Behind The La Opera Curtain

Jeremy Frank, LA Opera's Associate Chorus Master is actually a man of many talents: conductor, pianist, educator and mixologist? He is certainly the delightful host of LA Opera Connects' popular Opera Happy Hour web series. Are you a fan of reality TV? Well, believe it or not, opera has its own style of this truth-like entertainment, called "Verismo". In this episode, Jeremy walks us through one of the best-known and well-loved examples of Verismo opera - "Pagliacci" (the one with that famous sad clown).

Jeremy Frank, LA Opera's Associate Chorus Master is actually a man of many talents: conductor, pianist, educator and mixologist? He is certainly the delightful host of LA Opera Connects' popular Opera Happy Hour web series. In this episode that originally aired in January 2021, Jeremy explores opera in America through the works of three contemporary composers – André Previn, Philip Glass, and Anthony Davis.

Jeremy Frank, LA Opera's Associate Chorus Master is actually a man of many talents: conductor, pianist, educator and mixologist? He is certainly the delightful host of LA Opera Connects' popular Opera Happy Hour web series. In this episode that originally aired in November 2020, Jeremy breaks down one of the most beloved subgenres of opera: bel canto.

In this special edition of Behind the Curtain, LA Opera's Richard Seaver Music Director, James Conlon contemplates some of the rich musical works, oratorios, opera and stage festival plays, that have been associated with Easter traditions and celebrations. Works featured include: Messiah by George Frideric Handel https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r68P8TBWiIQ St. Matthew Passion, BWV 244 by Johann Sebastian Bach https://youtu.be/28bIf-OzKVE Anne Sofie von Otter - "Erbarme dich, mein Gott": https://youtu.be/r2C8TvF3dJk Easter Oratorio. BWV 249 by Johann Sebastian Bach https://youtu.be/xUKc_-x6v0M Stabat Mater by Antonín Dvořák https://youtu.be/MTPxgiAtTp0 https://youtu.be/BaKhp6voYdw Stabat Mater, Op. 53 by Karol Szymanowski https://youtu.be/soC2WFYgWH0 Quattro pezzi sacri: Stabat mater by Giuseppe Verdi https://youtu.be/HU9rqXpYWJk Christus by Franz Liszt https://youtu.be/PteHCN8_fHk Parsifal - Act Three - Karfreitag (Good Friday) Excerpt by Richard Wagner https://youtu.be/z-vcbbRREUgKarfreitagrauber

Dr. Beatriz Ilari is Associate Professor of Music Education and Chair of the Department of Music Teaching and Learning at the University of Southern California. Using both quantitative and qualitative approaches, she has conducted extensive research with infants and children to examine the intersections between music, child development, cognition, and culture. In this talk, recorded on March 20 as a part of LA Opera Connects' Opera for Educators series, she discusses the latest research into children's musical experiences during the pandemic and what lessons may we glean for the future. More about Dr. Ilari: https://www.LAOpera.org/community/affiliated-scholars/beatriz-ilari/ More about Opera for Educators: https://www.LAOpera.org/OperaForEducators

In conjunction with LA Opera's presentation of Breaking the Waves (a co-commission with Opera Philadelphia and Beth Morrison Projects), we are pleased to offer this conversation between LA Opera's Senior Director of Artistic Programs Joshua Winograde and the creative team behind the opera: creative producer Beth Morrison, composer Missy Mazzoli, and librettist Royce Vavrek. This conversation was recorded in February 2021. Presented digitally through the LA Opera On Now initiative, this compelling adaptation of Lars Von Trierʼs 1996 cinematic masterpiece reaches audiences through an incredibly emotional filmed performance. Winner of the 2017 award for “Best New Opera” by the Music Critics Association of North America, groundbreaking composer Missy Mazzoli's first large-scale opera is already recognized as one of the most powerful music-theater pieces of our time.  Reserve your free access to watch from now until April 12 on LA Opera website here: https://www.laopera.org/performances/upcoming-digital-performa

DEATH is a new digital short in three parts, based on a poem of the same name by the great American poet Paul Laurence Dunbar (1872-1906). Composer Dr. Tyshawn Sorey crafts a breathtaking reflective musical setting, and filmmaker Nadia Hallgren creates a visual story that gives a glimpse into the creative process of both composer and poet, and addresses the Black experience in America. In this Behind the Curtain conversation, Dr. Muriel McClenndon, Associate Professor for History at UCLA, speaks with D. Sorey and Ms. Hallgren, discussing how the project originated, and how its poetry, music and image resonate together. DEATH premiered on February 19, 2021, and can be accessed for free on our website at: LAOpera.org/Death

Enjoy this inspiring conversation with composers Juhi Bansal, Gabriela Lena Frank, Nia Imani Franklin and Laura Karpman, moderated by mezzo-soprano Suzanna Guzmán. These women are redefining classical and film music, while smashing preconceptions and barriers for other artists. Each has become a champion of a more vibrant and inclusive future. This podcast was recorded on December 3, 2020 as part of a live, Zoom event in partnership with The Hildegards, Arts for LA, and the Women’s Opera Network of OPERA America.

Jeremy Frank, LA Opera's Associate Chorus Master is actually a man of many talents: conductor, pianist, educator and mixologist? He is certainly the delightful host of LA Opera Connects' popular Opera Happy Hour web series. In this episode, Jeremy dives into some of opera's most famous family reunions (some more heartwarming than others). Enjoy more Opera Happy Hour here: www.laopera.org/discover/la-opera…/opera-happy-hour

Bass Morris Robinson is considered one of the most compelling and sought-after performers in opera today. He regularly appears at the Metropolitan Opera, where he is a graduate of the Lindemann Young Artist Development Program. He made his LA Opera debut in 2009 with The Magic Flute and has appeared subsequently in numerous thrilling roles. LA Opera audiences love him - especially our teen audiences. Mr. Robinson regularly meets with students and has been one of the greatest ambassadors in welcoming young people into the opera house. In this conversation, recorded immediately before the final dress rehearsal of Rigoletto in 2018, Mr. Robinson chats with LA Opera's President and CEO Christopher Koelsch and an audience of several hundred local students.

Discover On Gold Mountain, the true story of Fong See, a pioneer of Los Angeles’ Chinatown who immigrated to America to work on the railroad and find his fortune. Author and librettist Lisa See and composer Nathan Wang join Li Wei Yang, curator for the Pacific Rim Collections at The Huntington Library, Art Museum and Botanical Gardens, for a conversation with music exploring See’s Chinese immigrant family’s extraordinary history and impact upon Los Angeles, and the opera it inspired. The three are joined by soprano Shana Blake Hill, an original cast member of On Gold Mountain, and violinist Shelly Ren. This podcast was recorded in front of a live Zoom audience on November 19, 2020. On Gold Mountain will be produced in the newly-expanded Chinese gardens of The Huntington Library, Art Museum and Botanical Gardens during the spring of the 2021-22 season.

Presented in collaboration with the Prototype Festival, Modulation is a ground-breaking exploration of opera and theater adapting to a new format. Audience members are in control as they navigate through a landscape of new musical pieces—each with its own visual component—exploring the strands that weave together our lives over this past tumultuous and revelatory year. With themes of isolation, identity and fear, with the connection of breath, the experience brings together 13 of the most provocative and diverse voices in the contemporary music idiom. In this conversation, we are honored to welcome four of these extraordinary composers, all of whom are Los Angeles natives or based now in Los Angeles. Composer Juhi Bansal welcomes Jojo Abot, Yvette Janine Jackson, and Carmina Escobar. Please note that this conversation delves into contemporary issues and includes adult language which might not be suitable for all listeners. Modulation can be accessed on LA Opera's website until February 28, 2021 at 8:59pm PT

Jeremy Frank, LA Opera's Associate Chorus Master is actually a man of many talents: conductor, pianist, educator and mixologist? He is certainly the delightful host of LA Opera Connects' popular Opera Happy Hour web series. In this special audio edition of Opera Happy Hour, toast to love with Jeremy as he explores the (many) depictions of wedding scenes in opera. Enjoy more Opera Happy Hour here: www.laopera.org/discover/la-opera…/opera-happy-hour

This episode of Behind the Curtain features a conversation between Classical KUSC's Brian Lauritzen and composer Ellen Reid. It was recorded and first shared in November 2018 prior to LA Opera's world premiere of "p r i s m" by Ellen Reid and librettist Roxie Perkins. Directed by James Darrah, the opera went on to win the 2019 Pulitzer Prize in music. Beginning on January 26, 2021 at 4pm PT, LA Opera's On Now digital platform will feature a stream of a full-length performance of "p r i s m", which was filmed in New York in 2019. "p r i s m" will stream online, free of charge for two weeks. As well, on January 29 at 11am PT, LA Opera On Now will offer the digital premiere of "Lumee's Dream," which will be available free of charge through February 12. This new digital short is inspired by a pivotal scene in "p r i s m". CONTENT WARNING: "p r i s m" explores the psychological aftermath of a traumatic event, and the boundaries we erect to protect our hearts and minds. The subject matter is mature and may not be

Jeremy Frank, LA Opera's Associate Chorus Master is actually a man of many talents: conductor, pianist, educator and mixologist? He is certainly the delightful host of LA Opera Connects' popular Opera Happy Hour web series. In this special audio edition of Opera Happy Hour, Jeremy explores how opera transcends space, time and cultural genres, while inviting everyone to take a sip and enjoy opera and your beverage of choice. Enjoy more Opera Happy Hour here: https://www.laopera.org/discover/la-opera-on-now/la-opera-on-now-all-events/category/opera-happy-hour

Dr. Mitchell Morris, UCLA's Chair and Professor of Musicology, explores the intersections of Romantic Opera and nationalism in the context of Wagner's operas, as well as their resonances for today. This presentation was recorded live as a part of LA Opera Connects' professional development series for teachers, Opera for Educators, on Saturday, October 10, 2020.

Why have some "classical classics" become holiday tradition, and others have not? Join LA Opera's Music Director James Conlon as he encourages us to "have it all" by enjoying both the well-known stars of classical holiday music, as well as more obscure works in the cannon. Dive in with the Maestro to the traditional, seasonal works of Messiah, Bach Christmas Oratorio and The Nutcracker; and then explore two unsung stars: Liszt’s Christus and Berlioz’s L'Enfance du Christ.

Dr. Muriel McClendon, Associate Professor for History at UCLA, and Jeremy Frank, LA Opera's Associate Chorus Master, continue their exploration into the historic fictions of opera, what they get right and wrong. More importantly they dig into what the opera reveals about the time in which it was created and how it relates to today. In this episode, Muriel and Jeremy are joined by Samuel B. Keeley, a postdoctoral researcher at Leibniz Institute for European History, to examine Wagner's opera "Tannhäuser" and the German history surrounding it.

Listen to LA Opera's Music Director James Conlon discussing the deepest meanings and broadest themes of Wagner's "Tannhäuser" through an exploration of literature, the opera's plot, and Wagner's exquisite music. This presentation was recorded for LA Opera Connects' professional development for teachers series, Opera for Educators, on Saturday, October 10, 2020. For more information on Opera for Educators visit our website: https://www.LAOpera.org/OperaForEducators

Musicologist and pianist Dr. Tiffany Kuo is joined by her Colburn Conservatory of Music students to explore how learning, performing, and living a fuller and broader world of classical music - with an emphasis on BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) composers - enhances our musical lives.  In partnership with the Colburn Conservatory of Music, this discussion was recorded as a part of LA Opera Connects' Play-On salon: "Joseph Bologne and The Anonymous Lover" on Saturday, November 9, 2020. Musical excerpts have been edited for educational purposes. Colburn Conservatory of Music Students: Nicholas Arredondo Harrison Dearman Josh Elmore Gallia Kastner Alyssa Katahara Katie Liu Gerbrich Meijer Elizabeth Montero Justin Ochoa Max Opferkuch Ryan Turano Yu Kai Sun