Opera Company of Philadelphia may not exactly be La Scala, but that hasn’t stopped the company’s new young music director from thinking big. When Italian conductor Corrado Rovaris agreed to take the reins at OCP, he shook things up immediately, and has won praise for his willingness to push for what he believes are the highest artistic standards, and the free rein to achieve them. The effect has been immediate. “Many substantial opera companies rely only on visiting conductors and go for years without a music director to consistently build orchestral standards. It’s opera: Singers are the attraction… Besides raising musical standards, [Rovaris] is attracting singers whom the company couldn’t normally afford.”