Monthly Archives: November 2020

L’Opera Famiglia
(Two couples, great arias)

7:30 p.m. November 21, 2020
St. Peter in Chains Cathedral Basilica
8th and Plum Cincinnati, OH

The Kentucky Symphony Orchestra continues its 29th season of in-person performances and live streaming with an evening of operatic and sacred arias. The KSO, over the last 20 seasons, has offered audiences complete concert operas — Tosca, Otello, La Boheme, Rigoletto, Samson & Delilah and Turandot. These productions featured a number of internationally recognized singers, many with local ties (CCM and the Cincinnati Opera). Four of these artists return as two couples for L’Opera Famiglia on November 21 at the Cathedral Basilica of St. Peter in Chains.

Mezzo soprano Stacey Rishoi appeared in a KSO “Sopranos” evening and as Delilah (Samson & Delilah). Her husband Gustav Andreassen (bass) sang the role of Sparafucille (Rigoletto). Stacey and Gus when not on the road reside Bellevue, KY. Stuart Neill (tenor) and Sandra Lopez (soprano) met as Rodolfo and Mimi in the KSO’s 2007 production of La Boheme. They were married a couple years later and live in Miami. “As with any team sport or artistic collaboration, cast chemistry is vital for success. We were fortunate for the stars to align to find these wonderful performers available this week,” commented KSO music director, James Cassidy.

Those who don’t think that opera is their cup of tea, might be surprised to find many of the selections on the program very familiar to a universal audience (see below). The first Act offers a variety of opera arias and duets
including tunes by Mozart, Boito, Offenbach and Puccini’s final scene from Act I of La Boheme. Following a brief intermission the couples return with sacred arias from operas and liturgical works by Verdi and Franck
befitting the concert’s setting. The program concludes with the famous quartet from Rigoletto and everyone’s favorite Puccini aria — “Nessun dorma.”

The KSO invites the community out for a live concert of beautiful music and singing at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, November 21. The distancing plan used by St. Peter in Chains Cathedral Basilica will be employed, and patrons
are asked to don masks for safety. Tickets for each show this year remain where they have been for several seasons at $35 to experience great musicians, guest artists and innovative programming unique to our region.
For those who need to stay home, the KSO is live streaming each concert (via multiple cameras) for your ‘at home access’ for the price of a single ticket. Tickets are available online at kyso.org, by phone (859) 431-6216,
or at the door.

L’Opera Famiglia
(Two couples, great arias)
7:30 p.m. November 21, 2020
St. Peter in Chains Cathedral Basilica
8th and Plum Cincinnati, OH

Atto I

• Giacomo Meyerbeer
  “Coronation March”
  Le Prophete
  Orchestra
• Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
  “La ci darem la mano”
  Don Giovanni
  Stacey Rishoi & Gustav Andreassen
• Arrigo Boito
  “L’altra notte in fondo al mare”
  Mefistofele
  Sandra Lopez
• Mozart
  “O Wie will ich triumfieren”
  Abduction from the Seraglio
  Gustav Andreassen
• Jacques Offenbach
  “C’est l’amour vainqueur”
  Les Contes d’ Hoffmann
  Stacey Rishoi
• Giacomo Puccini
  Final Scene Act I
  La Boheme
  Sandra Lopez & Stuart Neill

Intermission

Atto II

• Giuseppi Verdi
  “Il lacerato spirito”
  Simon Boccanegra
  Gustav Andreassen
• César Franck
  “Panis Angelicus”
  Mass op. 12
  Stacey Rishoi
• Verdi
  “Ingemisco”
  Requiem
  Stuart Neill
• Verdi
  “Ave Maria”
  Otello
  Sandra Lopez
• Pietro Mascagni
  “Intermezzo”
  Cavalleria Rusticana
  Orchestra
• Verdi
  “Bella figlia dell’amore”
  Rigoletto
  Sandra Lopez, Stacey Rishoi, Stuart Neill, Gustav Andreassen
• Puccini
  “Nessun dorma”
  Turandot
  Stuart Neill

Sandra Lopez (soprano) has performed on the world’s greatest stages including the Finnish National Opera as Elisabetta in Don Carlo, Opera de Oviedo as Tosca, Venice’s Teatro la Fenice as Mimi in La Boheme, Opera de Massy, Opera de Fribourg and Festival de St-Cèrè in the title role of Madama Butterfly, the Salzburg Festival, Verbier Festival, and Tanglewood Festival. She has appeared with the Metropolitan Opera in numerous roles which include Catherine in Bolcom’s View from the Bridge, Frasquita in Carmen,
Vierte Magd in Elektra, Tebaldo in Don Carlo, among others.

Ms. Lopez was a winner of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Competition, the Grand Prize Winner of the Florida Grand Opera Competition, First Prize at the Palm Beach Opera Competition, and World Finalist in the Luciano Pavarotti Competition. She is also a Zarzuela specialist and regularly performs this unique repertoire. Sandra Lopez is currently a lecturer, University of Miami’s Frost School of Music and Program Director, Miami Classical Music Festival.

Stuart Neill (tenor) rose to international attention after receiving the Folinari Scholarship as part of his winning the Luciano Pavarotti International Voice Competition. Mr. Neill has sung successfully in title roles at The Metropolitan Opera, Milan’s Teatro alla Scala, The National Opera Bastille Paris, London’s Covent Garden, Royal Opera Sweden, to
name but a few, as well as performances with many of the finest symphony orchestras around the world with the greatest conductors including Gustavo Dudamel, Daniel Barenboim, Zubin Mehta, James Levine, Sir Andrew Davis and many others. Mr. Neillhas been awarded Two Grammy Awards and has commercially released more than thirty CD recordings and three DVD’s world-wide.

Stacey Rishoi Has sung with some of the great orchestras and opera companies across the US including the New York Philharmonic, National Symphony Orchestra, Cincinnati Symphony, Buffalo Symphony and others. Ms Rishoi has sung leading roles with Cincinnati Opera, the Seattle Opera, Washington National Opera, Calgary Opera and Wolf Trap Opera, etc.
She is a previous winner of the 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.

Gustav Andreassen has appeared as Philippe in Don Carlos (Hamburgishe Staatsoper, Deutsche Oper am Rhein). Prince Gremin in Eugene Onegin (San Francisco Opera, The National Symphony). Osmin in Die Entführung aus dem Serail (Opéra Atelier, Boston Lyric Opera, Vlammse Opera, Glimmerglass Opera, Wolftrap Opera). Sarastro in Die Zauberflöte (New York City Opera) Commendatore in Don Giovanni (Florida Grand, Cincinnati Opera, Deutsche Oper, Boston Baroque, Oper Graz). Sparafucile in Rigoletto (Deutsche Oper, Cincinnati Opera) Shostakovich’s 13th Symphony Babi Yar (Seattle Symphony). Mozart Requiem (Atlanta Symphony). Ghost of Hector in Les Troyens (Boston Symphony Orchestra). Ramphis in Aïda (Anton Coppola’s final performance with Opera Tampa)