East and West coast previews of Bright Sheng’s “Dream of the Red Chamber”
17th February 2015
Bright Sheng. Photo: Alex Cao
OPERA America's National Opera Center
330 Seventh Ave (at 29th St)
New York, NY 10001
Click here to live stream the concert on February 17th at 7pm EST
The "exquisite blend of the musical East and West" of Bright Sheng (The New York Times) closes out three weeks of contemporary song and the 2014-15 New York Festival of Song "Next" series. The Chinese-American composer and MacArthur Fellow hosts and curates a concert that includes a preview of the opening to his new opera Dream of the Red Chamber, written with co-librettist David Henry Hwang. The opera is set to premiere with the San Francisco Opera in fall 2016.
Sheng, the Leonard Bernstein Distinguished University Professor of Composition at the University of Michigan, will also showcase recent work from his students Matthew Bridgham, Brandon Scott Rumsey, Iman Habibi, and Matthew Tommasini, and an affectionate acknowledgement of his mentors, George Perle and Leonard Bernstein. Sheng's diverse background informs an approach that Anthony Tommasini in The New York Times writes, "has won critical respect and appreciative audiences for works that deftly synthesize wildly varied musical influences." The Telegraph (UK) called Sheng's opera Madame Mao, which debuted at Santa Fe Opera in 2003, "…extraordinary music and a riveting evening in the theater."
Only a handful of tickets remain for purchase at the door, cash only, at Opera America's National Opera Center. 330 Seventh Avenue, New York City.
WEST COAST PREVIEWPan-Asian Music FestivalFriday, February 20, 2015, 7:30pmSaturday, February 21, 2015, 7:30pmShenzen Symphony OrchestraBing Concert Hall, Stanford UniversityStanford, CA 94305
On February 20th and 21st Bright Sheng will introduce a scene from "Dream of the Red Chamber" at the 2015 Stanford Pan-Asian Music Festival. The Shenzen Symphony Orchestra led by Jindong Cai will perform Sheng’s “China Dreams” and a love scene from the opera in which soprano Amy Owens, a 2014 Sullivan Foundation Award winner, joins tenor Joseph Dennis. Click here for tickets.
Earlier on February 20th, SFO General Director David Gockley will join Bright Sheng, co-librettist David Henry Hwang, director Stan Lai, and Stanford’s Director of Orchestral Studies Jindong Cai for a free symposium from 12:30 p.m.-2:00p.m. in Levinthal Hall, Stanford Humanities Center. Moderated by journalist Sheila Melvin, the panel discussion will explore the making of Dream of the Red Chamber, and the relationship between contemporary Asian and American music. A light lunch will be provided. This event is free, but RSVP is required for admission by contacting pamfinfo@gmail.com.
