#RaeHann

[onenakedfarmer]

Currently Playing

Anthony Davis X: THE LIFE AND TIMES OF MALCOLM X Libretto by Thulani Davis

Robert O’Hara, Kazem Abdullah

Will Liverman, Leah Hawkins, Raehann Bryce-Davis, Michael Sumuel, Victor Ryan Robertson

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Live from the Met on 98.9 AllClassical.org

[agendaculturaldelima]

  #ElEscenarioDelMundo

🗣 Temporada Radial del The Metropolitan Opera ♬

🎼 TARDES DE OPERA: “LA VIDA Y TIEMPOS DE MALCOLM X”🎭

✍️ Compositor:Anthony Davis (Estados Unidos)

💥 Argumento: Biografía musical de Malcolm X, líder de los derechos civiles, que fusiona la historia con el afrofuturismo, recorriendo la vida de uno de los oradores más influyentes del siglo XX, desde su infancia -nació con el nombre de Malcolm Little en 1925- y la muerte de su padre, hasta su ingreso en el grupo nacionalista negro Nación del Islam y la adopción del nombre de Malcolm X, y su asesinato ocurrido en 1965. .

👥 Elenco: Will Liverman (barítono), Leah Hawkins (soprano), Raehann Bryce-Davis y Victor Ryan Robertson

🎻 Orquesta: Coro y Orquesta MET (Estados Unidos)

📢 Dirección: Kazem Abdullah (Estados Unidos)

📅 Año: 2023

💫 Transmisión:

📆 Sábado 03 de Febrero

🕐 1:00pm.

⌛️ Duración: 200 minutos

🎙️Conducción: Gonzalo Tello y Grete Arce

📻 Radio Filarmonia 102.7 FM

🌐 Web: bit.ly/filarmoniaradio

🙋 Acceso gratuito

[thehouseofvs]

[RP Journal - 1/20/2021] Valeria Camena: Gifts, Truths, and Consequences

I suppose this is going to become a thing now, isn’t it? The idea of keeping a journal like this still seems rather silly to me, but perhaps my thoughts will change as I continue writing. That said, I guess I should provide an update since my last entry. That’s how these work, right? After Rae-Hann and I boarded our flight out of Kugane, the trip went by relatively quick. At least, quicker than it would have, if we had decided to depart by ship as originally suggested. Though, perhaps that might have been the better option, given how anxious the airship flight seemed to make Rae. It’s actually rather amusing; I thought nothing seemed to phase the Mystel, but heights appear to have accomplished the impossible. Thankfully, we were able to take a small break with a brief lay-over in Limsa Lominsa. At least, enough for Rae to be at bit more at ease before we took off again for Ul’dah. The journey was uneventful, honestly - but we spent the time with brief discussions, moments of quiet, whatever Rae-Hann seemingly wanted to indulge in...not that I minded, honestly. He has been through a lot lately, so I did not want to bother him too much. With our arrival in Ul’dah, we temporarily stopped by the Quicksands to purchase a couple of rooms for the night...though, frankly, neither of us wanted to stay for long. Rae-Hann had to go and take care of the business he had originally come to the city to do, and I...well. The Quicksands is a rather filthy place - by far the dirtiest hub I’ve seen in Eorzea. I do not know how Mistress Momodi stands it. No, I preferred to be on my way.

And what was my business in Ul’dah? Well, certainly nothing like Rae-Hann’s. I decided to stop by the Goldsmith’s Guild, to see if I could have a piece of jewelry prepared. Back during Starlight, Rae-Hann had gifted me a crystal infused with his own aether; a source of color that was separate from himself. It is such a beautiful magenta hue...

To my pleasant surprise, the artisans at the Guild were very helpful - albeit for a price. Fair is fair, I suppose. I wanted a swift job, and they wanted swift coin. That’s the nature of things. One of the goldsmiths presented me a necklace design that would suit the crystal, and after approving and paying, all I had left to do was wait. With that business taken care of, I also took the chance to contact my handler, Rikotsu. He was one of the first people I met after fleeing Garlemald, and while I wouldn’t exactly call him a ‘friend’, he has been a reliable contact of mine who had helped me get started as a mercenary. He had been kind enough to watch over Anemo while I was away in the East - I informed him of my return to Eorzea, and that I would swing by to collect Anemo after some initial business. To my utter lack of surprise, Anemo was a good boy...a happy griffin indeed. Other than that, the two days that I had to wait until Rae-Hann was finished with his task were...uneventful, to say the least. I tried to spend a little time in the Quicksands’ bar area, but after the fifth lewd gentleman...and gentlewoman...caller, I decided to leave. The rest of the time was a blur, as I took the time to explore the city. Despite coming here many times, I’d never attempted to really look at Ul’dah. It has quite the beauty of it’s own, though I did find myself wondering how different it’d look if it were any other shade than gray...

At the end of the second day, I had gone to collect my necklace from the Goldsmith’s Guild - and conveniently ran into Rae-Hann on my way out with my new prize. He seemed pleased with the new look to the crystal, so I was happy that the both of us could appreciate it. When I looked him over a bit, he did not seem to have changed, or be hurt, or anything like that. Honestly, I do not know what I was expecting, exactly. Only that when we spoke in Shirogane, he said he might be ‘different’. Whatever it was, he wasn’t willing to share until we were beyond the city’s walls. Which was fair enough, given the nature of his...dealings. So we agreed to head further in-land, towards Drybone in Eastern Thanalan. And, of course, we teleported...Mother, I despite the aetheryte system. Always leaves me feeling queasy. And Rae-Hann knows that, too, and takes pleasure in my discomfort as a tease. Well, we’ll see how much he’s laughing when he’s forced to fly on Anemo’s back...

When we arrived in Drybone, the first thing we agreed to do was find a spot where we could talk without being interrupted, so we settled on the local tavern. Most of the folks here tend to mind their own business, due to the number of travelers that pass through. So we went inside, found a place to sit, and Rae began his retelling of the last couple of days’ events. And of course, as he typically does, Rae-Hann started by dropping a shrapnel charge; apparently, Siannault had come to visit him last night, but he was not certain if it was real, or some sort of vivid hallucination brought on by consuming Una’to’s blood. Needless to say, all that strung together gave me considerable worry, but I allowed him to continue his tale. Thankfully, he explained that beyond a decent dosage of Void-tainted aether, he had not undergone any other changes to his being. And when I examined him, he was right...mostly. The aether certainly did not appear to be reacting negatively to his own, but the once-vibrant magenta that I knew to be his own aether had become murky with that ill, sickly purple hue that I knew all too well. For him to willingly do this to himself...it hurt, thinking what would bring him to take such lengths. So I asked why.

According to Rae, recent events had made him reconsider his position in the world. He did not see himself as normal, like the other people in his life, so in some strange logic, he thought that by consuming the rest of Una’to’s offered blood, he’d change in a way that would make people recognize his differences from them. And he mentioned a name, ‘Skadi’. A necromancer...the one that had his soul. In his usual fashion, he tried to deflect from the conversation by having us go and see what jobs lay in store for us here in Drybone. But I wasn’t having it. I wanted him to talk to me, to open up...and I wanted to know more about this Skadi. Yet another damned monster who took advantage of a man through his suffering, and knowing that Rae-Hann was a victim of it made my blood practically boil. In the past, Rae had tried to convince me that not all Void-related entities were ‘evil’, but if this is what his associates were prone to do...well, maybe I’d have to make a visits when our journey has concluded. At the very least, the intervention of several parties over the last few days had apparently inspired Rae-Hann with the will and desire to live - to prolong his existence, and avoid the inevitable prison that waited for him after his death. We discussed of ways to prevent that from happening, but beyond convincing Skadi of revoking the contract, or simply killing her, our options were limited - not to mention we would have to wait until she contacted him again, anyway. I hate necromancers.

We didn’t have much more to talk about after that, so we decided to take out our mutual frustrations on some of the local creatures in Thanalan. Fortunately for us, the locals here had a never-ending list of problems - and we ultimately settled on clipping a few imps of their wings, and clubbing a few of the walking dead near the Invisible City. With our destination in mind, we had set out. But, of course, things couldn’t be as simple as that. It never is. When Rae-Hann tried to summon forth his aetheric pegasus, Kurda, it instead transformed into a gnarled beast neither of us had seen before. It lashed out at both of us, and we were forced to put it down. After we decided that it would be best to keep such summonings to a minimum until further notice, we headed for the ruins, and handily disposed of the roaming ashkin that had made it their abode. It wasn’t a particularly difficult task, honestly, but it helped us relief some pent-up stress, and filled our pockets with a bit of gil. So, a win-win.

With our work finished, a heavy rain started to pour down onto us. Without a doubt, we were soaked by the time we got to the Golden Bazaar, but at least the man who put out the job notice also owned the local inn, so we were given a free night on top of the pay. Once in our room, we discussed where we would head off to next. Given our current location, the South Shroud seemed like the best choice, considering that Quarrymill was a prime destination for adventurers looking to catch their stride. Not that either of us were fresh to this sort of work...but dealing with a few bandit gangs might be fun, I think. As for sharing a room with Rae-Hann, well...I can’t say that the idea isn’t nerve-inducing. But I know he is not the type to do anything. I will just wait until morning to change, I guess...I still want to talk with Rae about some things. Particularly, some of these new memories that have begun to resurface in recent nights, with the usual nightmares that come with them...but am I ready to share these memories? Aurelian...if you were in my position, what would you do? You’d probably be handling things far better than me. You were always the stronger of the two of us. I guess that’s why- -No. Not tonight. Maybe tomorrow. @yokasaris​

[globalworship]

New Jamaican Oratorio using text from the Jamiekan Nyuu Testiment

Welcome to the 2020 staging of the Jamaica Choral Scholars Festival presented by the Jamaica Choral Scholars. The main work is the world and virtual premiere of my Jamaican oratorio using text from the Jamiekan Nyuu Testiment entitled, "Di Apasl Paal: I. Wen Im Tun wan Biliiva" featuring Raehann Bryce-Davis, mezzo soprano; Sashekia Brown, soprano; Danielle Brown, mezzo-soprano; Karim Chang, tenor; Calynton Blake, bass; and Jayron Sterling, bass. The concert premiered at 8 PM, December 26.

+++

My friend Jo-Ann Richards Goffe has a long involvement with the Jamiekan Nyuu Testiment. She is also the founder of ‘Kom Mek Wi Worship’ Magazine, which recently featured an interview with the Oratorio composer. She writes,

Here is the link to the magazine in which he was featured, so you can learn more about Dr. Andrew Marshall and what motivates him. https://issuu.com/jo-ann/docs/kw-magazine_nov_2020

[mastcomm]

Review: ‘Eurydice,’ a New Opera, Looks Back All Too Tamely

LOS ANGELES — The composer Matthew Aucoin began working on “Crossing,” his first opera, when he was in college. It was a work of enormous talent, exciting promise and considerable hubris: Mr. Aucoin wrote his own libretto, inventing a story about Walt Whitman’s work with wounded soldiers during the Civil War.

If “Crossing” (2015) lacked “a certain kind of unity” — as Mr. Aucoin, now 29, said in a recent interview — it was still taut, intense and audacious. What would he do next?

The answer came on Saturday, with the premiere of “Eurydice” at Los Angeles Opera, where it runs through Feb. 23 before traveling to the Metropolitan Opera next year. This project demanded a very different approach. Mr. Aucoin didn’t write the libretto; instead, the text was a collaboration with the playwright Sarah Ruhl, closely hewing to her 2003 play, a modern-day take on the Orpheus and Eurydice myth which tells the story from the woman’s perspective.

The play is meditative and surreal, fantastical and funny. Mr. Aucoin said in the interview that he thought he needed to do remarkably little: He wanted just to “tap” the words, to release the wells of emotional undercurrents in Ms. Ruhl’s clean, simple phrases. Throughout this three-act opera, you sense Mr. Aucoin honorably striving to serve the play.

He may have been overly deferential. Ms. Ruhl’s libretto called for a lighter, more enchanting score than “Crossing.” But the musical language of “Eurydice” is at times curiously tame.

I liked the opera most when, during fraught episodes, the music turns jagged and dangerous. Whenever Mr. Aucoin gives vent to his liveliest voice — with hints here of Ravel, Britten and Thomas Adès — the opera takes off.

I sat up every time he seemed to push the libretto aside briefly to let some gnarly, skittish music take charge, especially in the incisive performance he conducted. And the director Mary Zimmerman’s inventive production conveys the right mix of whimsical fairy tale and disturbing morality play through a simple, colorful staging, with sets by Daniel Ostling and costumes by Ana Kuzmanic.

After a short, quizzical overture, we meet Orpheus and Eurydice, dressed for fun at the beach. The vivacious Eurydice (the soprano Danielle de Niese) seems smitten with the hearty Orpheus (the baritone Joshua Hopkins). Yet you soon sense her doubts. A self-absorbed — if supernaturally talented — musician, Orpheus doesn’t share her passion for books and words. When he looks distracted and Eurydice asks him what he’s thinking about, he answers: “Music.”

In the opera’s boldest stroke, Mr. Aucoin, who sees Orpheus as a divided character, gives him a double. Orpheus the everyday guy — clueless if also endearing — is sung by Mr. Hopkins, with firm voice and youthful swagger. But Orpheus also has a godlike dimension, represented here by a countertenor, John Holiday, who appears in moments when Orpheus’s questing nature comes out. Eurydice doesn’t see Orpheus’s double, but panicky outbursts in the orchestra and her sputtered vocal lines suggest that she senses him.

Eurydice readily accepts Orpheus’s marriage proposal. But soon after, in the underworld, we see her deceased father, a sad, reflective man who still adores his daughter. (He is sung by the mellow-voiced baritone Rod Gilfry — an old Aucoin hand, having originated the role of Whitman in “Crossing.”)

He writes a letter to Eurydice, offering the fatherly advice he would have shared at the ceremony. Mr. Aucoin shows respect for the tender, charming words by setting them to somber music of lyrical pining over restless orchestral stirrings. But I wanted less reverence, and more intensity.

The wedding scene is wonderful, with guests dancing to gyrating music; at one point the orchestra becomes a riot of squiggly riffs. But Eurydice is somehow dissatisfied. “I always thought there would be more interesting people at my wedding,” she says.

Well, an interesting person appears: Hades, a character Mr. Aucoin clearly relished, written for high-lying tenor and sung fearlessly by Barry Banks. The god of the underworld, Hades first seems courtly, snaring Eurydice by telling her he has a letter for her from her father. Mr. Aucoin has a penchant for using the orchestra to hug vocal lines. He takes this to arresting extremes with Hades: Groups of instruments buttress, enclose, mimic and sometimes needle every syllable.

Ms. de Niese, though strained at times, sang with fullness and richly expressive shadings. She was riveting — a young woman tortured with indecision — as she went off with Hades then tumbled into the underworld.

The darkest element of the play and opera is how the underworld is depicted: The dead pass through a river of forgetfulness, where they lose their memories, and even language. Eurydice’s father has secretly kept possession of a pen — forbidden below — and his English. In a heartbreaking moment, the dead Eurydice arrives, holding an umbrella that has not protected her from the waters. She mistakes her beloved father for a porter.

Almost every musical telling of this myth has a moment when Orpheus sings a song that so enchants the gatekeepers of the underworld that he is given permission to enter and reclaim his wife. Mr. Aucoin’s version, with Orpheus joined by his double, is more a stentorian demand that an aria of lyrical persuasion. I thought the music, for all its stern fortitude, needed more threatening fervor.

The emotions of the characters are poked at throughout by a trio of bizarre figures: Little Stone (Stacey Tappan), Big Stone (Raehann Bryce-Davis) and Loud Stone (Kevin Ray). Like an irreverent Greek chorus, they laugh at human pretensions and encourage people to feel nothing. (No one gets hurt that way.) As they trade phrases and boisterously overlap, Mr. Aucoin’s music for them is aptly snide and harmonically slippery.

A chorus of nearly 40 voices provides harmonic plushness and ethereal sounds during crucial episodes. But Ms. Zimmerman, with the blessing of Mr. Aucoin, keeps the chorus backstage in an effort to focus on the main characters. This seemed a major miscalculation. The choral writing added pungency to the score. And the drama, which sometimes felt static, could have benefited from the presence of witnesses onstage. Ms. Zimmerman might reconsider this before the production travels to the Met, which co-commissioned the work.

When Orpheus is poised to lead his wife up to earth’s surface — agreeing not to look back as he does so — this Eurydice, her memory still fuzzy, is uncertain. Her husband is waiting, the three stones tell her. “That’s a stranger,” she answers: And when you think about it, wasn’t Orpheus, wrapped in his art, always a kind of stranger to this thoughtful woman?

After she has died a second time, Eurydice writes a sisterly letter to Orpheus’s future wife, giving Ms. de Niese a poignantly fragile final aria. Mr. Aucoin’s music lifts her vocal lines while shimmering tremulously in the background. Here this still-young, extravagantly gifted composer grabbed the dramatic moment and met it with energy and originality. If only he had done so more often.

Eurydice

Through Feb. 23 at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Los Angeles; laopera.org.

from WordPress https://mastcomm.com/review-eurydice-a-new-opera-looks-back-all-too-tamely/

[infinitelytheheartexpands]

one good thing about today at least

[slimkhezri]

*OPENING NIGHT* 🎭 #ICYMI To those wondering what I'm up to lately, there's quite A LOT. Great things are happening in my life, one of them (“Drum Roll, Please!") and I couldn't be more excited, honored, and proud to announce that I've been back at the prestigious Los Angeles Opera, surrounded by some of the most talented in town, rehearsing since January for one of operas greatest productions: Gaetano Donizetti's "ROBERTO DEVEREUX". The opera is loosely based on the life of Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex, an influential member of the court of Queen Elizabeth I of England. Starring Angela Meade, Ramón Vargas, Anthony Ciaramitaro, Raehann Bryce-Davis, Ashley Dixon, Kihun Yoon, Quinn Kelsey, Michael J. Hawk. Directed by Stephen Lawless, and conducted by Eun Sun Kim. #OpeningNight #PREMIERE TONIGHT: February 22nd, 2020, at 7:30 pm (Performed in Italian, with English subtitles.) Come join us, and experience the sonic beauty of these world class opera singers, with the LA Opera orchestra conducted by Eun Sun Kim, and our beautiful staging at the magnificent Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, at the Music Center downtown Los Angeles with it's newly renovated plaza. There will be six performances from February 22 through March 14, 2020, at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion (135 North Grand Avenue, Los Angeles, CA, 90012). *For tickets 🎫 - PLEASE Visit: laopera.org/performances/201920-season/roberto-devereux/ Performance Dates and Times Saturday, February 22, 2020, at 7:30pm Thursday, February 27, 2020, at 7:30pm Sunday, March 1, 2020, at 2pm Thursday, March 5, 2020, at 7:30pm Sunday, March 8, 2020, at 2pm Saturday, March 14, 2020, at 2pm* *Hispanics for LA Opera Night at the Opera; wine reception at intermission Huge THANK YOU to @laopera LA Opera and it's incredible team for this fantastic & unforgettable opportunity. #LAOpera #LAOrobertodevereux #SlimKhezri #LAODevereux #robertodevereux #GaetanoDonizetti #opera #queenelizabeth #DaviniaRodríguez #england #drama #dorothychandlerpavilion #losangeles #losangelesopera #losangelesoperahouse #actorslife #operatragedy #classical #RamónVargas #Performanceart #liveinconcert #tudorengland (at LA Opera) https://www.instagram.com/p/B85gN-WpoQo/?igshid=zvyfav9d6iia

[slimkhezri]

🎭 *UPDATE* To those wondering what I'm up to lately, there's quite A LOT. Great things are happening in my life, one of them (“Drum Roll, Please!") and I couldn't be more excited, honored, and proud to announce that I've been back at the prestigious Los Angeles Opera, surrounded by some of the most talented in town, rehearsing since January for one of operas greatest productions: Gaetano Donizetti's "ROBERTO DEVEREUX". The opera is loosely based on the life of Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex, an influential member of the court of Queen Elizabeth I of England. Starring Angela Meade, Ramón Vargas, Anthony Ciaramitaro, Raehann Bryce-Davis, Ashley Dixon, Kihun Yoon, Quinn Kelsey, Michael J. Hawk. Directed by Stephen Lawless, and conducted by Eun Sun Kim. #OpeningNight PREMIERE is February 22nd, 2020, at 7:30 pm (Performed in Italian, with English subtitles.) Come join us, and experience the sonic beauty of these world class opera singers, with the LA Opera orchestra conducted by Eun Sun Kim, and our beautiful staging at the magnificent Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, at the Music Center downtown Los Angeles with it's newly renovated plaza, runs through March 14th, 2020. *For more info, dates, and tickets 🎫 - PLEASE Visit: laopera.org/performances/201920-season/roberto-devereux/ Huge THANK YOU to @laopera LA Opera and it's incredible team for this fantastic & unforgettable opportunity. #LAOpera #LAOrobertodevereux #SlimKhezri #robertodevereux #GaetanoDonizetti #opera #queenelizabeth #DaviniaRodríguez #england #drama #dorothychandlerpavilion #losangeles #losangelesopera #losangelesoperahouse #actorslife #operatragedy #classical #RamónVargas #Performanceart #liveinconcert #tudorengland (at LA Opera) https://www.instagram.com/p/B8wi5pSpdyf/?igshid=p5inwo36oks6

[slimkhezri]

🎭 *UPDATE* To those wondering what I'm up to lately, there's quite A LOT. Great things are happening in my life, one of them (“Drum Roll, Please!") and I couldn't be more excited, honored, and proud to announce that I've been back at the prestigious Los Angeles Opera, surrounded by some of the most talented in town, rehearsing since January for one of operas greatest productions: Gaetano Donizetti's "ROBERTO DEVEREUX". The opera is loosely based on the life of Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex, an influential member of the court of Queen Elizabeth I of England. Starring Davinia Rodríguez, Ramón Vargas, Anthony Ciaramitaro, Raehann Bryce-Davis, Ashley Dixon, Kihun Yoon, Quinn Kelsey, Michael J. Hawk. Directed by Stephen Lawless, and conducted by Eun Sun Kim. #OpeningNight PREMIERE is February 22nd, 2020, at 7:30 pm (Performed in Italian, with English subtitles.) Come join us, and experience the sonic beauty of these world class opera singers, with the LA Opera orchestra conducted by Eun Sun Kim, and our beautiful staging at the magnificent Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, at the Music Center downtown Los Angeles with it's newly renovated plaza, runs through March 14th, 2020. *For more info, dates, and tickets 🎫 - PLEASE Visit: laopera.org/performances/201920-season/roberto-devereux/ Huge THANK YOU to @laopera LA Opera and it's incredible team for this fantastic & unforgettable opportunity. #LAOpera #LAOrobertodevereux #SlimKhezri #robertodevereux #GaetanoDonizetti #opera #queenelizabeth #DaviniaRodríguez #england #drama #dorothychandlerpavilion #losangeles #losangelesopera #losangelesoperahouse #actorslife #operatragedy #classical #RamónVargas #Performanceart #liveinconcert #tudorengland (at Los Angeles, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/B8uHhi4Jjwb/?igshid=96tp77dttot7