Saturday, December 29, 2018

Help THE AMERICAN PRIZE, receive an ODE to JOY keepsake!

Since 2012, The American Prize National Nonprofit Competitions in the Performing Arts, administered by Hat City Music Theater, Inc, has helped the CBASO and CBA Chorus to select exceptional professional vocal soloists to perform with the ensembles each season.

TAP, which CBASO founding music director David Katz serves as Chief Judge, advertises the opportunity to singers nationwide through its website and extensive data base of professional vocalists and teachers of singing; TAP collects and collates resumes as they arrive and registers candidates for Maestro Katz to audition.

Hat City Music Theater Inc. and The American Prize do not charge the CBA for this service, but that doesn't mean it costs nothing. Scores of administrative hours are spent on the task each year.

Would you help The American Prize continue to assist us with this important work, which has brought such wonderful singers to perform with us—and is about to aid in selecting our Beethoven soloists?

Would you be generous by giving a gift of any amount to Hat City Music Theater, the 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that administers The American Prize?

Give $50 or more and receive an exclusive "ODE to JOY" mug in thanks for your help. Give $100 or more and receive two. Give $150 and receive a numbered, signed copy of "MUSE of FIRE" Maestro Katz's acclaimed one-man play about the art of conducting, to be published in 2019. Give $200 and receive the book and the mugs...

You can discover more about MUSE of FIRE and The American Prize by visiting these websites:
http://museoffireplay.squarespace.com/
or
http://www.theamericanprize.org/

Giving has never been easier.
Simply visit: http://www.theamericanprize.org/Donate.html
Should you prefer to donate by check instead of credit card or paypal, you may mail it to:

Hat City Music Theater, Inc.
25 Hamilton Drive
Danbury, CT  06811

Gifts in any amount would be sincerely appreciated—all are tax deductible to the fullest extent allowed by law. You will receive a receipt from the Hat City office, with the company's sincere thanks.

Want to know more about ODE to JOY?
Visit these websites:
NILES PERFORMANCE (Sunday, June 2, 2019) 
SYMPHONY CENTER PERFORMANCE (Saturday, June 22, 2019)




Wishing you a wonderful 2019!


Thursday, November 8, 2018

HOLIDAY SPARKLE, our holiday classics concert, is December 19th

Joanne Burne

Join the CBA Symphony Orchestra and CBA Chorus, and piccolo soloist Joanne Burne, for a lovely concert of music appropriate for the season, including works by Vivaldi, Rimsky-Korsakov, Rossini, selections from Messiah and holidays carols, conducted by Stephen Blackwelder and Michael Poulos.

TICKETS ONLINE: https://holidaysparkle.brownpapertickets.com/
Considerable savings for advanced purchase! Tickets also available at the door.

Monday, October 29, 2018

"BRAHMS and HAYDN" is November 7th at St James Cathedral

TICKETS: https://brahmsandhaydn.brownpapertickets.com/
Considerable savings for advanced purchase.

OUR HAYDN SOLOISTS:
Michelle Areyzaga, soprano
As a coveted performer with a diverse repertoire, American soprano Michelle Areyzaga is held in high regard by orchestras and opera companies throughout the United States and abroad. She has performed operatic roles with New York City Opera in Telemann’s Orpheus as well as in their VOX series, and has appeared in leading roles with Chicago Opera Theater, Lyric Opera of Chicago’s In the Neighborhoods programs, Opera Birmingham, Ravinia Festival, and Orquesta Sinfónica del Estado de México.

Michelle Areyzaga’s association with the music of Leonard Bernstein runs deep. She has become well known for her interpretation of his delightful and moving music – from her portrayal of Cunegonde in Candide to her participation in varied programs featuring his works, including musical theater and chamber music/recital works. Areyzaga toured the show Bernstein on Broadway together with Jamie Bernstein (Leonard’s daughter) for six years, performing it with the Cleveland Orchestra, Minnesota Orchestra, and the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Oregon Bach Festival, among many others. Areyzaga is still often heard performing Bernstein, such as her performances in Las Vegas and at Ravinia in conjunction with the composer’s centennial celebration.

As an orchestral soloist, she has appeared with, in addition to orchestras listed above,  Richmond Symphony, Toledo Symphony, Colorado Symphony Orchestra, Grant Park Music Festival, Rochester Symphony, Phoenix Symphony Orchestra, Hartford Symphony, San Antonio Symphony, Rhode Island Philharmonic, Wichita Symphony Orchestra, Cheyenne Symphony Orchestra, and North Carolina Symphony, among others. She sang the first Bach B minor Mass in the country of Costa Rica, under the baton of Maestro John Nelson.

Ms. Areyzaga’s operatic roles have included Susanna, Le nozze di Figaro; title role, Madama Butterfly; Cunegonde, Candide; Adina, L’elisir d’amore; Despina, Così fan tutte; Zerlina, Don Giovanni; Pamina, Die Zauberflöte; Lauretta, Gianni Schicchi; both Musetta and Mimì, La bohème and Casilda in The Gondoliers.

Known as a foremost interpreter of vocal art song and chamber music, Ms. Areyzaga has been a repeat guest of the New York Festival of Song under the direction of Steven Blier and Michael Barrett, the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, the Chicago Ensemble, as well as Chicago’s Dame Myra Hess Memorial Concert Series, and the Tucson Desert Song Festival. She has collaborated with the Avalon String Quartet, the Cavatina Duo, and the Lincoln Trio, and has been selected to perform world premieres of many new works by American composers.

As a recorded artist, she has performed song cycles by Gwyneth Walker on The Sun Is Love (Proteus). Other recordings include Songs from Spoon River (Cedille) by Lita Grier and The Small Hours, songs by William Ferris. She has sung numerous times in both live and programmed broadcasts on Chicago’s classical music radio station WFMT.

Ms. Areyzaga made her European concert debut as soloist in Vaughan Williams’ Mass in G Minor at England’s York Minster Cathedral, Ely Cathedral, and St. Mary’s Church in Oxford. In Paris, she received standing ovations as soloist in the Lord Nelson Mass with the orchestra of London’s Royal Academy of Music and the St. Charles Singers.

Michelle Areyzaga has been named “Artist of the Year” by Pioneer Press and has been an award recipient from the Julian Autrey Song Foundation, Wm. C. Byrd International Young Artist, Shreveport Opera Singer of the Year, Marguerite McCammon Vocal Competition (Ft. Worth Opera), The American Prize, NATSAA—National Finalist ”Outstanding Artist” chosen by Teresa Stratas, Metropolitan Opera National Council (Central Region), Viñas Concurs International and the Concert Artist Guild.

She received her B.A. in Vocal Performance from Roosevelt University with honors and was a member of Ravinia’s Steans Institute for Young Artists. In addition she has been a member of the OperaWorks Summer intensive Program in L.A. and a member of Chicago Opera Theater’s Debut Artist Series.
Jennifer Kosharsky, mezzo-soprano
Mezzo-soprano Jennifer Kosharsky has been described by the press as “an excellent actress, with a dark-timbred, beautiful mezzo-soprano voice” of “outstanding vocal range” Her portrayal of Princess Eboli in Don Carlo for Houston’s “Opera in the Heights” inspired the press to call her: “a powerhouse mezzo...velvet voiced...a supple mezzo [that] raised the roof.” The Elgin Review says, “At first, the dark, polished tone of mezzo-soprano Jennifer Kosharsky reminds you of exquisite contralto voices from another continent and century, but her strength and control in the upper register...proves she can cover either part with her impressive tessitura.”

Originally an accomplished flutist, Ms. Kosharsky graduated from DePaul University with a degree in vocal performance. She won second place in The Classical Singer International Emerging Professional Competition. She also received recognition as a finalist in the Marcella Sembrich Vocal Competition in New York City, a two-time regional winner for the National MacAllistar Awards (Chicago), a finalist in the Union League Civic & Arts Foundation Vocal Competition (Chicago), and was a semi-finalist in both the Tito Gobbi International Competition and the International Giovan Battista Velluti Competition while living abroad in Italy.

Most recently, Ms. Kosharsky most recently finished the “Classic Korea Good-Will Concert Tour” throughout the Midwest celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Chicago Korean Consulate. Jennifer recently debuted the title role in Bizet’s Carmen with Teatro Lirico D’Europa. She is quickly becoming a favorite in both dramatic and comedic roles with such opera companies as Union Avenue Opera of St. Louis, Elgin Opera, Golden Gate Opera, Miami Lyric Opera, Muddy River Opera, and Music by the Lake. Ms. Kosharsky has sung the title role in Dido and Aeneas and Suzuki in Madama Butterfly for Elgin Opera and her first Dalila in Samson et Dalila for St. Petersburg Opera. Other operatic roles include Preziosilla in Verdi’s La forza del destino, Third Lady in The Magic Flute, Sesto in Mozart’s La Clemenza di Tito, Flora in La Traviata, Adalgisa in Norma, Romeo in I Capuleti e i Montecchi and Dorabella in Cosi Fan Tutte.

Recent concert performances include the Verdi Requiem and the “Alto Rhapsody” by Brahms. Ms. Kosharsky has performed as a soloist with the Grass Valley Symphony Orchestra in California, Southwestern Suburban Symphony in Wisconsin, Millennium Orchestra of Chicago, Chicago’s Music of the Baroque and Traverse City Symphony Orchestra in Michigan. She made her European debut with the Dubrovnik Symphony Orchestra (Croatia) in Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony. Upcoming appearances include the Verdi Requiem with the West Suburban Symphony Orchestra.

Cameo Humes, tenor
Cameo Humes is quickly becoming one of the most sought-after tenors in the operatic and concert repertoire. He has performed with Fort Wayne Philharmonic, the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra, Hilton Head Choral Society, Gainesville Civic Chorus, and the Orchestra Sinfonica dell’International Chamber Ensemble in Italy. His most recent engagement included a debut with Teatro alla Scala in the roles of Peter, Crab man, Mingo and Robbins in their production of Porgy and Bess. Other operatic credits include the title role in Mozart’s La clemenza di Tito, Ottavio (Don Giovanni) with Operafestival di Roma, Almaviva (Il Barbiere di Siviglia), Gastone (La Traviata), Prunier (La Rondine), Peter (Porgy and Bess) with Lyric Opera of Chicago (cover), Dayton Opera and Skylight Music Theatre of Milwaukee, Crab man (Porgy and Bess) with The Princeton Festival, Nelson (Porgy and Bess) with Cincinnati Opera, Ballad Singer (Of Mice and Men), and Ensemble (Show Boat) with Houston Grand Opera.

Mr. Humes has also performed regularly in the chorus of the Lyric Opera of Chicago since the 2014-15 season. He has performed as tenor soloist for the world premiere of Mozart’s Requiem staged with the Cincinnati Ballet, a performance that he repeated in the spring of 2015. Other recent concert performances include Samuel Coleridge-Taylor’s Hiawatha’s Wedding Feast with the Chicago Bar Association Symphony Orchestra as well as the DePaul University Community Chorus, Handel’s Judas Maccabeus, Mozart’s Grand Mass in C minor, Haydn’s Lord Nelson Mass with the Bach Society of Dayton, Bach St. John Passion and Mass in B minor, and The Seven Last Words of Christ by Théodore Dubois.

He has recorded the lead role in Richard Thompson’s The Mask in the Mirror, a modern opera based on the life of Paul Laurence Dunbar; a role that Mr. Humes successfully portrayed on the stage with Trilogy Opera of New Jersey in 2014. Upcoming engagements include a debut with the Richmond Symphony in Handel’s Messiah. A lover and avid performer of the Negro spiritual, he has toured Spain, France and Ireland with the world renown American Spiritual Ensemble, and has served as Adjunct Professor of Voice and Opera workshop at Central State University. Mr. Humes completed his undergraduate studies at Stetson University and earned a Master of Music degree from the University of Florida.
Aaron Wardell, baritone 
Baritone Aaron Wardell is in demand as a performer of opera and concert in Chicago and beyond. He was most recently seen as Dr. Raymond in the world premiere of Ross Crean’s The Great God Pan with Chicago Fringe Opera. Previously he appeared as Le Roy in the modern-day premiere of Marais’ Ariane et Bachus with Haymarket Opera and as Melchior in Amahl and the Night Visitors with Chamber Opera Chicago. Last season he sang Angelotti in Tosca with the Fort Wayne Symphony and Emile de Becque in South Pacific with the La Porte Symphony. Upcoming engagements include Falke in Die Fledermaus with the New Philharmonic at the College of DuPage and Beethoven’s 9th Symphony with Promusica Chamber Orchestra of Columbus.  

Additional performances include Lord Mountararat in Iolanthe with Chicago’s Gilbert and Sullivan Opera Company, Yamadori in Madama Butterfly with the Castleton Festival and as Giove in La Calisto with Haymarket Opera. He has appeared with Chamber Opera Chicago, Dayton Opera, Opera Tampa, Central City Opera and internationally at Ecuador’s Teatro National de Sucre in numerous roles including John Sorel (The Consul), Dancaïro (Carmen), Marcello (La Bohème), Junius (Rape of Lucretia), Marco (Gianni Schicchi), Don Pizarro (Fidelio) and the title role in Don Giovanni. 

Equally at home on the concert stage, this season he makes his debut with the Paducah Symphony in Brahms’ Ein Deutsches Requiem and returns to perform with ProMusica Chamber Orchestra in Mozart’s Requiem. He has appeared as a soloist with the Illinois Philharmonic, North Shore Chamber Arts Ensemble, Aurora University, Harper College, George Williams College (Music by the Lake), Downers Grove Choral Society, Niles Metropolitan Chorus, The Bach Ensemble of Naples, FL and Cincinnati Baroque in such works as Handel’s Messiah, Bach’s St. John Passion, Schubert’s Mass in Ab, Saint-Saëns Oratorio de Noël, Arvo Pärt’s Passio and Haydn’s Creation. 

Aaron completed his formal musical training at Western Michigan University, and earned a Master of Music in Vocal Performance and an Artist Diploma certificate in Opera from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, where he studied under baritone William McGraw.

Tuesday, September 25, 2018

The PROGRAM for SUNDAY'S terrific CBASO & CBA Chorus CHAMBER CONCERT

CHICAGO BAR ASSOCIATION SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA AND CHORUS
CHAMBER MUSIC RECITAL

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2018, 3:00 P.M.
PIANOFORTE STUDIOS, CHICAGO, ILLINOIS

PROGRAM

String Quintet in C major, D. 956, Op. posth. 163    Franz Schubert
Movement I: Allegro ma non troppo

Patricia Bronte, violin I
Marian L. Chen, violin II
Emily A. Chen, viola
Gary DeTurck, cello I
Mitchell Krock, cello II

“Notre amour,” Op. 23 No. 2, and “Rêve d’amour,” Op. 5 No. 2    Gabriel Fauré

Juditha A. Seghers, soprano
Janet Eckhardt, piano

“O du, mein holder Abendstern” from Tannhäuser    Richard Wagner

Dale K. Nichols, baritone
Janet Eckhardt, piano

String Quartet No. 1    George Walker
Movement II: Molto adagio

Kate Donaldson, violin I
Patricia Bronte, violin II
Adrienne N. Kitchen, viola
Julia M. Nowicki, cello

“Get Here”    Brenda Russell

Holly McGuire, vocalist
Janet Eckhardt, piano

“The Lord Is a Man of War” from Israel in Egypt    George Frideric Handel

Frank E. Cargle, bass-baritone
Sean M. Hoffman, bass-baritone
Janet Eckhardt, piano

Wind Quintet    Hedwige Chrétien

The Fair Use Quintet
Judith Grubner, flute
Beth Lodal, oboe
John S. Vishneski III, clarinet
Katherine Erwin, bassoon
Michael McVickar, French horn

Considerable savings for online advanced purchase!




Saturday, August 25, 2018

ANNOUNCING our 2018-19 SEASON and our RETURN to SYMPHONY CENTER!

David Katz, founding music director and conductor,
Chicago Bar Association Symphony Orchestra
Marek Rachelski, CBA Symphony Resident Conductor

Stephen Blackwelder, chorus director
The CBA Chorus
Janet Eckhardt, Chorus Accompanist 

—Our 33rd Season—


Chamber Concert:
Sunday, September 30, 2018, PianoForte Studios at 3pm
1335 South Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60605
TICKETS: https://cbachamber2018.bpt.me


Octoberfest:
Friday, October 26, 2018 from 5:30-7:30 at Corboy Hall in the CBA building
details TBA


Fall Concert:
Brahms and Haydn—Full Orchestra & CBA Chorus
David Katz, Stephen Blackwelder and Marek Rachelski, conductors
Music includes Brahms Symphony No. 2, Haydn's Mass in Time of War and the Chicago premiere of Nancy Bloomer Deussen's American Hymn
CONCERT—Wednesday, November 7, 2018 at 7:30 pm—St James Cathedral
TICKETS: https://brahmsandhaydn.bpt.me


Jewelry Fundraiser:
Thursday, December 6, 5:30 – 7:30 p.m.
Join Andie Kaufman, jewelry designer and partner at McDermott, and other attorneys from the CBA, for a special fundraiser (and get some of your holiday shopping done, too!)


Holiday Classics (aka "Holiday Sparkle")
Stephen Blackwelder and Michael Poulos, conductors 
Joanne Burne, piccolo soloist
Full Orchestra & CBA Chorus
Program includes festive music by Rossini, Vivaldi, Handel, Rimsky-Korsakov, holiday classics and more.
CONCERT—Wednesday, December 19, 2018 at 7:30 pm—St James Cathedral
TICKETS: https://holidaysparkle.bpt.me


Wine Tasting:
Friday, February 8, 2019 from 5:30-7:30 at the CBA’s Corboy Hall
details TBA


Barristers Big Band Benefit Ball:
Friday, April 26, 2019 at 6 p.m. at the Standard Club
details TBA


Special Touring Performance: 
ODE to JOY—more than 300 musicians!
DePaul Community Chorus
Niles Metropolitan Chorus
CBA Chorus
Chicago Bar Association Symphony Orchestra
David Katz, Stephen Blackwelder and Marek Rachelski, conductors Winners of The American Prize Chicago Oratorio Award
Neil Posner, piano soloist
John Vishneski, clarinet soloist
Sara Su Jones, violin soloist
Sunday, June 2, 2019 at 3pm—St John Brebeuf, Niles
Music by Saint-Saens, Mozart, Schumann, and the Choral Finale to Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 (the entire last movement of the symphony.)
TICKETS: https://odetojoyniles.bpt.me


Return to Symphony Center/Orchestra Hall—home of the 
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
ODE to JOY—more than 300 musicians!
DePaul Community Chorus
Niles Metropolitan Chorus
CBA Chorus
Chicago Bar Association Symphony Orchestra
David Katz, Stephen Blackwelder and Marek Rachelski, conductors 
Winners of The American Prize Chicago Oratorio Award
Neil Posner, piano soloist
John Vishneski, clarinet soloist
Sara Su Jones, violin soloist  Music by Saint-Saens, Mozart, Schumann, and the Choral Finale to Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 (the entire last movement of the symphony.)
SYMPHONY CENTER CONCERT: Saturday, June 22, 2019 at 8pm
Ticket info soon!



Monday, May 21, 2018

WHAT an OVATION for Rossini's "STABAT MATER"!

Clockwise from bottom right: Christine Steyer, Anna Tonna, Emanuel Caraman, Benjamin Howard, David Katz (with music.)
Thank you to EVERYONE who made our Rossini "Stabat Mater" such a resounding success: thanks to every orchestra and chorus member, every soloist, whether vocal or instrumental, every volunteer, ticket seller, program writer, graphic artist, equipment mover, refreshment provider, communication coordinator, librarian, conductor, accompanist, recordist, or audience member. None of us could have done it without all of us.

Here's a selfie of our very happy Rossini quartet, winners of The American Prize Chicago Oratorio Award, after the performance, with music director, David Katz.

On to Beethoven's 9th at Orchestra Hall in Spring 2019—and to other great things before and after! (Check back later this summer for announcement of our complete 2018-19 season!)



Friday, April 27, 2018

ANNOUNCING our ROSSINI SOLOISTS: The American Prize Chicago Oratorio Award

Gioachino Rossini
The American Prize is pleased to announce the four winners of the Chicago Oratorio Award for 2018. These artists have been selected to perform as soloists with the Chicago Bar Association Symphony Orchestra and CBA Chorus in Rossini's Stabat Mater on Wednesday, May 16, 2018 at 7:30pm, in St James Epsicopal Cathedral, Chicago. The performance will be under the baton of the orchestra's founding music director, David Katz. Stephen Blackwelder is the chorus director.

For ticket information, please visit: https://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/3055822 

If you would like to learn how you too can utilize the considerable artistic resources of The American Prize to help identify soloists for your ensemble's performances, please contact: theamericanprize@gmail.com 

***

CHICAGO ORATORIO AWARD winners: 
Rossini's STABAT MATER

Christine Steyer, soprano
Christine Steyer, soprano
Soprano Christine Steyer has distinguished herself as artist of great versatility and is the recipient of numerous performances awards. Christine received critical acclaim for her operatic portrayals of the Marschallin, Madama Butterfly and Violetta. A frequent recitalist, Christine sang concerts of Russian and American music with pianist Philip Morehead and Spanish music with classical guitarist Brandon Acker. Recently Steyer sang for the Cuban Ambassador, the American Opera Society of Chicago, Beethoven's 9th at the University of Chicago, Lady Liberty in Kurt Weill’s Johnny Johnson with Chicago Folks Operetta, Mrs. Croft in Persuasion with Chamber Opera Chicago and a recital of Schubert at Unity Temple, Oak Park. She has commissioned and premiered several new works for soprano by composer David Shenton set to contemporary American poetry. As Artistic Director of Bellissima Opera, she is heading the creation of the new opera Future Perfect with a libretto by Chicagoland youth. Christine is an Adjunct Professor of Voice at Concordia University in River Forest, IL.


Anna Tonna, mezzo-soprano
Anna Tonna, mezzo-soprano
“A born star who effectively stole the show” is how the press describes mezzo-soprano ANNA TONNA.  Well known for her commitment to the music of Spain and Latin America, her performances have been depicted as “...full of charm and magnetism with her dark, compact lyric mezzo-soprano, ideally suited for the flamenco-like vocal flourishes of Spanish music”.  In the role of Ernestina in the North American premiere of Gioachino Rossini's L'equivoco stravagante, she was described as "a mezzo heroine who knows how to sing Rossini" by the Rossini Gessellschaft and as "showing off her warm, secure mezzo-soprano to maximum advantage" by the New York Magazine.  Her combination of a highly developed coloratura with a full, balanced, flexible lower register have guaranteed her acclaim as a lyric mezzo, both in familiar roles of Rosina, Carmen, Dorabella, as well as in the more rare repertoire by Paisiello, Vivaldi, Mascagni, Zandonai and Giordano.  She has sung leading roles with Teatro Grattacielo in Lincoln Center, New Jersey State Opera, Opera Illinois State Opera of Brno (Czech Republic), Opera de Santo Domingo among others. As a solo recitalist she has presented at The Casals Festival of Puerto Rico, Festival Iberoamericano de las Artes in Puerto Rico, Música de Cámara of New York, Festival de Segovia (Spain) among many others.  She can be heard on her new disc release Espana alla Rossini with iTinerant Classics.   www.annatonna.com

 

Emanuel-Cristian Caraman, tenor
Emanuel-Cristian Caraman, tenor
Romanian tenor Emanuel-Cristian Caraman has appeared with opera companies, symphony orchestras and on the recital stage in Europe, South America and North America. Mr. Caraman has performed with Los Angeles Opera, George Enescu International Music Festival in Bucharest, Miami Lyric Opera, South Bend Lyric Opera, Union Avenue Opera in St. Louis, Opera in the Heights in Houston, Die Deutsche Kammerphilarmonie, New England Chamber Orchestra, South Bend Symphony Orchestra and New Philharmonic Orchestra. Operatic highlights include Edgardo in Lucia di Lammermoor, Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly, Rodolfo in La Boheme, Alfredo in La Traviata, Don José in Carmen, Fritz in L’Amico Fritz, Riccardo in Un Ballo in Maschera, Nemorino in L'elisir D'amore, and Ernesto in Don Pasquale. Lawrence Budmen of South Florida Classical Review: “In the title role, Emanuel-Cristian Caraman displayed a well-schooled lyric tenor that scaled the opera’s peaks impressively. He brought passionate lyricism to Fritz’s melodic outbursts. His aria of despair at losing his beloved Suzel was imbued with real vocal drama, Emanuel-Cristian Caraman’s high notes ringing through the house.”

 

Benjamin Howard, baritone
Benjamin Howard, baritone
Previously based in Chicago, baritone Benjamin Howard was marked as a “standout in the huge cast” (Chicago Tribune) as Connie Rivers in the Chicago premiere of Ricky Ian Gordon’s The Grapes of Wrath at Northwestern University. Howard has sung roles with Chicago’s Main Street Opera in Serrano’s La Dolorosa and Rodrigo’s Ausencias de Dulcinea. Recent roles include Count Almaviva in Le Nozze di Figaro at Opera in the Ozarks and the title role in Don Giovanni at the University of North Texas. As a soloist, Howard most recently sang with the Abilene Philharmonic, performing Broadway love songs. This summer Howard will be a Young Artist at Utah Festival Opera, singing the roles of Rapunzel’s Prince in Into the Woods and the Sergeant in The Barber of Seville. A Los Angeles native, Howard received his BM at Northwestern and currently pursues an Artist Certificate at UNT, where he completed his MM.
 

Thursday, April 5, 2018

The BARRISTERS BIG BAND BENEFIT BALL and AUCTION is April 20th

The Barristers Big Band Benefit Ball is coming on April 20!  This is the most important fundraising event of the year to benefit all three CBA music groups.  Please consider donating silent-auction items (contact John Vishneski at jvishneski@reedsmith.com).

More information about the Ball, including a link to purchase tickets, is here:  http://www.chicagobar.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Barrister_Ball

To check out some of our fabulous auction items:
https://e.gesture.com/events/5xP/

Wednesday, March 21, 2018

DEADLINE APPROACHING to apply for CHICAGO ORATORIO AWARD: Rossini's "STABAT MATER"

Gioachino Rossini
CHICAGO ORATORIO AWARD: Rossini's STABAT MATER
Deadline Approaching: March 31, 2018
for Classical Vocalists:
The Chicago Oratorio Award

2018: FOUR $500 performance prizes: SOPRANO, ALTO (mezzo), TENOR, BARITONE (bass)

PERFORM as soloists in Rossini's STABAT MATER with the Chicago Bar Association Symphony Orchestra and Chorus under the baton of music director Maestro David Katz in May 2018.

Dress rehearsal: Tuesday, May 15, 2018 at 6:00 pm at St James Episcopal Cathedral, Chicago
Performance: Wednesday, May 16, 2018 at 7:30 pm, same location

Although the Chicago Oratorio Award is open to all qualified professional and college/university applicants for The American Prize nationwide, it is geared primarily to those who live within comfortable travel distance of Chicago and who can make their own housing arrangements.

Complete information and application forms on the website here: http://www.theamericanprize.org/vocalperf.html

Friday, January 19, 2018