The Well-Tempered Ear
Classical music: This Sunday afternoon, the annual Opera Props Showcase features well-known alumna Ariana Douglas and current UW students singing arias from great operas and musicals
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By Jacob Stockinger
The annual University Opera’s Student Showcase will take place this coming Sunday afternoon, Sept. 22, at 3 p.m. at the Madison Christian Community, 7118 Old Sauk Road, on the far west side.
Tickets are $30 if purchased in advance or $35 if purchased at the door; and $10 for students. Additional ticket information is provided at the website UWOperaProps.org
The event is sponsored by UW Opera Props, the friends group that helps support the opera program at University of Wisconsin-Madison.
The benefit opera program, the concert will feature guest artist and soprano alumna Ariana Douglas (below). In addition, eight current voice students will join Douglas in a program assembled by David Ronis, the Karen K. Bishop Director of Opera at UW’s Mead Witter School of Music.
UW-Madison piano graduate student Thomas Kasdorf, who coaches the singers, will provide the piano accompaniment.
The concert will include arias and duets by Puccini, Offenbach, Rodgers and Hammerstein, Wagner, Mozart, Gounod, Verdi and others.
Ariana Douglas is well known for her “clarion sound and striking stage presence” in performances at Milwaukee’s Florentine Opera (Zerlina in “Don Giovanni,” Mrs. Vance in Aldridge’s “Sister Carrie,” and, upcoming in October, Susanna in “The Marriage of Figaro”).
Next April, she will sing Diana in Jacques Offenbach’s “Orpheus in the Underworld” for the Madison Opera.
And after two summers in the Glimmerglass Festival’s Young Artists program, she was invited last year to return to help workshop J. Tesori’s highly anticipated opera “Blue,” which premiered there this July.
In the YouTube video at the bottom, you can hear Ariana Douglas perform while still a UW student. She sings the famous Puccini aria “O mio bambino caro” with the UW Varsity Band under now-retired director Mike Leckrone, who admired Douglas’ big, expressive voice and invited her to perform at the band’s huge annual concerts in 2013.
In short, says one OperaProps organizer, “Douglas seems to getting fine reviews everywhere. And student recruiting seems to be successful, with the students getting more impressive every year lately.” (Below is the group of Showcase students in 2018 with director David Ronis on the far right.)
Here is the program, with performers and pieces, that is subject to change:
Lindsey Meekhof – “C’est l’amour vainqueur” from (Offenbach: Les contes d’Hoffmann)
Benjamin Galvin – “Amorosi miei giorni” (Donaudy)
Ariana Douglas – “Quando m’en vò” (Puccini: La bohème)
Benjamin Hopkins – “A mes amis” (Donizetti: La fille du régiment)
Shelby Zang – “If I Loved You” (Rodgers and Hammerstein: Carousel)
DaSean Stokes – “Winterstürme” (Wagner: Die Walküre)
Julia Urbank – “Parto, parto” (Mozart: La clemenza di Tito)
Ariana Douglas – “Till There Was You” (Meredith Wilson: The Music Man)
Cayla Rosché – “Nun eilt herbei” (Nicolai: Die lustigen Weiber von Windsor)
Benjamin Galvin – “If Ever I Would Leave You” (Lerner and Lowe: Camelot)
Carly Ochoa – “Je veux vivre” (Gounod: Roméo et Juliette)
DaSean Stokes – “Deep River” (Spiritual)
Ariana Douglas and Benjamin Hopkins – “Libiamo” (Verdi: La traviata)
Tags: #ArianaDouglas, #BassBaritone, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #BroadwayMusical, #Carouselmusical, #CharlesGounod, #ConcertProgram, #DavidRonis, #DeepRiver, #DonGiovanni, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #FlorentineOpera, #GaetanoDonizetti, #GiacomoPuccini, #GiuseppeVerdi, #GlimmerglassFestival, #GuestArtist, #JacquesOffenbach, #LaBoheme, #LaTraviata, #LernerandLowe, #MadisonChristianCommunity, #MadisonOpera, #MarriageofFigaro, #MeadWitterSchoolofMusic, #MeredithWilson, #Mezzo-sopranoSinger, #MikeLeckrone, #MilwaukeeWisconsin, #OperaAria, #OperaBlue, #OperaProps, #OrpheusintheUnderworld, #PianoAccompaniment, #PianoAccompanist, #RichardWagner, #RodgersandHammerstein, #RomeoandJuliet, #SisterCarrie, #SopranoSinger, #StagePresence, #Sundayafternoon, #TenorSinger, #TheMusicMan, #TheValkyries, #ThomasKasdorf, #UniversityofWisconsin-Madison, #UniversityOpera, #UWVarsityBand, #VocalMusic, #WolfgangAmadeusMozart, #YoungArtists, #YouTubevideo, accompaniment, accompanist, alumna, aria, Ariana Douglas, bass, bass-baritone, benefit, blog, blue, Broadway, Camelot, Carousel, Charles Gounod, Christian, coach, community, Concert, David Ronis, Deep River, Don Giovanni, Donnizetti, duet, Facebook, far, festival, Florentine Opera, forward, friends, fundraiser, Giacomo Puccini, Giuseppe Verdi, Glimmerglass Festival, Gounod, group, guest artist, huge, information, Jacques Offenbach, La bohème, La Traviata, Lerner and Lowe, like, link, Love, Madison, Madison Christian Community, Madison Opera, Marriage of Figaro, Mead Witter School of Music, Meredith Wilson, Mezzo-soprano, Mike Leckrone, Milwaukee, Mozart, musical, Nicolai, Offenbach, opera, Opera Props, Orpheus in the Underworld, Otto Nicolai, Pianist, Piano, post, posting, program, Puccini, reader, recruit, Richard Wagner, road, Rodgers and Hammerstein, Romeo and Juliet, share, showcase, sing, singer, Sister Carrie, solo, soprano, Sound, spiritual, stage, stage presence, Student, subscriber, Sunday afternoon, support, tag, tenor, The Music Man, The Valkyries, Thomas Kasdorf, ticket, University of Wisconsin–Madison, University Opera, UW Varsity Band, UW-Madison, Varsity Band, Verdi, voice, Wagner, Website, west side, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, word, workshop, young artist, YouTube
Classical music: Madison Bach Musicians summer workshops in early music are open to the public. A faculty concert is on Wednesday night and a FREE all-participants concert is on Friday at 12:30 p.m.
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REMINDER: Madison Opera’s annual Opera is the Park was cancelled last night because of weather and takes place TONIGHT in Garner Park at 8 p.m. For more information, go to: https://welltempered.wordpress.com/2019/07/15/classical-music-madison-operas-annual-free-opera-in-the-park-returns-this-saturday-night-july-20-in-garner-park-and-celebrates-18-years-in-madison-plus-a-glimpse-of-the-upcoming-season/
By Jacob Stockinger
The fifth annual Madison Bach Musicians Summer Chamber Music Workshop (below, a cello class from last year) will be held from Monday, July 23, to Friday, July 26, at the West Middleton Lutheran Church, 3763 Pioneer Road, in Verona, Wisconsin.
The workshop is chaired by MBM assistant artistic director and baroque violinist Kangwon Kim (below), who says: “I’m excited to welcome 32 participants, our largest number ever, working in nine chamber groups this summer to share a week of intense music-making and learning.
” We will explore wonderful repertoire from the baroque and early classical periods, both familiar and rarely performed, while working intensely in an encouraging community that will support musical growth.”
Harpsichordist JungHae Kim (below top) from San Francisco and baroque violist Micah Behr from Madison will join returning faculty members recorder player Lisette Kielson, cellist Martha Vallon (below bottom), dance instructor Karen McShane-Hellenbrand, and MBM founder, artistic director and keyboardist Trevor Stephenson.
Musicians who range in age from 13 to older adulthood will receive personalized ensemble coaching in violin, viola, baroque cello, viola da gamba, piano, fortepiano, harpsichord and recorder. (You can sample the Madison Bach Musicians in the YouTube video at the bottom.)
The public is invited to an evening Faculty Concert and various afternoon classes exploring continuo playing, specific instrument master classes, stage presence for musicians, sight-reading, baroque dance, and more.
The Faculty Concert on Wednesday night, July 23, at 7:30 p.m. will feature works by Carl Heinirch Graun (below top), Francesco Turini, Jean-Henri D’Anglebert (below bottom), Georg Philipp Telemann, Joseph Bodin de Boismortier and Henry Purcell on period instruments. Admission is $15 at the door.
The all-participants final concert of the music from the workshops is on Friday, July 26, at 12:30 p.m. It is FREE and open to the public.
An Auditor’s Pass for afternoon programming for the entire festival — including the Faculty Concert — is $40.
For more information, go to: https://madisonbachmusicians.org/summer-workshop/
Tags: #ArtisticDirector, #BaroqueCello, #BaroqueContinuo, #BaroqueDance, #BaroqueMusic, #BaroqueRecorder, #BaroqueViola, #BaroqueViolin, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #CarlHeinrichGraun, #ChamberGroup, #ChamberMusic, #ChamberMusicians, #ChoralMusic, #ChristianChurch, #Classicalperiod, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #FacultyConcert, #FacultyMember, #FrancescoTurini, #GarnerPark, #GeorgPhilippTelemann, #HarpsichordMusic, #HenryPurcell, #HistoricallyInformedPerformancePractices, #HomeWebsite, #InstrumentalMusic, #Jean-HenriD'Anglebert, #JohannSebastianBach, #JosephBodindeBoismortier, #JungHaeKim, #KangwonKim, #KarenMcShane-Hellenbrand, #LastYear, #LisetteKielson, #MadisonBachMusicians, #MadisonOpera, #MadisonOperaChorus, #MadisonSymphonyOrchestra, #MadisonWisconsin, #MarthaVallon, #MeadWitterSchoolofMusic, #MicahBehr, #Music-Making, #OperaArias, #OperaInThePark, #OperaMusic, #PeriodInstruments, #SanFrancisco, #SanFranciscoCalifornia, #StagePresence, #TrevorStephenson, #UniversityofWisconsin-Madison, #VeronaWisconsin, #VioladaGamba, #VocalMusic, #WestMiddletonLutheranChurch, #YouTubevideo, admission, adult, adulthood, afternoon, age, annual, Artistic director, Arts, attend, audience, auditor, Bach, Baroque, baroque dance, blog, Boismortier, California, Carl Heinrich Graun, cellist, Cello, chamber group, Chamber music, chamber musicians, choral music, Christian, church, Classical music, Classical period, community, composer, Concert, continuo, D'Anglebert, dancer, door, early, Early music, evening, excited, explore, Facebook, faculty, faculty concert, faculty member, familiar, festival, fifth, fortepiano, forward, founder, Francesco Turini, free, Friday, Garner Park, Georg Philipp Telemann, Graun, group, growth, harpsichord, Henry Purcell, historically informed performance practices, information, instrument, instrumental, intense, Jacob Stockinger, Jean-Henri D'Anglebert, Johann Sebastian Bach, Joseph Bodin de Boismortier, Jung Hae Kim, Kangwon Kim, Karen McShane-Hellenbrand, Keyboard, largest, last year, learn, learning, like, link, Lisette Kielson, Madison, Madison Bach Musicians, Madison Opera, Madison Opera Chorus, Madison Symphony Orchestra, Martha Vallon, master class, masterclass, MBM, Mead Witter School of Music, member, Micah Behr, Middleton, Music, musical, Musician, night, number, older, open, opera, Opera in the Park, participants, pass, performed, performer, period instruments, person, personalize, Piano, player, playing, presence, programming, public, rarely, reader, recorder, reminder, repertoire, repertory, San Francisco, share, sight-reading, Sonata, specific, stage, stage presence, subscriber, summer, symphony, tag, Telemann, tonight, Trevor Stephenson, Turini, United States, University of Wisconsin–Madison, UW, UW-Madison, Verona, Viola, viola da gamba, Violin, vocal music, weather, Wednesday, welcome, West Middleton Lutheran Church, Wisconsin, wonderful, work, working, workshop, year, YouTube
Classical music: Looking for serious fun? The thoroughly successful opening concerts by the Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society bode well for the upcoming second weekend
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By Jacob Stockinger
After 28 summers, going to a concert by the Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society still feels like attending a family reunion – the best kind of family reunion where everyone is familiar and friendly, where everything is fun, and where you always leave glad that you went.
That’s not by chance.
The first thing that co-founders and co-artistic directors Stephanie Jutt and Jeffrey Sykes did last Friday and Saturday nights was to thank the loyal audience. And the audience, full of longtime fans, returned the favor by being attentive to and appreciative of the first-rate music-making as well as responsive to the horseplay and antics – such as the surreal scene of virtuoso Axel Strauss playing “The Skater’s Waltz” on his violin while rollerblading around the stage (below).
BDDS players really mean it when they say that their audiences are in for something different, something they won’t find elsewhere and won’t forget.
Last weekend that meant the return of two longtime guest performers: San Francisco cellist Jean-Michael Fonteneau and Montreal violinist Axel Strauss (below, with pianist Jeffrey Sykes). Neither disappointed as they performed very varied music by Franz Joseph Haydn, C.P.E. Bach, Johannes Brahms, Gabriel Faure, Lili Boulanger, Maurice Ravel and Ned Rorem. And as always, the amazing pianist Jeffrey Sykes proved a chameleon who blended masterfully into the style of each period and each composer.
But for The Ear, the unexpected standout last weekend was guest accordion player Stas Venglevski from Milwaukee. Born in Russia and trained at the Moscow Conservatory, he is a virtuoso player, a sensitive arranger and a convincing composer – all done with good humor and a charismatic stage presence.
The Ear never thought of the accordion – the Russian bayan, to be specific – as an instrument for chamber music. But he does now, after hearing Venglevski play serious Russian, French and Latin American music that ran the gamut from a graceful waltz and a sprightly polka to torchy tangos. And then there were his flying fingers punching out “The Flight of the Bumblebee,” a real crowd-pleaser.
The large audience responded on both nights with wild applause and a standing ovation every time that Venglevski (below) played, and Jutt promised the audience that he will be back.
“As you can see, we have fun here,” Jutt deadpanned.
She is not exaggerating.
Which bodes well for the second weekend of three that will happen this coming weekend.
The second weekend — two programs in three venues — celebrates Jutt and Sykes, plus two of BDDS’ favorite guest artists: violinist Stephanie Sant’Ambrogio and Madison pianist Thomas Kasdorf.
Kasdorf (below) and Sykes are both featured in a program called “Rock the Sykes-o-delic Kas-bah.” Kasdorf is featured in Brahms’ Horn Trio with guest horn player Karl Kramer Johansen, and in the appealing and accessible Café Concertino by the contemporary Australian composer Carl Vine.
Sykes will perform another chamber transcription of a Classical-era symphonic work, which over the years has become a welcome specialty of BDDS. In this case it is Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s snappy and appealing Piano Concerto No. 9 in E-flat Major, K. 271, the “Jeunehomme” concerto. (You can hear the irresistible last movement of the piano concerto, used in the film “Amadeus,” in the YouTube video at the bottom.) Sykes will also perform in Robert Schumann’s “Fairy Tales” for clarinet and viola.
A Madison native, cellist Alison Rowe (below) — an artist from the Dynamite Factory, which is BDDS’ program for emerging talent — will be featured in the Sonata for Cello and Piano in D Major by Johann Sebastian Bach.
“Rock the Sykes-o-delic Kas-bah” will be performed at the Stoughton Opera House on Friday, June 21, at 7:30 p.m. Braisin’ Hussies Food Cart will be parked outside the Opera House prior to the performance. The program will also be performed in Spring Green at the Hillside Theater, Sunday, June 23, at 2:30 p.m.
Jutt (below top) and Sant’Ambrogio (below bottom, in a photo by Stephanie Ann Boyd) worm their musical way into the most unexpected places in the other program, “Steph Infection.” The Nocturne for flute, violin, horn and piano of Franz Doppler opens the program, which continues with Jutt’s own arrangement of Antonin Dvorak’s popular “American” String Quartet, with a flute substituting for one of the two violins.
Dmitri Shostakovich’s Five Pieces for flute, clarinet and piano add spice to the program, and the evening concludes with Ernst von Dohnanyi’s epic Sextet for clarinet, horn, violin, viola, cello and piano. A work that ranges from stormy and turbulent to tender and funny, it features an all-star cast including audience favorite clarinetist Alan Kay, horn player Karl Kramer Johansen, violist Carol Cook (principal at the Lyric Opera of Chicago), and Madison’s own cellist of the UW-Madison’s Pro Arte Quartet, Parry Karp (below).
“Steph Infection” will be performed at The Playhouse, Overture Center for the Arts, Saturday, June 22, at 7:30 p.m.; and in Spring Green at the Hillside Theater, Sunday, June 23, at 6:30 p.m.
And of course there could also be some unannounced surprises – more door prizes, perhaps a mystery guest, or more shenanigans and antics that correspond to the “Name Dropping” pun theme of the programs.
For tickets ($43-$49) and more information, go to: https://bachdancing.org
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