Opera Aficionado is an exciting suite of programs designed for patrons who are passionate about opera. Aficionado provides an opportunity to learn more, dive deeper, and get an inside look at the world of opera.
As part of Opera Aficionado, our Interactive Lectures Series gives opera-goers around the world a front-row seat to scholarly talks, allowing attendees to dialogue with fellow opera lovers, experts, and special guests. Each month will be focused on a concept or theme relevant to all of us.
We know their names, we love their music. And yet, we never talk about them in the opera world — because they never wrote one. This November, Opera Aficionado explores a handful of composers whose craft was made for storytelling. From Bach to the scarcely recognized Florence Price, and a sprinkling of German Lieder, these are the composers of whom we say, “if only they’d written an opera!”
The modern rediscovery of American composer Florence Price began in 2009, when her musical manuscripts were discovered in an abandoned house in St. Anne, Illinois. Price had been a significant figure in the Chicago Renaissance, corresponding with many of the leading Black intelligentsia, including Du Bois and Langston Hughes, whose poetry she set to music. A musical prodigy, she enrolled at the New England Conservatory at the age of 14, becoming the first Black woman to have her work performed by a major orchestra (Chicago). Join us for a deep dive into her moving, romantic scores (there are over 300!) + an exploration of the new chamber opera about her life (Florence Comes Home, 2019).