CINCINNATI–Cincinnati Opera and Catacoustic Consort are pleased to announce the formation of a new strategic partnership. This partnership will strengthen Catacoustic Consort’s administrative infrastructure, allowing the Consort to focus on its artistic product and organizational growth. The partnership will also furnish Cincinnati Opera with a source of deep expertise in the special issues of Baroque music, as the Opera responds to the broadening musical palates of local audiences and the community’s enthusiasm for varied musical experiences.
The strategic partnership between Cincinnati Opera and Catacoustic Consort is a natural outgrowth of previous successful collaborations. Catacoustic players comprised a critical part of the orchestra for Cincinnati Opera’s 2014 mainstage production of Cavalli’s La Calisto, and Opera News praised the musical accompaniment as “a constant source of delight.” Catacoustic Consort also partnered with Cincinnati Opera on “The Songs of Love and War,” a concert presented in 2014 as part of “Cincinnati Remembers WWI,” Cincinnati Opera’s series of programs focused on the World War I era in support of the opera Silent Night.
Currently in its 16th concert season, Catacoustic Consort is a national award-winning music ensemble that presents music of the Renaissance and Baroque periods. In June 2016, the Consort presented the world premiere of a lost Baroque masterwork, the opera La Feste de Ruel. In addition to a subscription concert series, Catacoustic offers a Young Artists program, music workshops and masterclasses, an instrument rental program, lectures by humanities scholars, and outreach to the elderly. Catacoustic has toured internationally and released several CDs to international acclaim, and it awards an annual scholarship for Cincinnati-area residents to pursue early music studies. Catacoustic also sponsors the annual Cincinnati Early Music Festival every February, a month-long event that gives amateur, student, and semi-professional ensembles from around the city a chance to perform, and audiences a chance to learn about, music from the Middle Ages to the Baroque era.
Throughout its 96-year history, Cincinnati Opera has welcomed producing partnerships with organizations including the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Cincinnati Ballet, University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, School for Creative and Performing Arts, Allen Temple A.M.E. Church, Rockdale Temple, and Christ Church Cathedral, among others. In 2015, Cincinnati Opera announced its first two strategic partnerships, with concert:nova and ROKCincy.
“We have been very pleased with the success and ever-expanding promise of our current strategic partnerships with concert:nova and ROKCincy,” said Patricia K. Beggs, The Harry Fath General Director & CEO of Cincinnati Opera. “We highly value our past collaborations with Catacoustic Consort, and look forward to offering support on the administrative side so Catacoustic may continue to grow artistically.”
Annalisa Pappano, Artistic Director of Catacoustic Consort said, “We are pleased to welcome the strategic organizational expertise of a larger organization like Cincinnati Opera. The Opera’s understanding of customer relations management and audience development will make the most of programs we have in place and have a positive impact on our long-term sustainability.”
“Catacoustic Consort has been a dream to work with artistically,” said Evans Mirageas, The Harry T. Wilks Artistic Director of Cincinnati Opera. “Since the introduction of the Opera Campus’s second-stage programming and the corresponding expansion of our repertoire into chamber and Baroque operas, our areas of interest certainly overlap. It will be a boon to have the expertise of Catacoustic Consort close at hand.”
Catacoustic Consort 2016-2017 Season
The remaining concerts in Catacoustic Consort’s current season include: “In Song Lay My Desire: Italian Song with Melissa Harvey and Virginia Warnken” (November 13); “Noel, Noel: A French Candlelight Christmas” (December 3); “Catacoustic Presents: The Baroque Cello” (February 19); and “The Catacoustic Orchestra: Playing Music by Telemann and Bach” (March 25). For more information, visit catacoustic.com.
Founded in 1920 and the second oldest opera company in the nation, Cincinnati Opera presents a thrilling season of grand opera every June and July. The company’s repertoire includes beloved classics and contemporary masterworks brought to life by some of the world’s most dynamic performers and creative teams.
Cincinnati Opera’s 2017 Summer Festival runs June 15 through July 23, featuring Giacomo Puccini’s La Bohème, Robert Xavier Rodríguez’s Frida, and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s The Magic Flute. The season will open with Opera in the Park, a free community concert in Washington Park, on June 11. Cincinnati Opera will also present Missy Mazzoli’s Song from the Uproar in collaboration with concert:nova. Cincinnati Opera’s 2017 season is made possible with support from ArtsWave, Ohio Arts Council, Macy’s, The Louise Dieterle Nippert Musical Arts Fund, and many generous individuals, corporations, and foundations.
cincinnatiopera.org
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