The Wolf Trap Opera Company Honored with GRAMMY Nomination for Recording of John Musto's "Volpone"

The Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts proudly announces a GRAMMY nomination in The category of ‘Best Opera Recording' for Volpone, a piece commissioned by the Foundation and performed by the organization's nationally renowned Wolf Trap Opera Company. Unfaithfully based on Ben Jonson's 17th century comedy, this new opera revives the great tradition of comic opera through the eyes and minds of composer John Musto and librettist Mark Campbell. Volpone is the only U.S. opera recording nominated, John Musto is the only American composer in this category, and Volpone is the only 21st-century work represented. A sample is available by viewing this recently produced video featuring audio and visual clips from the production.

Recorded at The Barns at Wolf Trap, Volpone was conceived, written and designed specifically for the intimate 375-seat historic theater. This production represents a truly integrated Wolf Trap effort, featuring cast members from the opera company's 2007 summer residency program, CD booklet design by Foundation staff, and an independent release via the burgeoning Wolf Trap Recordings label. The recording is available for purchase via, iTunes, Amazon, and CD Baby.

The ‘Best Opera Recording' category recognizes the conductor, principal soloists, and album producer(s). Volpone conductor Sara Jobin gained recognition in 2004 as the first woman to conduct on the main stage subscription series at San Francisco Opera Principal soloists are baritone Joshua Jeremiah, tenor Jeremy Little, mezzo-soprano Faith Sherman, soprano Anne-Carolyn Bird, tenor Rodell Rosel, baritone Museop Kim, soprano Lisa Hopkins, and tenor Steven Sanders. Recording producer credit goes to Blanton Alspaugh.

The 52nd GRAMMY awards are scheduled for January 31, 2010, live from the Staples Center in Los Angeles. In advance of this prestigious event, our public relations team is happy to arrange interviews with Mr. Musto, Mr. Campbell, Wolf Trap Opera Company cast members associated with the production, and/or relevant members of the Wolf Trap staff who lent assistance to the recording. Several copies of the recording are also available for review which can be shipped immediately.

The Wolf Trap Opera Company was started in 1971 as part of Wolf Trap founder Catherine Filene Shouse's vision to give young people a chance to experience the demands of a professional career in the performing arts. To date, more than 500 singers have performed with the Company in 136 productions, including Volpone. All WTOC productions are professionally conducted, directed, coached, and designed; and are performed in the original language with full orchestra. The Wolf Trap Opera Company has been featured in national and industry media outlets including The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post and Opera News, for its important contributions to the field.

About The Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts
The Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts is a non-profit organization founded by Catherine Filene Shouse (1896-1994) that presents and produces a full-range of performance and education programs in the Greater Washington area, as well as nationally and internationally. Wolf Trap is home to two performance venues, the Filene Center-America's National Park for the Performing Arts, and The Barns, which operate year-round; the Wolf Trap Opera Company, one of America's outstanding resident ensemble programs for young opera singers; and Wolf Trap's education programs, which include the nationally acclaimed Wolf Trap Institute for Early Learning Through the Arts, scholarships, master classes and internships. The Filene Center, operated in partnership with the National Park Service, is a 7,028-seat outdoor pavilion that showcases an extensive list of diverse artists, ranging from pop, country, folk and blues, to orchestra, dance, theater, and opera, as well as multimedia presentations, from May through September each year. Visit the Wolf Trap Web site at www.wolftrap.org for more information. Terrence D. Jones is president and CEO of the Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts.

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