PEPPERDINE UNIVERSITY PRESENTS ROSEMARY HYLER RITTER Director MELANIE EMELIO Director, Apprentice Program in Malibu California “Bright is the ring of words when the right man rings them.” – Robert Lewis Stevenson THE COMPLETE RECITALIST JUNE – 1-27, 2011 The Stern Program for Singers and Pianists has generously been funded by The Marc and Eva Stern Foundation. We gratefully acknowledge and thank the Stern family! Welcome to SongFest 2011 “Whatever you can do, or dream you can do, you can. Boldness has a genius, magic and power to it.” – Goethe SongFest 2011 is supported by grants from The Marc and Eva Stern Foundation, The Aaron Copland Fund for Music, The Louise K. Smith Family Foundation and the generosity of many individuals. Photos by Ron Hall Photography ©2010 SongFest is a 501(c)3 non profit corporation. All donations are 100% tax-deductible to the full extent permitted by law. JAKE HEGGIE – SONGFEST 2011 DISTINGUISHED FACULTY JAKE HEGGIE – COMPOSER-IN-RESIDENCE SongFest 2011 • Pepperdine University • Biography Jake Heggie Composer, Pianist JAKE HEGGIE is the Jake Heggie’s operas have been performed to American composer of tremendous acclaim internationally in Australia, the operas Moby-Dick Canada, Denmark, Germany, Sweden, Ireland, Austria, (libretto: Gene Scheer), South Africa and by more than a dozen American opera Dead Man Walking companies. The composer’s numerous songs and cycles, (libretto: Terrence including The Deepest Desire, Statuesque, Here & Gone, McNally), Three Rise & Fall, Songs & Sonnets to Ophelia, Facing Decembers (libretto: Forward/Looking Back, and Friendly Persuasions are Scheer), The End of the featured in recitals around the world by some of the Affair (libretto: Heather world’s most beloved and celebrated singers, including McDonald), To Hell and Joyce DiDonato, Susan Graham, Frederica von Stade, Back (libretto: Scheer), Audra McDonald, Kiri Te Kanawa, Patti LuPone, Ben © Appel Ellen and the stage works For Heppner, Stephen Costello, Paul Groves, Morgan Smith a Look or a Touch (libretto: Scheer) and At the Statue of and Nathan Gunn. Venus (libretto: McNally). He has also composed more An ardent champion of writers, most of Heggie’s than 200 art songs, as well as orchestral, choral and operas and stage works feature libretti written by either chamber music. His recent recording of songs and Terrence McNally or Gene Scheer. Sources for song duets, PASSING BY: Songs by Jake Heggie, (AVIE), texts and poetry have included Maya Angelou, Charlene features performances by Isabel Bayrakdarian, Zheng Baldridge, Raymond Carver, Emily Dickinson, John Cao, Joyce DiDonato, Susan Graham, Paul Groves, Hall, A.E. Housman, Vachel Lindsay, Philip Littell, Keith Phares, and Frederica von Stade. Armistead Maupin, Edna St. Vincent Millay, Sister Helen Heggie was the 2010/11 guest artist-in-residence at Prejean, and Gini Savage, to name a few. The composer the University of North Texas at Denton. Part of that has a close association with the conductor Patrick residency included the commission of his first Summers, who has led the premieres of the composer’s symphony, based on monologues from the novel Moby- four major operas; and the director Leonard Foglia, who Dick. The “Ahab” Symphony will receive its premiere in has directed the premieres of Moby-Dick, Three 2012 with tenor Richard Croft as soloist. Other current Decembers, and The End of the Affair, as well as the projects include Camille Claudel: Into the Fire (libretto: United States national tour of Dead Man Walking. Scheer) a dramatic scene for Joyce DiDonato and the Recordings of Heggie’s music include PASSING BY: Alexander String Quartet commissioned by San Songs by Jake Heggie (Avie), Dead Man Walking (Erato), Francisco Performances; songs to commemorate the Three Decembers (Albany), Flesh and Stone (Americus), 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks for the Houston To Hell and Back (Magnatune), The Faces of Love (RCA Grand Opera; a new stage work for Seattle’s Music of Red Seal), The Deepest Desire (Eloquentia), and For a Remembrance; chamber music for pianist Jon Kimura Look or a Touch (Naxos). Heggie was the recipient of a Parker and violinist Aloysia Friedmann; and a one-act 2005/2006 Guggenheim Foundation Fellowship and has opera for the Pacific Chorale. been composer-in-residence for the San Francisco Recent premieres include the song cycle The Breaking Opera, Eos Orchestra, and Vail Valley Music Festival. As Waves (texts by Sister Helen Prejean) sung by mezzo a coach and teacher, he has given classes at universities Joyce DiDonato at Carnegie Hall; A Question of Light throughout the United States and at summer festivals (texts by Gene Scheer) sung by baritone Nathan Gunn such as SongFest in Malibu and the Steans Institute at at The Dallas Opera; and a duet titled The Years Roll By Ravinia. Jake Heggie lives in San Francisco. (text by Charles Hart) sung by Kiri Te Kanawa and www.jakeheggie.com Frederica von Stade in Tulsa. 2 We welcome the faculty, singers and pianists to 2011 at PEPPERDINE UNIVERSITY Janet Loranger and Marcia Brown have been the true angels behind the scenes in so many musician’s lives, but have devoted themselves and their creative energies especially to SongFest, for it is the development of classical singing talent that has been their passion for many years. This is a true wedding of spirits in a joyful endeavor, and we are so grateful for their support and care which has touched so many lives! JANET A. LORANGER & MARCIA J. BROWN 3 4 TABLE OF CONTENTS SongFest 2011 Distinguished Faculty & Composer-in-Residence – Jake Heggie . .2 Marcia Brown & Janet Loranger . .3 The Marc and Eva Stern Fellowship Program . .6 The SongFest Stern Fellows - Biographies . .7 The Complete Recitalist Daily Class Schedule . .10 SongFest 2011 Concerts . .18 SongFest 2011 Performance Forum . .20 Composer-in-Residence – Libby Larsen . .21 Tribute to Marcia Brown & Janet Loranger . .22 Composer-in-Residence – John Musto . .24 Bach Cantata Program . .25 Performance Forum – 2011 SongFest Distinguished Alumna, Victoria Browers & Anne Jennifer Nash . .28 Performance Forum – March and Eva Stern Fellow with John Musto . .30 Performance Forum – March and Eva Stern Fellow with Martin Katz . .32 Performance Forum – March and Eva Stern Fellow with Roger Vignoles . .34 Performance Forum – Katharine Dain & Renate Rohlfing . .36 Panel Forum and Biographies . .38 The Garner Malibu Flute Symposiun . .40 Master Classes . .41 SongFest 2011 Faculty . .115 2011 Distinguished SongFest Alumni - Victoria Browers . .121 2011 Distinguished SongFest Alumni - Anne Jennifer Nash . .122 SongFest Board and Donors . .123 Acknowledgements . .124 SongFest 2011 Participants . .125 “Vocalism, my only setting of Walt Whitman, pays homage to SongFest, the conclave of singers and pianists that gathers each summer under the direction of Rosemary Hyler Ritter at Pepperdine University in California. It is dedicated to Marc Stern, Chairman of the Board of the Los Angeles Opera, and his music-loving family, supporters of SongFest and of good singing. This “grand aria” (so says the title page) celebrates singing. It is about the power of the voice, as pure sound, to move and change hearers.” —John Harbison 5 The Stern Fellowship Program The Marc and Eva Stern Fellowship Program n The Marc and Eva Stern Fellowship Program: SongFest at Pepperdine. SongFest will award a selected number of outstanding singers and pianists merit-based fellowships each summer. This new program has been generously underwritten by The Marc and Eva Stern Foundation. The recipients of this award will be chosen from live auditions held nationwide. Singers demonstrating a commitment for communication of the text, a strong radiant presence and a unique sound will be qualities the panel will look for. The Pepperdine Stotsensberg Recital Series SongFest singer will be chosen from the Stern Fellow Program and presented in recital. n The SongFest 2011 Stern Fellows Kristina Margaret Bachrach, soprano Katharine Dain, soprano David McFerrin, baritone Adam Bonanni, tenor Leroy Davis, bass-baritone Anne Jennifer Nash, soprano Victoria Browers, soprano Eileen Downey, pianist Renate Rohlfing, pianist Julia Bullock, soprano Brent Funderburk, pianist Justin Snyder, pianist Jeongcheol Cha, bass-baritone Sonya Alexandra Knussen, mezzo-soprano Laura Strickling, soprano Tina Chang, pianist Jackline Madegwa, soprano Xiaobo Su, soprano Alyssa Cox, soprano Iris Malkin, mezzo-soprano Nathan Wyatt, baritone n The Martin Katz Fellowship Marc and Eva Stern Encouragement Award Awarded to a pianist chosen by Martin Katz Awarded to a talented YA singer 2011: Justin Snyder 2011: Kendra Dodd The Margo Garrett Fellowship National Assocaition of Teachers of Singing – Awarded to a pianist chosen by Margo Garrett Los Angeles 2011: Brent Funderburk Awarded to the winner and finalist in the Young Artist competition Cincinnati Overture Award 2011: Xiaobo Su Awarded to a semi-finalist in the Overture competition 2011: Sarah Pellington Classical Singer Competition Awarded to the winner and finalist in the Young Artist “Most Promising Young Artist” Scholarship competition Awarded to a finalist in the Young Artist division 2011: TBA 2011: Olivia Betzen Marc and Eva Stern Encouragement Award Awarded to a talented Young Artist singer 2011: Juliana Burdick 6 The SongFest Stern Fellows - Biographies KRISTINA MARGARET BACHRACH, soprano Council Auditions Boston District Winner 2011; SongFest Hometown: Holliston, MA Summer Program-Stern Fellowship 2011; Villecroze Academy,