Masterworks I
Concert of Firsts
Friday, October 7, 2011
Ilya Yakushev, pianist
8:00 pm | Capitol Theater | Overture Center for the Arts
Elgar | Serenade for Strings in E Minor
Prokofiev | Piano Concerto No. 1 in D-flat
Copland | Music for the Theatre
Gershwin | Rhapsody in Blue
Middleton Holiday Pops
A Feast of Carols: Voices of Christmas Past and Present
American Idol Finalist, AJ Gil, soloist
Middleton High School Concert Choir
Madison Marriott West
Saturday, November 26, 2011, 8:00 pm
Sunday, November 27, 2011, 1:00 pm
Concert Highlights:
Custer | It’s Christmastime
Rutter | What Sweeter Music
Arr. Krogstad | Silver Bells
Adam | Oh Holy Night
Concert Sponsor: Middleton Tourism Commission
Handel’s Messiah
December 9, 2011
The Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra Chorus and the Festival Choir of Madison
7:00 pm | Blackhawk Church, Middleton
Masterworks II
Triumphant Return
Friday, January 13, 2012
Amit Peled, cellist
8:00 pm | Capitol Theater | Overture Center for the Arts
Lilburn | Diversions for String Orchestra
Boccherini | Cello Concerto in B-flat Major
Kopytman | Kaddish
Haydn | Symphony No. 100 in G Major ‘Military’
Concert Sponsor: Cuna Mutual Group
Masterworks III
Beloved Beethoven
Friday, February 24, 2012
Alexander Sitkovetsky, violinist
James Ridge, Narrator
8:00 pm | Capitol Theater | Overture Center for the Arts
Britten | Night Mail End Sequence
Beethoven | Violin Concerto in D Major
Beethoven | Symphony No. 6 in F Major
Concert Sponsor: Pleasant Rowland Foundation
Masterworks IV
Celtic Celebration
Friday, March 16, 2012
Christopher Taylor, pianist
8:00 pm | Capitol Theater | Overture Center for the Arts
Mendelssohn | The Hebrides Overture, Op. 26
Field | Piano Concerto No. 4 in E-flat Major
Bantock | Celtic Symphony for string orchestra and six harps
Mozart | Symphony No. 35 in D Major ‘Haffner’
Masterworks V
Rebirth
Friday, April 13, 2012
Michelle Areyzaga, soprano; Jamie Van Eyck, mezzo-soprano; Robert Bracey, tenor; Timothy Jones, bass
Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra Chorus and the Festival Choir of Madison
8:00 pm | Capitol Theater | Overture Center for the Arts
Finzi | Dies Natalis
Beethoven | Symphony No. 9
Concert Sponsor: Whyte Hirshboeck Dudek
Russian pianist Ilya Yakushev, with many awards and honors to his credit, continues to astound and mesmerize audiences at major venues on three continents. He made his San Francisco Symphony debut in 2007 with Music Director Michael Tilson Thomas, performing Prokofiev’s First and Fourth Piano Concertos as part of the Symphony’s “Prokofiev Festival”. His performances were included in the top ten classical music events of the year by the San Francisco Chronicle, and prompted a return to the Symphony in September 2009 with Maestro Tilson Thomas performing Prokofiev’s 3rd Piano Concerto. The 2009-10 season also included tour performances with the Syracuse Symphony, an engagement with the Fairbanks Symphony, and in recital at Chicago’s Ravinia, Cincinnati’s Matinée Musicale, and Fresno’s prestigious Phillip Lorenz Keyboard series.
In November 2010, Mr. Yakushev performs Rachmaninoff’s Second Piano Concerto with the BBC Concert Orchestra and Keith Lockhart in London, prior to touring the Rachmaninoff - along with Mendelssohn’s 1st Concerto - to 15 American cities with the Orchestra and Maestro Lockhart. He will return to Cincinnati to perform a recital at Xavier University’s Piano Series in spring 2011, prior to embarking on an 18-city recital tour through the midwest. He will also perform the Rachmaninoff II with the Des Moines Symphony and Joseph Giunta in May 2011.
Recital performances in 2008-09 included New York’s Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center, San Juan, Jacksonville, Oakland, and an eight-city recital tour through the central states. He was guest artist with the Utah Symphony in January 2009, and with the Arkansas Symphony and Beaumont Symphony in 08-09 as well.
He attracted international attention in December 2006, presenting solo recitals at such venues as the Bechstein Center in Berlin and Vienna’s Musikverein. He also toured Southeast Asia, performing in Singapore and Malaysia. In past seasons, he has performed in various prestigious venues worldwide, including Glinka Philharmonic Hall (St. Petersburg), Victoria Hall (Singapore), Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall (New York), Davies Symphony Hall (San Francisco), and Sejong Performing Arts Center (Seoul, Korea). His performances with orchestra include the Kirov Orchestra, Las Vegas Philharmonic, Eastern Connecticut Symphony, and others.
Winner of the 2005 World Piano Competition which took place in Cincinnati, OH, Mr. Yakushev received his first award at age 12 as a prizewinner of the Young Artists Concerto Competition in his native St. Petersburg. In 1997, he received the Mayor of St. Petersburg's Young Talents award, and in both 1997 and 1998, he won First Prize at the Donostia Hiria International Piano Competition in San Sebastian, Spain. In 1998, he received a national honor, The Award for Excellence in Performance, presented to him by the Minister of Culture of the Russian Federation in Moscow. Most recently, Mr. Yakushev became a recipient of the prestigious Gawon International Music Society’s Award in Seoul, Korea.
Mr. Yakushev attended the Rimsky-Korsakov College of Music in his native St. Petersburg, Russia, and subsequently came to New York City to attend Mannes College of Music where he studied with legendary pianist Vladimir Feltsman.
In addition to his performing career, Mr. Yakushev is presently serving as Executive Director of the International Keyboard Institute and Festival at Mannes, founded and directed by Jerome Rose, a position he has held since 2002.
"The flair of the young Rostropovich"
American Record Guide
From the United States to Europe to the Middle East and Asia , Israeli cellist Amit Peled, a musician of profound artistry and charismatic stage presence, is acclaimed as one of the most exciting instrumentalists on the concert stage today.
Mr. Peled who was recently described by the American Record Guide as “Having the flair of the young Rostropovich”, has performed as a soloist with many orchestras and in the world’s major concert halls, such as: Carnegie Hall and Alice Tully Hall, New York; Salle Gaveau, Paris; Wigmore Hall, London; Konzerthaus, Berlin; and Tel Aviv's Mann Auditorium.
Following enthusiastically received debuts with the Columbus Symphony ("Peled is nothing short of a superb player,” The Columbus Dispatch) and the Baltimore Symphony (“I was struck by the richness of Peled’s tone and the intensely poetic nature of his phrasing; this was very classy cello playing...." The Baltimore Sun), Mr. Peled’s 2010/11 season will include recital debuts at the Kennedy Center and NYC's Symphony Space, and an Alice Tully Hall Concerto debut with the Riverside Symphony playing the Hindemith cello Concerto.
As a recording artist, Mr. Peled has just released two critically acclaimed CDs: “The Jewish Soul” and “Cellobration” under the Centaur Records Label. Fanfare Magazine stated: “By all evidence, Amit Peled is a superb cellist. His technical prowess in the Davidoff and Ligeti vouchsafe that; and his tone, of pellucid purity, gleams with a glint of gold in the slow, lyrical numbers.”
Peled is also a frequent guest artist, performing and giving master classes at prestigious summer music festivals such as the Marlboro Music Festival, Newport Music Festival, Seattle Chamber Music Festival, Heifetz International Music Institute, Schleswig Holstein Festival and Euro Arts Festival in Germany, Gotland Festival in Sweden, Prussia Cove Festival in England, The Violoncello Forum in Spain, and the Mizra International Academy and Festival in Israel.
Amit Peled has been featured on television and radio stations throughout the world, including NPR’s “Performance Today”, WGBH Boston, WQXR New York, WFMT Chicago, Deutschland Radio Berlin , Radio France , Swedish National Radio & TV, and Israeli National Radio & TV.
One of the most sought after cello pedagogues in the world, Mr. Peled is a Professor at the Peabody Conservatory of Music of the Johns Hopkins University.
"Sitkovetsky has a terrific technique to be sure, but his confident, entirely natural musicianship, is what sets him apart from the crowd." – The Gramophone
British violinist Alexander Sitkovetsky was born in Moscow in 1983 into a family with an established musical tradition. At the age of eight Mr. Sitkovetsky made his debut as a soloist with the chamber orchestra in Montpellier, France.
He has been featured at well-known venues throughout Europe and the UK including London's Royal Festival Hall, Queen Elizabeth Hall, Barbican, St. John's Smith Square, St. Martin-in-the-Field and Wigmore Hall; Salla Verdi in Milano, Palais des Congres in Antibes as well as Germany, Israel, Russia and Japan. Sitkovetsky's several Wigmore Hall appearances in London have been critically acclaimed and he has appeared on New York City's Frick Collection Series partnering with pianist Bella Davidovich. His concerto performances include his debuts with the English Chamber Orchestra, Southbank Sinfonia, BBC Concert Orchestra and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.
Confirmed plans for 2008-2009 include a Concertgebouw debut with the Netherlands Philharmonic and Yakov Kreizberg, performances with the Roma Chamber Orchestra, the Bangkok Symphony and in the US with the Monterey Symphony, Andrew Sewell, conducting. In the 2007-2008 season Mr. Sitkovetsky performed with the El Paso Chamber Music Festival led by festival director Zuill Bailey. Other recent US engagements included a concerto appearance with the Columbus (GA) Symphony as well as soloist on tour with the Moscow Chamber Orchestra under the direction of Constantin Orbelian.
Mr. Sitkovetsky has performed at international music festivals throughout Europe, including the Radio France Festival in Montpellier, Festival Internationale des Jeunes Solistes in Antibes (France), Festa Torino in Italy, Leicester Music Festival, Oxford Music Festival, Sonoro Chamber Music Festival (Romania), Verbier Music Festival and Academy in Switzerland, Homecoming Chamber Music Festival, (Russia), Tuscan Sun Festival in Cortona, Italy, Mecklenburg Vorpommern Festival (Germany), Utrecht Music Festival (Netherlands) and at the Julia Fischer and Friends Festival in Germany
Alexander Sitkovetsky has released two CD recordings for Angel Records (a part of Capitol/EMI Classics group). His second CD recording for EMI/Angel featuring concerto performances by Bach, Mendelssohn, Panufnik and Takemitsu has received unanimous critical acclaim. In 2008, Alexander recorded the Mendelssohn Double Violin Concerto with Dinorah Varsi and the Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra for Orfeo, and the Bach Double Violin Concerto with Julia Fischer and the Academy of St Martin in the Fields for Decca.
A committed chamber musician, Sitkovetsky has collaborated with some of the most important artists of today, including, Julia Fischer, Misha Maisky, Bella Davidovich, Dmitry Sitkovetsky, Julian Rachlin, Janine Jansen, Sarah Chang Natalie Clein, Polina Leschenko, Julian Bliss, Maxim Rysanov, Sebastian Klinger, Michael Sanderling and many others. In 1996, Alexander played Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto in Budapest with Lord Menuhin conducting. Since their first meeting in Moscow in 1990, Lord Menuhin became a great inspiration for Sitkovetsky and supported him through his school years. They performed the Bach Double Violin Concerto in France and Belgium, as well as Bartok's Duos at St James's Palace in London. In 1998 he took part in a master class given by Maxim Vengerov which was broadcast over the European TV network. He was invited to become a pupil at the Yehudi Menuhin School where he studied with Natalia Boyarsky and Professor Hu Kun, then continued his studies with Hu Kun at the Royal Academy of Music. Alexander has participated in master classes given by Lord Menuhin, Dmitry Sitkovetsky, Mauricio Fuks, Georgy Pauk, Maya Glezarova, Zvi Zeitlin and Abram Stern. In 1998 he took part in a master class given by Maxim Vengerov which was broadcast over the European TV network. Strad magazine has featured Alexander as one of the "Stars of the New Century". He has been featured in a BBC documentary which has been broadcast several times and has made numerous television appearances in the UK. He was featured as a soloist in the "Tchaikovsky Experience"documentary by BBC Television which was broadcast on BBC Two in February 2007. Alexander is also an accomplished composer. His two orchestral ballet scores were premiered in collaboration with the Royal Academy of Dance in 1995 and in 1999 at Queen Elizabeth Hall, London.
"Mr Sitkovetsky poured his warm tone into the music's soaring phrases, managing to sustain its impassioned lyricism and preserve its broad arcs of sound" – The New York Times
Among his generation of pianists, Christopher Taylor stands out as an innovative musician with a diverse array of talents and interests. During the past few years he has appeared regularly in many important concert halls and developed a loyal following throughout the United States and abroad; critics hail him as “one of the most impressive young pianists on the horizon today” (The Washington Post) and “frighteningly talented” (The New York Times). He is known for a passionate advocacy of music written in the past 100 years — Messiaen, Ligeti, and Bolcom figure prominently in his performances — but his repertoire spans four centuries and includes the complete Beethoven sonatas, the Liszt Transcendental Etudes, Bach’s Goldberg Variations, and a multitude of other familiar masterworks. Whatever the genre or era of the composition, Mr. Taylor brings to it an active imagination and intellect coupled with heartfelt intensity and grace.
In recent seasons Mr. Taylor has concertized around the globe, performing throughout Europe, Asia, and the Caribbean. At home in the U.S. he has appeared with such orchestras as the New York Philharmonic, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Colorado Symphony, Detroit Symphony, St. Louis Symphony, Atlanta Symphony, Houston Symphony, and the Boston Pops. Christopher Taylor has toured with the Polish Chamber Philharmonic, and with the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra -- with which he premiered Sir Peter Maxwell Davies’ Sea Orpheus at Carnegie Hall. As a soloist he has performed in New York’s Alice Tully Hall, as well as at Carnegie, in Washington’s Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the Ravinia and Aspen festivals, and dozens of other venues. In chamber settings, he has collaborated with many eminent musicians, including Robert McDuffie, Robert Mann, and the Borromeo, Shanghai, Pro Arte, and Ying Quartets. His recordings have featured works by Liszt, Messiaen, and present-day Americans William Bolcom and Derek Bermel. Apart from concertizing and recording, he has undertaken various unusual projects. Recent examples include: the commission and premiere of a piano concerto by Derek Bermel with the Indianapolis Symphony, made possible by a Christel Award from the American Pianists’ Association; investigations into the compositions of the legendary pianist Gunnar Johansen; performances and lectures on the complete etudes of György Ligeti; and a series of performances of the Goldberg Variations on the unique double-manual Steinway piano in the collection of the University of Wisconsin, an instrument whose rediscovery and refurbishment he has actively promoted.
Numerous awards have confirmed Mr. Taylor’s high standing in the musical world. He was named an American Pianists’ Association Fellow for 2000, before which he received an Avery Fisher Career Grant in 1996 and the Bronze Medal in the 1993 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, where he was the first American to receive such high recognition in twelve years. In 1990 he took first prize in the William Kapell International Piano Competition, and also became one of the first recipients of the Irving Gilmore Young Artists’ Award.
Mr. Taylor owes much of his success to several outstanding teachers, including Russell Sherman, Maria Curcio-Diamand, Francisco Aybar, and Julie Bees. In addition to his busy concert schedule, he currently serves as Paul Collins Associate Professor of Piano Performance at the University of Wisconsin in Madison. He pursues a variety of other interests, including: mathematics (he received a summa cum laude degree from Harvard University in this field in 1992); philosophy (an article he coauthored with the leading scholar Daniel Dennett appears in the Oxford Free Will Handbook); computing (he created a compiler for a new programming language); linguistics; and biking, which is his primary means of commuting. Mr. Taylor lives in Middleton, Wisconsin, with his wife and two daughters. Christopher Taylor is a Steinway artist.
Following a “Stunning” (Opera Magazine) debut in The Kaiser of Atlantis for Chicago Opera Theatre, Michelle Areyzaga has demonstrated her vocal diversity in a variety of operatic roles including Cunegonde, Pamina, Susanna, Sophie (Werther), Musetta, Lauretta, Adele, Zerlina, Despina, Serpina, and Belinda. She has performed with companies including Chicago Opera Theater, Lyric Opera of Chicago’s "In the Neighborhoods," Opera Theatre North, DuPage Opera Theatre, Chicago Light Opera Works, and Orquesta Sinfónica del Estado de México. She reprised the role of Zerlina for her Opera Birmingham début, and sang Pamina as part of Chicago's Silk Road Initiative, a production which aired on public television.
Recent concert engagements include The New York Festival of Song, Poulenc’s Gloria with the Flint Michigan Symphony, Gustavo Leone’s Mundo at the Grant Park Music Festival, and “Bernstein on Broadway” with both the Cleveland Orchestra at the Blossom Festival and at the Tilles Center in Long Island, NY. She traveled to Costa Rica for that country’s first ever performance of J. S. Bach’s Mass in B Minor under the baton of John Nelson. She performed Adina in L‘Elisir d’Amore with DuPage Opera Theatre, and is scheduled for Shostakovich’s Seven Romances with the Amelia Piano Trio, and appearances with the symphonies of Northwest Indiana, Wichita, and the Rhode Island Philharmonic. Upcoming engagements include Mozart’s Susanna with Opera Birmingham.
Ms. Areyzaga made her European concert début 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.
She recently presented a recital of the songs of Lita Grier at the Ravinia Festival Day of Music, and individual recitals of the songs of William Ferris, Lita Grier, and Inge Braun. She made her fourth appearance with the New York Festival of Song in the program “The Welcome Shore.” On the Chandler Hall Concert Series in Randolph, VT, she presented a solo recital including a premiere of La Ternura of Gwyneth Walker.
As a recording artist, Ms. Areyzaga's CD, The Sun Is Love was released on the Proteus label with The American Record Guide stating: "This album's appeal owes much to the singing of Michelle Areyzaga, who has a sweet, unaffected voice and meticulous diction just right for these appealing tunes." Her CD of the songs of Lita Grier was recently released by Cedille Records and a CD of the songs of William Ferris well be released soon.
A frequent recitalist for the live programs of Classical Radio WFMT, Ms. Areyzaga was named by Pioneer Press as Chicago's "Artist of the Year" for 2006.
With polished, elegant vocalism and committed dramatic portrayals on-stage, American mezzo-soprano Jamie Van Eyck appeals to audiences and critics alike as a compelling young artist in opera and concert. She embarks upon the 2010-2011 season with a Boston Lyric Opera debut as The Drummer in The Emperor of Atlantis, and as The Daughter in the premiere performances of After-Image, a newly commissioned opera. She will also return to Utah Opera as Meg in Little Women. In concert, she sings The Messiah with the Lexington Philharmonic, and Mahler’s Symphony #2 with The Madison Symphony.
Last season, she made her role and company debut as Cherubino in The Marriage of Figaro for Opera Theater of Saint Louis, and appeared at the Bard SummerScape Festival in the role of Milli in Franz Schreker’s Der Ferne Klang. She sang Mercédès in Carmen and Miss Jessel in The Turn of the Screw with Madison Opera, and reprised the roles of Dido and The Sorceress in Dido and Aeneas with The Mark Morris Dance Group and Kolobov Novaya Opera Theater on tour to Moscow for performances at The Golden Mask Festival. She performed works by James Primosch and George Crumb with Orchestra 2001 of Philadelphia, with whom she is a frequent guest artist.
Ms. Van Eyck has performed with opera companies throughout the United States including Santa Fe Opera, Opera Theater of Saint Louis, Utah Opera, Opera Boston, Madison Opera, and The Wolf Trap Opera Company. During her consecutive residencies at Wolf Trap Opera, she sang the roles of Dorabella in Così fan tutte, Melanto in Il Ritorno d’Ulisse in Patria, and Dryade in Ariadne auf Naxos. She was also featured in Bernstein’s Mass with the Utah Symphony, and in the role of The Old Lady in Candide with The National Symphony Orchestra, for which The Washington Times declared “her robust and authoritative instrument carried the day.” She made her Broadway debut in Jerome Kern’s Music in the Air with the Encores! series at New York City Center. With the Santa Fe Opera, Ms. Van Eyck covered the role of Junon in Plateé and performed scenes as Sister Helen in Jake Heggie’s Dead Man Walking.… read more
Among Ms. Van Eyck’s recent concert performances are Handel’s Messiah with The Utah Symphony, Berlioz’s Les Nuits d’Été with City Music-Cleveland, Schönberg’s Peirrot Lunaire with The New England Contemporary Ensemble, and Mahler’s Symphony No.2 and Das Lied von der Erde in Boston with The Harvard-Radcliffe Symphony. At Wolf Trap, Ms. Van Eyck twice performed in recital with acclaimed pianist Steven Blier, and was a soloist in This Way to Broadway with Marvin Hamlisch and The National Symphony. She has also been featured in multiple Pops concerts with conductor Keith Lockhart.
An avid proponent of new music, Ms. Van Eyck sang two world premiere performances at Carnegie Hall during the spring of 2009. She gave the premiere performance of Ned Rorem’s Three Poems of Edna St. Vincent Millay in Weill Recital Hall, and in Zankel Hall she sang the first performance of Helen Enfettered, written for her by young American composer, Kate Soper. At the Tanglewood Music Center’s Festival of Contemporary Music, she performed the role of Mama in the North American staged premiere of Elliott Carter’s What Next? under the baton of James Levine. Her performance can be seen on the Boston Symphony Orchestra’s DVD release of the opera. She has been featured in Osvaldo Golijov’s Ainadamar with Dawn Upshaw and the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and has worked closely with celebrated American composer George Crumb, singing the 2007 world premiere performance of his American Songbook 5: Voices from a Forgotten World with Orchestra 2001 of Philadelphia. The song cycle marks her second recording with Bridge Records of New York.
Robert Bracey has performed throughout the United States and made appearances in Canada, Russia, Europe, India, and Japan. He was awarded first place in the 2002 Oratorio Society of New York’s Annual International Solo Competition at Carnegie Hall. He returned to Carnegie Hall for performances of Handel: Messiah later that year. He made his Detroit Symphony debut at Orchestra Hall and his Kennedy Center debut in Washington, DC with the Choral Arts Society of Washington.
Recent engagements include performances with the Symphony Orchestra of India and the Paranjoti Academy Chorus at the National Centre for the Performing Arts in Mumbai, India, the Telemann Chamber Orchestra in Tokyo and Osaka, Japan, Oratorio Society of New York, Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, Detroit Symphony, Grand Rapids Symphony, Pacific Symphony, Orlando Philharmonic, Choral Arts Society of Washington, ProMusica Chamber Orchestra, Dayton Philharmonic, Syracuse Symphony, Wichita Symphony, Elgin Symphony, Southwest Florida Symphony, North Carolina Symphony, Duluth-Superior Symphony, Fort Wayne Philharmonic, Greensboro Symphony, Illinois Symphony, Flint Symphony, Midland Symphony, East Texas Symphony, Duke University Chapel Choir, Boise Philharmonic, Independence Messiah Festival, Choral Arts Society of Greensboro, Ann Arbor Symphony, Greater Lansing Symphony, Bach Festival Society of Winter Park, Messiah Choral Society of Orlando, Choral Society of Durham, Kalamazoo Bach Festival, and the University Musical Society in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
An oratorio specialist, he has worked with such well-known conductors as Helmuth Rilling, Simon Preston, Sir Philip Ledger, Norman Scribner, Carl St. Clair, Jos van Veldhoven, David Lockington, Hal France, Lyndon Woodside, Gustav Meier, Grant Llewellyn, Robert Hanson, Enrique Diemecke and Andrew Sewell.
A Regional Finalist in the New York Metropolitan Opera Auditions, he also won first place in the National Association of Teachers of Singing Regional Competition. Other honors include the N.A.T.S. Jessye Norman Award for the most outstanding soloist at the competition, the Rose Marie Jun Voice Award, the Betty Brewster Award from the Cranbrook Music Guild, the Joy Whitman Weinberger Opera Award, a Dean's Award from Bowling Green State University, and winner of the University of Michigan Concerto Competition.
Centaur Records released Bracey’s first solo compact disc in 2006. The recording of English art songs entitled Sweet was the Song also features pianist Andrew Harley and violist Scott Rawls. It is available in markets worldwide.
He holds a Bachelor of Music Degree in Music Education from Michigan State University, a Master of Music and a Doctor of Musical Arts Degree in Voice Performance from the University of Michigan. He has previously served on the faculties at Bowling Green State University and Michigan State University. He also taught on the voice faculty of the Michigan All-State program at the Interlochen Arts Camp for twelve summers. He is currently Associate Head of the Department of Music Performance and Director of Vocal Studies at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.
Acclaimed throughout the United States, Canada, South America and Europe, Timothy Jones is rapidly emerging as one of the leading bass-baritones of his generation. His eagerly anticipated performances combine intelligent musicianship, commanding vocal technique and a unique ability to connect with audiences. He is a champion of opera, the concert stage, chamber music, solo recitals and the premieres of contemporary works.
In the 2006-2007 season Mr. Jones sings Messiah with The Cleveland Orchestra, Jake in Porgy and Bess with Opera Pacific, Alidoro in La Cenerentola with the Opera Birmingham, Eight Songs for a Mad King with the Utah Symphony, Haydn’s Lord Nelson Mass with the Jacksonville Symphony, the St. John Passion with the Florida Bach Festival, concerts at the Cactus Pear Festival, a gala concert with the Marshall Symphony, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with the Wichita Symphony, and performances at Michigan State University and the University of Houston.
In the 2005-2006 season Mr. Jones sang Bach’s St. Matthew Passion with the Cleveland Orchestra, Tippett’s A Child of our Time with the Dallas Symphony, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with the Jacksonville Symphony, Verdi’s Requiem with the Portland Symphony (Maine), Jake in Porgy and Bess with Mobile Opera, returned to the Pittsburgh New Music Festival, and performed solo recitals at the University of Houston. The many highlights of Timothy Jones' 2004-2005 season included the title role of Don Giovanni with Ebony Opera with conductor Willie Waters, Messiah with both the Austin Symphony and the Syracuse Symphony, Crown and Jake in Porgy and Bess with Pensacola Opera, Creation with the Virginia Symphony, Tippett’s A Child of our Time with the Victoria Bach Festival, Judus Maccabeus with the Shreveport Symphony, Seven Last Words of Christ with the Texas Bach Choir, Beethoven Symphony No. 9 with the Appleton Symphony, Verdi’s Requiem with the Navel Academy and Smith College and several unique concerts with the Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble. In the 2003-2004 season Mr. Jones performed the Mozart Requiem with Paul Salamunovich and the St. Petersburg Chamber Orchestra in Rome, Italy, world premiere performances with the Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble of works by composers David Heuser and Jeffrey Nytch, performances of A Sea Symphony by Vaughn Williams at the historical Smith College, Mozart's Requiem with the New Haven Symphony and the Wichita Symphony Orchestras, Hindemith's When Lilacs Last in the Door-yard Bloom'd with the New Mexico Symphony, a concert of Gershwin's Favorites with the Victoria Symphony, Handel's Messiah with the San Antonio Symphony and Beethoven's Ninth Symphony with the combined forces of the University of Houston (Moores School of Music) and Rice University (Shepherd School of Music).
He was also featured on programs with the Cactus Pear Music Festival with Jeffrey Sykes, piano, Texas Bach Choir with Daniel Long, harpsichord, Ars Lyrica with Matthew Dirst, harpsichord, Musical Bridges Around the World with Anya Grokhovsky and Elena Nogaeza, piano and The Olmos Ensemble with Warren Jones, piano. In past seasons, Jones has appeared in productions with the Michigan Opera Theater, the Lake George Opera Festival, Opera Idaho, the Shreveport Opera, Opera Southwest, the Pensacola Opera and the San Antonio Lyric Opera. He has performed leading roles in The Marriage of Figaro, Cosi fan Tutte, Don Giovanni, Don Pasquale, Madam Butterfly, La Boheme, Falstaff, Macbeth and La Traviata. His English repertoire includes Porgy and Bess, Four Saints in Three Acts, The Old Maid and the Thief, A Midsummer Night's Dream and Owen Wingrave. In French and German opera, Jones has performed leading roles in Carmen, La Damnation de Faust, Romeo et Juliette, Gounod's Romeo et Juliette, Die Zauberflöte, Hansel and Gretel, and Die Fledermaus. Jones' versatility as a performer has also made him a favorite on the recital stage. He made his New York debut with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center in February 2000. His performances have taken him as far as the Pacific Northwest, the Czech Republic, Germany, Mexico, Ecuador, and Canada. He has appeared at the Victoria Bach Festival, the New Texas Festival, the Round Top Music Festival, and the Cactus Pear Music Festival. He has also been heard on National Public Radio's Performance Today. He frequently collaborates with pianists Brian Connelly, Craig Hella Johnson, Jeffery Sykes, Mark Alexander, and Howard Watkins.
A favorite of contemporary composers, Timothy Jones has commissioned and premiered numerous compositions. Works have been composed for him by Robert Avalon, James Balentine, Derek Bermel, Laura Carmichael, John Vasconcelos Costa, Ellwood Derr, Jeffrey Goldberg, David Heuser, Jeffrey Nytch, Doug Opel, and Joe Stuessy. His most recent recording project took him to Sweden for a program of art songs. Jones is a native of Shreveport, Louisiana.
“A sigh rippled through the pews… a sigh of pleasure at the blending of beautiful harmonies coming from the voices on stage…. [the] choir gave much attention and affection to the songs…adding dimension to the subjects through well-developed and controlled expression and dynamics.
- The Capital Times, February 2005
“The Festival Choir of Madison closed its season…with a typical display of expertise: finely honed precision, excellent blends within and balances among sections.
- Isthmus, May 2004
The Festival Choir of Madison, under the direction of Dr. Bruce Gladstone, is beginning its 39th year of performing remarkable choral music for audiences in Wisconsin. An avocational, auditioned choir of 35 to 40 voices, singers from all walks of life - lawyers, college professors, medical professionals, teachers - gather to bring life to the creative choral programs that Dr. Gladstone envisions and invents. We seek to fulfill the mission of the Festival Choir, which is to “provide a broad musical experience for [the] audience and singers which educates, illuminates and uplifts through engaging performances of culturally significant, historically relevant and artistically excellent choral music.”
In addition to its regular subscription season, the Choir has performed live broadcasts from the Elvejhem (now Chazen) Museum for Wisconsin Public Radio, appeared as part of Overture Center’s Grand Opening Festival, and toured across the state and abroad. In 1999, the Choir traveled by invitation to Austria as the first choral ensemble ever asked to participate in the prestigious Ost-West Musikfest.
Committed to innovative programming and broadening the choral repertoire, the Choir has also commissioned, premiered, and recorded new choral works by Steven Paulus, Jean Belmont, Elam Ray Sprenkle, Daron Hagen, Elizabeth Alexander, Ann Heider, and Brent Michael Davids. Their recording of Belmont’s “Sand County” was broadcast nationwide on National Public Radio’s “First Art” program, reaching more than 650,000 listeners. To date, the Choir has released three CDs: Prairie Songs, Wisconsin Sings – music for Wisconsin’s Sesquicentennial, and Celebrate the Season – holiday carols and songs.
The Choir has performed several times with the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra for Concerts on the Square®, Masterworks, and Sing-Out Messiah performances, receiving critical acclaim:
“The Festival Choir of Madison, in a shimmering performance alongside the orchestra, imparted a light of its own …the first performance to bring a tear to this critic’s eye in a very long time.”
– The Capital Times, March 2006
Founded in 1973 as the Diocesan Choir by Vernon Sell, the Festival Choir was led by David Lewis Crosby from 1975 to 1993, by Eric Townell from 1993 to 2006, and by Drew Collins from 2007 through 2008.
