On Sunday, April 14, 2013 at the Ukrainian Institute of America, Music at the Institute (MATI) presented a Special Event – “RISING STARS OF TOMORROW FROM THE CURTIS OPERA THEATER.”
The Curtis Institute of Music educates and trains exceptionally gifted young musicians for careers as performing artists on the highest professional level. One of the world’s leading conservatories, Curtis provides its 165 students with personalized attention from a celebrated faculty. The school’s distinctive “learn by doing” approach has produced an impressive number of notable artists since its founding in 1924. Curtis’s innovative programs encourage students to perform often and hone 21st-century musical skills. Curtis’s facilities offer superb spaces for music-making, as well as state-of-the-art technologies to enhance learning. Students perform internationally with Curtis On Tour, in addition to more than 150 performances in and around Philadelphia each year. When they graduate, they become musical leaders, making a profound impact on music around the globe.
The Curtis Opera Theatre, under the artistic direction of Mikael Eliasen, works with established professional directors and designers to create fresh interpretations of standard repertoire and contemporary works. All of Curtis’s 25 voice and opera students are cast repeatedly each season, receiving a rare level of performance experience. As a result Curtis graduates have sung with opera companies all over the world, including La Scala, Covent Garden, the Vienna Staatsoper, Houston Grand Opera, the San Francisco Opera, and the Metropolitan Opera.
Soprano ANNA DAVIDSON, from Los Angeles, entered the Curtis Institute of Music in 2009 and studies in the opera program with Marlena Kleinman Malas. All students at Curtis receive merit-based full-tuition scholarships, and Ms. Davidson is the Lee Shlifer Annual Fellow. For the Curtis Opera Theatre, she performed the roles of Thérèse and Son in Les mamelles de Tirésias, Sofia in Il signor Bruschino, Rooster/Jay in The Cunning Little Vixen, Rosina in Il barbiere di Siviglia, Lisa in La sonnambula, and she was a member of the chorus in Idomeneo, Antony and Cleopatra and The Rake’s Progress. Her other credits include Carmen (Frasquita) and L’incoronazione di Poppea (Fortuna) for the Chautauqua Institution, and The Long Christmas Dinner (Leonora) for the Juilliard School. Ms. Davidson has also appeared as a soloist with Juilliard’s chamber ensemble Musica Sequenza and in Bachiana brasileiras No. 5 at the Chautauqua Institution. Ms. Davidson has attended the International Vocal Arts Institute, Chautauqua Institution, and University of Miami Frost School of Music at Salzburg. In 2009 she received a Bachelor of Music degree from the Juilliard School, where she studied with Ms. Malas. In addition to music, Ms. Davidson enjoys drawing and painting.
Mezzo-soprano LAUREN PEARL EVERWEIN, from Calgary, Alberta, entered the Curtis Institute of Music in 2011 and studies with distinguished faculty member, Joan Patenaude-Yarnell. All students at Curtis receive merit-based full-tuition scholarships and Ms. Eberwein is the Carol S. and Howard L. Lidz Fellow. With the Curtis Opera Theatre, Ms. Eberwein sang the title role in Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas and Zweite Dame in Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte. In 2011 she was a featured artist on Minnesota Public Radio’s Varsity contest. She sang Ralph Vaughan William’s Silent Noon. In 2010, she was awarded first place at the Annual Minnesota Music Teachers Association voice competition hosted by the National Association of Teachers of Singing. Ms. Eberwein began piano lessons at age ten and vocal lessons at age fifteen. In the past, she has studied with Robin Helgen and Dale Kruse. In 2009, she attended the Eastman School of Music Summer Institute. Ms. Eberwein has been a member of the Minnesota Opera’s Project Opera Chorus. In 2011, she was awarded an apprenticeship and she sang the role of Mother in Hanz Werner Henze’s Pollicino as part of the Minnesota Opera’s Project Opera. When not performing, Ms. Eberwein enjoys the outdoors and pursues a life of exploration and joy. In the future, she hopes to travel and experience various cultures around the world.
Tenor CHRISTOPHER TIESI, from Sarasota, Fla., entered the Curtis Institute of Music in 2009 and studies in the opera program with Marlena Kleinman Malas. All students at Curtis receive merit-based full-tuition scholarships, and Mr. Tiesi is the Lelia A. Wike Fellow. For the Curtis Opera Theatre, he has performed the roles of Florville and Bruschino junior in Il signor Bruschino, Lacouf and Journalist in Les mamelles de Tirésias, Caesar in Antony and Cleopatra, Elvino in La sonnambula, Tom Rakewell in The Rake’s Progress, and he was a member of the chorus in The Cunning Little Vixen. Mr. Tiesi was a Philadelphia District winner in the 2011 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions. In 2009 he performed in the New York Festival of Song with Steven Blier. He attended the Chautauqua Institution from 2005 to 2009. Mr. Tiesi began singing at eight years old as a boy soprano. He received his Bachelor of Music degree from the Juilliard School, where his credits included Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi (Rinuccio) and Aaron Copland’s Tender Land (Martin).
Baritone JAMEZ McCORKLE, from New Orleans, entered the Curtis Institute of Music in 2012 and studies with Ruth Falcon. All students at Curtis receive merit-based full-tuition scholarships, and Mr. McCorkle is the Florence Kirk Keppel Fellow. Mr. McCorkle began piano lessons at age four and voice lessons at age seventeen. Prior to attending Curtis, he attended Mannes College The New School for Music and Loyola University New Orleans. He has also attended several summer programs, including I Sing Beijing, Houston Grand Opera Young Artists’ Vocal Academy, The Music Academy of the West, and the International Vocal Arts Institute. Mr. McCorkle has won top awards in several competitions, including the 2012 National Opera Association Vocal Competition (second place), the 2011 Bel Canto Vocal Scholarship Competition (finalist), the 2011 Mildred Miller International Voice Competition (semi-finalist), the 2011 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, Gulf Coast Region (second place), and the 2010 S. Livingston Mather Scholarship Competition (first place). Mr. McCorkle has performed in Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi (Betto) at the International Vocal Arts Institute in Israel, Les mamelles de Tirésias (le directeur) at Loyola University, and Il barbiere di Siviglia (Fiorello) at the Music Academy of the West. Mr. McCorkel has studied with Phillis Treigle, Kristen Marchiafava, Philip Frohnmayer, and Ruth Falcon. In his spare time, he enjoys playing piano and real-time strategy online gaming.
Pianist REESE REVAK holds a Bachelor’s degree in Music Composition with a concentration in Piano from Temple University. More recently, he has continued his studies at Temple, with graduate work in Piano Accompanying and Opera Coaching. As an accompanist, Mr. Revak has served as music director for the Amici Opera company in addition to engagements with the International Opera Theater in Umbria, Italy, and the International Institute of Vocal Arts in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Currently, Reese Revak works as an accompanist in the vocal department at the Curtis Institute of Music and is also freelance accompanist and opera coach in the Philadelphia region. He aspires someday to be on the coaching staff of a major opera house.
“Music at the Institute” was sponsored by the Ukrainian Institute of America.
Solomiya Ivakhiv — Artistic Director • Mykola Suk — Artistic Advisor.
Ukrainian Institute of America 