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Frederica von stade in Recital
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| Frederica von Stade |
Frederica von Stade
Mezzo-Soprano
Described by the New York Times as “one of America’s finest artists and singers,” Frederica von Stade continues to be extolled as one of the music world’s most beloved figures. Known to family, friends, and fans by her nickname “Flicka,” the mezzo-soprano has enriched the world of classical music for three decades.
Miss von Stade’s career has taken her to the stages of the world’s great opera houses and concert halls. She began at the top, when she received a contract from Sir Rudolf Bing during the Metropolitan Opera auditions, and since her debut in 1970 she has sung nearly all of her great roles with that company. In January 2000, the company celebrated the 30th anniversary of her debut with a new production of The Merry Widow specifically for her, and in 1995, as a celebration of her 25th anniversary, the Metropolitan Opera created for her a new production of Pelléas et Mélisande. In addition, Miss von Stade has appeared with every leading American opera company, including San Francisco Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, and Los Angeles Opera. Her career in Europe has been no less spectacular, with new productions mounted for her at Teatro alla Scala, Royal Opera Covent Garden, the Vienna State Opera, and the Paris Opera. She is invited regularly by the finest conductors, among them Claudio Abbado, Charles Dutoit, James Levine, Kurt Masur, Riccardo Muti, Seiji Ozawa, André Previn, Leonard Slatkin, and Michael Tilson Thomas to appear in concert with the world’s leading orchestras, including the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Chicago Symphony, Cleveland Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, Philadelphia Orchestra, San Francisco Symphony, London Symphony Orchestra, Washington’s National Symphony and the Orchestra of La Scala.
With impressive versatility, she has effortlessly traversed an ever-broadening spectrum of musical styles and dramatic characterizations. A noted bel canto specialist, she excelled as the heroines of Rossini’s La Cenerentola and Il barbiere di Siviglia and Bellini’s La sonnambula. She is an unmatched stylist in the French repertoire: a delectable Mignon or Périchole, a regal Marguerite in Berlioz’ La damnation de Faust, and, in one critic’s words, “the Mélisande of one’s dreams.” Her elegant figure and keen imagination have made her the world’s favorite interpreter of the great trouser roles, from Strauss’ Octavian and Composer to Mozart’s Sesto, Idamante and - magically, indelibly - Cherubino. Her repertoire is continually expanding with the works of contemporary composers. She created the role of Tina in Dallas Opera’s world premiere production of Dominick Argento’s The Aspern Papers (a work written for her) as well as the role of Madame de Merteuil in the Conrad Susa’s Dangerous Liaisons and Mrs. Patrick De Rocher in Jake Heggie’s Dead Man Walking, both for San Francisco Opera.
Described by the New York Times as "one of America's finest artists and singers," Frederica von Stade continues to be extolled as one of the music world's most beloved figures. Known to family, friends, and fans by her nickname "Flicka," the mezzo-soprano has enriched the world of classical music for over three decades.
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| Jake Heggie |
Jake Heggie
Pianist
Jake Heggie is the American composer of the operas Dead Man Walking (libretto: Terrence McNally), Three Decembers (libretto: Gene Scheer), The End of the Affair (libretto: Heather McDonald), To Hell and Back (libretto: Scheer), At the Statue of Venus (libretto: McNally), more than 200 art songs, plus orchestral and chamber music. His new opera, based on Melville’s Moby-Dick (libretto: Scheer) has been co-commissioned by The Dallas Opera, San Francisco Opera, San Diego Opera, Calgary Opera and the State Opera of South Australia. Scheduled to open April 30 at The Dallas Opera’s new Winspear Opera House, Moby-Dick will star the great Canadian Tenor Ben Heppner as Ahab with a cast of eight principals, 40-voice chorus, and a 70-member orchestra, conducted by Patrick Summers and directed by Leonard Foglia.
Future projects include songs for Mezzo-Soprano Joyce DiDonato commissioned by Carnegie Hall; a set of songs for Ms. DiDonato with the Alexander String Quartet for its 30th anniversary season, commissioned by San Francisco Performances; a flute concerto for Carol Wincenc; an expanded version of Heggie & Scheer’s lyric drama For a Look or a Touch, for the Seattle Gay Men’s Chorus; and a work for New York’s Metropolitan Opera in association with Lincoln Center Theater.
Heggie’s stage works have been produced by more than a dozen American companies and internationally in Australia, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Sweden, Ireland, Austria, and South Australia. Dead Man Walking has been performed more than 125 times since its San Francisco premiere in 2000, making it one of the world’s most performed new operas. The composer’s numerous songs and cycles, including The Deepest Desire, Statuesque, Here & Gone, Rise & Fall, Songs & Sonnets to Ophelia, Facing Forward/Looking Back, Friendly Persuasions, and For a Look or a Touch, are featured in recitals around the world.
As pianist and composer, he has collaborated with many of the world’s great singers, including Sopranos Isabel Bayrakdarian, Kristin Clayton, Renée Fleming, Nicolle Foland, Audra McDonald, Leah Partridge, Emily Pulley, and Kiri Te Kanawa; Mezzo-Sopranos Zheng Cao, Joyce Castle, Catherine Cook, Joyce DiDonato, Susan Graham, Kristine Jepson, and Frederica von Stade; Broadway Soprano Patti LuPone; Tenors Paul Groves, Ben Heppner and Nicholas Phan; Baritones Philip Cutlip, Daniel Okulitch, Keith Phares, Morgan Smith and Bryn Terfel.
Recordings include Dead Man Walking (Erato), Three Decembers (Albany), Flesh and Stone (Americus), To Hell and Back (Magnatune), The Faces of Love (RCA Red Seal), The Deepest Desire (Eloquentia), and For a Look or a Touch (Naxos). Jake Heggie lives in San Francisco.