By David Whitehill, ASO Executive Director
Angela Brown (Photo by Roni Ely)
One of the stars of the opera world makes her Asheville Symphony debut Saturday, April 16, in a performance of Verdi’s Requiem, the highlight of the ASO’s sixth Masterworks concert of the season.
Angela Brown, who has received rave reviews for her performances on the Metropolitan Opera stage, joins the ASO, Asheville Symphony Chorus, and ASO music director Daniel Meyer for the concert, which begins at 8 p.m. in Thomas Wolfe Auditorium. Ms. Brown was originally scheduled to make her Asheville debut on the symphony’s opening night in September 2015, but was forced to cancel due to illness.
In her stellar career, she has performed with dozens of opera companies, classical and pops orchestras, and in recitals around the world. While opera is the main catalyst for her career, her résumé includes everything from star hostess on stage, to producer and creator of the witty and inspired Opera … from a Sistah’s Point of View, a trailblazing educational show that dispels the common myths of opera from her own sassy perspective, and has gained international notoriety for bringing opera to the masses.
Joining Ms. Brown in the monumental Requiem are rising opera stars mezzo-soprano Dawn Pierce, tenor Dinyar Vania, and bass-baritone Timothy Jones.
“This program commemorates the ways in which music, in the face of tragedy, can soothe the soul and uplift the spirit,” says Daniel Meyer. “Verdi’s Requiem, based on the Latin text from the Requiem Mass, is replete with the qualities you expect from Italy’s most celebrated composer—soaring, memorable melodies, powerful sonics, and an indelibly Romantic spirit.”
The concert will open with the heartbreaking Memorial to Lidice, by Czech composer Martinu. He wrote the piece upon hearing of the massacre of every man in the tiny Czech town of Lidice at the hand of the Nazis in World War II. “This touching piece is an elegy to the souls who lost their lives in this brutal event,” says Meyer.
The ASO performs and promotes symphonic music for the benefit, enjoyment, and education of the people of Western North Carolina. Related organizations include the Asheville Symphony Guild, Asheville Symphony Chorus, Asheville Symphonettes, and education initiatives, including the Asheville Buncombe Youth Orchestra, Music in the Schools, MusicWorks!, Spotlight on Young Musicians, Symphony Talks, and preconcert lectures.
Single tickets for all concerts are $22–62, depending on seating section (reduced youth pricing is available). Single tickets and season ticket packages can be purchased online at ashevillesymphony.org, by calling 828.254.7046, or in person at the U.S. Cellular Center box office at 87 Haywood Street.
