Tag Archives: opera

Phantom From Afar, The Vienna Opera House

Posted on May 29th, 2017 by

Hopping Over

It seems a world away now. It wasn’t long ago that I would pop over for a night or two in a far away land. A stranger, visiting ever so briefly, that you might not even learn my name. These days, I seem spooked to go. Not because of anything specific, but more because the world has changed. I am still trying to feel out where and how I fit in it, but I yearn to once again find my music.

Phantom From Afar, The Vienna Opera House
Phantom From Afar, The Vienna Opera House

Photo Technical Info

  • Aperture: ƒ/8
  • Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
  • Taken: 21 March, 2014
  • Focal length: 18mm
  • ISO: 100
  • Shutter speed: 2.5s
  • Title: Phantom From Afar, The Vienna Opera House

The Sydney Opera House from the Park Hyatt

Posted on March 23rd, 2015 by

Down Under

I just returned from the most wonderful trip to Sydney, Australia! I also just celebrated my 40th birthday so I wanted to go someplace special that I had been putting off. I fly quite a bit, so I also had a wonderful surplus of Airline Miles to book a 1st class award ticket so logically Australia fit the bill! I had the wonderful fortune to get to stay right across form the Sydney Opera House at the Park Hyatt Sydney! The team at Hyatt is generally fantastic, but everyone at the Park Hyatt Sydney went out of their way to make my stay special.

Good Lines

I think I took 2000 photos of the Opera House alone. It’s not too often that a piece of architecture is SO spectacular you can just keep taking photos of the same thing and keep getting something different! Did you know the entire surface of of the exterior is actually cream and white tiles? I didn’t until I stated researching the trip. Don’t worry, there are plenty of detail shots in all those photos I took!

The Sydney Opera House from the Park Hyatt
The Sydney Opera House from the Park Hyatt

Photo Technical Info

Grand Staircase of the Vienna Opera House

Posted on December 29th, 2014 by

Ask and Ye Shall Receive

I was only in Vienna one night before my flight to Paris the next morning. I wandered the streets, finding some interesting things along the way. I was about to go back to my hotel, which was directly across the street from the Vienna Opera house, when I realized the doors to the massive building were open. When I entered in I heard the orchestra playing and only I and two young ushers were in the lobby. I asked if I could take a photo, and one of the ushers shrugged, turned around and wandered out of the scene. I ascended the stairs, setup my tripod and grabbed a few photos. Always ask before you assume photos are forbidden. You might be pleasantly surprised.

Grand Staircase of the Vienna Opera House
Grand Staircase of the Vienna Opera House

Photo Technical Info

Swarovski Window Display in Vienna Austria

Posted on November 13th, 2014 by

BEHOLD! She is Singing to Bring Down the Chandelier!

On Monday I said I was working on something a bit more colorful from my stop in Vienna, Austria and I hope this doesn’t disappoint. When I saw the color in the window of the Swarovski shop, I was working out a photo immediately…and that was before it occurred to me WHAT was going on in this wonderful window display! We are told, Ladies and Gentlemen, this IS the very Chandelier which figures in the famous….disaster!

Phantom of the Opera

Seriously, one of my favorite broadway hits of all time is Phantom of the Opera. I haven’t seen it as many times as Cats (don’t ask), but it has remained tops all these years for me. Oddly I keep referring to the mannequin as Carlotta, but everyone knows Carlotta was stricken by a mysterious bout of laryngitis and Christine had taken over the principal role in Il Muto during the fall of the Chandelier!

Swarovski Window Display in Vienna Austria
Swarovski Window Display in Vienna Austria

Photo Technical Info

  • Aperture: ƒ/8
  • Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
  • Taken: 21 March, 2014
  • Focal length: 25mm
  • ISO: 100
  • Shutter speed: 1/6s
  • Title: Swarovski Window Display in Vienna Austria

The Grand Staircase of Teatro Colon

Posted on May 29th, 2014 by

Eclectic Styling

Teatro Colon in Buenos Aires, Argentina is one eclectic place. It took many years and many architects to complete. Honestly from the stories I heard, either the BA of those times was very bohemian or the building levied some sort of curse on the architects responsible for its design. From this entrance, to the golden room to the exterior to the theater itself, you can see many different styles at work.

The Grand Staircase of Teatro Colon
The Grand Staircase of Teatro Colon

Photo Technical Info

Teatro Colón

Posted on June 24th, 2013 by

Opera

I tend to gravitate to these sorts of places. Places of cultural significant that hold a solid place in the history of a city. This is the wonderful Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires Argentina. Some of the greatest opera singers the world has known have graced this stage. This is a view from the lower orchestra pit looking back at the magnificent house. I also sort of love the oldness of places like this. There is a charm…a nuance to places with age. They have seen so much and continue to thrive. I sadly ran out of time to attend a performance I had tickets to…one of the hazards of only spending a few days in a place.

HDR Photography
Teatro Colón by W. Brian Duncan

The Civic Opera House

Posted on November 8th, 2012 by

Performance

I am no stranger to performance. I was never an actor, but I did grow up performing music. Whether piano or voice, I spend a good deal of time onstage as a youngster.

Walking Downtown

I was headed from the Blue line stop toward Millennium Park in Chicago when I saw this lovely building. I stopped to take a few pictures, it serves as the Civic Theater and Opera house, one of the largest in the country. As I moved on I crossed the river. Then I started wondering, Why did I just cross the river? I had been walking the wrong way! I turned around and walked back the way I came, “losing” nearly an hour. Serendipity lead me to this place, and somehow I am most always rewarded for taking the road less traveled. Even when that road seems like a mistake at the time. Besides when you blunder on stage, you just keep going like nothing was ever wrong, and perhaps it never actually was.

HDR Photography
The Civic Opera House by W. Brian Duncan