Renowned Opera Singers Join Houston Symphony For HAYDN'S THE CREATION, 9/29; 10/1

Acclaimed international vocalists Nicole Heaston, Toby Spence and Peter Rose will join the Houston Symphony and Chorus in a performance of Haydn's grandiose oratorio, The Creation, led by Music Director Andrés Orozco-Estrada Sept. 29 and Oct. 1-2.

Inspired by the Bible's The Book of Genesis and Milton's Paradise Lost, this three-part oratorio is a musical depiction of the creation story narrated by the archangels Gabriel (Heaston), Uriel (Spence) and Raphael (Rose). The first and second parts describe the creation of light, water, landscapes, and plants followed by the creation of animals and human beings. The final part, told in the second half of the program, describes the idyllic love story of Adam (Rose) and Eve (Heaston) in the Garden of Eden.

A lauded soprano with international audiences, Chicago-born Heaston has appeared with opera houses throughout the U.S. such as the Metropolitan Opera, San Francisco Opera, Dallas Opera, Glyndebourne Festival, Semperoper Dresden and Deutsche Oper am Rhein. Heaston is an active concert and recital soloist and a regular guest at the Houston Grand Opera.

Spence is one of the worlds' most accomplished operatic tenors, with strong links to the English National Opera and Paris Opéra. He has performed with the Cleveland Orchestra, San Francisco Symphony and the Vienna Philharmonic. Spence, who will be making his Houston Symphony debut, will appear with the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, and City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra later in the season.

A regular guest at the world's most important opera houses, Rose's enormous repertoire includes Ramphis, Fasolt, Basilio and Prince Gremin, among various others. He has won particular acclaim for his performances of Bottom from A Midsummer Night's Dream, which he has sung in Aix-en-Provence, Paris, London, and Rome in addition to his debut at the Metropolitan Opera.

The Houston Symphony Chorus, under the leadership of Dr. Betsy Cook Weber, will be celebrating its 70th anniversary this season with several choral masterpieces, including three classical programs led by Music Director Andrés Orozco-Estrada. Haydn's The Creation will be recorded for commercial release through the PENTATONE label.

The concert will take place at Jones Hall for the Performing Arts, 615 Louisiana Street, in Houston's Theater District. For tickets and information, please call (713) 224-7575 or visit www.houstonsymphony.org. Tickets may also be purchased at the Houston Symphony Patron Services Center in Jones Hall (Monday-Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.). All programs and artists are subject to change.

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