10/03/2011

AVA, Class of 2011 .2. "Un Trovator cantò ... La terra un ciel sembrò"

The male contingent of newly minted AVA alums also can be proud of its achievements.
Ryan Kuster, AVA’s Enrico VIII, Don Pasquale, Schaunard, Don Alfonso, Dikoj and Grenvil, is  multitasking a varied repertory with San Francisco Opera. He has been a Merolino, but is currently an Adler Fellow, juggling a quintet of roles with SFO, racking up thirty or more performances. For a while this past summer, however, the bass-baritone left his heart in the Bay City to appear at Wolf Trap, singing Pantalone in a rarely performed opera, Wolf-Ferrari's Le donne curiose:
Ryan debuted at the War Memorial Opera House as the Mandarin on opening night of the 2011-2012 season in a lauded Turandot. Critics noted, "There were good contributions ... from Adler Fellow Ryan Kuster" and "Ryan Kuster [was] a fine Mandarin". The bass-baritone followed up with Astolfo (Lucrezia Borgia), supporting supertenor Michael Fabiano, AVA class of 2009, and earning a fine mention, "... the standouts ... Adler Fellow Ryan Kuster - a powerhouse as Astolfo ..." Ryan is rehearsing Masetto, while covering Leporello, and looks forward to performing Escamillo (Carmen for Families).
Alex Lawrence spent his first post-AVA months at the Glimmerglass Festival, singing Le Dancaïre in Carmen, covering Joe Harland in Musto’s Later the Same Evening ... and ... falling in love.
The baritone presently has a luxe yet exigent engagement for 2011-2012 with Theater Basel, last season's artistic home of the exquisitely refined baritone, Christopher Bolduc, AVA class of 2010, and, famously, the opera house where Montserrat Caballe made her professional debut. A member of the Opera Studio, OperAvenir, Alex's assignments - all role debuts, I believe - include the Second Apprentice (Wozzeck); a Huntsman, en travesti  (Rusalka); Corporal Morales (Carmen), probably not en travesti, but who knows (?), Switzerland, after all, borders experimentally oriented Germany;  and Count Almaviva, cover (Le nozze di Figaro). Moreover, if one tallies requisite recitals, concerts and special OperAvenir productions, Alex's total number of performances may surpass an astonishing fifty!
Of the dozen or so complete roles Alex sang at AVA - Guglielmo, Malatesta, Germont, Enrico Ashton, Ford, Roger Chillingworth, Marcello, Mandryka, Elijah, the Capriccio Count and Don Giovanni - perhaps the last mentioned in this populous gallery, which received such accolades as “dashing … with swagger and vocal assurance”, is his favorite.
Alex’s collegial "private" nickname may be Boris, but his middle name is surely Panache:
See what I mean?
 
Nicholas Masters, AVA's Rochefort (Anna Bolena), Pistola, Raimondo, Colline, La Roche (Capriccio), Waldner (Arabella), Leporello and Commendatore, spent the summer of 2011 at the Caramoor Festival, appearing in two productions. As Walter in Guillaume Tell, sharing the stage with AVA alum Daniel Mobbs, class of 1993, Nicholas's performance was critically appraised in glowing terms: "Nicholas Masters applied his magnificent, dark bass most vividly to Walter Furst." Nicholas's other role was Bill Bobstay in HMS Pinafore. While one reviewer simply observed that he "contributed ably" to the Gilbert and Sullivan show, another was a bit more expansive, asserting that "Nicholas Masters, a bass, stood out in a brief solo as a mate with an important message".
Nicholas is currently a member of the Houston Opera Studio. This season he is scheduled to perform Don Basilio in Rossini’s Il barbiere di Siviglia and Doctor Grenville in Verdi’s La traviata with the parent company, Houston Grand Opera.
As you review the gallery below of some of Nicholas's AVA roles, you will fondly recall the attendant magisterial voice:
Did you hear it booming?
After bidding farewell to AVA, Taylor Stayton debuted with Des Moines Metro Opera, sharing the stage with soprano Zulimar López-Hernández, AVA class of 2009. The role Taylor performed in Indianola is one with which he has a long association, Ernesto (Don Pasquale). Remember the Don Pasquale at AVA in which the young tenor sang "Povero Ernesto" while taking a bubble bath?  Taylor's Iowa performance elicited the following review in "Opera News": “The very gifted Taylor Stayton's laser-bright timbre boasts an exceptional fluidity above the staff and is probably ideally displayed in Rossini, but his Ernesto was no slouch”. Here is an excerpt from the show:
Prior to graduation, Taylor successfully auditioned for the Metropolitan Opera. On the Met roster this season, he is covering the roles of Riccardo Percy (Anna Bolena), which he had sung to acclaim at AVA, and Tonio (La fille du régiment). In Percy's aria, "Vivi tu", Taylor vaults up to high D: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zOeedm3KGNM. Tonio's aria, "Ah! mes amis, quel jour de fête!", the first piece I ever heard Taylor sing - at a Giargiari Competition - contains nine high Cs. Note how effortlessly the young tenor catapults them out to the public: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUaJvlFzfOc&NR=1
In addition to the AVA characterizations listed above, Taylor was entrusted with Don Ottavio, Ferrando ( Così fan tutte), Fenton and Arturo (Lucia di Lammermoor).
In February the tenor will debut with New York City Opera as Andre le Toneur in Rufus Wainwright’s Prima Donna. Future engagements include Don Ramiro in La cenerentola with Glyndebourne Festival Opera, and Almaviva in Il barbiere di Siviglia with Opéra de Lille.
 

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AVA, Class of 2011 .1. "Miti, gioconde, atroci ... si chiamano Fedeltà ..."

Previous blogs were dedicated to the achievements of returning and new resident artists. Let us focus now on accomplishments of the 2011 AVA graduating class. "Ecco le leonesse!"
 
Cynthia Cook, whose striking versatility shone at AVA as Meg Page, Smeton, Adalgisa, Kabanicha, Adelaide, Clairon and Zerlina, participated in Ghena Meirson's Russian Opera Workshop during June and July, singing - naturally -  a variety of contrasting roles in Eugene Onegin (Larina, Olga and Filipievna) and Iolanta (Marta and Laura). She magically found the appropriate vocal colors for a concerned mother, a flirty, flighty sister, a trusted elderly servant/confidante, a wise nursemaid/maternal surrogate and a cheery, floral-bearing friend. It was, however, Rubinstein's setting of Night and Gretchaninoff's Eastern Song, romances so rapturously sung by Cynthia, that will stand out as highlights of these summer sessions. Be that as it may, here is Cynthia rehearsing Olga's aria, a performance cheered by conductor Danail Rachev: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7MsirUns1T0&feature=related  
 
Jan Cornelius has been performing in Iowa and traveling through Austria since graduation. Her Des Moines Metro Opera performance of Mimi, a role which AVA fans will forever cherish, won raves in the prestigious journal, "Opera News". La Boheme was "graced by the excellent Mimì of Jan Cornelius, who endowed the gentle seamstress with an ample lyric soprano of fine quality and prodigious skill in dynamic variation and expressive nuance." The eulogized "dynamic variation" and "expressive nuance" are evident even in DMMO's congenial Boheme trailer:
Jan was featured in a cast interview during the Indianola run. A bonus in the clip is the articulate Musetta, AVA alum Colleen Daly, class of 2010, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=58QXd1MM7Qc&feature=related
AVA's beloved Manon Lescaut, Violetta, Anna Bolena, Silvana, Madeleine, Arabella and Donna Elvira will spend the 2011-2012 season as:
- Musetta with Opera Santa Barbara, http://www.operasb.com/
- Micaela with Birmingham Opera, http://www.operabirmingham.org/
- Countess Almaviva at Fort Worth Opera, http://www.fwopera.org/
- Tatyana in a return engagement with Des Moines Metro Opera, http://www.desmoinesmetroopera.org/
 
After Corinne Winters finished four performances of Countess Ceprano at the Metropolitan Opera, two of which were broadcasts, thus preserving her debut season, she reported to Saint Louis for Melisande, garnering critical plaudits:  “Soprano Corinne Winters was attractive and waiflike as Melisande; she has a dark-hued, lovely voice that she used to ideal advantage." Micaela in Crested Butte was next on the soprano's summer agenda. You'll want to hear Corinne's lusciously voiced "Je dis que rien ne m'épouvante" in this archived souvenir of what may turn out to be her signature role: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pbMXbbuJGhk 
The 2011-2012 season will be a busy one for AVA's brilliant Oscar, Despina, Nannetta, Norina, Monica, Hester, Angelica and Arabella:
- The Licia Albanese Puccini Competition Winners Concert, http://www.liciaalbanesepuccinifnd.org/events.html
- The title role in Iolanta with Dicapo Opera Theatre
-  Lisette in La Rondine with  Florida Grand Opera
 

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09/30/2011

"I dolci suoni mi colpirono delle loro voci! Ah, quelle voci mi sono qui nel cor discese!"

The vocal programs of the 2011-2012 AVA season rocketed  off in fine style with the New Resident Artists Recital. This year, two performances – open for the first time to faithful non-subscribing regulars and the public at large – showcased six special talents.  Eager to hear these new voices,  as soon as I learned the names of the first year  resident artists, I sought performances on YouTube. Up close (first row) and personal [surely, they were singing just for me (!)], of course, the experience was vastly different and totally overwhelming.

The recital consisted of an hour of song literature, impressively interpreted by The Six, and mightily accompanied by Laurent Philippe. Unintentionally, Denise Stuart provided a kind of warm up act: I heard her humming - in excellent voice, by the way - making me wonder what she sang for her new student recital.                          

Christopher Remmel, listed in the program as a baritone, but on the roster as a bass-baritone, displayed a wonderfully warm, smoothly produced, dark-hued voice - perfect for Golaud and Dappertutto - while his "Pirate King" hinted at the pizzazz of Belcore. 

Bettina Schweiger, adorably replete with dirndl, cascading golden locks and temperament aplenty, treated us to a limpid lyric mezzo with an easy top (think Kozena, Graham, Kirchlager). If my ears tuned in correctly, Nicklausse, Cuniza and Melisande could be vocal gold in Bettina's throat.
Patrick Guetti, bass, whose recordings don't even begin to capture the richness, velvet, presence and power of his instrument that one enjoys in the house, amazed us with selections from "South Pacific", bringing to mind Pinza, Tozzi and Siepi of yore, AVA alum contemporaries Wager and Masters, and incomparable fellow resident bass Conner. (Coincidentally, this season is particularly prime time for AVA basses).  Miracle, Oberto and Arkel would be excellent fits for Patrick's "serious" voice, while the humorous number that Patrick sang and acted to complement the Rogers pieces displayed a sense of fun suitable for Dulcamara.
Sydney Mancasola, lyric coloratura, che non manca nulla despite her last name, charmed and delighted us with fleet-voiced, tonally accurate Strauss and Arditi. First place on my guess list is obvious: the soaring top (which resonated in MY mask), cleanly articulated fioritura, and crystalline staccati inevitably indicate an inner Olympia begging for release. HOWEVER, Sydney's power and legato also make Antonia a strong possibility. My AVAdar is picking up Adina as well, a favorite role of such lyric/coloratura predecessors as AVA alum Swenson, Peters, Blegen and Hurley.
Two tenors blazed like wildfires in their Philly recital debuts:
I had seen stentorian William Davenport, in Washington, D.C. last winter during a Met Competition round and thought then that he merited a place in the New York finals. No matter - it will surely happen. William, with his parents Moira and Bill in attendance (and beaming with pride), earned Warden audience acclaim with tenor chestnuts, including a glorious "Because" to climax the evening. Hoffmann, Riccardo and Nemorino, though requiring vastly different colors, nonetheless, are all in William's voice.
Nelson Ebo, was a revelation by virtue of the beauty of his instrument and the sensitivity of his delivery. Singing one of my favorite pieces, "Parlami d'amore Mariù", the text of which was curiously absent from the program, Nelson brought tears to my eyes, such was his infinite feeling, seamless legato, and breathtaking piani. I heard the requisite passion and elegance, too, for a world-class Hoffmann,  the delicacy and tenderness for a memorable Nemorino.
BRAVI TUTTI!
Chatting a bit with a few of the newbies after the show, I was impressed, as always, by the friendliness, approachability, courtesy, graciousness and incipient fan savviness of the artists in AVA's resident opera company. Although touted as "stars of the future", I hear "stars of the present"!

 

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09/07/2011

Nostalgia and Anticipation: A Time of Reflection

The complete list of current AVA resident artists – “veterans” and “novices” -  has been published (I urge AVA fans to read all the bios carefully), and the annual Friends of AVA Summer Fling has been celebrated. For me, these events, signaling the start of a new season, also spark a time of reflections -nostalgic, as I recall in my mind’s eye and ear immensely exciting, thrilling, deeply moving performances of residents, many now alums engaged in the vaster opera world "out there" - and anticipatory, for the upcoming season, as I play a personal guessing game of trying to match artists with roles. 

One is amazed and delighted at the accomplishments, since last May, of returning resident artists; of the itineraries of May 2011 graduates for the imminent opera and concert season; of the academic and stage credentials of incoming resident singers. 

I will dedicate this blog to surveying the recent achievements and activities of resident artists returning to AVA for the 2011-2012 season. The overview is by no means all-inclusive. 

Maria Aleida, soprano, starred in Rossini productions at two prestigious Italian opera festivals, singing Zenobia in Aureliano in Palmira for Martina Franca, broadcast worldwide, and Contessa Folleville in Il viaggio a Reims for Pesaro, about which one reviewer rhapsodized, “Maria Aleida as the Countess of  Folleville was totally inside this comic role and dispatched the vocal fireworks with a deliciously, almost-impertinent aplomb. What a technique!” 

Michelle Johnson, soprano, poised and charming as always, still cresting on the tidal wave of her Met Grand Finals triumph, was interviewed on Houston Public Radio. Michelle confirmed that she will be Glimmerglass’s Aida next summer and that her complete Trovatore Leonora will be debuted with Opera in the Heights, two highly anticipated (by Michelle herself and us!) 2012 performances. http://www.thefrontrow.org/articles/1314330066-Soprano-Michelle-Johnson.html 

Chloé Moore, soprano, spent the summer of 2011 at the Crested Butte Music Festival, singing Frasquita in Carmen and Giulietta in I Capuleti ed I Montecchi, while preparing Antonia, Melisande and Adina for AVA’s current season. 

Margaret Mezzacappa, mezzo-soprano, rehearsed a show with Suzanne duPlantis, AVA alum, class of 1992, and Emily Bullock, entitled The Three Altos. It was slated for performance on Friday, September 2 at the Mount Gretna Playhouse: http://calendar.lancasteronline.com/mt-gretna-pa/events/show/208495385-the-three-altos 

Viktor Antipenko, tenor, spent the early summer with Opéra National de Lyon, singing two roles in Tristan und Isolde - the Young Sailor, whose voice is the first heard in the opera, taunting Isolde (Act 1), and then, 31/2 hours later, the Shepherd, who plays his pipe to signal the arrival of Isolde’s ship (Act 3).  

Sean Arnold, tenor, sang a run of La bohème in Israel and was contracted for a concert, Shakespeare in Love, with Annapolis Opera, appropriately, close to Valentine's Day. 

Luigi Boccia, tenor, spent part of his 2011 summer immersed in the score of a rarity, Thomas' La cour de Célimène, in which he'll sing the role of Chevalier de Mérac. The opéra comique will be exhumed as the opening presentation of the AVA-friendly Wexford Festival Opera in October: http://www.wexfordopera.com/programme/event/la_cour_de_celimene/

Zach Borichevsky, tenor, was soloist in a centennial performance of Gustav Mahler's “extraordinary meditation on life and death and eternal renewal”, Das Lied von der Erde, in Vail, Colorado with the Philadelphia Orchestra and mezzo-soprano Theodora Hanslowe. In conjunction with the concert, Zach was interviewed by the local press: http://www.vaildaily.com/article/20110713/AE/110719930 

John Viscardi, tenor, participated in Ghena Meirson’s extremely successful Russian Opera Workshop held at AVA’s Warden Theater. I was in the audience for Eugene Onegin in which John sang Lensky. Everything you dream about in that role was fulfilled: gorgeous legato, sublime mezza voce, soaring power, profound feeling, abundant temperament. Passionate in “Ya vas lyublyu, Olga”, infinitely moving in “Kuda, kuda …”, John’s performance was an apical achievement. 

Christian Bowers, baritone, was an apprentice with the Santa Fe Opera this summer, covering the role of Abdul in a revival of Menotti’s The Last Savage, which, coincidentally, his teacher at AVA, William Stone, performed under the composer’s direction in 1981 at Spoleto Festival USA.

Wes Mason, baritone,  spent the summer at Glimmerglass, singing Corporal Morales in Carmen, an opera which has been giving employment to so many AVA residents and alums, and Mac in Annie Get Your Gun, while  covering Frank Butler in the Berlin piece.  Those of you who swoon over a handsome man in uniform could have doubled your pleasure in Cooperstown: once with Wes in military apparel,  and a second time with the Norfolk-born singing actor in cowpoke garb: http://www.wesmasonbaritone.com/_/rsrc/1312731387518/config/morales3.jpg
http://www.operatoday.com/JCERVANTES_2011-2265_0407.gif

Zach Nelson, baritone (YES, note the official vocal designation, no need for a double take), committed part of his summer to preparing Germont père for Lyric Opera Virgnia. Showtime is September.

Musa Ngqungwana, bass baritone, role-debuted Zuniga in Crested Butte Music Festival’s production of Carmen.

Scott Conner, bass, sang on the Dresden Semperoper stage, but, unfortunately, I do not know details! 

I'd like to close this edition of the blog with a question, if I may: "Which moments of YOUR AVA operagoing experiences do YOU like to replay in your mind, meditate on or ponder?"

 

 

 

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08/29/2011

An AVA Cornucopia in Tomasello Winery's Harvest Gala

Tomasello Winery has announced two spectacular AVA casts for its Harvest Gala:
http://www.tomasellowinery.com/opera-galas.html

In addition to the programmed selections, can we dream a little about possibile further inclusions and encores? How about ...
Alum Jan Cornelius, class of 2011, who will be fresh from a Salzburg sojourn, in Mozart?

Michelle Johnson, previewing her Glimmerglass Aida?

Viktor Antipenko, Opera National de Lyon's Junger Seemann and Hirt (double duty in Tristan und Isolde), continuing his Wagnerian forays?

Alum Steven LaBrie, class of 2010, ubiquitously comfortable in opera, operetta and musical theater, in Leigh, Kálmán or Rodgers?

Maria Aleida, changing her pace from an all-Rossini summer in Martina Franca and Pesaro, as Olympia?

Sean Arnold, Israel's latest Rodolfo, in another chestnut tenor role, Nemorino?

Zach Nelson, role-debuting Germont with Lyric Opera Virginia in September, offering "Di Provenza ..."?
As Italians and we Italian wannabes say: "Lasciami sognare, fammi volare" ("Let me dream, let me fly").



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08/26/2011

Ben Wager, the Prodigal Returns

Ghena Meirson of AVA's faculty invited me to sit in on a rehearsal of Tchaikovsky's Iolanta, the next opera to be presented in the 2011 Russian Opera Workshop series. What a privilege to observe a working rehearsal!

Wager1 With Maestro Meirson at the piano and Brad Cawyer conducting, familiar faces from the first session (Eugene Onegin) included AVA alum Cynthia Cook, '11. A special treat was listening to Ben Wager, '09. The voice is even richer and more powerful than the last time I heard it in person - a true "Russian bass" in the sense that Ben's lowest notes below the staff are now magnificently sepulchral.

Ben has recently returned to Philly from Deutsche Oper Berlin, where he has been singing since his graduation from AVA, recently role-debuting Escamillo. AVA followers will remember Ben's performances as Sparafucile, Monterone, Basilio, Raimondo, Enrico VIII, Caspar, and the Bass Soloist in Rossini's Stabat Mater. The bass brings linguistic and musical authority to the character of King Rene' in Iolanta  drawn from his experiences as AVA's Gremin and Zaretsky, outings in the Russian Romances programs, and a staging of Boris Godunov in Dallas.

The upcoming 2011-2012 season will be a busy one for Ben, including appearances in Minneapolis, Newark, Portland and Boston. 

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07/14/2011

A Profile of Daniel Mobbs

562.x231.class.mobbs.prev Caramoor’s Guillaume Tell opened on July 8th. Singing the title role was AVA alum Daniel Mobbs, class of 1993, by now surely a permanent fixture of the Festival. The NY Times extolled that Dan, “set the bar high throughout the evening, his combination of potency and assurance unassailable.”

As an AVA resident artist, Daniel sang Papageno, Marcello and Harlekin – traditional lyric baritone roles. However, during the course of his professional career his rep has embraced Oroveso, Leporello, Don Alfonso and Ferrando – traditional basso cantante roles. Such a vocal range permits Dan to sail through a part such as Escamillo, which some baritones find too low and some basses too high.

It is not uncommon, furthermore, to find Daniel singing more than one role in a single opera, although not during the same evening. He sang Mercutio in a Baltimore Roméo et Juliette, and subsequently Capulet in the Gounod piece in Philly.

Once, he was contracted for Basilio in Barbiere di Siviglia, but when the “barbiere” of the title cancelled, Dan was promoted to Figaro himself! Such is the versatility of this artist. Further evidence of Dan’s wide range in music are his contrasting Met appearances – in Lehar’s Merry Widow and Puccini’s Madama Butterfly.

In addition to performing, Dan coaches young artists at the Caramoor Festival and also privately in NYC.

A highlight of Dan’s career for me was his Assur in the 2010 concert of Rossini's Semiramide, which happened to mark his colleague and fellow AVA alum Angela Meade’s Caramoor debut.  Listen to the audio clips below.

See Clip #1, See Clip #2

 

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07/05/2011

There's a new blogger at AVA!

Time to introduce myself...

I'm Lewis Loesberg  and I'll be blogging on AVA's website in a collaborative enterprise with Linda Ginsburg and Dan Pantano. I will post reviews, articles and interviews that regard current AVA resident artists and alums. Additionally, whenever possible, I'll post audio and visual selections of AVA singers in action. Where appropriate, I'll try to include a "historical context", from 60 years of operagoing.

My opera going encompasses a span of over 60 years now, so I've seen most of the great singers who were/are active in that period. Starting out at the Met, having been spoiled by the best voices on the planet, I came to AVA relatively late. I had seen  college and conservatory productions early on, and off and on, but they were - to put it kindly - not on a performance level that I'd been used to. So, I never became a regular attendee.  Then, in the late 90s, a friend invited me to see a Puccini double bill at AVA, and, based on the sublime level of that performance, I decided to give "vocal institution opera" another shot! And I've been shooting ever since, following with keen interest the careers of AVA alums around the globe

You can also follow me on my FB page

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James Valenti and Pinkerton

Alum James Valenti, in London for Pinkerton at the Royal Opera House, is no stranger to Puccini and verismo, having sung the composer from Lucca's "Edgar" (2004) and Mascagni's "L'amico Fritz" (2005) in memorable concert versions with AVA.

In a 2008 interview, James spoke about Pinkerton: "I think that, getting back to Puccini, just singing it -- it comes, it just sort of happens when you're singing it.  What I find very challenging -- with this particular role, Pinkerton -- is he is sort of the bad guy, and whenever I sing this opera -- and I've done it many times -- I always, when I come out at the end, get booed.  He is sort of a tragic, hateful character, and of course they boo.  But I try, especially in the last act, to show that he really is remorseful.  He's not a horrible person, he's just a bit naive and he's flawed as we all are.  But that's always a challenge because in the first act, he's sort of making fun of everybody and sort of a jerk, but he really does care for Cio-Cio San, I think ...  But to play the bad guy every once in a while is fun."

Here's an excerpt of James in "Madama Butterfly":

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lb1j1VA2yck
And listen to this exceptional document of that AVA "Fritz", in which James is partnered by the  remarkable soprano and fellow alum, Ailyn Perez:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yon2hXYce3E 

Posted at 01:24 PM in Alumni | | Comments (0)

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