Category: Singer

Beauty, California, Christian Baldini, mezzo-soprano, Singer, Soloist

Julie Miller in Conversation with Christian Baldini

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On Sunday, March 12, 2023, I will have the great pleasure of conducting Mahler’s Symphony No. 2, with soprano Carrie Hennessey as our soprano soloist, and Julie Miller as our mezzo-soprano soloist at the Mondavi Center. We will include the University Chorus, Alumni Chorus, Chamber Singers, and the UC Davis Symphony Orchestra, including also several UCDSO alumni, for a total of about 300 performers on stage. Here are some questions I asked Julie about the Mahler, and below are her answers:

Christian Baldini: Julie, the Urlicht (fourth movement of the symphony) is probably one of the favorite works in the entire repertoire. All of a sudden, we hear this solitary human voice appear out of nowhere, almost like facing an abyss. How do you approach the Urlicht? What is behind it for you?

Julie Miller: Urlicht, to me represents a moment of simplicity and faith. The beautiful, effortless legato lines, and lush harmonies make this movement one of my favorite pieces to sing. As a vocalist, I have to focus on consistent air flow and a spinning vibrato to create the seemingly endless sound and legato required to successfully present this piece. However, the most import thing for me as an artist is to take the audience on a journey from desparate need to the final destination of hope and eternal rest.

CB: You and I collaborated first many years ago, when we were both a lot younger. Please tell us, how were your beginnings with music? Did you start out as a singer, or by playing an instrument? What has made your musical path so special?

JM: I remember our first collaboration with great fondness. It was Mozart’s Mass in C minor with the UC Davis Symphony. I remember your kindness, clarity and love of the piece guided me through my first performance of the piece with ease and confidence.

My musical beginnings started quite young with my mother teaching me piano and continued through High School and early college with me singing in choirs and playing the violin. I actually didn’t decide to pursue voice in a serious way until my 2nd year of college when I “caught the stage bug” during a performance of Monteverdi’s L’incoronzione di Poppea. From that point on, I was hooked. 

My musical path has had its ups and downs, and like every path, has been different than I initially thought it would be. However, what has made this journey special for me has been the people I have encountered along the way that have supported me during the “growing pains” and inspired me to continue to be the best musician and performer I can be.

CB: Thank you for sharing those wonderful memories, I also very fondly remember our Mozart C minor mass together! Now, what would be your advice for young singers? How do you face auditions, competition, and/or any other frustrations or fears that may come your way?

JM: My advice to young singers would be to know your instrument and be prepared musically. You never know who will be in the audience and when that connection will provide an opportunity down the line. Also, remember that you and your voice are in progress, so be kind to and patient with yourself. You are going to be learning and growing as a vocalist and musician throughout the rest of your career.

CB: Why is symphonic music, and why is opera relevant nowadays?

JM: Symphonic music and opera speak to us at our cores. We connect to the stories that they tell through the music and texts on a deep level and they elicit thought and conversation that lasts long past the ending of the performance. They are art forms that have survived, adapted and thrived for centuries, and their longevity continues to prove their relevance within today’s society.

CB: Thank you for your time Julie, I look forward to making music with you!

JM: Thank you for inviting me to be a part of the tour de force that is bringing this beautiful work to life! It’s always a pleasure to work with you.

Mezzo-soprano Julie Miller recently stepped in last minute on opening night to make her role debut as Ariodante (Ariodante) at Lyric Opera of Chicago. Her performance was hailed as “an extraordinarily composed and possibly career-changing performance” (Chicago Sun Times) and her singing was described as “deeply musical” (Chicago Tribune). 

​Ms. Miller has appeared as a soloist with wonderful organizations such as the Lyric Opera of Chicago, Kalamazoo Symphony Orchestra, Oregon Mozart Players, Grant Park Music Festival and Ravinia Festival. Recent appearances include Baroness Nica (Charlie Parker’s Yardbird) with Madison Opera, Lyric Unlimited/Lyric Opera Chicago and English National Opera/Hackney Empire Theatre; Charlotte (Werther) with Opera Idaho; the Mezzo Soloist with the Apollo Chorus of Chicago (Duruflé: Requiem); the Mezzo Soloist with the Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera (Beethoven: Mass in C); and the Mezzo Soloist with the Madison Symphony Orchestra (Janacek: Glagolitic Mass). In the coming months, Ms. Miller looks forward to appearing as Maddalena (Rigoletto) with the Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera and as a Mezzo Soloist in Mahler’s Symphony No. 8 with the Madison Symphony Orchestra.

​Highlights of Ms. Miller’s operatic career include Jo (Little Women) and Ma Joad (The Grapes of Wrath) with Sugar Creek Opera; Emilia (Otello), Ida (Die Fledermaus), Annina (La Traviata) and Krystina (The Passenger) with Lyric Opera of Chicago; Orlofsky (Die Fledermaus) with Vero Beach Opera; Annio (La clemenza di Tito) and Donna Elvira (Don Giovanni) with Ryan Opera Center; Stéphano (Roméo et Juliette) with Townsend Opera; and Flora (La Traviata) with Festival Opera. She has also been heard with orchestra as a Soloist in performances of  Mahler’s Symphony No. 2, Bach’s Magnificat and Cantata No. 6, Handel’s Messiah, Duruflé’s Requiem, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9, and both Mozart’s Mass in C minor and Requiem.

Ms. Miller is the recipient of the the Jerome and Elaine Nerenberg Foundation Scholarship (Musicians Club of Women), the Rose McGilvray Grundman Award (American Opera Society of Chicago), the Richard F. Gold Career Grant (Shoshana Foundation) and the Edith Newfield Scholarship Award (Musicians Club of Women). She is an alumna of the renowned Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Opera Center at Lyric Opera of Chicago, and a member of the inaugural class of Dawn Upshaw’s Graduate Program in Vocal Arts at the Bard College Conservatory of Music.

Beauty, Buenos Aires, California, Christian Baldini, composer, Music, Singer, Soloist, soprano, Teatro Colón, tenor

Rising Star Tenor Edward Graves in Conversation with Christian Baldini

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On February 5, 2023, tenor Edward Graves will sing Rodolfo for our upcoming Barbara K. Jackson Rising Stars of Opera program at the Mondavi Center, in collaboration with the San Francisco Opera Center. Here is a conversation we had with Edward about Puccini, the prestigious Adler Fellowship, auditions, opera in general, and his advice for young singers.

Christian Baldini: Tell us, how did you start singing? When did you first get exposed to the operatic genre, and when did the “bug” first get you about becoming an opera singer?

Edward Graves: I feel like I’ve been singing my whole life. I started singing when I was in church and sang in choirs all throughout elementary, middle, and high school. I also took private piano and voice lessons up until I graduated high school. When I got to college, I intended to be a music education major, but ended up getting cast in Mozart’s “The Goose of Cairo” my freshman year. I didn’t think too much of it at the time, but I realized that the other singers in my class didn’t get cast. After that experience and through the encouragement of my professors, I switched my major to vocal performance and have been on this Opera path ever since. 

CB: What are some of your favorite operas, and why?

EG: That’s such a hard question because I feel don’t know enough operas to have definitive and favorites. I am drawn to operas that have lasting tuneful melodies (or “earworms”) that get stuck in my head. Some operas that come to mind are Don Giovanni, Werther, Manon, Rodelinda,  La Bohème, Tosca, La Fanciulla del West, Rigoletto, La Traviata, and Aida. Sometimes my scope of appreciation is narrowed in on what I’m studying so in addition to La Bohème, I’m studying and preparing the role of Anatol in Samuel Barber’s Vanessa. As I’m getting to know this opera, I’m also gaining a newfound appreciation for its gorgeous melodies as well. 

CB: Have you worked with living composers? If so, how was that experience?

EG: Yes—I’ve had the opportunity to work with two well-known living composers. In 2019, I was a in the premiere of Blue at The Glimmerglass Festival. Jeanine Tesori not only attended many of the rehearsals, she also made revisions during the rehearsal process. At the beginning of one staging rehearsal, she handed the cast sheet music to read through and added it to the show. I remembered thinking how cool it was to be in the room with the composer of the show that I was working on because I normally don’t have that luxury. Last week I performed in a workshop of Jake Heggie’s new opera, Intelligence. I really enjoyed the collaborative process of the workshop and being empowered to speak up if something was written in an awkward way or wasn’t working for me. In the aria that my character sang, Jake encouraged me to use my head voice in the last few bars instead of singing full voice which better helped to convey the character’s vulnerable emotional state. A nice thing about premiering a role or workshopping a piece is that you really get to make it your own. You don’t have other singers to compare yourself to or a standard to live up to.  

CB: You are a part of one of the main young artist program in the world, as an Adler Fellow for the San Francisco Opera Center. What are some of your favorite perks of this position? 

EG: In addition to the resources of the company (in the form of language classes, acting classes, voice lessons, coachings, and steady paycheck,) I have the opportunity to see and go be a part of the process of what it takes to get an opera from the rehearsal room to the stage. It has been really cool to apply what I do in the studio and bring it to the rehearsal room, and then to the stage. It has also been an incredible learning opportunity to watch guest artists throughout a rehearsal process. I feel like I’ve learned so much just by watching!  I’ve gained an appreciation for the process that it takes from learning a role embodying a character. There are so many layers and nuances of characterization and I feel like I’m just beginning to tap into discovering my own artistry.

CB: Tell us about the auditioning process. How was your preparation for it? Is it extremely competitive? How is the atmosphere once you are in the program?

EG: Auditioning is a skill. It can be hard to try and give your all in a ten minute time slot and then prepare yourself for not getting the job that you’re auditioning for. It can also be intimidating to sing for a panel that has never heard you before or isn’t familiar with your work. Prior to an audition, I try and remind myself to just think about communicating the text of whatever aria I’m singing. I know that I’ve done all the technical work so I try just have “fun.” Adler Fellows are chosen from the Merola Opera Program which I think is more competitive to get into because over one thousand singers, pianists, and stage directors apply annually. I haven’t found being in the Merola Opera Program or the Adler Fellowship to be competitive because the only person I’m in competition with is myself. I’m always trying to improve—my vocal technique, my languages, my acting, stage craft, etc. Being in Merola and now the Adler Fellowship has helped me to improve in those areas. Each artist has their own path and it’s hard to not compare yourself to your colleagues, but our paths are different and we are all at different stages of our development.

CB: Why is opera important to you? What does it mean in today’s world?

EG: At its best, opera is the combination of music, spectacle, and incredible singing. When I go to see an opera, I’m looking for those three things. I want to be entertained, moved, and to leave the theater a little better than when I came in. I liken it to going to any other live theater event. 

CB: What would you say about La Bohème, and about Mimì or Rodolfo to someone who does not know the opera? What should people listen for in this kind of music?

EG: La Bohème is a great “first” opera. The music is beautiful and lush and the plot is easy to follow. It is a love story between Mimì and Rodolfo that I  think that a new audience member could relate to. 

CB: Do you have any suggestions or recommendations for young singers?

EG: I think it’s important to always remember why you love to sing and in times of doubt, come back to that. A voice teacher told me once that “this a is marathon, not a sprint” and I began to understand what she meant the more I kept singing. This is a very long journey full of ups and downs—there might be times where you question if you want to pursue singing after facing a setback. Another piece of advice I would offer a young singer is to develop interests outside of singing. Sometimes singing can be all consuming and it can be easy tie your identity and worth to your ability to sing.

CB: Thank you very much for your time, we are delighted to feature you at our Rising Stars of Opera program!

EG: Thank you so much for having me. I hope that folks are able to come and enjoy the performance.


Praised by Opera News as a tenor of “stunningly sweet tone,” Edward Graves is a second-year Adler Fellow at San Francisco Opera. His most recent Bay Area performances include a workshop of Jake Heggie’s upcoming world premiere opera Intelligence with Houston Grand Opera, as well as Stone/Eunuch in Bright Sheng’s Dreams of the Red Chamber and Gastone in La traviata, both on the San Francisco Opera mainstage. At SFO, he also covered the roles of Alfredo in La traviata and Lensky in Eugene Onegin before engaging in a “thrilling who-can-sing-it-higher face-off from Rossini’s Otello” (San Francisco Chronicle) in the Adler Fellowship’s The Future Is Now concert.

Elsewhere, he has recently joined Virginia Symphony for Handel’s Messiah, Detroit Opera as Policeman 2 in Tesori’s Blue, and Berkshire Choral International as the title role in Judas Maccabaeus. His appearance in Merola Opera Program’s What The Heart Desires earned a San Francisco Chronicle rave for his “superbly bright, clarion sound.” Upcoming performances with San Francisco Opera include Rodolfo in Bohème out of the Box, Ruiz in Il trovatore, and Nobleman in Lohengrin. He also covers the title role in Rhiannon Giddens’ Omar at SFOand makes his Spoleto Festival USA debut as Anatol in Vanessa.

Additional credits include Rinuccio in a double bill of Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi and Ching’s Buoso’s Ghost with Michigan Opera Theatre, Robbins in Porgy and Bess with Seattle Opera, and Policeman 2 in the world premiere of Blue at the Glimmerglass Festival, where he also sang Fred in Oklahoma! and Peter in Porgy and Bess. As a Baumgartner Studio Artist at Florentine Opera, he performed roles in The Merry Widow, Venus and Adonis / Dido and Aeneas and The Magic Flute.

Graves is a 2022 San Francisco District winner of the Metropolitan Opera’s Laffont Competition. Following his bachelor studies in Voice Performance at Towson University, he received his Performer Diploma and Master of Music in Voice Performance from Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music.

While at IU, Graves participated in a Game of Thrones-inspired production of Rodelinda and has since been drawn to the virtuosic music of Handel. He strives to create the perfect combination of text, music, and spectacle required to impact audiences emotionally, and he advises that all new works be seen at least twice.

Beauty, Buenos Aires, California, Christian Baldini, Music, Singer, Soloist, soprano, Symphony Orchestra, Teatro Colón, tenor

Rising Star Soprano Mikayla Sager in Conversation with Christian Baldini

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On February 5, 2023, soprano Mikayla Sager will sing Mimì for our upcoming Barbara K. Jackson Rising Stars of Opera program at the Mondavi Center, in collaboration with the San Francisco Opera Center. Here is a conversation we had with Mikayla about Puccini, the prestigious Adler Fellowship, auditions, opera in general, and her advice for young singers.

Christian Baldini: What are some of your favorite operas, and why?

Mikayla Sager: Some of my favorite operas are Der Rosenkavalier, La Traviata, Il Trovatore, Adriana Lecouvreur, Don Giovanni, and Eugene Onegin. I am typically drawn to operas with very fleshed out characters with interesting and dynamic relationships to one another. I love fiery, passionate roles, and have found I can either relate the role I sing/would sing from each of those operas listed. 

CB: Have you worked with living composers? If so, how was that experience? If not, what would you hope to gain from such a relationship?

MS: I don’t have extensive experience working with living composers, but I have greatly enjoyed the times that I have. When I have in the past, I found it very fun to watch the creativity of a composer unfold before me, and to see how flexible things can be to suit the particular singer they are writing for. It is much easier to deeply understand the character you are portraying when the composer is in the room, and you can consistently have conversations revolving around the creation of that role. 

CB: You are a part of one of the main young artist programs in the world, as an Adler Fellow for the San Francisco Opera Center. What are some of your favorite perks of this position? 

MS: The Adler fellowship is a particularly unique and special program, because we are given extensive performance experience on one of the largest operatic stages in the world. I think the greatest “perk” would be knowing that you will always be given the support you need to prepare your assigned roles at the highest level, as we have access to some of the greatest coaches and mentors in the world. There are of course other perks, such as having exposure to important people in the industry, but I would say the most important thing for me personally is knowing that I am constantly supported by people with extremely sharp ears!

CB: Tell us about the auditioning process. How was your preparation for it? Is it extremely competitive? How is the atmosphere once you are in the program?

MS: The first step is applying to the Merola opera program, which is a three month long summer festival that operates adjacently to the Adler fellowship. You apply online with audio samples, and from there you are either granted an audition or asked to apply again in the future. They usually receive over a thousand applicants. From there, you audition live, and then they on average accept 25 people. During your time at Merola, you audition for San Francisco opera on the war memorial stage, and that is when they make decisions as to who will be picked for the Adler Fellowship. At the end of the summer, they notify however many people they decide to pick for the coming Adler fellowship year. In my year they picked four singers, and one pianist. It is considered extremely competitive, and you are expected when you are in the program to be always prepared and extremely professional.

CB: Why is opera important to you? What does it mean in today’s world?

MS: Opera is important to me because I think it is an art form that can make us understand each other on a deeper level. Opera evokes big emotions and revolves around subject matter that we don’t typically encounter in everyday life. For me personally, I find it can make us relate to each other beyond surface level or superficial things. I think often we can learn a lot of life lessons through the vehicle that is opera.

CB: What would you say about La Bohème, and about Mimì (or Rodolfo) to someone who does not know the opera? What should people listen for in this kind of music?

MS: La Boheme is an opera full of luscious, gorgeous lines that are extremely pleasing for the listener. Mimi is a very pure character, with a big heart and a lot of love to give. Mimi and Rodolfo’s love story is extremely heartbreaking, and has to be taken in context of the period it was written in. I think it is important for the audience to remember that because of the lack of medicine to cure Mimi’s illness, that she is an extremely selfless character and despite having absolutely nothing and in need of some help. Because we are only doing Act I, this facet of her character won’t necessarily be seen, but I do think it is important should the audience then go and see to the rest of the opera. From a musical standpoint, I think the audience should let this extremely romantic music just wash over them, and leave the hall reminded of the feeling of falling in love.

CB: Do you have any suggestions or recommendations for young singers?

MS: my biggest piece of advice to young singers is to keep your blinders up and focus on your own progress. Try to not waste time thinking about what other people are doing and focus on how you can grow your artistry.

Canadian soprano Mikayla Sager is fascinated by the richly drawn, unapologetically intense characters of the verismo repertoire. Following her recent concert performance with San Francisco Opera, the Chronicle declared her “an extraordinarily gifted young soprano… Sager delivered Desdemona’s arias with a combination of intensity and hushed majesty.” When Sager is onstage, audiences are guaranteed a multidimensional portrayal that balances authentic vulnerability and full-blooded strength.

As a second-year Adler Fellow, Sager performs on stages across California this season. In San Francisco Opera’s centennial, she appears on the War Memorial mainstage as Sister Felicité in Dialogues des Carmélites, Kate Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly, Guardian of the Temple in Die Frau ohne Schatten, and as Image No. 1 in the world premiere of Gabriela Lena Frank’s El ultimo sueño de Frida y Diego. Elsewhere, she brings her Mimì to performances with Bohème out of the Box and the UC Davis Symphony Orchestra. Additional concert appearances include The Future is Now, the Adler Fellowship’s final concert, and Eun Sun Kim Conducts Verdi, under the baton of SFO’s new music director.

Sager has previously appeared as Violetta (La traviata), Fiordiligi (Così fan tutte), Vitellia (La clemenza di Tito), Micäela(Carmen), and Donna Anna (Don Giovanni), as well as Pamina (Die Zauberflöte) and The Fox (The Cunning Little Vixen) during her education at Manhattan School of Music. Following her debut as Norina (Don Pasquale) with Venture Opera, Opera Canada praised her “edgy intensity… she augmented her vocal prowess with enviable acting skills.” Concert highlights include a concert at Festival Napa Valley, conducted by James Conlon, a Hawaii International Music Festival tour, numerous recitals, including an appearance at Carnegie Hall, and a performance at David Geffen Hall with the New York Philharmonic.

Sager has earned recognition and support from the Joan Sutherland and Richard Bonygne Foundation’s Elizabeth Connell Competition, Jensen Foundation Vocal Competition, Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions (District Winner), Vienna International Music Competition, Festival Napa Valley’s Manetti Shrem Prize, National Opera Association’s Carolyn Bailey and Dominick Argento Competition, and Gran Teatre del Liceu’s Tenor Viñas Competition in Barcelona.

Sager draws inspiration from many other art forms, include architecture and ceramics, as well as an unconventional childhood aboard a sailboat that traveled around the world. These days, her travel companion is her rescue dog Remy, whose fiery personality would suit any operatic stage.

California, Chorus, Christian Baldini, composer, Experimental, Singer, Symphony Orchestra, Uncategorized

Composer Laurie San Martin in Conversation with Christian Baldini

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On Friday, March 6, I will conduct the world première of Laurie San Martin’s work “what remains” at the Mondavi Center, especially written for the UC Davis Symphony Orchestra and University Chorus. Also on that program we will perform Beethoven’s only oratorio, Christ on the Mount of Olives, with Jacqueline Piccolino, Kyle Stegall and Daniel Yoder as our vocal soloists, and Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 4, with Andrei Baumann. I had the chance of asking Laurie San Martin some questions, and below are her answers.
Christian Baldini: Laurie, we’ve known each other for many years, I have had the honor and pleasure of conducting the world premiere of two of your works: a concerto for two marimbas and orchestra for Mayumi Hama and Chris Froh, and a new work for the Camellia Symphony Orchestra. This will be the first time that I’m conducting a work of yours for chorus and orchestra. When I asked you to write this piece for the UC Davis Symphony and the University Chorus, I mentioned to you that you’d be sharing the program with two major works by Beethoven (his oratorio Chris on the Mount of Olives and his Fourth Piano Concerto). Was this a daunting prospect, or how did you feel?
Laurie San Martin: First, let me say that it’s an honor to write for your orchestras and in particular,  the UCDSO. It’s nostalgic for me because I played in the UCDSO as an undergraduate student  many moons ago.  But also, these are my students and it is a joy to get to work with them in this way. As for Beethoven, his impact casts a long shadow, even 200 years later. HIs 4th piano concerto is my absolute favorite. 
CB: You’ve chosen two beautiful poems that really have informed each of the two pieces. How did you choose them, and how do you look for relationships between the texts and what you do in your music?
LSM: Gary Snyder is an important poet to the greater Davis area, and I found this particular poem For the Children to be beautifully done. While I was already working on the music of the Snyder movement, I came across Rae Armantrout’s Riddance and was immediately taken with it. The similar themes (about nature, the threat of climate destruction) brought these poems close together for me. The tone of each poem is very different but the dramatic balance made them easy to imagine being paired together.
CB: I think I can say without hesitation that your music has evolved and changed considerably in the last ten years. How would you describe how your interests and priorities have changed as a composer?
LSM: I have always been interested in harmony, counterpoint, rhythm, and  how these elements help build a piece. It sounds old-fashioned and in some ways, it is. In the past 10 years, I have heard  a lot of “sound-based pieces” or pieces that are devoid of pitch completely and instead use different shades of noise. Hearing so many pieces that experiment with sound has influenced the way I think about it as well.  
CB: Who were some of your compositional role models 20 years ago? And who are they now?
LSM: 20 years ago, I was finishing my dissertation on the music of Andrew Imbrie whose music offers so much integrity and craft. I was fascinated and inspired by Mario Davidovsky’s music. My playlist likely included Ursula Mamlok’s From my Garden, Dallapiccola’s Piccola Musica Notturna and the many, many piano etudes by my teacher, David Rakowski. More recently, I am interested in music by Unsuk Chin (Akrostichon-Wortspiel in particular). I heard the premiere of Spiral by Andrew Norman in June, 2018 and found it to be brilliantly crafted. My former colleague and good friend Yu-Hui Chang (her Binge Delirium is a go-to for percussion writing) and Kate Soper’s only the words themselves. There are many other composers and pieces that have caught my attention in the past 20 years but I think the most important thing I have done is to go to a lot of concerts. I think experiencing music live—any style of music—has a profound impact us as humans. And I think that has been the single most important part of my growth. 
CB: In your opinion, what is the meaning of art in our society? What can we do as artists to keep our mission relevant to more people?
LSM: Art communicates something that can’t always be said with words. Art is abstract and what we each take from a specific piece of art is as individual as we are. If we don’t retain our individuality in the world, then I think  we will be doomed. I think there is power in experiencing art– how it stirs ideas and emotions that every day life might otherwise leave dormant.

CB: Thank you for your time and for writing this wonderful piece for us. We look forward to sharing it with the audience!

LSM: Thank you for the opportunity. I’m so proud of the student performers and of our audience that continues to support the orchestra. I think it’s really important to program living composers and I’m grateful that you are doing so much to integrate the new and the old into your programming!

Laurie San Martin
Laurie San Martin (courtesy photo)

Laurie San Martin writes music that creates a compelling narrative by exploring the intersection between texture and line. Critics have described her music as exuberant, colorful, forthright, high octane, tumultuous, intricate, intense and rumbly. She writes concert music for chamber ensembles and orchestra but has also written for theater, dance and video. Her music has been performed across the United States, Europe and Asia. Most recently she has enjoyed writing for virtuoso soloists including violinists Hrafnhildur Atladottir and Gabriela Díaz, percussionists Chris Froh and Mayumi Hama, Haleh Abghari (soprano), Yi Ji-Young (Korean gayageum) and David Russell (cello).

Recent awards include the 2018 Andrew Imbrie Award in Music from the Academy of Arts and Letters, and a 2016 Guggenheim Foundation Fellowship. She has also received awards from Harvard University’s Fromm Foundation, the American Academy of Arts and Letters (Charles Ives Scholarship), League of Composers-ISCM, the International Alliance for Women in Music, and the ASCAP Morton Gould Young Composer’s Awards. Her music has been performed across the United States, Europe and Asia. As a composition fellow, she has attended the MacDowell Colony, Yaddo, Atlantic Center for the Arts, Norfolk Contemporary Chamber Music Festival, the Montalvo Artist Residency, and the Composers Conference at Wellesley College.

Laurie holds a PhD from Brandeis University in Theory and Composition. She has taught at Clark University and is currently Professor of Music at the University of California, Davis. Her music can be found on the Left Coast Chamber Ensemble’s 2005 CD “San Francisco Premieres”,  Ravello CD “Tangos for Piano” performed by Amy Briggs, New Focus Records CD, and  “Chamber Music from the APNM”.

Conductor, Music, Singer, Soloist, Symphony Orchestra, tenor, Uncategorized

Kyle Stegall in Conversation with Christian Baldini

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On Friday, March 6, I will conduct Beethoven’s only oratorio, ”Christus am Ölberge” (”Christ on the Mount of Olives”) at the Mondavi Center with the UC Davis Symphony Orchestra and University Chorus, on a program that will also include Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 4, with Andrei Baumann, and the world première of “what remains” by composer Laurie San Martin. Below is a brief Q&A session with one of our three vocal soloists, tenor Kyle Stegall. Click on these links for interviews with Ms. Piccolino and Mr. Yoder.

Christian Baldini: Please tell us about your education and training. How did you start with music, and when did you decide to become a singer?

Kyle Stegall: I’ve been interested in professional singing and in teaching singing since my senior year of high school.  All three of my degrees are in Vocal Performance, and were granted by the Universities of Missouri, Michigan, and Yale.  My passion for communication is what has driven my studies, and the development of my performance and teaching career.

CB: What do you find remarkable about this work by Beethoven? What are your favorite moments in it?

KS: I am so looking forward to performing this dramatic and heroic work with Maestro Baldini and the musical forces at UC-Davis.  I am particularly fond of the moment in which the clarinet introduces the prayer theme in Christ’s opening aria.

CB: What are some of your favorite pieces of music, whether in the operatic realm, chamber music, or on the concert platform? Which works would you like to be singing next?

KS: I am lucky to have a career engaged with a great breadth of the classical repertoire.  I sing opera, recital, and concert work in equal proportions, which is actually quite rare.  I value the opportunity to communicate in such varied stylistic-idioms and performance environments.  Everything from the haute-contre repertoire of the French Baroque to world premieres of new repertoire for the solo voice, to staples of the recital canon, to large orchestrated works such as Christus am Oelberge hold consistent spots in my performance seasons.  I am particularly fond of the Bach evangelists, the cycles of Benjamin Britten, and orchestrated masses/oratorios of the classical and bel canto repertoire.  I’d like to find a spot for Britten’s War Requiem and Berlioz’ Les Nuits d’ete in coming seasons.

CB: What does art, and music in particular, mean to you? Is it relevant in our society today?

KS: Art and music are and will forever be relevant.  Art is an intensely potent force for awakening in large numbers of people a dormant respect for our shared, vulnerable humanity. What our world needs is community. What our world needs is emotional honesty.  Music is the crystallized sonic manifestation of these things.  The question isn’t whether or not art is relevant.  The question is whether or not we will make room in our hearts, budgets, schedules, and priorities for it.

Kyle Stegall2
tenor Kyle Stegall (courtesy photo)

 

Kyle Stegall’s performances around the world have been met with accolade for his “blemish-free production” (Sydney Morning Herald), and his “dramatic vividness” (St. Louis Post-Dispatch). A career spanning concert, opera, and recital stages has grown out of successful collaborations with many of the world’s most celebrated artistic directors including Manfred Honeck, Joseph Flummerfelt, Masaaki Suzuki, William Christie, and Stephen Stubbs.

In demand as an opera and concert soloist, Mr. Stegall is a celebrated interpreter of the Bach evangelists, and is often heard in the great oratorios of Handel and Haydn.  His operatic repertoire spans the haute-contre heroes of the French Baroque to modern premieres.

Mr. Stegall  is a proud alumnus of the universities of Missouri, Michigan, and Yale.

@stegalltenor http://kylestegall.com