Open Opera Blog

OPEN OPERA presents
An Opera Concert in the Park
Live Oak Park, Berkeley, CA
Saturday, May 21, 2011 3PM
Pianists: Amy Glenn

Eliza O’Malley and Elizabeth Baker: “Prenderò” from Cosí fan tutte by Mozart

Ryan Bradford: “Come paride vezosso” from L’elisir d’amore by Donizetti

Nanette McGuinness and Paul Murray: “Là ci darem la mano” from Don Giovanni by Mozart

Elizabeth Baker: “Una voce poco fa” from Il Barbiere di Siviglia by Rossini

Zoltan DiBartolo: “L’ultima canzone” by Tosti

Paul Murray: “O du mein holder Abendstern” from Tannhauser by Wagner

Nanette McGuinness: “O mio babbino caro” from Gianni Schicchi by Puccini

Raymond Chavez: “En fermant les yeux” from Manon by Massannet

Buffy Baggott and Leland Morine: “Dunque io son” from Il Barbiere di Siviglia by Rossini

INTERMISSION

Eliza O’Malley: “Quando me’n vo” from La Boheme by Puccini

Brieanne Martin: “Steal me, Sweet Thief” from The Old Maid and the Thief by Menotti

David Chavez: “E lucevan le stelle” from Tosca by Puccini

Eliza O’Malley and Buffy Baggott: “The Flower Duet” from Lakme by Delibes

Leland Morine: “Tanzlied des Pierrot” from Die Tode Stadt by Korngold

Marta Johansen: “Caro nome” from Rigoletto by Verdi

Leland Morine and Raymond Chavez: “Au fond du temple saint” from Les Pecheurs de perles by Bizet

Buffy Baggott: “Seguidilla” from Carmen by Bizet

Marta Johansen, Buffy Baggott, David Chavez and Leland Morine: “Bella figlia, della amore” from Rigoletto by Verdi

This concert is sponsored by The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, The East Bay Community Foundation, the City of Berkeley and people like you! THANK YOU.

THIS CONCERT IS SPONSORED BY THE WILLIAM AND FLORA HEWLETT FOUNDATION, THE EAST BAY COMMUNITY FOUNDATION, THE CITY OF BERKELEY AND PEOPLE LIKE YOU! THANK YOU.

O P E N O P E R A’S UPCOMING FREE EVENTS:
• JUNE 4, 12:30 – 1:30 HOPE BRIGGS IN CONCERT, BERKELEY PIANO CLUB
• JULY 31, 4PM CONCERT IN THE PARK, ORINDA (WITH ORINDA ROTARY)

OPEN OPERA BRINGS FREE, PROFESSIONAL OPERA TO BAY AREA PARKS AND USES PUBLIC SPACE TO BUILD COMMUNITY THROUGH THE ARTS. IT IS A PROJECT OF THE VOCAL ARTS INSTITUTE A CALIFORNIA 501 C 3 NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION.

SINGER’S BIOGRAPHIES
Mezzo Soprano Buffy Baggott is a California Native who has performed leading and featured roles with the Lyric Opera of Chicago, Los Angeles Opera, San Francisco Opera, and Canadian Opera Company (among others). Locally, she was last heard as Carmen in Berkeley West Edge Opera’s production of “The Carmen Fixation.” Upcoming performances include concerts at The Bay View Music Festival and dreite dame cover in “Die Zauberflöte” for Lyric Opera Chicago. Upcoming performances: “In Eleanor’s Words” (compilation of Stacy Garrop works) - Spring 2011 Release through Cedille Records; Concert: “Four Goethe Songs: Mignons Lied, Der König in Thule, Wandrers Nachtlied I & II”: Jacaranda Music: April 23, 2011; Soloist - various concerts Bay View Music Festival: Summer 2011; 3rd Lady (cover- Die Zauberfloete) Lyric Opera Chicago: November, December 2011; January 2012

Elizabeth Baker, Creative Director, is a San Francisco native and graduate of Williams College. Ms. Baker’s music and performing career spans composition, improvisation, comedy, acting, and opera. Co-founder and creative director of Open Opera, Ms. Baker has performed the roles of Dido and Cherubino and sung at Grace Cathedral with new music composer Earl Howard. Ms. Baker recently appeared at the New Museum in New York with Dogr. Her choral composition, One, Two, Three was commissioned and performed by the International Orange Chorale. Ms. Baker studied composition and North Indian raga with W. A. Mathieu for seven years and is a voice student of Soprano Olivia Stapp.

Baritone Ryan Bradford is a DePaul University graduate who recently made his professional symphony debut with Northwest Indiana Symphony. With DePaul Opera Theater he sang many roles including KoKo in The Mikado and Betto in Gianni Schicchi, and recently debuted in San Francisco as Papageno in Die Zauberflöte. He has been recognized by both Chicago and San Francisco NATS and is a student of Cesar Ulloa. He performed Masetto in Open Opera’s Don Giovanni.

David Chavez, a current Diablo Valley College student, was born in El Salvador and, he says, he has always liked to sing. Chavez also has been a soloist with the Rossmoor Community chorus, the Moraga Community Chorus, the San Francisco Coro Hispano, the San Francisco Lyric Chorus, Festival Opera in Walnut Creek, Open Opera in Orinda, and the San Jose State University Concert Choir. He served as tenor section leader at many local churches, and currently sings at Saint Stephen’s Episcopal Church in Orinda.

Raymond Chavez is a Bay Area native with a past life including five years in the San Francisco Opera Chorus. More recently, Ray has appeared with Alameda Civic Light Opera, most notably as Juan Peron in Evita and the Padre in Man of La Mancha, as well as with Altarena Theater and Stagemasters as Frankie in “Forever Plaid”. He recently premiered song cycles by composer Aaron Blumenfeld in Berkeley (Trinity Concert Series). He has performed in the Bracebridge Dinners in Yosemite National Park. It was while singing in Yosemite that Ray returned to the opera repertoire after a twenty-two year hiatus. Since then, he has appeared with Pocket Opera in San Francisco, and with Open Opera in the East Bay. He has appeared with Virago Theatre in Alameda, last year as Rodolfo in La Bohème and recently as Alfredo in La Traviata.

Zoltan DiBartolo comes from a long and diverse vocal background that spans 25 years and includes the genres of Classical, Jazz, Tango, Salsa, Cabaret, and Vaudeville. In recent years, he has directed his efforts towards a long-time dream of becoming an opera singer. Recent roles include La Traviata’s Gastone and La Boheme’s Shaunard (both with Virago Theater Co.), and Enrico Caruso in The Last Night of The Barbary Coast (written and directed by Jessa Brie Berkner). When not singing opera, Zoltan is the vocalist for San Francisco’s acclaimed Tango Number Nine (tangonumber9.com).

Amy Glenn, B.M. piano performance (BYU), M.M. Vocal Coaching/Accompanying (FSU), has worked as an accompanist/coach for many organizations including San Francisco Conservatory of Music, West Bay Opera, Golden Gate Opera, BASOTI (Bay Area Summer Opera Theater Institute), A.C.T. (American Conservatory Theater), A.M.D.A. (American Music and Dramatic Academy), The Cinnabar Theater, and the San Francisco Opera Center. She performs regularly in recital with members of the San Francisco Symphony and San Francisco Opera Orchestra and has worked with various choral groups in the bay area including Cantare con vivo, San Francisco City Chorus, San Francisco Boys Chorus, and Philharmonia Baroque. Amy currently works as Music Director at St. Anne of the Sunset Church in San Francisco where she is principal organist, pianist and conducts 2 Adult Choirs and 1 Children’s Choir. In her spare time, Amy enjoys continued study of French, German, and Italian, teaching her piano & violin students, working in piano technology & tuning, and spending time with her husband and three children.

Marta Johansen has performed extensively with Oakland Opera Theater, Berkeley Opera, Pocket Opera, West Bay Opera, and others in such leading roles as Mimi, Violetta, Gilda, Marguerite, Lucia, and the Queen of the Night. She also stage-directs for the Opera Scenes class at Holy Names University, and maintains a voice studio focusing on dramatic presentation.

William G. Ludtke has been a member of the staff and faculties of the Lyric Opera of Chicago, the American Conservatory of Music in Chicago, Elmhurst College, Elmhurst, Illinois, Holy Names University, Marin Opera, Cinnabar Theater in Petaluma and the American Institute of Musical Studies in Graz, Austria. He is currently a member of ASCAP. While living in Chicago, Bill formed his own grass roots opera company which performed over 50 operas during the company’s existence. Repertory Opera Theater had a large roster of singers and a supporting administrative and artistic staff. Performances included works by Puccini, Mozart, Gilbert & Sullivan, Poulenc’s three operas and numerous one-act operas from the 20th century repertoire. He has received awards from The American Composers Forum, the Meet the Composer Program, the American Guild of Organists, ASCAP, Mu Phi Epsilon, the American Music Center in New York, the National Endowment for the Arts, the Irvine Foundation, San Francisco Art Commissions and the City of Oakland Cultural Funding Program.
Brieanne Martin is happily singing with San Francisco Symphony and striking it out on small opera and musical stages. She has just been seen as Frasquita in Carmen (Verismo Opera), Lola in Cavalleria Rusticana (Pocket Opera), Giovanna in Rigoletto (Verismo Opera) and the soul-saving Sarah Brown in Guys and Dolls. She studies with Erie Mills and has two baccalaureates, one in Dance and one in Music.

Hailed in the press for her “creamy golden tone,” “glorious soprano,” and “magnetic stage presence,” lyric soprano Nanette McGuinness has performed the roles of Mimì (La Bohème) in the Czech Republic and Musetta (also La Bohème) in Italy. Bay Area audiences have heard her recently as the Countess (Le Nozze di Figaro), Foreign Woman (Menotti’s The Consul), Micaela (Carmen), and First Lady (The Magic Flute) with companies that include Mission City, Trinity Lyric, San Jose (Opera-in-the-Schools), West Bay, Verismo, Berkeley, Livermore Valley, and Pocket Operas. She has been a Teaching Artist for the S.F. Opera Guild, and her CD of music by women composers, Fabulous Femmes, was named “perfect for the song recital lover” by Chambermusic Magazine. Concert engagements include Mahler’s Fourth Symphony as well as works by Mozart, Rossini, Canteloube, Haydn, and the world premiere of William Ludtke’s Christmas Suite with Joann Falletta and the San Jose Symphony, among others. Upcoming: Freia, Desdemona, and a Baroque recording with the Vinaccesi Ensemble.For more information: www.nanette.biz.

Leland Morine, baritone, came from a musical family. He earned a Bachelor of Arts at Fresno Pacific College and a Master of Arts at California State University, Fresno. He won the Metropolitan Opera District Auditions five times, received top prize in the Fresno District Merola Auditions, and was awarded prizes twice from the Henry Holt Memorial Scholarship. Roles performed include Maletesta Don Pasquale, Dandini Cenerentola, Silvio & Tonio Pagliacci, Renato Ballo, Schaunard Boheme, Scarpia Tosca, Falstaff Falstaff, Elder Germont Traviata, Silva Ernani, Ezio Attila, Michele & Gianni Schicchi Trittico, Count Figaro, Guglielmo Cosi, Sparadrop Princess of Trebizonde, Emperor Rossignol, Jupiter Orpheus, and many Gilbert and Sullivan characters. He regularly performs with the Uptown Singers. Sings Opera, Broadway, and Standards at Bella Restaurant in Redwood Shores, presents Neapolitan Standards at Nicolino’s Garden Restaurant in Sunnyvale, and on radio and in recital. He is widely known for his performances of 17th century through 20th century oratorio and concert literature.

Paul Murray has been living and singing in the Bay Area for the last eight years, pursuing a variety of performance opportunities. Recent operatic highlights include the roles of Basilio (Il Barbière di Siviglia, Opera San Jose), Top (The Tender Land, Berekeley Opera), Alidoro (LaCenerentola, Opera San Jose), and the Four Villains (The Tales of Hoffman, Berkeley Opera. Favorite recent concerts include the premiere of “Thanksgiving for Heroes” by Eric Davis, a new work for chorus, soloists, and dancers; and “They Left a Light,” a collaborative project presenting works by composers who didn’t survive Terezín. In addition to his performing schedule, Mr. Murray teaches collegiate voice lessons at Santa Clara University and privately from his home in Alameda, and is the director of Jubilate Deo, a children’s choir in Hayward. He received his Master’s degree in 2005 from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, under the tutelage of Leroy Kromm.

Soprano Eliza O’Malley has performed leading roles throughout Northern California. Over the past few years, she has performed the roles of Gilda in Rigoletto, Suor Angelica in Suor Angelica, Micaela in Carmen, Violetta in La Traviata, Susanna in The Marriage of Figaro, Antigone in Mark Alburger’s Antigone, as well as Nedda in Pagliacci. She looks forward to reprising the role of Nedda, and singing Lauretta in Gianni Schicchi and Norma in Norma with Verismo Opera at the Hillside Club and in Vallejo in the coming months.

Ellen St. Thomas enjoys performing, teaching, conducting and directing. Her opera performances with local opera companies such as West Bay Opera, Livermore Opera, San Francisco Lyric Opera, Mission Opera and The Marin Summer Music Festival include: The Countess, The Marriage of Figaro, Rosalinda Die Fledermaus, Mimi La Boheme, Miss Jessel Turn of the Screw, Donna Elvira Don Giovanni, Jenufa and Mayor’s Wife Jenufa, Micaela Carmen, Pretzel Girl in Shostakovich’s, The Nose. Opera directing credits include La Boheme and Rachmaninoff’s, Aleko for the Russian Center. Ms. St. Thomas has a private voice studio and teaches voice at the Alameda School of Music. She is co-founder and executive director of Open Opera.