Iain Bell
Iain Bell (born 1980) is an English composer whose output is predominantly of vocal works, namely opera, art song or orchestral song. Life and career Bell was born in London. His first opera, ''A Harlot's Progress'', to a libretto by Peter Ackroyd, premiered on 13 October 2013 at the in Vienna, conducted by Mikko Franck and directed by Jens-Daniel Herzog. The cast included Marie McLaughlin as Mother Needham and Nathan Gunn as James Dalton. The lead role of Moll Hackabout was created by German coloratura soprano Diana Damrau for whom the composer has written a great deal of music. Bell's second opera is an adaptation of Charles Dickens's own one-man version of his novella ''A Christmas Carol'' commissioned by Houston Grand Opera where it received its world premiere in December 2014, directed by the British actor, director and writer Simon Callow, sung by the American tenor Jay Hunter Morris. The opera was subsequently nominated in the World Premiere category at the 2015 Internati ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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International Opera Awards
The International Opera Awards is an annual awards ceremony honouring excellence in opera around the world. Origins The International Opera Awards was founded in 2013 by Harry Hyman, a UK businessman, philanthropist and supporter of opera, and John Allison, Editor of ''Opera (British magazine), Opera'' Magazine. The aim of the event is to celebrate excellence in opera and to raise the profile of opera as an artform internationally. Award categories Awards are given in approximately 20 categories each year. Nominations for all categories are open to the general public, who submit their choices via an online form. Long lists generated by this process are subsequently considered by a jury of opera critics and administrators, who announce shortlists ahead of the ceremony. Winners are determined by secret ballot, with the exception of the ''Opera'' Magazine Readers' Award, which is decided by public vote. Ceremony The inaugural international Opera Awards were held in London at ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Munich Opera Festival
The Munich Opera Festival (german: Münchner Opernfestspiele) takes place yearly in the Bavarian capital from late June to late July. Preceding on the calendar the two nearby festivals of Bayreuth and Salzburg, which both start in late July, the festival summarizes the concluding main season's work of the Bavarian State Opera, which administers it, and offers premieres of new stage productions by the company, Germany's largest. Venues used include the Nationaltheater, the Prinzregententheater, the Cuvilliés-Theater and the Allerheiligen-Hofkirche. Besides opera, concerts of chamber music are given to showcase the work of members of the Bavarian State Orchestra, which serves in the pit for all opera performances. The festival is formally opened each year with a choral concert performed as part of a full Roman Catholic church service at Michaelskirche; this is led by the Archbishop of Munich and Freising, with the opera company's music director overseeing the work of the musicia ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Lawrence Zazzo
Lawrence Zazzo (born December 15, 1970 in Philadelphia) is an American countertenor. His repertoire includes roles in many Baroque operas and oratorios, as well as works of the 20th century. He lives in England. Education and background In his childhood Zazzo took part in school drama productions and choirs, including the Philadelphia Boys Choir & Chorale, and also performed as the magician “The Great Zazzini” for smaller children in the neighbourhood. After his voice had broken, he noticed that he had kept his alto voice in the falsetto register and began to develop it. He sang in numerous barbershop ensembles, high school madrigal and a cappella choirs. This led to his decision to study English and Music at Yale University (1989–93) and at King's College, Cambridge, England, (1993–95). Zazzo envisaged a career as a conductor, a concert singer or as an academic (and in fact, Zazzo completed a PhD in Musicology at Queen's University (2015) on Handel's oratorios, which ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Countertenor
A countertenor (also contra tenor) is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range is equivalent to that of the female contralto or mezzo-soprano voice types, generally extending from around G3 to D5 or E5, although a sopranist (a specific kind of countertenor) may match the soprano's range of around C4 to C6.A sopranist is a term used to describe a countertenor whose vocal range is so high it is equivalent to that of a soprano; however, this term is widely used falsely. Countertenors often are baritones or tenors at core, but only on rare occasions do they use their lower vocal range, instead preferring their falsetto or high head voice. The nature of the countertenor voice has radically changed throughout musical history, from a modal voice, to a modal and falsetto voice, to the primarily falsetto voice which is denoted by the term today. This is partly because of changes in human physiology and partly because of fluctuations in pitch. The term first came into ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Wigmore Hall
Wigmore Hall is a concert hall located at 36 Wigmore Street, London. Originally called Bechstein Hall, it specialises in performances of chamber music, early music, vocal music and song recitals. It is widely regarded as one of the world's leading centres for this type of music and an essential port of call for many of the classical music world's leading stars. With near-perfect acoustic, the Hall quickly became celebrated across Europe and featured many of the great artists of the 20th century. Today, the Hall promotes 550 concerts a year and broadcasts a weekly concert on BBC Radio 3. The Hall also promotes an extensive education programme throughout London and beyond and has a huge digital broadcasting arm, which includes the Wigmore Hall Live Label and many live streams of concerts. Origins Originally named Bechstein Hall, it was built between 1899 and 1901 by C. Bechstein Pianofortefabrik, the German piano manufacturer, whose showroom was next door. The renowned British a ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Alte Oper
Alte Oper (Old Opera) is a concert hall in Frankfurt am Main, Hesse, Germany. It is located in the inner city, Innenstadt, within the banking district Bankenviertel. Today's Alte Oper was built in 1880 as the city's opera house, which was destroyed by bombs in 1944. It was rebuilt in the 1970s as a concert hall with a large hall and smaller venues, opened in 1981. The square in front of the building is still known as Opernplatz (Opera Square). Many important works were performed for the first time when it was Frankfurt's opera house, including Schreker's ''Der ferne Klang'' and Carl Orff's ''Carmina Burana'' in 1937. The Oper Frankfurt now plays in the Opern- und Schauspielhaus Frankfurt, completed in 1951. Historic opera house The building was designed by the Berlin architect Richard Lucae, financed by the citizens of Frankfurt and built by Philipp Holzmann. Construction began in 1873.Groß, p. 50 It opened on 20 October 1880. Among the guests was Kaiser Wilhelm I of Germany ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhattan), 57th Streets. Designed by architect William Burnet Tuthill and built by philanthropist Andrew Carnegie, it is one of the most prestigious venues in the world for both classical music and popular music. Carnegie Hall has its own artistic programming, development, and marketing departments and presents about 250 performances each season. It is also rented out to performing groups. Carnegie Hall has 3,671 seats, divided among three auditoriums. The largest one is the Stern Auditorium, a five-story auditorium with 2,804 seats. Also part of the complex are the 599-seat Zankel Hall on Seventh Avenue, as well as the 268-seat Joan and Sanford I. Weill Recital Hall on 57th Street. Besides the auditoriums, Carnegie Hall contains offices on its t ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Carlo Rizzi (conductor)
Carlo Rizzi (born 19 July 1960, Milan, Italy) is an Italian conductor. Biography One of three children born to a chemist father and an accountant mother, Rizzi studied music at the Milan Conservatory. He later was a conducting student of Vladimir Delman, in Bologna, and with Franco Ferrara in Siena. His opera conducting debut was in 1982, with Donizetti's ''L'ajo nell'imbarazzo''. In 1985, he won the first Toscanini Conductor's Competition in Parma. Rizzi made his UK conducting debut at the 1988 Buxton Festival with Donizetti's ''Torquato Tasso'', and subsequently conducted productions at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden and Opera North. In August 1992, he became music director of Welsh National Opera (WNO), and served in the post through 2001. He learned to speak Welsh during his tenure. In 2004, following the sudden resignation of Tugan Sokhiev, Rizzi's successor at WNO, Rizzi returned as WNO's music director, which was expected to be initially for a period of 2 years. ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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David Pountney
Sir David Willoughby Pountney (born 10 September 1947) is a British-Polish theatre and opera director and librettist internationally known for his productions of rarely performed operas and new productions of classic works. He has directed over ten world premières, including three by Sir Peter Maxwell Davies for whom he wrote the librettos of '' The Doctor of Myddfai'', '' Mr Emmet Takes a Walk'' and ''Kommilitonen!''Baumgartner (22 July 2009) Biography Pountney was born in Oxford and was a chorister at St John's College, Cambridge (1956-61). He was then educated near Oxford at Radley College (1961-66). And then returned to St John's College, Cambridge to read his degree. His first major breakthrough came in 1972 with his production of ''Káťa Kabanová'' for the Wexford Festival. From 1975 to 1980, he was the Director of Productions at Scottish Opera, and, from 1982 to 1993, Director of Productions at English National Opera, where he directed over twenty operas. From 199 ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Royal Opera House
The Royal Opera House (ROH) is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply Covent Garden, after a previous use of the site. It is the home of The Royal Opera, The Royal Ballet, and the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House. The first theatre on the site, the Theatre Royal (1732), served primarily as a playhouse for the first hundred years of its history. In 1734, the first ballet was presented. A year later, the first season of operas, by George Frideric Handel, began. Many of his operas and oratorios were specifically written for Covent Garden and had their premieres there. The current building is the third theatre on the site, following disastrous fires in 1808 and 1856 to previous buildings. The façade, foyer, and auditorium date from 1858, but almost every other element of the present complex dates from an extensive reconstruction in the 1990s. The main auditorium seats 2,256 people, mak ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Wales Millennium Centre
Wales Millennium Centre ( cy, Canolfan Mileniwm Cymru) is an arts centre located in the Cardiff Bay area of Cardiff, Wales. The site covers a total area of . Phase 1 of the building was opened during the weekend of the 26–28 November 2004 and phase 2 opened on 22 January 2009 with an inaugural concert. The centre has hosted performances of opera, ballet, contemporary dance, theatre comedy, pop stars, and musicals. The Wales Millennium Centre comprises one large theatre and two smaller halls with shops, bars and restaurants. It houses the national orchestra and opera, dance, theatre and literature companies, a total of eight arts organisations in residence. The main theatre, the Donald Gordon Theatre, has 2,497 seats, the BBC Hoddinott Hall 350 and the Weston Studio Theatre 250. In 2001 Lord Rowe-Beddoe was appointed chairman of Wales Millennium Centre, a company limited by guarantee. Board members include Sir Michael Checkland. Background The failed Cardiff Bay ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |