Podcasts about Chicago Opera Theater

[@ 4 min] We go Inside the Huddle with Vanessa Becerra. The Peruvian and Mexican American soprano is set to make her Chicago Opera Theater debut in the title role of Ferdinando Paer's Leonora. She joins OBS for a frank conversation about how she distinguished herself as an artist and how her Latina identity opened up new opportunities. [@ 37 min] Plus, in the ‘Two Minute Drill'…can we get through the segment without naming the patron of Operalia? GET YOUR VOICE HEARD operaboxscore.com facebook.com/obschi1 @operaboxscore IG operaboxscore

[@ 4 min] This week, 'Hometown Team' Chicago Opera Theater announced its new season. Lawrence Edelson joins us to unpack the first full season he programmed as the company's recently appointed General Director... [@ 38 min] Plus, in the ‘Two Minute Drill'… We have the latest Royal news. Not Kate and William, or Meghan and Harry; it's the newly-named Royal Ballet and Opera... GET YOUR VOICE HEARD operaboxscore.com facebook.com/obschi1 @operaboxscore IG operaboxscore

[@ 5 min] As Lidiya Yankovskaya prepares to step down as Music Director of Chicago Opera Theater, we take a look at some of the ‘Swings and Misses' of her tenure, including being a three-time Inside the Huddle guest on the OBS... [@ 30 min] And then… PJ files a report on “X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X” from the Met, and Lise Davidsen joins us for a ‘Free Throw' on Janacek's "Jenůfa"… [@ 42 min] Plus, in the ‘Two Minute Drill'… France is the big winner in the World Cup of Opera, and an opera company in Dallas attempts to show the relationship between opera and sports... GET YOUR VOICE HEARD operaboxscore.com facebook.com/obschi1 @operaboxscore IG operaboxscore

Robbie Ellis is a presenter and producer for Chicago's classical music station, WFMT. He's been a teaching artist with The Second City, Chicago Opera Theater, and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra; and he's composed and MC'd musical comedy concerts for the Oistrakh Symphony of Chicago and Fourth Coast Ensemble. He is a music director for comedy theater, works as an event MC around town, and performs his comedy songs from the piano.

O listopadowej premierze opery „Król Roger” (King Roger) Karola Szymanowskiego w Chicago Opera Theater (COT) rozmawiamy z dyrygentem asystentem COT Michałem Pęcakiem, historykiem muzyki i pianistą.  Zaprasza Łukasz Dudka  

Season 5 of Imagine This Podcast kicks off with the acknowledgement of a bittersweet announcement from CEO David Lee. In the (admittedly long) banter, the crew talks about changes to the pod—including a new thematic structure. The group digs in by exploring how the arts and culture sector in Milwaukee is innovating and testing new solutions in this time of unprecedented change. The team also takes a few (sappy) moments to reflect jointly on David's incredible tenure as the first CEO of the organization.   Starting around 20:00, Amy Salat, the Managing Director of Milwaukee Chamber Theatre joins the crew to reflect on her organization's upcoming season, which includes performances that present a mixture of classic, socially important theatrical works, as brand-new multiform productions that will include original music by local artists including Klassik. In addition, this season, MCT endeavors to present new avenues for reaching new audiences, supporting local artists, and rethinking processes to draw in audiences with flexibility and a new sense of welcome—all spearheaded by an inspired, focused, and inclusivity-championing staff who are “walking the same path.” Though MCT has historically had a rich history of inspiring young audiences through programming—the team at MCT are excited by their pivot towards creating more opportunities for local multidisciplinary artists while platforming a diversity of voices and perspectives. Salat closes the episode with an urgent call for increased public funding for the arts.   Follow https://www.milwaukeechambertheatre.org/ (Milwaukee Chamber Theatre) on https://www.facebook.com/MilwaukeeChamberTheatre (Facebook) and https://www.instagram.com/mkechamber/ (Instagram).  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=drnBMAEA3AM (The Sound of Music's “Do-Re-Mi")  https://cla.umn.edu/theatre (University of Minnesota Twin Cities Department of Theatre Arts and Dance)  https://chicagooperatheater.org/ (Chicago Opera Theater)  https://www.google.com/search?gs_ssp=eJzj4tZP1zcsyagqS062NGC0UjWosLAwMDW0TDQ3NUkySkpNtrQyqEhJS0xLSTNJMzBOMrJIMjPwEkjLyS9KzSvJzEtVyC9ILUoEAN2gFds&q=florentine+opera&rlz=1C1GCEA_enUS993US993&oq=florentine+&aqs=chrome.1.69i57j46i20i175i199i263i512j0i512l2j46i131i433i512l2j0i512l2j46i175i199i512.3828j0j4&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8 (The Florentine Opera)   https://www.milwaukeechambertheatre.org/22-23season (Where Did We Sit on the Bus?)  https://www.atsocanicole.com/ (Nicole Acosta)  https://www.milwaukeechambertheatre.org/22-23season (Hoops)  https://www.iamklassik.com/ (Klassik)  https://bfree2music.com/ (BFree)  https://americanplayers.org/about/people/laura-gordon (Laura Gordon)  https://americanplayers.org/about/people/james-ridge (Jim Ridge)  https://www.milwaukeechambertheatre.org/staff (Brent Hazelton)  https://www.milwaukeechambertheatre.org/education (Young Playwrights Festival)   https://www.legacy.mn.gov/about-funds (Minnesota's Legacy Amendment)   https://duckybamboo.com/letter.html (TORN: Director's Letter) 

Hi there! Happy end of July and welcome to the seventh edition of the Conductor's Podcast Wisdom series, a new series full of shared life experiences and, of course, wisdom! This series is aired on the last Monday of each month, and in each episode, I am going to pose a question to 10 musicians, conductors, or business gurus. So including myself, you will hear all the goodies from a wide variety of people, thus called the wisdom series. Now, without further ado, let's get started.This month's question that I am asking my people is, “What You Wish You Knew Before Entering the Profession"I asked this question selfishly as I suck (!!!!) at networking in whatever sense. Let's hear what my guests have to say:Tianyi Lu (Principal Guest Conductor, Stavanger Symphony, episode 34)Ashley Killam and Carrie Blosser (co-founder, Diversify the Stand, episode 20)Margaret Flood (Founder, Frost Young Women Conductor Symposium)JoAnne Harris (film composer and conductor, episode 36)Lidiya Yankovskaya (Music Director, Chicago Opera Theater, episode 41) Kiernan Steiner or Dr. Kiki (Decolonization consultant and choral conductor, episode 17)Kristin Roach (opera conductor, Episode 12)Lina Gonzalez Granados (Conducting Fellow, Philadelphia Orchestra and Chicago Symphony Orchestra, episode 38)Alice Farnham (opera conductor, episode 26) 

Conductor Lidiya Yankovskaya joins me and speaks about her experience preparing for, conducting, and navigating a career thriving between concert halls and opera pits.Russian-American conductor Lidiya Yankovskaya is a fiercely committed advocate for Russianmasterpieces, operatic rarities, and contemporary works on the leading edge of classical music. She has conducted more than 40 world premieres, including 16 operas, and her strength as a visionary collaborator has guided new perspectives on staged and symphonic repertoire from Carmen and Queen of Spades to Price and Prokofiev. Yankovskaya has recently made major debuts with Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Dallas Symphony, and conducted the symphony orchestras of Omaha, Pasadena, and Fort Worth. As Music Director of Chicago Opera Theater, she has led the Chicago premieres of Jake Heggie's Moby-Dick, Rachmaninov's Aleko, Joby Talbot's Everest, Tchaikovsky's Iolanta, and Adamo's Becoming Santa Claus. Elsewhere, she has recently conducted Carmen at Houston Grand Opera, Don Giovanni at Seattle Opera, Pia de' Tolomei at Spoleto Festival USA, Il barbiere di Siviglia at Wolf Trap Opera, Ellen West at New York's Prototype Festival, and the world premiere of Taking Up Serpents at Washington National Opera.

Russian-American conductor Lidiya Yankovskaya is a fiercely committed advocate for Russian masterpieces, operatic rarities, and contemporary works on the leading edge of classical music. She has conducted more than 40 world premieres, including 16 operas, and her strength as a visionary collaborator has guided new perspectives on staged and symphonic repertoire from Carmen and Queen of Spades to Price and Prokofiev. As Music Director of Chicago Opera Theater, Ms. Yankovskaya has led the Chicago premieres of Jake Heggie's Moby-Dick, Rachmaninov's Aleko, Joby Talbot's Everest, Tchaikovsky's Iolanta, and the world premiere of Dan Shore's Freedom Ride. Her daring performances before and amid the pandemic earned recognition from the Chicago Tribune, which praised her as “the very model of how to survive adversity, and also how to thrive in it,” while naming her 2020 Chicagoan of the Year. In the 2021/22 season, Ms. Yankovskaya makes a trio of Texan debuts, leading performances of Carmen at Houston Grand Opera, a tribute to Ruth Bader Ginsburg at Dallas Symphony Orchestra, and concerts featuring works by Gershwin and Dawson at Fort Worth Symphony. Elsewhere, she debuts with Chicago Symphony Orchestra in Prokofiev's Peter and the Wolf, leads a program of Brahms and Wagner at Elgin Symphony, conducts Boulanger, Debussy, and Ravel at Omaha Symphony, and makes her Pasadena Symphony debut conducting works by Tchaikovsky, Rimsky-Korsakov, and Gabriela Lena Frank. At Chicago Opera Theater, she conducts the Chicago premiere of Mark Adamo's Becoming Santa Claus and a concert version of Carmen, starring Jamie Barton opposite Stephanie Blythe. Ms. Yankovskaya has recently conducted Don Giovanni at Seattle Opera, Pia de' Tolomei at Spoleto Festival USA, Il barbiere di Siviglia at Wolf Trap Opera, Ellen West at New York's Prototype Festival, and the world premiere of Taking Up Serpents at Washington National Opera. On the concert stage, she has been recently engaged with Chicago Philharmonic, Rhode Island Philharmonic, and the symphony orchestras of Hawaii and Oviedo, Spain. Ms. Yankovskaya is Founder and Artistic Director of the Refugee Orchestra Project, which proclaims the cultural and societal relevance of refugees through music, and has brought that message to hundreds of thousands of listeners around the world. In addition to a National Sawdust residency in Brooklyn, ROP has performed in London, Boston, Washington, D.C., and the United Nations. She has also served as Artistic Director of the Boston New Music Festival and Juventas New Music Ensemble, which was the recipient of multiple NEA grants and National Opera Association Awards under her leadership. As Music Director of Harvard's Lowell House Opera, Ms. Yankovskaya conducted sold-out performances of repertoire rarely heard in Boston, including Tchaikovsky's The Queen of Spades, Britten's A Midsummer Night's Dream, and the U.S. Russian-language premiere of Rimsky-Korsakov's The Snow Maiden. Her commitment to exploring the breadth of symphonic and operatic repertoire has also been demonstrated in performances of Rachmaninoff's Aleko and the American premieres of Donizetti's Pia de' Tolomei, Rubinshteyn's The Demon, and Rimsky-Korsakov's Kashchej The Immortal and Symphony No. 1. An alumna of the Dallas Opera's Hart Institute for Women Conductors and the Taki Alsop Conducting Fellowship, Ms. Yankovskaya has also served as assistant conductor to Lorin Maazel, chorus master of Boston Symphony Orchestra, and conductor of Boston Youth Symphony Orchestra. She has been featured in the League of American Orchestras Bruno Walter National Conductor Preview and Cabrillo Festival for Contemporary Music, and assisted Vladimir Jurowski via a London Philharmonic fellowship. Ms. Yankovskaya holds a B.A. in Music and Philosophy from Vassar College, with a focus on piano, voice, and conducting, and earned an M.M. in Conducting from Boston University. Her conducting teachers and mentors have included Lorin Maazel, Marin Alsop, Kenneth Kiesler, and Ann Howard Jones. Ms. Yankovskaya's belief in the importance of mentorship has fueled the establishment of Chicago Opera Theater's Vanguard Initiative, an investment in new opera that includes a two-year residency for emerging opera composers. Committed to developing the next generation of artistic leaders, she also volunteers with Turn The Spotlight, a foundation dedicated to identifying, nurturing, and empowering leaders – and in turn, to illuminating the path to a more equitable future in the arts. Recipient of Solti Foundation U.S. Career Assistance Awards in 2018 and 2021, Ms. Yankovskaya has been a featured speaker at the League of American Orchestras and Opera America conferences, and served as U.S. Representative to the 2018 World Opera Forum in Madrid.

HMS PINAFORE; OR, THE LASS WHO LOVED A SAILOR COMPOSER: Arthur Sullivan LYRICIST: W.S. Gilbert BOOK: W.S. Gilbert DIRECTOR: W.S. Gilbert CHOREOGRAPHER: John D'Auban PRINCIPLE CAST: Blanche Roosevelt (Josephine), J.H. Ryley (Sir Joseph), Hugh Talbert (Ralph Rackstraw) OPENING DATE: December 1st, 1879 CLOSING DATE: December 27th, 1879 PERFORMANCES: 28 SYNOPSIS: Josephine, the daughter of a British Naval Captain, has become the object of two men's desires: Ralph, a lowly Sailor, and Sir Joseph, the First Lord of Admiralty. Trapped between society's expectations and her own heart's desires, Josephine must make a decision on whom to marry. Rupert and Richard Holmes detail the unparalleled significance on musical theatre history by Gilbert and Sullivan's second major collaboration, H.M.S. Pinafore, which established the popularity of witty patter songs and laid a framework for love stories told through operetta. The simplicity of the narrative and clarity of the stock characters has made the show a success which has delighted audiences through the ages. Upon its American premiere, H.M.S. Pinafore was an immediate success, launching a new standard for musical entertainment which would redefine what musical theatre could accomplish. Gilbert and Sullivan's joint and individual oeuvres are detailed through an analysis of their longstanding global popularity. Richard Holmes- A fixture of the New York Gilbert and Sullivan Players for forty years, he recently performed H.M.S. Pinafore's Captain Corcoran for the 215th time, and has earned kudos in 31 principal roles in all 13 Savoy operas across the United States and England. He made his stage debut in the Metropolitan Opera Childrens' Chorus and his extraordinary half-century career at the Met was recently highlighted in the acclaimed film The Opera House. He has additionally played 160 major roles at such venues as Glimmerglass Opera, Chicago Opera Theater, Virginia Opera, countless others, and soloed at major festivals across Europe and Russia. Rupert Holmes- the first person in Broadway history to solely win Tony® awards as author, composer and lyricist of a musical—The Mystery of Edwin Drood—which also won the Tony® for Best Musical. Add identical Drama Desk awards plus their additional category of Best Orchestration. He received the Best Book Drama Desk award for Curtains and Tony® noms for Book and Add'l Lyrics. For Say Goodnight, Gracie he received a Tony® Best Play nom and won LORT's National Broadway Theatre award. Twice a recipient of MWA's “Edgar” Award, his novels are Where the Truth Lies, Swing and The McMaster's Guide to Homicide. TV: Creator-writer of AMC's Remember WENN. SOURCES HMS Pinafore by WS Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan, published by Dover Publications (2002) HMS Pinafore, The D'Oyle Carte Company & Isidore Godfrey, Decca Records (1959) Ayre, Leslie. The Gilbert & Sullivan Companion. London: Papermac, 1985. Gilbert and Sullivan: HMS Pinafore starring Frankie Howerd and Peter Marshall, directed by Rodney Greenberg. Acord Media (1982)   The Topsy Turvy World of Gilbert and Sullivan by Keith Dockray and Alan Sutton, published by Fonthell Media (2020) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Keturah interviews playwright and librettist, Deborah Brevoort, about her early political career in Alaska, her switch to theater, and her more recent work writing opera libretti.  They go in depth on three operas: STEAL A PENCIL FOR ME, that had its stage premiere at Opera Colorado, THE KNOCK, that was presented as a film for the Glimmerglass Festival last year, and QUAMINO'S MAP, which is about to get its premiere at Chicago Opera Theater.Deborah Brevoort: https://www.deborahbrevoort.com/

The Two Gay Geeks

This week, we are absolutely delighted to be speaking with Curtis Bannister! The 2021 recipient of the Actors Equity Foundation Roger Sturtevant Award as well as a 2021 Drama League Award nominee, Curtis Bannister is praised by TimeOut Magazine as “radiating with slowly simmering energy” and a “quiet revelation” by the L.A. Times as he continues to establish himself as one of the most dynamic and multi-genre performing artists of his generation in theatre, opera & film. Bannister begins his 2021/22 season with a return to the role of Coalhouse Walker Jr. in Ragtime with Music Theatre Works, makes his U.S. solo recital debut with The Festival of new American Music and debuts with Hearing In Color and WFMT (Classical Chicago Radio) as Carlos in the new chamber opera, Undying Love, inspired by the iconic song of the same name by legendary rapper, Nas. Curtis will also make his anticipated debut with Drury Lane Theatre in the lead role of Jim Hardy in Irving Berlin's Holiay Inn, and his New York City operatic debut as Florestaan in Fidelio with Heartbeat Opera and the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Live Arts; this production of Fidelio will also tour the west coast with performances at The Broad Stage (L.A.) and the Mondavi Center (Davis, C.A.). Bannister ends the season starring as Juba Freeman in the world premiere opera production of Quamino's Map with Chicago Opera Theater. Bannister made his debut at the Tribeca Film Festival in the world premiere feature film “The Conductor” and can be seen as Marquee in season 2 of the Apple TV+ series, Dickinson, as well as as Reimers in NBC's hit series Chicago Fire. More resources: Lucia Lucas This episode was produced on the unceded ancestral territory of the Kiikaapoi, Peoria, Bodéwadmiakiwen, and Miami. This episode was edited by Emery Lade, with original intro and outro music by Marc Young. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/prints-unedited/support

In today's episode, Breeanne Carter talks with Micaela Oeste, a professional opera singer engaged around the world who currently resides in Berlin, Germany. Micaela's schedule isn't a typical 9-5, but she gets to see and go to places that are absolutely amazing and work with renowned opera singers. Micaela Oeste shares how she began her interest in music and singing, what COVID-19 has done to her ability to sing in the theatre, and how she trains her vocal chords to be prepared for a performance. Listen to hear what it's like to be a professional opera singer, how to get started and stay motivated, to learn to be okay with criticism and failing, and more! Micaela is an alumna from the University of Central Arkansas class of 2008 with a degree in music. She went on to attend Northwestern University receiving her Masters in vocal performance in 2010. Micaela has sung opera performances in places such as L.A Opera, Chicago Opera Theater, Valencia opera in Spain, Opera Monte-Carlo in Monaco and Polish National Opera. She also does concerts with Placido Domingo which has taken her to places such as Japan, China, Turkey, Oman, Ireland, Austria, Russia and Ukraine. Instagram: @meeker18 Facebook: Micaela Oeste Email: micaela.oeste@gmail.com Website: http://micaelaoeste.com/ Freydis and Gudrid movie (post-production): IMDb

[@ 3 min] Maestro Enrico Lopez-Yañez goes ‘Inside the Huddle’ with Weston and Oliver. The Mexican-American conductor is slated to conduct Chicago Opera Theater’s season finale, but is also the star of his own space pirate web series... [@ 30 min] In the ‘Two Minute Drill’, big money lands in L.A., while Jonathan Dove’s opera ‘Flight’ takes off in Seattle... The OBS back with an all-new show next week when baritone Quinn Kelsey goes ‘Inside the Huddle’ to talk Verdi, Hawai’i and other things ending in the letter “i”, plus you get more opera headlines, more hot takes and the return of Ashlee Hardgrave! operaboxscore.com dallasopera.org/tdo_network_show/opera-box-score facebook.com/obschi1 @operaboxscore IG operaboxscore

This week’s Interplay is a Conversation in Music with conductor Lidiya Yankovskaya, music director of Chicago Opera Theater, and a remarkable force in the production and presentation of music theater. A fiercely committed advocate for Russian masterpieces, operatic rarities, and new works, Lidiya is that rare person, warm, highly skilled and insightful, with a personal commitment to truth and free expression. It was inspiring talking to Maestra Lidiya Yankovskaya! www.michaelshapiro.com www.lidiyayankovskaya.com

In this episode, Keturah ponders the topic of familial protection in opera text, pointing out her recent viewing of Kamala Sankaram and Jerre Dye’s Taking up Serpents at Chicago Opera Theater, as well as other operas that highlight a family relationship.In her first interview, she speaks with conductor and artistic director of Houston Grand Opera, Patrick Summers, about his love of Engelbert Humperdinck and Adelheid Wette’s Hansel & Gretel, concentrating largely on the Evening Prayer, and the protection that it offers, both in words and music.In her second interview, she speaks with singer and librettist, Roberta Gumbel, about her recent collaboration with composer, Susan Kander, Driving While Black. They discuss what it was like to write about worrying about her son as he reached driving age, and how it felt to dramatize and sing about those feelings.Here are some people and topics that come up in this episode:Taking Up Serpents at Chicago Opera Theater: https://chicagooperatheater.org/season/serpentsPatrick Summers: https://www.houstongrandopera.org/about-us/people/patrick-summers/Roberta Gumbel: https://music.ku.edu/roberta-gumbelSusan Kander: http://susankander.net/Driving While Black: https://www.icareifyoulisten.com/2020/11/reimagined-for-streaming-dwb-driving-while-black-examines-black-motherhood/Urban Arias’ Production: http://www.urbanarias.org/performances/driving-while-black/Anna Deavere Smith: https://www.annadeaveresmith.org/category/about-anna-deavere-smith/New Morse Code Ensemble: http://www.newmorsecode.com/

Leslie Barker interviews playwright and librettist, Jerre Dye. Jerre is a recipient of the Fellowship of Southern Writers’ Award for Dramatic Literature. His work has been seen at venues such Chicago Opera Theater and the Kennedy Center. From Faulkner and Welty to his childhood in Amory, Jerre talks about how Southern stories and his deep Mississippi roots always find their way into his work. Photo credit: Joe Mazza at Brave Lux Inc. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Lidiya Yankovskaya returns! The highly sought after conductor has already had a whirlwind season with world premieres at the Prototype Festival, Minnesota Opera, and with one of our hometown teams, Chicago Opera Theater. Find out how she juggles it all when she goes ‘Inside the Huddle’ with Oliver and Ashlee... It’s ‘Spring Training for Your Ears’. Over the next few weeks, tune up your familiarity with the comic masterpiece “Albert Herring”. With history hurdles and recording reps, get ready to become the point guard for Team Benjamin Britten... And then… in the Two Minute Drill… #MeToo tenor Vittorio Grigolo wants to... caress your ears? www.facebook.com/obschi1 www.operaboxscore.com @operaboxscore

The OBS crew join the ‘Hometown Team’ and chat live in-studio with Ashley Magnus, the General Director of Chicago Opera Theater... In ‘Chalk Talk’, the panel walks you through an article in the “Washington Post” that argued “to save opera, let it die”... In the 'Two Minute Drill', Giordani leaves too soon and Domingo leaves too late... www.facebook.com/OBSCHI1 www.operaboxscore.com www.wnur.org/popup

Gregory Gale is a two-time Tony Award nominated designer for Rock of Ages, and Cyrano de Bergerac featuring Kevin Kline and Jennifer Garnerwhich can be seen on Amazon. Other Broadway designs include: The Wedding Singer, Urinetown, Arcadia, and Band in Berlin. Off-Broadway he designed the costumes for the world premieres of Douglas Carter Beane’s To Wong Foo, Hood, and Fairycakes. His work at the Atlantic Theater with The Voysey Inheritance earned him a Lucille Lortel Award. Mr. Gale has an Irene Sharaff Young Master Award and has multiple Lucille Lortel and Henry Hewes Design Award nominations. His opera productions include world premieres of The Prince of Players by Carlisle Floyd for Houston Grand Opera and An American Soldier by Huang Ruo and David Henry Hwang for Opera Theater of St. Louis. Other opera designs include: The Magic Flute for Chicago Opera Theater, Camelot for Virginia Opera, and La Rondine for Opera Theater of Saint Louis.Mr. Gale designed two films that will be released in 2019: The Mental State and Real Drag. He is currently designing the feature film Blinded by Ed.

Oliver goes ‘Inside the Huddle’ with countertenor Iestyn Davies, who just finished a run of Handel’s “Ariodante” at Lyric Opera of Chicago, having recently been on Broadway in the play “Farinelli and the King”... But first, the OBS clowns take a look at Chicago Opera Theater’s 2019-2020 season announcement. Will the company beat its record-breaking Dodson Scale™ score from last season...? In the ‘Two Minute Drill’, conductors are repping it all over the biz... operaboxscore.com/thisweeksshow @operaboxscore

The guys go ‘Inside the Huddle’ with countertenor Jordan Rutter, who’s currently performing in Chicago Opera Theater’s new production of “The Scarlet Ibis”. What's it feel like for a singer from Florida to perform in the middle of a brutal Chicago winter...? Matt has a brand new member to induct into the hallowed corridors of the OBS 'Hall of Fame' in honor of Black History Month. Find out who needs to start working that acceptance speech... In the ‘Two Minute Drill’, take a peek at some of the rejected plans for the Sydney Opera House... operaboxscore.com/thisweeksshow @operaboxscore

Not many of us think of Shakespeare’s plays as examples of great musicals, but from A Midsummer Night’s Dream, to even Macbeth, Shakespeare uses music, song, and instrumental accompaniment as a dramatic device that spurs forward the story of the play, and quite often, even comments on the actions of the players themselves with songs, dances, and even musical flourishes to introduce or follow the exit of characters in the play.   Here today to help us explore the music of William Shakespeare’s stage productions, is our special guest, Mary Springfels. Mary Springfels is the founder and former director of the Newberry Consort. A veteran of the early music movement in America, she has performed and recorded extensively with such ensembles as the New York Pro Musica, the Waverly Consort, Concert Royal, Sequentia, Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra, the Seattle Baroque Orchestra, Music of the Baroque, Musica Sacra, the Marlborough Festival, the New York City Opera, and Chicago Opera Theater, where she served as an artistic advisor. She is much in demand as a teacher and player in summer festivals throughout the US, among them the San Francisco and Amherst early music festivals, the Conclave of the Viola da Gamba Society of America, the Pinewoods Early Music Week, and the Texas Toot. She has recently performed with the Sonoma Bach Festival, the Arizona Bach Festival, the Dallas Bach Festival, and Ars Lyrica of Houston.Mary joins us today to discuss her article for the Encyclopedia Britannica titled Music in Shakespeare's Plays that discusses the history of Tudor music and Shakespeare’s application of that culture to performance.

The OBS boys go ‘Inside the Huddle’ with soprano Ailyn Pérez, who was just named a 2019 ‘Opera News’ Awards Honoree… The guys play ‘Monday Evening Quarterback’ on last week’s productions of Wagner’s “Siegfried” at Lyric Opera of Chicago, Tchaikovsky’s “Iolanta” at Chicago Opera Theater and the Met in HD broadcast of Nico Muhly’s opera “Marnie”... David Daniels' reputation continues to crumble in the 'Two Minute Drill'... www.facebook.com/OBSCHI1/ @operaboxscore

The idea of home looms large in the arts, popping up as a central theme in our favorite stories. But where does it fit into opera? Paige looks at how her own work and new opera performances wrestle with what home looks like in the 21st century—whether it’s building home, losing home, or finding home in a new country Featuring: **Chaz'men Williams-Ali, tenor Aleks Romano, mezzo-soprano Lidiya Yankovskaya, music director and conductor, Chicago Opera Theater and conductor and artistic director, Refugee Orchestra Project Michael Mori, artistic director, Tapestry Opera Marc Bamuthi Joseph, librettist (of We Shall Not Be Moved) and Chief of Program and Pedagogy, YBCA Find Us Online: Website: https://glimmerglass.org/breaking-glass/ Twitter: @GOpera Paige Hernandez: @PaigeInFull, http://paigehernandez.com/ Chaz'men Williams-Ali: @chazwillmsali Aleks Romano: @AleksRomano Lidiya Yankovskaya: @LidiyaConductor, @ChicagoOpera, @RefugeeOrchProj Michael Mori: @michaelhmori, @TapestryOpera Marc Bamuthi Joseph: @bamuthi About Us: Breaking Glass is produced by Stacia Brown and edited by Ali Post of Rise of Charm City LLC. Music and sound design by Elisheba Ittoop. Stacy Gerard is our production and distribution manager. Marketing and promotional support is provided by Multitude Productions. Christopher Powell and Heather McDougall are the executive producers. Our thanks to Francesca Zambello, Artistic & General Director and Joel Morain, Resident Sound Designer of the Glimmerglass Festival.  Additional thanks to Tony Macaluso, former director of the WFMT Radio Network. Breaking Glass and the development of Stomping Grounds and Blue are funded by a grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Glimmerglass's commissioning fees for Blue are funded in part by an OPERA America Female Composers Grant. Further development of Blue is made possible by a Repertoire Development Grant from the Opera Fund. The Breaking Glass podcast is a co-production of The Glimmerglass Festival and the WFMT Radio Network, a Chicago-based producer and distributor of radio programs and podcasts about the arts. The podcast is made possible by an OPERA America Innovation Grant supported by the Ann and Gordon Getty Foundation. Breaking Glass is a five-episode podcast that explores social justice through the lens of opera. Produced by The Glimmerglass Festival and WFMT, this show challenges ideas of who opera is for and who should create it. Host Paige Hernandez and contributor Tazewell Thompson discuss, question, and challenge what stories are told in the world of opera and how they may look in the future. They engage creatives from across the opera community and draw from their own experiences as artists of color in a conversation steeped in creativity, humanity, honesty. Let’s raise our voices and break some glass.

The boys go ‘Inside the Huddle’ with stage director Paul Curran, who's currently directing Tchaikovsky’s “Iolanta” at Chicago Opera Theater. They start by asking Paul about his take on this Russian gem of an opera... Then, the annual Hallowe’en Spooktacular returns with those scary opera moments that keep you up at night on October 31st... Plus, it’s the ‘Two Minute Drill’, when the guys explain what the hell Tilda Swinton is doing mixing dogs and opera... www.facebook.com/OBSCHI1/ @operaboxscore

Soprano Angela Mortellaro joins us ‘Inside the Huddle’ live by phone. She’s currently singing two roles in the Donizetti double bill which opened at Chicago Opera Theater last week. We ask her about the unique process of rehearsing two operas at once... And then, in ‘Chalk Talk’… the average age at the Metropolitan Opera is about to get lower. Much lower. The Met is presenting a new opera for babies. The company will present ten free performances of “BambinO” [sic], an opera for babies between 6 and 18 months old. Tobias tells us if he’d take his kids to the show... Plus, it’s the ‘Two Minute Drill’... We get you up to speed on everything from the past week in Operaland and our hot takes on those stories… www.facebook.com/OBSCHI1/

Paul goes behind the curtain this week with Chicago Opera Theater and it’s productions of rarely performed works for a modern era. Joined by General Director Doug Clayton and General Manager of Strategy and Development Ashley Magnus. Upcoming is Gaetano Donizetti’s rarely performed Il Pigmalione presented as Act I followed by Rita, an early and […]

Feat. conductor and long time friend Lidiya Yankovskaya, artistic director of Chicago Opera Theater and founder of Refugee Orchestra Project. We discuss the hurdles as a female conductor in the classical realm, her path to her success and Matty and I dive into 'Intonation' from Brown's Brewing Co. in Troy, NY.

We take an inside look at Chicago Opera Theater’s 2018-2019 season announcement, and we score it on the Dodson Scale™. Will COT make it into the plus points column...? But first, the Boston ‘Globe’ recently published an in-depth article on James Levine, featuring interviews with two dozen former students, one of whom describes the conductor’s years at the Cleveland Institute of Music as a “cult”. We'll tell you what these interviews add to the on-going Levine saga... And it’s the ‘Two Minute Drill’: everything you need to know from the past week in Operaland, and our hot takes on those stories... Plus, Oliver plays ‘Monday Evening Quarterback’ on the recent production of Mozart’s “Così fan tutte” at Lyric Opera of Chicago... www.facebook.com/OBSCHI1/

Tonight, Oliver and Tobias go ‘Inside the Huddle’ with baritone Anthony Clark Evans.  The 2017 BBC Cardiff Singer of the World main prize finalist is currently singing the role of Riccardo in Bellini’s “I Puritani” at Lyric Opera of Chicago... And then, the Metropolitan Opera just announced its 2018-2019 season.  We crunch the numbers of those titles on the Dodson Scale™ in 'Chalk Talk'.  Also, James Levine has finally stepped aside as the Met's Music Director and, in an appointment that surprised precisely no one, the forty-one-year-old Québécois conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin has been named as Levine’s successor.  We’ll tell you how that affects the Met’s season... Plus, it’s the ‘Two Minute Drill’: everything you need to know from the past week in Operaland, and our hot takes on those stories... Double plus, we’ll squeeze in Oliver playing ‘Monday Evening Quarterback’ on Chicago Opera Theater’s production of Puts and Campbell’s opera “Elizabeth Cree”... www.facebook.com/OBSCHI1/

Librettist Mark Campbell joins us 'Inside the Huddle' live via phone. His latest collaboration with composer Kevin Puts is the opera “Elizabeth Cree”, currently playing at Chicago Opera Theater. Hear Mark talk about how he got into the mind of a nineteenth-century serial killer... But first, Lyric Opera of Chicago recently announced its 2018-2019 season a few weeks ago. Our team scores the season using a metric we're calling 'The Dodson Scale'... And, it’s the ‘Two Minute Drill’: everything you need to know from the past week in Operaland, and our hot takes on those stories... www.facebook.com/OBSCHI1/

Composer Julian Grant joins us live via phone! He’s part of the team behind “The nefarious, immoral but highly profitable enterprise of Mr. Burke and Mr. Hare”, a world premiere chamber opera at Boston Lyric Opera that opens this week. Find out exactly why the residents of Edinburgh in 1828 just weren’t dying quickly enough... And Oliver goes ‘Inside the Huddle’ with Rubén Dubrovsky, conductor and artistic director of Third Coast Baroque, a Chicago ensemble that reframes early music... But wait, there’s more! In ‘Monday Evening Quarterback’, Oliver and Matt review productions of Wagner’s “Die Walküre” at Lyric Opera of Chicago and Menotti’s “The Consul” at Chicago Opera Theater. See if George's boys can agree to disagree... www.facebook.com/OBSCHI1/

Oliver goes ‘Inside the Huddle’ with Lidiya Yankovskaya, the newly appointed Music Director of Chicago Opera Theater. This exclusive half hour interview introduces you to a major player in the Chicago opera scene, as they talk about Yankovskaya's training, her opinions on bel canto opera, her initiative called the Refugee Orchestra Project, technology in opera, the COT young artist program, and she reveals some thoughts on future seasons for the company... Then in ‘The Hometown Team’, Oliver brings you another interview, this time with soprano Claire DiVizio, the Artistic Director of Thompson Street Opera, which kicks off their 2017-18 season this weekend with a comic book hero-themed opera called “Cosmic Ray and the Amazing Chris"... Plus you get all your opera headlines and George's hot takes on them in ‘The Two Minute Drill’... https://www.facebook.com/OBSCHI1/

George goes ‘Inside the Huddle’ with fight choreographer Nick Gisonde. They talk about the philosophy behind onstage fighting and teach you how to do a realistic hair pull. Plus don’t miss when Nick tells George what the nastiest combat move he’s ever seen on stage is... Then, it’s the return of our “Hometown Team” segment, when the OBS team focuses on opera stories right here in the Windy City. George take a closer look at the casts and artistic teams for the three shows at Chicago Opera Theater’s upcoming season. You’ll find out which one of those things is not like the other... And but of course you get all your opera headlines and our hot takes on them in ‘The Two Minute Drill’... https://www.facebook.com/OBSCHI1/

It’s summer, and that means re-runs. For our new listeners, you might have missed two great interviews from the OBS archives. Tonight, you’ll get another chance to hear Oliver’s interview with superstar tenor Matthew Polenzani and George's interview with Kirsten Harms, the former Intendantin of the Deutsche Oper Berlin... Then in our ‘Hometown Team’ segment, Tobias and Oliver chime in on the appointment of Lidiya Yankovskaya as the new Music Director of Chicago Opera Theater... And, you get all your opera headlines and our hot takes on them in ‘The Two Minute Drill’... @operaboxscore

Oliver goes ‘Inside the Huddle’ with tenor Scott Ramsay, who plays the role of Wilhelm Dantine in Chicago Opera Theater’s upcoming production of “The Perfect American” by Philip Glass. Get an inside look at this truly unusual opera about the final days of Walt Disney’s life... Then, George and Oliver launch a brand-new segment called 'The Home Team' where we focus on the latest in opera that’s happening right here in Chicago. Tonight, we break down the 2017-2018 Chicago Opera Theater season which has just been announced... Plus, it’s the ‘The Two Minute Drill’: all the opera headlines from the past week that you need to know, and our hot takes on them... @operaboxscore

George goes ‘Inside the Huddle’ with composer Stewart Copeland. His fifth opera, called ‘The Invention of Morel’, opened last week at Chicago Opera Theater. We talk sports, rock music and, of course, opera. Plus, find out what his definition of ‘fun’ is... But first, Oliver and George break down the Metropolitan Opera’s 2017-2018 programming announcement. Get our advice on what’s a must-see in NYC next season... And ‘The Two Minute Drill’ returns: all the opera headlines from the past week that you need to know about, and our hot takes on them... @operaboxscore

Stewart Copeland’s opera "The Invention of Morel" opens at Chicago Opera Theater this month. Cast members Nathan Granner and Valerie Vinzant tell you why seeing this production will be the highlight of your February... After the break, George and Oliver continue the conversation about opera in Chicago, including a look at last weekend’s performance Chicago Voices Gala Concert... And of course you get all your opera headlines and our hot takes on them in ‘The Two Minute Drill’... @operaboxscore #operaballs

Tonight, we go Inside the Huddle with tenor Scott Brunscheen and soprano Kimberly Jones. They're in Chicago Opera Theater's current production of Purcell's 'The Fairy Queen'. Hear what they have to say about the rehearsal process of this sexy update of a Baroque classic... In Chalk Talk, Oliver tackles a noisy audience member at a recent production of Humperdinck’s 'Hansel and Gretel' at Seattle Opera. George tackles Isaac Mizrahi, the sports-allergic Honorary Chairman of last month’s National Opera Week. And, yes, you’ll get all your opera headlines and our hot takes on them in ‘The Two Minute Drill’... #operaballs

This show is all-Wagner, all the time! In our ‘Chalk Talk’ segment, we talk about what makes Wagner, Wagner; and why his operas matter... ‘Monday Evening Quarterback’ revisits “Das Rheingold” at Lyric Opera of Chicago and Frank Martin’s “Le vin herbé” at Chicago Opera Theater... ‘TKO’ returns! Oliver Camacho is the judge as Jonas Kaufmann and Ben Heppner battle it out singing Siegmund’s aria “Winterstürme” from 'Die Walküre'... Plus, you get all your opera headlines in ‘The Two Minute Drill’... Don't forget to leave us a review -- with stars -- on iTunes, or troll us: @operaboxscore and #operaballs

In 'Chalk Talk', George and Tobias reveal how opera singers get hurt. What happens to your performance that night, and what happens to your career the next day...? 'Monday Evening Quarterback' returns, as Oliver reviews Wagner's “Das Rheingold” at Lyric Opera of Chicago and Frank Martin’s opera “Le vin herbé” at Chicago Opera Theater... Plus, the team will ‘Crunch the Numbers’ and look at the stats behind the most common baritone arias sung in auditions...

From February 2013, Andrew Patner talks with Andreas Mitisek, the general director of Chicago Opera Theater [...]

This week, it's a special hour-plus show! We talk with soprano Emily Birsan, who is currently in Puccini's "Gianni Schicchi" at Chicago Opera Theater. Our team reviews the show, as well as its prelude in the double-bill: Poulenc's "La Voix Humaine", featuring Patricia Racette. Oliver sets up a new battle royale in our TKO segment, and George gives you the week's opera headlines. Wow!

  It’s a Menotti two-fer! Lynda McKnight from Houston’s Opera in the Heights teaches all about the composer Gian Carlo Menotti and two of his short operas, The Medium(not the Patricia Arquette kind), and The Telephone (not the Lady Gaga kind). Learn about this versatile 20th century composer and these two drastically different operas. Also, zombies.   By the way, Opera in the Heights is staging a Medium and Telephone double-header through November 7th!  Music in this episode: – Gian Carlo Menotti, The Medium. Chicago Opera Theater recording. – Gian Carlo Menotti, The Telephone. BBC Radio Broadcast on YouTube. Audio by Todd “My, My Telephone” Hulslander with psychic readings by Dacia Clay and editing by Mark DiClaudio. Thumbnail image: Paul Hume and Marie Handy performing Gian Carlo Menotti’s comic opera The Telephone, or L’Amour à trois at Catholic University, Washington DC, 1952. Public domain.

Andrew talks with leading team members, and shares music from, Chicago Opera Theater's new production — and the Chicago premiere — of the early 20th-century Macbeth by composer Ernest Bloch.   [...]

This week, Cedille Chicago Presents the label's two full-length opera recordings, both featuring the forces of Chicago Opera Theater— the first CD recording of Gian Carlo Menotti’s The Medium and the world premiere recording of Robert Kurka's The Good Soldier Schweik — with extensive excerpts from each. Subscribe to the Cedille Email List to receive one free music track from each week's show!   Playlist for May 22, 2013 Opera on Cedille GIAN CARLO MENOTTI (1911–2007) The Medium Act I (excerpt) (18:30) From Menotti: The Medium Cedille Records CDR 90000 034 (Tracks 10–22) Joyce Castle, mezzo-soprano Patrice Michaels, soprano Diane Ragains, soprano Peter Van De Graaf, bass-baritone Barbara Landis, mezzo-soprano Chicago Opera Theater Lawrence Rapchak, conductor ROBERT KURKA (1921–1957) The Good Soldier Schweik Act 1, Scene 1: Schweik’s Flat in Prague (3:33) From Robert Kurka: The Good Soldier Schweik Cedille Records CDR 90000 062 (Disc 1 track 3) Jason Collins, tenor Kelli Harrington, soprano Chicago Opera Theater Alexander Platt, conductor ROBERT KURKA The Good Soldier Schweik Act 1, Scene 6: The Insane Asylum (Schweik: “I never felt so good before . . .”) (2:22) From Robert Kurka: The Good Soldier Schweik Cedille Records CDR 90000 062 (Disc 1 track 11) Jason Collins, tenor Chicago Opera Theater Alexander Platt, conductor ROBERT KURKA The Good Soldier Schweik Act 1, Scene 7: Part 1: Schweik’s flat, Part 2: The street below (4:29) From Robert Kurka: The Good Soldier Schweik Cedille Records CDR 90000 062 (Disc 1 Tracks 16–18) Jason Collins, tenor Kelli Harrington, soprano Chicago Opera Theater Alexander Platt, conductor ROBERT KURKA The Good Soldier Schweik Act 2, Scene 1: Army infirmary (6:11) From Robert Kurka: The Good Soldier Schweik Cedille Records CDR 90000 062 (Disc 2 Tracks 3–5) Marc Embree, baritone Jason Collins, tenor Wayne Alan Behr, tenor Christian Elser, baritone Robert Boldin, tenor Alvaro Ramirez, bass Stephen Noon, tenor Timothy Sharp, baritone Chicago Opera Theater Alexander Platt, conductor ROBERT KURKA The Good Soldier Schweik Act 2, Scene 3: Lieutenant Lukash’s flat (7:58) From Robert Kurka: The Good Soldier Schweik Cedille Records CDR 90000 062 (Disc 2 Tracks 10–12) Jason Collins, tenor Marc Embree, baritone Kelli Harrington, soprano Robert Boldin, tenor Alvaro Ramirez, bass Stephen Noon, tenor Chicago Opera Theater Alexander Platt, conductor

Brian Dickie answers questions about the company's history with early opera and their current production of Cavalli's "Giasone."

Greg Sarchet considers himself fortunate to have had an array of musical experiences and training, from studying with his first teacher, jazz luminary Rufus Reid, to receiving degrees from the Juilliard School (where he was a student of Michael Morgan), to hundreds of television/radio commercial recordings. His strong interest in researching the double bass and ongoing international exchange efforts were recognized by a 1996 Chicago Artists International Program award which sent him to the Czech Republic, Germany, and Austria for performances, masterclasses, and archival research. These and other exchange activities have allowed him to build an extensive library of unpublished, out-of-print, and contemporary double bass works, as well as a first-hand understanding of Europe's leading teaching methods. Since 1986, he has been a member of the Lyric Opera of Chicago Orchestra. Additionally, he frequently serves as Principal Bass with Chicago Opera Theater and the Chicago Chamber Orchestra. He maintains a limited private studio for high school and adult pupils. Briefly, his musical foundation was laid by his first double bass teachers, Rufus Reid and Todd Coolman. The musical values and priorities they, among others, instilled in him have led him to a wide variety of professional opportunities ranging from recordings with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Mannheim Steamroller, Smashing Pumpkins, and hundreds of television and radio commercials.

Greg Sarchet considers himself fortunate to have had an array of musical experiences and training, from studying with his first teacher, jazz luminary Rufus Reid, to receiving degrees from the Juilliard School (where he was a student of Michael Morgan), to hundreds of television/radio commercial recordings. His strong interest in researching the double bass and ongoing international exchange efforts were recognized by a 1996 Chicago Artists International Program award which sent him to the Czech Republic, Germany, and Austria for performances, masterclasses, and archival research. These and other exchange activities have allowed him to build an extensive library of unpublished, out-of-print, and contemporary double bass works, as well as a first-hand understanding of Europe's leading teaching methods. Since 1986, he has been a member of the Lyric Opera of Chicago Orchestra. Additionally, he frequently serves as Principal Bass with Chicago Opera Theater and the Chicago Chamber Orchestra. He maintains a limited private studio for high school and adult pupils. Briefly, his musical foundation was laid by his first double bass teachers, Rufus Reid and Todd Coolman. The musical values and priorities they, among others, instilled in him have led him to a wide variety of professional opportunities ranging from recordings with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Mannheim Steamroller, Smashing Pumpkins, and hundreds of television and radio commercials.

Here is a full-length recital showcase featuring a performance from double bassist Phillip Serna.  Visit Phillip online at www.phillipwserna.com Northwestern University School of Music Presents a Doctoral Recital Phillip Woodrow Serna, double bass In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Music in Double Bass Performance Double Bass Student of Michael Hovnanian Viola da Gamba Student of Mary Springfels assisted by: Shirley Trissell, piano Sunday, April 27, 2003, 8:30 p.m. Regenstein Recital Hall 60 Arts Circle Drive Evanston, Illinois Sonata in E-Minor, Op.38 (1862-1865)           Johannes Brahms For Violoncello and Piano                                     (1833-1897)     Allegro non troppo     Allegretto quasi Menuetto             Allegro       SHORT INTERMISSION Sonata No.2 in E-Minor, Op.6                               Adolf Mišek For String Bass and Piano                                     (1875-1955)     I. Con fuoco     II. Andante cantabile     III. Furiant: Allegro energico             IV. Finale: Allegro appassionato       SHORT INTERMISSION Sonata (1956)                                                    František Hertl For String Bass and Piano                                           (b. 1906)     I. Allegro moderato     II. Andantino     III. Rondo: Alla polka, moderato         [ENCORE] Vocalise, Op.34, No.14              Serge Rachmaninoff                                                                               (1873-1943) Program Notes Johannes Brahms' Sonata in E-Minor, Op.38 (1862-1865)     In the summer of 1862, Johannes Brahms composed the first two movements of the Sonata for Piano and Violoncello, Op. 38. He later added the final Allegro in June of 1865. Intended as an "homage to J.S. Bach," Brahms based the principal themes of the outer movements on Contrapuntctus 4 and Contrapunctus 13 from "The Art of Fugue." Indeed, beyond these thematic references, fugal interplay is the prevailing device employed throughout the work. The sonata was first performed in July of 1865, and submitted for publication to both Breitkopf & Härtel and Simrock in September of the same year. Breitkopf & Härtel refused to publish the work. Simrock soon accepted it, however, and it was probably published in early 1866. Brahms' famous description of the work, which accompanied his submission to Simrock, remarks that it is "a violoncello sonata which, as regards both instruments, is certainly not difficult to play.     David Cardon, Discordia Music     Discordia Music, a publishing company run by Professor Michael Hovnanian, publishes the edition used for this performance. Discordia specializes in publishing new works and transcriptions for the double bass, as well as to publish premium quality, well-researched, scholarly editions of music part of the standard double bass solo literature. Adolf Mišek's Sonata No.2 in E-Minor, Op.6     The typesetter, composer, conductor, and double bass player Adolf Mišek was born in Modletin, Czechoslovakia in 1875. At age 15, Mišek attended the Academy of Vienna, later conducting as choirmaster of The Czech Choir ,,Tovaovský" and Slavonic Chorus. Additionally, he conducted The Czech Academic Orchestra in Vienna. From 1890 to1894 Mišek was a student of the famous lecturer, Franz Simandl (1840-1912), who in Mišek's time was associated with the Vienna Conservatory, an institution that Mišek would later be engaged as bass professor. From 1920 to 1934 Mišek returned to his place of birth in Bohemia. He returned to Prague where he built a career as a soloist with the National Theatre. He died in Prague in 1955.     Mišek composed various works in different genres for voice, violin, chamber ensembles, and lastly for the double bass. His works for bass include a Scales Study, Legend op. 3 for Double Bass and Piano, a Capriccio (1899), Concert Polonaise, Sonata No.1 in A Major, Op. 5, Sonata No.2 in e minor, Op. 6, Sonata No.3 in F Major, and a Concert in C-major. František Hertl's Sonata (1956)     Composer and double bassist František Hertl was an active member in Czech music throughout his career. From 1920 to1926, Hertl studied double bass at the Prague Conservatory with Professor Fr. Cerny, also studying composition from 1933 to1936. Hertl was solo double bassist in the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra (1929-1935) and Czechoslovak Radio Orchestra Prague (1935-1950).  Hertl was director as well as performing member of the Czech Nonet from 1936 to 1950 and 1963 to1966 in addition to his duty as conductor of the Radio Orchestra in Brno (1950-1961). As a pedagogue, Hertl was professor at the Prague Conservatory (1951-1961), at the Leoš Janácek Academy of Music Arts in     Brno (1954-1961), and at the Academy of Music in Prague (1953-1973).     Hertl wrote 35 compositions for orchestra including a Czech Suite (1947), Czech Dances (1947), and a Symfonietta for Oboe and Small Orchestra. Hertl composed a Sonata for Violoncello and Piano as well as various choral works. Hertl also composed a Concert Polka (1948) and a Concert for Double Bass (1957) premiered by František Pošta in 1958. He additionally composed a Prelude, Burlesca, Nocturno, and Tarantella (1969). As pedagogical works, Hertl wrote a Double Bass School  (1962) and 20 Studies  (1965) for Double Bass. The Sonata for Double bass and Piano (1956) was first recorded by his pupil Pavel Horak, a member of Brno Philharmonic Orchestra, now in retirement.  Hertl was directing during the recording process.     Information courtesy of Miloslav Jelinek of the Czech Society of Double Bassists Biography A native of Houston Texas, Phillip W. Serna (viola da gamba) is an active and enthusiastic performer of early music, as well as the contemporary, solo, orchestral, and chamber repertoires. Phillip earned his Bachelor of Music in double bass performance with Stephen Tramontozzi at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music in 1998. Phillip later completed his Master of Music at Northwestern University School of Music in 2001 as a Civic Orchestra of Chicago Graduate Fellow. On June 16, 2007, Phillip will receive the Doctor of Music degree from Northwestern University where he studied double bass with international soloist DaXun Zhang and formerly with Chicago Symphony Orchestra member Michael Hovnanian. Phillip studied viola da gamba with Newberry Consort founder Mary Springfels. Since 2003, Phillip has been principal double bass of the Northbrook Symphony Orchestra and has been recently elected to a two-year term on the Board of Directors of the Northbrook Symphony.  In addition, Phillip has performed regularly with other orchestras such as the Bach Chamber Orchestra & Choir, Chicago Symphony Orchestra's Civic Orchestra of Chicago, Elmhurst Symphony Orchestra, Fort Wayne Philharmonic Orchestra, Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra, Illinois Symphony Orchestra, Kankakee Valley Symphony Orchestra, Kenosha Symphony Orchestra, New Philharmonic Orchestra, Quad Cities Symphony Orchestra, Racine Symphony Orchestra, Rockford Symphony Orchestra, Southwest Michigan Symphony Orchestra, Waukesha Symphony Orchestra, Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra as well as the Memphis Symphony Orchestra. In March of 2007, Phillip will perform Giovanni Bottesini's Concerto No.2 in b-minor with the Waubonsie Valley High School Orchestra in Aurora, IL after having already performed Estonian composer Eduard Tubin's stirring Concerto for Double Bass and Orchestra with Northwestern University's Summer Orchestra under the direction of Robert Hasty in July of 2003. Recently joining the board of the Early Music Chicago arts advocacy & performance organization, Phillip regularly performs on viola da gamba and period double bass/ violone with period instrument ensembles and organizations such as the Apollo Chorus of Chicago, Ars Antigua, Chicago Early Music Consort, Period Opera Cosi fan Tutte with Chicago Opera Theater, Classical Arts Orchestra, Comic Intermezzo, Early Music Chicago, the Janus Ensemble, the Newberry Consort, the Evelyn Dunbar Memorial Early Music Festival at Northwestern University, the Oriana Singers, the Second City Musick, and the Spirit of  Gambo - a Chicago Consort of  Viols, as well as the Concert for Compassion Viol Consort & the Forces of Virtue Ensemble and Choir, dedicated to raising money for disaster relief and other charities. In addition to his intense performance schedule, Phillip teaches lessons on double bass, bass guitar, guitar, viola da gamba, and presents master classes and workshops on modern and period double bass. As a passionate advocate of early music, Phillip has championed the viola da gamba with his initiative 'Viols in Our Schools,' bringing solo and chamber music for viols into Chicago area classrooms. Phillip also currently teaches at numerous institutions around the Chicago area. Phillip lives in Plainfield, IL with his best friend and wife, Magdalena.Program