One of the recipients of our proceeds from the Barihunks calendar was the team of hunkentenor Jonathan Blalock and Bass-Barihunk Aaron Sørensen, who came up with the novel idea for a concert with this rarely seen vocal combination.
The duo will perform music by George Gershwin, Ricky Ian Gordon, Jake Heggie, Glen Roven, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Gioacchino Rossini. The performance will be at Duende on Wed., May 21 at 7 PM in the heart of Oakland's burgeoning arts district, The Uptown. Duende has become a popular destination for aficionados of alternative jazz and they've been eager to expand their musical offerings to include classical music. This will debut what we all hope is a regular feature on their calendar. A stones throw away from Duende is the restored Fox Theater, which features some of the biggest names in the music industry. Tickets for the Blalock/Sørensen recital are available online.
This recital will also be the West Coast debut for two of the most talked about young artists in opera. Jonathan Blalock received rave notices from the New York Times and Alex Ross in the New Yorker for his riveting performance in Gregory Spears' Paul's Case, which featured barihunk Keith Phares. Aaron Sørensen is the bass voice that the opera world continuously clamors for and he recently appeared as the French General in Fort Worth Opera's production of Kevin Puts' Silent Night.
Efrain Solis in an ad for West Edge Opera
Blalock will be returning to the East Bay this summer in West Edge Opera's production of Philip Glass's Hydrogen Jukebox, featuring barihunk Efrain Solis and bass-barihunk Kenneth Kellogg. You can watch a preview of their exciting and innovative upcoming season above and get more information on their website. If you live in the San Francisco Bay Area, you'll want to add their summer festival to calendar.
After seeing Daniel Cilli shirtless in West Edge Opera's "City of Sin," we realized that we've probably not featured him as regularly as we should. The singer emerged on the scene as a member of the Opera San Jose ensemble from 2006-2010, scoring critical acclaim in Eugene Onegin, Romeo and Juliet, Barber of Seville and the Marriage of Figaro. He's now been in two productions with the innovative West Edge Opera, which used to be known as Berkeley Opera.
Cilli has a new SoundCloud page where you can listen to some clips. He also has some interesting upcoming engagements, starting with the Baron in La Traviata with the Livermore Valley Opera. Performances run from March 9-17 in Livermore, with a performance at the historic Napa Valley Opera House on March 13. It's believed to be the premiere of La traviata at the Napa Valley Opera House. Click HERE for additional performance information or tickets.
Daniel Cilli as Mercutio at Opera San Jose
On May 9 and 10, he'll appear with the Louisiana Philharmonic in the Fauré Requiem as part of their French Master series. There are performances in New Orleans and Covington and tickets are available online.
On June 7th he premieres the role of Carlo Gesualdo in Dante De Silva’s Gesualdo, Prince of Madness with San Francisco's Opera Parallèle.
West Edge Opera (formerly Berkeley Opera) is performing Claudio Monteverdi's L'incoronazione di Poppea in a new edition created by Mark Streshinsky and Gilbert Martinez. Performances will be on February 1, 2 and 3 and tickets are available online.
Seneca, a philosopher and Nero's tutor, will be played by Paul Thompson. The young bass studied with the Bay Area Summer Opera Theatre Institute and the American Institute of Musical Studies. He has performed a number of roles on the West Coast, including Dr. Grenvil in Verdi's La Traviata with Opera San Jose, the title character in Donizetti's Don Pasquale with Nevada Opera Theater and Sarastro in Mozart's Magic Flute at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music.
Michael Schopper sings "Solitudine amata" from L'Incoronazione di Poppea:
Poppea is one of the earliest operas ever written. But even in 1642 when it was written, sensuality ruled the day. Emperor Nero can’t get his mind off the beautiful Poppea. He thinks about her more than he thinks about his country. He certainly thinks about her more than he thinks about the Empress.
Nero is Christine Brandes, Poppea is Emma McNairy and Ottone is the rising countertenor sensation Ryan Belongie.
Been to Oakland lately? We have three reasons to go: Great food and drinks, amazing music and barihunks.
Friday's travel section of the New York Times named Oakland, California as one of the 45 places to visit in 2012. Northern Californians have long known that Oakland is San Francisco's fog-free counterpart across the Bay, where young people have been moving in droves to open restaurants and bars, art galleries, buy homes and dubbing it the "Brooklyn of the West."
The New York Times wrote, "The historic Fox Theater reopened in 2009 and quickly cemented its status as one of the Bay Area's top music venues, drawing acts like Wilco and the Decemberists. Meanwhile, the city's ever more sophisticated restaurants are now being joined by upscale cocktail bars, turning once-gritty Oakland into an increasingly appealing place to be after dark."
Oakland resident Zachary Gordin as he appears in the 2012 Barihunks Calendar
Classical music fans have long known that some of the most innovative programming occurs under conductor Michael Morgan with his Oakland/East Bay Symphony Orchestra. His upcoming Carmina Burana will feature barihunk Zachary Gordin and it will be paired with Glazunov's rarely performed Saxophone Concerto from 1934. There is one performance on Friday, January 27th and tickets are available HERE. The performance is at the historic Paramount Theater, which is walking distance away from the recently restored Fox Theater (pictured above).
Eugene Brancoveanu
If you're looking for the really "hot" show in town, then head over to West Oakland's "The Crucible," where they have pioneered the concept of "fire operas." And we're literally talking about opera with real fire. A performance of a fire opera at The Crucible will make Brunnhilde's "Immolation Scene" look like a burning match. The Crucible is actually an industrial training center where people learn a variety of fire skills. Their current offering, "Machine," will feature molten metal pours, fire performers, glass blowers and blacksmiths.
MACHINE was written, conceived and directed by innovative director Mark Streshinsky. The music is by Clark Suprynowicz, who is known for his jazz and rock infused compositions of operatic and symphonic works.
The plot is based on a short story by science fiction author Derek J. Goodman, MACHINE is set in a fiery industrial universe in which workers have sold themselves into a lifetime of servitude. When one worker regains his power of self-determination, the story ignites into an explosive brew of escape plots, alliances and unlikely love interests
Performances are on January 11-14 and 18-21. Tickets are available HERE.
This January, The Crucible in Oakland, California, will celebrate its 13th anniversary with a World Premiere Fire Opera,"MACHINE."
The production was conceived and directed by the brilliant and innovate director Mark Streshinsky and features music by Clark Suprynowicz. The performance will be conducted by Barnaby Palmer and sung by barihunk regular Eugene Brancoveanu.
The Romanian baritone will be shirtless and from the looks of things, giving Nathan Gunn, Teddy Tahu Rhodes, Erwin Schrott, Christoper Maltmann and other bare-chested barihunks a run for their money.
Eugene Brancoveanu
Based on a short story by science fiction author Derek J. Goodman, MACHINE is set in a fiery industrial universe in which workers have sold themselves into a lifetime of servitude. When one worker regains his power of self-determination, the story ignites into an explosive brew of escape plots, alliances, and unlikely love interests. This spectacular performance features two opera singers, a rock singer and percussionists that “play” the scaffolding-like set. Visual effects including a molten metal pour, fire performers and industrial artists such as glass blowers and blacksmiths. MACHINE will deliver the kind of awe-inspiring performance that Crucible audiences have come to expect.
MACHINE runs January 11-14 and 18-21, 2012 with tickets ranging $45-$65 and $150 for the Closing Night Gala on January 21. You can find more information and purchase tickets online at www.thecrucible.org.
