Opera diva Renee Fleming arrives in Lithuania to inspire both culinary and florists
KMSO, led by Algimantas Treikauskas, has affected the current disasters no less than other teams in the country.
The pandemic led to the collapse of his planned tour in the United States – the events of the gaming company went bankrupt. Due to the war in Ukraine, an important project with the soloists of the New York City Opera was suspended, and tenor Charles Castronov did not come to the United States for recordings.
At least the contacts with the artists of Russian origin did not affect the collective’s plans, as all its partners live in the West and have publicly condemned the war. Konstantin Orbelian, KMSO’s chief conductor, who worked in the past, was one of the first to do so. He did not escape the pressure, as he has been the artistic director and chief conductor of the New York City Opera since last year.
“Artists are now paying for the fact that they have adapted to Vladimir Putin’s system, that they have earned a lot – they are not innocent. However, K.Orbelian always cared only about art and talent search, he lived with creative ideas “, A.Treikauskas claimed.
The discography of KMSO, directed by Algimantas Treikauskas, includes 14 ingenious albums by conductor Konstantinas Orbelian, released by the US company Delos Music, recorded with world opera stars.
The latest Ukrainian soprano Oksana Dyke was introduced in New York in the middle of the 19th century.
Recordings with German boss Rene Pape are scheduled for the summer.
An exceptional year for the orchestra
Many exceptional projects await the orchestra by the end of the year. At the Kaunas Philharmonic, K. Orbelian will conduct the world premiere of KMSO and Kaunas State Choir’s famous game composer Lera Auerbach’s Sugihara Symphony.
Among the five pending projects of Kaunas – European Capital of Culture are the world premiere of South African composer Philip Miller’s Kaunas Cantata and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Requiem at the Žalgiris Arena.
But perhaps the most important event in the history of KMSO will take place at the Žalgiris Arena on Monday – with KMSO and Kaunas State Choir (artistic director and chief conductor Robertas Šervenikas) will give a 63-year-old US opera prima donna R. Fleming.
Primadona’s wishes are modest
That we managed to include Kaunas in the soprano’s European tour is also the merit of K. Orbelian, her long-term partner.
“I think it will be one of the most memorable concerts in the history of Kaunas, maybe even better than the impressive concert in Pažaislis” Chvorostovsky and Friends “.
Seeing and hearing a person of the caliber like Fleming is a special occasion. As soon as she hears her name, people flow into the squares and arenas – she gathers up to 30 thousand. audience ”, said A. Treikauskas.
Of course, there would not be enough people in the “Žalgiris” arena, but the organizers promise to shape its space according to the needs of the audience.
A two-part concert awaits the audience, solidifying the impressive stylistic flexibility of the American soprano. Arias from Baroque to pearls by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Giuseppe Verdi, Giacomo Puccini, Antonino Dvorak, American musical and French chanson, as well as orchestral and choral works by Ave Maria for those killed for Ukrainian freedom will be performed.
“Due to the concert with R. Fleming, any soloist would come from anywhere, and I invited Edgar Montvid to sing duets with the guest,” said A. Treikauskas.
Numerous honorable awards, including four Grammy statuettes, Fleming said he did not make any special wishes for the events, only asking for the instrument’s profit to be changed in order to begin.
Not limited to singing
R. Fleming’s silk soprano was heard by Lithuanian audiences in road cinema broadcasts from the Metropolitan Opera in New York: she played key roles in Richard Strauss’s “The Cavalier of Roses”, Gioachino Rossini’s mythical opera Armidė, and A. Dvorak’s “The Mermaid.”
Five years ago, in the role of Marshal in the Cavalier of Roses, the artist said goodbye to the traditional opera repertoire on the stage of the Metropolitan Opera, but promised to continue to perform in her voice operas.
One such opera is Kevin Putz’s Hours, which was recently performed in Philadelphia with the Philadelphia Symphony, conducted by him and the artistic director of the Metropolitan Opera, Yannick Nezet-Seguin.
In the concert version of the opera, inspired by a novel by Michael Cunningham and directed by Stephen Daldry, Fleming embodied one of the main characters – Clarissa. In the autumn, Hours will return the soloist to the Metropolitan Opera stage.
There is no shortage of Fleming’s work. She is a consultant at the Kennedy Arts Center, director of the Aspen Opera Center and the VocalARTS Music Festival, and runs the singing studio at Carnegie Hall, New York. We have repeatedly seen it broadcast operas from the Metropolitan Opera.
Because of his divine voice and music performer, he has become not only a favorite of the nation and opera lovers, but also of music makers in many other fields. Fleming inspired writer Anna Patchett to create the award-winning novel Bel Canto and renowned chef Daniel Boulud, La Diva Renee. Thanks to the soloist, the perfume “La Voce” was created, and a new type of iris was named after her.
“It simply came to our notice then. But I was lucky that my personal qualities and intuition allowed me to take advantage of it, ”the singer described her success.
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Became a sign of opera quality
Fleming was nominated for a Grammy 17 times and won the award 4 times. Her voice is also heard in the Oscar-winning films Water Form and The Lord of the Rings.
The soloist’s discography includes more than 50 CDs and DVDs, not only opera repertoire but also jazz, arias from musicals, French, German songs and even rock works.
Fleming was the first woman to give a concert at the beginning of the Metropolitan Opera theater season. This time it was designed by J.Galliano, Ch.Lacroix and K.Lagerfeld.
She was the first opera soloist to be honored to perform the national anthem in the American Football Super Cup, which draws tens of millions of sports fans to the TV screens. In addition, Fleming then sang not on a phonogram like the Hollywood actors and pop stars who attended the ceremony earlier.
The soloist’s voice adorns the Beijing Olympics and Nobel Prize ceremonies. She sang in a concert dedicated to Queen Elizabeth II’s diamond anniversary at Buckingham Palace, during the election campaign of American President Barack Obama, and during her inauguration in Washington.
Fleming’s book The Inner Voice, 2004 published by Viking Penguin, the circulation is repeated for the 16th time. This book is published in France, the United Kingdom, Germany, Japan, China, Poland, and other countries.