The South Bend Symphony Orchestra is excited to announce an exceptional performance of Beethoven’s “Ode to Joy,” featuring Ludwig van Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 paired with innovative works by contemporary composers Mason Bates and Carter Pann, on Saturday, April 1, 2023, at 7:30 p.m., at the Morris Performing Arts Center.
The fourth performance of the Jack M. Champaigne Masterworks Series, Beethoven’s Ode to Joy, promises to be a unique and unforgettable evening of music, combining the classic and the contemporary in a way that only the South Bend Symphony Orchestra can. The symphony is scored for solo vocalists, choir, and orchestra and is known for its use of the human voice in the final movement, which sets a text from Friedrich Schiller’s poem “Ode to Joy.” Sharing the stage with the Symphony are soloists Kiera Duffy, soprano; Emma Sorenson, mezzo-soprano; Emanuel Cristian-Caraman, tenor; and Bill McMurray, bass. The Notre Dame Chorale, led by director Alexander Blachly, the Notre Dame Glee Club, led by Dan Stowe, and St. Mary’s College Belles Voix & South Bend Chamber Singers, under the direction of Dr. Nancy Menk, join the Symphony to bring forth the testament of Beethoven’s genius that continues to inspire and move listeners today. Get your tickets today!
Giving back to the community, the South Bend Community Re-Entry Center program members have pooled their resources to provide 125 students with concert tickets and a pre-concert event.
The South Bend Symphony Orchestra is grateful for Jack M. Champaigne and his support of the Masterworks Series. Jordan Lexus of Mishawaka proudly supports the 90th Season Guest Artists!
How To Buy Tickets:
ONLINE – www.morriscenter.org
PHONE – Morris Performing Arts Center Box Office 574-235-9190 (10 am – 2 pm, Tuesday – Thursday)
IN-PERSON – Visit our friends at the Morris (211 N. Michigan St., South Bend) during the times listed above or two hours before any performance.
To VIEW the 2022-23 Season schedule, visit www.southbendsymphony.org
###
About the South Bend Symphony Orchestra
Embarking on its 90th season, the South Bend Symphony Orchestra is the region’s only professional orchestra and is committed to engaging the community in all it does. In addition to being recognized by the National Endowment for the Arts and other state and local arts funding organizations, the South Bend Symphony Orchestra is the recipient of the Community Foundation of St. Joseph County’s 2019 Leighton Award for Nonprofit Excellence, which recognizes the best-run nonprofit organization in St. Joseph County, Indiana.
###
About Kiera Duffy, soprano
Kiera Duffy has performed as a soloist with many of the world’s preeminent classical music presenters, including the Berlin Philharmonic, New York Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony, San Francisco Symphony, London Symphony, Metropolitan Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Ungaku-Juku Japan, as well as the Aldeburgh Festival, Ojai Festival of Contemporary Music, Wigmore Hall, Mostly Mozart Lincoln Center, and Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. She has performed an extraordinarily wide range of repertoire and is an especially sought-after interpreter of the work of the European modernists as well as contemporary composers like Caroline Shaw, Mohammed Fairouz, Michael Hersch, Jake Heggie, Grace Evangeline Mason, Rene Orth, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Philip Glass, Unsuk Chin, George Lewis, and Missy Mazzoli, among many others.
With 20+ years of international-level professional performance experience, she brings firsthand insight to her classroom courses in modern and contemporary vocal literature, lyric diction, performance techniques, and vocal pedagogy, in addition to her work as producer of Opera Notre Dame. In the applied studio she offers students a customized, student-directed approach rooted in the current best practices of voice science and pedagogy. She prioritizes efficient vocal function, stylistic flexibility, depth of artistry, and student goals. Whether as teacher, producer, or performer, her work is distinguished by an engaging, compassionate, and inclusive approach that integrates intellectual rigor with imagination and play.
##
About Emma Sorenson, mezzo-soprano
Lyric mezzo soprano, Emma Sorenson, is currently based in Chicago. Sorenson was a recent semifinalist in the Lotte Lenya competition hosted by the Kurt Weill Instituted. She also won first place in the Kansas City District Metropolitan Opera Auditions. In the 2019-20 season, Ms. Sorenson will be featured in her first season as a Chorister at the Lyric Opera of Chicago, associate member of the Chicago Symphony Chorus, ensemble at Chicago Opera Theaterand will be reprising her role in the ensemble quartet and understudy for Old Lady in The Knight’s Orchestra’sproduction of Bernstein’s Candide at the Ravinia Music Festival.
In previous Chicago seasons, Emma sang the role of Stasi in her debut with Chicago Folk’s Operetta in their production of The Csardas Princess, covered the role of Laura in Chicago Opera Theater’s production of Tchaikovsky’s Iolantha, played Jill All Alone in the Gilbert & Sullivan Company of Chicago’s Merrie England, and Isabelle Eberhardt in Chicago Fringe Opera’s critically acclaimed production of Missy Mazzoli’s Song from the Uproar: the Lives and Deaths of Isabelle Eberhardt. Critics praised Emma as a “striking and graceful presence, [she] sang with an attractive, flexible voice and brought strong dramatic engagement throughout, from Isabelle’s joy at discovering Islam, to her pain and anger at a lover’s betrayal, and solace and resignation at her death.”
Sorenson recently returned to Boston Lyric Opera to perform the role of “Girl” & ensemble work in their critically acclaimed production of The Handmaid’s Tale, which Margaret Attwood attended. Ms. Sorenson is a graduate of the Boston Lyric Opera’s Emerging Artist program. She debuted with the company as a featured artist in their Art in Bloom series at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, and has since appeared as Frou Frou in their production of The Merry Widow and Bridesmaid in Le Nozze di Figaro. While in Boston, she has also performed several mainstage roles with The Boston Conservatory including the role of Lucretia in The Rape of Lucretia by Benjamin Britten, Dritte Dame in Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte, Zulma (and Isabella cover) in Rossini’s L’italiana in Algeri, and most recently Baba the Turk in The Rake’s Progress by Igor Stravinsky. Previously, Sorenson was engaged as a returning Apprentice Artist with Des Moines Metro Opera where she sang the role of Javotte in Massenet’s Manon. Last season she was featured in the part of a Flower in La Hija de Rappaccini by Catan.
Sorenson is the winner of the 2019, and the recipient of the 2016 Encouragement Award at the Metropolitan Opera National Council auditions in the St Louis district, and previously won the Ileana Ingraham Encouragement Award at the auditions in the Kansas City district. Ms. Sorenson also won first place for the second consecutive year in her age group in the tri-state Midwest National Association of Teachers of Singing competition and is the two-time recipient of the James Moroney Nigh Opera Scholarship. Emma graduated with a Master of Music performance degree from The Boston Conservatory under the tutelage of Dr. Rebecca Folsom.
###
About Emanuel Cristian-Caraman, tenor
Throughout his career Romanian tenor and recording artist, Emanuel-Cristian Caraman has appeared with opera companies, symphony orchestras and on the recital stage in Europe, South America and North America. Mr. Caraman has performed with Los Angeles Opera, George Enescu International Music Festival in Bucharest, Miami Lyric Opera, Die Deutsche Kammerphilarmonie in Bremen, CBA Symphony in Chicago, Düsseldorf Lyric Opera, South Bend Lyric Opera, Union Avenue Opera in St. Louis, Opera in the Heights in Houston, Münchens Kleinstes Opernhaus, Munich New England Chamber Orchestra, South Bend Symphony Orchestra and New Philharmonic Orchestra.
Mr. Caraman has performed on the stages of many prestigious concert halls including Carnegie Hall in New York, Ateneul Român in Bucharest, and Wiener Konzerthaus in Vienna.
Operatic highlights include Duke of Mantua in Rigoletto, Edgardo in Lucia di Lammermoor, Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly, Nemorino in L’elisir d’amore, Rodolfo in La Boheme, Alfredo in La Traviata, Don José in Carmen, Fritz in L’Amico Fritz, Riccardo in Un Ballo in Maschera, Ernesto in Don Pasquale, Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni, Ferrando in Cosi fan tutte, Tamino in Die Zauberflote, Eisenstein in Die Fledermaus and Alfred in Die Fledermaus.
As a distinguished concert performer Mr. Caraman has performed the tenor solos in Rossini’s Stabat Mater, Beethoven’s 9th Symphony, Mozart’s Great Mass in C Minor, Mozart’s Requiem, Bach’s B Minor Mass, Bach’s Magnificat, Ramirez’s Misa Criolla, Handel’s Messiah, Haydn’s Creation, Haydn’s Stabat Mater, Brukner’s Te Deum and Stravinsky’s Pulcinella.
In 2014 Mr. Caraman recorded Spanish composer Jorge Muñiz’ vocal catalog written for tenor, cello and piano. For this project,
Muñiz composed a new song cycle specifically for Caraman’s voice entitled Shakespeare’s Love. In August 2018, Afinat Records, released the album, with the title Cantos del Emigrante.
Lawrence Budmen of South Florida Classical Review: “In the title role, Emanuel-Cristian Caraman displayed a well-schooled lyric tenor that scaled the opera’s peaks impressively. He brought passionate lyricism to Fritz’s melodic outbursts. His aria of despair at losing his beloved Suzel was imbued with real vocal drama, Emanuel-Cristian Caraman’s high notes ringing through the house.”
In 2017, he the recipient of the Michiana 40 under 40 recognition award, conferred by South Bend Regional Chamber of Commerce. In May of 2018, Caraman, received the American Prize Oratorio Award, for an outstanding vocal symphonic artist.
As of 2016, Caraman is the general and artistic director of South Bend Lyric Opera in South Bend Indiana.
Caraman received his doctorate in music from National Music University in Bucharest, under Professor Doctor Grigore Constantinescu, with the thesis, American Vocal Music of the 20th Century. As of 2018, Caraman is the Visiting Assistant Professor of Music in Voice at Indiana University at South Bend.
###
About Bill McMurray, bass
With more than forty operatic roles to his credit, baritone Bill McMurray has been described as “a baritone with warm, rich tones and superb stage presence” by the Durham Herald Sun. Such roles include “Figaro” in Il Baribiere di Sivigila, “Count Almaviva” in Le nozze di Figaro and “Escamillo” in Carmen. Walter Marini of the New Buffalo Times is quoted as saying his portrayal of “Marcello” in Puccini’s La Boheme as “a powerful actor who brings great elegance to the role. His singing is as fine as anything being heard in major opera houses today.”
Recent engagements include his debut with Opera San Antonio as “Marullo” in Rigoletto, “Ibn Hakia” in Tchaikovsky’s opera Iolanta, “The Father” in the Midwest premiere of Stefan Weisman’s opera The Scarlet Ibis, both with Chicago Opera Theater, and as the Narrator in The Snowman with the Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra.
For the 22-23 season Bill sings the bass solos in Handel’s Messiah with both the Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra and the Harris Theater for Music and Dance, “Raphael/Adam” in Haydn’s Creation, as well as the baritone soloist in a Porgy and Bess concert with IPO, the Mozart Requiem with the Chicago Bar Association and Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony in his debut with South Bend Symphony Orchestra. He will also be returning to Chicago Opera Theater to perform the role of “Mr Gedge, the Vicar” in their production of Albert Herring.
Bill has also performed the roles of “King Overall” in the Chicago premiere of Der Kaiser von Atlantis at the Jay Pritzker Pavilion, “Germont” in Verdi’s La Traviata with Harbor County Opera, “Mr Greatorex” with Chicago Opera Theater in the world premiere opera Elizabeth Cree, a return to Summer Garden Opera in Virginia to reprise his signature role of “Figaro” in Il Barbiere di Siviglia and the lead role of “Prospero” in Lee Hoiby’s The Tempest. He has sung with noted companies like Florida Grand Opera, Opera North, Knoxville Opera, Skylight Music Theater,The Opera Company of NC, Mobile Opera, Opera Carolina, Central City Opera and Opera on the James. Mr. McMurray has also performed several times with the Lyric Opera of Chicago’s “Opera in the Neighborhoods” and “Meet the Artist” outreach programs.
Equally successful on the concert stage, Bill has sung solos in sacred works such as Handel’s Messiah, which he recorded on CD, Mozart’s Mass in C Minor and Mendelssohn’s Elijah. He has also been the featured soloist in Vaughan Williams’ Five Mystical Songs, Aaron Copland’s Old American Songs and the Faure Requiem. He was the baritone soloist in Michael Tippett’s oratorio A Child of Our Time, conducted by Barbara Schubert with the University of Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Other solo orchestral appearances include the New Philharmonic Orchestra, Elmhurst Orchestra and Choral Society, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Skokie Valley Symphony, Elgin Symphony, Chicago Civic Orchestra and Waukegan Symphony. Mr. McMurray was also a featured soloist in Florence and Rome, Italy with the combined choirs of St John Cantius Church and St Joseph College as a result of an invitation to sing at the Vatican. In the summer of 2017 at the Ravinia Festival he was the bass soloist in the final movement of Haydn’s Creation, conducted by former Metropolitan Opera Music Director, James Levine. He is a previous first place winner of the National Association Teachers of Singing competition and was one of eight singers selected to the Winners Circle of The Classical Music Vocal Competition, which was held in Chicago. In 2021 Bill received a Grammy award as a member of the Chicago Symphony Chorus for their work on the recording of Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 13, Babi Yar.
###
About the Notre Dame Chorale
The Chorale is the official concert choir of the University of Notre Dame. A mixed ensemble of 70 voices specializing in choral works from the Renaissance to the present, it performs a concert on campus each fall (late October/early November) and each spring (late March/April) in the Leighton Concert Hall of the Marie P. DeBartolo Performing Arts. In addition, the Chorale performs Handel’s Messiah with the Festival Baroque Orchestra in the Leighton Concert Hall the first weekend of December. The Chorale often joins forces with the Notre Dame Glee Club and the Saint Mary’s Women’s Choir to perform the great choral works with orchestra with the South Bend Symphony Orchestra in the Morris Performing Arts Center in downtown South Bend.
###
About the South Bend Chamber Singers
The South Bend Chamber Singers, an ensemble-in-residence at Saint Mary’s College, is in its 28th season. Over the past 20-plus years the Singers have presented major choral-orchestral works such as Handel’s Messiah, Bach’sMagnificat, B Minor Mass, and St. John Passion; Mendelssohn’s Elijah, Vivaldi’s Gloria, Haydn’s Lord Nelson Mass, Brahms’ Requiem and Orff’s Carmina Burana. Yet, the ensemble concentrates primarily on works by living composers and regularly commissions new works and unusual and complex arrangements.
The Singers have commissioned new choral works from composers Stephen Paulus, Jan Bach, William Hawley, Steven Sametz, Libby Larsen, Gregg Smith, Carey Boyce, Frank Ferko, Dan Locklair, Carol Barnett, Paul Carey, Zae Munn, Robert Harris, J. David Moore, and many others, most of which have been published and continue to be performed by choirs throughout the world. Other concerts have featured music from the United States, Canada, South America, Europe, Africa, India, Korea, and even Mongolia.
The choir has joined with numerous other chamber and instrumental ensembles including the South Bend Symphony Orchestra, the Chicago Chamber Orchestra, and Germany’s Chamber Orchestra of the Rhine; the Chester, Cavani, and Avalon String Quartets; the Northern Illinois University Steel Band, and South Bend’s own Kennedy’s Kitchen.
The Chamber Singers were selected to perform for the Central Division Convention of the American Choral Directors Association in 1996 (Cincinnati) and 2002 (Chicago). In 2000, the Singers were one of five finalists for the prestigious Margaret Hillis Award for Choral Excellence, given annually by Chorus America, and they won the ASCAP/Chorus America Award for Adventurous Programming in 2004. In March 2012 they performed for the American Choral Directors Association Central Division Conference in Fort Wayne. They were semi-finalists for The American Prize in Choral Performance in 2012 and 2013. From 1992 to 2009 they were awarded annual grants from the Indiana Arts Commission.
###
Saint Mary’s College Belles Voix
Saint Mary’s College Belles Voix, under the instruction of conductor Nancy Menk, is a select 40-voice ensemble who regularly commission and perform new works for women’s voices. An outgrowth of this emphasis is the publication of the Saint Mary’s College Choral Series, a collection of new works for women’s voices, published by earthsongs of Corvallis, Oregon. The Choir has performed throughout the United States and has appeared before state and division conventions of the Music Educators National Conference and the American Choral Directors Association. In February 2005, the Choir appeared before the national convention of the American Choral Directors Association in Los Angeles, performing in Wilshire Christian Church and the new Walt Disney Concert Hall. Each November the Choir hosts the annual Saint Mary’s College High School Treble Choir Festival, in which 20 choirs from neighboring states perform for each other and a panel of commentators. The Choir tours nationally every other year, and regularly performs with the University of Notre Dame Glee Club in joint performances of major works with the South Bend Symphony Orchestra. They have appeared in concert at Carnegie Hall in 1999, 2001, and 2005, and at Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center in 2014. In March 2019, they returned to Carnegie Hall to perform a concert in honor of the 175th anniversary of Saint Mary’s College, along with a 60+ voice SMC Alumnae Choir and 6 other women’s choirs for a total of 250 singers. The Women’s Choir has recorded four compact discs on the ProOrgano label: Ave, Ave!, recorded in 1997, Amazing Day!, recorded in 2002, Anima mea!, recorded in 2004, Across the Bar…, recorded in 2007, and O Lux!, recorded in 2017.
In March 2011 they toured in Nanjing, Suzhou, and Shanghai, China, and in June 2012 they appeared before the American Choral Directors Association National Symposium on American Choral Music in Washington, D.C. They were named 2nd place winners of the 2012 American Prize in Choral Performance, the first women’s choir to place in the college/university division, and they were finalists in 2019. In February 2016 they appeared by invitation for the Central Division Conference of the American Choral Directors Association in Chicago.
###
About the Notre Dame Glee Club
A university tradition established in 1915, the Notre Dame Glee Club is a 60-man, all-male chorus world-renowned for our rich, full sound. Led by conductor Dan Stowe the group boasts a wide repertoire of music, ranging from Renaissance polyphony to American barbershop to Indian ragas. Notre Dame Glee Club sings everything from Beethoven to Billy Joel. They perform five regular concerts a year at Notre Dame (Fall, Christmas, Spring, and Commencement) to packed audiences in the Leighton Concert Hall of the DeBartolo Performing Arts Center. They tour twice each year across the United States, and once every other year internationally. Last year alone, the Notre Dame Glee Club visited 9 states and 9 countries on their tours.