News from the Wagner Society

 

For more information:

                                                                               

                                                               Thomas Arthur (press)

                                                                                  Aurelius Fernandez at 301.907.2600 (general)

 

WASHINGTON, D.C., AUGUST 2005 ––––– The Wagner Society of Washington, D.C. is pleased to announce

 

The 11th Evelyn Lear and Thomas Stewart Emerging Singers Concert

Friday, October 14, 2005, at the German Embassy

 

under the honorary patronage of His Excellency, Wolfgang Ischinger, Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany.  The concert will begin at 7:30 P.M. in the auditorium of the Embassy of Germany, 4645 Reservoir Road, N.W., Washington, D.C.  A reception with the presenters, Evelyn Lear and Thomas Stewart, and with the artists will follow after the performance.

 

The concert will consist of selections from two of Richard Wagner’s works, Tannhäuser and Götterdämmerung.  The solos and scenes will be performed by four American singers with the potential for careers singing Wagner’s music.  The singers will have been selected and coached by the world-famous opera stars and teachers Evelyn Lear and Thomas Stewart, together with John Edward Niles, a member of the Board of Directors of the Wagner Society and Director of the Opera Theater of Northern Virginia.

 

Featured in the concert will be soprano Rebecca Teems, returning mezzo-soprano Roxanne Rowedder,  tenor Christopher Owens, and another singer to be selected through auditions held in August in Washington.  The noted Washington teacher and pianist, Betty Bullock, will accompany the singers on the Blüthner piano.  The complete program will be posted at www.wagner-dc.org before the concert. 

 

The Emerging Singers Program is a partnership of the Wagner Society with Evelyn Lear and Thomas Stewart.  Its concerts are intended to provide performing experience to aspiring Wagner singers and offer the public an opportunity to enjoy Wagner’s music.  While this is not a contest, participating singers may receive further support from the Wagner Society of Washington, D.C. to help advance their careers.

 

Evelyn Lear and Thomas Stewart are two of the greatest singers of our times.  Their distinguished opera careers took them to the world’s most important opera houses and festivals.  Both won prestigious awards for their singing and recordings, including a number of Grammy awards.  They are now in demand for master classes and coaching and are devoted to helping develop American singers.  In this way, they pass on to the next generation of singers the high artistic standards they have established in their own brilliant singing careers.  A number of participants in the Emerging Singers Program have moved on to promising engagements, both in the United States and in Europe.  For more information about these participants, see “The Wagner Singer” at the web site of the Wagner Society.

 

Admission to the concert and reception is $25 for Wagner Society members and $35 for others.  Society memberships and reservations for the concert and reception are available on the Society’s web page or by calling the Society.  Ample street parking is available outside the Embassy along Reservoir Road. 

 

 

 

The Wagner Society of Washington, D.C.

P.O. Box 33051Washington, D.C. 20033 ■ Telephone 301.907.2600 ■ Facsimile 301.907.8671

www.wagner-dc.org