Dawn Upshaw News

CHICAGO, IL (October 21, 2013)–3Arts is honored to announce the ten recipients of its 6th annual 3Arts Awards, presented to women artists, artists of color and artists with disabilities working in the performing, teaching and visual arts. The awards will be presented tonight, Monday, Oct. 21, by the 3Arts Board of Directors and Awards Host Committee in a celebratory gathering at the Museum of Contemporary Art. 3Arts has awarded over $1 million in total grants to more than 100 Chicago artists in the past six years.

Lawrence Edelson, Producing Artistic Director of American Lyric Theater, in conjunction with Darren K. Woods, General Director of Fort Worth Opera, announced today a collaboration between the two companies on JFK (working title), a new opera by the acclaimed team of composer David T. Little and librettist Royce Vavrek.

Fort Worth Opera General Director Darren K. Woods today shared further details about the highly anticipated world premiere of the company's third commissioned opera, JFK (working title), by the sensational and highly acclaimed team of composer David T. Little and librettist Royce Vavrek. The opera, which serves as the crown jewel of Fort Worth Opera's (FWOpera's) 70th anniversary season in 2016, is the final work in three years of world premieres from the company that begin during the upcoming 2014 season. The world premiere production of JFK will take place at Fort Worth's renowned Bass Performance Hall on April 16, 2016.

The Walter W. Naumburg Foundation will be presenting Soyeon Kate Lee, 2010 Piano Award winner, on Wednesday, November 6, 2013 at 8:00 p.m. in Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall. Ms. Lee will be performing the world premiere of Gabriela Lena Frank's Sonata Andina No. 2, a Naumburg commission.

The Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra opens the 2013.14 Pops season with Ella, Louis, and All That Jazz tonight, October 11-13, 2013 at the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts. Guest conductor Jeff Tyzik leads the orchestra, featuring Byron Stripling, trumpet; Marva Hicks, vocalist; and Robert Breithaupt, drums. In tribute to Ella, Satchmo, and Fats Waller, the concerts include favorites such as S'Wonderful, It Don't Mean a Thing, What a Wonderful World, and selections from Gershwin's Porgy & Bess.

Sharon Isbin is a multiple GRAMMY Award winner and has been called 'the pre-eminent guitarist of our time.' It would take all day to list the awards and honors she's won and her now legendary live performances are nothing short of magical. Currently she has a new album entitled 'Sharon Isbin and Friends: Guitar Passions' which features duets with a vast array of superstars from across the musical universe. BWW Classical chatted with her about what she's currently listening to and the list was as wonderfully eclectic as Sharon's repertory.

Tonight, September 22 at Amsterdam Bar and Hall in downtown Saint Paul, Nika Danilova, the woman behind Zola Jesus, brings her epic, iconoclastic sound-full of dark evocative beauty-to Saint Paul in a first-time collaboration with esteemed composer and former SPCO Artistic Partner Stephen Prutsman.

Ensemble ACJW-an inspirational collective of young professional musicians who are fellows in a two-year program that supports them in building careers as top-quality performers, innovative programmers, and dedicated teachers-returns for its seventh year in the 2013-2014 season. Members of ACJW play music at the highest level, partner with New York City public school music teachers and classrooms throughout the school year, lead biannual residencies at Skidmore College, perform in a variety of community settings, and possess a strong commitment to professional development. Established in January 2007 by Carnegie Hall, The Juilliard School, and the Weill Music Institute in partnership with the New York City Department of Education, Ensemble ACJW reflects the belief that the artist of tomorrow will require both the ability to perform at the highest level and the capacity to give back to the community, inspiring the next generation of musicians and music lovers.

The Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra opens the 2013.14 Pops season with Ella, Louis, and All That Jazz on October 11-13, 2013 at the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts. Guest conductor Jeff Tyzik leads the orchestra, featuring Byron Stripling, trumpet; Marva Hicks, vocalist; and Robert Breithaupt, drums. In tribute to Ella, Satchmo, and Fats Waller, the concerts include favorites such as S'Wonderful, It Don't Mean a Thing, What a Wonderful World, and selections from Gershwin's Porgy & Bess.

The editors of Opera News are pleased to announce the honorees for the ninth annual Opera News Awards, paying tribute to five superb artists who have made invaluable contributions to the art form: director Patrice Chéreau, tenor Juan Diego Flórez, mezzo-soprano Christa Ludwig, bass-baritone James Morris and soprano Nina Stemme. The Opera News Awards ceremonywill take place on Sunday, April 13 at the Plaza Hotel in New York City. All the winners - and a host of the city's cultural, civic, and social luminaries - will be present at the gala awards dinner, which will feature celebrity presenters speaking about the awardees and introducing video performance clips.

The KahaneSwensenBrey Trio, comprised of Jeffrey Kahane, piano; Joseph Swensen, violin; and Carter Brey, cello, perform an evening of celebrated chamber music at Segerstrom Center for the Arts on December 12 at Samueli Theater.

On September 22 at Amsterdam Bar and Hall in downtown Saint Paul, Nika Danilova, the woman behind Zola Jesus, brings her epic, iconoclastic sound-full of dark evocative beauty-to Saint Paul in a first-time collaboration with esteemed composer and former SPCO Artistic Partner Stephen Prutsman.

-The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra (SPCO), Minnesota Public Radio (MPR), and American Composers Forum (ACF) are pleased to announce the second season of the Composer Conversation Series, events of which will take place at Amsterdam Bar & Hall in downtown Saint PaulSeptember 2013 through April 2014. A co-presentation of the SPCO, MPR and ACF, the Composer Conversation Series is intended for music lovers of all stripes. The series will feature some of today's most original, prominent, and prestigious voices in composition discussing their worldviews, artistic perspectives, and how their life experiences have shaped them into the artists they are today. The 2013-14 season will feature live interviews with distinctive creators John Harbison; Shawn Jaeger and Dawn Upshaw; Matthias Pintscher; Serengeti, Son Lux, and Sufjan Stevens with visual artist Jim Hodges (at The Walker Art Center); Timo Andres with Gabriel Kahane, Ted Hearne, Becca Stevens, and Nathan Koci; John Luther Adams; and Vivian Fung. The events will include time devoted for audience Q&A and informal pre- and post-show receptions.

Joining Ellison for this engagement will be Ashley Blanchet (who made her original Broadway debut in Memphis and is currently on Broadway again in Annie), David Larson (most recently on Broadway in Hands on a Hard Body and Billy Elliott), Christopher Seiber (a Tony Award nominee and most recently on Broadway in Shrek, Spamalot and La Cage aux Folles), and Beth Leavel (Tony Award winner whose Broadway credits include The Drowsy Chaperone, 42nd Street and Crazy for You).

Please note the following updates to Carnegie Hall's 2013-2014 schedule, reflecting major updates made since the hall announced the concert season last January.

Preview of the Arts Presents BRADLEY COLE at Theater 80, St. Marks, beginning today, August 10 through August 23, 2013. This production is part of The New York International Fringe Festival. For tickets visit www.FringeNYC.com.

CARNEGIE HALL DECEMBER 2013 CALENDAR

Preview of the Arts Presents BRADLEY COLE at Theater 80, St. Marks, August 10-23, 2013. This production is part of The New York International Fringe Festival. For tickets visit www.FringeNYC.com.