Jamie Barton Featured on The Open Ears Project
“It began an obsession with classical music that turned her teenage alienation into a powerful sense of belonging to music and connection with its listeners, whoever they are and wherever they come from.” The American mezzo shares her most pivotal classical music memory with WQXR’s smash hit podcast, alongside Alec Baldwin, Wynton Marsalis, Eddie Izzard, Sam Mendes, and Jon Batiste.
September 17, 2019
““It transports me back into this bedroom that I had as a kid. Sitting in my bay window, overlooking the field, leading up to the forest. There’s nothing else out there.””
American mezzo Jamie Barton joined WQXR’s Creative Director Clemency Burton-Hill on the new hit podcast The Open Ears Project to share the story of the classical music piece that transformed her life’s path.
“Barton grew up in an isolated rural community in northwest Georgia. Her first listen to Chopin's Nocturne No. 21 in C Minor — found on a CD titled Chopin and Champagne — began an obsession with classical music that turned her teenage alienation into a powerful sense of belonging to music and connection with its listeners, whoever they are and wherever they come from.”
Jamie Barton Takes UK by Storm as Favorite 'Queer Girl with A Nose Ring'
"We are witnessing something rather remarkable. That moment an audience falls in love with a singer." Jamie Barton’s media blitz ahead of Last Night of the Proms included appearances on television, radio, national print media, podcasts, and digital and glossy magazines.
September 16, 2019
““We are witnessing something rather remarkable. That moment an audience falls in love with a singer.””
Jamie Barton’s headlining performance at Last Night of the Proms left fans and audience members around the world glowing. Her flurry of media appearances, including features on BBC World Television’s GMT, Today Programme, In Tune, Breakfast, Front Row Live, BBC News, BBC Digital, The Times, The Guardian, The American Magazine, Classical Music Magazine, and Guilty Feminist, were followed by rave reviews afterwards.
Photo by Chris Christodoulou
Slate Magazine Hails Jamie Barton's 'Diva Treatment' of Bisexual Visibility
“In Barton’s hands, bi visibility got the diva treatment.” The activist mezzo talked to Slate about being an outspoken advocate for LGBTQ rights and body positivity, and what it means to queer the Proms.
September 16, 2019
Slate’s June Thomas sat down for a conversation with American mezzo Jamie Barton about queering classical music, idolizing drag queens, and showing pride at the BBC Proms.
“I’m sitting in a meeting with the BBC last October, and I have purple hair and a side shave and a nose ring, and I’m wondering, are they going to want me to grow my hair out? How conservative do I need to be for this? And from the first moment I said, “You know, the flag that I feel I can get behind and wave during ‘Rule Britannia’ is the Pride flag.” They were like, yes absolutely. So we’re going with the idea of unity and inclusion. These are two very important things to me. I think they are healing things. So I’m proud to be doing it.”
Photo by Chris Christodoulou
Jamie Barton Speaks out for Body Acceptance & Queer Rights in The Times
“After thinking about what she really wanted to project to an audience of millions, she came to the conclusion that exhorting Britain’s naval hegemony wasn’t the only interesting message she could broadcast. “When I sat down with the BBC in October I told them, ‘You know, I can think of a flag that I can get behind. I’d really like to carry the Pride flag.’” The American mezzo tackles hot-button issues in this in-depth profile.
September 12, 2019
““She does not have any truck with the idea that singers playing romantic heroes and heroines on the stage are more credible if they are svelte. ‘Pardon me, but that’s a bullshit argument. Audiences want to see themselves reflected on stage. So to reduce what is represented on stage to a very narrow box of looks, you’re cutting out portions of the audience.’””
Photo by Sarah Creswell
Ahead of headlining Last Night of the Proms, mezzo Jamie Barton was the subject of a major profile in The Times. Barton advocated for the rights of all audiences, regardless of their body size or sexual identity, to be represented onstage.
“Barton is serious about standing up for gay rights at an event that is normally free of politics, sexual or otherwise – the BBC even vets the conductor’s Last Night speech to check for anything that would compromise its objectivity. She has a simple riposte to critics on social media. ‘Guest artists have always brought their own personal swing to this [concert]. And, quite honestly, the BBC knew who they were hiring. I showed up to the table being exactly who I am. And in general I don’t feel that queer culture should be set apart from normal culture. It’s part of my life, it’s a part of so many musicians’ lives.’”
The Cover Star of Classical Music Magazine's September Issue Is...
“I’m interested in building relationships with those houses, like San Francisco, who are doing really good work, but also trying to be inclusive in terms of who they hire as well as who they market to. That is a direction opera needs to go in to stay relevant and viable.” From witches and Wagner to women championing body positivity, this star mezzo-soprano talks all things opera with Classical Music Magazine.
September 1, 2019
“‘A witch is inherently the story of a woman going against what society deems worthy, beautiful, and powerful.””
Classical Music Magazine proclaims, “this is The Season of Jamie Barton.” In conversation with Lisa Houston, Barton opened up about her whirlwind schedule, getting her start as a young singer, the process of managing her career trajectory, and how she would love to sing Carmen.
“‘I feel strongly about Carmen,’ she says, ‘because I think I understand the character and the conflict. Carmen and all her associates are creative, liberal, colourful. They would be a Seattle, Washington, group of friends. While Don Jose is conservative, very Atlanta, Georgia,’ she says, laughing. ‘So they are oil and water. There is a stock character that people go to, which makes sense in a lot of ways, but for me the character is not dependent upon a size and look. I think a body-positive Carmen is right up the alley of what people should be thinking of and it’s something I’d love to be a part of.’”
COT Music Director Pens Series on Responsibilities of Artistic Leaders in the 21st Century
“Those who embark on this path can foster creativity and collaboration, open doors that may otherwise remain closed, increase the number of voices represented, and ultimately move classical music toward a more viable future.” Lidiya Yankovskaya has penned a wide-ranging series on the evolving responsibilities of musical leaders.
August 28, 2019
““As mobilizers and catalysts for change, conductors from diverse backgrounds—spanning cultural, ethnic, socioeconomic, and gender boundaries—can have an opportunity to make an impact on our field, even when initially halted by gate-keeping institutions. Those who embark on this path can foster creativity and collaboration, open doors that may otherwise remain closed, increase the number of voices represented, and ultimately move classical music toward a more viable future.””
Lidiya Yankovskaya, Music Director of Chicago Opera Theater, shared her thought leadership in an articulate four-part series for NewMusicBox. Speaking from her diverse experiences as a conductor, activist, and ensemble-leader, Yankovskaya covers everything from the roles of artists as activists, expanding the American canon, and working to create a plurality of voices in classical music.
Photo by Kathy Wittman
Soprano Brenda Rae Joins Verismo Roster
"Virtuosic and sensual, capable of both power and nuance.” Verismo is proud to represent coloratura sensation Brenda Rae, who makes high-profile debuts at Teatro Real Madrid, Salzburg Festival, and the Metropolitan Opera this season.
August 21, 2019
““Her ecstatic desires are expressed in streams of twittering, coloratura runs. Ms. Rae brought plush radiance and brilliant, agile singing to the showpiece.””
Verismo Communications welcomes American soprano Brenda Rae to the roster. Praised by Opera magazine as “virtuosic and sensual, capable of both power and nuance,” Rae is a regular guest at the world’s leading opera houses in a portfolio of demanding principal roles. This season she makes several high-profile debuts, including her first appearances as Adina in Daminao Michieletto’s production of L’elisir d’amore at Teatro Real Madrid, her Salzburg Festival debut as Königin der Nacht in Die Zauberflöte, and her much-anticipated Metropolitan Opera debut as Poppea in a new David McVicar production of Agrippina, to be simulcast in cinemas worldwide via Met Live in HD.
Elsewhere this season, Rae returns to Wiener Staatsoper to reprise the title role in Laurent Pelly’s production of Lucia di Lammermoor, for which the Washington Post praised her as “incandescent, creating a three-dimensional character whose fluid coloratura mirrored the passionate meanderings of her mind.” She also returns to Bayerische Staatsoper as Aminta in Barrie Kosky’s production of Die schweigsame Frau and Opera Philadelphia as the featured artist in their Festival O19 Celebration.
Future projects include her Royal Opera House Covent Garden debut as well as appearances in New York, Madrid, Vienna, Munich, Chicago, Hong Kong, Frankfurt, and Philadelphia.
Photo by Dario Acosta
San Francisco Chronicle Hails Jamie Barton's Work Speaking Out for Women
“Jamie Barton has an obvious affinity for strong, confident and outspoken women — both on and off the operatic stage. Perhaps that’s because, well, she’s one herself.” The American mezzo talks with Joshua Kosman about Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Carmen, and other fierce feminist role models.
July 29, 2019
““Jamie Barton has an obvious affinity for strong, confident and outspoken women — both on and off the operatic stage. Perhaps that’s because, well, she’s one herself.””
The “extravagantly gifted American mezzo-soprano” Jamie Barton spoke with Chronicle critic Joshua Kosman in a wide-ranging interview addressing all things fierce and feminist.
“I wouldn’t mind finding a little more balance between life and career. I have what I call the rule of three when I’m looking at gigs, and an offer has to satisfy at least two of these three or it’s off the list. It has to be a location I want to go to, Carnegie Hall or San Francisco or something like that. It has to be a project that I am really interested in. Or it has to pay all of the money.”
In the meantime, Barton has her eye on some dream projects. She still hopes to get mandolinist and composer Chris Thile to write some music for her, and to accompany her in a program that also includes the lute songs of the Renaissance Englishman John Dowland.
And she wants to sing Carmen.
“I’d like to do something that celebrates people of all different shapes, sizes, colors — and I think that is who Carmen and her people are. Whereas Don José is leading a very conservative, very Birmingham, Ala., kind of existence. Now, I come from that world. I understand it. But also I am of the more colorful liberal world now, so I’ve got a specific understanding of who that character is — and quite honestly I think I could sing the snot out of it.”
Refugee Orchestra Project's UK Debut Featured in Classical Music Magazine
“In these divisive times, vocal support of refugees has become critical – and musicians are uniquely well-positioned to address this issue,” explains founder Lidiya Yankovskaya. “Our art form crosses linguistic and cultural boundaries, and so much of what we do is rooted in collaboration.”
July 25, 2019
Photo by Jill Steinberg
The U.S.-based Refugee Orchestra Project, founded by conductor Lidiya Yankovskaya to proclaim the cultural and societal relevance of refugees through music, will makes its UK debut September 1st at LSO St Luke’s in London.
“Founded in 2015 by conductor Lidiya Yankovskaya, who also serves as music director of Chicago Opera Theater, the ROP has taken its message of inclusion to hundreds of thousands of listeners around the world via live and streamed performances in New York, Boston, Washington D.C. and at the United Nations. The UK debut concert will raise money for London-based charity Refugee Action.
‘In these divisive times, vocal support of refugees has become critical – and musicians are uniquely well-positioned to address this issue,’ explains Yankovskaya. ‘Our art form crosses linguistic and cultural boundaries, and so much of what we do is rooted in collaboration.’
The evening will feature Belize-born British composer and pianist Errollyn Wallen MBE performing her Concerto Grosso with the orchestra, as well as a piece called Freedom by Afghan composer Milad Yousufi and The Metamorphosis of Narcissus by Iranian composer Gity Razaz alongside works by Rachmaninov and Bartók. The artistic line-up will include bassist and Chineke! founder Chi-Chi Nwanoku, violinist John Mills and soprano Sarah-Jane Lewis.
‘The Refugee Orchestra Project’s mission resonates just as strongly in the UK as it does in the United States,’ says Wallen. ‘I’m proud to be contributing music from this time and this place.’
Yankovskaya adds: ‘My life and career would not be possible without the generosity of the refugee aid organisations who helped my family. But many friends and colleagues who met me as an adult had no idea of the circumstances that brought me to America. I hope audiences walk away from our concert understanding that refugees are everywhere – and we are just like you.’
Lidiya Yankovskaya Recognized as One of Chicago's Top Musical Leaders
"After only a single season in her new role, her musical presence has revitalized a company that had become a shadow of itself.” Lidiya Yankovskaya’s work at Chicago Opera Theater has earned her a coveted spot on Newcity’s Music45 list.
July 25, 2019
Photo by Kate Lemmon
Conductor Lidiya Yankovskaya has been recognized as one of Chicago's top musical leaders across all genres by Newcity Magazine.
“The figures most associated with Chicago Opera Theater across its forty-five-year history have been male impresarios such as founder Alan Stone and Brian Dickie. With the 2017 appointment of Lidiya Yankovskaya as COT music director, a conductor is the face of the institution and, in fact, the only female music director of a major American opera company. None of that would mean much if the Russian-born Yankovskaya couldn’t deliver the goods. But after only a single season in her new role, her musical presence has revitalized a company that had become a shadow of itself. The Chicago premiere of Jake Heggie’s Moby-Dick in April was a major event, in no small part because of Yankovskaya’s elucidation of the score. Russian operas are also a specialty, and the Chicago premiere of Tchaikovsky’s Iolanta was no less revelatory.”
On the classical side, the 2019 Music45 list also included Welz Kauffman of the Ravinia Festival, Riccardo Muti and Jeff Alexander of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Seth Boustead of Access Contemporary Music, and Jim Hirsch and Mei-Ann Chen of the Chicago Sinfonietta.
Citizen Artist Lidiya Yankovskaya Featured in 'Girl Activist' Book
Designed to motivate the next generation of activists, the book features Lidiya’s work with Refugee Orchestra Project and highlights her as the only woman music director of a multimillion-dollar opera company in the United States.
July 16, 2019
Conductor Lidiya Yankovskaya is featured in Girl Activist, a new book spotlighting icons like Eleanor Roosevelt, Billie Jean King, Gloria Steinem, Lady Gaga, and Malala Yousafzai. Designed to motivate the next generation of activists, the book features Lidiya’s work with Refugee Orchestra Project and highlights her as the only woman music director of a multimillion-dollar opera company in the United States.
Resonant Bodies Festival Announces NYC 2019 Lineup
“A festival suffused with purpose and ambition.” ResBods returns to Brooklyn’s Roulette Intermedium for its 7th annual festival this September 3-5, 2019. Featured artists include Kate Soper, Arooj Aftab, Anthony Roth Costanzo, and Charmaine Lee with guest artists Conrad Tao, Vijay Iyer, Wet Ink Ensemble, Ashley Bathgate.
May 29, 2019
DETAILS
NYC 2019 RESONANT BODIES FESTIVAL
Roulette | 509 Atlantic Ave | Brooklyn, NY 11217
FESTIVAL PRICING
$50 Festival Pass for all three nights
$75 Superfan Festival Pass includes VIP seating + drink ticket
PER NIGHT PRICING
Presale tickets: $20 standard; $30 Superfan presale with VIP seating + drink ticket
Door tickets: $20 student; $25 general
““In equal measures intelligent, playful, ambitious and moving, the program illuminated the shape-shifting power of the human voice.” ”
That intoxicating review of the inaugural Resonant Bodies Festival in 2013 marked its arrival as an immediately valuable contributor to the city’s music scene. The festival has since evolved into something akin to New York Fashion Week for the new music set, offering a chance for buck-the-trendsetters to experience the high-energy epicenter of experimental vocal music.
The flagship festival returns to Roulette this September 3-5, kicking off the concert season with three fast-paced nights of vocal luminaries and artistic renegades converging in the best “see and be seen” creative energy New York has to offer.
LINEUP
September 3
Charmaine Lee • Anthony Roth Costanzo • Jane Sheldon
September 4
Anaïs Maviel • Kate Soper • Ted Hearne
September 5
Stephanie Blythe • Arooj Aftab • Erin Gee
"From Song Came Symphony" is 'A Wide-Ranging Night of African-American Music Served up with Fire And Feeling'
The Burleigh Society and Urban Playground Chamber Orchestra co-production “landed with earth-shattering force.”
May 9, 2019
Photo by Richard Burrowes, International Center of Photography alum
“From Song Came Symphony,” a co-production of the Harry T. Burleigh Society and Urban Playground Chamber Orchestra, has earned critical acclaim. The performance, tracing the symphonic influence of Burleigh’s compositions, included the NYC premiere of Florence Price’s Violin Concerto No. 2 and William Grant Still’s rarely heard oratorio And They Lynched Him on A Tree.
““The baleful concluding oracle landing with earth-shattering force.””
The New York Classical Review praised Still’s piece, saying it “does indeed still pack a wallop” as it “provides a new context for Still’s account of a black life that mattered, and his fervent words of warning at the end.”
San Francisco Classical Voice hailed Burleigh as a “titanic figure in U.S. music history,” praising the performance of his “work’s deft inner voices with great clarity” and the “rich and seamless sound” of the orchestra’s string section. In the Price Concerto, “Kelly Hall-Tompkins covered the solo part with unflappable poise, bringing a luscious radiance to her lower register. The orchestra swooned and incandesced with theatrical fervor.”
Read the full review from New York Classical Review >
Read the full review from San Francisco Classical Voice >
Russell Thomas 'Imbues Otello with Vocal and Psychological Nuance'
“Otello requires a dramatic tenor with a wide vocal range, the power to cut through heavy orchestration, and the skill to make the long, declamatory passages sing – ideally, a voice that marries Wagnerian stamina and Italianate beauty. Russell Thomas is one of them.” The American tenor’s staged role debut as Otello is met with critical acclaim across North America.
May 5, 2019
Photo by Michael Cooper
American tenor Russell Thomas has made his highly anticipated staged role debut as the title character in Verdi’s Otello, earning critical acclaim across North America.
Thomas stars alongside soprano Tamara Wilson as Desdemona and baritone Gerald Finley as Iago, in a new David Alden production at Canadian Opera Company. Performances run through May 21, with tickets available via COC.
Read reviews:
“A rare black tenor to be cast in the part, Russell Thomas imbues Otello with vocal and psychological nuance. Otello requires a dramatic tenor with a wide vocal range, the power to cut through heavy orchestration, and the skill to make the long, declamatory passages sing — ideally, a voice that marries Wagnerian stamina and Italianate beauty. Russell Thomas is one of them. His assured vocalism and theatrical acuity were central to the success of the Canadian Opera Company’s chilling new production. This was an insightfully psychological portrayal…”
Wall Street Journal
“Thomas brings [Otello] to life on stage in the most compelling and authentic way. While there are many stunning and familiar arias in this magnificent opera, some of the most captivating and interesting moments lie in the duets.”
Mooney on Theatre
“A subtle and exceptionally nuanced performance; his voice explored Otello from a profoundly internal space.”
Plays to See
“Thomas’s performance is carefully thought out, his authority established from his clarion-call opening notes onward, his jealous fury building gradually and inevitably… Make no mistake. It’s in the music that this Otello triumphs.”
Now Toronto
“Never has his tenor sounded so heroic and Italianate nor has his acting shown such intensity as it does in this role.”
Stage Door Review
“Anchored by a mesmerizing performance by Thomas in the title role, the production takes you on a journey of true love, revenge, and morality. Thomas’ performance oozes sophistication and considering the vocal challenges that a production like Otello throws at a performer, Thomas pulls it off with ease as he brings the title character to life with steadfast devotion, strong vocal delivery, and exceptional stage presence. A tour-de-force experience with exceptionally authentic performances by Thomas…”
Aesthetic Magazine
“Inhabiting Otello’s namesake principal, Russell Thomas crafts a tense, tortured Moor… His well constructed, fine-tuned instrument with its shiny array of top notes is more than sufficiently assertive. Thomas electrifies in a moving, superbly proportioned rendition of the composer’s supercharged lament.”
Opera Going Toronto
Harry T. Burleigh's 'Pioneering Influence' Recognized by All Arts
“Organizers have sought to recognize creators who unflinchingly detailed Black experiences despite the risk of offending a powerful white establishment.” An All Arts preview examines the influence of Harry T. Burleigh on generations of African American classical musicians.
May 3, 2019
Photo by Shateek Mitchell, International Center of Photography alum
““’Burleigh wrote music that was both immediately recognizable to the ear as having African-American music idiom influence — and music that was not,’ explained Marti Slaten, the executive director of the Harry T. Burleigh Society. She said his success in skirting that delicate line between two seemingly disparate genres created space not only for him, but also for future generations of Black artists and creatives.””
Ahead of their May 8 concert at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, the Harry T. Burleigh Society spoke with All Arts about their second collaboration with the Urban Playground Chamber Orchestra.
The concert, to include the NYC premiere of Florence Price’s Violin Concerto No. 2, and the rarely performed William Grant Still oratorio And They Lynched Him on A Tree, is designed to showcase symphonic composers influenced by Burleigh’s work.
All Arts wrote that the concert will “recognize creators who unflinchingly detailed Black experiences despite the risk of offending a powerful white establishment.”
Read the preview >
Moby-Dick Is 'Masterfully Led' by Lidiya Yankovskaya
“Musical mastery that turns both this massed ensemble and superb orchestra, conducted by Lidiya Yankovskaya, into forces of nature in their own right.” The Chicago premiere of Heggie’s Moby-Dick is led by Music Director Lidiya Yankovskaya.
April 30, 2019
Photo by Michael Brosilow
Conductor Lidiya Yankovskaya has just led the Chicago premiere of Jake Heggie and Gene Scheer’s operatic adaptation of Melville’s epic novel Moby-Dick. The production, acknowledged by Chicago Reader as “a major undertaking for Chicago Opera Theater and one of its best ever,” has earned particular acclaim for Yankovskaya’s leadership in the pit.
Read reviews:
“But the ultimate star here was the production itself, a tour de force for Chicago Opera Theater with many moving parts. Conductor and COT music director Lidiya Yankovskaya brought forth brilliantly colored accompaniment from the orchestra, where the most exciting musical action takes place. The chorus, too, proved resplendent, onstage and off.”
Chicago Tribune
“…An ideal cast who can act their roles with impressive style, as well as sing them with authority and exemplary diction. Lidiya Yankovskaya, COT’s young and exceptionally talented music director, elicits all the feverish beauty of the score from her superb orchestra, and from the male chorus that is more than three dozen strong.”
WTTW News
“A defining success in the history of the company... Perhaps most memorable is a gentle, affecting meditation on the sea as night slowly changes to morning. This section and the rest of the score are handsomely realized by the Chicago Opera Theater’s pit orchestra, masterfully led by music director Lidiya Yankovskaya, who never allows the momentum to flag.”
Chicago Sun-Times
“A winning operatic experience with stimulating music and touching portrayals, all against the backdrop of an epic sea story. COT has assembled a large cast and a good-sized orchestra who all contribute to an astonishing night at the opera. Lidiya Yankovskaya, COT’s music director, got things off to a propitious start on opening night at the Harris Theater for Music and Dance on Thursday, with orchestral sound that began quietly, establishing a mood of eeriness and hinting at the adventure and danger to come. All night long the sound from the pit was glorious, from playful allurings to leviathanic threats.”
Hyde Park Herald
“A powerful experience, well worth chasing down. COT music director Lidiya Yankovskaya conducts a 60-piece orchestra. This co-production with four other opera companies is a major undertaking for COT and one of its best ever.”
Chicago Reader
“Highly recommended – it’s rare to hear a more hauntingly beautiful and stylistically varied score… Chicago Opera Theater’s Music Director Lidiya Yankovskaya masterfully conducted the 60-member orchestra through Heggie’s score.”
Around The Town Chicago
“The enthralling immediacy of story and song is musical mastery that turns both this massed ensemble and superb orchestra, conducted by Lidiya Yankovskaya, into forces of nature in their own right. COT’s labor of love abounds in thinking thrills, unforgettable stage tableaux, and monumental energy that always rises to Melville’s occasions.”
Stage and Cinema
“Lidiya Yankovskaya built on her strong debut last November leading Tchaikovsky’s Iolanta. She kept the momentum surging through the two long acts, balancing the principals, chorus and large orchestra with consummate skill and putting across all of the ingenuity, audacity and startling beauty of Heggie’s remarkable score.”
Chicago Classical Review
“Moby Dick was masterfully conducted by Lidiya Yankovskaya. Under her baton the 60 piece orchestra played beautifully with a sumptuous sound. The positive influence of Ms. Yankovskaya’s direction continues to impress in a business which is highly competitive for better orchestra players. The commitment to excellence from COT is to be commended.”
Buzz Center Stage
“Heggie opens the score with an almost quiet contemplation of the sea, which you too might admire even more when the orchestra under Conductor Lidiya Yankovskaya pours out turbulent storms. Every once in a while there is a fleeting phrase in the score with almost déjà vu familiarity of an aria Pavarotti might have sung, or even a show tune, but before this writer could register the when/where, it would be washed away by other musical currents rising in a new wave… It is the muscular male chorus – sometimes center stage and sometimes off stage—that perhaps most impresses. If the Soviet Army Chorus were unleashed to sing a wider range of melodies that weren’t all about military conquest and glory, one imagines they might sound just like this.”
Picture This Post
“Chicago Opera Theater music director Lidiya Yankovskaya led a first-class cast, a 60-piece orchestra, and an agile 38-member chorus in the service of this demanding opera. “Moby-Dick” doesn’t sound Italian at all, but it loves singers the way Verdi operas do, and Yankovskaya conveyed its Verdi-like sense of tension and forward motion, knowing where to dwell and reflect, how long to cower, when to pounce, how to switch gears and get on with it.”
Chicago on The Aisle
Jamie Barton to Headline Last Night of The Proms
The American mezzo will be the featured performer in classical music’s biggest party.
April 17, 2019
““Charismatic American mezzo-soprano Jamie Barton, whose lustrous voice has established her as one of the most exciting performers of her generation, joins Sakari Oramo and the BBC Symphony Orchestra and Chorus to lead the musical celebrations that bring the world’s greatest classical music festival to a spectacular close.””
Georgia native Jamie Barton will close out the 2019 BBC Proms in a Last Night of The Proms spectacular on September 14 at London’s Royal Albert Hall.
One of classical music’s biggest nights of the year, the performance will be televised live across the globe. Details and tickets are available via BBC.
Photo by BreeAnne Clowdus
Russell Tenor Is Opera News Magazine's May Cover Story
“Thomas is an engaging, easy conversationalist; he admits with a grin that he has ‘a lot of opinions,’ but they are impressively well argued and delivered without a trace of arrogance.” The American tenor has landed his first Opera News cover.
April 2, 2019
Photo by James Foster
American tenor Russell Thomas is featured on the cover of the May issue of Opera News, America’s most widely read classical music magazine.
Life on the road is sometimes challenging for Thomas, a single father who lives in Atlanta with his four-year-old son. Thomas is an engaging, easy conversationalist; he admits with a grin that he has “a lot of opinions,” but they are impressively well argued and delivered without a trace of arrogance. He speaks frankly and thoughtfully about the challenges of being a gay black man in an industry that has not traditionally nurtured black men as performers—or celebrated them as stars. “When I was in college [at New World School of the Arts in Miami], I began to hear those things that a lot of gay men in opera and the arts hear—‘Keep your personal life to yourself, don’t talk about that whole gay thing.’ But I have always felt that if I were going to be a singer—and I have wanted this career since I was eighteen—that I needed to be open about myself. I believe that people who aren’t open about who they are don’t share as much, emotionally, onstage as the people who own who they are. Singing has always been therapeutic for me. It helps me to be free. If I were closed off about who I was, I don’t know if I would be able to do that.”
Read the full interview in the May issue of Opera News!
Burleigh Society Concert at Carnegie Hall Praised for Performance, Promise
“A stinging rebuke to still-active demeaning stereotypes that cast black people as sassy, loud, and unrefined.” The Harry T. Burleigh Society concert, featuring the Fisk Jubilee Singers, earned critical acclaim from the Log Journal.
March 6, 2019
Photo by Sara Beth Turner
““Burleigh’s spiritual arrangements are artful and jewel-like, deftly weaving voices into a seamless texture [with] aching suspensions and rich, surprising dissonances…””
The March 2 Harry T. Burleigh Society concert at Carnegie Hall, featuring the Fisk Jubilee Singers, earned critical acclaim from the Log Journal.
“While it would technically be accurate to call the Jubilee Singers a college a cappella ensemble, the designation does not do them justice. They sing, with uncanny precision, in a plush bel canto style… It allowed for the haunting, otherworldly conclusion to In Bright Mansions. In a haloed murmur, the basses sang a repeating descending figure, lingering on each note that rubbed against the diaphanous held chord in the upper voices – a frisson of quiet ecstasy, a premonition of Heaven."
“Wade in the Water is…a pungent, brooding arrangement of a tune laced with buried, righteous anger. In the quiet, refined style of the Fisk Singers, it was hair-raising. Other songs affirmed the necessity of hope, promising Heaven as a release from literal bondage; Wade in the Water affirmed the necessity of justice, promising a reckoning far too long overdue.”
Jamie Barton Subject of Opera Magazine's 'People' Feature
“A complete singer with a once-in-a-generation voice, a born communicator, a deeply compassionate human being with so much to give to audiences – Jamie Barton is an artist whose time truly has come.” The American mezzo earns a six-page feature in the March 2019 issue of Opera.
February 15, 2019
““Jamie Barton may hail from Rome, Georgia, not Rome, Italy, but she possesses an exceptional affinity for Italian style. The lustrous-voiced mezzo-soprano shapes her legato in Bellini and Donizetti with superb elegance. Turning to Verdi, She effortlessly masters the toughest vocal demands, and her detailed textual communication yields an interpretative subtlety that Verdi’s mezzo roles seldom receive.””
Photo by Wilfried Hösl
American mezzo Jamie Barton is the subject of a six-page ‘People’ feature in the March issue of Opera Magazine (UK). Read the wide-ranging interview with this “complete singer with a once-in-a-generation voice” via Opera.