JUNE 23, 2016 // 9
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Angela Meade performs as Leonora in Verdi’s “Il Trovatore” at the Metropolitan Opera of New York. She has just
completed ive performances of the same character at the Berlin Opera. Meade will perform the role again for
Astoria audiences Sunday at the Liberty Theater. notforsale
DeAndre Sim-
mons, a bass,
will perform as
Oicer Ferran-
do in “Il Trova-
tore” Sunday.
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Award-winning
Russian pianist
Ilya Kazantsev
will
perform
Chopin’s Piano
Concerto No. 2
during Saturday
evening’s Sym-
phonic
Show-
case at 7:30 p.m.
at the Liberty
Theater.
the Teatro de la Maestranza
in Donizetti’s ‘Anna Bole-
na.’”
Joining Meade from the
Met are festival stalwart
Richard Zeller, a baritone,
plus mezzo soprano Mary-
Ann McCormick, and tenor
Cameron Schultza. Clark
is enthused about McCor-
mick’s powerful singing as
the gypsy Azucena. “She’s
going to tear the paint off
the place,” he said.
McCormick, who has an
offstage festival role training
young singers, will appear
on consecutive nights. Sat-
urday, June 25 she will sing
Mahler’s “Three songs to
texts by Friedrich Ruckert”
as part of a Symphonic
Showcase also featuring
Russian pianist Ilya Kazant-
sev performing Chopin’s
Piano Concerto No. 2 with
the Astoria Music Festival
Orchestra. Clark, who will
conduct, is happy to see Ka-
zantsev returning to Astoria.
He has won the Gold Medal
in the International Chopin
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Mezzo soprano MaryAnn McCormick will sing Gustav Mahler’s
“Three songs” during Saturday’s Symphonic Showcase and ap-
pear Sunday afternoon singing the role of the gypsy Azucena
in Verdi’s “Il Trovatore.”
‘I HAVE BROUGHT A CAST OF MY
FRIENDS AND COLLEAGUES WHO
ARE ALL MET SINGERS WITH ME TO
PERFORM “IL TROVATORE,” WHICH
IS ONE OF MY FAVORITE OPERAS.’
Festival, plus other awards.
“Chopin’s Second Piano
Concerto is one of the most
popular pieces of classical
music,” said Clark. “He is
going to show why he got
the prizes.”
The program features
violinist Jeffrey Thayer,
concertmaster of the San
Diego Symphony, and James
Van Valkenburg, associate
principal viola with the De-
troit Symphony, performing
Mozart’s Sinfonia Concer-
tante for violin, viola and
— Angela Meade, soprano
orchestra.
Saturday’s musical
programs begin with cellist
Antonov leading an informal
“happy hour” event at 4 p.m.
The weekend begins
with chamber music 7:30
p.m. Friday, June 24. Pianist
Cary Lewis, who directs the
festival’s chamber music
programs, will be joined
by Thayer and Van Valken-
burg, plus clarinetist David
Hattner from Portland and
horn player Susan Welty of
Atlanta, Georgia.
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Angela Meade will appear at the Astoria Music Festival for the
ifth time in six years.