TSO to present Beethoven’s 9th Symphony with BGSU Choirs
TOLEDO, OH – Stefan Sanderling leads the Toledo Symphony along with the BGSU University Choral Society, Collegiate Chorale, and A Cappella Choir in a presentation of Beethoven’s 9th Symphony on February 4th and 5th.
Beethoven’s 9th Symphony celebrates the best of humanity through the powerful melding of orchestra and voice, culminating in Schiller’s transcendent “Ode to Joy”. Considered one of the greatest musical compositions ever written, this is a sure-to-sell-out performance.
What: Toledo Symphony Presents “Beethoven’s 9th” on the Classics Series. Sponsored by 5/3 Bank.
When: February 4th and 5th, 8PM
Where: Toledo Museum of Art Peristyle
Tickets: Start at $30. Call 419-246-8000 or purchase online at www.toledosymphony.com.
Soloist bios:
Arianna Zukerman
Possessing a luminous voice with "the breadth of dramatic inflection to make for a powerfully effective performance" (Opera), soprano Arianna Zukerman is equally in demand for opera and concert performances. The Washington Post observes "Arianna Zukerman possesses a remarkable voice that combines the range, warmth and facility of a Rossini mezzo with shimmering, round high notes and exquisite pianissimos that would make any soprano jealous."
Arianna Zukerman's 2010-11 season includes several return engagements including Verdi's Requiem with the National Philharmonic, Messiah with American Bach Soloists, and Mozart's Requiem with New Choral Society. She also continues her collaboration with Lorin Maazel as Female Chorus in The Rape of Lucretia at University of California at Berkeley; sings Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 with both Toledo Symphony Orchestra and in a return to the National Arts Centre Orchestra; and appears in recital with the Miami String Quartet at Rice University through Houston Friends of Music, and with pianist Navah Perlman at Bridgewater College.
Certain that the arts are a link to higher achievement in all areas of life, Arianna Zukerman maintains an active schedule as an Adjunct Professor at Catholic University of America and in master classes around the United States. A past recipient of the Sullivan Foundation Award, Ms. Zukerman was a member of the Bavarian State Opera Junges Ensemble. She studied theatre at Brown University and received her Bachelor of Music from the Juilliard School. She resides with her husband in Washington, D.C.
Scott Ramsay
Praised by The New York Times for his “impressive ... bright-voiced tenor”, Scott Ramsay is highly regarded by Opera companies and Symphony Orchestras across North America and abroad for his dynamic performances in repertoire ranging from Baroque and Bel Canto to 20th Century Opera. Following his portrayal of Edgardo in Lucia di Lammermoor, under the baton of Jesús López-Cobos at the Lyric Opera of Chicago, the Chicago Sun-Times proclaimed.
Mr. Ramsay's 2010-11 season includes his debut at Greensboro Opera as Tamino in Die Zauberflöte, Ralph Rackstraw in H.M.S Pinafore with the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, Verdi’s Requiem with the Philharmonia of Lynn University and his debut with Leonard Slatkin and the Detroit Symphony Orchestrta in Beethoven's Symphony No. 9; also to be performed with the American Symphony Orchestra conducted by Leon Botstein, Toledo Symphony Orchestra and Santa Cruz Symphony.
During his three-season engagement as a member of the Lyric Opera of Chicago's Ryan Opera Center, Mr. Ramsay made his debut as Rodrigo in Verdi’s Otello alongside Canadian tenor Ben Heppner and American soprano Renée Fleming. During this time, he sang principal roles in La Boheme, Die Zauberflöte, Parsifal, La Traviata, Samson et Dalila, Regina, Lucia di Lammermoor and Madama Butterfly.
Mr. Ramsay has won the top prizes from the American Opera Society and the Union League Civic & Arts Foundation. Additional training programs have included Florida Grand Opera, Glimmerglass Opera, Central City Opera and the Berkshire Choral Festival.
Stacey Rishoi
Mezzo-soprano Stacey Rishoi has garnered an international reputation for the beauty and power of her instrument. Following her debut as Adalgisa in Norma the Washington Post stated, "It was Rishoi's Adalgisa, however, who nearly stole the show with a performance that was convincing and unwavering from start to finish... Rishoi commanded the stage with a lustrous voice graced with natural expression and a surprising clarion projection."
In 2010-11 Stacey Rishoi returns to Calgary Opera to sing Amneris in Aida and to Cincinnati Opera to sing Maddalena in Rigoletto and Madama Larina in Eugene Onegin. She also performs the role of Komponist in Ariadne auf Naxos with Toledo Opera, and appears as soloist with both the Alexandria Symphony Orchestra and Kalamazoo Symphony Orchestra in Verdi's Requiem, the Virginia Symphony Orchestra in Handel's Messiah, and the Toledo Symphony Orchestra in Beethoven's Symphony No. 9. In the 2009-10 season she returned to the Virginia Symphony Orchestra to singMessiah, JoAnn Falletta conducting; sang as soloist in Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 with both the Fresno Philharmonic and Springfield Symphony orchestras; in Verdi's Requiem with Bel Canto Chorus; in Mendelssohn's Elijah with the Florida Orchestra; and in an evening of opera highlights with Kentucky Symphony Orchestra. In summer 2010 she sang as soloist in Cincinnati Opera's 90th Anniversary Gala concert.
Committed to the performance of song literature, Ms. Rishoi was singled out for her participation in the "Christa Ludwig Song Workshop: Brahms and Mahler," sponsored by Carnegie Hall. She also gave the world premiere of John Musto's song cycle for vocal quartet and piano titled The Book of Uncommon Prayer at Miller Theater, Colombia University.
Ms. Rishoi is a winner of the 1999 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions and the Norman Treigle Award from New York City Opera. She has served as artist in residence at Festival Dos 100 Dias in Portugal and at the Beaumaris Festival in Wales. She is married to bass Gustav Andreassen.
Richard Zeller
One of America's foremost baritones, Richard Zeller is internationally acclaimed for both his concert and opera roles. He is known for his sonorous dramatic voice, a compelling stage presence and outstanding musicianship.
Season 2010/11 features a Brahms Requiem with the Jacksonville Symphony, and an evening of opera arias at the Dvorak Festival in Bohemia, among other engagements.
Highlights of the past season included the B minor Mass with Charlotte Symphony, a Carmina Burana wih Richmond Symphony, Mendelssohn’s Elijah at Winter Park Festival, the Brahms Requiemwith Portland Symphonic Choir and an Opera Gala in Lodz, Poland.
Mr. Zeller’s opera engagements have included 12 seasons at the Metropolitan Opera; in 2002/03 Mr. Zeller appeared at the Met in three new productions; as Ernesto in Bellini’s Il Pirata with Renée Fleming; in the lead role of Eddie in William Bolcom's opera, A View from the Bridge, based on Arthur Miller's play; and as Chorebe in Berlioz's Les Troyens, conducted by Maestro James Levine.
Mr. Zeller is highly regarded in the concert field and has sung with virtually all the major orchestras in the US, including the Philadelphia Orchestra, Chicago Symphony, Cleveland Orchestra, the Boston Symphony, National Symphony, and the symphonies of San Francisco, Dallas, St. Louis, Cincinnati, Minnesota, Baltimore, Seattle, Oregon, San Diego, to name a few.
He is celebrated for his interpretation of the title role in Mendelssohn’s Elijah which he has sung with the Chicago Symphony, the Cleveland Orchestra, and many others throughout the US, Europe, and Asia, and he has given over 100 performances each of Orff’s Carmina Burana, Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, and Handel’s Messiah.
Press Release Contact Name: Kristen Celek
Press Release Contact Email: [email protected]
Organization Name: Toledo Symphony Orchestra