We had a fabulous success with the opening of Orfeo yesterday afternoon. It's impossible to choose between children, but this might well be the strongest and most beautiful production I've seen on our stage since The Nightingale. I'm glad that it is only the first of many collaborations with director Robert Carsen and can't wait for the fall when we will continue our mini-exploration of Gluck's operas with his production of Iphigénie en Tauride. Conductor Harry Bicket, in his third production with the COC, truly has become a member of our family by now, getting our orchestra to play like a true baroque band, on modern instruments! He's already booked for another project in the future and I hope there will be many more. And when have you heard our great chorus (led by the amazing Sandra Horst) sound better? The last opening of the season couldn't have been better.

We also had a special visitor over the weekend, Finnish composer Kaija Saariaho. Her first opera L'amour de loin is on our schedule for next season. She was in town for the Toronto premieres of two of her works at the TSO, an amazing concert with Karita Mattila and Ansi Karttunen as soloists, conducted by Hanno Lintu, a quadruple triumph for Finnish music and artists. My family and I spent the day with Kaija whom I've known since my very first beginnings in opera eleven years ago. She's a very special person and one of the great composers of our time. I look forward to having her back next year.