William Matheus Sullivan Foundation bestows $85,000 on 13 Opera Singers

Recipients of the Sullivan Award engage in a five-year initiative involving grants to prepare for upcoming roles.

BY MB LIFESTYLE

Nov 16, 2023 11:23 PM 

The William Matheus Sullivan Musical Foundation awarded $85,000 to 13 early career opera singers who auditioned for the Foundation in New York on Oct. 29 and 30, 2023. Sullivan Award winners participate in a five-year program of grants for preparing new roles, a unique feature of the Foundation's professional development support.

The seven winners of $10,000 Sullivan Awards and five years of role preparation assistance are sopranos Amber R. Manroe, Murrella Parton, and Teresa Perrotta; mezzo-sopranos Meridian Prall and Michelle Mariposa; tenor Moises Salazar; and bass-baritone Le Bu.  

The panel also awarded $2,500 Career Development Grants to six singers: sopranos Mary Evelyn Hangley and Kathleen O’Mara; countertenor Kyle Tingzon; tenors Lawrence Barasa and Thomas Cilluffo; and baritone Sankara Harouna.

Audition judges were Sullivan trustees Susanne Mentzer, Evans Mirageas, and George Shirley, joined by Khori Dastoor, General Director and CEO of Houston Grand Opera. Application judges were Sullivan trustees Erie Mills and Marietta Simpson, along with past Sullivan grant recipient Patrick Carfizzi. The audition pianists were Adam Nielsen and Jinhee Park.

Awards designated in memory of distinguished Sullivan Foundation board members are Meridian Prall’s award for soprano Rose Bampton; Murrella Parton’s award for soprano Gail Robinson, director of the Metropolitan Opera’s Lindemann Young Artist Development Program and National Council Auditions; Amber R. Monroe’s award for mezzo-soprano Betty Allen, the second president of the Harlem School for the Arts; Moisés Salazar’s award for tenor David Lloyd, executive director of the Sullivan Foundation and director of the Juilliard American Opera Center; and Le Bu’s award for baritone Theodor Uppman.

Blind pianist Lucy stuns Royal Albert Hall with breathtaking Debussy debut

Blind pianist Lucy stuns Royal Albert Hall with breathtaking Debussy debut | Classic FM Live

By Kyle Macdonald

 

Watch a very special performance, as the exceptional pianist who won Channel 4’s ‘The Piano’ plays deeply emotional Debussy to an audience of 6,000 in London’s iconic theatre. 

Monday night saw an incredible piano debut on one of the world’s biggest and most iconic stages.

Playing at Classic FM Live with Viking was a musician whose talent and deep relationship with music has stunned the classical world. Teenage pianist Lucy played Claude Debussy’s Arabesque No. 1 to the packed hall.

The remarkable young pianist won the Channel 4 series The Piano earlier this year, aged just 13. Her opening performance of a Chopin nocturne on a train station piano left judge Lang Lang stunned and lost for words.

From that moment, a new piano star was born. Lucy played in May’s Coronation Concert for King Charles at Windsor Castle, and has now continued her incredible journey with this Classic FM concert and a Royal Albert Hall debut.

Lucy, from West Yorkshire, is blind and neurodivergent. She is taught by Daniel Bath, a teacher who she first met when she was three years old. Daniel was beside his student on stage as she made her debut on Monday.

Watch her performance above. Her interpretation of the French composer’s music captivated the huge audience, holding them in an awed silence before a huge ovation at the end. What a moment it was.

Lucy plays at Classic FM Live with Viking. Picture: Matt Crossick

The Arabesque is a piece Lucy has made her own. In March, she played it at London’s Royal Festival Hall, as part of the grand finale of the TV series where she took top honours.

The concert saw a night of incredible solo performances, with British-Iranian pianist Arsha Kaviani, guitarist Miloš Karadaglic, and brilliant young violinist – and Classic FM Rising Star – Luka Faulisi all sharing the stage with Lucy.

Along with the Debussy, Lucy also played Bach’s beautiful C-major Prelude from the Well-tempered Klavier.

You can hear her performances and all the night’s musical magic by catching up on Friday’s exclusive broadcast of Classic FM Live with Viking here on Global Player. YOu can also watch the full concert soon on Sky Arts.

Ladies of Soul 2015 | That's What Friends Are For

Berget Lewis, Candy Dulfer, Edsilia Rombley and Glennis Grace are the Ladies of Soul. The Dutch supergroup pays tribute to their favorite pop- and soul music during their annual liveshow in the Ziggo Dome in Amsterdam. The ladies are accompanied by a top notch live band and surprising local and international guest artists like Billy Ocean, En Vogue, Sheila E, Oleta Adams, JT Taylor (former lead singer Kool & The Gang).

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Spandau Ballet - True - Live 2009

2,989,845 views Nov 21, 2009

Spandau Ballet playing True Live on Children in Need on 20 November 2009. I rather liked this classic song.

Air Supply's 'The Lost In Love Experience 2023' live in Laguna on Dec. 15 sold out

BY MANILA BULLETIN ENTERTAINMENT

Nov 16, 2023 06:33 AM

  

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AT A GLANCE

• Air Supply achieved widespread success in the 1970s and 1980s. The duo comprises singer-songwriter, guitarist Graham Russell, and lead vocalist Russell Hitchcock. They had several hits worldwide, including eight top-5 hits on the US Billboard Hot 100.

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In less than a month, Air Supply will be performing live in the Philippines! As they return to Sta, get ready to sing along with the iconic Australian soft rock duo. Rosa, Laguna, for another sold-out show at the Santa Rosa Sports Coliseum on Dec. 15, 2023, for their “The Lost in Love Experience 2023” concert tour. 

Air Supply achieved widespread success in the 1970s and 1980s. The duo comprises singer-songwriter, guitarist Graham Russell, and lead vocalist Russell Hitchcock. They had several hits worldwide, including eight top-5 hits on the US Billboard Hot 100. 

One of the hits is their timeless classic song “Lost in Love,” released in Australia in 1978 and again soared to the top of the charts. It reached Clive Davis, founder and president of Arista Records,who immediately offered Air Supply a record deal. The song was released in 1980 and became the fastest-selling in the world, topping the charts in many countries. “All Out of Love” was the second single released and again topped the worldwide charts. 

Seven consecutive Top 5 singles at that time equaled The Beatles’ run. The albums Lost in Love, The One That You Love, Now and Forever, and The Greatest Hits sold more than 20 million copies. “Lost in Love” was named Song of the Year in 1980, and along with the other singles, it sold more than 10 million copies. 

Air Supply released their fourth live album, “The Lost in Love Experience,” in 2019 and kicked off the same-titled world tour that captivated audiences worldwide. They were the first Western group to tour China, Taiwan, and Southeast Asia. Some of these countries have forbidden pop music to cross their borders, but this does not restrict the population explosion of Air Supply’s supporters as this iconic duo has sold out shows all over the world, including their upcoming show in Laguna this December, just like their first time at Laguna in 2018. Ovation Productions promote both shows. Blast TV is the official media partner.  

Alban Berg: Violin Concerto 'To the memory of an angel'

Alban Berg’s violin concerto ‘to the memory of an angel performed by Daniel Rowland at the Stiftfestival 2018. Premiere recording of this arrangement by Wolfgang Abendroth for violin, organ and string quintet. Daniel Rowland, solo violin Francesco Sica & Asia Jimenez Anton de Vez, violin Joel Waterman, viola Julian Arp, cello Zoran Markovic, doublebass Wolfgang Abendroth, organ Concert as part of the 14th Stiftfestival on August 20 2018 in the Plechelmusbasiliek in Oldenzaal. Video registration by Concerto Media.

Mary Hopkin - Those Were The Days - 1968

36,885,342 views May 16, 2013

Once upon a time there was a tavern Where we used to raise a glass or two Remember how we laughed away the hours And dreamed of all the great things we would do Those were the days my friend We thought they'd never end We'd sing and dance forever and a day We'd live the life we choose We'd fight and never lose For we were young and sure to have our way. La la la la... Then the busy years went rushing by us We lost our starry notions on the way If by chance I'd see you in the tavern We'd smile at one another and we'd say Those were the days my friend We thought they'd never end We'd sing and dance forever and a day We'd live the life we choose We'd fight and never lose Those were the days, oh yes those were the days La la la la... Just tonight I stood before the tavern Nothing seemed the way it used to be In the glass I saw a strange reflection Was that lonely woman really me Those were the days my friend We thought they'd never end We'd sing and dance forever and a day We'd live the life we choose We'd fight and never lose Those were the days, oh yes those were the days La la la la... Through the door there came familiar laughter I saw your face and heard you call my name Oh my friend we're older but no wiser For in our hearts the dreams are still the same Those were the days my friend We thought they'd never end We'd sing and dance forever and a day We'd live the life we choose We'd fight and never lose Those were the days, oh yes those were the days La la la la...

After Beatles, AI to bring Edith Piaf voice back to life for biopic

BY AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE

Nov 15, 2023 08:39 AM

  

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AT A GLANCE

• "Edith" is "in the final phase of development", sources close to Warner Music France said, but no release date has been scheduled.

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Edith Piaf (AFP) 

PARIS (AFP) - A new biopic on the life of Edith Piaf will use artificial intelligence to allow the French star to narrate her own story, Warner Music and her estate said on Tuesday.

"Edith" is "in the final phase of development", sources close to Warner Music France said, but no release date has been scheduled.

The unveiling of the "innovative and revolutionary technological project using AI to re-create her voice and image", the statement said, comes 60 years after Piaf's death.

It also follows the success of the Beatles' latest release "Now And Then" which, with a little help from AI, last week soared to the band's first UK number one single in 54 years 

Artificial intelligence helped isolate the late John Lennon's vocals from a tape he recorded in 1978, two years before he was murdered.

The two surviving Beatles, Paul McCartney, aged 81, and Ringo Starr, 83, finished "Now And Then" last year, including the late George Harrison's guitar parts recorded in 1995.

For the singer of French classics "La vie en Rose" and "Non, je ne regrette rien", AI will be fed hundreds of voice and image clips, some more than 80 years old, to re-create her unique style and "further enhance the authenticity and emotional impact of her story".

Original recordings will be used for her greatest hits, Warner said.

The 90-minute film will move between Paris and New York from 1920 to 1960 and be narrated by the singer's voice, including hitherto unknown "aspects of her life". 

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Bizet: The Tragic Life Story Of The Opera Composer

Simon Callow visits the Palace of Versailles and explores the lives of Bizet and Saint-Saens in France's capital, before an exquisite performance by the Australian Chamber Orchestra. Subscribe and click the bell icon to get more arts content every week:    / perspectivearts   Perspective is YouTube's home for the arts. Come here to get your fill of great music, theatre, art and much, much more!

Fil-Am Kaylee Shimizu aces ‘The Voice’ Knockouts with Aretha Franklin classic

Fil-Am Kaylee Shimizu makes a stellar performance in ‘The Voice’ Knockouts | Photo from Kaylee Shimizu’s “Ain’t No Way” performance on The Voice/YouTube

The talented teen competed with two fellow hopefuls from Team Legend

By: Jelou Galang - @inquirerdotnetInquirer Manila 

Only the brave souls dare to cover an Aretha Franklin song, especially with public scrutiny involved. Kaylee Shimizu is one of them—and it looks nothing short of a good decision.

After winning the previous Battles stage, the Filipino-American singer from Ewa Beach, Hawaii aced the Knockouts round of “The Voice” on Nov. 6, performing 1968 track “Ain’t No Way” by the “Queen of Soul.”

The 17-year-old offered a stellar performance of the challenging classic, which left Gwen Stefani and Reba McEntire speechless and Niall Horan giggly during her turn on the stage. Meanwhile, her coach John Legend stood still and raised his arms in astonishment as she finished the song. 

Shimizu went against her fellow contestants from Team Legend Caleb Sasser and Mara Justine, who’ve also joined the four-chair turner club like her during the blind audition. In the end, Shimizu reigned the round, letting her take another step in the competition’s 24th season. Meanwhile, Sasser went home and Justine received steals from Stefani and Horan.

On Instagram, Shimizu posted a Knockouts photo dump with a caption bursting with gratitude, from her parents to her glam team. “Thank you to EVERYONE for your kind words and continuous support, I appreciate you all so much. Thank you John for helping me feel more confident in my voice and coaching me through these past performances, you’re amazing,” she said.

In another recent Instagram post, the contestant also posted a sentimental Reel, which takes a quick look at her progress as an artist. “Little me would have neverrr thought,” she wrote.