The Well-Tempered Ear

Classical music: University Opera wins a national award for its 2014 production of Benjamin Britten’s “Albert Herring.” Plus, Emanuel Ax will perform Beethoven, instead of Franck and Strauss, with the Madison Symphony Orchestra.

ALERT: Pianist Emanuel Ax has changed his program with the Madison Symphony Orchestra on March 11-13. He will perform the Piano Concerto No. 4 in G Major, Op. 58, by Ludwig van Beethoven instead of the Symphonic Variations by Cesar Franck and the Burleske by Richard Strauss. Also on the program, to be conducted by MSO music director John DeMain, is the “Colas Breugnon” Overture by Dmitry Kabalevsky and the Symphony No. 4 by Gustav Mahler with soprano soloist Alisa Jordheim.

By Jacob Stockinger

This Sunday afternoon at 3:30 p.m., in the Meeting House of the First Unitarian Society of Madison, 900 University Bay Drive, there will be an Opera Props benefit to help support University Opera.

Here is a link with more information about the event, the performers — including UW alumnus and guest Broadway “Barihunk” Christiaan Smith-Kotlarek (below) as well as UW students — and the program, which includes a reception:

https://welltempered.wordpress.com/2016/01/14/classical-music-broadway-star-and-uw-madison-alumnus-joins-students-for-the-university-opera-benefit-this-sunday-afternoon/

If you are wondering how good the cause is, you might want to know that the University Opera just won a national award from the National Opera Association for its 2014 production of Benjamin Britten’s opera “Albert Herring” (below, in a photo by Michael R. Anderson). 

The production was directed by visiting guest opera director, from New York City, David Ronis (below, in a photo by Luke Delalio), who is an applicant in the current search for a permanent full-time head of the opera program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music. Kyle Knox, a graduate student, was the conductor and music director.

This is the first such award for the UW-Madison but the fourth for David Ronis.

Here is a link to a past posting with more about Ronis and the prize-winning production:

https://welltempered.wordpress.com/2014/10/20/classical-music-qa-meet-opera-director-david-ronis-who-makes-his-local-debut-in-the-university-operas-production-of-benjamin-brittens-albert-herring-this-frid/

Here is a link to the UW-Madison‘ s “A Tempo” blog that has the full story about the award and other links as well as a lot of photos:

https://uwmadisonschoolofmusic.wordpress.com