Lyric Opera 2021-2022 Special Issue: Verdi Voices

Lyric Opera of Chicago | 10 From the music director When I reflect on my career, I see that I have been trained in what is sometimes called “high discipline,” which means to deeply love whatever I’m conducting. It can be a contemporary work, a Baroque opera, even the smallest Donizetti comedy. Whatever you are doing, you find the beauty in it. I have never created myths around anything— a work that I absolutely have to conduct, or a composer who is the master of my life. But I would say this also: Verdi is a massive beauty producer. That’s part of why I am so pleased to welcome you to Verdi Voices . In this concert we will do a major exploration of what I call the Verdi Time Machine. In his 60-year career, Verdi always remained au courant . He mastered many different styles, as one can easily see moving from Ernani to Otello , from bel canto to the pinnacle of Italian Romantic opera. He lived a deeply fascinating, moving, and emotional compositional journey, and our repertoire here will demonstrate how far he went without betraying himself— without creating something that was completely different from what he had previously written. There is a marque de fabrique in whatever score you open. Our performance draws from Verdi’s vast repertoire for soprano and tenor, which made selecting the program a pleasant challenge. Fortunately we have with us two formidable and flexible artists, Russell Thomas and Tamara Wilson, American singers who have gotten very close to an Italian way of thinking about the music. I love how they have successfully entered into the realm of Italianità . It’s not just about singing. This is the world you must enter to perform Verdi with the mix of clarity and warmth his music requires. To complete this Verdi adventure, we are fortunate also to offer a number of instrumental pieces that give our brilliant Lyric Opera Orchestra room to shine. Combined with your presence here, all the elements are in place for a program of dazzling fireworks the composer himself would have loved. ENRIQUE MAZZOLA Music Director