Is Italy the new maestro source?

Elizabeth Braw in the Economist spots a trend in Gianandrea Noseda’s Washington appointment. Suddenly, she says, everyone’s buying Italian – the Concertgebouw, Zurich, San Francisco Opera…. and there are more to come:

When “The Barber of Seville”, one of the most beloved works in the opera repertoire, opens at the Opéra National de Paris next month, it will be conducted by a young Italian, Giacomo Sagripanti (pictured). The Paris Opera’s production of another favourite, “La Traviata”, will be conducted by yet another, Michele Mariotti, while Mr Luisotti and Pier Giorgio Morandi will conduct “Rigoletto” and Daniele Calligari will conduct “Il Trovatore”.

According to Marco Armiliato, a Genoa-born conductor, Italy is experiencing what he calls the Federer Effect: one famous practitioner inspiring lots of younger people to pursue the same path.

Read here.