The Well-Tempered Ear
Edgewood College will live-stream its FREE Spring Celebration concert this Friday night
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By Jacob Stockinger
At 8 p.m. CDT this Friday night, April 30, the music department at Edgewood College will live-stream its FREE online Spring Celebration concert.
Here is the link: music.edgewood.edu
Here is the program:
The Edgewood Chamber Orchestra (below) will perform music by the Austrian composer Johann Nepomuk Hummel, who studied with Mozart and knew Haydn, Beethoven and Schubert (see the Wikipedia bio at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johann_Nepomuk_Hummel; Krzysztof Penderecki, a Polish composer who died a year ago March; and the Argentinean “new tango” composer Astor Piazzolla, whose birth centennial was last month. Soloists include Gwyneth Ferguson on trumpet, and Malia Huntsman on oboe.
The Chamber Singers (below) will offer selections from Broadway musicals and contemporary choral arrangements, including Lord of the Rings by Enya, works from Josh Groban, and the Polish composer Henrik Gorecki.
The Guitar Ensemble will perform Haru no Umi (The Sea in Spring) by the Japanese composer Michio Miyagi (below), and a medley from the 1970s rock group Chicago: 25 or 6 to 4/Saturday in the Park, by Mark Lamm.
The Chamber Winds will perform selections from Crooner’s Serenade; Josef Rheinberger’s Evening Song (Abendlied, in the YouTube video at the bottom); and an arrangement of John Williams’ movie score for Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
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University Opera’s original online video project celebrates the life and music of American composer Marc Blitzstein. It will be posted for FREE on YouTube this Friday night, Oct. 23, at 8 p.m.
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By Jacob Stockinger
This fall, University Opera presents its first project of 2020-21 in video format as it turns to the music of the American composer Marc Blitzstein (1905-1964).
“I Wish It So: Marc Blitzstein – the Man in His Music” will be released free of charge on the University of Wisconsin-Madison Mead Witter School of Music’s YouTube channel this Friday night, Oct. 23, at 8 p.m. CDT at the general site www.youtube.com/meadwitterschoolofmusic or the official specific link: https://youtu.be/77FXFZucrWc.
Director of University Opera David Ronis (below top) is the director of the original production and will give introductory remarks. UW-Madison graduate Thomas Kasdorf (below bottom) is the musical director. The production lasts 1 hour and 40 minutes, and features four singer-actors, a narrator and a piano.
Marc Blitzstein’s life story parallels some of the most important cultural currents in American history of the mid-20th-century.
Known for his musicals — most notably The Cradle Will Rock in 1937 (you can hear Dawn Upshaw sing the lovely song “I Wish It So” from “Juno” in the YouTube video at the bottom) — his opera Regina and his translation of Kurt Weill’s The Threepenny Opera, Blitzstein was an outspoken proponent of socially engaged art. Like many artists of his time, he joined the American Communist Party. But he also enthusiastically served in the U.S. Army during World War II (below, in 1943).
Nevertheless, in 1958, long after he had given up his Communist Party membership, Blitzstein (below) was called before the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) where he “named no names.”
An extremely gifted yet underappreciated composer, he was a close friend of and mentor to Leonard Bernstein (below right, with Blitzstein on the left) and traveled in a close circle of American composers including David Diamond and Aaron Copland.
Although openly gay, he married Eva Goldbeck in 1933. Sadly, she died three years later from complications due to anorexia.
Blitzstein’s own death was likewise tragic. In 1964, while in Martinique working on an opera about the anarchists Sacco and Vanzetti, a commission from the Metropolitan Opera, he was robbed and badly beaten by three Portuguese sailors whom he had picked up at a bar. He died the next day of internal injuries.
Although throughout his life and afterwards, Blitzstein’s work was championed by Bernstein and others, many claim that neither the composer nor his stunning music and beautiful lyrics ever received the attention they deserved. So University Opera is proud to present this show celebrating his life and his works.
“I Wish It So: Marc Blitzstein – the Man in His Music” is a unique production put together by David Ronis. A biographical pastiche, it tells the story of Blitzstein’s life by recontextualizing 23 songs and ensembles from his shows, juxtaposing them with spoken excerpts from his working notes and letters, and tying it all together with a narration.
The result is a dramatic, evocative and enjoyable portrait of Blitzstein’s life and his art, according to Ronis.
“We’ve discovered a lot of “silver linings” while working on this production,” says Ronis. “We were disappointed at not being able to do a normal staged show. But working with video has had tremendous artistic and educational value.
“Our students are learning on-camera technique, not to mention how to work with a green screen (below, with soprano Sarah Brailey), which allows for post-production editing and digital manipulation of backgrounds. They’re also working with spoken text as well as sung pieces. Mostly, we’re just very grateful to have a creative project to sink our teeth into during the pandemic.
“And the music of Blitzstein is so fantastic, we’re very happy to be able to share it with our audience. This project is like none other I’ve ever done and we’re thinking that it’s going to be pretty cool.”
Research on the project was completed at the Wisconsin Historical Society, where Blitzstein’s archives are housed. University Opera gratefully acknowledges the help of both Mary Huelsbeck of the Wisconsin Center for Film and Television Research, and the Kurt Weill Foundation for their assistance with this project.
The cast features five UW-Madison graduate students: Sarah Brailey, Kenneth Hoversten, Justin Kroll, Lindsey Meekhof (below) and Steffen Silvis.
The video design was done by Dave Alcorn with costumes by Hyewon Park.
Others on the production staff include Will Preston, rehearsal pianist; Elisheva Pront, research assistant and assistant director; Dylan Thoren, production stage manager; Alec Hansen, assistant stage manager; Teresa Sarkela, storyboard creator; and Greg Silver, technical director.
The video will be accessible for 23 hours starting at 8 p.m. this Friday, Oct. 23. Although there will be no admission price for access, donations will be gratefully accepted. A link for donations will be posted with the video.
University Opera, a cultural service of the Mead Witter School of Music at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, provides comprehensive operatic training and performance opportunities for students and operatic programming to the community. For more information, email opera@music.wisc.edu or visit music.wisc.edu.
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Madison Opera cancels its January production of “She Loves Me.” Will other groups follow suit? Plus, tonight is the last online concert by the LunART Festival of music by Black women
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ALERT: TONIGHT, Oct. 17, at 7 p.m. the third LunART Festival will wrap up with the second of its two FREE streamed “Human Family” concerts featuring the works of Black women (below). Due to popular demand, last week’s concert is still posted and available for viewing. This week’s concert will be followed by a virtual party. Here are links for information, programs and biographies: https://www.lunartfestival.org/2020virtualfestival and https://welltempered.wordpress.com/?s=LunART
By Jacob Stockinger
The coronavirus pandemic continues to slowly take its toll on local live productions during the current season.
The Madison Opera has now canceled its second production of the season, the Broadway musical “She Loves Me” by Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick, which was scheduled for late January in the Capitol Theater of the Overture Center.
Here are details from Madison Opera: “We will replace She Loves Me with a Digital Winter season that lasts from January to March. Details will be announced in December. (She Loves Me will be part of our 2021/22 season, so it’s only a delay!)”
For more about Madison Opera’s digital fall season – which costs $50 per household to subscribe to – go to: https://www.madisonopera.org/Fall2020
The next digital event is at 7:30 p.m. next Saturday, Oct. 24, by Sun Prairie bass-baritone Kyle Ketelsen (below, in a photo by Lawrence Brownlee), who has performed around the world, including at the Metropolitan Opera.
He will perform a live-streamed concert from the Madison Opera Center that will be a tribute to the American bass Giorgio Tozzi (below), who was Ketelsen’s teacher at Indiana University. (In the YouTube video at the bottom, you can hear Tozzi sing “This Nearly Was Mine” from “South Pacific” by Rodgers and Hammerstein.)
Here is Tozzi’s biography from Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giorgio_Tozzi
Soprano Emily Secor (below top) and pianist Scott Gendel (below bottom) will perform with Ketelsen.
Here is a link to details of Kyle Ketelsen’s recital: https://www.madisonopera.org/class/liveketelsen/?wcs_timestamp=1603567800
___________________________________________________________________________
The cancellation makes The Ear wonder: Are local groups and presenters being too timid or too hopeful when it comes to future plans for the current season?
After all, this past week we learned that both the Metropolitan Opera and the New York Philharmonic have canceled the rest of the current season due to public health concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic. And all indications are that it will be a very rough, unsafe winter and spring in Wisconsin and Madison.
That’s why The Ear suspects that, unfortunately, the rest of the season will either be canceled or be virtual and moved online. It even seems more than plausible that there will be no live performances until the winter or spring of 2022.
So you can probably expect further word pretty soon of more cancellations, postponements and virtual online performances from the Madison Symphony Orchestra, the Madison Opera, the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, the Wisconsin Union Theater, the UW-Madison Mead Witter School of Music, the University Opera and others.
What do you think?
Will there be operas, orchestral performances and live chamber music sometime yet this season?
When do you think it will be safe to perform and attend live concerts?
The Ear wants to hear.
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Classical music: Here is the complete concert program for the Madison Opera’s Digital Opera in the Park. It premieres online TONIGHT at 8 and stays up until Aug. 25
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By Jacob Stockinger
The 2020 edition of the Madison Opera’s annual summer event Opera in the Park (below, a photo from the past) will be virtual and online due the coronavirus pandemic and the COVID-19 public health crisis.
The concert – which can be viewed indoors or outdoors, anywhere in the country or the world — begins at 8 p.m. CDT TONIGHT, Saturday, July 25. It will remain available online until Aug. 25.
Here are links to the portals where you can watch and listen to the opera program and also join the post-concert Q&A with performers: https://www.madisonopera.org and https://vimeo.com/437164679
For more information about the 90-minute concert, and related events, as well as the performers and the donors, go to: https://welltempered.wordpress.com/2020/07/23/classical-music-madison-operas-virtual-opera-in-the-park-goes-online-for-free-this-saturday-night-and-stay-up-until-aug-25-listen-to-it-indoors-or-outdoors-to-enhance-the-experience/
HERE IS THE COMPLETE PROGRAM FOR THE EVENING
Overture | The Marriage of Figaro (W.A. Mozart; 1786)
Suzanne Beia, violin; John DeMain (below) and Scott Gendel, piano
“Quel guardo, il cavaliere” | Don Pasquale (Gaetano Donizetti; 1843)
Jasmine Habersham, soprano (below); Rolando Salazar, piano
“Un’aura amorosa” | Così fan tutte (W.A. Mozart; 1789)
Andres Acosta, tenor (below); Marika Yasuda, piano
“Ernani, involami” | Ernani (Giuseppe Verdi; 1844)
Karen Slack, soprano (below); Laura Ward, piano
“Vision fugitive” | Hérodiade (Jules Massenet; 1881)
Weston Hurt, baritone (below); Bethany Self, piano
“Aber der Richtige” | Arabella (Richard Strauss; 1933)
Jasmine Habersham, soprano; Karen Slack, soprano; Scott Gendel, piano (below)
“Au fond du temple saint” | The Pearl Fishers (Georges Bizet; 1863)
Andres Acosta, tenor; Weston Hurt, baritone; Scott Gendel, piano
“Deh vieni, non tardar” | The Marriage of Figaro (W.A. Mozart; 1786)
Jasmine Habersham, soprano; Rolando Salazar, piano
“Il balen del suo sorriso” | Il Trovatore (Giuseppe Verdi; 1853)
Weston Hurt, baritone; Bethany Self, piano
“Anvil Chorus” | Il Trovatore (Giuseppe Verdi; 1853)
Madison Opera Chorus via Zoom (below); Anthony Cao, conductor and piano
“Vissi d’arte” | Tosca (Giacomo Puccini; 1900)
Karen Slack, soprano; Laura Ward, piano
“Asile héréditaire” | William Tell (Gioachino Rossini; 1829)
Andres Acosta, tenor; Marika Yasuda, piano
“Meditation” | Thaïs (Jules Massenet; 1894)
Suzanne Beia, violin (below); John DeMain, piano
Spiritual “Scandalize My Name” | arranged by Johnnie Dean
Jasmine Habersham, soprano; Karen Slack, soprano; Scott Gendel, piano
“No puede ser” | La Tabernera del Puerto (Pablo Sorozabal; 1936)
Andres Acosta, tenor; Marika Yasuda, piano
“Vanilla Ice Cream” | She Loves Me (Jerry Bock; 1963)
Jasmine Habersham, soprano; Rolando Salazar, piano
“Some Enchanted Evening” | South Pacific (Richard Rodgers; 1949)
Weston Hurt, baritone; Bethany Self, piano
“He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands” | arranged by Margaret Bonds
Karen Slack, soprano; Laura Ward, piano
SING-ALONG FINALE: It’s a Grand Night for Singing | State Fair (Richard Rodgers; 1945)
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Classical music: Madison Opera’s virtual Opera in the Park goes online for FREE this Saturday night and stays up until Aug. 25. Listen to it indoors or outdoors
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By Jacob Stockinger
Madison Opera’s Opera in the Park isn’t in a park this year — as it has been in past years (below) — but it will be available for people to enjoy for free in their backyards, in their living rooms or anywhere else with an internet connection.
The digital concert will be released on this Saturday, July 25, at 8 p.m. CDT, and can be watched on Madison Opera’s website, www.madisonopera.org/digital, where you can find complete information and, soon, a complete program to download.
The annual free concert has moved online in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, with a newly created program of opera arias and more.
Digital Opera in the Park features: soprano Jasmine Habersham; soprano Karen Slack; tenor Andres Acosta; and baritone Weston Hurt. (The last two will sing the justly famous baritone-tenor duet “Au fond du temple saint” from Bizet’s “The Pearl Fishers,” which you can hear in the YouTube video at the bottom.)
Habersham (below) makes her Madison Opera debut with this unique performance, and will sing Susanna in the company’s production of Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro next April.
Slack (below) debuted with the company in Jake Heggie’s Dead Man Walking, and will be part of the company’s digital fall season.
Acosta (below) sang Timothy Laughlin in Gregory Spears’ Fellow Travelers with Madison Opera this past February.
Hurt (below) debuted as Germont in Verdi’s La Traviata last season and is part of the company’s digital fall season.
The four singers will be joined by several important local artists. They include violinist Suzanne Beia, the assistant concertmaster of the Madison Symphony Orchestra, the concertmaster of the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra and the second violin of the UW-Madison’s Pro Arte Quartet.
There will also be a fleet of eight pianists. They include MSO music director and Madison Opera’s artist director John DeMain (below top, in a photo by Prasad) and the UW-Madison graduate and composer Scott Gendel (below bottom). The two will play multiple numbers, including DeMain accompanying Beia on the beautiful “Meditation” from Thaïs.
Each singer recorded their arias with an accompanist in their home cities, and chorusmaster Anthony Cao (below top) both accompanies and conducts the Madison Opera Chorus (below bottom) in a virtual “Anvil Chorus” from Il Trovatore.
The evening will be hosted by Madison Opera’s General Director Kathryn Smith and by WKOW TV’s Channel 27 News co-anchor George Smith.
“Reimagining Opera in the Park in the pandemic era has been a challenge, but one we have happily embraced,” says Smith (below in a photo by James Gill). “Our wonderful artists were game to record themselves in their home towns, to sing duets with each other through headphones, and to share their artistry with our community in a new way. Over 40 choristers joined a Zoom call to get instructions, and then they recorded their parts of the ‘Anvil Chorus.’”
“While in some ways this concert has required more work than our live Opera in the Park in Garner Park, it is always a pleasure to present beautiful music for everyone to enjoy.”
Digital Opera in the Park features music from Verdi’s Il Trovatore, now canceled in live performance but originally slated to open Madison Opera’s 2020-21 season; Jerry Bock’s She Loves Me, which the company performs in January; and Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro, which will be performed in April.
The program also includes selections from Bizet’s The Pearl Fishers, Richard Strauss’ Arabella, Verdi’s Don Pasquale, Puccini’s Tosca, Massenet’s Hérodiade and Thaïs, Rossini’s William Tell, Pablo Sarozabal’s zarzuela La Tabernera del Puerto, Rodgers and Hammerstein’s South Pacific, and more.
The concert will be available beginning at 8 p.m. CDT on this Saturday night, July 25, and will remain online until Aug. 25, allowing for both repeated viewing and flexibility for people who are unable to watch on the first night.
While Digital Opera in the Park will be free to watch, it would not be possible without the generous support of many foundations, corporations and individuals who believe in the importance of music. Madison Opera is grateful to the sponsors of Opera in the Park 2020:
- Presenting Sponsor: the Berbeewalsh Foundation
- Sponsors: the John and Carolyn Peterson Charitable Foundation, Full Compass Systems, the Raymond B. Preston Family Foundation, University Research Park, Colony Brands, Johnson Financial Group, MGE Foundation, National Guardian Life, Wisconsin Arts Board, Dane Arts and the Madison Arts Commission.
- Media Sponsors: WKOW, Madison Magazine, Wisconsin Public Radio, Magic 98, and La Movida.
RELATED EVENTS include:
OPERA ON THE WALL | JULY 25, 2020 | ONLINE
Madison artists Liubov Swazko (known as Triangulador) and Mike Lroy have created artwork around our community, including beautiful murals on State Street storefronts.
In an act of artistic cross-pollination, they will create an artwork that comes from their personal response to Digital Opera in the Park, offering a rare glimpse of visual artists responding to musical artists. Their creative process will be filmed in the Madison Opera Center, and shared online starting on July 25.
The finished artwork will be displayed in the Madison Opera Center. Go to Swazko’s website at triangulador.com (one work is below) and Lroy’s website at mikelroy.com to see their past work.
POST-SHOW Q&A | JULY 25, 2020, IMMEDIATELY FOLLOWING THE INITIAL STREAM
Join Kathryn Smith and the Digital Opera in the Park artists for a post-concert discussion, including an opportunity to ask questions. Details on format and platform will be available closer to the date.
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Classical music: This summer, Madison Opera’s “Opera in the Park” will go virtual and be held online due to the coronavirus pandemic. Details will follow in early July
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By Jacob Stockinger
The Ear has received the following announcement from the Madison Opera about this summer’s annual Opera in the Park (below, in a photo by James Gill.)
“Madison Opera’s Opera in the Park will be moving online this summer in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Since the first Opera in the Park concert in 2002, it has become a Madison summer tradition, a free concert that draws over 10,000 people to Garner Park for selections from opera, Broadway, operetta and zarzuela. The 19th anniversary of this concert had been scheduled for July 25.”
(Editor’s note: As you can see in the YouTube video at the bottom, the traditional encore has the audience and soloists singing “It’s a Grand Night for Singing” from the musical “Carousel” by Rodgers and Hammerstein.)
“Opera in the Park is by far our most important performance,” says Kathryn Smith (below, in a photo by James Gill), general director of the Madison Opera. “Sharing music under the stars is a highlight of every summer, but the health and safety of our community is our first priority. After careful discussion with local officials and stakeholders, we have decided to take the necessary step of moving from an in-person performance this summer to a digital one.
“Details on the digital performance will be solidified in the coming months and announced in early July.
“Soloists to perform with the Madison Symphony Orchestra include: soprano Karen Slack (below top), who returns to Madison Opera as Leonora in Verdi’s Il Trovatore (The Troubadour) this fall; soprano Jasmine Habersham (below middle), who makes her Madison Opera debut in Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro next April; and baritone Weston Hurt (below bottom), who sang Germont in Verdi’s La Traviata last season and returns as Count di Luna in Il Trovatore next fall.
“While nothing will ever equal the magic of Opera in the Park when the hillside is full of people,” Smith says, “I know we can create something special to share, using the power of music to connect us even when we cannot gather in person.
“We look forward to returning to Garner Park next summer, and seeing a full display of everyone’s light-stick conducting skills (below).”
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Classical music: A reader urges others to donate ticket refunds to support the arts. What do you think?
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ALERT: The Wisconsin Chamber Choir has canceled its upcoming concert, “Music She Wrote,” on April 18.
By Jacob Stockinger
A reader — who prefers to remain anonymous but who has been deeply involved in the Madison arts scene for a long time — recently wrote:
“I’d like to suggest an angle for your column: Encourage subscribers to the various arts organizations and single ticket holders who can afford it NOT to ask for a refund on their upcoming cancelled concerts, if or when they are offered that option.
“I subscribe — on my own or as part of others’ subscriptions — to the Madison Symphony Orchestra (below, in photo by Peter Rodgers), the Madison Opera, the Broadway musicals at the Overture Center, Forward Theater, and the Wisconsin Union Theater’s Concert series. (I also buy a lot of single tickets to chamber music concerts by the Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society and to American Players Theatre in Spring Green.)
“As all those arts organizations cancel their concerts and plays, they still have costs. Forward Theater, for instance, is paying the full contract of all the people who were involved with the production of “The Amateurs.” And I’m glad they are.
“Personally, I will not be asking for a refund on any of the tickets I long ago purchased. I want the arts to stay healthy in Madison, and not asking for a refund is a small gesture in trying to make sure they are able to move forward.” (At bottom is the Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society, which just announced its summer schedule from June 7 to June 28 and has not cancelled anything. Go to: https://bachdancing.org)
“You reach a lot of people and you could plant a lot of powerful seeds by making this the topic of a column.”
If you are a member of a performing arts group, what do you think?
If you are a ticket holder, what do you think?
The Ear wants to hear.
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Classical music: University Opera updates and stages Mozart’s “Cosi fan tutte” on this Friday night, Sunday afternoon and Tuesday night. Plus, here are the winners of the Madison Symphony Orchestra’s Final Forte
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NEWS UPDATE: If you missed it, here are the results of Wednesday’s night Final Forte teenage concerto competition with the Madison Symphony Orchestra, which was broadcast live from Overture Hall on Wisconsin Public Radio and PBS Wisconsin (formerly Wisconsin Public Television).
First and second place prizes of a $2,000 scholarship went to pianist Michael Wu and pianist Jessica Jiang, respectively. The two runners-up — violinists Emily Hauer and Jonah Kartman — each received a scholarship of $1,000.
Here is a link to more information, photos and background – including teachers — for each of the four contestants as well as the dates for rebroadcasting the finalists’ concert on radio and TV.
By Jacob Stockinger
The prize-winning University Opera and UW Symphony Orchestra will stage three performances of “Cosi fan tutte” (So Do They All, or Women Are Like That), the late comic and seriously satirical opera by Mozart about love, gender roles and cheating on partners.
The performances are in Old Music Hall on Bascom Hill on this Friday night, Feb. 28, at 7:30 p.m.; Sunday afternoon, March 1, at 2:30 p.m.; and Tuesday night, March 3, at 7:30 p.m.
Tickets are $25 for general admission with reserved seats, $20 for seniors (62 and up) and $10 for UW students.
As usual, UW students will alternate certain roles during the three performances. (Below is returning singer Anja Pustaver, one of the three Despina’s in the production.)
The stage director is David Ronis, the head of the opera program at the UW-Madison’s Mead Witter School of Music. He has won numerous national awards during his tenure at the UW-Madison for his inventive re-imaginings of well-known operas and musicals.
The student orchestra will be conducted by Oriol Sans, the acclaimed new professor of conducting and director of Orchestral Activities at the UW-Madison. (In the YouTube video at the bottom, you can hear the Overture to “Cosi” played by the Metropolitan Opera conducted by James Levine.)
Below is a studio photo by radio host Norman Gilliland of members of the production when they appeared on Wisconsin Public Radio. From left are: conductor Oriol Sans, director David Ronis, soprano Julia Urbank and soprano Cayla Rosche.
The opera has been updated to the Roaring Twenties, at a time when the women’s suffrage movement and other women’s rights issues were gaining traction. The re-staging also seems especially timely and contemporary, given the #MeToo and Time’sUp movements.
Here is a link to the full press release with the complete cast and production staff as well as a sketch of the abstract stage set (below) designed by Joseph Varga and other information, including a detailed synopsis and an explanation of the reason for setting the opera by in the Roaring 20s: https://www.music.wisc.edu/2020/02/10/cosi-fan-tutte/
Here is a link to a shortened version – with information about tickets and parking — on the Mead Witter School of Music’s home website under Concerts and Events: https://www.music.wisc.edu/event/university-opera-mozarts-cosi-fan-tutte/2020-02-28/
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Classical music: The Madison Symphony Orchestra performs its annual gala Christmas concert this weekend and also offers a FREE community carol sing this Saturday morning
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By Jacob Stockinger
As Charles Dickens might say, the Madison Symphony Orchestra knows how to keep Christmas well.
Over many years, “A Madison Symphony Christmas” has become a popular and major annual kickoff to the holiday season in the Madison area by embracing the season with Christmas classics and new music.
Much of the event’s appeal derives from the diversity and range of the performers. This year it again features the full orchestra plus the Madison Symphony Chorus, the Madison Youth Choirs and the Mount Zion Gospel Choir.
In addition, two opera stars who have performed with the Madison Opera — tenor Mackenzie Whitney (below top) and soprano Michelle Johnson (below bottom)– return to the stage for this annual family-friendly tradition. For biographies of the two singers, go to: https://madisonsymphony.org/event/a-madison-symphony-christmas-2019/
MSO principal harpist Johanna Wienholts (below) is a featured soloist in a concerto by George Frideric Handel.
“A Madison Symphony Christmas” takes place in Overture Hall, 201 State Street, on this Friday night, Dec. 13, at 7:30 p.m.; Saturday night, Dec. 14, at 8 p.m.; and Sunday afternoon, Dec. 15, at 2:30 p.m.
Tickets are $19 to $95 with discounts available. See below for details.
NOTE: On this coming Saturday morning, Dec. 14, at 11 a.m., Greg Zelek (below, in a photo by Peter Rodgers) — the Madison Symphony Orchestra’s Principal Organist and Curator of the Overture Concert Organ — leads a FREE Community Carol Sing in Overture Hall. All ages are welcome, and no tickets or reservations are needed. Learn more at: https://madisonsymphony.org/event/free-community-carol-sing-2019/
Music director and conductor John DeMain (below) offers the following preview of the MSO concert:“This is the biggest celebration of the season in Madison and beyond. It has four different choruses and choirs as well as amazing soloists from the orchestra, the world of opera and Broadway.
“The huge Madison Symphony Orchestra will play your favorite Christmas music, and there is a great carol sing-along featuring the Overture Hall organ playing with the MSO. After this concert, you’ll want to celebrate Christmas all year long.”
The program begins with classical styles in the first half, culminating in Handel’s “Hallelujah” Chorus (heard in the YouTube video at the bottom.) The concert climaxes with a Gospel music finale, and a chance for the audience to sing along.
Works to be performed include John Rutter’s version of “O Come, O Come Emmanuel”; the “Magnificat” by Johann Sebastian Bach; Franz Schubert’s “Wiegenlied” (“Lullaby”); and music by Charles Gounod, J. S. Bach, Felix Mendelssohn, Adolphe Adam, Dan Goeller and Randol Alan Bass.
The older voices of the Madison Youth Choirs (below) are featured in works by composer Stephen Hatfield, including a version of the traditional English “Apple-Tree Wassail.”
The Madison Symphony Chorus (below, in a photo by Greg Anderson) and soloists present of medley of familiar holiday favorites, including “Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!”
Finally, the Mount Zion Gospel Choir (below, in a photo by Bob Rashid) sings arrangements for choir and orchestra by co-director Leotha Stanley, including “The Joy of Christmas,” Stanley’s version of “Silent Night,” and a newly composed song by Stanley, “Christmas Hope.”
CONCERT, TICKET AND EVENT DETAILS
The lobby opens 90 minutes prior to each concert. The MSO recommends concert attendees arrive early for each performance to make sure they have time to pass through Overture Center’s security stations — and participate in singing carols with the Madison Symphony Chorus that take place in the Overture Hall lobby (below) 45 minutes before the concerts.
Program notes are available online for viewing in advance of the concerts: http://bit.ly/msodec19programnotes
- Single Tickets are $19-$95 each and are on sale now at: https://madisonsymphony.org/event/a-madison-symphony-christmas-2019/through the Overture Center Box Office at 201 State Street, or by calling the Box Office at (608) 258-4141. Fees apply to online/phone sales.
- Groups of 10 or more can save 25% by calling the MSO office at (608) 257-3734. For more information, visit, https://www.madisonsymphony.org/groups.
- Student rush tickets can be purchased in person on the day of the concert at the Overture Center Box Office at 201 State Street. Students must show a valid student ID and can receive up to two $15 or $20 tickets. More information is at: https://www.madisonsymphony.org/studentrush
- Seniors age 62 and up receive 20% savings on advance and day-of-concert ticket purchases in select areas of the hall.
- Flex-ticket booklets of 8-10 vouchers for 19-20 symphony subscription concerts are available. Learn more at: https://madisonsymphony.org/flex
Discounted seats are subject to availability, and discounts may not be combined.
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The Well-Tempered Ear 
Classical music: Madison Opera announces its 2020-21 season and plans for Opera in the Park on July 25. Plus, today is the 50th anniversary of Earth Day. What music would you choose to mark the event?
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ALERT: Today, April 22, is the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, which was founded by Gaylord Nelson, a former Wisconsin governor and senator. To celebrate it, in the YouTube video at the bottom is “The Earth Prelude” — a long work, both Neo-classical and minimalist, with beautiful photos, by the best-selling, award-winning Italian composer Ludovico Einaudi. It has more than 2.3 million views.
What music would you listen to to mark the event? Leave suggestions with YouTube links, if possible, in the Comment section.
By Jacob Stockinger
The Madison Opera has just announced its upcoming 2020-21 season.
As usual, there are three works. The fall and spring operas take place in Overture Hall and the winter production, a Broadway musical, will use the Capitol Theater.
Below are the titles with links to Wikipedia entries for more information about the works and their creators:
Here are the titles:
“Il Trovatore” (The Troubadour) – with the popular “Anvil Chorus” — by Giuseppe Verdi (below) in Overture Hall on Friday night, Nov. 6, at 8 p.m. and Sunday afternoon, Nov. 8, at 2:30 p.m. It will be sung in Italian with projected English translations.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Il_trovatore
“She Loves Me” with music by Jerry Bock and lyrics by Sheldon Harnick (below) – the same team that created “Fiddler on the Roof” — in the Capitol Theater on Friday night, Jan. 29, at 8 p.m. and Sunday afternoon, Jan. 31, at 2:30 p.m. It will be sung in English with projected text.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/She_Loves_Me
“The Marriage of Figaro,” by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (below) in Overture Hall on Friday night, April 30, at 8 p.m. and Sunday afternoon, May 2, at 2:30 p.m. It will be sung in Italian with projected English translations.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Marriage_of_Figaro
You can see a short preview peek — with music but no word about casts, sets or production details — on Vimeo by using the following link: https://vimeo.com/398921274
For more forthcoming information about the season, go to: https://www.madisonopera.org
OPERA IN THE PARK
You may recall that this spring the Madison Opera had to cancel its production of “Orpheus in the Underworld” by Jacques Offenbach because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
What about this summer’s 19th annual Opera in the Park (below, in a photo by James Gill)?
It is still slated for Saturday, July 25, in Garner Park, on Madison’s far west side, with a rain date of Sunday, July 26.
But the opera company is being understandably cautious and says: “At this time, we are proceeding with Opera in the Park as scheduled.
“The safety and wellbeing of our community are our top priority, and we are closely following the guidelines and recommendations of public health officials. We are prepared to make necessary decisions in response to rapidly changing conditions.
“We appreciate your patience and understanding as we navigate these circumstances.”
For updates and more information about Opera in the Park, go to: https://www.madisonopera.org/2019-2020-season/oitp2020/
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