ASO Opens 53rd Season with 'Night at the Opera'
Guest soloists will perform scenes from beloved operatic masterpieces as the Alma Symphony Orchestra opens its 53rd season with “Night at the Opera.”
The season-opener features works by Puccini, Strauss, Verdi, Gluck, Mozart and others in a program that combines great singing and the exceptional playing of the orchestra, says ASO Director Murray Gross.
“We have chosen some of our favorite operatic excerpts for this program, with well-known orchestral works interspersed with the vocal numbers,” says Gross. “The orchestra is especially excited to work with a pair of outstanding young singers.”
Murray Gross
The Alma Symphony Orchestra performs at 4 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 14 in the Remick Heritage Center at Alma College. Tickets are $10 for adults, $5 for seniors 62 and up, and free for Alma College staff, students and youth 18 and under. Seating is reserved. Call (989) 463-7304 for ticket information.
Jackline Madegwa, soprano, and Humberto Carlo Rivera, tenor, will sing solo works as well as duets, including the humorous “Watch Duet” from “Die Fiedermaus” and the entire finale of Act 1 from “La Boheme.”
“Some people are scared away by the thought of opera, but this music is so emotional and dramatic; there’s everything from passion to vengeance,” says Gross. “The orchestra will be playing music that people will recognize, such as ‘Dance of the Blessed Spirits’ by Gluck and selections by Jacques Offenbach. You may not recognize the names of the songs, but you will recognize the tunes.”
Madegwa, a native of Kenya, specializes in African music and dance and has appeared as a solo artist throughout her home country. Her stage credits include roles in Rossini’s “Barber of Seville,” Mozart’s “Don Giovanni” and “Magic Flute,” and Barber’s “Knoxville: Summer of 1915.” She has received numerous honors and is the 2012 Bel Canto Foundation Competition Winner. She holds the master of music degree in vocal performance and literature from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Rivera, a native of Puerto Rico, has degrees in both tuba and vocal performance. His performance repertoire includes the favorites from the Western operatic canon, including roles as Ferrando from “Cosi fan Tutte,” Nemorino from “L’Elisir d’ Amore,” Don Ottavio from “Don Giovanni,” Romeo from “Romeo and Juliet,” and Alfredo from “La Traviata.” He was the semifinalist of the 2010 Bel Canto Foundation Competition and was a finalist of the 2009 Italian Cultural Center Competition at Casa Italia in Chicago.
“We are opening our 53rd season,” says Gross. “Every concert this year is very different. We are looking forward to a great season, starting with ‘Night at the Opera.’”
-mjs-
Posted: Wed, October 3rd, 2012 at 10:34AM
