George Manahan News

San Francisco Opera General Director David Gockley and Music Director Nicola Luisotti today announced the Company's 2016–17 Season repertory and roster of international guest artists, conductors and creative teams scheduled to appear at the War Memorial Opera House, as well as initial programming for SF Opera Lab 2017 presentations at the Diane B. Wilsey Center for Opera's Taube Atrium Theater. The Company's 94th Season will also mark Matthew Shilvock's inaugural year as San Francisco Opera's new general director, succeeding his mentor and internationally respected impresario, David Gockley, who will step down on July 31, 2016.

San Francisco Opera today announced additional details for the Company's world premiere commission DREAM OF THE RED CHAMBER by renowned Chinese-American composer Bright Sheng, opening at the War Memorial Opera House on September 10, 2016.

Andreia Pinto-Correia and Xi Wang have been selected to receive orchestral commissions of $15,000 each as part of the League of American Orchestras' Women Composers Readings and Commissions program, administered with the American Composers Orchestra and EarShot and supported by the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation. Partner orchestras to premiere the works will be announced at a later date.

New York Festival of Song returns to the peace and natural beauty of the North Fork of Long Island to launch the 2015-16 NYFOS Emerging Artists series with a residency and pair of performances: tomorrow, August 23, 2015, 5:00 p.m. at Poquatuck Hall in Orient, NY and tonight, August 22, 2015, 5:00 p.m. at Christ Episcopal Church in Bellport, NY.

New York Festival of Song returns to the peace and natural beauty of the North Fork of Long Island to launch the 2015-16 NYFOS Emerging Artists series with a residency and pair of performances: Sunday, August 23, 2015, 5:00 p.m. at Poquatuck Hall in Orient, NY and Saturday, August 22, 2015, 5:00 p.m. at Christ Episcopal Church in Bellport, NY.

Carnegie Hall's 125th anniversary season is fast approaching, and we are looking forward to an exciting variety of new projects and exceptional programming! Listed below are classical music highlights at Carnegie Hall for the 2015-2016 season.

One of the country's most exciting mezzo sopranos, Jennifer Johnson Cano, will perform 'Songs of Longing and Desire' in the Picotte Recital Hall at the Massry Center for the Arts in Albany tonight, June 26, 2015 at 8:00pm. Cano will be accompanied by her husband, Christopher Cano, who is an extraordinary pianist. They often collaborate and work together.

One of the country's most exciting mezzo sopranos, Jennifer Johnson Cano, will perform 'Songs of Longing and Desire' in the Picotte Recital Hall at the Massry Center for the Arts in Albany on Friday, June 26, 2015 at 8:00pm. Cano will be accompanied by her husband, Christopher Cano, who is an extraordinary pianist. They often collaborate and work together.

This review was first published by KDHX 88-1 St. Louis. Opera Theatre of St. Louis has opened a very fine production of 'Emmeline,' by Tobias Picker, with libretto by J. D. McClatchy. This remarkable piece premiered at the Santa Fe Opera in 1996 to great praise. It was done at the New York City Opera in '98 (with much the same cast)—again to considerable praise. It was deemed one of the great modern operas. Except for two 'reduced version' productions the work lay fallow until this full-scale revival by Opera Theatre of St. Louis.

PITTSBURGH - Revel in two of Beethoven's most notable and majestic works during the Pittsburgh Symphony's BNY Mellon Grand Classics: BeethovenFest: The Immortal June 5-7. It features the composer's violin concerto and Symphony No. 9, with its famous "Ode to Joy." 

PITTSBURGH – Revel in two of Beethoven's most notable and majestic works during the Pittsburgh Symphony's BNY Mellon Grand Classics: BeethovenFest: The Immortal June 5-7. It features the composer's violin concerto and Symphony No. 9, with its famous “Ode to Joy.” 

When the wealthiest man in Vienna hosts a lavish night of music and fireworks, the entertainment is in no short supply-and neither is the drama-in Richard Strauss's Ariadne auf Naxos. The Curtis Opera Theatre, in association with Opera Philadelphia and Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, presents three sold-out performances this weekend, March 4, 6, and 8 in the Perelman Theater at Philadelphia's Kimmel Center.

MARCH 4, 2015 When the wealthiest man in Vienna hosts a lavish night of music and fireworks, the entertainment is in no short supply—and neither is the drama—in Richard Strauss's Ariadne auf Naxos. The Curtis Opera Theatre, in association with Opera Philadelphia and Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, presents three sold-out performances March 4, 6, and 8 in the Perelman Theater at Philadelphia's Kimmel Center.

The audited financial results for San Francisco Opera's 2013–14 season (FY14) were announced today by San Francisco Opera Association President Keith Geeslin: a deficit of $348,244 on an operating budget of $74,119,493. The Company's 91st season presented eight main stage works at the War Memorial Opera House in addition to numerous concerts, recitals, workshops and community engagement events attracting more than 271,954 individuals.

In collaboration with San Francisco Opera, the 2015 Stanford Pan-Asian Music Festival will preview the upcoming world premiere with a free panel discussion and performances of an excerpt from the opera by the Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra from China this weekend, February 20 and 21 at Stanford University.

San Francisco Opera today announced two key artistic personnel for the Company's world premiere commission, Dream of the Red Chamber by renowned Chinese-American composer Bright Sheng (Madame Mao, The Silver River). Premiering Fall 2016 at the War Memorial Opera House, Dream of the Red Chamber will be conducted by American maestro George Manahan and staged by celebrated Taiwanese director Stan Lai in his Company debut.

Carnegie Hall presents acclaimed composer and singer Meredith Monk in four concerts this winter and spring, continuing her season-long residency as holder of the Richard and Barbara Debs Composer's Chair.

Under the leadership of Music Director George Manahan, American Composers Orchestra (ACO) returns to Carnegie Hall for the 11th season of its Orchestra Underground series, which explores the orchestra as an elastic ensemble that can respond to composers' unhindered creativity. ACO's first performance this season, titled Orchestra Underground: Monk's Sphere, tonight, November 21 at 7:30 p.m. in Zankel Hall is part of Meredith Monk's season-long residency as holder of Carnegie Hall's Richard and Barbara Debs Composer's Chair.

The Richmond Symphony, its Board of Directors, Musicians, Chorus and Staff are saddened to learn of the passing of James Erb, founder and former director of the Richmond Symphony Chorus, and life-long friend to the organization. Erb organized the all-volunteer Richmond Symphony Chorus in 1971 for a performance of Beethoven's Missa Solemnis, under guest conductor Robert Shaw. For 36 years, Erb continued to direct and build the Chorus to reflect the Symphony's high standards. He will be deeply missed by the RSO family as it reflects on his immeasurable positive impact on the Symphony, the Chorus and their ability to present world-class performances in Richmond and beyond. A testament to his lasting legacy is the Richmond Symphony Foundation's James Erb Choral Chair endowment fund of $400,000 that supports its Choral Director position in perpetuity.

The Brooklyn-based composer Paola Prestini's work has been deemed "radiant [and] amorously evocative" by The New York Times, which has also hailed "her gift for bringing together disparate artists, technicians and other creative professionals to produce cross-disciplinary works greater than the sum of their parts." Her multimedia opera Oceanic Verses perfectly reveals her sensibility as a composer, a creator of multimedia productions, and a wholeheartedly entrepreneurially artist. She commissioned the work through her non-profit company, VisionIntoArt (VIA), whose new label, VIA Records, will release Prestini's music and collaborator Ali Hossaini's visuals as a beautifully designed CD/DVD package on November 18.