Marilyn Horne News

10 On Tuesday with Doug Peck

Following yesterday's highly competitive semi-final competition, nine young singers will advance to the final phase of the Metropolitan Opera's 2016 National Council Auditions, America's most prestigious vocal competition. The selected finalists, chosen by a panel of experts from the classical music industry, will compete on the Met stage on Sunday, March 13 at 3 p.m. The winners will receive individual cash prizes of $15,000 and the prestigious-and potentially career-launching-title of National Council Auditions Winner. The Grand Finals Concert will feature Antony Walker conducting the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra as each finalist performs two arias.

Four up-and-coming opera singers will showcase their talents as The Metropolitan Opera Rising Stars Concert Series comes to  Mayo Performing Arts Center on Saturday, April 2, 2016 at 8 PM. Tickets are $29 - $59.

  Grammy Award-winning pianist Emanuel Ax returns to Carnegie Hall for four performances this spring, first joining celebrated violinist Pamela Frank for a program of Mozart violin sonatas on Tuesday, March 15 at 7:30 p.m. in Zankel Hall.

 Two dozen wise and witty "songs of experience" with charming melodies and smartly crafted lyrics.International City Theatre opens its 2016 season with a recently updated version of Closer Than Ever, the Outer Critics Circle Award winner for Best off-Broadway Musical that also netted Drama Desk nominations for lyricist Richard Maltby, Jr. and composer David Shire. Directed and choreographed by Todd Nielsen, with musical direction by Gerald Sternbach, and starring ICT favorites Kevin Bailey (Abigail/1702),Valerie Perri (The Sweepers), Adam von Almen (The Heir Apparent) and newcomer Katheryne Penny, Closer Than Ever opens February 12at ICT's home in the Long Beach Performing Arts Center. Two low-priced previews take place on Feb. 10 and Feb. 11.

Acclaimed American soprano Renee Fleming performs in recital with pianist Olga Kern on Wednesday, March 9 at 8:00 p.m. in Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage. The program includes Robert Schumann's Frauenliebe und -leben, Op. 42, Debussy's Ariettes oubliees, and a selection of songs by Rachmaninoff. Ms. Fleming and Ms. Kern close their program with five songs by jazz musician and composer Patricia Barber.

Carnegie Hall today unveiled its 2016-2017 season consisting of more than 170 concerts as well as wide-ranging education and community programs created by Carnegie Hall's Weill Music Institute. The upcoming season includes performances by many of the world's greatest artists, including Tony winner Kelli O'Hara making her solo headlining debut at the renowned venue on Oct. 29, as well as ensembles representing classical, pop, jazz, and world music, with events presented on Carnegie Hall's three stages, in the Hall's Resnick Education Wing, and throughout New York City.

Two dozen wise and witty 'songs of experience' with charming melodies and smartly crafted lyrics. International City Theatre opens its 2016 season with a recently updated version of Closer Than Ever, the Outer Critics Circle Award winner for Best off-Broadway Musical that also netted Drama Desk nominations for lyricist Richard Maltby, Jr. and composer David Shire. Directed and choreographed by Todd Nielsen, with musical direction by Gerald Sternbach, and starring ICT favorites Kevin Bailey (Abigail/1702), Valerie Perri (The Sweepers), Adam von Almen (The Heir Apparent) and newcomer Katheryne Penny, Closer Than Ever opens February 12 at ICT's home in the Long Beach Performing Arts Center. Two low-priced previews take place on Feb. 10 and Feb. 11.

Mezzo-soprano Stephanie Blythe returns to Carnegie Hall with pianist Alan Louis Smith to lead an audience sing-slong concert, Sing, America!, on Saturday, January 23 at 2:00 p.m. in Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage as part of Carnegie Hall's annual series The Song Continues. Audience members have the opportunity to join in and sing along to some of America's most popular songs from the early 1900s including "Oh, You Beautiful Doll," "Let Me Call You Sweetheart," "By the Beautiful Sea," and many more.

In the second year of a four-year partnership between Music Academy of the West and the New York Philharmonic, ten Academy musicians will travel to New York in January 2016 to participate in the New York Philharmonic Global Academy Fellowship Program (Jan 2-12), developing their career skills through what President and CEO of the Music Academy of the West Scott Reed called "an extraordinary opportunity to gain valuable experience alongside the musicians of one of the world's greatest orchestras."

No more carping about out-of-tune singing (for the rest of 2015). No more bemoaning opera directors who don't seem to like the art of opera (for the next five minutes). No more worrying whether traditional opera will go the way of all flesh (for the next few days, at least). It's time to give up on my Scrooge tendencies and be thankful for the gifts that opera gave me, in and around New York this past year, alphabetically speaking.

On Sunday, January 17, Opera Index will present its 37th Distinguished Achievement Award to Dolora Zajick, a true dramatic mezzo-soprano, acclaimed by The New York Times as “a mezzo in a class by herself,” at a gala evening beginning at 6 p.m. at JW Marriott Essex House, 160 Central Park South.

  Following last season's acclaimed series of master classes, open to the public and reaching viewers around the world online at medici.tv, mezzo-soprano Joyce DiDonato returns to Carnegie Hall's Resnick Education Wing for three additional master classes focusing on opera arias on January 8-10, 2016. Four young professional singers-soprano Amalia Avilan Castillo, mezzo-soprano Miya Higashiyama, countertenor Daniel Moody, and bass Anthony Robin Schneider-have been selected to participate, along with pianists Justina Lee and Adam Nielsen. In addition to being open to the public (see ticket information below), the master classes will be available for free on medici.tv, where they will be streamed live and will remain available on-demand for one year following the classes. Additional private sessions on breathing, movement, and career development complete the program.

The New Jersey Association of Verismo Opera announces Lucy Arner has been named Music Director and Principal Conductor of the Verismo Opera Orchestra.

In the second year of a four-year partnership between Music Academy of the West and the New York Philharmonic, ten Academy musicians will travel to New York in January 2016 to participate in the New York Philharmonic Global Academy Fellowship Program (Jan 2-12), developing their career skills through what President and CEO of the Music Academy of the West Scott Reed called "an extraordinary opportunity to gain valuable experience alongside the musicians of one of the world's greatest orchestras."

JCC Manhattan presents the fall season finale of PREformances with Allison Charney on Monday, December 14th at 12:30pm. In this unique concert series, you will hear celebrated classical musicians just before their performances on the world's most prestigious stages removing traditional barriers between performer and audience.

New York, NY (December 10, 2015) – OPERA NEWS Editor in Chief F. Paul Driscoll today announced the recipients of the 11th Annual OPERA NEWS Awards. This year's honorees — Joseph Calleja, El?na Garan?a, Waltraud Meier, Anna Netrebko, and José van Dam — will be feted at a black tie gala celebration on April 10th at the Plaza Hotel in New York City. 

From January 19 to 23, Carnegie Hall's Weill Music Institute (WMI) presents The Song Continues, an annual series led by renowned mezzo-soprano Marilyn Horne, exploring song repertoire through master classes and concerts with the goal of encouraging, supporting, and preserving the art of the vocal recital. The series concludes with the Marilyn Horne Song Celebration, a recital featuring special guest artist soprano Nina Stemme on Saturday, January 23 at 7:30 p.m. in Zankel Hall. The evening's concert also features performances by soprano Julia Bullock, mezzo-soprano Daniela Mack, tenor Andrew Haji, bass-baritone Evan Hughes, and pianists John Arida, Keun-A Lee, Ken Noda, and Jennifer Szeto. Complete program information is listed below.

I had the opportunity to chat with international singing star Mario Frangoulis the other day, and it was a simply delightful experience. He'll be performing in St. Louis at the Peabody Opera House on December 6, 2015 along with the legendary Smokey Robinson in a concert that will benefit the Voices For Veterans Organization. This is a group that seeks to end homelessness, especially for those forgotten and neglected soldiers who have bravely served our country. It's a great cause, and it should be a fabulous event. Mario spoke with me about his career, and in particular, his latest release, a holiday album titled TALES OF CHRISTMAS.

MasterVoices, formerly The Collegiate Chorale, was honored at the Martina Arroyo Foundation's11th Annual Gala.MasterVoices was recognized along with American couture designer Joanna Mastroianni and The Michel Maurel award-winner Ernst Rieser. Brian Kellow and Terrance McKnight hosted the gala, with performances by the young artists of Prelude to Performance, Jennifer Rowley, Michele Angelini and Cecilia Violetta Lopez (both featured in the October issue of Opera News), as well as other special guests.