Wuthering Heights Artist Biographies Jesse Blumberg (Mr. Lockwood) Baritone Jesse Blumberg is an artist equally at home on opera, concert, and recital stages. Last season, he performed the role of the Celebrant in Bernstein's Mass at London's Royal Festival Hall under the baton of Marin Alsop, debuted with Boston Lyric Opera as Harlekin in Ariadne auf Naxos, and performed recitals in Paris with the Mirror Visions Ensemble. In 2007, he created the role of Connie Rivers in The Grapes of Wrath (recorded by P.S. Classics) at the Minnesota Opera, and later made his Utah and Pittsburgh Opera debuts in the same production. Other recent appearances include leading and featured roles with Annapolis Opera, Opera Delaware, Opera Vivente and the Boston Early Music Festival. In concert, Jesse has been a featured soloist with American Bach Soloists, Los Angeles Master Chorale, Sacred Music in a Sacred Space and the Berkshire Choral Festival. He has also given the world premieres of two important chamber works: Ricky Ian Gordon's Green Sneakers (recorded by Blue Griffin Recording) and Lisa Bielawa's The Lay of the Love and Death, the former at the Vail Valley Music Festival, and the latter at Alice Tully Hall. He has toured with the Mark Morris Dance Group and the Waverly Consort, and given recitals for the Marilyn Horne Foundation. Last season, he and pianist Martin Katz performed Schubert's two monumental song cycles, Die schöne Müllerin and Winterreise, over one weekend in Ann Arbor, and will soon repeat this pairing in New York City. Jesse has been recognized in many song and opera competitions, and in 2008 was awarded Third Prize at the International Robert Schumann Competition in Zwickau, becoming its first American prizewinner in over thirty years. His 2010–2011 engagements include song recitals in New York, Boston and Washington, D.C., debuts with New York Festival of Song, Clarion Society, University Musical Society, Green Mountain Project and Apollo's Fire, and returns to American Bach Soloists, Minnesota Opera and the Boston Early Music Festival. Jesse received a Master of Music degree from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music and undergraduate degrees in history and music from the University of Michigan. Jesse is also the founder and artistic director of the Five Boroughs Music Festival, a new concert series in New York City. Michael Christie (conductor) Michael Christie is the Music Director of the Colorado Music Festival (Boulder, CO) and the Virginia G. Piper Music Director of the Phoenix Symphony. He has served as Music Director of the Brooklyn Philharmonic and Queensland Orchestra (Brisbane, Australia). With his orchestras, he has embarked on a series of ambitious projects focusing on symphonic cycles and interdisciplinary collaborations with visual artists, dance companies and theater groups, as well as on contemporary composers such as Gorecki, Ligeti, Adams, Goijov, Tan Dun, Rouse and Higdon, among many others. Perhaps the most enduring legacy of his work since coming to international attention in 1995 when he was awarded a special prize for "Outstanding Potential" at the First International Sibelius Conductor's Competition in Helsinki, has been the extraordinary audience development initiatives he has undertaken. His "variety is key" approach to programming along with an infectious enthusiasm for communicating with patrons has yielded industry leading increases in participation and attendance in Boulder and Phoenix in particular. He has enjoyed performing with the great orchestras of the world, including the New York Philharmonic, the Los Angeles Philharmonic and St. Louis Symphony in the United States and the radio orchestras of Scandinavia and orchestras in almost every European country. He began his professional conducting training at the Zurich Opera and is looking forward to a full schedule of opera engagements in the coming seasons, including his debut performances with the Minnesota Opera this spring. Sara Jakubiak (Catherine) The young American soprano Sara Jakubiak has been described as "a singer who is going places and should delight audiences for years to come" by the New Haven Register and possessed of a voice which is "rich and resonant, highly expressive and solid from top to bottom" by Tulsa World. In 2010–2011, Sara Jakubiak makes her New York City Opera debut as Dede in Bernstein's A Quiet Place, also appearing in concert in "Lucky to Be Me" for NYCO; debuts with Virginia Opera as Eurydice in Orphée; sings as soloist in Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra; and appears in recital with baritone Ross Benoliel for Music at Bunker Hill. In the 2009–2010 season, she made her debut with Chicago Opera Theater as Beatrice in Jake Heggie's Three Decembers, sang Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni with the Boston Youth Symphony Orchestra, Strauss' Vier letzte Lieder with Symphony Pro Musica, performed as soloist in Schumann's Scenes from Goethe's Faust with the American Symphony Orchestra, and reprised the role of Mimì in La bohème with Syracuse Opera. Recent engagements included her company debut at Tulsa Opera as Mimì, singing as Countess in Le nozze di Figaro with both the Seoul Arts Center in Korea and the Boston Youth Symphony Orchestra, and as soloist with the Springfield Symphony Orchestra in an opera gala concert, and covering Patricia Racette as Magda in La rondine with Los Angeles Opera. She spent summer 2007 as an apprentice artist at Santa Fe Opera, where she covered both the title role in Strauss's Daphne and Mimì in La bohème, and performed the title roles in both Jenufa and Rusalka in a program of opera scenes. In addition to Mimì, she has also appeared as Fiordiligi in Così fan tutte, Varvara in Kat'a Kabanova, and Helena in A Midsummer Night's Dream with Yale Opera. Other operatic highlights include the roles of Giorgetta in Il tabarro and appearing in Purcell's The Fairy Queen with the Orchestra Sinfonica Giuseppe Verdi in Milan, Italy as well as both the Countess in Le nozze di Figaro and Blanche in Dialogues des Carmélites with the Cleveland Institute. During her time as a studio artist at Central City Opera, she appeared in a program of opera scenes as the title role in Floyd's Susannah and Elettra in Idomeneo and performed the role of Musetta in concert excerpts with Maestro Paul Nadler and the Southwest Florida Symphony. Sara Jakubiak's concert performance credits include appearing as soloist in Mendelssohn's Elijah with the Tuscaloosa Symphony Orchestra, Britten's War Requiem, Mahler's Symphony No. 2, and Penderecki's Credo conducted by the composer with the Yale Philharmonic. She has also performed as soloist in Beethoven's Mass in C with the Beethoven Festival in Warsaw and sung Messaien's Poèmes pour Mi in recital at Yale. Ms. Jakubiak is featured on the Naxos label's eight-volume collection of Charles Ives songs in the series "American Classics," released in 2008. Ms. Jakubiak holds master's degrees from both Yale University and the Cleveland Institute of Music. She was a regional finalist in the 2007 National Council Auditions and was also the recipient of the Judith Raskin Memorial Award from Santa Fe Opera in 2007. Eric Margiore (Edgar) Lyric tenor Eric Margiore, who was praised by Opera News for his "brilliance and style, brio and high-octane vocalism," is establishing himself as an international contender in the principal Italian bel canto and romantic tenor repertoire. The tenor is quickly becoming known for his uniquely Italianate timbre and his "American Idol looks," with a "real presence, intelligence, and level-10 intensity." Eric was recently heard as Alefrdo in La traviata and as the tenor soloist in Verdi's Requiem with the Utah Festival Opera. Engagements this season include his debuts with Hawaii Opera Theatre as Alfredo as well as Minnesota Opera as Edgar Linton in Wuthering Heights. He will appear as the featured soloist in a Holiday Pops Concert with the Stockton Symphony Orchestra and will also appear in concert with Mississippi Opera, and sings Verdi's Requiem with Victoria Symphony Canada. During the past season, Eric performed as a soloist in concert with Marcello Giordani, for the Marcello and Friends encore series. The year 2009 had Mr. Margiore reprising the role of Il Duca di Mantova in Rigoletto with Opera Naples. He was then again commended by Opera News, in his return to the Opera Theatre of St. Louis for his official company debut and role debut as Narraboth in Salome under the baton of Stephen Lord. He also sang gala concerts with the Opera Theatre of St. Louis as well as with the Virginia Opera. Eric also recently made his debut in Asia with Opera Hong Kong in performances of Tamino in Die Zauberflöte in Hong Kong and Beijing, China, with Paul Curran directing and Jari Hamalainen conducting. The 2008 season saw Eric Margiore making his stage debut with the role of Gérald in Lakmé at Tulsa Opera. He then made his role and house debut of Il Duca di Mantova in Rigoletto with the in Palm Beach Opera. Eric also made his role and house debut with the Sarasota Opera singing Conte Almaviva in Il barbiere di Siviglia and had a further invitation to reprise this role with Baltimore Opera. Other notable appearances included his role debut of Alfredo in La traviata at the Shreveport Opera and Cassio in Otello with the Vero Beach Opera under the baton of Maestro Steven Crawford. Concert appearances included a musical revue at Radio City Music Hall, Mozart's Coronation Mass in his third appearance at Carnegie Hall, The World of Opera: Concert of Arias and Duets for the Vero Beach Opera, and a Sicilian-themed holiday concert with the Acadiana Symphony Orchestra in Louisiana.