New Amsterdam Opera Pathfinder Award presented To Eve Queler

On Sunday, November 12, 2017, New Amsterdam Opera presented Eve Queler with the company's first Pathfinder Award. Steven Herring, a member of the New Amsterdam Opera Board of Directors made the presentation during NAO's Annual Gala Concert.

Mr. Herring spoke about Ms. Queler's trailblazing career, which started at a time when there were very few opportunities for women as conductors, and of her founding of Opera Orchestra of New York. "Eve did not sit back and wait for those limited opportunities to come to her, nor did she dwell on the gender bias that she experienced. Instead, she forged the path that we at New Amsterdam Opera feel privileged to follow."

A rousing standing ovation from the audience accompanied Maestro Queler as she made her way to the podium. In accepting the award, she reminded the audience that she had recently shared with New Amsterdam Opera 50 years worth of orchestra notes, scores, and materials that she had amassed with Opera Orchestra of New York. In closing, Maestro Queler stated that, "It is a thrill for me that our work lives on with this wonderful, vibrant, vital group."

(Photo: Eve Queler, Founder of Opera Orchestra of New York; Steven Herring, Board Member of New Amsterdam Opera; and Keith Chambers, Artistic Director of New Amsterdam Opera. Photo by Louise B Photos)