For November 2026, the podcast enters the world of opera for the first time, as Paul interviews celebrated American baritone Rod Gilfry. The two discuss many topics related to opera and musical performance in general, including vocal technique and singing and speaking in dialect. They also address a dark episode from the past (castrato singing) and the present (the closure of the Kennedy Center).
Rod Gilfry is a two-time Grammy nominee, singer, and actor who performs in operas, musicals, recitals, and cabaret throughout the world. He appears on more than 30 recordings. An important part of his 75-role repertoire are the 13 leading roles he has created in new operas. Recent performance highlights include a role debut as Baron Scarpia in Puccini’s Tosca at the Houston Grand Opera, Claudius in Brett Dean’s Hamlet at the Bavarian State Opera and the Metropolitan Opera, and Owen Hart in Jake Heggie’s Dead Man Walking at the San Francisco Opera and Metropolitan Opera.
For Rod’s full bio, visit RodGilfry.com.
Below you will find the full clips referenced in this month’s podcast:
Also go here for the clip from Debussy’s Pelléas et Mélisande and here for The Merry Widow clip.
(Bach’s Cello Suite #1 in G Major BMV 1007 Prelude (by Ivan Dolgunov) is courtesy of Jamendo Licensing. Comma Gets a Cure is copyright Douglas N. Honorof, Jill McCullough, and Barbara Somerville.)
