The Well-Tempered Ear
Classical music: Madison Opera’s “Florencia en el Amazonas” took listeners on an enchanting and moving voyage into love and fine singing of Puccini-like lyricism
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By Jacob Stockinger
Larry Wells – who is The Opera Guy for The Well-Tempered Ear blog – went to the recent production of the Madison Opera and filed this review, with photos by James Gill:
By Larry Wells
I looked forward enough to Madison Opera’s premiere production of Daniel Catán’s Spanish-language “Florencia en el Amazonas” that I attended both performances at Overture Hall this past weekend.
Based on repeated hearings of the recording and numerous favorable reviews of other productions, I was fairly certain that I would be in for a treat. I was not disappointed.
The action takes place on a boat on the Amazon heading for Manaus where the title character Florenica (below), an opera singer of high repute, is to perform.
Other passengers (below), unaware of her presence onboard, also have the opera house as their destination in order to hear her sing.
Rosalba, her unauthorized biographer, and Paula and Alvaro, a bickering older couple, are joined onboard by the Captain, his nephew Arcadio, and a Puckish character Riolobo, who acts as narrator and supervises the magic in this tale of magical realism.
Below, starting at the top and moving clockwise, are: Kanopy Dancers, Ashraf Sewailam (The Captain), Mackenzie Whitney (Arcadio), Rachel Sterrenberg (Rosalba), Elizabeth Caballero (Florencia Grimaldi), Adriana Zabala (Paula), Levi Hernandez (Alvaro) and Nmon Ford (Riolobo)
The boat (our life) floats along the Amazon (life itself) in this parable of longing, regret, the fickleness of love, love lost and regained, and transformation.
Aiding in the unfolding of the tale are water sprites, referred to at times as Amazons. Six willowy dancers from the Kanopy troupe did not seem particularly Amazonian, but their waving of billowy fabric evoked the river and their retrieving twice from the water careless Rosalba’s precious manuscript added to the magic.
Riolobo and the sprites also bring Alvaro back to life after he appears to drown during a storm. (We should be attentive to water sprites since Dvorak’s “Rusalka,” which also features these denizens, is on the schedule for next year’s season.)
And, in the end, just when you think that all conflicts have been resolved and love is at hand, the boat reaches Manaus only to find it impossible to make landfall due not only to cholera but also to rabies, scurvy, leprosy and beriberi. Florencia’s transformation into a butterfly (below) ends the voyage.
This odd but magical plot is a vehicle for lush, rhapsodic music by a Mexican composer whose life ended too soon. The orchestral and vocal writing featured soaring melodies, which at times reminded me of Puccini had his life extended further into the 20th century. The orchestral writing continually evokes the river and flowing water, reminding me of music of the Impressionists.
John DeMain ably led the wonderfully sounding Madison Symphony Orchestra. He once again proved himself to be a master of pacing, tempo and dynamics.
The opera was very evenly cast. Nmon Ford (below top on right), as Riolobo, had a rich baritone voice and an impressive physicality. His transformation at the end of the first act into a feather-clad river spirit (below bottom) was hypnotic.
As Rosalba, Rachel Sterrenberg (below, top right), who made a memorable appearance last season as the wife Chan in “Charlie Parker’s Yardbird,” was a soprano of great flexibility who rendered her character’s opulent melodic lines with mounting ecstasy. Hers was a thrilling performance.
Her foil, full-voiced tenor Mackenzie Whitney (below, bottom left) as Arcadio, produced some of the most Puccini-like moments of sheer soaring lyricism.
Their duets, including a rather dark anti-love duet, were highlights of the work. Catán’s writing for mixed voices is inspired, and all of the ensemble numbers – duets, a quintet, a septet – are entrancing.
Baritone Levi Hernandez as Alvaro and mezzo-soprano Adriana Zabala as his wife, Paula, had moments of bickering and moments of tenderness. His robust vocalization perfectly complemented the creamy richness of hers. Zabala’s second act lament was very touching.
Bass Ashraf Sewailam, in his debut appearance with Madison Opera, produced some of the best singing of the show. He was both profound and lyrical with a total lack of affectation. His acting was subtle, and his outstanding performance demands his return.
Elizabeth Caballero as the diva Florencia Grimaldi was impassioned, focused yet fluid, sumptuous and rapturous. Her ravishing singing, particularly during her metamorphosis — heard in another production in the YouTube video at the bottom — was truly moving.
The set, lighting, projections and costumes were all understated and perfectly blended. The only false step was what appeared to be coffins flying through the air out of Manaus. It took me a moment to realize they were intended to be floating in the river.
The audience seemed enchanted and moved by the opera. I was, too. Let’s have more works like this.
Tags: #AmazonRiver, #AntoninDvorak, #CharlieParker'sYardbird, #DanielCatan, #ElizabethCaballero, #FlorenciaenelAmazonas, #GiacomoPuccini, #JohnDeMain, #KanopyDanceCompany, #LarryWells, #MadisonOpera, #MadisonOperaChorus, #MadisonSymphonyOrchestra, #NmonFord, #OperaSinger, #OrchestralMusic, #OvertureCenter, #SpanishLanguage, #TheImpressionists, #TheWelltemperedEar, acting, affectation, Amazon, Arts, audience, baritone, beriberi, bicker, biographer, biography, blog, butterfly, captain, cast, character, Charlie Parker, cholera, choral music, Classical music, coffin, Compact Disc, composer, costume, couple, Daniel Catan, destination, duet, Dvorak, dynamics, ecstasy, enchanted, fabric, feather, Florencia en el Amazonas, hearing, Jacob Stockinger, Jazz, John DeMain, Kanopy, Larry Wells, leprosy, life, lighting, Love, lush, lyrical, lyricism, Madison, Madison Opera, Madison Symphony Orchestra, magic realism, magical, manuscript, melodic, melody, metamorphosis, Mexico, moved, Music, narrator, nephew, older, opera, opulent, Orchestra, orchestral, Overture Center, pacinbg, parable, passenger, perform, performance, physicality, plot, premiere, production, profound, projection, Puccini, Puck, quintet, rabies, ravishing, realism, recording, review, rhapsodic, rich, river, Rusalka, scurvy, Season, septet, set, show, singer, Singing, soprano, Spanish, spirit, sprite, storm, tale, tempoo, tenor, The Well-Tempered Ear, thrilling, title, transformation, treat, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, vocal music, voice, water, weekend, wife, Wisconsin, work, YouTube
Classical music: University Opera’s “La Bohème” proves a complete success on all counts – from the staging and the costumes to the singing and the orchestra
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By Jacob Stockinger
The Opera Guy for The Ear went to the University Opera’s performances of “La Bohème” on Friday and Saturday nights so he could sample both student casts. He filed this review, which is accompanied by photos taken by Michael R. Anderson for the University Opera.
By Larry Wells
I attended the first two of the three performances of University Opera’s production of Puccini’s “La Bohème.” This production made use of the expansive and technically advanced Shannon Hall in the Wisconsin Union Theater. Deservedly, the hall was nearly full for both of the performances I attended.
Director David Ronis decided to update the setting to Paris in the mid-1920s primarily using posters, wigs and wonderful costumes to suggest the decade. Joseph Varga’s beautiful and clever single set incorporated ingenious slight changes act by act to suggest the opera’s various settings. Along with Sruthi Suresan’s subtle lighting design, the production was a visual delight.
Ronis’ able hand was evident in the players’ acting. The cast was consistently believable, and consequently I was drawn into their world and suffered along with their despair over love’s inconsistencies and death’s sting. Using my acid test for a performance’s success, I never glanced at my watch either night. I was fully engaged.
The orchestra was a marvel. Conductor Chad Hutchinson let it soar when it was appropriate, but the orchestra never overshadowed the singers. In fact, the key term that kept occurring to me both evenings was balance. The acting, the back-and-forth between the singers, and the interplay between the orchestra and the singers were consistently evenhanded.
As for the singers, the primary roles were double cast. Friday’s Mimi was Shaddai Solidum whose first aria “Mi chiamano Mimi” was a lesson in the mastery of legato. Saturday’s Mimi was Yanzelmalee Rivera who possesses a bell-like voice of remarkable agility.
Benjamin Liupaoga as Rodolfo sang a fine opening aria – “Che gelida manina” – with finesse and credibility. José Muñiz’s Rodolfo was initially restrained, but soared to great heights in the second act. (Below are Jose Muniz and Yanzelmalee Rivera as Rodolfo and Mimi.)
The interactions between Mimi and Rodolfo were believable, touching, and musically magical. The duet at the end of the first act “O soave fanciulla” was uplifting both evenings. I always marvel at the Wagnerian chord progression. The audience was so enthusiastic Saturday night that its applause nearly drowned out Mimi and Rodolfo’s offstage “Amor! Amor!”
I feel that Musetta is the hardest role to convey successfully. She has to come off as a combination of carefree and needy in the second and third acts and then compassionate and vulnerable in the final act. Katie Anderson and Claire Powling both handled the acting and the vocalizing with aplomb. The singing in the ensemble after Musetta’s Waltz at the end of the second act was outstanding. Below foreground are, left to right: Claire Powling (Musetta), Michael Kelley (Waiter), Jake Elfner (Alcindoro)
Matt Chastain’s Marcello was dark and brooding while James Held’s was more carefree and pragmatic. Both were able singers, and I found their ensemble work exceptional. In fact, the duets, trios, quartets and ensemble scenes throughout the opera were uniformly terrific.
The minor characters and the choruses were all excellent. But special praise must go to Benjamin Schultz-Burkel as Colline whose small aria in the fourth act (below) was a true showstopper. In the death scene finale of Act 4, left to right, are: James Held (Marcello), Claire Powling (Musetta), Jose Muniz (Rodolfo, kneeling), Yanzelmalee Rivera (Mimi), Benjamin Schultz-Burkel (Colline, standing)
My major piece of advice to the singers would be to trust their training. Some of the singers seemed initially tentative, but when they let themselves go they were fantastic. (Below is Yanzelmalee Rivera as Mimi.)
The program lists “Into the Woods” as University Opera’s production next spring in conjunction with the UW theater department. Although I personally look forward to it, I wonder about the blurring between opera and musical theater.
In any event, I was very pleased by both performances and give my heartfelt congratulations to the casts and staff for a memorable musical and theatrical experience. But I had to laugh at the supertitle for one of Mimi’s lines: “I wish the winter would last forever.”
Tags: #GiacomoPuccini, #LaBoheme, #MeadWitterSchoolofMusic, #RichardWagner, #UniversityofWisconsin-Madison, #UniversityOpera, #WisconsinUnionTheater, 1920s, acid, acid test, acting, advanced, agility, aria, Arts, balance, believable, bell-like, carefree, cast, Chad Hutchinson, choral music, chord, Chord progression, Classical music, compassionate, composer, congratulations, costume, credibility, critic, David Ronis, death, decade, delight, design, despair, drama, evening, final, finesse, Friday, hard, hardest, height, inconsistencies, inconsistency, interplay, Into the Woods, Jacob Stockinger, laugh, lighting, Love, Madison, magical, memorable, Musetta's Waltz, Music, musical, Musical theater, needy, opera, Orchestra, Paris, performance, player, Poster, production, progression, Puccini, remarkable, review, role, Saturday, set, Shannon Hall, singer, singers, sting, suffering, supertitle, symphony, technical, tenttive, test, theater, touching, training, trust, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, visual, vocal music, vocalizing, voie, vulnerable, Wagner, Wagnerian, Waltz, watch, wig, winter, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Union Theater, world
Classical music: Opera supertitles turn 35 and will help audiences this coming weekend at the University Opera’s three performances of “La Bohème.” Plus UW percussionists perform new music Tuesday night
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ALERT: On this Tuesday night at 7:30 p.m. in Mills Hall. the UW-Madison Western Percussion Ensemble will perform a FREE concert with new works by eight student composers — six from the percussion ensemble and two from the composition department.
By Jacob Stockinger
February is proving to be Opera Month in Madison.
Just over a week ago, the Madison Opera staged its production of “The Abduction From the Seraglio” by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.
This Friday night at 7:30 p.m., Saturday night at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday afternoon at 3 p.m., in Shannon Hall of the Wisconsin Union Theater, the University Opera will stage its production of what is certainly the most popular opera in the repertoire: “La Bohème” by Puccini.
For more information about the production of “La Bohème,” including staging information, the cast and tickets ($10-$38), go to:
https://union.wisc.edu/events-and-activities/event-calendar/event/la-boheme/#additional
https://www.music.wisc.edu/event/university-opera-puccinis-la-boheme2-23/
In both cases, English supertitles (below) were used. For Mozart, they translated German. This weekend they will make the Italian-language production, set in Paris in the 1930s, much more accessible.
Today we take them for granted, even in English language productions where you can’t always understand the words because of the singing.
Occasionally, they prove frustrating because they fall behind the singing or skip repeated passages or black out or even have a howler of a mistranslation.
But by and large, supertitles seem so normal and natural these days, so standard and so much easier than gazing in the dark at translations of the libretto in small type.
They were first used in 1983 by the Canadian Opera Company’s production in Toronto of “Elektra” (below) by Richard Strauss.”
Audiences loved them, and supertitles help to explain the subsequent popularity of opera.
Yet in the early days supertitles faced a major struggle, largely waged by purists, before they were widely accepted. Now they seem indispensable.
That’s all the more reason, then, to read or listen to the background story that recently appeared on National Public Radio (NPR) about the 35th anniversary of supertitles.
Here is a link:
Do you support or oppose the use of supertitles?
Do you like them and find them helpful?
Would you be less likely to attend an opera without supertitles?
Please put any reaction or observations in the COMMENT section.
The Ear wants to hear.
Tags: #GiacomoPuccini, #LaBoheme, #MadisonOpera, #MeadWitterSchoolofMusic, #NewMusic, #RichardStrauss, #UniversityofWisconsin-Madison, #UniversityOpera, #WisconsinUnionTheater, #WolfgangAmadeusMozart, 1930s, Abduction From the Seraglio, anniversary, Arts, Canada, cast, Cello, choral music, Classical music, composer, Composition, Elektra, English, English language, ensemble, Friday, German, information, Italian, Jacob Stockinger, La bohème, libretto, Madison, NPR, opera, Orchestra, Paris, percussion, production, Puccini, repertoire, Richard Strauss, Saturday, Singing, small, stage, staging, Sunday, supertitle, supertitles, symphony, Toronto, translate, translation, Tuesday, type, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, University Opera, Viola, Violin, vocal music, weekend, Western, western Percussion Ensemble, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Union Theater, word, YouTube
Classical music: This Saturday’s “Live From the Met in HD” features a new and controversial production of Puccini’s “Tosca.” Here is some background plus a review
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By Jacob Stockinger
This Saturday starting at 11:55 a.m., “Live From the Met in HD” will broadcast the Metropolitan Opera’s new production of the popular and classic opera about love and politics, “Tosca” by Puccini.
In Madison, the production will be screened at the Point Cinemas on the far west side and the Marcus Palace Cinemas on the east side in Sun Prairie.
(The recorded encore presentation at both cinemas is next week, on Wednesday, Jan. 31., at 1 and 6:30 p.m.)
Running time is 3 hours 35 minutes including two intermissions.
Admission is $22, $18 for seniors.
The opera will be sung in Italian with supertitles and subtitles in English, German, Spanish and Italian.
The production — previewed below by the director Sir David McVicar — has been a history of controversy, especially given various cast changes and cancellations.
For this performance, the leads are soprano Sonya Yoncheva as Tosca (singing the aria “Vissi d’arte” in the YouTube video at the bottom), tenor Vittorio Grigolo as Cavaradossi and baritone Zeljko Lucic as Scarpia.
Here is a link to background provided by the Met:
http://www.metopera.org/Season/2017-18-Season/tosca-puccini-tickets/
Here is a link to a synopsis and cast notes:
http://www.metopera.org/metoperafiles/season/2017-18/operas/tosca/Tosca_HDsynopsis_Global_dates.pdf
The New York Times published a big preview and background story:
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/28/arts/music/tosca-met-opera-james-levine.html
And here is a review, also from The New York Times:
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/01/arts/music/tosca-metropolitan-opera.html
Tags: #NewYorkTimes, #TheMet, Arts, background, baritone, Broadcast, cancellation, cast, choral music, cinema, classic, Classical music, composer, controversy, director, encore, English, film, German, HD, hi def, History, Italian, Jacob Stockinger, live, Love, Madison, Marcus Corporation, Metropolitan Opera, Metropolitan Opera Live in HD, movie, Music, New York City, New York Times, note, opera, Orchestra, Politics, popular, preview, Puccini, review, screen, sing, singer, Sonya Yoncheva, soprano, Spanish, subtitle, supertitle, synopsis, tenor, The New York Times, Tosca, United States, Vittorio Grigolo, vocal music, week, YouTube
Classical music: Live radio broadcasts from the Metropolitan Opera start their 87th season with the Verdi Requiem at NOON this Saturday on Wisconsin Public Radio.
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By Jacob Stockinger
What is the longest-running classical music broadcast on American radio?
If you said the live Saturday matinee broadcasts from the Metropolitan Opera (below) in New York City, you got it right.
So, does that qualify the Met, and opera in general, as pop culture?
Does it do anything to reassure those who worry about the future of opera and classical music?
Anyway, the 87th broadcast season starts again on Wisconsin Public Radio this Saturday morning and runs through May 5.
Of course, not there are also the popular and more cinematic broadcasts of “Live From the Met in HD.” But many listeners still prefer the radio — which is FREE — to help them focus on the music, not the visual and theatrical aspects, and to use their imagination more.
On Saturday at the usual time of NOON — not 11:05 a.m. as was mistakenly first published here — the Met features a performance of the dramatic Requiem by opera great Giuseppe Verdi (below). (You can hear the operatic Dies Irae, or Day of Wrath, section in the YouTube video at the bottom.)
The Requiem will be conducted by James Levine (below), the now retired longtime artistic director of the Met.
The 90-minute performance will dedicated to the famed Russian baritone Dmitri Hvorostovsky (below bottom), who died two weeks ago from a brain tumor at age 55. For more information about the late singer, go to:
For as complete schedule of the works to be performed, which include well-known standards by Mozart, Rossini, Donizetti, Bellini, Verdi, Puccini, Wagner and Richard Strauss as well as a contemporary work by Thomas Adès, go to the WPR website:
https://www.wpr.org/metropolitan-opera-begins-its-87th-broadcast-season
Tags: Adès, Arts, Bellini, Brain, brain tumor, Broadcast, cancer, choral music, cinema, Classical music, composer, day, dedicated, Dmitri Hvorostovsky, Donizetti, drama, dramatic, future, Gaetano Donizetti, Giuseppe Verdi, imagination, Italy, Jacob Stockinger, James Levine, listener, Live From The Met in HD, matinee, Metropolitan Opera, Mozart, Music, New York City, opera, Orchestra, performance, pop, pop culture, Puccini, Radio, Requiem, Rossini, Saturday, schedule, Season, standard, Strauss, theater, theatre, theatrical, tumor, United States, visual, Wagner, Website, Wisconsin, wisconsin public radio, work, WPR, wrath, YouTube
Classical music: University Opera stages a compelling and fully engaging cabaret of Kurt Weill songs
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By Jacob Stockinger
The Ear’s friend and colleague, The Opera Guy, has filed the following review.
By Larry Wells
I attended a nearly full-house opening of University Opera’s “A Kurt Weill Cabaret” Friday night in Music Hall on Bascom Hill.
The 90-minute show was comprised of about 20 numbers from the body of works by Weill (below, in a photo from the German Federal Archive. The ensembles, solos and duets were arranged into three sections with a loose narrative structure linking the pieces.
Throughout the evening I was unaware of the passage of time, which is one of my acid tests for a good performance. Likewise, I felt fully engaged.
Many of the numbers will be familiar to Weill’s fans. The well-known “Whiskey Bar/Alabama Song” was the opening solo for Sarah Kendall, who performed it more as a Puccini aria than as the world-weary, boozy Jenny. It was a novel and strangely compelling interpretation.
(Kendall performing “Whiskey Bar” with the company, is below in a photo by Michael R. Anderson, who took all the performance photographs)
More convincingly conveyed was “I’m a Stranger Here Myself” performed by the sprightly and clear-voiced Emily Weaver. “My Ship” sung by Miranda Kettlewell (below right, singing the Ice Cream Sextet with Alec Brown) was perfectly enunciated and movingly sung.
Since there were no supertitles, clear enunciation was a problem in a couple of the performances.
Likewise, mention should be made of Emily Vandenberg’s haunting rendition of “Surabaya Johnny.” (You can hear the legendary Weill interpreter Lotte Lenya sing “Surabaya Johnny” in the YouTube video at the bottom.)
My favorite performances of the evening included “‘Youkali” by Talia Engstrom. My notes simply said “Perfection.” And my perennial favorite Courtney Kayser (below) did not disappoint with “J’attends un navire” and “Denn wie man sich bettet.” She is an excellent actress, possesses outstanding musicianship, and commands a clearly focused voice.
The women singers seriously overshadowed the men’s solo performances. I was wondering why that might have been. One possibility is that the men, who are trained operatically, find that they need to scale back their vocal projection for lighter vocal fare and in doing so sound constrained.
(Below, from back to front and left to right, are: Alec Brown, Jeff Larson, Jake Elfner, Sarah Kendall, Talia Engstrom, Matt Chastain in the “Benares Song.”)
Having said that, I thought Matt Chastain’s “Oh the Rio Grande” from the not well-known “Johnny Johnson” was both well sung and amusing to watch.
My companion admired the voice and acting of Alec Brown, and we both believed that Tim Emery is a dead ringer for a young Jimmy Stewart.
Some of the most compelling moments were the ensembles from Weill’s heavier works. “The Benares Song” highlighted Weill’s gravitas as a composer as did “Zu Potsdam unter den Eichen” from “Das Berliner Requiem.”
The cast members’ acting and vocal skills came to the forefront in these ensembles. (Below is “Zu Potsdam unter den Eichen” with Matt Chastain, Miranda Kettlewell, Alec Brown, Tim Emery, Emily Weaver, Eliav Goldman and Jeffrey Larson in the foreground).
Daniel Fung (below top) heroically provided the piano accompaniment without slacking for even a moment. Kudos to him. He was joined by a string bass and drum all conducted by Chad Hutchinson (below bottom) with unflaggingly appropriate tempi and dynamics.
This was the seventh production by David Ronis (below in a photo by Luke Delallio) for University Opera at the UW-Madison, and his consistently novel approach to the productions has made each one a joy. His commitment to quality and novelty is admirable.
I am eager to see what Ronis has in store for us this coming spring with “La Bohème” to be staged at the Wisconsin Union Theater.
I highly recommend attending “A Kurt Weill Cabaret,” which will be repeated this afternoon at 3 p.m. and Tuesday evening (Halloween night) at 7:30 p.m. Admission for the general public is $25; $20 for seniors; and $10 for UW students.
For more background and information about getting tickets, go to:
http://www.music.wisc.edu/2017/09/27/university-opera-presents-a-kurt-weill-cabaret/
Tags: accompaniment, actress, admission, Alabama Song, archive, aria, Arts, bass, Benares, Berlin, Berliner Requiem, booze, cabaret, Chad Hutchinson, choral music, Classical music, commitment, composer, conductor, David Ronis, double bass, drum, duet, dynamics, ensemble, enunciation, fan, favorite, federal, Friday, German, German Americans, Germany, heroic, ice cream, interpretation, Jacob Stockinger, James Stewart, Jimmy Stewart, kudos, Kurt Weill, La bohème, Lotte Lenya, Madison, men, Music, Musician, musicianship, narrative, night, note, novelty, opera, Orchestra, perennial, perfection, performance, photo, photograph, Piano, piece, Potsdam, production, Puccini, quality, Requiem, Rio Grande, senior, sextet, sing, singer, skill, solo, song, Spring, stranger, string, structure, Student, supertitle, Surabaya Johnny, tempi, Tempo, ticket, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, University Opera, vocal music, voice, weary, Whiskey Bar, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Union Theater, women, world, world-weary, YouTube
Classical music: The University Opera performs an unusual and original Kurt Weill cabaret this coming Friday night and Sunday afternoon and next Tuesday night
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By Jacob Stockinger
This fall, University Opera is taking a short break from strictly operatic offerings – in the spring it will stage Puccini’s “La Bohème” — as it turns to the music of Kurt Weill (1900-1950).
No ordinary medley, A KURT WEILL CABARET is an organized pastiche of 21 solos and ensembles from many diverse works by Kurt Weill (below, in a photo from the German Federal Archive), and will be presented at Music Hall on the UW-Madison campus at the foot of Bascom Hill.
(One of the most famous and popular Kurt Weill songs to be performed, “Alabama Song,” once covered by the rock band The Doors in the 1960s, can be heard performed by Lotte Lenya in the YouTube video at the bottom.)
Performances are this Friday, Oct. 27, at 7:30 p.m.; this coming Sunday, Oct. 29, at 3 p.m.; and next Tuesday night, Oct. 31, at 7:30 p.m.
University Opera director David Ronis (below, in a photo by Luke Delalio) will direct the show.
Chad Hutchinson (below), adjunct professor of orchestras, will conduct.
Musical preparation will be by UW-Madison collaborative pianist and vocal coach, Daniel Fung (below bottom).
Tickets are $25 for the general public; $20 for seniors; and $10 for UW students.
Here is a link to a full-length press release from the Mead Witter School of Music at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. It has information about the performers and the program as well as historical background about Kurt Weill and how to purchase tickets.
http://www.music.wisc.edu/2017/09/27/university-opera-presents-a-kurt-weill-cabaret/
For more information in general about University Opera, got to:
http://www.music.wisc.edu/opera/
Tags: 1960s, 60s, adjunct, Alabama, Alabama Song, archive, Arts, background, Bascom Hill, cabaret, Campus, Chad Hutchinson, choral music, Classical music, coach, collaborative, collaborative piano, composer, conductor, Daniel Fung, David Ronis, director, ensemble, famous, federal, Germany, historical, History, Jacob Stockinger, Kurt Weill, La bohème, Lotte Lenya, Madison, Mead Witter School of Music, medley, Music, Music Hall, musical, offering, opera, Orchestra, ordinary, original, pastiche, performance, performer, Piano, popular, preparation, press, press release, professor, program, public, Puccini, purchase, release, Rock, rock band, rock music, senior, solo, Student, The Doors, ticket, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, University Opera, unusual, video, Viola, Violin, vocal, vocal music, Website, Wisconsin, YouTube
Classical music: The annual showcase benefit for University Opera, with student performers and famed bass-baritone alumnus Sam Handley, is this Sunday afternoon
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By Jacob Stockinger
Students in the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s opera program will present the annual “Showcase Concert” of songs and arias this Sunday, Sept. 24, at 3 p.m. at the First Unitarian Society of Madison’s Meeting House, 900 University Bay Drive.
They will be joined by bass-baritone Sam Handley (below top), a well-known alumnus now living in Chicago, and accompanist Daniel Fung (below bottom).
The program includes:
Samuel Handley in the “Calumny” aria from Rossini’s “Barber of Seville” and the song “Her Face” from Merrill’s show “Carnival”
John McHugh in “Donne mie” (Mozart’s “Cosi fan tutte”)
Shaddai Solidum in “The Jewel Song” (Gounod’s “Faust”)
Grace Subat in “Far From the Home I Love” (Bock’s “Fiddler on the Roof“)
Sarah Kendall in “Mi chiamano Mimì” (Puccini’s “La Bohème“)
Benjamin Liupaogo (below) in the “Flower Song” (Bizet’s “Carmen”)
Liza Shapin in “I Walked in the Path Where Jesus Walked”
Matthew Chastain in “Questo amor” (Puccini’s “Edgar”)
Yanzelmalee Rivera in “Dondi lieta” (Puccini’s “La Bohème”)
Also the trio “Soave sia il vento” (from Mozart’s “Così fan tutti”) will be sung by Solidum, Subat and Handley; and the duet “Libiamo” (from Verdi’s “La Traviata“) will be sung by Rivera and Liupaogo.
Sam Handley has been praised for “his rich, burnished” voice and the “genuine emotional depth of his characterizations.” The Houston Chronicle has described his “vivid and polished singing” as “leaving the audience panting.”) You can hear him in the YouTube video at the bottom, where he sings the “Calumny” aria that he will also perform at this event.
A contribution of $30 at the door ($10 for students) is requested for this benefit concert.
A reception of chocolate, cheese, wine and punch will follow the concert and is included in the donation. (Below are the participants from last year with David Ronis, third from left in the back row, who is the director of the University Opera.)
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Classical music: Famed opera diva Kiri Te Kanawa says she will not be singing in public anymore
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By Jacob Stockinger
It happened a year ago.
But since then Dame Kiri Te Kanawa (below), the celebrated soprano and opera diva, has kept her insight to herself: She would not sing again in any kind of public performance.
She is 73, so the news is not surprising.
But it is disappointing.
Much as The Ear admires superstar soprano Renée Fleming, he preferred Te Kanawa’s tone, phrasing and vibrato. He particularly liked her voice in operas and other music by Mozart, Puccini and Richard Strauss. (You can hear her in her prime singing the aria “O mio babbino caro” by Puccini in the YouTube video at the bottom.)
But whatever your preference, seeing such a career come to an end is a sad milestone, however inevitable.
Perhaps the best story about the New Zealand artist’s retirement that The Ear has seen came in The Guardian. Here is a link:
And here is a column about retirement in various fields, including professional sports, that praises Te Kanawa’s decision and timing:
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/sep/13/kiri-te-kanawa-bowed-out
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Classical music: Today is Labor Day. Opera San Jose brings classical music into the workplace – can we try that here? Plus, you can take a WQXR poll about what music is best to mark the holiday
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By Jacob Stockinger
Today is Labor Day (celebrated below by famed photographer Lewis Hine.).
The holiday probably won’t be celebrated in a big way by the blowhard billionaires and anti-union tycoons who run the government these days.
But workers can be and should be proud of what they do—despite the wealth gap, wage stagnation, unfair taxes, income inequality and a general lack of respect and support.
The Ear, however, has two offerings for the holiday.
The first is a story about how Opera San Jose is bringing classical music into the workplace of high technology companies like Adobe in Silicon Valley.
The opera company has started a program called “Arias in the Office” (below). And it sure sounds like a fine idea that other local groups – especially small chamber music groups – might try doing here in the Madison area.
Talk about taking music to the people if the people aren’t going to the music!
And let’s not forget that composing music, performing music and presenting music are all hard work too. So we should also celebrate the musicians, the administrative and box office staffs, the stagehands, the light and sound engineers, the sets and costume people, and all the others who toil behind the scenes for our pleasure.
The story was reported by NPR (National Public Radio) and can be found on the radio station’s website and Deceptive Cadence blog:
http://www.npr.org/sections/deceptivecadence/2017/08/30/544164183/new-pop-up-series-treats-silicon-valley-workers-to-opera-at-the-office
The second is a listener poll, now three years old, done by the famed classical music radio station WQXR in New York City.
It is a survey of classical music that is appropriate for Labor Day and features three generous examples in YouTube videos — an opera by Giuseppe Verdi, a symphony by Franz Joseph Haydn and a film soundtrack by Virgil Thomson.
But it also has about two dozen other choices– including music by Handel, Schubert, Copland, Joan Tower, Robert Schumann, Gershwin, Shostakovich and others — for the public to select from, and a lot of comments from other respondents that you might want to check out.
Here is a link:
http://www.wqxr.org/story/poll-what-music-best-captures-spirit-labor-day/
Happy Labor Day!
And if you have another piece of music that you think is appropriate, let us know in the COMMENT section.
The Ear wants to hear.
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