The Next Generation
Over the last few weeks, quarantine opera has celebrated a few of the legendary Black artists of the past, here is a link to celebrate a few more legends. This week we will shift our chat to highlight some of the current stars and upcoming stars to watch.
The Next Generation
Singers
In the internet age, we are blessed to hear and learn about artists at warp speed. In addition to some links to articles, we also encourage you to visit the artists’ webpages. Below are just a few of the amazing artists blowing up the opera world with their talents.
From Classical FM: “11 Black Opera Singers you should know about”
From LA Opera: “Seven Black Opera Singers Who Are Currently Dominating the Game”
Listen and Learn about these great singers:
Sopranos: Angel Blue, Latonia Moore, Pretty Yende
Mezzo Sopranos: Denyce Graves, J’nai Bridges
Countertenors: John Holiday
Tenors: Lawrence Brownlee, Russell Thomas, Frederick Ballentine
Baritones: Will Liverman
Bass Baritones: Eric Owens, Ryan Speedo Green, Morris Robinson,
Composers & Operas
Many operas and dramatic works by black composers in the 20th century were ignored and unheard, but new audiences are discovering this rich history and programming these unheard operas. Read and hear some of the great music in this article from the NYT.
H. Lawrence Freeman 1869-1954: Considered the first African American Opera Composer, he fused spirituals, southern melodies and jazz rhythms to Italian opera forms. Many of his works from the early 20th century are being discovered again. Watch an excerpt from his opera Vodoo.
Fire Shut Up in my Bones: Terrence Blanchard’s opera will make history this year by being the first opera by a black composer to be performed at the Met. This production will star Will Liverman, Angel Blue, and Latonia Moore. Listen to an excerpt from the opera here and read more from operawire.
The Factotum: Watch a short video about the workshopping of a new operatic project from baritone Will Liverman. The Factotum is inspired by Rossini’s Barber of Seville, but resets it into a black barbershop with a fusion of modern sounds and classical voices. While you’re checking out things from Will, check out his new album “Dream of a New Day” a compilation of songs by black composers.
A Whiskey Journey
We love pairing a cocktail with an opera or singer, so this week we wanted to share a spirit that bridges the past to the future.
The most awarded American Whiskey and Bourbon of 2019 and 2020 is by Uncle Nearest, Inc. The company is led by Fawn Weaver and is an all minority-led business producing whiskey in Tennessee. The name of the company comes from the first known African-American master distiller, Nathan “Nearest” Green. In the mid 1850s, Green became friends and taught his distilling process to one of America’s best known whiskey makers, Jack Daniel. Watch the story of Uncle Nathan “Nearest” Green, narrated by Jeffrey Wright. Watch John do the Uncle Nearest Whiskey flight here.
Learn more about Fawn Weaver and Uncle Nearest, Inc. from the NYT and from UncleNearest.com.
More Listening
All the artists’ personal websites have great options for listening, but we still wanted to pull out a few amazing things.
Angel Blue: “Kids meet an opera singer” & “Sempre Libera”
Latonia Moore: “Un bel di”
J’nai Bridges: “Habanera”
Russell Thomas: “Knoxville: Summer of 1915” (We know, the song was written for soprano, but seriously check it out!)
Eric Owens and Morris Robinson: Duet from Don Carlo “Grand Inquisitor Scene”