripe is so bad that we're not only combining two into one, but we're repeating a criticism from last year. Our biggest disappointment in 2011 was director Michael Grandage sucking the life and sexual tension out of Billy Budd at Glyndebourne. We respect his work as a director of straight theater like his work on Frost/Nixon, but we were hoping that he would stay away from opera.
Fear struck us when we learned that he was directing Don Giovanni at the Met this year. We hoped that Billy Budd was an anomaly, but the reviews quickly confirmed our worst fears. NY Times critic Anthony Tommasini wrote, "There is nothing particularly gripping about Mr Grandage's work here." The New York Observer called it "disastrously dull, a non-event," The Financial Times panned it as "essentially unimaginative," and the Associated Press summed it up as "disappointing, dull." With bright young talents like John De Los Santos and Damiano Michieletto, we're baffled why opera companies seem so tempted by Grandage and his habit of making opera an interminable experience.
24. OUR BIGGEST GRIPE: PLACIDO, LEAVE BARITONE ROLES TO BARITONES!!!
Placido Domingo as Rigoletto
We know that we're treading on sacred ground here, but we have a message for Placido Domingo. Can you PLEASE leave the baritone roles to baritones? Mr. Domingo, you will go down in history as one of the ten greatest tenors of all time. And that's the point, you'll you down in history as a tenor. We're sure it's a bit of ego, as you're already the most recorded singer in history and we're sure that you'd like to have the largest list of roles when you retire. However, other than I Due Foscariin Los Angeles, your baritone portrayals have brought nothing revelatory to any role. Singers have a tough enough time getting work without you poaching the baritone repertory. Admittedly, we're a bit bitter because we cancelled a trip to the Washington Opera because it is heresy to us to hear a tenor sing Orest in Gluck's Iphigénie en Tauride. We love you, but stick to what you do best.
25. OUR FAVORITE THING: YOU
Opera obviously wouldn't exist without devoted fans like you. We encourage you to keep attending the opera and to give to the arts, even if it's only a few dollars or euros. We love our readers more than you can imagine. Your clever emails and "Reader Submissions" make it a pleasure to keep this blog going. We've thought about retiring this site more than once, but inevitably a new singer or a great performance comes along that inspires us to keep posting. (Sometimes it's a really hot photo!).
A special THANK YOU to all of you who bought a Barihunks calendar. This is a fun way for us to raise money, engage singers, show off some skin and support the arts. Many of you have begged us to do a "full monty" calendar. Although we easily know of a dozen singers who would participate, the calendar is bought by everyone from grandmothers and mothers, brothers and sisters, husbands and wives, artistic administrators, music schools and fans of sexy men. We can't tell you how many times we've seen one hanging up in an office and even the elderly saleslady at the Santa Fe Opera gift shop mentioned it to us.
You can show your appreciation to us by buying a calendar today and we'll keep the site alive AND continue to support your favorite singers!
