Symphony packs dramatic punch with Carmina Burana

Mar 16, 2011

For Immediate Release

Contact: Annie Matlow 464-7071

SPOKANE— Music Director Eckart Preu will conduct the Spokane Symphony performing Carl Orff’s powerful and always popular Carmina Burana with soloists, and a choir of more than 120 voices, on Saturday, March 26, at 8 p.m. at Martin Woldson Theater at The Fox. If there was a pop chart for Classical Music, Carmina Burana would always be at the top!

The Spokane Symphony Chorale and the Spokane Area Children’s Chorus will provide the powerful sound that is the signature of Carmina Burana. Soloists will be Dawn Wolski, soprano, J. Raymond Meyers, tenor, and Eugene Brancoveanu, baritone.

Carmina Burana, by German composer Carl Orff, is undoubtedly the best-known choral/orchestral work of the 20th century. Its savage, powerful, viscerally exciting music salutes the ribald poetry of renegade monks and minstrels. Its driving rhythms are permeated with a timeless aura. The sound-world Orff creates draws its power from folk music, jazz, Gregorian chant and Stravinsky-like rhythms. Excerpts have been widely used in movie trailers and television commercials throughout the world. Portions of the work are heard in films ranging from Excalibur to Natural Born Killers to Jackass.

Dawn Wolski's clear, brilliant tone and exacting attention to detail is catching the attention of the international opera, operetta, and concert worlds alike.  A native of Washington, D.C., Wolski earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from St. Mary's College of Maryland and her Master of Music Degree from the Manhattan School of Music, where her portrayal of Lucia in The Rape of Lucretia was described as "exquisite" in a review in Opera News. Her husband, Mateusz Wolski is concertmaster of the Spokane Symphony.

J. Raymond Meyers, a.k.a.”Joe” is a highly sought after West Coast tenor with projects ranging from Verdi to Weill with many other stops along the way. Over the past few years, he’s turned his attention to the leading roles of the lyric stage. The Duke in Rigoletto, Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly, Ferrando in Cosi fan Tutte, Rodolfo in La Boheme, Hoffmann in The Tales of Hoffmann, Ernesto in Don Pasquale, Camille in The Merry Widow, Rinuccio in Gianni Schicci and Alfred in Die Fledermaus are just of a few of the roles for which he is becoming known. 

Eugene Brancoveanu's virile voice and superior stagecraft have earned him critical acclaim in both North America and Europe. Following recent performances of San Francisco Opera's The Little Prince, the San Francisco Chronicle lauds the superb cast as being "led by extravagantly gifted baritone Eugene Brancoveanu as the Pilot. With his unforced charisma, vocal clarity, and total heft, Brancoveanu managed the tricky feat of doing most of the show's heavy lifting..."

Links to more extensive bios are at http://www.spokanesymphony.org/concert,123,specialconcertcarminaburana

Spokane Symphony Chorale is led by Dr. Julián Gómez Giraldo, Director of Orchestras at Eastern Washington University, and is made up of dedicated volunteers that come from the greater Spokane area including Coeur d’Alene, Sandpoint, Deer Park, and Pullman and more. Members participate in the more than 100 hours of rehearsal and performance time required for each concert season. The Chorale was founded in 1955 and has been an official entity of the Spokane Symphony since 1978. In addition to participating in the Holiday Pops concerts, the Chorale will perform Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony with the Symphony on New Year’s Eve.

The Spokane Area Children’s Chorus was founded in 1987, and is dedicated to serving young singers between the ages of 7 and 18 in the Spokane area. The goal of SACC is the pursuit of musical excellence at all levels, building self-esteem and nurturing the artistic and personal growth of members in a joyful and supportive way. In July 2010, the Ensemble Choir, the most advanced choral group of SACC, traveled to Costa Rica for a performance tour. The Chorus is directed by Kristina Ploeger, who is also the Director of Music Education and Choral Director at Eastern Washington University.

This concert has been underwritten by Betty Kiemle.

Tickets for either performance are $22, $32, and $42. Tickets are available in advance at the Spokane Symphony Ticket Office, located at Martin Woldson Theater at The Fox, 1001 W. Sprague, or by calling 509-624-1200. Tickets may also be purchased online at www.spokanesymphony.org Tickets are also available at all TicketsWest outlets or by calling 1-800-325-SEAT.

CALENDAR LISTING:

Carmina Burana, Eckart Preu conducts the Spokane Symphony, the Spokane Symphony Chorale and the Spokane Area Children’s Chorus, with Dawn Wolski, soprano, J. Raymond Meyers, tenor, and Eugene Brancoveanu, baritone, on Saturday, March 26, at 8 p.m. at Martin Woldson Theater at The Fox. Tickets are $22, $32, and $42. Tickets are available in advance at the Spokane Symphony Ticket Office, located at Martin Woldson Theater at The Fox, 1001 W. Sprague, or by calling 509-624-1200. Tickets may also be purchased online at www.spokanesymphony.org Tickets are also available at all TicketsWest outlets or by calling 1-800-325-SEAT.