Opera San José Offers Spanish, Vietnamese Translations For DICHTERLIEBE Virtual Streaming Concert

In addition to its usual English supertitles, Opera San José has announced plans to offer its virtual performances of Robert Schumann's Dichterliebe ('A Poet's Love') with Spanish and Vietnamese translations, welcoming two of San Jose's largest communities to experience this local art. Opera San José sees this upcoming performance, the first in its new Digital Media Studio series, as one of many opportunities to make the work it produces for the broader San Jose community available to all.

Says General Director Khori Dastoor, "We are always eager to find ways to make our work accessible to as many members of our community as possible. This virtual concert provides an incredible opportunity to expand our reach. Finding partners in this effort, particularly our good fortune in identifying high quality Vietnamese and Spanish translations that serve both Heine's poetry and Schumann's score, will enable OSJ to live out its mission of sharing the immense talent and artistry of our company of Resident Artists with the residents of our culturally rich and diverse San Jose home."

Opera San José is a company dedicated to producing accessible, affordable, world-class performance, for long-time opera lovers and newcomers alike. During this pandemic the company remains committed to creating and providing programming which enriches and makes the opera-going experience easily available. Performed by Resident Artist baritone Eugene Brancoveanu and Resident Artist conductor Christopher James Ray on piano, this song cycle will be filmed in the Fred Heiman Digital Media Studio, a new performance space that will enable the company to stream high-quality, fully-produced operatic performances into the living rooms of patrons.

Robert Schumann's Dichterliebe ('A Poet's Love') song cycle will be available to stream beginning July 11, 2020. When viewing the concert, audiences can chose which translation they wish to see on the supertitles. For tickets (Pay-What-You-Choose: $15-$50 per household) and more information, the public can visit operasj.org or call (408) 437-4450 (open Monday through Friday, 9:00am-5:00pm). Pre-show lectures and post-show In-Conversation events with the artists will be offered on select dates.

A masterpiece of German lieder, Dichterliebe ('A Poet's Love') follows the joys and agonies of love, employing vivid, poetic imagery to weave an intimate, heart-wrenching tale of the harrowing, emotionally cathartic journey from the first blush of new love to its soul-searing loss. Resident baritone Eugene Brancoveanu, who will perform this work, says, "This piece has a very special place in my heart. The timeless beauty of the work speaks for itself, ranging in tone from minimalist to a full orchestral-sounding polyphony of boisterous emotions and eruptions. The technical demands are tremendous."

The Fred Heiman Digital Media Studio is made possible by a generous lead donation from Opera San José trustee Peggy Heiman in honor of her late husband, devoted Opera San José supporter Fred Heiman. The company will offer up a series of performances headlined by OSJ's 2020/21 Resident Artists, including concerts, recitals, in-conversation events, master classes, artist meet & greets, and fully produced operas created specifically for digital broadcast.

Opera San José is a professional, regional opera company that is unique in the United States. Maintaining a resident company of artists and supporting emerging talent in role debuts, Opera San José specializes in showcasing the finest young professional singers in the nation. In addition to mainstage performances, Opera San José maintains extensive educational programs in schools and in the community at large and offers preview lectures and Introduction to Opera talks for all mainstage productions.

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