|
Arts
& Reviews Main Page
New
York Main Page
New
York City Opera: Showcasing American Composers
The future of opera is intrinsically linked to the support and promotion of new
operatic composers. The New York City Opera is on the cutting edge new opera and has been considered a leader in the development of American opera. Their Composer-in-Residence since 2002 is Mark Adamo and has taken the program to new heights. We are pleased to bring in focus this terrific program that supports the creative arts.
The NYC Opera has nurtured an unmatched repertory of American works including those of over 50 American composers and shaped an American aesthetic for opera through the world premieres of more than 25 American operas. Building on this legacy, VOX: Showcasing American Composers, an annual festival of orchestral readings of new American operas performed by City Opera singers and musicians, was created by General and Artistic Director Paul Kellogg in 1999.
The only program of its kind in this country, VOX promotes the work of both emerging and established composers by presenting free of charge their new, previously un-produced works in full orchestral readings by City Opera artists to an audience that includes opera producers, agents, publishers, and enthusiasts.
Under the leadership of former Composer-in-Residence Deborah Drattell from 1999—2002, Showcasing American Composers made a great impact. In 2002, City Opera's new Composer-in-Residence Mark Adamo assumed the leadership of Showcase, continuing the basic format of the program while also adding a new “supertitle” to the series title: VOX 2002: Showcasing American Composers, reflecting the distinct voices of the composers represented each year.
Adamo has conceived programming that represents many different points on the compositional spectrum. A dual role of Showcase has emerged under his leadership: to simultaneously exhibit new work of established composers and to highlight emerging talent. Young composers still in their training have been presented alongside mid-career luminaries like Michael John LaChiusa, Ezequiel Viñao and Joel Feigin, while Pulitzer Prize winners such as David Del Tredici, Bernard Rands and Lewis Spratlan, and iconic figures like Lou Harrison have carried the torch.
In 2004 Mr. Adamo created a consortium to broaden the impact of our program on the musical profession and public. For the first time ever, four leading New York City new works producers will join VOX in a three-day festival at Symphony Space: American Opera Projects, the Center for Contemporary Opera, Encompass New Opera Theatre and the Music-Theatre Group. In addition to showcasing young and undiscovered composers, in 2004 VOX will also feature its first ever Nobel Laureate on the program: Toni Morrison has created an original libretto for composer Richard Danielpour's opera Margaret Garner.
To discover more about The New York City Opera and to find out about their upcoming performances of Daphne and La Boheme, please visit their website. If you are a composer and are interested in being involved in Vox 2005, you can find the application online at
http://www.nycopera.com/about/vox/.
Thank you NYC Opera for your commitment to bringing fresh innovative works to the world of opera.
Return
to New York Main Page
Return
to Arts & Reviews Main Page
|
