Julliard Presents KOMMILITONEN! Opera Nov. 16-20

This November, in Juilliard School's Peter Jay Sharp Theater, Anne Manson will conduct the U.S. premiere of Sir Peter Maxwell Davies' KOMMILITONEN! (Young Blood!) - an opera co-commissioned by Juilliard and the Royal Academy of Music - which received its world premiere in London this past March to remarkable critical acclaim. The production opens Juilliard's 2011-12 Vocal Arts season on Wednesday, November 16 at 8 PM, with additional performances on Friday, November 18 at 8 PM and Sunday, November 20 at 2 PM. David Pountney, librettist of the opera, provides stage direction, sets and costumes are by Robert Innes Hopkins, and choreography is by Carolum Choa.

"My new opera deals with brave students who stood up for what they believed in and triggers a wonderful example of adversity. It is very educational, probes deeply into the human psyche, and shows we should never underestimate young people," says Sir Peter Maxwell Davies. "I especially enjoy working with the young singers rising to the challenges of this project. The whole point [of the opera], knowing we were writing for students, is to tell the story of young people who may not have changed the world but whose work had a positive resonance that echoes through the ages. At the end, everything comes together in a great cry of freedom."

KOMMILITONEN - translating more literally as "fellow students" in German - crosses generations, time-zones and cultures with three interlocking stories about groups of students who are involved in political action. The first story follows the activities of Die Weisse Rose (The White Rose), a group of students at the University of Munich led by siblings Sophie and Hans Scholl, who protested against the National Socialist government in the early 1940s and were executed; the second story, Soar to Heaven, follows Wu and Zhou, two young people involved on opposite sides of the Chinese Cultural Revolution from 1966-76; the third, The Oxford Revolution, is about James Meredith, who fought a lonely battle against segregation and racial prejudice to become the first black student to enroll in the University of Mississippi, 'Ole Miss', in 1962. These three stories unfold in parallel and eventually come together in a climax of devastating emotional impact.

"With the libretto written mostly in English, it's the music itself that provides cultural and political identity to each of these highly-charged stories," says conductor Anne Manson. "Maxwell Davies makes brilliant references to spirituals of the American south, German lieder, and propagandizing songs from the Cultural Revolution in China, within his original music- all the while allowing each of these diverse elements to come together as a beautifully constructed masterpiece. As the scenes quickly pass, from one story to another, Maxwell Davies weaves the music, seamlessly bridging these gaps in time and place."

To view a documentary about the new opera and interviews with Sir Peter Maxwell Davies and David Pountney, please visit the Royal Academy of Music's Web site at: http://www.ram.ac.uk/video.

Tickets to Juilliard Opera productions are $30 and are available at the Janet and Leonard Kramer Box Office at Juilliard, as well as through CenterCharge at (212) 721-6500, five weeks in advance of the production. Half-price student and senior citizen tickets are available with a valid ID at the Juilliard Box Office; TDF vouchers are accepted. For further information, call (212) 769-7406 or visit Juilliard's Web site at www.juilliard.edu

Conductor Anne Manson, hailed by The New York Times for her "significant achievements in the international opera world", has come to the forefront as one of the most exciting interpreters of opera in America today. Of her recent performance in Poulenc's DIALOGUES DES CAMELITES at The Juilliard School, the New York Daily News reported that Manson's "magnificent" conducting delivered "one of the most thrilling musical experiences I've ever had". After leading New York City Opera in Samuel Barber's VANESSA - a production that earned her the company's Richard F. Gold Debut Award - The New York Times said Manson "has broken into the New York opera scene, and it's about time". She also recently received Canada's DORA Award for outstanding musical direction, for her work with the Canadian Opera Company on Benjamin Britten's A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM. Manson conducted Philip Glass' ORPHEE with Portland Opera, and a subsequent recording of the opera was chosen as an Opera News "Critics' Pick" of the month. Other recent opera projects include: Donizetti's MARIA STUARDA and the U.S. premiere of Jonathan Dove's THE ADVENTURES OF PINOCCHIO at Minnesota Opera; Mozart's COSI FAN TUTTE at San Francisco Opera; and Offenbach's ORPHEE AUX ENFERS at The Julliard School, of which The Financial Times raved "The chief attraction was the conductor, Anne Manson. She untied every rhythmic and melodic knot of this naughty opéra bouffon with flair that buoyed both a splendid orchestra and an eager cast... it was an elegant achievement".

Anne Manson is presently the Music Director of Manitoba Chamber Orchestra, with whom she has led two hugely successful tours with world famous soprano Isabel Bayrakdarian and percussionist Dame Evelyn Glennie. She also recently made her debut with the American Composers Orchestra at Carnegie Hall, a performance The New York Times described as "outstanding", and she works regularly with the Orquesta de Extremadura in Spain. Projects of the upcoming seasons include: the U.S. premiere of Sir Peter Maxwell Davies' KOMMILITONEN, an opera commissioned by Juilliard and the Royal Academy of Music, in November 2011; two orchestral recordings with the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra - one of the music of Philip Glass, the other with soloist Evelyn Glennie - in 2012; and a return to Portland opera in 2012 for productions of Puccini's MADAMA BUTTERFLY and Glass' GALILEO GALILEI.

Anne Manson was the first woman to conduct at the Salzburg Festival - where she led the Vienna Philharmonic in BORIS GODUNOV in 1994 - and served as Music Director of the Kansas City Symphony from 1999 to 2003. She came to prominence early in her career as Music Director of London's Mecklenburgh Opera (from 1988 to 1996), programming operas ranging from Mozart to 20th-century rarities and new commissions. Other major engagements have included the premiere of Scott Wheeler's DEMOCRACY (commissioned by Placido Domingo) for Washington National Opera, Carlisle Floyd's SUSANNA for Grand Theatre de Genève, and Donizetti's VIVA LA MAMMA for Stockholm Royal Opera. She has guest conducted the Los Angeles Philharmonic, London Philharmonic, and the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, among others.

Sir Peter Maxwell Davies, universally acknowledged as one of the foremost composers of our time, has made a significant contribution to musical history through his wide-ranging and prolific output. In a work list that spans more than five decades, he has written across a broad range of styles. Maxwell Davies' major dramatic works include the operas TAVERNER, RESURRECTIONS, THE LIGHTHOUSE, and THE DOCTOR OF MYDDFAI; full-length ballets Salome and Caroline Mathilde, and music-theatre works Eight Songs for a Mad King and Miss Donnithorne's Maggot. His orchestral work comprises eight symphonies - hailed by The Times as "the most important symphonic cycle since Shostakovich" - as well as numerous concerti, light orchestral works, five large-scale works for chorus including the oratorio Job, and a recent landmark cycle of ten string quartets, the Naxos Quartets.

As part of his 75th birthday celebrations in 2009, Maxwell Davies wrote and conducted the premiere of a violin concerto for the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra and Daniel Hope. In honor of this milestone birthday, no less than seven orchestras and ensembles performed 18 of his works across 11 concerts in Scotland. One of the highlights was the world premiere of Maxwell Davies' BBC commissioned Overture: St. Francis of Assisi performed by the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra under the baton of their principal guest conductor Ilan Volkov.

In addition to KOMMILITONEN for the Royal Academy of Music and The Juilliard School, other recent commissions include an orchestral work on the theme of climate change for the Camerata Salzburg and a piano concerto for the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra and Angela Hewitt. He retains close links with the St. Magnus Festival, Orkney's annual arts festival which he founded in 1977, and is Composer Laureate of the Scottish Chamber Orchestra. Maxwell Davies was knighted in 1987 and appointed Master of the Queen's Music in 2004, in which role he seeks to raise the profile of music in Great Britain, as well as writing many works for Her Majesty the Queen and for royal occasions.

David Pountney became internationally known through his production of Katya Kabanova at the 1972 Wexford Festival. Between 1975-80, David Pountney was Director of Production for Scottish Opera, and went on to become Director of Productions of English National Opera in 1980, directing over twenty operas for the company. He has directed over ten world premieres, including two by Sir Peter Maxwell Davies for which he also wrote the libretto, and has translated many operas into English from Russian, Czech, German and Italian. As a freelance Director from 1992, he has worked regularly in Zürich, at the Vienna State Opera, at the Bayerische Staatsoper Munich as well as opera houses in America and Japan, and in the UK has a long-standing association with Opera North and Welsh National Opera. His productions have twice won an Olivier award. He recently directed DIE SOLDATEN for the Ruhr Festival, LA JUIVE and AGRIPPINA in Zurich, KHOVANSHCHINA for Welsh National Opera, CARMEN at the Bolshoi, and KONIG ROGER for the Bregenz Festival. David Pountney was made a CBE and a Chevalier in the French Ordre des Arts et Lettres in 1993.

One of America's most prestigious programs for educating singers, The Juilliard School's Department of Vocal Arts offers young artists programs tailored to their talents and needs. From bachelor and master of music degrees to advanced artist diploma programs in voice and opera studies, Juilliard provides frequent performance opportunities, featuring singers in its own recital halls, on Lincoln Center's stages, and around New York City. Juilliard Opera has presented numerous premieres of new operas as well as works from the standard repertoire.
Juilliard graduates may be heard in opera houses and concert halls throughout the world; diverse alumni artists include well- known performers such as John Aler, Sasha Cooke, Faith Esham, Simon Estes, Renée Fleming, Anthony Dean Griffey, Barbara Hendricks, Hei-Kyung Hong, Gwendolyn Killebrew, Michael Maniaci, Susanne Mentzer, Leona Mitchell, Leontyne Price, Florence Quivar, Neil Rosenshein, Risë Stevens, Tatiana Troyanos, Shirley Verrett, Veronica Villarroel, and Robert White, among others.

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