STARS: Buzz Brass: The History of Music
Thursday Dec 5, 2019 10:00 am
Dec 5
THRILLING, ENCHANTING, INTIMATE
Details
T H R I L L I N G | E N C H A N T I N G | I N T I M AT E
This series is produced to support a prosperous landscape for classical music in the Vail Valley, gathering new listeners and lifelong enthusiasts alike. The VPAC Classical Salon Series returns this winter with a collection of three special performances in intimate spaces, curated to provide a deeper connection with classical music. Internationally-acclaimed artists perform thrilling, significant repertoire, hand-selected just for the occasion. These enchanting social experiences allow for focused listening and personal interaction with the artists, paired with a reception of wine and hors d’oeuvres.
Series Schedule:
ALESSIO BAX, solo piano | Thursday, January 30th | Browning/Illick Residence
KAREN SLACK, soprano with Joe Illick, piano | Tuesday, February 11th | May Gallery Patrons Lounge
BENJAMIN BAKER, violin, with Daniel Lebhardt, piano | Tuesday, March 24th| | May Gallery Patrons Lounge
ABOUT KAREN SLACK: Hailed by critics for possessing a lustrous voice of extraordinary beauty and artistry of great dramatic depth American soprano Karen Slack has performed with major conductors in opera houses and concert halls around the world. She was most recently seen in Verdi’s AIDA with Austin Opera, Alice Ford in Verdi’s Falstaff with Arizona Opera and in the West Coast premiere of Terence Blanchard’s Champion as Emelda Griffith with San Francisco’s Opera Parallele, Litton’s Porgy and Bess Suite at the Bergen Festival in Norway, Mahler Symphony # 2 with Lexington Philharmonic, Beethoven’s 9th with both Quad City Symphony and Alabama Symphony and a house debut at the Lyric Opera of Chicago as Serena in Francesca Zambello’s production of Porgy and Bess which she has performed at both Washington National Opera and San Francisco Opera. She can be seen reprising the role of Serena in San Francisco Opera’s production that was released on DVD in 2015.
Other recent engagements include: Puccini’s Tosca and Leonora in Verdi’s Il Trovatore both with Arizona Opera, Barber’s Knoxville: Summer of 1915 on the Curtis Institute of Music Alumni Series, Sister Rose in Heggie’s Dead Man Walking with both Madison Opera and Des Moines Metro Opera and Guest Soloist with the Lexington Chamber Music Festival. She has also appeared in Verdi’s Aida with Lyric Opera of Kansas City and West Bay Opera, Cilla in Richard Danielpour’s Margret Garner with Michigan Opera Theater, Agnes Sorel in Tchaikovsky’s Maid of Orleans with San Francisco Opera and at Carnegie Hall, Violetta in Verdi’s La Traviata with both Sacramento Opera and West Bay Opera and in 2006 Karen stepped in to make her Metropolitan Opera debut and International broadcast debut in the title role of Verdi’s Luisa Miller.
Equally at home in concert repertoire she has been seen in Philadelphia, San Francisco, Spokane, Cincinnati, Phoenix, Italy, Gibraltar (Spain), Munich, Germany and in Australia as Desdemona in Verdi’s Otello with the Melbourne Symphony, Mahler Symphony No.2 with Latvian National Symphony, Verdi Requiem with both Madison Symphony and the Sacramento Choral Society, Vaughn Williams Dona Nobis Pacem with both Albany ProMusica Symphony and Sacramento Choral Society and a guest artist recital at Jackson State University. A 2004 graduate of the San Francisco Opera’s Adler Fellowship program she was awarded a Schwabacher Debut Recital and was seen as Madame Arkadina in Pasatieri’s The Seagull and as Madeleine in the final scene from Strauss’ Capriccio. After her summer with the Merola Opera Program in 2002 she was invited to sing Mimi in Western Opera Theater’s National Tour of La Boheme. A native of Philadelphia, PA and a graduate of the prestigious Curtis Institute of Music she is also and alumna of the Santa Fe Opera Apprentice Program and the Steans Institute at the Ravinia Festival.
At age 18, Karen was the youngest winner in the history of the Rosa Ponselle International Competition for the Vocal Arts held in New York’s Alice Tully Hall. Since then she has gone on to win numerous competitions and receive many vocal awards including the George London Award, Licia Albanese-Puccini Foundation, Montserrat Caballe International Competition, Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, Marian Anderson ICON Award, Liederkranz Award, Astral Artist, Florida Grand Opera Competition, Portland Opera Lieber Competition and the grand prize in the 1st annual Jose Iturbi International Competition for Voice held in Los Angeles, CA.
Upcoming engagements include: Nashville Opera (debut) as Donna Anna in Mozart’s Don Giovanni, Serena in Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess with Sydney Symphony (Australia), Philadelphia Chamber Music Society recital with flutist Julietta Curenton, Sister Rose in Heggie’s Dead Man Walking with Lyric Opera of Kansas City, Verdi Requiem with Canton Symphony and Anna in Puccini’s Le Villi with Scottish Opera (debut).
Learn more at: www.sopranokarenslack.com
Ticketing
SINGLE PERFORMANCE | Cost: $150 (ticket includes wine & hors d’oeuvres)
JOIN THE SALON SOCIETY | Cost: $360 | Salon Society subscription provides a 20% discount on series tickets and secures your participation at all performances before tickets are released to the general public. Tickets to individual performances will be offered based on availability and will be extremely limited. To purchase, contact Tim Felton in the VPAC Box Office at boxoffice@vvf.org or (970) 845-8497.
UNDERWRITE A SALON | Donation Amount: $2,500 | Consider sharing your passion for classical music in the form of a donation. As the Performance Underwriter of a Salon of your choosing, your gift directly supports artist fees and production costs for the event. You will also enjoy year-round donor benefits like Priority Ticketing and Premium Seating, as a member of the VPAC Underwriting Circle. To learn more, contact Development Director Owen Hutchinson at (970) 748-6670 or ohutchinson@vvf.org.
*Ticket prices subject to change.